weekly_food_challenge | Entries tagged with challenge #23

Mood: cheerful

So yesterday there was actually usable veg in the reduced section.

( behold my mighty spring onions )

Yeah. I think I win the "biggest reduction" boasting rights. 55p to 6p is an almost 90% reduction. Beat that! Ahem. Not that I'm competitive or anything. Anyway... Mac'n'Cheese:

Equipment Required:

Deep lasagne dish or similar.
Oven AND hob.
largish saucepan
Balloon whisk and wooden spoon.
Measuring jug.
1 tbsp, 1 tsp & ½ tsp measuring spoons
Sharp knife and chopping board
Cheese grater, unless you bought your cheese ready grated.
(optional) Frying pan/skillet and tools for flipping things in it and getting things out of it.

( Rest of recipe under the cut )

miss_s_b

Reduced from 90p to 39p (& if you think a 57% reduction is good, you wait for part 3 ;) ).

If you've not had pittas before, you stick them in the toaster (or in the oven, or under the grill) for a minute till they puff up a bit, then you can open them, then you put Things in them. If you're careful about opening them (just a narrow opening on one edge) you can even put them back in the toaster to warm the contents. If you're less capable of opening them without too much splitting they can still go in the microwave for warming of contents.

I put leftover Bolognese sauce and cheese in, and then put them back in the toaster.

They were YUMMY.

Traditionally you'd put salad and spicy lamb in, I guess.

What are your favourite things to put in pittas?

missdiane

The bargain bins themselves were a bust. I couldn't find any "Final Sale" "Managers Special" or other similar last-ditch effort stuff in the Stop and Shop when I rolled by early Saturday morning before it started to snow. It's as if they hid it all so I couldn't do the challenge. I did slip and slide (literally) out this morning to get some bits and bobs at the H-Mart (Korean grocery). Alas, the only thing in the bin of iffy stuff were carrots which I already have those at home. However I did see this rather good sale

It made me think of this yummy breakfast ratatouille recipe I spotted yesterday on Extra Crispy.

So I will most definitely be making it this week since I have a little over a dozen eggs that I need to start using up already. It'll probably be a dinner rather than a breakfast since I have more time to savor things in the evening.

Two skinny but long eggplants cost me $.68. Their zucchini was also a rather good regular price of $1.29/pound and there was a pound bag of mini yellow and orange peppers for $2.39 which this won't use but a few of them. I knew I already had a shallot, a can of diced tomatoes, some balsamic to use for the red wine vinegar, some mini flatbread for the crusty bread, and some fresh parsley at home which another part of the Fabulous Broke Life (FBL) is to use up items you already have on hand. I didn't go hunting for fresh thyme since I have dried and same with garlic. I also didn't go looking for capers since I don't like those anyway. I shall try to remember to report back on how it turned out.

Oh and if you're ever wondering about getting one of those instant pots - go for it. I freaking love mine. I got a smaller one since it's only me and I've used it SO much. One thing I want to make soon in it is congee since a friend told me it would only take 20 minutes.

pseudomonas

I posted this on my own journal first, but as it happens I was spurred to make it cos a bag of beetroots was 59p in South Harrow and you can't say no to that, can you?

So:

1. Cut your beetroots into chunks. Do not peel or scald them; scrubbing is OK.
2. Put the chunks in a non-airtight jar.
3. Pour a salt solution (35g of salt in a litre of boiled-and-cooled water) over them.
4. Wait for a week or two for the beetroots to become sufficiently delicious.

Yeah, that's it. Hardly worth bothering with, was it?

When it's done you can either just eat the beetroots as they are or simmer them in the brine (which by then will have turned into basically beetroot kvass) and make a borscht out of them.

Variations: you can mix the beetroots with carrots/swedes/turnips; you can add some caraway seeds/dill seeds/peppercorns/garlic.

(being kept company by some cucumbers which are outside the scope of this challenge)

miss_s_b

Mood: accomplished

The deli counter reduced cabinet was a bit of a bust, but the bread counter one was an embarrassment of riches (even got some Pokemon mini rolls for the daughter). So you're going to get a couple of posts, I'm afraid...

Firstly, Bread and Butter Pudding. Normal Bread and Butter Pudding, not the Extremely Boozy variant.

Equipment Required:

Deep lasagne dish or similar that holds at least 2 pints.
Oven.
Balloon whisk.
Measuring jug.
1 tbsp measuring spoon
Butter knife

( Rest of recipe and pictures under the cut )

el_staplador

It took me three attempts to find a shop that actually had anything in its reduced cabinet. Yesterday big Tesco obliged, however. There were a lot of chickens marked down from £3 something to £3 something else. There were some ready meals. And there was an interesting selection of fish.

In the other reduced cabinet there were various deli items. I came away with some hake fillets (reduced from £7.50 to £5.25*) and an end of salami (reduced to 66p from I know not what). Also some chocolate eclairs, so I got them for pudding. (Not pictured, because I didn't cook them!)

( Picture under cut )

Hake to me is a Spanish fish, associated with San Miguel and olives and storks on church roofs, so I got some paella rice as well.

I cut the salami up into little chunks and cooked it gently in a wok to melt the fat out, then I added a chopped onion, three chopped garlic cloves (two of them were very small) and a red pepper. Also some cabbage, which I later fished out when I realised that cabbage cooks faster than rice. Threw in 150g rice and turned it in the fat. Added a slug of sherry and then a pint of vegetable stock. Shook in a lot of paprika to cover the fact that I was using salami, not chorizo. Brought to the boil and simmered.

After about ten minutes of simmering I fried the hake fillets in butter in a separate pan, five minutes on each side. (And five minutes before the end I put the cabbage back in with the rice.) Served the one next the other.

It wasn't bad at all.

( Picture: the result )

*I don't usually pay more than a fiver for protein for one meal unless it's a special occasion, but I do like hake, and it'll be today's lunch as well.

miss_s_b

Mood: cheerful

Your challenge this week is to buy something - anything - from the reduced cabinet at your local store and cook it, or cook with it.

This could be an ingredient that is reduced because it's approaching its use-by date (which is the route I, personally, am planning to go down because I am brassic this week), or it could be an appliance or piece of equipment or even a cookbook that's reduced to clear or discounted because it's discontinued.

I want to see pictures of the price reduction stickers, please - you can use DW's native photo hosting or you can put them on another service and link; I'm not bothered, as long as I see the bargainous nature of your purchase.

Special bragging rights for the person who gets the biggest percentage reduction from the original price!

M	T	W	T	F	S	S
					1	2
3	4	5	6	7	8	9
10	11	12	13	14	15	16
17	18	19	20	21	22	23
24	25	26	27	28	29	30
31

Weekly Food Challenge

A challenge for cooks every Wednesday

Entries tagged with challenge #23 - reduced

Reduced Cabinet Bingo Part 3: Mac'n'Cheese

Reduced Cabinet Bingo Part 2: Pitta Breads

Planned discount meal

Reduced Cabinet Bingo: Pickled beetroots!

Reduced Cabinet Bingo Part 1: Bread & Butter Pudding

Reduced cabinet bingo: hake with Spanish rice

Challenge #23: Reduced Cabinet Bingo

Subscribe

Expand Folds

Links

Most Popular Tags

December 2018

Style Credit