YOur Cheapskates Club Newsletter 13:22
In This Newsletter
1. Cath's Corner
2. From the Tip Store - Time to Buy Up Big; Save More - Track Your Food Costs; Colour Eggs Using Food Colour and Vinegar
3. Share Your Tips
4. On the Menu - BBQ Meatloaf
5. The $300 a Month Food Challenge - Top 10 Pantry Items You Should Have
6. The Weekly MOO Challenge - MOO Month is winding down
7. Cheapskates Buzz
8. The Cheapskates Club Show
9. Ask A Question - Have a question? Ask it here
10. Join the Cheapskates Club
11. Frequently Asked Questions
12. Contact Details
1. Cath's Corner
Hello Cheapskaters,
Daylight saving ends this weekend. Just saying, so you don't forget!
It has been a very busy week here. Hannah and I have been working on a new project, and I've been going flat chat in the kitchen, dehydrating and vacuum sealing lots of produce for the next year.
There is a sneaky bug or two (or hundreds) eating my garden. As soon as a seedling appears, it disappears overnight. I don't use chemical pest control in my garden, especially now we have Lacey visiting, so I'm stumped.
I've sprinkled crushed egg shells around, and if I see a caterpillar or snail or other bug, I am heartless and crush them.
So Cheapskating brains trust what else can I do? Let me know, I'm starting to give up hope of ever growing food again!
Have a great week everyone.
Happy Cheapskating,
Cath
PS: Love our site? We love referrals! Send a note to your favourite newspapers, magazines, radio stations, TV stations, friends and relatives, and tell them about us!
2. From The Tip Store
Time to Buy Up Big
Tinned fish is my protein of choice for value and taste if I'm honest. Japan is about to let go of an enormous amount of water stored after cooling their reactors = highly toxic, into the sea. That will be the quick (or slow) end to the safety or even availability of tinned fish from anywhere within 'cooee' of Japan. Time now to buy up really, really, largely. We know it lasts for so long stored at home. Could be the last time it is readily available.
Contributed by Carol Ryan
Editors note: Tinned fish (tuna, sardines or salmon) maintains it's quality for 5 years. It is perfectly safe to eat after this time if the tin is intact (no rust, no dents etc.) but may change colour or even develop a stronger flavour. Cath.
Save More - Track Your Food Costs
We all know that tracking our spending helps us save money. So have you ever considered tracking your food spending? Food is the next biggest expense for most of us, next to rent or mortgage payments! If your budget seems to just keep blowing out, start to record every cent you spend on food. Every day for a month write down all the money you spend on food. Not just your weekly groceries, but that latte with the girls, the canteen money for the kids, the fish'n'chips on Friday night. I'm not saying you can't have these things. Just be aware that they are food costs and do have a huge impact on your Spending Plan. If you are trying to keep your food bill and your Spending Plan under control, you may decide that the $35 fish'n'chip takeaway each week just isn't worth it and can be a $15 homemade fish'n'chip dinner instead, instantly keeping $1,040 a year in your bank account!
Colour Eggs Using Food Colour and Vinegar
My brother's son had an Easter party at school last year and each child was asked to supply a plate of food. My Sister-in-law likes to try and contribute something healthy, so she hard-boiled some coloured eggs. The best way to get really bright colours is to add food colour and vinegar to the water while boiling and then to leave the eggs to cool in the water overnight. This resulted in really bright eggs that the children loved and none were left over. Who said kids always go for junk food? It cost them only the price of the eggs (which they bought from the egg farm for half the supermarket price). They had the colouring and vinegar in the pantry.
Contributed by Kaye
3. Share Your Tips
The Cheapskate's Club website is thousands of pages of money saving hints, tips and ideas. There are over 12,000 tips to save you money, time and energy; 1,600 budget and family friendly recipes, hundreds of printable tip sheets and ebooks.
Let's get together and make the Cheapskates Club Australia's largest online hint, tip and idea library. Share your favourite money saving, time saving or energy saving hint and be in the running to win a one-year membership to The Cheapskate Club.
Share your favourite hint or tip that saves money, time and energy and be in the running to win a one-year subscription to The Cheapskate Journal.
Remember, you have to be in it to win it!
Share Your Tip
4. On The Menu
BBQ Meatloaf
This is so good, especially on cooler nights. I serve with mash, carrots and either broccoli or cauliflower and there is never anything left on the plate.
These days, to make it cheaper, I use 2 cups TVP rehydrated in 2 cups stock, and 250g of each of the minces. I also make my own stuffing mix, using fresh breadcrumbs, parsley, onion and mixed herbs.
Ingredients:
500g sausage mince
500g minced beef
1 cup stuffing mix (preferably sage and onion)
2 chopped onions
1 beaten egg
1 dessertspoon curry powder
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Method:
Mix together thoroughly with clean, wet hands. Place into the baking dish, making a mounded shape. Dry hands. Pat plain flour over the surface of the meatloaf. Any which sticks can be easily removed by rubbing hands with a little of the flour. Make two of these because they can be used cold with salad, or as sandwich fillings. Bake 30 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius.
Meantime make the barbecue sauce.
BBQ Sauce
Ingredients:
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons vinegar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 teaspoon instant coffee
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon margarine.
Method:
Bring to the boil in a saucepan and then simmer for 5 minutes. Pour this over the meatloaves, and cook for a further 40-45 minutes. Baste frequently.
Next week we will be eating:
Sunday: Roast Lamb
Wednesday: Schnitzel, tomato gravy, veggies
Tuesday: Bolognese Pasta Bake
Wednesday: BBQ Meatloaf, mash, veggies
Thursday: MOO Pizza
Friday: Sweet'n'Sour Chicken, rice
Saturday: Haystacks
There are over 1,800 budget and family friendly recipes in the Cheapskates Club Recipe File, all contributed by your fellow Cheapskates, so you know they're good.
Add A Recipe
Recipe File Index
5. The $300 a Month Food Challenge
Top 10 Pantry Items You Should Have
I am often asked what should be in a stockpile. Here are my top 10 stockpile items. You'll see they are all things that are used regularly and store well. By following the sale cycle and purchasing enough of each item when it comes on sale to last until the next sale, you'll be able to drastically cut your grocery budget and keep the pantry full.
They are in no particular order, but they are all basics in my pantry and should be in yours, in at least one form, preferably a few, so you don't get bored with what you're eating.
*Meat, chicken and fish
*Condiments
*Salt
*Sugar
*Oils and fats
*Tinned and frozen fruits and vegetables
*Rice and pasta
*Cereals
*Baking supplies (flour, sugar, dried fruit etc)
*Dairy and eggs
They are all ingredients, that can be used to make breakfasts, lunches and dinners, and sweet or savoury dishes. Ingredients give you options (and save you money!).
The $300 a Month Food Challenge Forum
The Post that Started it All
6. The Weekly MOO Challenge
MOO Month is over! 31 days have flown by, with a new MOO every day. Here's the last of them for 2022.
Day 24: MOO Croissants
Day 25: MOO Waffle Mix
Day 26: The Best Roast Chicken Seasoning Ever
Day 27: MOO Graham Crackers
Day 28: Vegetable Stock Powder
Day 29: MOO Fresh Salsa
Day 30: Russian Dressing
Day 31: Easy Brioche
Get in on the fun and discussions here.
7. Cheapskates Buzz
From The Article Archive
Hot Cross Buns
Digging Your Way Out of Debt
How Earning Just $5 a Day Can Make You Wealthy
This Week's Hot Forum Topics
2022 $300 a Month Food Challeng
Clean and Organise the Pantry Challenge
What's for dinner 2021
8. The Cheapskates Club Show
Join us live on YouTube every Tuesday and see how we are living debt free, cashed up and laughing - and find out how you can too!
Latest Shows
1. Cath's Corner
2. From the Tip Store - Time to Buy Up Big; Save More - Track Your Food Costs; Colour Eggs Using Food Colour and Vinegar
3. Share Your Tips
4. On the Menu - BBQ Meatloaf
5. The $300 a Month Food Challenge - Top 10 Pantry Items You Should Have
6. The Weekly MOO Challenge - MOO Month is winding down
7. Cheapskates Buzz
8. The Cheapskates Club Show
9. Ask A Question - Have a question? Ask it here
10. Join the Cheapskates Club
11. Frequently Asked Questions
12. Contact Details
1. Cath's Corner
Hello Cheapskaters,
Daylight saving ends this weekend. Just saying, so you don't forget!
It has been a very busy week here. Hannah and I have been working on a new project, and I've been going flat chat in the kitchen, dehydrating and vacuum sealing lots of produce for the next year.
There is a sneaky bug or two (or hundreds) eating my garden. As soon as a seedling appears, it disappears overnight. I don't use chemical pest control in my garden, especially now we have Lacey visiting, so I'm stumped.
I've sprinkled crushed egg shells around, and if I see a caterpillar or snail or other bug, I am heartless and crush them.
So Cheapskating brains trust what else can I do? Let me know, I'm starting to give up hope of ever growing food again!
Have a great week everyone.
Happy Cheapskating,
Cath
PS: Love our site? We love referrals! Send a note to your favourite newspapers, magazines, radio stations, TV stations, friends and relatives, and tell them about us!
2. From The Tip Store
Time to Buy Up Big
Tinned fish is my protein of choice for value and taste if I'm honest. Japan is about to let go of an enormous amount of water stored after cooling their reactors = highly toxic, into the sea. That will be the quick (or slow) end to the safety or even availability of tinned fish from anywhere within 'cooee' of Japan. Time now to buy up really, really, largely. We know it lasts for so long stored at home. Could be the last time it is readily available.
Contributed by Carol Ryan
Editors note: Tinned fish (tuna, sardines or salmon) maintains it's quality for 5 years. It is perfectly safe to eat after this time if the tin is intact (no rust, no dents etc.) but may change colour or even develop a stronger flavour. Cath.
Save More - Track Your Food Costs
We all know that tracking our spending helps us save money. So have you ever considered tracking your food spending? Food is the next biggest expense for most of us, next to rent or mortgage payments! If your budget seems to just keep blowing out, start to record every cent you spend on food. Every day for a month write down all the money you spend on food. Not just your weekly groceries, but that latte with the girls, the canteen money for the kids, the fish'n'chips on Friday night. I'm not saying you can't have these things. Just be aware that they are food costs and do have a huge impact on your Spending Plan. If you are trying to keep your food bill and your Spending Plan under control, you may decide that the $35 fish'n'chip takeaway each week just isn't worth it and can be a $15 homemade fish'n'chip dinner instead, instantly keeping $1,040 a year in your bank account!
Colour Eggs Using Food Colour and Vinegar
My brother's son had an Easter party at school last year and each child was asked to supply a plate of food. My Sister-in-law likes to try and contribute something healthy, so she hard-boiled some coloured eggs. The best way to get really bright colours is to add food colour and vinegar to the water while boiling and then to leave the eggs to cool in the water overnight. This resulted in really bright eggs that the children loved and none were left over. Who said kids always go for junk food? It cost them only the price of the eggs (which they bought from the egg farm for half the supermarket price). They had the colouring and vinegar in the pantry.
Contributed by Kaye
3. Share Your Tips
The Cheapskate's Club website is thousands of pages of money saving hints, tips and ideas. There are over 12,000 tips to save you money, time and energy; 1,600 budget and family friendly recipes, hundreds of printable tip sheets and ebooks.
Let's get together and make the Cheapskates Club Australia's largest online hint, tip and idea library. Share your favourite money saving, time saving or energy saving hint and be in the running to win a one-year membership to The Cheapskate Club.
Share your favourite hint or tip that saves money, time and energy and be in the running to win a one-year subscription to The Cheapskate Journal.
Remember, you have to be in it to win it!
Share Your Tip
4. On The Menu
BBQ Meatloaf
This is so good, especially on cooler nights. I serve with mash, carrots and either broccoli or cauliflower and there is never anything left on the plate.
These days, to make it cheaper, I use 2 cups TVP rehydrated in 2 cups stock, and 250g of each of the minces. I also make my own stuffing mix, using fresh breadcrumbs, parsley, onion and mixed herbs.
Ingredients:
500g sausage mince
500g minced beef
1 cup stuffing mix (preferably sage and onion)
2 chopped onions
1 beaten egg
1 dessertspoon curry powder
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
Method:
Mix together thoroughly with clean, wet hands. Place into the baking dish, making a mounded shape. Dry hands. Pat plain flour over the surface of the meatloaf. Any which sticks can be easily removed by rubbing hands with a little of the flour. Make two of these because they can be used cold with salad, or as sandwich fillings. Bake 30 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius.
Meantime make the barbecue sauce.
BBQ Sauce
Ingredients:
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons vinegar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 teaspoon instant coffee
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon margarine.
Method:
Bring to the boil in a saucepan and then simmer for 5 minutes. Pour this over the meatloaves, and cook for a further 40-45 minutes. Baste frequently.
Next week we will be eating:
Sunday: Roast Lamb
Wednesday: Schnitzel, tomato gravy, veggies
Tuesday: Bolognese Pasta Bake
Wednesday: BBQ Meatloaf, mash, veggies
Thursday: MOO Pizza
Friday: Sweet'n'Sour Chicken, rice
Saturday: Haystacks
There are over 1,800 budget and family friendly recipes in the Cheapskates Club Recipe File, all contributed by your fellow Cheapskates, so you know they're good.
Add A Recipe
Recipe File Index
5. The $300 a Month Food Challenge
Top 10 Pantry Items You Should Have
I am often asked what should be in a stockpile. Here are my top 10 stockpile items. You'll see they are all things that are used regularly and store well. By following the sale cycle and purchasing enough of each item when it comes on sale to last until the next sale, you'll be able to drastically cut your grocery budget and keep the pantry full.
They are in no particular order, but they are all basics in my pantry and should be in yours, in at least one form, preferably a few, so you don't get bored with what you're eating.
*Meat, chicken and fish
*Condiments
*Salt
*Sugar
*Oils and fats
*Tinned and frozen fruits and vegetables
*Rice and pasta
*Cereals
*Baking supplies (flour, sugar, dried fruit etc)
*Dairy and eggs
They are all ingredients, that can be used to make breakfasts, lunches and dinners, and sweet or savoury dishes. Ingredients give you options (and save you money!).
The $300 a Month Food Challenge Forum
The Post that Started it All
6. The Weekly MOO Challenge
MOO Month is over! 31 days have flown by, with a new MOO every day. Here's the last of them for 2022.
Day 24: MOO Croissants
Day 25: MOO Waffle Mix
Day 26: The Best Roast Chicken Seasoning Ever
Day 27: MOO Graham Crackers
Day 28: Vegetable Stock Powder
Day 29: MOO Fresh Salsa
Day 30: Russian Dressing
Day 31: Easy Brioche
Get in on the fun and discussions here.
7. Cheapskates Buzz
From The Article Archive
Hot Cross Buns
Digging Your Way Out of Debt
How Earning Just $5 a Day Can Make You Wealthy
This Week's Hot Forum Topics
2022 $300 a Month Food Challeng
Clean and Organise the Pantry Challenge
What's for dinner 2021
8. The Cheapskates Club Show
Join us live on YouTube every Tuesday and see how we are living debt free, cashed up and laughing - and find out how you can too!
Latest Shows
9. Ask A Question
We have lots of resources to help you as you live the Cheapskates way but if you didn't find the answer to your question in our extensive archives please just drop me a note with your question.
I read and answer all questions, either in an email to you, in my weekly newsletter, the monthly Journal or by creating blog posts and other resources to help you (and other Cheapskaters).
Ask Your Question
10. Join The Cheapskates Club
For just $25 you can join the Cheapskates Club and get exclusive access to the Cheapskate Journal, the monthly e-journal that shows you how to cut the costs of everyday living and still have fun for a full year.
That's unlimited 24/7 access to EVERYTHING in the Member's Centre!
Click here to join the Cheapskates Club today!
11. Frequently Asked Questions
How do I change my email address?
This one is easy. When you login to the Member's Centre just click on your name at the top of the page to go straight to your profile page where you can update your details, change your password and find your subscription details.
Not a Cheapskates Club member? Then please use the Changing Details form found here to update your email address.
How do I know when my membership should be renewed?
Memberships are active for one year from the date of joining. You will be sent a renewal reminder before your subscription is due to renew. You can also find your membership expiry date on your profile page.
When you login to the Member's Centre just click on your name to go straight to your profile page where you can will find your join date and your expiry date.
What will you do with my email address?
We never rent, trade or sell our email list to anyone for any reason whatsoever. You'll never get an unsolicited email from a stranger as a result of joining this list.
How did I get on this list?
The only way you can get onto our newsletter mailing list is to subscribe yourself. You either signed up to receive our Free Newsletter at our Cheapskates Club Web site or are a Platinum Cheapskates Club member.
12. Contact Cheapskates
The Cheapskates Club -
Showing you how to live life
debt free, cashed up and laughing!
PO Box 5077 Studfield Vic 3152
Contact Cheapskates
We have lots of resources to help you as you live the Cheapskates way but if you didn't find the answer to your question in our extensive archives please just drop me a note with your question.
I read and answer all questions, either in an email to you, in my weekly newsletter, the monthly Journal or by creating blog posts and other resources to help you (and other Cheapskaters).
Ask Your Question
10. Join The Cheapskates Club
For just $25 you can join the Cheapskates Club and get exclusive access to the Cheapskate Journal, the monthly e-journal that shows you how to cut the costs of everyday living and still have fun for a full year.
That's unlimited 24/7 access to EVERYTHING in the Member's Centre!
Click here to join the Cheapskates Club today!
11. Frequently Asked Questions
How do I change my email address?
This one is easy. When you login to the Member's Centre just click on your name at the top of the page to go straight to your profile page where you can update your details, change your password and find your subscription details.
Not a Cheapskates Club member? Then please use the Changing Details form found here to update your email address.
How do I know when my membership should be renewed?
Memberships are active for one year from the date of joining. You will be sent a renewal reminder before your subscription is due to renew. You can also find your membership expiry date on your profile page.
When you login to the Member's Centre just click on your name to go straight to your profile page where you can will find your join date and your expiry date.
What will you do with my email address?
We never rent, trade or sell our email list to anyone for any reason whatsoever. You'll never get an unsolicited email from a stranger as a result of joining this list.
How did I get on this list?
The only way you can get onto our newsletter mailing list is to subscribe yourself. You either signed up to receive our Free Newsletter at our Cheapskates Club Web site or are a Platinum Cheapskates Club member.
12. Contact Cheapskates
The Cheapskates Club -
Showing you how to live life
debt free, cashed up and laughing!
PO Box 5077 Studfield Vic 3152
Contact Cheapskates