Making a note of what you already have in and making a list is best done before you head off to the shops, :)
Sounds obvious really doesn't it? but I still make the mistake of just getting the shopping done without checking the stores and then wonder what I am going to do with all those tins of tomatoes that keep falling off the shelf! Anyway my favourite sort of recipe is to bulk cook in the slow cooker pasta/pizza sauce. It varies according to what veg I add but we all like it and it is freezable and very versatile and will be used in pasta bakes, bolognaise, on home made pizzas and poured over chicken.
Tomato pizza sauce
1 very large tin or 5 normal sized tins of tomatoes are needed for this.
First in a large pan, saute about 4 large or 8 smaller chopped onions in some olive oil, add some crushed garlic and then pour in the tinned tomatoes. Add some dried Italian herbs and some fresh basil if you have it. Simmer for a while, adding a tiny (1/2 tsp) sugar or a slug of tomato ketchup, I also add in any left over red wine (which I save in a little bottle just for cooking) Then add any veg you want to use up. This time I added sliced courgettes (from the garden glut), runner beans (from the freezer) and mixed peppers (also from freezer). Transfer to the slow cooker and let it cook slowly until the veg is soft. Turn off the heat and when cool enough, spoon into a large jug (mine made 4 large jugs)and blend in the processor until smooth, remembering to change out of that lovely new cream top you have just bought or at least to put an apron on (boy does tomato go a long way when it splatters out of a jug :) top is now in soak!) This made 5 takeaway boxes of sauce which for us will make 5 main meals for the 2 of us and also provide enough for the bases of 5 home made pizzas. Cost to make about £2 - cost to buy (based on the pots on sale in Sainsbury's) £7 so a saving of around £5 I could buy the really cheap jars of sauces available but I would rather know what is in the sauce!
My Mum used to make up her own pastry mix in bulk and keep it in the fridge until she needed it, we love pies so with this in mind I bought up more flour than usual and so that I can make a pie or two and some quiche will be making up this mix:
Pastry Mix
3lb plain flour
3 level tsp salt (I might try to cut this down a tad)
12 - 15 oz fat
Sift the dry ingredients, rub in the fat and store in poly bags, Tupperware or screw top jars. this will keep in the fridge for about 3 months or in a cool dark place for about 2-3 weeks.
To make shortcrust pastry - to 12oz mix add 2-3 tablespoons of cold water
For a rich shortcrust - to 12oz mix add 1 tablespoon caster sugar, 1 beaten egg and 1 tablespoon cold water
For a cheese pastry - to 12oz mix add 4oz grated cheese, 1 beaten egg, 1 tablespoon cold water, 1/2 tsp dry mustard and a pinch of cayenne pepper.
Other meals I will be making this month are Nasi Goreng - an Indonesian fried rice with fish, ham or pork, spring onions, peas, garlic, spices, and an egg-strips of omelet across the top, which uses up all the bits and pieces hanging out in the fridge. This will do for 2 days.
Kedgeree with smoked fish, egg, rice and peas - we use the cheaper smoked pollack now.
Fish pie - using again the cheaper pollack and a handful of frozen prawns in a home made white sauce, layer of frozen peas and mash on top, grated cheese on top of that.
Salads - love them at this time of year, egg, ham, salmon or tuna with olives and hard boiled eggs.
Risotto - my all time favourite and can be made with almost anything, but our favourite is butternut squash now £1 at Sainsbury's.
Curry - either vegetable (potato and pea is good), soya mince (we buy that by mail order in bulk now from Goodness Direct as it worked out at half the cost of the supermarket) or my Mums favourite hard boiled eggs (if you can afford them that is - i have to think twice about it as we only get free range and prefer organic so expensive)
Chilli con carne (or not if you use the cheaper soya mince like we do)
Our menu changes in the winter with the addition of stews (normally chicken with vege dumplings) hm soups with chunks of hm bread, casseroles and if we can afford it the odd roast dinner.
Puddings (when we have them) are normally fruit based (home made fruit salad using up the frozen fruit from the organic box), trifle, Eton mess (homemade yogurt, fruit and hm meringue) crumbles, pies or for a rare treat cheese and crackers.
Breakfasts vary but can be porridge in the colder weather, home made muesli, corn or bran flakes with fresh fruit, toast and marmalade or honey using up the home made (in breadmaker) whole meal or granary loaf. For a very, very rare treat we have a cooked breakfast.
Elevenses and supper - a piece of home made cake or a homemade cookie and drink.
Lunches - I make up a packed lunch when required for Mr C and try to do the same for myself even if I am at home as it makes sure I eat something. For this I use either home made bread or some of my squirreled away yellow stickered bargains with fillings of ham and mustard, cheese and tomato, tuna and mayo with salad or homemade pate and salad, a piece of fruit and some home made cake and it's done. Some times we have leftovers carefully re-heated or home made soup and bread or jacket potato with baked beans.
I can never do a rigid meal plan as I don't always have the energy to feel up to cooking (trying to put some home made ready meals into the freezer) but I normally have the ingredients in to make the above.
6 comments:
Thanks for the great recipes! I agree about the rigid meal planning, simply doesn't work for me. I know what I will make over the course of the week, but allow myself to decide what I want that day!
Can I add you to my blogroll?
p.s. how do you find goodness direct?
Of course you can! I would be honoured! I will try to make a link to the Goodness Direct site for you. It is fab, I bought lentils, chickpeas, oats, soya mince, kidney beans etc enough to last a year I reckon and half the price of the supermarkets.
I plan a mix of very simple meals and those that involve a bit more work but don't decide what I'm going to make when until the actual day, depending on my energy. In fact, I think I'll do a blog post about it myself.
Must take a look at the Goodness Direct site although storage is always a problem for me.
Sharon I try to do a little throughout the day between resting towards prepping the evening meal, like peeling some veg and putting it into the fridge while I go and rest then up again and prep the spuds etc.,
That's pretty much what I do, too. Doing the whole thing in one go just never works for me.
Oh how I long for a dishwasher... that's the one 'gadget' that I need rather than just want because cooking and doing the dishes just takes up too much of my day otherwise. A couple of plates - sit down. A few more bits - sit down. And so it goes on.
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