Foraging for cheap food

Hello, It's been a beautiful spring like day here today, I've washed the bedding it's all ready to put back on, and I've filled the brown bin with clippings from the bushes on the front garden, it will be collected tomorrow. It all looks tidy again. 

Did you see the fabulous sunset last night? I took off down the road to the church to get some shots. Our village is high up overlooking the River and across to Yorkshire. I just stand and stare in amazement, and get quite emotional, it's so magical. The pictures are not enhanced, this is exactly how it was. The blood red slick is the reflection on the river. This one I took without a flash. 

This is the same scene, taken with a flash. I like the way it lights up the conifer hedge.

It's hard to choose a favourite, but I think I like this one best. 

Then I stepped back and put the trees into the picture. No flash used on this one.

Then I did put the flash on. It's a shame that the green on the left is fuzzy, I left the camera to focus automatically, not being familiar with setting it manually. Still a nice picture though. Did you get a good view of the sunset last night?

Then of course I went shopping. I wanted to use a voucher for £4 off, and my fresh food stocks were low anyway. Simplesista asks to see what I bought.

Here is a run down.

4 tins of chick peas, on offer at 4 for £1

4 tins tomatoes, on offer at 4 for £1

2 tins rice pudding 15p each

1 tin peaches 40p

Pack of frozen leeks £1

Danish Blue cheese £1

2 packs cream crackers 27p each

Bottle of Chardonnay £4.49 I deserve a treat

All the rest was yellow stickers. 90% off.

Potatoes, Brussels Sprouts, Salad, Mushroom Pasta Salad, Sweet Potatoes, Cucumber, Spring Onions, Yogurts, Rice Noodles, Cous Cous salad. My fridge is full once more. There wasn't many people there, the trolley was wheeled out from the back and everyone dived in. It was good humoured, we all got what we wanted, with some left over for the late comers. 

I know a lot of my readers can't get the yellow stickers where they are. If I couldn't get them I would still make finding the best prices my priority. Trawling the shops for the bargains, planning journeys to visit several places at the same time so no extra money is spent on petrol or bus fares. Or, calling in places when I am passing on the way back from a trip out. I call this foraging. I can't be bothered to forage in the hedgerows for berries, I don't eat jam anyway, my foraging takes place on supermarket shelves. 

So, a lot of money saved, enough to buy myself a new landline telephone. With my hearing not so good the only phone I can use in the house is a BT Big Button phone, it has an amplify facility, and this is positioned on the landing at the top of the stairs, when it rings I can usually hear it. Sometimes I miss it though, so I wanted one on my desk in the front room, because that's where I spend most of my time now. I bought another Big Button with amplify, so that's great, now I don't have to run up the stairs every time it rings. 

My meals will be quite simple for the next week with all this food, most of it doesn't need any cooking at all, or just the bare minimum. You might have guessed I don't meal plan, I buy what is cheap, and hopefully healthy. I don't know what I am going to eat, until I open the fridge door and see what needs eating first when I check the sell by dates. Lunch today was rice noodles cooked in a splash of oil, 3 minutes on the hob. Served on salad leaves, and topped with mushroom pasta salad. Yummy.

Dinner tonight was more rice noodles, this time with two eggs added and scrambled, they needed eating up. Served on a bed of more salad leaves, and fresh mushrooms. Gut busting great.

That's all for now. Can the other three ladies who won the bags send me a photo, please, thank you.

Thanks for reading, Catch you tomorrow. Toodle pip.