Cheaper food alternatives

[judithj]

you can freeze half the dough before cooking it, then you can use it as a pizza base: when it's defrosted, roll it out onto a flat baking tray, let it rise and spread tomato puree on top, sprinkle oregano and garlic on top, then cover with grated cheese. add other toppings if you like then bake at about 200 degrees C for about 20mins, hugs, Judith xxx

[Londongirl29]

Just like Judith said. I am incredibly lazy so I put mine over the radiator or in the airing cupboard, its really easy, again flour can be bought really cheaply and you can get yeast in individual packets as opposed to measuring it yourself. I always use Delia also, she mades good basic food (a lot of stodge as well - great for winter) that you can easily tweak if its not to your liking. Her recipe for meatballs is really good as well, I make those quite often, you could always make other variations of them like turkey or chicken, beef, quorn etc. Stews are great as well, use cheap cuts of meat and get a packet mix for dumplings throw in veg and stock, etc. Apologies if any of you are veggies but mince/quorn is great what with chilli, bolognaise, shephards pie etc, all cheap, can be cooked in bulk and frozen. Cheap mince is fine I always find, it depends on your taste. The biggest expense for me was buying a handmixer for a fiver.

I use a lot of supermarkets value ranges and a lot of the stuff is good but obviously there are always exceptions. I'm not particularly good at cooking myself but I am poor and live alone so I try to challenge myself each month to get my shopping bill down!

[wishbone]

In the late nineties, all I had to buy food with was £5.00 a week. What I ate back then was a lot of pasta and tomato based sauces, with onions and garlic. Brand stuff are cheap, but, if possible make sure they are good quality too. Wholemeal pasta rather than white, which will keep you full longer.

I used to have a bread maker, but, in an hour of having a bad focus day, I threw the dough kneader away by mistake I miss making bread, but the kneading is too much for me, I don't have physical ability to do it.

Kneading though is good if you need to get rid of any tension and is quite theraputic.

Londongirl, you are not interfering, thanks for your ideas

[judithj]

i used to enjoy making bread and kneading it, but i can't do that nowadays as it makes my hands painful, so i have a breadmaker instead (good old e-bay!). i keep old ice-cream containers and measure out the basic ingredients for 1 loaf (flour, salt, sugar, dried milk powder) into the containers. then all i have to do is to put in the wet ingredients (warm water, usually a little oil) in the machine, add the dry ingredients from the container, maybe add some poppy and sesame seeds, sprinkle the yeast on top and start the breadmaker, hugs, Judith xxx

[wishbone]

I miss my home cooked bread... ... by my bread machine


Provencale sauce
tin of chopped tomatoes
1 or 2 onions Sliced thinly
clove of garlic, crushed and chopped
Seasoning
Can add a herb, like oregano if you wish

1. Sweat the onion and garlic in a little oil until transparent and soft
2. Add tomatoes and bring to simmer
3. Add seasoning and any herbs

You can use this to mix in pasta and serve with a little grated cheese, or to top meat or fish, or even put onto a pizza base

[belle]

Thanks - that sounds nice - and easy too!
xx

[wishbone]

I am going to try and make it today. I haven't made it for years, so writing it has made me miss it.

I bought some white fish yesterday that was on offer, so will have this with provencale sauce and boiled potatoes today. I am happy to be even trying to eat well, which was impossible before.

Still can't wash up though. Might have to go back to paper plates (polystirien for hot meals) for a while.

[wishbone]

I've made Gazpachio last week. I saw how much it was to buy, £4 , due to their mark up price to make a profit, so I thought I'd make my own and it turned out ok.

It was a lot cheaper and good for hot days, because it is a cold soup. Luckily I have a food processor.

Ingredients
1 carton tomato juice (supermarket brand)
1/2 large onion chopped
1/4 cucumber chopped (best chopped by hand)
1/2 red bell pepper chopped (best chopped by hand)
1/2 yellow or green bell pepper chopped (best chopped by hand)
1 garlic clove crushed and chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons vinegar
handful chopped parsely
bread crumbs (from one slice of bread without crusts) - this can be left out if you wish
1 small carrot finely chopped (optional, my own addition for crunchyness)
1 teaspoon worcester sauch (optional, my own addition)
Salt and pepper

Once you prepare all the veg, all you have to do is bung it all in together and shake it up. Put it in an air tight container and chill.

I now have pre-made all the veg and finely chopped it and it is all in my freezer so I can just get out what I need and put it in the tomato juice as and when I want it. This is very healthy too and is filling. You might wish to adjust the amounts for your own taste. The amounts is just a guide

[MythEagle]

So this is what's in the pot for tonight

2 Onions
1 pack chipolata sausages (12 sausages)
Borlotti Beans - Tinned
Butter Beans - Tinned
Chick Peas - Tinned
Chopped Tomatos - Tinned
Tomato Puree - a good squirt from a tube (about 3 tsp)
1 vegetable stock cube
Bay leaf
Mustard
Soy Sauce - a dash
Garlic
Cider - about half a can if you have it, water will do otherwise!

Chop onions and fry until soft in a little oil (or a drop of water for those without oil)
Chop sausages into bite sized chunks and brown off in with the onions - stir frequently to prevent sticking
Add all the other ingredients (make sure the water level is a bit above the mixture) and bring to the boil
Simmer for 30 - 40 mins with the lid off so that some of the water boils away which will intensify the flavours. Keep an eye on it (don't go posting messages on Sane like I am doing while it cooks cos this may back fire on me!)
Serve with mashed spuds - or add spuds to the mix with the other ingredients for a one pot version.

I haven't dished this up yet but it should do at least 6 appropriately portioned meals. I'm adding frozen veg and some carrots later to bulk it out a bit more.


Tried the sauce, its lush. I'll let you know what my mates say when I feed it to them tonight.

-----Edit
It was very tasty and would have done 6 portions if I had dished it up, but my mate did, so it only did 5.

[MythEagle]

if you can get the energy together to bulk cook yo can do good healthy meals in a budget. my friend and I spent 35 in asda in Friday and made 43 meals from it all this weekend. (only need to add rice, pasta or spuds to the stuff we've frozen.by the time too add the carbs the meals cost about £1 each. granted its easier sharing and you need freezer space, but its cheaper than micro meals. x