The Reason Why We Are Frugal.

Today has been a lovely day weather wise.  It's almost Spring and I can feel some warmth in the air.  Yesterday I secretly plotted with Darren to take the girls out for a special treat after church today.  I packed a yummy lunch of homemade rolls,  curried eggs,  lettuce from our garden,  tomatoes, cheese and water bottles.  The esky was packed into the boot of the car while the girls were busy getting ready for church. 

As we left our church the girls noticed we were driving in a different direction.  Megan asked where we were going to which we replied " Sorrento for lunch and afternoon tea ".  For those of you who haven't been to Sorrento,  it's a lovely seaside town on the Mornington Peninsula.  It's home to many rich Australians and home of the famous,  award winning Vanilla Slice.

We had our picnic lunch down by the water just near the ferry that travels across to Queenscliff.  Lots of families were there taking advantage of a beautiful Sunday afternoon   We kept our eye on the time knowing if we wanted that famous vanilla slice we'd have to get to Just Fine Food by mid afternoon at the latest ( they have sold out by 3pm on occassion ).  During Summer and holiday times they have been known to sell more than 50 trays of vanilla slice with each tray containing over 50 serves.

This slice is creamy,  decandent and generous in size.  To us,  it's a luxury to be enjoyed as a special treat.  It's the reason why we are frugal.  We are debt free,  we can pay all our bills,  we are frugal with the things that don't matter ( like brand names ) so as a family we can enjoy these wonderful outings together.  Over and over our girls exclaimed how yummy the vanilla slice was.  Darren and I could see they appreciated their afternoon tea.  On the way home Jessica and Megan both thanked us for the suprise treat..

It's days like this when I remember back to the hard times of sacrifice when we were paying off our mortgage on a low income.  We knew back then that the sacrifices would pay off in the end.





Yummy Vanilla Slice

 

 

What luxuries do enjoy as a special treat ?

This Week's Frugal Tasks

Another frugal week has come and gone and although I've kept myself busy,  it wasn't as busy as last week.  Last week's frugal list was a long one  It's not usually like that.  To achieve all the things I do.  it's a family effort here.  If I'm busy doing some baking and the washing needs to be bought inside then my girls help me out.  Darren is an expert dishwasher unloader,  bathroom cleaner and bed maker.

I firmly believe in encouraging my family to learn new skills around the house.  We all pitch in together to get our jobs done.  Then we can relax.

Here's my frugal list for this week -


* Made pita chips ( again ) for snacks.  We've all taken a liking to homemade nachos after school.

*  Jessica saved the crumbs from the bottom of the wheat bix packet.  I crushed them even further and added them to my homemade dried seasoned bread crumb mix.

*  Made a couple of bottles of foaming handwash refills.

*  Made 16 bread rolls.  These will be used for homemade hamburgers. YUM  !!!

*  Made 2 bread sticks.

*  Made 4 loaves of wholemeal bread.

*  Baked some cranberry hootycreek biscuits.

*  Bought broccoli at the supermarket for $1.40 a kilo.  I bought eight large heads and cut them up into florets.  They have all been blanched and frozen for future meals.  I'll be cutting up the stalks with my Nicer Dicer and freezing them to go into stews and casseroles.  Nothing will be wasted.  I also picked the last of our broccoli.  I picked enough florets for two meals.

*   I cut lots of rosemary from our plant.  I'm drying it ( for the first time ) in paper bags.  It should be ready in a couple of weeks.

*  Made some yoghurt with a sachet and my Easiyo yoghurt maker.  From that yoghurt I'm making a sweetened vanilla yoghurt.

*  Arranged some dried roses into a posy.  I've had these roses drying for about a year.  Oppppsss.  I forgot about them as they looked ok drying on the side of a bookcase.  Now they look lovely in a ceramic jug in my kitchen hutch.

*  Baked an orange cake and muffins with some frozen pureed orange from last Winter.

*  Megan picked a small bunch of daisies from the garden

Flowers that Megan picked from our garden
 

Homemade bread rolls

Homemade bread sticks

The last of our broccoli

Strawberries I bought to make jam last week.
 

Dried roses from anniversaries and Valentine's Day



Whole orange cake and muffins

 

What frugal things did you get up to this week ?

Cranberry Hootycreek Biscuits

Here it is.  The much asked about,  much talked about Cranberry Hootycreek Biscuit recipe.  I first came across this recipe on the Cheapskate's website a couple of years ago.  I love homemade biscuits and was looking for a different type of biscuit.  The name had me hooked straight away. Darren likes to call then " Hooten Nannies ".  I think the original recipe might have come from America as it had pecans,  plain flour and bi carb in it.  I've changed the recipe around to make it my own.

1/2 cup of butter or 125 grams
1 egg
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups of self raising flour
1/2 cup of rolled oats
1/3 cup of packed brown sugar
1/3 cup of white sugar
1/2 cup of dried cranberries
1/2 cup of white choc bits
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 175 degrees.  Line a biscuit tray with baking or silicon paper.
In a medium bowl mix together the butter,  egg,  vanilla extract and sugars until creamy.  Add the flour,  rolled oats, cranberies,  choc bits and walnuts.  Mix until combined. 
Drop heaped teaspooonfuls onto the biscuit sheet and flatten slightly with your hand.
Bake for about 10 minutes until the edges start to brown.  Cool on the biscuit trays.

Notes -

*  You can use any nuts you like.  I use walnuts because they are cheaper than pecans.
*  I chop the cranberries so that they go further in the biscuits.
*  Biscuit dough can be frozen in log or ball form.  Allow 15 minutes for the logs to defrost before slicing.
*  I use a big Kenwood mixer to make the dough.  Hand mixers can be used to beat the sugars,  egg,  vanilla extract and butter but you need to switch to a wooden spoon when you add the other ingredients.
*  I make a double batch to save time.  Some to bake for eating straight away and the rest of the dough goes into the freezer
*  They make great presents wrapped in a cello bag with ribbon.

The finished product - Cranberry Hootycreek Biscuits

Logs of dough from the freezer

Flattened dough on a biscuit tray

 

I hope you enjoy these biscuits ( cookies ) as much as my family does.  Let me know if you get a chance to bake them.

This Week's Frugal Tasks

I've had a very productive week at my house.  Lots of cooking,  lots of baking,  some gardening and a few tasks that will help stretch my dollars a little further.  Looking at my list I'm feeling a great sense of accomplishment.  My freezers are full and the cookie jar holds some yummy treats.

Megan my youngest daughter was beside herself with excitement when she came home from school on Thursday.  There was a roast in the slow cooker with roast vegies in the oven.  I was making lots of cranberry hootycreek biscuit dough ( for the freezer ) and baking some to eat.  She proclaimed that "  Life doesn't get any better than this ".  You can bet that my heart swelled with happiness.

Here's my list of frugal tasks for this week -

*  Cooked three meals of spag bol for the freezer.

*  Cooked four meatloaves ( at the same time ) for the freezer.

*  Picked lettuce for homemade hamburgers and wedges one night..

*  Megan made forty scones.  Half went into the freezer and the other half were served for morning tea at church with homemade plum jam.

*  Cooked meat for two pies and froze it.

*  Made dough for eight pizzas and froze it.

*  Refilled and diluted the shampoo and conditioner bottles in both showers.

*  Made a lasagne for three meals.  We ate one meal that night and froze the other two meals.

*  Made two jars of lemon butter.

*  Made nineteen pumpkin scones .  They are now in the freezer for my morning teas.

*  Bought chicken fillets at $5.99 kg.  I bought $31 worth and portioned them into twelve meals and froze them.

*  Made seven jars of strawberry jam for $7.50.  I'm hoping that our strawberry plants give us lots of fruit this year so I can make more jam at a cheaper price.

*  Made chicken stock in the slow cooker with the skins from the fillets.  There is enough to make two batches of chicken soup.

*  Made a triple batch of cranberry hootycreek cookie dough.  Most of it was portioned into logs and frozen for future baking.

*  Made a triple batch of peanut butter choc chip cookie dough.  I portioned it all into logs and froze it.

Homemade hamburgers on homemade rolls with homegrown lettuce and homemade chips.

Scones with plum jam for morning tea at church

This lasagne will be portioned into twelve serves ( three meals )

Cranberrry hootycreek biscuits for afternoon tea.

 

What frugal tasks filled your week ?  Do you bulk cook some of your meals ?

Menu Planning

I've had many people over the years ask me how to menu plan and where to start.  Menu planning is the best way to save a lot of money on your food budget.

 I can remember many years ago when my girls were little,  I'd spend about half an hour in front of the pantry,  fridge and freezer trying to find something different to cook that night.  Money was very tight and I didn't have great cooking skills.  Spag bol and chop suey were cooked once a week.  I loved those meals but even I was getting a little tired of eating them so often.  Inspiration was hard to come by when you are looking at the same old, same old ingredients.  In desperation we'd have eggs on toast,  spaghetti on toast or crumpets.  I cringe when I think of it now.

The first step to writing a great menu plan is to write a list of all the meals you can cook.  Include even the basic meals like spag bol,  fish fingers and eggs on toast.  When I first wrote my list I think I had about 15 - 20 meals on it.  As time went on I learnt to cook a few new meals each year.  If they were a success I'd add them to my list.  I now have about 45 meals I can cook.  Some are cooked more regulary than others.

Once you have your list,  grab another piece of paper and write the day and date of each day down the side for the whole month.  Then work out how often you want to eat certain types of meat each week.  For example it might be fish x1,  chicken x2,  beef x2,  pork x1 and lamb x1.  Then you need to work out what meals work best on each night.  If you have swimming with the kids on Thursday night then a roast won't work unless you are happy to eat at 9pm.   If you ae all home on a Sunday night,  then the roast might work better then.  I always have a different meat each night for variety.  If I served chicken three nights in a row,  we'd all be tired of it.  If there is leftover meat from a roast,  it's either frozen or served two night later.

Cheaper meals are included to offset the dearer cost of roasts.  I also don't cook on Sunday night.  This isn't for religous reasons. We quite often have church functions for lunch on a Sunday or family gatherings. By the time tea comes around we are only wanting something simple and light.  I cook from scratch six nights a week so Sunday night in our house is called " Get your own but feed me ".  My girls and husband are quite capable of cooking something simple and it gives them a chance to improve and expand their cooking skills.

Here's my current menu plan -

Mon 18th - Lasagne and veg
Tues 19th - Honey soy chicken drumsticks with mash and veg
Wed 20th - Roast beef with roast veg
Thurs 21st - Tuna casserole and greens
Fri 22nd - Chicken curry in slow cooker with rice
Sat 23rd - Rissoles,  gravy,  mash and veg
Sun 24th - Get your own
Mon 25th - Meat pie and veg
Tues 26th -  Honey mustard chicken with rice
Wed 27th - Chicken flan with mash
Thurs 28th - Fish ( from box ) with rice,  zucchini slice and veg
Fri 29th -  Hamburgers with wedges
Sat 30th - KFC style chicken drumsticks with mash and veg
Sun 31st - Get your own
Mon 1st - Spag bol
Tues 2nd - Wedding anniversary - not sure what we'll have
Wed  3rd - Roast beef with roast veg
Thurs 4th - Salmon patties with rice and veg
Fri 5th - Freezer meals ( pick your own )
Sat 6th - Rissole casserole with mash
Sun 7th - Get your own
Mon 8th - Meatloaf with mash and veg
Tues 9th - Sausages,  mash and veg
Wed 10th - Silverside in slow cooker with roast veg
Thurs 11th - Tuna pasta bake
Fri 12th - Homemade pizza
Sat 13th - Beef stew in slow cooker with mash
Sun 14th - Get your own
Mon 15th - Lemon chicken drumsticks with mash or rice and veg
Tues 16th - Nasi Goreng
Wed 17th - Roast beef in slow cooker with roast veg
Thurs 18th - Tuna caserole with greens
Fri 19th - Lasagne with veg

I do my big monthly shop on the 16th of each month so I  write my menu plan the night before I shop.  If for some reason I can't shop then,  I have a few days up my sleeve on the menu plan.

Chocolate self saucing pudding

Desserts are not written on the menu plan.  If the main meal is a light one then I'll make a dessert as a treat.

This Week's Frugal Tasks

The Gower household is back into the normal routine this week.  School runs,  work,  house work,  gardening and food shopping have filled our days.  Oh what joy  !  Oh what blss  !  It was great to do the everyday tasks that gives me a sense of accomplishment.  Simple living also gives me a chance to stop and enjoy the abundant blessings in my life.

Here are my frugal tasks for the week -

*  Topped up my car with petrol at $1.36 a litre when petrol was selling for $1.55 a litre everywhere else.

*  Cleaned the dishwasher with bi carb and white vinegar.

*  I shared a bag of lemons with some ladies from my street.  A christian lady a few doors down from me invited all the ladies in our street to a high tea last Saturday. We had a fabulous time together with lots and lots of food,  talking and a game.

*  Cleaned the kettle with citric acid.  It looks like new again.

*  Baked some chocolate peanut butter biscuits to go with a present for a birthday party Darren and I went to.

*  Accepted some capsicums from my Dad.  Darren used some on his homemade pizza.

*  Refilled a travel sized shampoo and conditioner bottle.  The toiletry bag I use when I travel has now been restocked.  It's one less thing I need to think about when I'm packing for a holiday.

*  Picked three more heads of broccoli.  At the moment broccoli is selling for $7.98 a kilo in the supermarkets.  I'm saving a small fortune by growing my own.

*  Picked some lettuce for the chicken wraps the family had for tea one night.

*  Baked three loaves of wholemeal bread.

*  Picked some silverbeet to hide in a pasta bake for tea one night.  My girls don't like silverbeet but will eat it if it's cut finely and hidden .

*  Recycled 10 bread bags that my husband bought home from a bbq.

*  Made a menu plan for the next five weeks and wrote my shopping list from it.

*  I had enough leftovers for two single serves of beef stew.  It's now in the freezer for another meal.

*  Cut up a cereal packet to use as go between for when I'm making and freezing hamburger patties.

*  Used the carpet sweeper to wizz around the house instead of using the vacuum cleaner.

Beef stew simmering away in the slow cooker.  The lid is off to take the photo.

Broccoli that has been blanched and is ready for the freezer

Freshly picked silverbeet

What frugal tasks have you completed this week ?

Do you keep a list of your frugal tasks ?  Maybe this could be your challenge for next week.  I'd love for you to share your list.

Miracle Spray

Here it is.  The much talked about Miracle Spray.  This wonderful recipe was revealed by a member of The Cheapskates Club a couple of years ago.  She mentioned in passing that she was making a cleaning spray and all the members on the Cheapskate's forum begged her for the recipe.

 

I must say,  Miracle Spray has changed my life.  It was like having a " lightbulb moment " when I started using it. It replaces so many cleaning products and can save you a few hundred dollars a year.  It's so much better for your health.  I suffer from nasty sinus headaches from time to time.  If I can gather enough strength to clean my showers with the Miracle Spray,  my sinuses are cleared within minutes. 

 

 

1.5 litres of water ( 1 cup of very hot water ) 

300mls of white vinegar - no name

60mls of dishwashing liquid - good quality

25mls of eucalyptus oil - not water soluble

3 tablespoons of Lectric soda powder

Miracle Spray ingredients

 

 

Mix the Lectric soda in 1 cup of very hot water to dissolve.

Add remainder of ingredients into a 2 litre bottle,  fill up with tap water and shake well.  Decant into spray bottles.

NOTES -

This can be used on kitchen benches, sinks, toilets, laundry stains, washing  freshener, tiled / vinyl floors, showers and carpet stains.  It also removes stickers from items.  Just spray a few times and leave it for a couple of minutes then wipe the sticker off.

 

Please do not use on timber surfaces as it could damage the finish.

Please do not use on mirrors as the oil will leave the mirrors streaky.

 

I quite often make the Miracle Spray in double strength.  Just double all the ingredients into a 2 litre bottle and top up with water.  Label the bottles as " double strength ".  Dilute it when you fill up the spray bottles.