by Thrifty Lesley | Dec 18, 2015 | My Diary
I was going to write today about how much cheaper it is to make mince pies, along with a couple of variations. I was going to do it after getting back from a U3A walk, which was lovely. We went up onto the Downs, up some steep climbs (good for my fitness, which is...
by Thrifty Lesley | Dec 17, 2015 | My Diary
These questions have been going round blogland lately. I’ve read them here and there, so I thought I’d have a go. The ones asking if I have a gun, like hotdogs or KoolAid, make me wonder if it started in America? Oh yes, it must have done, my spellchecker...
by Thrifty Lesley | Dec 7, 2015 | Lunches
Tried the first experiment with reviving dead bread stored as breadcrumbs today. Had a look in the fridge and found a few bits and pieces that I thought would work, got a bag of breadcrumbs out of the freezer and had a play. I have set out below what I used to give...
by Thrifty Lesley | Dec 6, 2015 | All Recipes, Cakes and Bakes
Productive day today. Had a rummage in the loft for Reverse Advent, made a loaf, some soup and an apple cake. So going today are; a surplus masala tin; several more cardboard boxes that held appliances that won’t need the box any more; an old sewing project that...
by Thrifty Lesley | Dec 4, 2015 | Christmas
I actually got up in the loft today and sorted out a load of ‘stuff’. I’m trying to concentrate on getting rid of a lot more stuff this month, following Sue’s Reverse Advent challenge. I found a bag of five pairs of shoes. Why did I put them in the loft? Maybe I had...
by Thrifty Lesley | Dec 3, 2015 | Love Your Leftovers
I was interested in this post yesterday from Hugh’s War on Waste. He says, and I’ve read similar things before from eg WRAP, that the top five most wasted food items are bread, milk, potatoes, cheese and apples (and soft drinks, but I can’t really get worked up about...
by Thrifty Lesley | Dec 2, 2015 | Christmas, Lunches
I’ve just been reading Sue’s blog post about her new reverse advent tradition. Last New Year, I resolved to get rid of something every day throughout the year. Although I have been taking stuff to the charity shop, I’ve slipped a bit lately, so I’ve taken Sue’s post...
by Thrifty Lesley | Dec 1, 2015 | Christmas, Other
Had the U3A budget cooking group here, at the house, this afternoon. I was wondering what to do. Thought it needed to be seasonal, but most definitely not mince pies. I ended up deciding to do a few nibbly type entertaining bits. We started off with Nigella’s Union...
by Thrifty Lesley | Nov 30, 2015 | My Diary
We have had a lovely time in Bruges this weekend. Some close friends took us there as a wedding present. They organised everything from where we stayed, to the Eurotunnel, which was lovely as I have far too much too organise in the usual run of things, it was lovely...
by Thrifty Lesley | Nov 23, 2015 | Lunches
Long day today. Had a film crew here all day today from Bold Content Video for the Money Advice Service. They arrived shortly after 9:00am and didn’t leave until nearly 7pm. We worked all day, doing all kinds of shots, stills and video. An unbelievable amount of...
by Thrifty Lesley | Nov 22, 2015 | My Diary
Went to a gig in Kentish Town last night. The legendary blues guitarist Walter Trout. Two years ago, Walter nearly died before receiving a liver transplant. This track, Almost Gone, was written about the time he was waiting for a liver transplant to happen, or not. I...
by Thrifty Lesley | Nov 20, 2015 | Dinners, Lunches, Sides
After the recent report on the need for all of us to reduce the amount of red meat and minimise our intake of processed meat, I have been looking for alternative sources of protein. We didn’t eat massive amounts of it, but a lot more than the two portions a week I...
by Thrifty Lesley | Nov 19, 2015 | Bready Things, Dinners, Love Your Leftovers, Lunches, Round Up Post
Went to a U3A meeting this morning on Science. One of our number talked about Astronomy. We discussed the immense distances involved and moved on to the possibility of life elsewhere. The presenter is a chemist, so we had a very interesting discussion around why...
by Thrifty Lesley | Nov 17, 2015 | Dinners, Lunches
Had an old favourite for dinner tonight. It’s another one of those dishes that can be used for all kinds of sundry leftovers. All you need is a tasty mix, that you then pour eggs over and top with cheese if you like. I used some leftover green beans from the WI lunch,...
