On top of this I have been inspired to utilise my video camera filming myself reading Francesco Marciuliano's funny poetry books - I Could Pee On This (cat poems) and I Could Chew On This (dog poems). I would urge my readers to check them out on my Youtube page. Hopefully you will have as much fun watching them as I did making them.
I have a third fun blog that I enjoy creating some silly thoughts through my made up character, Phil E Stein (art critic) and although I haven't had the chance to do as much as I would really like to with this I have enjoyed sending up the art world periodically through this funny blog.
So to food - I have been cooking quick and easy dishes as I recover from the festive season. One evening I used up a bit of lamb rack by cutting it up into small thin chops and frying them off in a smattering of sunflower oil and then drizzled over some creamy riata I happened to have in the fridge. Yummy.
In an attempt to save some money I have been strict with myself and tried not to keep buying new food when I already have things to eat in the house. Not easy when I am surrounded by scrummy meat and fish at work. I have loads of pasta and noodles and so I plan to use these up over the next couple of months. Last night I had noodles with lemon and lavender chicken and stir fried a bit of left over stir fry vegetables. The lemon and lavender chicken I prepared the day before and cooked in the morning and let go cold to snack on over the next few days.
So, now over to my book of pasta dishes to see where that takes me!
2 comments:
Your chops look delicious, as do the noodles.
Using up food is good for saving money, it's amazing what can be done with a bit of lateral thinking. There are several blogs dedicated to the very same full of brilliant ideas.
Mind you, when all you've got left is a tin of baked beans and a jar of pickled beetroot things are looking a bit less enticing!
Seriously, we go through this exercise every so often to avoid chucking out stuff that is nearly out of date and it's how we used to live when I was a child. Supermarkets didn't exist so Mum went to the shops on the bus every Saturday. She had to get enough to last the week home on the bus, supplemented by the greengrocer's van that came round the villages on a Friday evening. He also sold some basic tinned foods. Her meal planning was a bit hap hazard at times and Thursday teatime was a bit of an invention test, according to what was left. Baked bean pie was a family favourite!
(A bit like shepherd's pie but with a base of baked beans mixed with a fried onion and, if we were lucky, a few bacon bits.)
I adore leftovers, & like my Mum before me, I can make a few bits of leftover chicken stretch a long way - we had the thighs from a chicken on Sunday for lunch (the breast & legs went to my Step Dad, & would last him 3 meals at least), scraps from the carcass in a stir fry on Monday, I had the rest of the scraps in a salad on Tuesday & there was still enough left for our lovely new cat to have a decent snack too. The carcass was picked clean, & I felt virtuous at having spent so little on many meals.
Jean's Baked Bean pie sounds good, rather similar to how my Mum made a cottage pie sufficient for 6 people, using only a small amount of meat. It's amazing how far meat will go if loads of extras like beans & veggies are added. I stocked up my freezer in December, & aim to live more frugally this year.
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