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The Brexit Kitchen Stores
Did I get your attention there? Or maybe, like me, you rolled your eyes a little bit at the thoughts of stockpiling certain food items in advance of Brexit (in whatever form it eventually takes). Bear with me here though, because a fully stocked store cupboard is a thing of beauty and regardless of the UK imminently leaving the EU it’s a good idea. What’s in my pre-Brexit store cupboards? It’s probably easier to list it out according to category: Dry Stores Beans – Black eyed, pinto, chickpeas (garbanzo), and butterbeans Lentils Seeds – Pumpkin, Sesame, Sunflower, Poppy, Nigella (onion seed) Sugar – Caster, Granulated, Soft Brown, Dark Brown, Demerara…
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How To Visit Taste Of Dublin On A Budget
Updated for 2017! For ten years I managed to avoid Taste of Dublin, I knew it was on, I knew where, and convinced myself that it wasn’t worth visiting and not to bother. However, in year 10 I was invited along as a guest of the organisers to check it out. This gave me the opportunity to head on in and see if it was worth the admission price, what’s on offer, and to figure out if it’s worth your while to head along this year (year 12). The Ticket Price The cheapest tickets you can buy directly online are €17.50 per person and these are available for the Thursday…
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Simple Chicken Traybake
The beauty of this simple chicken traybake is that once it’s assembled you just bake it in the oven and wait while the delicious smells fill the house.
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Wholesome Frittata
This frittata tastes delicious while still warm at dinner, but is also the perfect next day lunchbox fare because it’s just as nice cold. There’s no reason why eating healthily should be hard to do!
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Gently Spiced Pork Meatballs
The trick to perfect meatballs is to roast them in the oven before adding the meatballs to the sauce. This is not only a way to render off the fat you sometimes find in the cheaper cuts of meat, but the browning process in the oven adds extra flavour. It’s easy to see why this meal is a hit with my family.
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Quick and Easy Vegetarian Tart
This vegetarian tart is so easy to make thanks to the pre-rolled puff pastry. There really isn’t much to do apart from bake the pastry, then fill it a quarter of an hour before serving, then cooking for the final few minutes. It’s the ultimate make-ahead party food, and you’ll look like an absolute genius to produce something so pretty from your kitchen at the last minute. What makes it more incredible is that you only need 5 ingredients to make it!
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My Tips For Managing The Family Budget
It’s a delicate balancing act but you don’t need me to tell you that I’m sure. How do you allow for all the costs during the year, make sure that the bills are paid, that there are enough savings for special occasions, and not end up pulling your hair out in frustration? I’d love to tell you that it’s easy to manage the family budget, but it’s not. Setting up a management system will take time. I’m not going to pull any wool over your eyes. My best advice to you is to put the time in today, and you’ll find it much easier in the future. This is not…
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Potato Pizza
When I peel potatoes I always peel at least twice as many as I need for a meal. If I’m going to invest my time at the kitchen sink peeling spuds, then I might as well make it worth my while. Once mashed, I divide the potatoes into 2 sections – 1 to cool for freezing, and 1 for the main meal. Frozen mash is one of my kitchen secrets because I keep it on standby for busy days or quick suppers. How do I cook the mash once defrosted though? Mash and gravy are one of life’s luxuries and there is nothing like a spoon of mash made with…
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How We Saved Money While Renovating Our Kitchen
Here’s how we saved money while renovating our kitchen. It goes without saying that we had a very tight budget to renovate the kitchen. I’m a big fan of lists and so had itemised all the expected expenses. We knew that we could save money but I didn’t want to cut corners on the final finish. If you’re interested in how it looked before the renovation, then click here.
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Tuna Fish Cakes
While I love Fresh Fish Friday, I don’t always have the budget or time to get to the fishmongers to get some decent fresh fish. This recipe for tuna fish cakes uses a medium tin of tuna which is handy to have in the store cupboard for frugal weeks. If you have fresh vegetables to put with this meal, do as they will brighten up your plate. Alternatively a tin of sweetcorn and some frozen peas will go just as well. There’s nothing wrong with eating from the store cupboard every now and again, especially if it saves you money in the long run.
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Why I’m Planning Christmas In January 2015
Did I make you feel a bit stressed? If so I apologise, that’s the last thing on my mind. In fact I’m hoping that you might even take a little bit of inspiration from my premature Christmas madness in January 2015. I realise that many people only put their decorations away in the past week. My tree finally went back to the attic on Tuesday and the outdoors lights have been switched off. They will get put away as soon as my hubby gets a chance to get out on the ladder and remove them. It’s probably not such a good idea if I go climbing about the place after…
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Egg Tarts
I’ll keep it short today! These egg tarts are great for lunchboxes. You can make them ahead and they will keep in a lined box in the fridge for up to 2 days. They also reheat very well too. I just lash whatever squishy veg/leftover meat I have in the fridge into the tarts. Don’t complicate things, make life easy on yourself. Note you’ll also need about 200g of rice or baking beans for this recipe but they aren’t eaten and can be used again on another occasion. Egg Tarts (serves 6 hungry adults – more kids) Ingredients 1 roll of chilled puff pastry 1 small onion Handful of squishy…
