Using up and avoiding waste...

Hi everyone,

Yesterday my pudding was supposed to be peaches, but when I made our main meal, there was pastry left over. The peaches are in a can, so they will keep. I quickly changed my meal plan and made a treacle tart...

I lined a small flan dish with the leftover shortcrust and poured in some golden syrup, crushed cornflakes and lemon juice. I baked it with the flan and wedges and served it with a drizzle of double cream. There is enough left for today, so I think I'll make some custard.

Dinner was something different, but lovely all the same! 

Thanks for reading,

Mandy x

Thrifty Thursday...

Hi everyone

This week I have done all my normal thrifty things, but I have also made the best of a bad situation. I accidentally knocked a tray  of eggs off the worktop when I was putting the shopping away. I had to make a cake out of the cracked eggs straight away (baking was not my priority at that point) so they weren't wasted. I would have used the eggs to bake, but when I decided to! 

Daisy has decided that she hates bibs now. She isn't really a messy eater but obviously I will protect her clothes where I can. I have saved a couple for the really messy dinners like spag bol, but the others have been recycled...

I cut out the pretty patterns to use for a craft project and thought about what to do with the rest.

They are now rags for cleaning! I hate throwing things in the bin as you know.

We were kindly given a home grown cabbage by a farmer that hubby is working for at the moment...

Home grown tastes so much better and if was free!

Talking of veg, I had some rather wrinkled  carrots and broccoli that wouldn't last much longer in the fridge. The meal plan was for beans with our meal, but I changed it to use these up...

I'm always aware of what needs using up.

I hope you're all having a good week and thanks for reading.

Mandy x

Using the slow cooker on a hot day!

Hi everyone...anyone?

I've been going through my cupboards this week, picking out anything close to its use by date. I plan to gradually use these bits up, incorporating them into our meals and baking. 

I have also started to go through my freezers doing the same. This is what I've done this morning...

The blackberries have been in the freezer a while and the apples have wrinkled skins! These are the base of my crumble for tonight's pudding.

The apples are sweet so no sugar needed.

The crumble mix is simple...plain flour, marg and I used soft brown sugar. Sprinkled over the fruit and ready to bake just before tea.

The slow cooker is on with lamb that's been in the freezer for a while, with some frozen cauliflower, frozen mixed veg, sweet corn, onions, mixed herbs and gravy granules that Daisy can't have (contain lactose would you believe!) Not my normal slow cooker combination, but using stuff up...

I've made Daisy a vegetable stew and raspberry jelly with frozen raspberries for pudding. She will eat this with her dairy free ice cream.

My cupboards are looking much less cluttered now. Tomorrow I will be using up more things. Until then...

Mandy x