Online Grocery Shopping: 7 ways it will help you save money

Do you prefer online grocery shopping or walking into the supermarket? I’m going to share 7 ways it will help you save money and I why I prefer it.

If only I had online grocery shopping when my children were very young. It would’ve been so much more convenient. No having to time shops in between feeds or naps. No lugging bags of groceries into the house while you’re trying to wrestle children. And then the packing away after an already hectic time.

Once online grocery shopping was introduced here in Australia, I was a convert. I tried the home delivery a couple of times but I couldn’t justify the extra cost and my supermarkets are literally around the corner. I can be there and back within 15 minutes using the click’n’collect service for no extra charge.

But will online grocery shopping save you money? Here are my 7 ways.

A running total of your order

What’s your grocery budget? Adding items to your grocery cart online you will instantly see a running total of your order and if you’re going to stick to your budget.

If you’re likely to go over, you have the opportunity to take out items you probably don’t need or it can wait until the next time you shop.

I bought bath soap today knowing I have one cake of soap left but I’m not likely to run out soap between now and my next shop. If I was going to go over budget, I could’ve easily taken this item off.

You stick to your list

Do you keep track of what you need each week? I keep a well stocked pantry and know when I need something. As soon as I run out, or am likely to run out very soon, I add the item to my magnetic whiteboard on the fridge.

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This helps with knowing what I’ll need for the week ahead for breakfasts, school lunches and evening meals. Also if I’ve run out of toiletries or other household items like laundry powder or dishwashing liquid, for example.

No impulse buys

Supermarkets are masters at putting impulse buys right before our eyes. At the end of each aisle, at eye height, at the checkouts and that markdown rack are all places supermarkets like to tempt us to buy extra.

I’m all for a good markdown but if it’s not on your list and you don’t need it, buying your groceries online will help you fall into their sticky traps.

Also, don’t fall for the online tricks either. They’ll suggest items you may have bought last time but not buying this time and the half price or online only specials are also there to tempt you.

Buy all means, check out the online specials to see if your favourites or items you’d like to try are there but only if they’re on your list.

Higher priced substitutions

I’ve never met a substitution I’ve never liked. The great thing about buying online is that the supermarket wants to keep you coming back and offers substitutions on the products you place in your order.

That is, if the item you ordered isn’t available at the time the order is filled, the order picker will pick as close as possible to your item but the same priced item or better.

I’ve received big named branded goods that I normally don’t buy (because of the price) because they can’t supply the item I ordered.

If anything, it gives you an opportunity to try a different brand to check for quality. Maybe that homebrand item you always buy isn’t so bad after all.

Costly convenience

It’s not only the dollar value of the order the cost of your time. We all know how busy we are lately, right? It’s not only the time you’re in the supermarket but the driving there, fighting for a car park, wrangling children (if you have them and avoiding the treats or bribes which all cost extra) the time to pack it all into the car and lug it into your house.

Depending if you get home delivery or click’n’collect, the cost of your time, fuel etc could be saved plus your peace of mind.

No other spending

Most supermarkets are within a bigger complex be it a shopping mall or smaller suburban shopping centre.

^{Image by mrsiraphol on Freepik}

There’s everything from coffee shops, bakeries, dollar stores and other stores that cater to everyone’s tastes.

When you grocery shop online you don’t have that temptation to purchase things you probably don’t need. Put that money towards a holiday, day out with the family or a special buy at the supermarket like fresh seafood or a big piece of roasting meat (which are all so expensive today).

24 hours per day

I thought I’d throw this one in as it costs me my sanity. There was a time when I religiously did the grocery shopping, in store, every Monday morning after school drop off. I guess it was my me time plus getting a good head start on the week ahead with a full pantry, fridge and freezer.

Now the children are grown up and I’ve been grocery shopping fortnightly for ages, I can shop at any time of the day.

When I went to bed last night at 11pm I had forgotten to place my online order. I quickly jumped online this morning at 6am and the order will be ready for pick up at 3pm this afternoon. It fits in well with whatever else I have going on for the day.

Conclusion

Whether you pay the extra for home delivery or use the supermarket’s click’n’collect service, online grocery shopping will definitely save you money in the long run.

It will help you get everything on your list, stick to your budget, have the convenience of someone else to pick your order saving you time and it will save your sanity being able to shop online any time of the day or week.

Do you love it as much as me?

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Famous Australians who are vegan that may surprise you

You might be surprised to find these famous Australians are vegan. Read on to find out who they are.

“I was not raised vegan. I did not become vegan because I don’t like the taste of meat, dairy, or eggs. I became vegan because, one day I had the courage to take responsibility for my choices. I no longer believe that animals are here for us for food, clothing, entertainment, testing or any other purpose” – Author Unknown.

Veganism isn’t just about the food we eat. It is a lifestyle choice which impacts every area of our lives, from the clothes and makeup products we wear, through to the cleaning and other household products we use. Fortunately there is an ever-growing range of options, from vegan collagen to vegan leather!

For me, it’s always been about the animals. I love them and won’t even kill a spider!  I have a little clear plastic container I keep just to catch and release them if we find them in the house. 

I’m not the only one that is actively avoiding any form of animal cruelty; there are plenty of famous Aussies who feel the same, and identify as vegan.

Tennis player Nick Kyrgios for example, cites his love of animals as the reason why he is vegan, while actor Liam Hemsworth advocates against any form of animal abuse.

In an article with “O” magazine, Portia de Rossi explained that she wanted to contribute to making the world a less violent place through following a vegan lifestyle.

Aussie singer songwriter Missy Higgins is also an avid animal lover. She credits a primary school teacher’s lesson about being kind to animals, as the reason she chose a plant-based lifestyle.

Kindness Towards Animals

Kindness towards animals means that we often have emotional attachments to them.

Sia’s love for her pets made her want to do more to support them. She said that “knowing that cows and chickens could feel and care and empathise, just like my dogs”, was the catalyst for her decision.

She is in good company with The Veronicas, aka Lisa and Jess Origliasso. The sisters have long campaigned for animal rights and choose to eat a plant-based diet for the good of animals, their health, and the future of the planet.

Environmental Concerns

Concern about the environment often compels individuals to follow a plant-based lifestyle. 

Today Show presenter David Campbell spoke about this in an Instagram post where he declared that he feels 100% better for being vegan: “I am ethically doing the right things for animals, the planet and our children””.

However what many people are unaware of, is that becoming vegan is about a lot more than avoiding meat.

And even if you aren’t prepared to go totally vegan, you can still make a positive impact in this world by consciously choosing to be “partly vegan” – by choosing products that are created without causing animals to suffer.

From makeup brushes and artist paints, to vegan mascara and skincare, these days we are spoiled by an array of great animal and cruelty-free options.

Being a vegan doesn’t have to be all about sacrifice; there are some fantastic vegan products which have been scientifically formulated to be just as effective, while still being kind to animals.

So while you may not be 100% vegan, it’s definitely worth thinking about the different ways you could live a cleaner, greener, and kinder life!

Feta Cheese: The best ways to store it

Feta cheese and the best way to store it. I wish I’d done the research before I fell ill, twice. You’d think I would’ve learned after the first time. After I did a bit of research, I soon found out there is in fact a better way to store it so it does last longer. Let me explain.

How to buy feta cheese

Feta cheese is available to buy from the delicatessen section in the supermarket also the refrigerated section where all the other packaged cheeses are available.

It can be bought in shrink wrapped plastic, in olive oil or in brine.

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  Feta in Brine

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  Feta in Olive Oil

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  Feta in shrink wrapped plastic

I prefer to buy it in the shrink wrapped plastic. It’s the perfect amount to crumble a bit in a Greek Salad or Pumpkin & Feta Pastry Triangles. A little bit goes a long way.

Usually, any unused feta I freeze and crumble from frozen. On these 2 separate occasions when I fell ill, I didn’t freeze it but thought I had weeks until it spoiled. But I was wrong.

When I say I was ‘ill’, I had terrible stomach cramps and was really not feeling well at all. Lesson finally learned.

How to store feta cheese

I have always bought feta cheese in the shrink wrapped plastic and have observed the best before date on the package only to realise that this date is the date it will keep till unopened. Once you open it, it should be eaten with 5 days.

If you don’t see yourself eating your shrink wrapped feta cheese within the 5 day period once you’ve opened it, you can pop it into the freezer. It will keep for 6 months in the freezer.

Remember that once frozen, the feta cheese won’t defrost as well as you bought it and really is only good for cooked recipes.

Or you can store it in brine or olive oil yourself.

Keep it in brine

To store your opened packet of feta cheese in brine, dissolve ¼ cup of salt into three cups of cold water. Place the block of feta into a large, sealable container, and pour the brine solution on top until the cheese is completely covered.

Tightly seal the container, and store it in the refrigerator. It should keep like this for a month. (Be sure to mark the container with the use by day as a reminder).

Keep it in olive oil

An alternative to storing it in brine is to store it in olive oil. This is a great way to add a boost of flavour and marinate the feta cheese to your taste.

Using a clean glass jar, cube the feta cheese and pour over a good quality extra virgin olive oil.

Add any of the following to your taste:

• Fresh or dried rosemary
• Oregano sprigs
• Dill
• Thyme
• Lemon zest
• Roasted garlic
• Red Chilies
• Peppercorns
• Olive oil
• Roasted Vegetables

The great part about this is once the feta has been consumed, you have a wonderful salad dressing, stir through cooked pasta or a dipping oil for bread.

Marinated Feta Cheese in Olive Oil makes a great gift

Feta cheese will keep for another 2 weeks keeping it in olive oil.

Summary

Purchasing feta in shrink wrapped plastic will keep for as long as the date on the pack stipulates as long as it remains unopened. Once opened, it will only last 5 days.

You can put the opened packet of feta into a brine solution or olive oil yourself or purchase it this way from the supermarket. It is always much cheaper to do this process yourself rather than buying it already done for you.

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Meat prices and how to save money on meat

Meat prices and how to save money on meat? I don’t need to remind you just how expensive meat is at the moment. I swear, I grew up with Mum and Dad buying a whole side of lamb which would last for ages. Now it’s like you need to sell an arm or a leg to buy a few lamb chops!

There was no such thing as just buying chicken breasts either when I was growing up. You bought the whole chicken and that was it. If you wanted the breasts, you cut them off yourself.

Supermarkets are capitilising on people wanting to save money on groceries and are making the cheaper cuts more expensive. I do sometimes buy my meat from a local butcher but I really don’t like shopping around. I want to order everything online, pick it up and pack it away.

How to save money buying meat

In a typical fortnight, I’ll buy one pack of 4 (there’s pretty much for in every pack) chicken breasts, one 1 kg beef mince, one 2kg pack sausages and one 1kg pack of frozen white fish fillets. (I do also buy ham, bacon and salami and tinned fish when the budget allows but I always like to have those in the freezer.) That does my family of four for more than two weeks.

Here are some more ways I save money on meat.

Use half or less of what’s in the recipe

If a recipe calls for a certain amount of meat, use at least half (or go even lower). I use one chicken breast for the four of us for stir fries, pasta bakes and have been even known to slice one large breast horizontally into four then flatten out for schnitzels.

I use a handful of beef mince in all pasta dishes. I very rarely add lentils, for example, to increase the protein. I believe the pasta sauce should be exactly that, a sauce.

Two fish fillets can easily feed a family of four (or more) by cutting them into smaller pieces for sweet and sour, a curry, or even crumbing or battering to have enough for everyone.

About 250gm of beef mince can be made into meatballs that have had soft or dry breadcrumbs added. Add grated or blitzed onion, herbs and an egg then roll into small balls. Hamburgers can be made the same.

Use cheaper cuts of meat

If you do feel like a roast, for example chicken, buy just the legs. My supermarket has 2kg of chicken drumsticks for about $6.50. They are also good in a Chicken Chasseur, Chicken Cacciatore, curry or any of your favourite sauces.

Shoulder cuts are often cheaper than legs for pork or lamb.

Whole blade roasts are also cheaper than some of the prime rib cuts.

Cut meat into small sizes

Four sausages is enough to feed a family of four if they are cut into small pieces for a curry, sweet and sour or sausage casserole. I like to portion two sausages per person but sometimes if we have a sausage sizzle dinner, there might be just two sausages left so I’ll make that up into a dish and cut the sausage into small pieces. There’s always enough for everyone.

Use deli style meats like bacon or ham

Don’t forget about bacon. A couple slices of bacon can be turned into fried rice as a meal, cooked and crumbled onto a baked potato for a meal, used in a Carbonara. I buy a kilo of bacon for $9 and it’s very lean and I can usually get four to six portions from a kilo. Same goes for using ham this way.

Tinned fish is an substitute for meat prices

A large 425gm can of homebrand tuna costs around $3 and it can be turned into anything. Pasta sauces, pasta bake, tuna patties, Tuna Casserole or Tuna Mornay. Canned salmon is a little more expensive but is a good way to get your protein for a lot cheaper than meat.

Eggs are a cost effective solution to meat prices

Eggs are a great substitute for meat. Frittatas, omelettes, quiche, and so many other dishes are a great alternative to meat. At around $5 for a dozen free range eggs is a great way to feed your family for less.

Vegetarian is always an option when trying to save money on meat

Dried or tins pulses like lentils and chickpeas are an excellent source of protein and can be added to a meat dish or served on their own. I know they’re not to everyone’s tastes but there are some excellent recipes on line. With the addition of fresh or dried herbs and spices, you can make some delicious vegetarian meals.

Even going meatless one day a week can certainly help reduce your grocery spend.

You can run around to all the stores or individual stores to find the best prices on meat. Or you can use some lower priced alternatives to ensure you are getting the protein you need.

How much are you spending on meat per week? Find our more ways to save money on all of your groceries here.

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Recipe Bases: What you should use instead

Recipes bases. Should you buy them? What you should use instead.

I guess I’m lucky, in a sense, that my mother and grandmothers were very much cook from scratch home cooks which is a tradition I followed into adulthood. I can remember in my early teens (around the 1970s) recipe bases were quite the thing and my mother brought a couple. You could definitely taste a difference in the food and one that I personally didn’t like. Lucky none of the family liked them as well and my mother stopped buy them.

It’s easy enough to make a product you might purchase regularly and learn how to make it from scratch at home for a lot cheaper with basic pantry staples.

You don’t know what goes into recipe bases

Correct me if I’m wrong but I’d need a science degree to know what half of the ingredients are in the above recipe base.

Sugar, corn starch, vegetable powders (tomato, onion), maltodextrin, natural flavours (contain wheat), salt, potato starch, milk powders (cream, skim milk), paprika, burnt sugar, yeast extract, natural colour (carotene), sunflower oil, garlic extract. Contains naturally occurring glutamates. Any Allergies? Contains wheat and milk. May contain soybeans, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, sesame, fish, crustacea and lupin.

Compared to if you make it from scratch yourself:

500 g beef stir-fry strips, 1 tbsp olive oil, 30 g butter, 1 small onion, chopped, 250 g button mushrooms, thinly sliced, ½ cup salt-reduced beef stock, 2 tbsp tomato paste, 250 ml carton of light sour cream (I would substitute with Greek yoghurt), 1 tsp cornflour, pasta to serve (optional).

I know which one I’d prefer. And what difference does it make to the speed or convenience of making the meal? Opening a packet to add the seasoning when you still have to slice the beef, chop the onions and mushrooms and add the other ingredients anyway. The recipe base is really unnecessary.

There are other ways to create convenience

I’m the first one to say that I love convenience grocery items. Not every fortnight but most fortnights I’ll buy grated cheese, packaged ham or canned pulses instead of buying them dried.

But I won’t ever sacrifice flavour over convenience and I don’t know whether it’s from a lifetime of having made from scratch food, that I just dislike flavoured meal bases let alone all of the ingredients in them that you wouldn’t have a clue what they were.

Looking at my local supermarket this week, they have Maggi Dry meal bases on sale for 2 for $3. If I was to buy 14 for my fortnight’s worth of meals, I would pay $21 on meal bases alone. I’ll choose those that my family might eat:

• Devilled Sausages (2)
• Beef Stroganoff
• Lamb Casserole (would make it with chicken)
• Satay Chicken
• Beef Goulash
• Cottage Pie (2)
• Apricot Chicken
• Chicken Chasseur (2)
• Chow Mein (2)
• Butter Chicken

What pantry staples to keep instead of buying recipe bases

With my current pantry staples, I could make all of those meals with my usual top up of meat and vegetables saving me $21 and knowing exactly what goes into my meals.

If you lack inspiration and need these meal bases, use them for inspiration but rather keep a good supply of the following to create the same, over and over again, for a lot cheaper:

• Plain flour and/or corn flour
• Stock powder (chicken, beef or vegetable – I use the Massels brand)
• Salt and pepper
• Tomato paste
• Soy sauce
• Crushed garlic and/or ginger (or ground ginger)
• BBQ and tomato sauce
• Greek yoghurt (to substitute sour cream)
• Peanut butter (for satay)
• Apricot jam (for Apricot Chicken)
• Spices: paprika, turmeric, curry powder
• Brown sugar
• Vinegar
• Tinned tomatoes

As you can see, most of us have these ingredients in our pantry already and those meals I chose could be recreated with these simple staples. That $21 I spent on recipe bases could be spent on more meat, a top up for my second week’s shopping or saved and put towards something else.

Do you buy recipe bases?

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What is freezer burn and is your food still safe to eat?

What is freezer burn and is your food still safe to eat?. We’ve all had that dried out chicken breast or frosty, icicle covered whatever pulled from the freezer but is your food still safe to eat?

The good news is yes! There are some ways to avoid it.

What I do to save food in my freezer

What I do is:

• All of my bread products go straight into the freezer from the day I purchase them and they are as fresh as the day I bought them.
• Any bulk vegetables I buy are popped into the freezer, eg broccoli.
• Unused herbs are put into ice cube trays to be popped into a dish as is.
• Any dairy products nearing their expiry date are frozen in usable quantities ready to pop into a cake if it’s yoghurt or frozen grated cheese put straight into the dish while I’m cooking it.
• I cook double rice or pasta and freeze the second portion for another night’s meal.

I want to share how to keep your food in better condition in the freezer for longer.

What is freezer burn?

I see a lot of people complaining because don’t want to put their bread in the freezer, for example, because it ‘tastes funny’ or if something has been in the freezer for a while, it gets freezer burn and it might lose it’s taste or look a bit ‘funny’.

Freezer burn happens when frozen food loses moisture and oxygen takes it’s place. This results in drier, tougher, and often discoloured food.

There’s nothing wrong actually wrong with the food but it might just be drier, have dry patches on it or has lost a bit of it’s flavour. It’s still definitely okay to eat.

Be sure to always check the temperature inside your fridge and freezer so it is running optimally to avoid your food spoiling.

The best ways to avoid freezer burn

To avoid freezer burn, here are a few tips:

• Consider other ways to preserve food, eg pickling vegetables, canning, or drying, eg fruits like peaches, apricots etc.
• Package food properly to reduce oxygen exposure. Wrap meat, chicken, or seafood in freezer paper or plastic wrap, then in foil, and then in a freezer bag. Take out as much of the air between the product and the wrapping.
• Remove as much air as possible from the packaging of frozen fruits and vegetables, and use small containers to minimize any empty space when freezing leftovers. You can also place freezer paper or plastic wrap over the top of ice cream before putting the lid back on.
• By keeping the temperature in your freezer constant, that is try and keep it closed as much as possible, will help reduce ice crystals forming when foods start to thaw. Try to only open it when necessary. (Hard to do with kids I know!)
• The best way to avoid freezer burn is to use your frozen food faster. Only buy what you expect to use within the next 2 to 4 months, and when packaging food for the freezer, mark it with the date so that you can use the oldest products first.

• Remove meat from supermarket packaging and repackage to remove as much air from between the food and the packaging.
• Keep your freezer organised to be able to see foods clearly and what needs using up. I highly recommend only buying what you need to make the meals your family enjoys eating and not stockpiling.

Conclusion

So prevention is definitely better than cure as far as freezer burn goes. It’s perfectly safe to eat food that has freezer burn and it might just ‘look’ a bit different compared to before it went into the freezer.

My best advice is to store it correctly before you freeze it. If you’re not sure if a food can be frozen, check out which foods can last longer when frozen.

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The best party food ideas on a budget from pantry staples

Grazing boards are all the rage at the moment. These types of ‘platters’ were around since Adam was a boy but all it takes is something to go ‘viral’ these days on social media and every wants to get in on it. (Not that there’s anything wrong with that but if you’re trying to save money and you can’t afford to buy the ingredients for those types of grazing platters or, heaven forbid, pay someone to put one together for you, there are much better, economical alternatives out there.) Here are the best party food ideas on a budget for entertaining.

What you need to remember, always, is that food is food at the end of the day. You don’t need to follow food ‘trends’ to provide nice food to your guests. It can be the same things you buy and eat on a regular basis but presented or made up in different ways.

Here are a few budget ideas to help you.

Keep a can of reduced cream in the pantry

I used to keep a small can of reduced cream in the pantry at all times when I used to have a lot of parties or had people pop in unexpectedly for drinks.

I would add corned relish, gherkin pickles, a packet of French Onion soup mix (if I had it), diced ham/cheese/onion, avocado, smoked oysters or a small can of salmon and mix with the reduced cream.

Allow to set in the fridge for a quick dip if you’ve got a bit of time. Otherwise, spreadable cream cheese (which can be kept in the freezer), Greek yoghurt or sour cream can be used in the same way.

Another old fashioned dip my mother used to make for a party back in the 1970s was called Mock Chicken. It was basically cooked tomato, fresh breadcrumbs, egg and herbs and remarkably tastes like chicken (well sort of). You should have all of these ingredients in your pantry and fridge.

Alternatives for cracker biscuits or chips

If you don’t have cracker biscuits or chips, toast tortillas, bread rolls sliced and toasted, make Melba toast from sliced bread or if you have time, grissini sticks are easy to make from pantry staples.

Recipe

Even the Greek yoghurt/flour pizza base recipe makes for a quick flat bread that can be cooked on the stove top in a pan.

Add vegetables to your dip platter

Add vegetables to your dip platter. Broccoli or cauliflower florets, carrot sticks, zucchini, celery, capsicum, asparagus, snow peas or any other vegetables you have will make a colourful platter.

Frozen puff pastry for the best party food

Puff pastry in the freezer is your best friend for any unexpected emergencies. Make cheese straws by cutting puff into strips, brush with beaten egg, top with grated cheese of any kind or seeds/nuts, twist and bake until golden brown.

Image by Zozz_ from Pixabay

Sausage rolls using any kind of filling, vol au vents, palmiers, pull aparts, pigs in blankets, samosas, curry puffs, the list is endless on what you can use puff pastry for when entertaining.

Remember to use whatever fillings you have.

Make your own budget grazing board or platter

Make a platter with whatever you have. Sliced ham or other cold meats, olives, gherkins, fruit, chutney/pickles, normal cheddar cheese, pesto, crackers or breads (as above), chocolates, nuts.

Image by AquaSpiritLens from Pixabay

All you have to do is get a platter of some kind (it doesn’t have to be a block of wood) and start adding small piles of the food item. If you have sauces or wet ingredients, add them to small bowls and put them on the platter.

Party food on a stick

A toothpick or skewer is the perfect way to serve individual morsels of food at a party. There are so many creative people out there who have created a way to put just about anything on a stick.

For more Recipes

Instead of the old kabana, cheese, pickled onion and gherkin I grew up with, you can make mini cheese balls coated in nuts/seeds, meatballs (everyone has mince in the freezer I’m sure), Caprese or Greek salad, crumbed fish/potato bites shaped into balls, bites of cheese with whatever, a prune or smoked oyster wrapped in bacon.

Basically, whatever can be poked with a toothpick or skewer can be served at a party. Food like this is also easy to prepare ahead of time so you have time to relax and enjoy the party.

Pinwheels for party food

Using pastry, the Greek yoghurt pizza dough recipe, tortillas, wraps, or sliced bread that has been flatted with a rolling pin, spread with anything like cream cheese or any kind of spread, add any filling (keeping it to a minimum), roll up, and refrigerate until required. Slice and serve when the party is starting.

Fruit as a savoury option

Any kind of melon is good to use as a savoury option. It pairs well with smoked meats and strong cheeses. Cube and serve on a toothpick.

You can also use a melon baller for a cute effect. Cubed watermelon and feta cheese on a stick drizzled with balsamic vinegar is also very on trend but only if you have it on hand. Remember, we’re trying to stick to a budget and use whatever you have.

Eggs are a great party food option

Who doesn’t love a devilled egg? I can remember in my first job, I was responsible for helping with the catering for our work Christmas party. I think I must’ve boiled about 10 dozen eggs, cut them all in half and made about 6 different fillings.

Image by Gesegnetes Neues Jahr/ Blessed New Year/ Bendito Año Nuevo from Pixabay

Some included canned crab meat, curry powder, crispy bacon, relishes, pickles etc. They were a huge success. (Mind you it was 1980 but I reckon they’d still be a big hit today.)

Everybody loves a sandwich

Never underestimate the humble sandwich. I’ve seen grown men demolish plates full of freshly made, plain sandwiches of ham, cheese and tomato, egg and lettuce, salmon & onion etc etc before any of the other food is eaten. Remember all we’re trying to do is to save money, give our guests nice tasting food and use what we’ve got.

Cucumber slices as the base

Use cucumber as the base for a delicious snack. Top with any of the dip combinations mentioned above and decorate with any contrasting chopped vegetables or herbs etc.

Recipe

Always look at what you have before you run to the supermarket. The above is all made from common ingredients you would keep in your fridge, freezer or pantry and you’ll impress people with your ingenuity and good tasting food instead of trying to impress them with the latest trends plus you’ll save money.

Happy entertaining and saving money!

Food Safety Tips for Christmas in a hot climate

With the heat we have here in Brisbane, it’s so important to handle our food and leftovers safely in the holiday season. The last thing we want at this time of the year is a tummy bug. Here are my food safety tips for Christmas in a hot climate.

The same could be said for anywhere in the world really and knowing how to save those leftovers without anyone getting sick will be worth it.

General Food Safety Tips for Christmas

A couple quick tips before I mention specific foods:

• Remember not to overload your fridge too much. It will take longer for food to cool down if your fridge is overload. Make sure there is adequate space around food containers and packages to ensure adequate cool air flow.
• Use eskies or coolers with ice to store drinks allowing more room in the fridge. If you put them onto ice early in the morning, they will be nice and cold by lunch time. (My mum used to line the laundry tub with an old hessian sack then cover the drinks with ice and another hessian sack. Kept the drinks super cold.)
• Instead of ice cubes to keep drinks cold, think about freezing water filled plastic soft drink bottles, wine bladders or large plastic containers. The more solid the ice, the less time it will have to melt.
• To keep food cool when serving (like seafood), lay the serving platter on top of a dish filled with ice and sprinkle salt on top of the ice which will reduce melting time.

Via Food Safety Information Council

• A general ‘rule of thumb’ is to not keep food that has been left out longer than 4 hours if the temperature has been between 5 deg C and 60 deg C.

Food Safety for Seafood

One of the easiest and quickest things to go ‘off’ in the heat is seafood.

Things like prawns, crabs, bugs etc. (Oysters and mussels should be served as soon as possible after being shucked.)

Remember to serve it over ice if you can (as above) otherwise, keep an eye on the time you served it and don’t leave it out for any longer than 1 hour if the temp is around 30 deg C.

Return to the fridge immediately and use within 2 days.

Ham, Turkey & Other Cold Meat

• Put leftovers in the fridge as soon as possible after everyone has finished eating. Any longer than 4 hours should be disposed of.
• Use up leftovers from the fridge within 3 to 4 days otherwise freeze straight from the table.
• Cut larger pieces like chicken, turkey, roast meats into smaller pieces to allow cooling quicker.
• Eat within a couple days otherwise freeze straight from the table.
• To store your whole ham, soak a ham bag, tea towel (that’s all I ever used) or pillowcase in 4 cups of water and 2 tablespoons of vinegar. Wring out excess water and store ham in fridge wrapped in the bag/towel. Resoak bag every couple of days to avoid ham being dried out.

Salads & Cooked Vegetables

Salads will become very slimy if dressed.

To save any leftover salads, serve them ‘undressed’ with dressing on the side. Remember to be aware of how long salad vegetables have been out of the cold fridge. If it’s been too hot, dispose of any uneaten vegetables.

Cooked vegetables can be frozen and used up in frittatas, quiches etc as needed. Also be mindful of how long they’ve been out in the heat.

Any longer than 2 hours for salad or cooked vegetables on a hot day and they should be disposed of. (See rule above.)

Cold Desserts

Cold desserts that have had cream in them like trifle or pavlova should also observe the ‘rule of thumb’ above. Return them to the fridge as soon as possible after serving, if serving in hot conditions.

People can always go back for more if it’s safely served in the fridge.

Fresh Fruit

If serving fresh fruit at Christmas, remember the general rule of thumb above.

Cakes, Sweets, Nuts, Chips etc

If your place is anything like mine, these things seem to get eaten first. Remember, if you’re serving charcuterie, cheeses, dips etc to observe the rule. Rather put out small amounts and keep topped up as they run out.

Half your luck if you can enjoy your celebration inside air conditioning but if you’re stuck outside, observe these simple rules for food safety in a hot climate so everyone will have any enjoyable Christmas meal and no upset tummies.