Your Cheapskates Club Newsletter 52:21
In This Newsletter
1. Cath's Corner
2. From the Tip Store - Stretch the Meat on Skewers for More Barbecue Deliciousness; Catch More Ants With Sugar; Recycling a Household Appliance Creates a Planter Box
3. Tip of the Week - Create a Cardboard Cubby House, the Kids Will Love It!
4. Share Your Tips
5. On the Menu - Frugal Haystacks
6. The $300 a Month Food Challenge - End of Year Pantry Inventory
7. Cheapskates Buzz - Cheapskaters are talking in the Forum and on Cath's blog
8. The Cheapskates Club Show
9. The Weekly MOO Challenge - MOO Chicken Live Pate
10. This Week's Question - Sand Fly Solution
11. Ask A Question - Have a question? Ask it here
12. Join the Cheapskates Club
13. Frequently Asked Questions
14. Contact Details
1. Cath's Corner
Hello Cheapskaters,T
his year is almost done. Thank goodness you might say. It's been a long year somehow, and yet it's also flown by. Maybe that's just me getting older and life things changing.
Reflecting over the last 12 months I can honestly say that while I loathed the lockdowns and the restrictions we lived under, and the losses we suffered this year, there were some wonderful times, some happy times, and blessings we never imagined.
Like everyone, we faced challenges in 2021 that we'd never faced before. We survived!
However you came through 2021, remember that in just a few hours it will be done and dusted. The past. History.
And the best thing about your history is that you while you can't change it, you can learn from it and by that learning, change your future.
Look at the past year, and plan your new year. Make the changes you need to, relegate the old year to the archives of your life and move into your future with confidence.
Happy new year everyone!
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
Stretch the Meat on Skewers for More Barbecue Deliciousness
When making skewers to barbecue, in addition to adding vegetables such as onion, capsicum, mushroom etc. add a cube of bread either side of your meat. The juices from the meat soak into the bread and it will taste amazing, and is a cheap way to bulk out your skewer when the meat can be quite pricey. Bread works even better when the meat has been marinated, as it will take the flavour of the marinade also.
We use wholemeal bread, but you can use whatever you have on hand - white, wholemeal, seeded or even garlic bread. Sandwich or toast sliced is fine. Simple trim the crust off and cut into squares or cubes that are roughly the same diameter as the meat pieces.
Contributed by Simone Dejun
You Catch More Ants With Sugar
I have read to get rid of ants, sprinkle a substitute sugar like Sugarine etc. along their trail. It is poisonous for ants; they will ingest it and carry it back to their nest, solving the ant problem.
Contributed by Betty
Recycling a Household Appliance Creates a Planter Box
Use your old upright fridge or freezer for a garden box. Have it degassed, put some holes in the underside and take the door off. Then lift it up off the ground and fill with soil. Add your plants and you have done something wonderful for the environment and saved a bit of money, as the planter boxes cost anywhere upward of $150. Not only that, you are being kind to your knees.
Contributed by Cara
Editors Note:With a little creative thinking you can use all manner of old whitegoods for planters. We pulled the drum out of an old, useless washing machine to use as a strawberry planter. We painted the outside green and lined it with mesh to hold the soil. It works beautifully and is the perfect size for strawberries. Cath
Add a Tip
3. This Week's Winning Tip
Create a Cardboard Cubby House, the Kids Will Love It!
Kids love cubby houses no matter how simple. They're even happy with a sheet thrown over a couple of chairs. But a zero-cost way to make a cubby is with cardboard boxes. You need a couple of huge boxes and the best (and probably only) place to get them is from an appliance store. They always have a glut of cardboard boxes so don't be afraid to ask for a couple of fridge-freezer boxes. Make sure they're the same size. Cut a slit down each one so that one narrow side opens. Tape one open side onto the outside of the other box, and vice versa, to make one big roomy box. Cut out a door (leave one side attached so that it can open and close) and a small window or two. Tape the boxes closed at the top and bottom. Preferably place the cubby in a corner so there is less danger of it falling over. Maybe put a piece of furniture against the other two sides for even extra support, although it if does fall over, the kids won't fall far, they are after all, standing on the floor inside. But it could damage things near by or squash the dog. This will keep them entertained for weeks.
Editor's note: You can't beat a cardboard cubby house and what better time to build one than after Christmas when cardboard boxes seem to multiply in the recycle bin! And if the boxes aren't big enough for a cubby house, build a doll house or a garage or a hotel or a school or an airport or fire station or whatever your littles would like to play with. Use the leftover wrapping paper for wallpaper to decorate the rooms. Hours of fun, and best of all, recyclable when they're finished with it. Cath
Congratulations Ruth, I hope you enjoy your Cheapskates Club membership.
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; 1,800 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.
4. Share Your Tips
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
5. On The Menu
Frugal Haystacks
A great summer dinner, haystacks are quick and easy and you can use what you have as the salad garnish.
Ingredients:
2 tins baked beans in tomato sauce
1 tin red kidney beans (or dried equivalent, soaked and cooked)
3 tbsp MOO taco seasoning (or 1 packet)
2 large onions, finely chopped
2 tins diced tomatoes
Method:
Sauté onion, add taco seasoning and then beans and tomatoes. Heat through. Serve over corn chips or toasted pita bread or torn mountain bread (I've even put it over pappadums in a pinch) add salad to suit, top with salsa and sour cream.
I usually put the salad (lettuce, tomato, cucumber, cheese, salsa, sour cream) out and let them make their own.
This makes a double quantity, so half goes in the freezer for the next time. Freezes well and it makes a great filling for stuffed spuds too.
Next week we will be eating:
Sunday: Roast Chicken
Monday: Quiche & salad
Tuesday: Spag Bol
Wednesday: Chicken Curry & Rice
Thursday: MOO Pizza
Friday: Fish, Wedges, Coleslaw
Saturday: Frugal 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
6. The $300 A Month Food Challenge
End of Year Pantry Inventory
The year is almost over. How have you managed with your $300 a Month Food Challenge this year?
It has been a bit up and down, with price increases and shortages really impacting grocery bills, especially the last half of this year.
Before the year ends, take a little time (about an hour) to inventory your pantry and freezer. Jot down what you have, what you need to rebuild your pantry. Make a note of things you bought that haven't been used and make it your goal for January to find recipes to use them up - otherwise that's money sitting on the shelf doing nothing and we don't want, and can't afford, that.
Make up your shopping list for next time you shop so you can start the new year off on the right foot - or shopping goal!
While you're doing the inventory clean and tidy. Wash any empty canisters and then put them in the sun for an hour or two to thoroughly dry and ensure any lingering bugs are well and truly dealt with.
Freshen the bay leaves on the shelves (bay leaves repel pantry moths).
Put everything back where it should be - baking with baking, sauces together, cereals together - you know the drill.
Defrost the freezer - how blessed are we that we get to do this in summer! If you find anything that's looking old or a bit freezer burnt, make a note to use it up in January. Make a note of anything you are short of so you can watch for sales to restock.
Get your pantry in order, and start the 2022 $300 a Month Food Challenge with a clean and tidy pantry and a grocery budget bang!
The $300 a Month Food Challenge Forum
The Post that Started it All
7. Cheapskates Buzz
From The Article Archive
Give yourself a MOO Manicure On A Budget
How to Budget for a Great Aussie Summer of Entertainment
Create a Christmas Fund Now to Avoid the Year End Christmas Crunch
This Week's Hot Forum Topics
A New Year, a New Budget
New Year's Resolution
New Years Revolutions, I Mean Resolutions
8. The Cheapskates Club Show
Join us live on YouTube every Tuesday and Thursday and see how we are living debt free, cashed up and laughing - and find out how you can too!
Show Schedule
Tuesday: Around the Kitchen Table - join Cath and Hannah for a cuppa and a chat around the kitchen table as they talk about living the Cheapskates way.
Popular Shows
1. Cath's Corner
2. From the Tip Store - Stretch the Meat on Skewers for More Barbecue Deliciousness; Catch More Ants With Sugar; Recycling a Household Appliance Creates a Planter Box
3. Tip of the Week - Create a Cardboard Cubby House, the Kids Will Love It!
4. Share Your Tips
5. On the Menu - Frugal Haystacks
6. The $300 a Month Food Challenge - End of Year Pantry Inventory
7. Cheapskates Buzz - Cheapskaters are talking in the Forum and on Cath's blog
8. The Cheapskates Club Show
9. The Weekly MOO Challenge - MOO Chicken Live Pate
10. This Week's Question - Sand Fly Solution
11. Ask A Question - Have a question? Ask it here
12. Join the Cheapskates Club
13. Frequently Asked Questions
14. Contact Details
1. Cath's Corner
Hello Cheapskaters,T
his year is almost done. Thank goodness you might say. It's been a long year somehow, and yet it's also flown by. Maybe that's just me getting older and life things changing.
Reflecting over the last 12 months I can honestly say that while I loathed the lockdowns and the restrictions we lived under, and the losses we suffered this year, there were some wonderful times, some happy times, and blessings we never imagined.
Like everyone, we faced challenges in 2021 that we'd never faced before. We survived!
However you came through 2021, remember that in just a few hours it will be done and dusted. The past. History.
And the best thing about your history is that you while you can't change it, you can learn from it and by that learning, change your future.
Look at the past year, and plan your new year. Make the changes you need to, relegate the old year to the archives of your life and move into your future with confidence.
Happy new year everyone!
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
Stretch the Meat on Skewers for More Barbecue Deliciousness
When making skewers to barbecue, in addition to adding vegetables such as onion, capsicum, mushroom etc. add a cube of bread either side of your meat. The juices from the meat soak into the bread and it will taste amazing, and is a cheap way to bulk out your skewer when the meat can be quite pricey. Bread works even better when the meat has been marinated, as it will take the flavour of the marinade also.
We use wholemeal bread, but you can use whatever you have on hand - white, wholemeal, seeded or even garlic bread. Sandwich or toast sliced is fine. Simple trim the crust off and cut into squares or cubes that are roughly the same diameter as the meat pieces.
Contributed by Simone Dejun
You Catch More Ants With Sugar
I have read to get rid of ants, sprinkle a substitute sugar like Sugarine etc. along their trail. It is poisonous for ants; they will ingest it and carry it back to their nest, solving the ant problem.
Contributed by Betty
Recycling a Household Appliance Creates a Planter Box
Use your old upright fridge or freezer for a garden box. Have it degassed, put some holes in the underside and take the door off. Then lift it up off the ground and fill with soil. Add your plants and you have done something wonderful for the environment and saved a bit of money, as the planter boxes cost anywhere upward of $150. Not only that, you are being kind to your knees.
Contributed by Cara
Editors Note:With a little creative thinking you can use all manner of old whitegoods for planters. We pulled the drum out of an old, useless washing machine to use as a strawberry planter. We painted the outside green and lined it with mesh to hold the soil. It works beautifully and is the perfect size for strawberries. Cath
Add a Tip
3. This Week's Winning Tip
Create a Cardboard Cubby House, the Kids Will Love It!
Kids love cubby houses no matter how simple. They're even happy with a sheet thrown over a couple of chairs. But a zero-cost way to make a cubby is with cardboard boxes. You need a couple of huge boxes and the best (and probably only) place to get them is from an appliance store. They always have a glut of cardboard boxes so don't be afraid to ask for a couple of fridge-freezer boxes. Make sure they're the same size. Cut a slit down each one so that one narrow side opens. Tape one open side onto the outside of the other box, and vice versa, to make one big roomy box. Cut out a door (leave one side attached so that it can open and close) and a small window or two. Tape the boxes closed at the top and bottom. Preferably place the cubby in a corner so there is less danger of it falling over. Maybe put a piece of furniture against the other two sides for even extra support, although it if does fall over, the kids won't fall far, they are after all, standing on the floor inside. But it could damage things near by or squash the dog. This will keep them entertained for weeks.
Editor's note: You can't beat a cardboard cubby house and what better time to build one than after Christmas when cardboard boxes seem to multiply in the recycle bin! And if the boxes aren't big enough for a cubby house, build a doll house or a garage or a hotel or a school or an airport or fire station or whatever your littles would like to play with. Use the leftover wrapping paper for wallpaper to decorate the rooms. Hours of fun, and best of all, recyclable when they're finished with it. Cath
Congratulations Ruth, I hope you enjoy your Cheapskates Club membership.
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; 1,800 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.
4. Share Your Tips
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
5. On The Menu
Frugal Haystacks
A great summer dinner, haystacks are quick and easy and you can use what you have as the salad garnish.
Ingredients:
2 tins baked beans in tomato sauce
1 tin red kidney beans (or dried equivalent, soaked and cooked)
3 tbsp MOO taco seasoning (or 1 packet)
2 large onions, finely chopped
2 tins diced tomatoes
Method:
Sauté onion, add taco seasoning and then beans and tomatoes. Heat through. Serve over corn chips or toasted pita bread or torn mountain bread (I've even put it over pappadums in a pinch) add salad to suit, top with salsa and sour cream.
I usually put the salad (lettuce, tomato, cucumber, cheese, salsa, sour cream) out and let them make their own.
This makes a double quantity, so half goes in the freezer for the next time. Freezes well and it makes a great filling for stuffed spuds too.
Next week we will be eating:
Sunday: Roast Chicken
Monday: Quiche & salad
Tuesday: Spag Bol
Wednesday: Chicken Curry & Rice
Thursday: MOO Pizza
Friday: Fish, Wedges, Coleslaw
Saturday: Frugal 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
6. The $300 A Month Food Challenge
End of Year Pantry Inventory
The year is almost over. How have you managed with your $300 a Month Food Challenge this year?
It has been a bit up and down, with price increases and shortages really impacting grocery bills, especially the last half of this year.
Before the year ends, take a little time (about an hour) to inventory your pantry and freezer. Jot down what you have, what you need to rebuild your pantry. Make a note of things you bought that haven't been used and make it your goal for January to find recipes to use them up - otherwise that's money sitting on the shelf doing nothing and we don't want, and can't afford, that.
Make up your shopping list for next time you shop so you can start the new year off on the right foot - or shopping goal!
While you're doing the inventory clean and tidy. Wash any empty canisters and then put them in the sun for an hour or two to thoroughly dry and ensure any lingering bugs are well and truly dealt with.
Freshen the bay leaves on the shelves (bay leaves repel pantry moths).
Put everything back where it should be - baking with baking, sauces together, cereals together - you know the drill.
Defrost the freezer - how blessed are we that we get to do this in summer! If you find anything that's looking old or a bit freezer burnt, make a note to use it up in January. Make a note of anything you are short of so you can watch for sales to restock.
Get your pantry in order, and start the 2022 $300 a Month Food Challenge with a clean and tidy pantry and a grocery budget bang!
The $300 a Month Food Challenge Forum
The Post that Started it All
7. Cheapskates Buzz
From The Article Archive
Give yourself a MOO Manicure On A Budget
How to Budget for a Great Aussie Summer of Entertainment
Create a Christmas Fund Now to Avoid the Year End Christmas Crunch
This Week's Hot Forum Topics
A New Year, a New Budget
New Year's Resolution
New Years Revolutions, I Mean Resolutions
8. The Cheapskates Club Show
Join us live on YouTube every Tuesday and Thursday and see how we are living debt free, cashed up and laughing - and find out how you can too!
Show Schedule
Tuesday: Around the Kitchen Table - join Cath and Hannah for a cuppa and a chat around the kitchen table as they talk about living the Cheapskates way.
Popular Shows
9. The Weekly MOO Challenge
MOO Chicken Live Pate
I love pate, and for years I resisted it, simply because it was so expensive. Hah! It's easy to make too - not something that we are encouraged to do - remember how those marketing gurus try to dumb us down? Well it's easy to make, really easy to make. And this one tastes divine. Try it - you'll never worry about the cost of buying it again. And bonus- how clever will your friends think you are when you take a charcuterie board with MOO pate on it!
Ingredients:
500gms chicken livers
4 rashers bacon (diced)
1 small onion (diced)
1/2 cup cream or evaporated milk (MOO is fine)
little oil for cooking and melted butter to seal
Method:
Cook livers, bacon and onions in the oil. The liver should still be a little pink. Add cream or milk to the pan, remove from heat and blend to a smooth paste in a blender. Put pate into a dish and cover with melted butter to seal. This will keep while sealed for three weeks.
Get in on the fun and discussions here.
10. This Week's Question
Caroline writes "I'm looking for budget way of stopping sand flies from biting us, thank you."
Do you have a solution for Caroline?
If you have a suggestion or idea then let us know. We'll enter your answer into our Tip of the Week competition, with a one-year membership to the Cheapskates Club as the prize too.
Send Your Answer
11. 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
12. Join The Cheapskates Club
For just $25 a year, 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!
13. 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 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 signed up to receive our Free Newsletter at our Cheapskates Club Web site or are a Platinum Cheapskates Club member.
14. 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
MOO Chicken Live Pate
I love pate, and for years I resisted it, simply because it was so expensive. Hah! It's easy to make too - not something that we are encouraged to do - remember how those marketing gurus try to dumb us down? Well it's easy to make, really easy to make. And this one tastes divine. Try it - you'll never worry about the cost of buying it again. And bonus- how clever will your friends think you are when you take a charcuterie board with MOO pate on it!
Ingredients:
500gms chicken livers
4 rashers bacon (diced)
1 small onion (diced)
1/2 cup cream or evaporated milk (MOO is fine)
little oil for cooking and melted butter to seal
Method:
Cook livers, bacon and onions in the oil. The liver should still be a little pink. Add cream or milk to the pan, remove from heat and blend to a smooth paste in a blender. Put pate into a dish and cover with melted butter to seal. This will keep while sealed for three weeks.
Get in on the fun and discussions here.
10. This Week's Question
Caroline writes "I'm looking for budget way of stopping sand flies from biting us, thank you."
Do you have a solution for Caroline?
If you have a suggestion or idea then let us know. We'll enter your answer into our Tip of the Week competition, with a one-year membership to the Cheapskates Club as the prize too.
Send Your Answer
11. 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
12. Join The Cheapskates Club
For just $25 a year, 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!
13. 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 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 signed up to receive our Free Newsletter at our Cheapskates Club Web site or are a Platinum Cheapskates Club member.
14. 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