Filling up the freezers

I made my final car payment this week!  My wee 4yo car is now all mine 🚗 So that frees up a nice wee amount each month which I will be adding to my savings from next month.  But to celebrate I bought another freezer!!  Same silver colour as my fridge freezer and it fits nicely into the corner on the other side of the table.  It's not plugged in yet in this photo, it's just been dumped for the gases to settle!   I chose this Indesit one as it's able to keep food frozen for 12 hours if the power goes out.  

I popped into Lidl on Monday and got lucky again.  I knew I'd be able to use up everything and put it in my new freezer 😊  From the above,  I chopped and froze the melon (it was perfect!!) and peaches (had to skin them first.)  I made a sort of tomato relish by chopping up the really ripe tomatoes and cooking them with some sugar and vinegar.  Delicious!!  I've used some of the peppers in a sweet and sour sauce today.  I squeezed the oranges and froze the juice in ice cubes.  And Luna has been eating the cucumber with me as a snack! 🥒

Then last night my DIL gifted me some of her 10p fruit bargains from her Sainsbury's Local.  The plums and apricots have been poached and put in the freezer.  The kale was just sorted into a freezer bag and half of  the pineapple was used in the sweet and sour sauce.  Guess where the other half is??  Yep, the freezer!! 😂

I made a short video of the sweet and sour sauce as I just can't edit in a lot of clips and photos to a longer video within a reasonable time.  I've got other stuff to do!  It took 3 hours to upload a 15 min chat for editing.  So I think creating shorts of me cooking works better then I can just do a one take chat to camera for the other stuff with a wee bit of editing.  Thanks to Mean Queen for that idea!  What do you think?  Opinions welcome!

Free (ish) food

 

After dropping Luna off at the vet this morning (she was furious I hadn't fed her!!)  I popped into town as I needed to do bank stuff etc.  The PIN machines in the bank still weren't working after last week's worldwide computer glitch so I got a paper receipt for my transactions.  Not had one of those in a very long time!!  I had a £6 M&S voucher which was my quarterly reward for using their credit card so it's basically 'free' money.  I paid 1p for the above veggies.  Green beans, spinach and Mediterranean veggies for the freezer and broccoli for the fridge.

I went to the community food place and got 4 lamb burgers, mange tout and tenderstem broccoli for free.  I joined their Pantry Club (£2) so I can now shop in the Pantry.  You can shop for 5 items each time for £2 (I think!) but I didn't buy anything today as I had plenty of food from elsewhere.

I went to the Bureau de Change as I found some old US dollars in a wallet.  I wasn't even sure if they still legal but they were!  So my $43 were exchanged for £30.27.  I went to Waitrose (as that's the free car park I use) and spent it on some stocking up items.  There were some yellow sticker bargains!  I got 2 packs of cubed venison (now bubbling away in the Crockpot) 2 packs of sausagemeat and a rump steak as I had no meat or fish in the freezer.  I treated myself to some fresh Scottish strawberries but that wasn't included in the dollar money.

I had the steak sliced and stir fried with some mange tout and broccoli.  It was delicious!! 😋 A real treat as I just don't buy steak any more.

Luna's home and feeling very sorry for herself.  She's still doped up and woozy from the drugs so she's very sleepy and calm.  For now...

Haggis sausage rolls

 

They won't win any prizes for their looks but oh my goodness they're delicious!! 😋 Pastry made from scratch (56p worth of flour and 66p worth of home made butter) and filled with the free haggis I got from the community shop.  I used half a beaten egg (11p worth) to brush the tops and popped them in the oven.  Excluding electricity costs each one costs just under 17p each.

A bit less than the artisan ones I saw at the Farmers Market on Saturday! 

Butter

 

This is how I make butter.  I've got it down to a fine art and can make a batch within 10 mins.  It's probably not the 'correct' way so if the butter police are reading, I've not poisoned anyone yet!!  I use  my old mixer to whip the cream.  I've had it for about 17 years.  I really wanted a Kitchen Aid one back in the day but couldn't justify the cost so got this Kenwood Patissiere instead.  It's a great work horse in the kitchen!

It takes about 9 mins of high speed whisking to get to this stage where the butter and buttermilk separate.  I do use the splashguard but even then if you're not quick enough to switch it off, it splashes all over the place!

I strain the butter and buttermilk through some muslin over a sieve.  Then I gather the corners and squeeze all the buttermilk out.  You're supposed to now rinse the butter in cold water to get rid of the last traces of buttermilk so the butter doesn't spoil and keeps longer.  I never do this! 😱😂  I just pat it dry and shape it into a block.  I never salt it, preferring to leave it plain.  Sometimes I freeze some of it if I know I'll not use much in the coming week.

My mixer copes with a 600ml carton so I did 3 separate batches yesterday.  1.8 litres of cream (3 x 600ml) made just under 900g of butter.  I portioned the butter into 100g blocks and the buttermilk into 175ml portions as that's how much my scone recipe needs.

I froze 8 of the blocks of butter along with the tubs of buttermilk and the tubs of minced beef mixture.  I also had some chicken stock to freeze as I'd poached some chicken breast in the Crockpot.  I keep saying I need to run down my freezer to clean it out but I can't help filling it up when I get a bargain or two, or free!! 😊

Free food haul

 

I got my M&S vouchers this week for the last quarter.  I get vouchers for using their credit card which I use to buy everything from food to petrol and pay it off each month.  It was a surprising £11!  I guess Christmas presents and a few vet bills added to my spending total.  So it was very welcome.  I went to M&S this morning with an open mind and was thrilled to find reduced double cream (600ml size) and minced beef (750g.)  I also got some brown sugar (500g) as I have none left and treated myself to a bag of sweets.  Total cost of above was exactly £12.  BUT I had counted it up as £11.17.  I just assumed I'd miscounted until I got home and checked my receipt.  I can hear Sarah shouting at me through the screen!!!  One of the pots of cream had scanned at full price as the yellow sticker doesn't quite cover the original barcode.  So I was overcharged by 83p.  When will I learn??  But hey, all of the above only cost me £1.

On the way back to the car I popped into the community food place and got some chicory, 4 tangerines, a lemon, 2 peaches, a doughnut and a haggis.  My DIL took a tangerine and a peach.  Everything was free.  The lady was very apologetic saying they didn't have very much today but I got a treat, some fresh fruit and a haggis that will make a few meals.  It's currently defrosting in the fridge.

It was a very chocolatey doughnut!!

I've cooked the minced beef with my usual onion/carrots/red lentils mixture to stretch it.  I reckon I can get at least 8 generous portions to pop in the freezer.  I've left it unflavoured so I can use it in various different meals.  I'll make a ton of butter from the cream later and freeze it too.

The weather is still cold and damp here.  Luckily no ice or snow yet which is unusual given other parts of the country do have some.  But I'm still inclined to stay indoors and be a hermit any way! 😊

It's all Greek!

 

My son got one of those themed snack boxes for his recent birthday.  They feature a different country each month and the one he got was all Greek products.  But he doesn't like nuts and my DIL is allergic so I get gifted anything nutty 🥜 And who doesn't love free food? 😊

I'm looking forward to my croissant and biscuits! 🥐🍪

These snacks look interesting!

Since I've just scoffed a couple of freshly made scones I'll need to wait until later to test the Greek snacks.  I don't have any jam at the moment so I had them with marmalade and whipped cream!!  I'm using up what I've got and they were good 😋 Marmalade is just citrus jam although it's a wee bit tangy! 😂

Toothache and food haul

 

I broke a tooth back in October and saw my fab NHS dentist at the end of November (that's really fast here!!)  It was so badly broken a filling couldn't save it, so it was decided I needed it crowned.  I went to the first appt in December to start the process but as I was having some sensitivity my dentist said wait another 6 weeks.  

I went back today expecting to start root canal treatment as it hasn't settled.  He told me the nerve is dying (which I knew from past experiences) and the broken tooth is not worth saving.  So I'm losing another tooth!!  😭 It's not agony but I do have a low level constant dull ache.  As I've lost a few teeth in that area due to recurring abscesses, I now need a plate!  😭  A real sign that I'm getting old! 👵But thanks to our NHS dental system, it costs a lot less to get an extraction and plate than it does to get a crown.  Silver lining and all that!

As I was in town any way, I popped into my favourite place!  Today's haul from the community food shop (all free) was potatoes, sausage rolls (already frozen), spicy rice (already frozen with no label), 2 all butter croissants (they were huge), 2 large passionfruit and a large avocado.  All from M&S and Waitrose!

The lady giving out the fridge stuff said that the avocado was "really ripe" so I didn't have high hopes it would be edible.  I was wrong!  It's the most perfect avocado I've had in aaaages.  I mashed half of it up and spread it on one of the croissants with some streaky bacon.  The other half I sliced and froze.

As we're expecting some snowy weather this week with up to minus 15 degrees C in places, it's good to know I have enough food if we're snowed in for any length of time ⛄❄

Free food

 

Luna was at doggy day care today for the first time in a month.  This meant I had the chance to pop into town to do some errands and collect my new glasses (paid for in November so not in my 2024 budget!)  I popped into my local community food shop and got all the above food for free.  

I've talked before about how this particular project is free to anyone (not means tested) and their aim is to reduce food waste.  None of the above food could be donated to a food bank as it's all past their dates.  You can't tell from the photo but all the M&S produce is actually frozen.  They have big freezers now and freeze as much of the fresh ready meals etc as they can.  Full price on the above should have been £31.45 but once it's past the date it can't even be sold with a yellow sticker.  If the community food shop doesn't take it, it goes in the bin 😲

It's just pot luck what's available.  Today there was hardly any fresh veg and I got the last bag of lemons.  I'm not a fan of turnip/swede/rutabaga as a side veg but it's good to bulk out a stew or soup.  Everything got chopped up and frozen asap!  

There's always loads of bread at the shop (today it was all M&S bread) but I'm now in the habit of regularly making my own sourdough bread.  I also made more butter this week so had buttermilk to make scones.  Not my best looking effort but they're delicious.  Also portioned up and in the freezer!

I know I'm very lucky to live somewhere that is so proactive in stopping food waste.  There are many other fab projects within Stirling that take food waste from the supermarkets, restaurants and local shops and make 'ready meals' to give away free.  They even deliver!   As far as I know you do have to be referred by social work or a school so by using the community shop I'm not taking away anything from those in need.  There are also many drop in cafes and warm spaces where folk can always get a hot meal, no questions asked.

Once I've moved house and get everything settled I'm planning on volunteering with them 😊

February Spending

 

Today was a strike day.  As a staff we decided not to man a picket line, mainly because we were tired/unwell and the thought of 2 long lies was irresistible!  But we attended a local rally outside the council HQ later in the morning.

Afterwards I walked into town as I had M&S vouchers worth £11.  I had thoughts of getting myself some treats but everything was so expensive.  So I went yellow sticker hunting instead and saw a few good deals.  As it was still before lunch time there weren't many.  But I got a great deal on some ewe's milk cheese, reduced from £4.25 to £1.32 and some jumbo sausages (gluten free) that had almost £1 off.  

But the main reason I went to M&S was because I wanted sushi for lunch.  That wee box cost £5.  It was a delicious but expensive treat.  I really should learn to make my own! 🍣 Total was £12.52 so really I got free meat and cheese then got the sushi for £1.52 😋

So here we are at the end of the month already!  My February spending was rather low 🎉

• Supermarket/groceries: £107.07
• Pets: £62.01
• Amazon inc monthly fee: £70.71
• Other misc: £56.85

I only bought 3 things on Amazon and none were school related!  I bought books for my new great niece, a finger splint for my injured pinky (tennis related incident on Staff Development day!!) and 4 table legs to turn an offcut worktop into a table for my craft room.

Total February spend (not already planned and budgeted for) was £296.64!  And some of that was on 2 separate pizza deliveries on HMI week!!! 😳

Again I'm not adding anything to my savings this month as I'm still paying the flat costs.  The proposed entry date of today has come and gone with the buyer and his lawyer not responding to calls.  I'm really really hoping the sale hasn't fallen through as the costs incurred to start over will most likely wipe out any profit and eat into my deposit.  Keep your fingers crossed for me! 🤞

Filling the freezer

 

It's been a hectic week at work as expected.  I'm in before 8am, home after 5pm and I'm working on stuff in the evenings too.  My choice, as I just want to make a good impression when the inspectors come.  But I'm tired, grumpy and predictably am fighting off a virus/bug!!!  So the focus is on decent but quick to make food.

I rescued these ready meals from the bin (literally) in school as they were past the use by date by a few days.  They are now in my defrosted and cleaned out chest freezer.  We had them for kids to taste Scottish food on Burns' night.  Sadly there was no Irn Bru, shortbread or oatcakes left to bring home although I did rescue a wee bit of Scottish cheddar for my son!

I made a load of nut and lentil burgers from a 'when it's gone it's gone' mix I got ages ago in Lidl.  They were rather tasty!  Now also in the freezer.

I cooked a 2kg joint of brisket in the Crockpot, cost £10.61 from Lidl.  I just shook some Tamari and Worcester sauce over it and cooked it for 5 hours.  Must confess it didn't yield as much meat as I'd hoped as there was a huge piece of fat/gristle in the middle.  But I got 8 generous portions for the freezer.

And we were on strike again one day this week! I'm in the blue hat 😊

When my life is busy I always prep food as it makes me feel organised in at least one area of my life!!  School is still challenging but if I can make it to half term I've achieved more than I thought I was going to when I when I went back in January!

Happy New Year!

 

Happy New Year everyone!  I hope 2023 is a peaceful one for us all.  I didn't stay up to see the new year in, I was just too tired.  And I knew it would make me groggy today as I still have to get up at the usual time to let Emma out and feed her.  She seems to be on the mend so hopefully it was just a doggy virus and nothing else.  She's 11 now so I know every illness could be potentially serious so I'm being extra careful.

It's just our usual Sunday dinner here today with the 3 of us.  I put a wee venison joint in the Crockpot and we'll have it with baked potatoes and veggies.  I started some blackcurrant liqueur with blackcurrants from the freezer and an odd tasting gin nobody liked (strawberry and black pepper!)  In fact it was one my friend gave me as she didn't like it!! So free fruit from my Lovely Mum's garden and free gin from my friend plus some sugar will turn into a lovely home made version of crème de cassis 😋 I'm starting the year off being creative already!! 

Browsing Pinterest I found a few bottle bag ideas.  I like this idea where I could put/use a pocket to keep a wee bottle of the cassis and make a label with cocktail instructions.  I have a stash of old jeans, somewhere!

By the time the gin mixture is ready for bottling I hope my craft room is ready to make up the bags! 😊

The bit in between

 

It's that weird time between Christmas and New Year where you might not be working.  In an old life I might have been shopping for 'bargains' or hosting/visiting family and friends for more dinners or simply entertaining bored children on school holidays.  What do you call It?  I love how Sue (see HERE ) has named it Betwixtmas!!  Whatever it's called it's my time to reflect on the year and make plans for next year.  This is my thinking time.  And given my retirement/£40k challenge starting this year I've a lot to think about!!

But first, reflections on Christmas.  I kept my gift giving simple.  Books, sweets and money.  I kept my food simple.  I do love the Boxing day hash/stir fry as above.

Reduced sausages from the freezer!

More reduced sausages that were skinned and mixed with my GF Paxo stuffing mix.

Trifle was made from the free orange juice I made HERE, frozen raspberries from the garden and cake.

The trifle was served with squirty cream as I got that on offer ages ago!  The potatoes, carrots and parsnips were 19p each from Lidl.  Sprouts and sweetcorn were from the freezer as I always have them.  The most expensive bits of the meal were the 3 bird roast ( which was only average) and the halibut (which was amazing!) could easily have been a simple chicken.  Should have followed my instinct!!  But the whole meal was delicious and fairly frugal! 😋

Emma loved her present!!  She's got a new lease of life thanks to a daily steroid tablet.  She's now 11 so realistically she's only got a year or 2 left so I'm happy to make sure she has some quality of life.  But I'll need to factor that in to my finances for next year.

Better get started

 

Thank you for all your lovely comments on my last post 😊  Striking can raise a lot of conflicting feelings for some people.  Hopefully we won't need to do it again.

As someone pointed out on my FB feed this morning it's only 4 weeks until Christmas 😱  How did that happen?  Better get started then!

We keep Christmas low key in my family now, for many reasons.  Presents are practical and food is simple but traditional.  I picked up a packet of GF stuffing mix earlier this week as it's in short supply nearer the day.  You just can't beat a Paxo mix.  I tried a new one last year that I didn't really like but unfortunately I bought a kilo of it 😂  I've almost finished it now!

I got my favourite GF sausages slightly reduced so they'll be skinned and made into sausage stuffing.  These are in the freezer now.  If I can get a decent priced turkey crown we'll have a turkey dinner but last year I just bought a chicken which is much cheaper.  To be honest it's all the trimmings that make the dinner great!

Yesterday my class was given some leftover fruit to have as an afternoon snack.  I have a wee one with an orange allergy so these didn't get used.  I'm going to juice them and freeze the juice to use in my Christmas trifle.  My DIL is a pescatarian so I'll use it with vege gel to make the jelly for the bottom layer.

On the present front, I bought some bottles of Prosecco that was on offer in Sainsbury's.  I chose this one mainly because the bottle was pretty!!😂  I've ordered some bottle lights so the recipients can make a bottle lamp once they've drunk the contents! 🍷

Just a few things so far but I feel I've made a start!

P.S.  Lots of viewers have been to the flat but no offers yet 🤞

Souper soup

I chopped up the overgrown courgette (zucchini) and made 7 mugs of Courgette and Leek soup.  I chopped up 2 leeks from the back garden and chucked them in a pot of chicken stock (made from the bones of the large chicken I got last week) with a onion and a spoonful of stock powder.  I blitzed it with a little soya cream and voila - work lunches for the next week or 2 sorted.

They're now in the black freezer along with 6 mugs of Chicken and rice soup I made yesterday with some stock I defrosted on Saturday.  

I think there are still a couple of mugs of soup in the garage freezer (no idea what kind) which gives me enough lunches for work for the next few weeks.  I do love my soup! 😋

Freezing!

 

This was my early Sunday morning view when I got up and it stayed like this for most of the day!  Cold and drizzly then muggy and drizzly!! ☔

I did an audit of the indoor freezer and found a few interesting things I'd forgotten about!

After doing my indoor freezer audit, I emptied it and left it to defrost overnight.  Fridge and freezer got a thorough cleaning ready to be filled again.

The garage chest freezer was pretty full once I'd put the indoor stuff in it.  It's next on my list to clear out and defrost.  My Lovely Mum visited today and brought 5lb of frozen plums from her neighbour's tree.  She'd kindly stoned and halved them before freezing them for me in 1lb bags.  Makes it easy to weigh them to make jam or chutney later.

The same neighbour also gifted her some more plums yesterday so she brought even more for me!  I'll eat a few then freeze the rest for jam or chutney or maybe a fruit crumble.  Last year the neighbour's tree hardly produced any fruit but this year it's gone plum crazy!!  These are all extras that she can't use herself!  Plums are currently £2 a punnet here so getting these for free is amazing.

She also brought me an overgrown courgette!!  I'll make that into soup tomorrow 😋  I do love free food.