Category: frugal living

  • Velveeta

    Now that I have your attention…. here’s how to make a home made version of Velveeta, only from actual cheese! 1/4 ounce packet unflavoured gelatin 6 tablespoons powdered milk 1 cup (240ml) boiling water 1 pound (16oz/450g) shredded cheese Line a loaf pan with plastic wrap. Put gelatin and powdered milk into a blender. Add…

  • Shortening substitute

    I am trying to replace all the “weird” ingredients in my cooking with more natural ingredients. Shortening has been a particularly difficult one to substitute, as it has certain properties that no other cooking fat has. One suggestion I read was to try substituting clarified butter. In a spirit of scientific enquiry, I tried it…

  • Cake Flour substitute

    Cake flour makes the best cakes; light, delicate, delicious. It is also expensive and can be difficult to find. So let’s substitute it! 3.5 cups All Purpose (plain) flour 0.5 cups corn starch Put the ingredients in a container with a firmly fitting lid, and shake well to combine. (Pretend you’re playing the maracas…) Use…

  • Pancake syrup

    Based on my experiments with treacle and dark treacle, I decided to take on pancake syrup. With genuine maple syrup being quite expensive, and commercial pancake syrups being mainly high fructose corn syrup, I wanted something with ingredients I have in my pantry. One problem with the cheater pancake syrups on sites like Allrecipes is…

  • Fresh custard recipe

    It’s funny how you can get a mental block about something. In my case, it was custard. I always saw custard being made from Bird’s powder, and even when I moved to the USA I carried on buying it, albeit at a stupid price. Then, recently, I decided to check out how to make custard…

  • Instant hot chocolate

    Hot chocolate comes in two varieties: the ones worth drinking, and the ones that you can afford. With 4 simple ingredients you most likely already have in your pantry, you can make your own! 3 cups dried non-fat milk powder 2/3 cup sugar 2/3 cup baking cocoa 1/2 tsp salt Shake ingredients thoroughly to completely…

  • Hummus

    “Hummus is delicious, but have you seen how much it costs? Even on sale it’s kinda pricy!” How many times have you had that kind of conversation, or versions thereof? Let’s look at a different way to sate your hummus addiction! Let’s start with Alton Brown’s recipe. I have made this many times and it…

  • Seasonal vegan dessert or breakfast

    OK, time to rock your socks with a seasonal, vegan, healthy (…. ish!) breakfast or dessert. It’s also dirt cheap! As I have some blackberries and blueberries left over from my recent U-Pick experience, I thought it was time to make something fun. So, black-and-blue-berry pancakes it is! PANCAKE BATTER 1 cup self-raising flour 1…

  • Sweet potato and chickpea curry

    Sweet Potato and Chickpea Curry 2 medium red onions, peeled 1 clove garlic, peeled 1 bird’s eye pepper, Thai chili or other very hot small pepper with its seeds 1 2 ½ to 3 inch piece of ginger, peeled and cut into chunks 3 tbsp vegetable oil ½ tsp hot red pepper flakes ½ tsp…

  • Complete protein

    What is complete protein? It is a protein that contains all 9 essential amino acids. What do you mean by 9 “essential” amino acids? They are 9 amino acids that your body cannot produce. They have to come from an external source. So what if I eat incomplete protein? You’ll get nervous, dizzy, and suffer…