My favourite blog of the week.

Dear reader,

I've been really enjoying this blog My thrifty homemade challenge. Mandy writes about her cooking and has lots of thrifty recipes which she shows with some nice pictures. She always helps out with foodie ideas and recipes and I really like that she replies to each comment, something which I appreciate takes effort.

I am going to nominate a blog of the week, just one that I really like and this week it's Mandy and her homemade thrifty challenge. Do click the link and have a look, she's lovely. X

Is it free if usually I would have binned it?

Dear reader,

I actually got excited last night when I found a slice of quiche and a portion of green beans in the freezer last night and a tin of processed peas in the larder! When you're trying to only use what you have, they're big finds I can tell you.

Last night we had the chicken legs, tinned potatoes and the green beans and peas. There were some peas and beans left over and I stashed them in the fridge.
Breakfast was cereal with milk and porridge and for lunch I decided to make soup.

I chopped half the limp celery and softened it in a small pan with a bit of fry light, then I added a stock cube (only had beef) then added half a pint of water along with the beans and peas. I brought it to the boil and then turned off the hob. I do this a lot now with the hob and th oven, I reckon I can cook on half the cost as it stays hot for so long afterwards.

I used my blending stick and added half a teaspoon each of ginger purée and mint sauce. It was lovely and just to think I would have thrown all the veg away before!  That makes it feel like free food. I had the quiche slice too along with last scrape of pickle.

I got dinner ready for tonight and decided to make a chilli but serve it in tortilla wraps which I will make myself. So, so easy, flour, water, oil and pinch of salt. Roll flat and cook in a large frying pan no oil required.

I used the other half of the celery in the chilli with a tin of tomatoes and a handful of lentils to bulk it out and half left it on low in the slow cooker.

I will be making the sausage pasta for tommorows lunch and probably the Fishcakes for dinner.
I'm really enjoying this challenge, not sure how long I can go for as we will need milk at some stage and eggs.

It has made me very very careful with what I throw away and I hope this will continue.

How much have you got stashed away? I wonder how long people could survive with whats in their kitchens? Could you cancel food shopping for one week?

Back to frugal cooking, making do with what is in.

Dear reader,

Long time no chat, sorry.

I was meant to go food shopping today but had a good read of some frugal blogs last night and decided to try and do with what we had already. We eat three meals a day and I try to vary these. We take a packed lunch to work but we were eating too much bread so I am taking a tip from Frugal Queen and just making more for dinner to take the next day.

I had a good look through the fridge, freezer and larder today and found the following:

FREEZER

2 chicken quarters
4 sausages
2 slices of bread
Mini waffles (potato based)
A h/m chicken curry
Potato wedges
A chopped, cooked and frozen pork belly slice
Half a tub ice cream
Frozen green beans

FRIDGE

A sorry looking celery
Grated cheese ( about half a block)
Cherry tomatoes
Margarine
4 pints of milk
2 slices of ham
200g cream cheese
1 old yogurt
kos lettuce
A garlic bulb
A pack of minced beef

LARDER

lots of rice- white and brown
Pasta, spaghetti, lasagne
Red lentils
3 onions
2 instant mash
1 pack onion bhaji mix
Oil, olive and sesame
Loads of sauces, stir fry, BBQ marinade, sweet and sour (Approved food bulk buy)
Porridge oats
Tea bags
Cereal
Seeds for salads
Tins, baked beans, mushy peas, tomatoes, tuna, new potatoes, mixed beans, sweetcorn.
Flour and sugar. Lots of spices.

Tonight we are eating the chicken thighs with roasted, tinned new potatoes ( they come out ok).
Big man will have spicy pork with rice for lunch tomorrow and for dinner we will have chilli with rice.
Breakfasts are porridge or cereal with milk.

Future meals will be: spicy sausage pasta, chicken curry, rice and onion bhaji s, Fishcakes with the
tuna and instant mash, another chilli hopefully with the wedges and flatbreads with cheese and tomato topping in a kind of toasted sandwich style.

I can save my shopping money this week by just making do.

Much love. X

Hunters chicken tonight.

Dear reader,

What a lovely hot day. I was troubled to see a lady driving into John Lewis with her dog in the car though. It always ruins the summer for me, the amount of stupid, ignorant people who leave their dogs in cars in this heat.  Just leave them at home with some water and shade.  STUPIDS.

Anyway, rant over. I had some chicken pieces to use up and decided to do Big Mans favourite, Hunter Chicken.

I had some Approved Food BBQ, roast in the bags left and put three drumsticks and two large thighs inside, you toss them in the powder and tie up the bag. A couple of hours in the fridge and I roasted them for 20 mins.

I defrosted some diced onion. (I always chop a load in the food processor and then freeze in portions as I only like to cry once). Once the chicken was cooked I poured all the lovely, sticky chicken and juices into a baking dish. Put the onions on top and poured 2 BBQ marinade sauces over. Also from AF. ( I have a huge box in the larder full of various flavours) I baked that for 5 mins and then put 4 rashers of bacon, cut in half on top and two handfuls of grated cheese. A further 5 mins and it was a wonderful, bubbling, browned on top dish of gorgeousness.

Sorry we ate it, no pics.

I am using up lots of cupboard food and just buying chicken, eggs, milk and bread with fruit and salad.

I have some Quorn pieces in the freezer which are just like chicken so am thinking of something summery to make with them and then the fridge and freezer are pretty empty.

I like salads in the summer so lots of them soon.

Much love. X

Quick crispy chicken.

Dear reader,

Hello, have been away for a while. How lovely to see new followers Chris Carter and some other via Bloglovin. Thanks for reading.

A busy day in the garden today. Weeding, making new beds, planting and generally tidying. I needed a quick dinner for tonight as we are both tired. Now we could get a takeaway but a curry would be about £30, KFC about £20 and I am still dieting. 2 stone lighter and I don't want to eat greasy, fattening food. What to do?

I buy the large packs of chicken portions from Asda for £5. Thighs, drumsticks and two large legs.
I split the pack and freeze. I had two legs in the fridge defrosting so decided to make this. Crispy chicken with potato wedges and stuffed peppers.

I skinned the chicken legs and coated them with half a teaspoon each of Bovril. The chicken flavour is best but I only had beef. I wanted a sticky surface for some approved food crispy breadcrumbs I had. I sprinkled these on top, ready for baking. I peeled and par boiled the wedges and sprayed with fry light. They will go in the oven together.
I halved a red pepper and filled this with a portion of frozen veg mixed with onion and a tablespoon of cream cheese. A light sprinkle of grated cheese on top and baked in the oven for 15 mins.

Great meal, low calories, low fat and a whole lot cheaper than a takeaway.

Have a great weekend.
X

Weigh in Wednesday- day late

Dear reader,

A short, weigh in post tonight. Went to SW last night and lost 3 more pounds. That's a 9 pound loss in two weeks. I am thrilled! I am not hugely overweight and only want to lose another stone so am well chuffed.

Food is remaining similar but I have noticed we are not spending as much money. Losing and gaining!


Today I had a Mullerlight yogurt for breakfast with some grapes.
Lunch was a ham salad with a pot of beetroot salad mixed in-no dressing. Satsuma afterwards.
Dinner- I roasted two chicken thighs and then removed the skin. I gently fried some onion and garlic in a few squirts of Frylight. I added two chopped stalks of celery that were a little limp, a chicken stock cube, a tea spoon of bovril, some diced potato, frozen peas, frozen sweetcorn, a handful of red lentils and towards the end, some thickly sliced mushrooms. I removed the cooked chicken from the bone while still hot and added with a good grind of pepper.

Honestly, for a made up dinner it tasted fantastic. I served big mans in a large h/m Yorkshire pudding  with cabbage.
While the chicken was roasting I cooked some jacket potatoes and a halved butternut squash.
I will have the potato at work tomorrow for lunch and the squash will be made into soup with some other vegetables.

Thanks for popping in and I love to read your comments as always.

Much love. X

Happy, sunny, positive.

Dear reader,

Welcome to my new followers, thank you for reading.

Lovely sunny day here and I have a few days off. Diet is going really well and I am feeling very positive.
I am on week 4 of the couch to 5k which is 3 and 5 mins running, twice with shorter rests between.
I will move on to 8 mins running next week. People have mentioned the high they get after running and I now know what they mean. I am enjoying it!

I haven't done much cooking apart from a veggie chilli which I like to take to work with boiled rice.
We have both been eating omlettes, salads, fish and lots more fruit. I definately feel better.

I now feel hungry in the morning which I never have before. I look forward to breakfast.

This is what I usually eat now.

Breakfast-  2 Weetabix with half milk, half water. Hot with sweetener.

Lunch- jacket potato with natural yogurt and tuna, large salad. Muller light yogurt, banana.

Dinner-Fish and salad, satsuma and apple.

I usually have an Alpen light cereal bar for a snack with a cup of tea at work. I am trying to increase my water intake as well.

Food buying is just chicken, salad, fruit and milk. Much less bread although big man sometimes takes a sandwich to work. Am getting into this healthy eating and loving it!

Have you made changes to your diet? Do you get you 5 a day? Are you a Slimming World follower?
I would love to hear you stories and recipes.

Have a fabulous weekend and I hope this gorgeous weather comes to you.

X