Meal planning: our lunches & dinners this week

Posted by louisa on Monday 7 February 2011 in cooking, eating, frugal, weekly meal plans | 6 comments

We’re not very good a meal planning. We usually manage it for the three or four days following our monthly big trip to the supermarket. I know they’re a really good idea – saving money, reducing food waste etc – but we’re quite quite rubbish at anything that involves personal organisation.

Often we’ll not even think about what we want for dinner until it’s already 8pm and we’re both blood-sugar crashing. When that happens we’re more likely to turn to ordering take-in or running to the (nearby, expensive) shop for something quick – which invariably means buying something junky for dinner and spending extra money because we’re hungry and everything looks sooooo good.

Our lunches are the same – we usually don’t think about them until we need to eat and they have to be ready quickly so we can take the dog out and get back to work in good time. Lunches are a lot cheaper for us now we both work from home than they were when we were similar disorganised and worked in offices – but they rely on what we’ve got in or another trip to the expensive shop. And I think they generate the bulk of our food waste – loaves bought in or made for lunches and not finished before they go stale etc.

So here we go – my first attempt at a week’s meal plan:

Monday lunch – boiled eggs & toast (I had food poisoning or a tummy bug over the weekend and am still feeling a little delicate. This is our favourite poorly tummy food)
Monday dinner – pasta with herby sausages & peppers in a tomato sauce

Tuesday lunch – spicy butternut squash soup (to be made this evening) with bread (which will need buying/making), & cheese
Tuesday dinner – spicy sausage & lentil casserole (the last of the sausages that need using up) with veg

Wednesday lunch – more spicy butternut squash soup with bread & cheese
Wednesday dinner – a difficult meal slot as I’m out until 10pm – keema achar curry (made by John last week, now in the freezer) either with rice or chapattis & naan (depending if he can be bothered making them fresh)

Thursday lunch – John will probably be out so probably just more soup & bread for me
Thursday dinner – leftover sausage & lentil casserole and veg (will need to buy something green)

Friday lunch – our random version of a ploughman’s lunch with samosas (from the petrol station … yes! I know! but strangely they’re some of the best samosas we’ve ever eaten and only 60p each!) and pickles
Friday dinner – homemade pizza – tuna & chilli, and chorizo & peppers (need to buy mozzarella)

Saturday brunch – scrambled eggs & muffins/crumpets (to buy, whichever are on offer)
Saturday dinner – spicy marinaded chicken pieces (need to buy the chicken) & rice

Right, let’s see how much we stick to it!

Su’s Desert Island Dinners

Posted by louisa on Thursday 3 February 2011 in desert island dinners | 0 comments

Last week, I started a fun new thing – Desert Island Dinners. It’s basically Desert Island Discs but with a frugal/simple living theme instead of music.

After Kate from Living the Frugal Life last week, I asked frequent commenter Su to be next up for deportation…!

Here’s the premise again:

You’re about to become a castaway on a desert island. The desert island will provide you with misc edible vegetation/wildlife and items that can be fashioned into basic pots/pans/utensils — but just before you’re whisked away, you have enough time to grab a herb or spice from your store cupboard; a special kitchen gadget/tool/utensil or piece of equipment; a cookbook; and a packet of seeds to grow on your any-climate island paradise. What would you pick to take with you? And which of your simple/frugal living skills do you think would be the most valuable while you’re there, and why?

Su replied:

Herb/spice – since I’m not overly fond of most herbs, I really wouldn’t miss them. Most of what I cook can’t contain garlic as daughter has a reaction to it, so I know that I can cope without that and just one spice, wouldn’t be enough for me. But, black pepper goes into and onto virtually everything I cook, so I really would miss that. I could crush it between two stones so peppercorns would be best.

Gadget/tool/utensil – this was for me the hardest to choose. A knife without a sharpener is useless, but that’s two objects. I did consider something in which to carry/ store fresh drinking water, but thought that I may be able to find something suitable on the beach (you’d think I was actually there, the way I am carrying on!). I also considered my haybox cooker, but that needs the appropriate pan to go into it, so again that’s two items. In the end, in a flash of inspiration, I decided on some method of lighting a fire, probably a lighter as they a a little less temperamental than matches. I don’t think my survival skills will stretch to striking stones together or rubbing sticks, but of course, you can’t cook anything without a flame.

Seeds – I think this would have to be tomato, so versatile, and in the hot climate of my desert island should grow well. I’m not going anywhere if it’s cold !

Cookbook – Very boringly this would have to be my rather dog eared copy of Delia’s complete cookery course. It’s the book I use most, generally for checking things, I don’t tend to follow complete recipes but checking of basic facts ( how long, what temperature etc, etc).

Skill – This would have to be my general ‘Blue Peterishness’ (not that that’s a word), I think I’m pretty good at cobbling stuff together and I’m sure it would be very useful!

All this thinking though, made me realise that actually, I wouldn’t be very good on a desert island. I could cope with the isolation and not having much in the way of luxury and general everyday trials and tribulations, but I’d never manage without my bed and tea!

Big thanks to Su for answering – especially as I know she has limited access to email. She also said “Well, I have thought about little else since [you asked], I’m not sure all this mental exercise is good for me!” — I hope it doesn’t clog up your brain for too long, Su!

With Su’s suggestions of black pepper, flame, tomatoes & a good reference book – and Kate’s garlic, a good knife, versatile kale & baking books – I’m really hoping that one of them gets to pack for me if I do end up being castaway!

If anyone else wants to play – please get in touch :)

Baking – an art or a science?

Posted by louisa on Thursday 3 February 2011 in cooking | 2 comments

I’ve noticed recently that people seem to be divided between considering cooking, and baking in particular, an art or a science.

“Baking is an art” people seem to use recipes as inspiration rather than the letter of the law – ingredients are adjusted depending on personal tastes. Measurements & timings are vague and rely on knowing appropriate textures, colour etc. Results are inconsistent until recipes have been tried many, many times.

“Baking is a science” people follow recipes a lot more closely, don’t substitute/add extra ingredients and measure things exactly. They have opinions on weight versus volume, and even weigh liquids as it’s more accurate. Results are reasonably consistent from the get go.

As in life, I’m more of an “art” person – which is why my recipes are sometimes a bit vague with measurements – such as the soda bread recipe says use between “250-300ml” of soured milk. Like the soda bread, our slow rise no knead bread needs slightly different amount of liquids each time we make it – depending, seemingly, on the type of flour and the temperature of the liquid – so for me, dough texture is more important than exact quantities. I’m a bit more (but admittedly) not a lot more scientific the first few times I make something – until I begin to understand what it should be like. I find it more fun to freewheel than to stick to the recipe – but my results are sometimes inconsistent – taking a recently relevant example from cooking in general, sometimes my chilli rocks the free world, sometimes it struggles to rock our living room: edible but meh.

(Funnily enough, I’ve got more exact about favourite recipes after I’ve written them up for here because I’ve made them to the exact recipe for a few times before publishing it and have started to enjoy the consistency – before, I’d just throw a random amount of mustard seeds into kedgeree but now I use 1tsp like a good girl ;) )

Where do you stand? Do you stick to recipes exactly or throw things in at random? Do you favour a more creative process or a more consistent result? Or are you somewhere in the middle?

Buttery treacle spice biscuits recipe

Posted by louisa on Wednesday 2 February 2011 in cooking, recipes | 5 comments

I meant to write up this recipe a few weeks ago but in all the end of year/new 2011 goals excitement, I forgot. The rich dark treacle flavour and cinnamon make them a great winter biscuit – almost warming!

They’re also a perfect fill-the-oven companion to my quick-and-easy soda bread recipe – I get my soda bread in the oven then start making these guys. By the time I’ve measured, mixed and shaped, it’s about 20-25 mins into the soda bread baking, then the biscuits go in and everything finishes at the same time – perfect!

As there is no egg or anything like that in the mix, they’re one of my favourite “cook’s perks” recipes – ie, I get to “test” the dough throughout the making process and lick all the bowls & spoons at the end. :D

There is also a fourth wonderful feature of these biscuits which I say explain at the end so those with easily-offended-by-tastelessness aren’t put off a great biscuit recipe! ;)

The year of ….

Posted by louisa on Tuesday 1 February 2011 in growing | 5 comments

A few days ago, someone started a discussion on UK Veg Gardeners about themes for the year:

“2011 is the “Year of the Raised Bed”. Last year was “Year of the Redcurrant Protector” (not a very snappy title I admit!) and 2009 “Year of the Shed” (much more successful).”

I replied that for us, 2011 is the “Year of Fruit”: “to be accurate it’s going to be Year Minus One of Fruit as most things won’t actually produce anything until next year – but all the work has to be done this year.”

But it’s actually the Year of lots of things here – I think that contradicts the point of having a “the year of” but nevermind! It’s:

• The Year of Fruit – six apple trees & two pear trees are in, a cherry tree to follow; also, two blackcurrant bushes, a lingonberry bush, a cranberry bush and 12 strawberry runners (all which are displaying new green growth today – hurrah!) are also in, with maybe gooseberry & raspberry to follow. Fruit a go go!
• The Year of the Front Garden – those new planters should help out a lot out there
• The Year of Vertical Growing – baskets & wall planters & balcony window boxes & tiers of pots
• The Year of Efficient Bed Usage – some beds were empty for a long time last year; not this year!
• The Year of Perennials – the fruit is part of this; I want to start getting things in that’ll last so each year on, I can concentrate on other stuff
• The Year of the Greenhouse – since it didn’t arrive until July last year, I intend to make the most of it this year – cucumbers, chillis and tomatoes, oh my
• The Year of No More Plastic Tubs – not such a catchy name but last year, when I was setting up on the cheap, I bought a lot of plastic tubs & troughs. No more from now on though, and as they need replacing, I’ll do so with non-plastic options
• The Year of Not Getting Overwhelmed – by planting too many of each thing specifically. But looking at the rest of this list, I think this might the hardest to achieve ;)

What’s it your year of?