Day 16 of 28 - Mince and Tatties!
Everyone I know loves mince and potatoes, but it's probably because it's so cheap and easy to make. Here in Frugaldom, and countless other frugal homes, we make 'Nile' mince - so called because it stretches so far!
This week's Nile mince is now in the slow cooker and will be low-slow-cooking overnight. I have used 400g (£3) of lean steak mince, which was browned while I was chopping 2 x 10p large onions. I added about 30p worth of frozen peas and sweetcorn plus half a dozen potatoes and some carrots. At most, these, along with the salt, pepper and herbs would account for another 50p, so the entire crock pot has approximately £4 worth of food in it.
This week I am cheating a bit, as I had bought a 2kg tin of carrots while they were on offer, so I split them into four lots, one for the pot and three for the freezer - they'll be ideal for making carrot and lentil soup.
Nothing should go to waste, not even the tin. These make fantastic planters, plant pot holders, candle lamps, waste paper bins... recycling them is limited only by your own imagination.
This is yet another 'recycling' experiment - even the potato peelings have been kept this time around because I'm going to attempt to grow these into more potatoes! Strange as it may seem, it is possible and I have managed successfully in the past. I have left them draining and will select the biggest pieces tomorrow. These will then be left sitting on a cardboard egg carton before popping them into a tub of compost by the back door. If they fail to grow - nothing lost.
Today's spends amounted to £2.07 for a 2 litre carton of semi-skimmed and a carton of UHT skimmed milk, kindly collected for me by a friend who was visiting this afternoon.
In the 'new' living room, I have begun moving in the book shelves and today I completed the second foot stool/mini ottoman. I ran out of braid, so the latest one has a single stripe, but I doubt this will matter much as the pair may not even be kept in the same room.
And finally for this evening, a lovely addition to the Frugaldom book shelves by way of this set of crafting folders - grand daughter will love reading these when she comes to visit. Yes, I am still decluttering, but it seems everyone else is, too, so I'm paying things forward wherever and whenever I can.
Hope everyone had a good weekend!
Very interested to read about your potato peelings NYK .
ReplyDeleteDo you pick the ones with eyes and leave them till they sprout? Just checking!
Your foot stools look great!
Have a great week.
Rw
Hi RW, yes, the thick peelings with eyes are the ones to keep and they sprout quite quickly. It works better if the eyes are already protruding into sprouts, so the 'best' of the potatoes for doing this are the ones that many people would bin as being done.
Deletelove your foot stools.......
ReplyDeleteThanks, Gill. I did a photo blog on here when making the first one, it was really easy and they make comfy seats. :)
DeleteBrilliant footstools! We don't have room or I'd give one a go! I also love mince and tatties..I sneak TVP and oats in mine to 'nile' it even further, just don't tell the men..6 years and they haven't noticed yet!
ReplyDeleteLOL I add anything from porridge oats to barley, lentils, beans or, of I have any, the dried soya mince to mine but this lot is the 'starter' pot, so it will be split up and frozen in portions for doubling up or bulking out as and when required plus I'll make up a lasagne from some once it's booked down with tomatoes. '100 things to do with Mince' must have been an absolute best seller for many decades now and I still don't have a copy! :)
DeleteNile mince is classic! I always love reading your blog so much to learn. Slowly catching up on my reading!
ReplyDeleteHello! How are you doing and when is your big move taking place? I'm way behind with my reading so must apologise to you and everyone else whose blogs I mean to keep up with - has it really been that long? Good luck with everything! :)
DeletePotato peeling deep fried or oven fried make a yummy snack too. Sue.
ReplyDeleteGood idea, thanks for that. I do tend to cook in jackets if they're 'nice' jackets or else they sometimes get cooked for the chickens. Isn't it amazing how versatile potatoes and their peels are, despite the fact they aren't counted as one of our five a day minimum? I think they can even make vodka from fermented potatoes.:)
DeleteJust wondering what types of herbs you add? Thanks for the recipe :)
ReplyDeleteIn this case, just a sprinkle of the cheap mixed herbs, the dried ones you could buy for about 19p per tub. (Not sure what they cost nowadays.)
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