Spinach Quiche Recipe

Today I'm sharing a really cheap and simple meal which I cook at least once a month. It is very quick to make and a healthy meal served with a side salad.

You will need:

2 sheets of packaged puff pastry
7-8 eggs
A handful or 2 of baby spinach
A cup of grated cheese
Salt and pepper

Defrost the sheets of pastry and then layer them in a pie dish. I cut off the extra pieces that are hanging over with a sharp knife and use them to fill in the gaps on the sides. A bit like patchwork! It doesn't matter if it looks a bit rough, rustic is good.

Crack the eggs into a large mixing bowl and add around 100ml of water, then beat well with a whisk or fork.

In the pie dish, layer the spinach over the pastry and add some salt and pepper.

Pour the egg mix over the spinach, and then sprinkle the grated cheese over the top.
Bake in a 180 degree oven for around 30 minutes, or until the cheese is nice and brown. YUM!

Homemade Stain Remover

Image courtesy of:  morguefile.com.

Because I only like to go grocery shopping once a month, I need to be organized to ensure my family are stocked up with items that are regularly used so we don't run out. You can imagine my annoyance when Mr 13 presented me a white tee shirt which had been hiding in the bottom of his wardrobe for quite some time with a big dirty stain on the front. I reached for my stain remover to find only a dribble left...nooooo! I  decided to consult with my friend Mr Google for a homemade stain removal recipe and found a cracker of one! This was originally posted as an answer on the Thrifty Fun  website. Honestly, this stuff works far better than any other stain remover I've used, even the high end brands. It even works on old stains. Best of all I already had the ingredients in my laundry cupboard.

You can purchase spray bottles for around $1 at a hardware store or I just washed old my old one and poured my homemade liquid in there. This recipe will make about 400ml of stain remover.

To make your own stain remover you will need:

1/3 c dish washing liquid (any brand will do)
1/3 c cloudy ammonia
2 TBS bicarbonate of soda
1 cup water

Mix all the above ingredients in a jug and pour into a spray bottle. 

I tend to give this a good shake to make sure the bi carb distributes evenly, before spraying it on. 

The ingredients I buy to make this are the following brands:

Coles Smart Buy lemon dish liquid 1 litre- $1.09
Coles Smart buy cloudy ammonia 1 litre- $1.58
Woolworths home brand bicarbonate soda 500g- $1.59

Total- $4.26

These ingredients are enough to make 12 refills of stain remover, for only 50 c a bottle!

Why not try making some yourself?

Walking With A Baby T-Rex

Next month the Walking With Dinosaurs Arena Spectacular show is coming to Perth. We all thought this sounded pretty impressive until I checked out the prices, which are not for the faint hearted. I mean who could afford these tickets? Certainly not anyone on a budget!

Then I found out via social media, that the baby T-Rex dinosaur as featured in the show, would be appearing around Perth shopping centres to promote Walking With Dinosaurs. Best of all, this would be for free! Which coincidentally, is the price I can afford to pay!

We made sure we got there early to get a good view and we were not disappointed. There was also some prizes being handed out for answering dino related questions and Miss 16 and Mr 8 both won a set of cool badges each.

The baby T-Rex itself was amazing. It moved so realistically and would stalk and snap and roar at the crowd.  We somehow forgot it was a puppet and not a real dinosaur and were completely immersed in this great show.

The baby T-Rex was quite happy to be petted. Seeing this dinosaur was awesome and made me feel the wonder and excitement of being a kid again. If you have the means to do so, I would definitely recommend seeing either the free mini show at a shopping centre near you, or the arena spectacular.

Sometimes living on a strict budget can get me down. I feel guilty for not being able to afford to go to the movies or big shows such as this. We are currently saving up to get our pool repaired and leaking gutters and patio fixed and I know this will be worth it in the long run, but there are days when it is tough. We try to save up for a local holiday each year, but other than that most of what we do for entertainment is free. I do feel very grateful to live in a great city like Perth which host a cool range of free family events.

February Grocery Shop

Before I go shopping I withdraw the allocated $400 grocery budget out of the bank and keep it in a little zip lock bag. In this bag, I also keep any bonus Fly Buy coupons and my tell Coles survey which I do every month to get $5 off my grocery bill, adding up to a bonus saving of $60 a year!
I also store my receipts in the bag which helps to keep track of my spending.

If I see a great special I will buy enough to put in my stockpile, which saves money on the following months shopping bill.  For most items I buy generic brands or which ever item works out to be the cheapest per 100g. 

I used to only do a big shop each month with a top up for fresh produce in between, but by doing that I've found I've missed out on good specials. So these days if I am traveling pasta new shopping centre I will call in to check it out. A good example of this is while visiting my parents in law who live about half an hour away we had to call in to a chemist on the way home to pick up a script for hubby. I noticed there was a large oriental grocery store there, so had a browse. There I found eggs at $1.89 for 1 dozen and watermelon for 59c a kilo! Both of these items were at half the price compared to my local store and I still had quite a bit of money left in the food budget, so I could afford to buy them.

Woolworths

3 bags bi carb soda  $4.77
2 x 1.8 kg sausages (clearance)  $7.22
Polony  $2.42
6 x 2 ltrs milk (special) $9.00
Homebrand rice bubbles $2.00
Home Brand cocoa puffs  $2.00
  
Total                                                  $28.39

Foodworks

Rolled rib roast $14.86
Lamb leg roast $21.13
Pork leg roast  $13.82
Whole chicken $10.30
Chicken drumsticks $6.26
Cheese kansky $3.99
Bananas $2.95
Orange bubble bar $1.99

Total $65

Bunnings

Borax $8.20

Total $8.20


Coles

2 x 12packs toilet paper $9.00
2 x 2 litre  white vinegar $2.78
Frozen blueberries $4.50
Frozen rasberries $4.50
2x 1kg frozen corn $5.00
2 x 1kg mince $10.00
4 kg chicken thighs $25.82
Sour cream  $2.20
5x 500g butter $15.00
2 kg plain flour $1.85
2kg self raising flour $1.85
2 x taco shells $4.80
Tomato paste $1.28
Caramel topping $2.65
Wraps $6.00
Sandwich bags 50 pack $2.00
Large ziplock bags 20 pack $2.40
Mini zip lock bags 50 pack $1.90
2 x 500g brown sugar $3.38
Cling wrap $2.15
2 x marshmallows  $3.00
Cooking choc chips $ 1.75
2x 1kg dish powder $ 4.58
Hair dye $10.00
2x 500ml shampoo $3.80
Corn chips $4.32

 Total $ 136.51

Armadale Fresh

2 x coconut cream $1.98
1 ltr coconut oil $8.99
1 ltr sweet chilli sauce $2.49
2 doz eggs $5.00
Butternut pumpkin 3 for $1
Rice paper $ 1.29
Red plums $ 1.74
Mandarin and zucchini 2 bags for $1
Red and green capsicum 4 bags for $1.50 (lady only charged me for 2)
Pocky $1.99

Total $26.48

Kakulas Brothers

350 g dried cranberries $2.78
.875g Himalayan pink salt  $ 10.06
2 vanilla pods $3.98

Total $16.92


Woolworths

1 ltr shower gel $4.99
4 x deodorant  (half price sale) $13.08

 Total $18.07

Coles 

Mushrooms (clearance)  50c
2 x Vietnamese salad kit $1.20

Total $1.70

Oriental Supermarket

4.8 kg watermelon $2.86
Sushi rice $3.34
4 dozen eggs $7.56
Nori wraps $1.65

Total $15.40

Total Cost=  $316.60



 

Hula Hoop Tutorial

We recently went to an outdoor concert where we were entertained by a lovely Eco Fairy doing some hula hooping. There was a heap of spare  hula hoops for the kids to join in but Mr 8 was too shy, which got me thinking... why don't we make these at home? So that is exactly what we did!

I had a look online for custom handmade hula hoops and a large hoop which is ideal for beginners, retails for around $35! I made two hoops, one for Mr 8 and one for myself for a fraction of that price and still have leftover materials to make more!

To make a hula hoop you will need:

19mm poly drip irrigation tubing (mine was from Bunnings)
A 19mm barbed joiner for each hula hoop
Scissors or pruning shears
Coloured tape, sheet of silver book adhesive or washi tape for decorating

Unfortunately I could only find the 19mm tubing in a 25 metre length. But on the positive side, now I can make ALL the hula hoops! these would make great gifts as well.

First off you will need to measure out your hula hoop. A good rule of thumb is for a beginners hoop, the bigger the better. The hoop should come at least up to your waist when in it's on it's side.

Unwind the tubing and hold it up against your body so it reaches waist height. Mark  where you need to make the cut with a bit of tape.

Cut the tubing with some garden pruners or scissors.You will now have long length of tubing.
















 In a medium sized container pour in some boiling water and hold one of the tubing ends in the hot water for about 20 seconds. This will make the end pliable enough to attach the connector. 

Push the connector into the plastic tubing. Then repeat the process with the other end of the tube so that both cut ends are now attached to the connector.

The join in the hoop should look like this. If you just want a plain black hoop, then your DIY hoop is good to go. But if you prefer yours a bit fancy, keep reading.

I bought a pack of coloured insulation tape from Kmart. I also had a couple rolls of silver adhesive book covering that I got for 50c each last year, so I used those to decorate Mr 8's hoop as well. The stuff I have is similar to this. 

Starting at the join, and at a slight angle, wrap the insulation tape carefully around the tubing until it is all the way around. I think it looks good just like this, but if you want to add some sparkle, cut the silver adhesive into 1-2cm lengths depending on how big your black gaps are. Mr 8 wanted his to be black, red and silver so I positioned the silver tape to go in between the black tubing and red tape. This part takes a while so just take your time. 







Because you know I'm all about being frugal, everything I buy has to be as cheap as possible.
Here is the pricing for a DIY hula hoop:

25 metres of poly tubing: $14.90- works out to be 60c per metre
Barbed joiners: 75c each 
Insulation tape: $2.50 for a pack of 5
Silver adhesive: $1.00 for 2 rolls on sale

With these materials it would cost around $2.40 per hula hoop. 

I've been practicing every day but still can't keep the hoop up for more than a couple of rotations. However, Mr 8 is becoming a pro!

Happy hooping everyone!

February Meal Plan

Lemon and garlic chicken with cous cous and salad

I did not end up doing a monthly grocery shop for the month of January because we had heaps of extra food left over from Christmas. I diced the extra ham and turkey and put it in the freezer to use for meals and instead tried the $21 challenge which you can read more about here . It is essentially trying hard to stay out of the supermarket and use up what you have on hand to build meals for a week. The $21 figure is based on 4 people and should be used only to buy ingredients to add to the meals. It is a great tool to use occasionally when you just need to save a few extra dollars fast, or need to use up food in your freezer!

Because we still had lots of meat, frozen vegetables and fruit this was easily achievable. Plus I finally got to use up some random items of food lurking in my pantry.

Roast beef with potato, pumpkin and peas

Which now brings us to February and here are the meals I planned:

1. Roast chicken with roast potato, pumpkin, peas and homemade gravy.
2. Chicken risotto (using leftover chicken)
3. Tacos with lettuce, cheese and tomato
4. Spinach quiche and green salad
5. Pan fried fish and vegetables
6. Potato croquettes with broccoli and carrots
7. Roast beef with roast potato, pumpkin, peas and homemade gravy
8. Slow cooked beef and barley casserole (using leftover beef)
9. Tomato and ham pasta bake
10. Tee hee min and rice
11. Cheese and onion pie with vegetables
12 Peri peri chicken and salad wraps
13. Vegetable fried rice and pork steamed buns
14. Pork roast with roast vegetables
15.BBQ pulled pork and salad (using leftover pork)
16. Meatball casserole and pasta
17. Coconut vegetable curry and rice
18. Spaghetti or beans on toast (mama cbf cooking night)
19. Roast lamb and vegetables
20. Hot lamb rolls (using leftover lamb)
21 Nachos
22. Chrorizo and lentil soup
23.Omelets and vegetables
24. Potato bake and salad
25. Curried sausages mashed potato, carrots and peas
26. Vegetable pizza subs
27. Lentil and potato pie
28.Stuffed potatoes and salad

 Being summer I try to avoid using the oven where possible as it heats up my house too much. I have learned to adapt the majority of these meals to be made in the slow cooker.

Slow cooker meatballs with pasta

For snacks I also made:

Muesli
Homemade yoghurt
Banana bread (using frozen bananas)
Orange and cranberry muffins
Blueberry muffins (frozen blueberries)
Peanut butter balls
Anzac slice
Mango icypoles (frozen mangoes)
Sweet chilli dip (served with vegie sticks)
Rice bubble slice
Choc muesli slice

I always have a variety of fresh, frozen or dried fruit on hand for snacking. Also by making cakes, slices and lunch box bars from scratch really impact positively on the budget. I can make these things for only a few cents each compared to buying the processed, heavily packaged version available in stores.

What types of meals are always on your plan?

Shopping Around For The Cheapest Groceries

I've had a lot of people ask how I manage to feed my family of 5 on a food budget of $400 a month. Especially in Perth. Most of it is just down to meal planning, knowing the prices of what I buy regularly and shopping around for the best possible prices. Before the month begins, I will do a food audit and try to make up meals using what I already have on hand. I wrote more about it here
Once I have a meal plan and a shopping list of all the ingredients needed to prepare these meals, including baking ingredients, snacks and other household items I will need for the month, I then spend the afternoon grocery shopping. I never shop on an empty stomach, as if I'm hungry I'm more likely to make impulsive purchases.

Coconut oil and Asian cooking supplies are much cheaper at Asian grocery stores.

I buy our meat from a small Foodworks store which has a butcher onsite. The meat there is great quality and so much cheaper then at the big supermarkets. I can get a 2kg roast of pork or beef for around $15. This will do us 2-3 meals.

At Coles, I buy the bulk of my pantry, fridge and freezer items and the odd bit of meat like mince or chicken thighs because it is cheaper here then buying at my butcher. I never buy fruit and vegetables from chain supermarkets due to the inflated cost, unless items are on clearance. By shopping here I also accumulate a fair amount of Fly Buy points. Last year, I saved them all up until Christmas and got $80 off my shop!

I shop at Woolworths for bi-carb soda that I use for cleaning, making the teens facial scrub and any other items that may be on special. I used to buy Mackenzies brand of bi carb from Coles for $2.64 for 500g, unfortunately Coles do not make a generic version of this. Then I stumbled upon Woolworths Home Brand bicarbonate of soda which is only $1.59 for 500g. A great saving of $1.05, which might not seem like much, but over the course of a year would add up to big savings!

We also have a Spud Shed which opened up a few months ago. I keep an eye out for the specials and stock up then. In the past they have had carrots and broccoli for 50c and free potatoes!

Mr 8 cutting up our free potatoes ready to mash for dinner

A local volunteer run op shop also have free bread and rolls for the community. We rarely have to buy bread, as I will pick up a few loaves and keep them in my chest freezer. This really helps the food budget as bottomless pit Mr 13 will often have a couple of slices of toast after dinner if he is still hungry.

I have also found that certain items are cheaper at some stores then others. Asian ingredients like coconut oil, sweet chilli sauce, soy sauce, ketsap manis, sushi rice, nori and rice paper rolls are definitely much cheaper at Asian grocery stores than at a  regular supermarket. My local store also sells fruit and vegetables and have excellent specials as well as bags of seconds stock for only 50c a bag!

Spices, dried fruit, nuts, legumes and other dried goods I buy from Kakulas Brothers in Northbridge. This place is fabulous and deserves and entire blog post to itself! I buy all my spices and pulses there in bulk every couple of months for a fraction of the cost. I am also a salt snob and buy my glorious pink Himalayan sea salt from there.

Another thing I do to save money by making my own cleaning products. I make my own laundry gel, stain remover and use bi carb soda, vinegar and essential oils for cleaning instead. I also use vinegar as a rinse aid in my washing machine and dishwasher. Instead of expensive fabric softeners and rinse aids.

By spending a bit of extra time planning and shopping around you can save heaps of money off your grocery bill. If you go past a little independent store on your travels, pop in and check out the prices. You may be pleasantly surprised.