Your Cheapskates Club Newsletter 37:18
In this Newsletter
1. Cath's Corner
2. In the Tip Store - Easy Clean Grill; Stop Throwing Out Your Juice Pulp; Classy and Cheap Cake and Biscuit Decorations
3. Cheapskate's Winning Tip - Save a Bundle with MOO Tortillas
4. Share Your Tips -
5. On the Menu - 3 Ingredient Pineapple Muffins
6. Ask Cath
7. Join the Cheapskates Club
8. Frequently Asked Questions
9. Contact Details
1. Cath's Corner
Hello Cheapskaters,
The lesson I learned this week: don't stand on a chair to wash the kitchen windows.
Today's newsletter is very short, because I had to learn that lesson the hard way: I fell backwards off the chair, hitting my head and shoulder on the bench, before landing on my back on the floor. The result was an ambulance trip to hospital in a neck brace, a gazillion x-rays and CTs, lots of pain relief and months of recovery time to look forward to. I can't thank the staff at Maroondah Hopsital enough for not only taking care of me, but of my family too.
So learn from my experience. Not matter what it says on your cleaniing scheude, don't stand on a kitchen chair to wash the windows. Take my advice and find someone with long arms and get them to do it for you.
I apologise for not getting the answers to last week's question edited in time to include today. There were quite a few to go through, they'll be ready for next week.
The newsletter will be back to normal next week.
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
Easy Clean Grill
Napisan is a great soaker for the griller. Use very hot water, leave it overnight, and that thing will shine!
Contributed by Jennifer Rowston
Editor's note: A generic soaker or washing soda or dishwasher powder will also clean up your grill, stovetop trivets and oven racks, even the barbecue plates! Just fill the laundry sink with hot water, add the soaker and then the items (make sure they are fully submerged) and let them soak overnight. Next morning pull the plug, rinse under hot water and dry. As Jennifer said, they will shine! Cath
Stop Throwing Out Your Juice Pulp
Approximate $ Savings: $5-$10 per juicing
We recently purchased a food processor (so we can make our own bases and pastry) and noticed how much pulp was left over when we used the juicer. When we worked out how much in dollar value we would have thrown out, especially when we're juicing for 4 kids and 2 adults - well, the juice was delicious, but throwing the pulp out was disappointing to say the least. So, instead of adding it to our compost, we now add the fruit pulp to muffins, slices, muesli bars and cakes, and the veggie pulp goes into savoury muffins and our spaghetti Bolognese sauce and soups! Not only are we adding those extra nutrients to our snacks and meals, we're not throwing $$$ into the compost anymore.
Contributed by Coleen Summers
Classy and Cheap Cake and Biscuit Decorations
Approximate $ Savings: $5.00 each time
I love baking, but I couldn't afford the expensive bought decorations. So I made coloured sugar. All that is required is regular white sugar (no need to use castor sugar), food colouring - liquid colours work best, and a plastic sandwich bag.
Place 1 cup sugar in sandwich bag, add a few drops of colour, seal bag then mix well by kneading the colour through the sugar. The mixture will be slightly damp. Dry by placing on baking paper on oven tray in oven at 50 degrees Celsius for 10 minutes. Then put back in sandwich bag and 'crunch' it up. Beautiful coloured sugar to sprinkle on icing, sugar-toast, and biscuits, for a fraction of the cost of store bought item.
Contributed by Tracey Smithers
There are currently more than 12,000 great tips in the Tip Store
3. Cheapskates Winning Tip
This week's winning tip is from Hana de Wit. Hana has won a one year Platinum Cheapskates Club membership for submitting her winning tip.
Save a Bundle with MOO Tortillas
Tortilla wraps are constantly on our shopping list. We eat burritos, tacos, salad wraps and wrap up leftovers for lunch all the time. It's usually about $2-$3 for a packet of 8 tortillas which I thought was pretty cheap until recently. I've spent the last 3 months cutting down our groceries to $300 a month and 'trying' to buy as waste free as possible. Our little tortilla packs only hold 8 tortillas and I haven't seen bigger bulk buy packs anywhere and it was starting to really bother me. So much plastic. So today, I made our own tortillas. It was SO EASY. 2 cups of flour, mixed with 1/2 a tsp of salt. Mix 3/4 cup water with 3 tbsp olive or vegetable oil and add slowly to flour mix. Knead 10 times, let sit for 10 minutes, cut into 8, roll as thinly as possible on floured surface and cook for 30 seconds each side in a medium to hot pan. They tasted amazing, no preservatives so much healthier and with my flour at $1.80 a kilo (bakers flour bought in a 20kg bag through No Knead) it works out extremely cheap! Also.... no plastic!
Congratulations Hana, I hope you enjoy your Cheapskates Club membership.
4. Submit Your Tip
The Cheapskate's Club website is over 3,000 pages of money saving hints, tips and ideas. 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. We publish a Winning Tip each Thursday, so enter your great money, time or energy saving idea now.
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!
Submit your tip
5. On the Menu
3 Ingredient Pineapple Muffins
Ingredients:
2 cups SR flour
1 cup sugar
2 x 410g cans crushed pineapple
Method:
Pre-heat oven to 160 degrees Celsius. Line a muffin pan with 12 muffin liners.
Combine the flour, sugar and pineapple with all the juice. Mix well.
Fill muffin papers 2/3 full.
Bake for 20 minutes until cooked in the centre and golden.
Adding 1 cup of coconut gives pineapple coconut muffins.
Adding 1 cup of white choc melts/chips is also a delicious change.
Any tinned fruit can be used for these muffins. Fruit salad is lovey. If you use peaches, apricots, pears or plums, dice them before adding to the batter.
This week we will be eating:
Sunday: Roast Lamb
Monday: Lamb hotpot, mashed potato & pumpkin
Tuesday: Spaghetti bolognese, garlic bread
Wednesday: Oven baked pumpkin risotto
Thursday: MOO Pizza
Friday: Mexican meatballs & savoury rice
Saturday: Pan fried sandwiches
In the fruit bowl: apples
There are over 1,600 other great money saving meal ideas in the Recipe File.
6. Ask Cath
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
7. Join the Cheapskates Club
For just 10 cents a day 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.
Joining the Cheapskates Club gives you 24/7 access to the Members Centre with 1000's of money saving tips and articles.
Click here to join the Cheapskates Club today!
8. Frequently Asked Questions
How do I change my email address?
This one is easy. Members can update their email address or any other details by clicking on "Edit Profile" directly under their membership number after they have logged in to the Member's Centre. Subscribers to our free newsletter can use the Change Your Address form (under Customer Service in the menu) and fill it out. Once you've filled it in click the send button and we'll do the rest. Please remember to include your old email address so we can find it in the list as well as the new one.
How do I know when my membership should be renewed?
When you login to the Member's Centre you will be told how many days of membership you have left once you have 30 days left. Just click on the link to renew and your membership will just continue on, uninterrupted.
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 You Get on Our List?
You signed up to receive our Free Newsletter at our Cheapskates Club Web site or are a Platinum Cheapskates Club member
9. Contact Details
The Cheapskates Club -
Showing you how to live life
debt free, cashed up and laughing!
Contact Cheapskates
1. Cath's Corner
2. In the Tip Store - Easy Clean Grill; Stop Throwing Out Your Juice Pulp; Classy and Cheap Cake and Biscuit Decorations
3. Cheapskate's Winning Tip - Save a Bundle with MOO Tortillas
4. Share Your Tips -
5. On the Menu - 3 Ingredient Pineapple Muffins
6. Ask Cath
7. Join the Cheapskates Club
8. Frequently Asked Questions
9. Contact Details
1. Cath's Corner
Hello Cheapskaters,
The lesson I learned this week: don't stand on a chair to wash the kitchen windows.
Today's newsletter is very short, because I had to learn that lesson the hard way: I fell backwards off the chair, hitting my head and shoulder on the bench, before landing on my back on the floor. The result was an ambulance trip to hospital in a neck brace, a gazillion x-rays and CTs, lots of pain relief and months of recovery time to look forward to. I can't thank the staff at Maroondah Hopsital enough for not only taking care of me, but of my family too.
So learn from my experience. Not matter what it says on your cleaniing scheude, don't stand on a kitchen chair to wash the windows. Take my advice and find someone with long arms and get them to do it for you.
I apologise for not getting the answers to last week's question edited in time to include today. There were quite a few to go through, they'll be ready for next week.
The newsletter will be back to normal next week.
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
Easy Clean Grill
Napisan is a great soaker for the griller. Use very hot water, leave it overnight, and that thing will shine!
Contributed by Jennifer Rowston
Editor's note: A generic soaker or washing soda or dishwasher powder will also clean up your grill, stovetop trivets and oven racks, even the barbecue plates! Just fill the laundry sink with hot water, add the soaker and then the items (make sure they are fully submerged) and let them soak overnight. Next morning pull the plug, rinse under hot water and dry. As Jennifer said, they will shine! Cath
Stop Throwing Out Your Juice Pulp
Approximate $ Savings: $5-$10 per juicing
We recently purchased a food processor (so we can make our own bases and pastry) and noticed how much pulp was left over when we used the juicer. When we worked out how much in dollar value we would have thrown out, especially when we're juicing for 4 kids and 2 adults - well, the juice was delicious, but throwing the pulp out was disappointing to say the least. So, instead of adding it to our compost, we now add the fruit pulp to muffins, slices, muesli bars and cakes, and the veggie pulp goes into savoury muffins and our spaghetti Bolognese sauce and soups! Not only are we adding those extra nutrients to our snacks and meals, we're not throwing $$$ into the compost anymore.
Contributed by Coleen Summers
Classy and Cheap Cake and Biscuit Decorations
Approximate $ Savings: $5.00 each time
I love baking, but I couldn't afford the expensive bought decorations. So I made coloured sugar. All that is required is regular white sugar (no need to use castor sugar), food colouring - liquid colours work best, and a plastic sandwich bag.
Place 1 cup sugar in sandwich bag, add a few drops of colour, seal bag then mix well by kneading the colour through the sugar. The mixture will be slightly damp. Dry by placing on baking paper on oven tray in oven at 50 degrees Celsius for 10 minutes. Then put back in sandwich bag and 'crunch' it up. Beautiful coloured sugar to sprinkle on icing, sugar-toast, and biscuits, for a fraction of the cost of store bought item.
Contributed by Tracey Smithers
There are currently more than 12,000 great tips in the Tip Store
3. Cheapskates Winning Tip
This week's winning tip is from Hana de Wit. Hana has won a one year Platinum Cheapskates Club membership for submitting her winning tip.
Save a Bundle with MOO Tortillas
Tortilla wraps are constantly on our shopping list. We eat burritos, tacos, salad wraps and wrap up leftovers for lunch all the time. It's usually about $2-$3 for a packet of 8 tortillas which I thought was pretty cheap until recently. I've spent the last 3 months cutting down our groceries to $300 a month and 'trying' to buy as waste free as possible. Our little tortilla packs only hold 8 tortillas and I haven't seen bigger bulk buy packs anywhere and it was starting to really bother me. So much plastic. So today, I made our own tortillas. It was SO EASY. 2 cups of flour, mixed with 1/2 a tsp of salt. Mix 3/4 cup water with 3 tbsp olive or vegetable oil and add slowly to flour mix. Knead 10 times, let sit for 10 minutes, cut into 8, roll as thinly as possible on floured surface and cook for 30 seconds each side in a medium to hot pan. They tasted amazing, no preservatives so much healthier and with my flour at $1.80 a kilo (bakers flour bought in a 20kg bag through No Knead) it works out extremely cheap! Also.... no plastic!
Congratulations Hana, I hope you enjoy your Cheapskates Club membership.
4. Submit Your Tip
The Cheapskate's Club website is over 3,000 pages of money saving hints, tips and ideas. 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. We publish a Winning Tip each Thursday, so enter your great money, time or energy saving idea now.
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!
Submit your tip
5. On the Menu
3 Ingredient Pineapple Muffins
Ingredients:
2 cups SR flour
1 cup sugar
2 x 410g cans crushed pineapple
Method:
Pre-heat oven to 160 degrees Celsius. Line a muffin pan with 12 muffin liners.
Combine the flour, sugar and pineapple with all the juice. Mix well.
Fill muffin papers 2/3 full.
Bake for 20 minutes until cooked in the centre and golden.
Adding 1 cup of coconut gives pineapple coconut muffins.
Adding 1 cup of white choc melts/chips is also a delicious change.
Any tinned fruit can be used for these muffins. Fruit salad is lovey. If you use peaches, apricots, pears or plums, dice them before adding to the batter.
This week we will be eating:
Sunday: Roast Lamb
Monday: Lamb hotpot, mashed potato & pumpkin
Tuesday: Spaghetti bolognese, garlic bread
Wednesday: Oven baked pumpkin risotto
Thursday: MOO Pizza
Friday: Mexican meatballs & savoury rice
Saturday: Pan fried sandwiches
In the fruit bowl: apples
There are over 1,600 other great money saving meal ideas in the Recipe File.
6. Ask Cath
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
7. Join the Cheapskates Club
For just 10 cents a day 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.
Joining the Cheapskates Club gives you 24/7 access to the Members Centre with 1000's of money saving tips and articles.
Click here to join the Cheapskates Club today!
8. Frequently Asked Questions
How do I change my email address?
This one is easy. Members can update their email address or any other details by clicking on "Edit Profile" directly under their membership number after they have logged in to the Member's Centre. Subscribers to our free newsletter can use the Change Your Address form (under Customer Service in the menu) and fill it out. Once you've filled it in click the send button and we'll do the rest. Please remember to include your old email address so we can find it in the list as well as the new one.
How do I know when my membership should be renewed?
When you login to the Member's Centre you will be told how many days of membership you have left once you have 30 days left. Just click on the link to renew and your membership will just continue on, uninterrupted.
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 You Get on Our List?
You signed up to receive our Free Newsletter at our Cheapskates Club Web site or are a Platinum Cheapskates Club member
9. Contact Details
The Cheapskates Club -
Showing you how to live life
debt free, cashed up and laughing!
Contact Cheapskates