Day3 began with a heroic effort to preserve the edibility of the stale sourdough and semi-slimy carrots; thus, shortly after midnight I was gamely tearing the bread into pieces and smearing each with margarine to make microwave croutons. Since my smoke alarm is finicky and the oven is right under it (no kidding, about 5 ft up) this was a precarious chore indeed.
The fun didn't stop there. To preserve the carrots I boiled them along with some Brussels sprouts I found in the back of my "mock" freezer. (I can't honestly call it a freezer since it is more like a tall ice-cube tray holder). In case anyone is wondering why I specify some amounts in grams, well I own a small kitchen scale and I counted those frozen sprouts onto it one by one until I reached 200g.
The Good News: carrots turned out ok, and so did the croutons - surprisingly. I stored them in an airtight container in the fridge, and there were ok for a snack today with OJ.
The Bad News: boiling Brussels sprouts is a smelly endeavour. I can't exactly describe the aroma but it's something between BO and dirty laundry. You get my drift. I mean, they taste great, but I eat them chilled now to avoid re-contaminating the air a second time!
I'm still hoarding a few "free" food items so I should make it through tomorrow alright before I need to start with the "genuine cheap food". Looked into the price of dried beans today and was pleasantly surprised: Loblaws-Vanier sells 900g split peas for $0.99 I also bought 900g of barley for the same amount, 3 pounds of onions for $1.49, and 2.27 kg of elbow pasta for $2.99 (because that radioactive simu-cheese in Kraft Dinner scares me).
One last piece of advice: Have you ever seen those sleeves of garlic (usually 5 to a sleeve) sold in the grocery store? Well they're a RIPOFF - at least in winter. Do not - I repeat do not - be suckered into buying them simply because you believe foods are cheaper in bulk. Loblaws-Rideau has them for sale at $1.99, which prices each individual unit at $0.40. However, the price per kg for loose garlic varies little throughout the year, and at $3.28 per kg you can expect to pay about $0.20 per unit regardless of sales or seasonality. Even when the sleeves are "on sale" for $0.99, there are no savings to be had. Pick your own garlic from the bin to ensure you have the freshest cloves for your precious cents, and to minimize spoilage.
Breakfast: 2 pieces of pita bread, 1/3 container of hummus (Loeb), 2 cups coffee $1.77
Lunch: 85g boiled carrots, 100g Brussels sprouts, the last portion of ham & potatoes (free!) $0.69
Dinner: 1 cup homemade vegan chili*, 1/2 cup yogurt, 2 homemade buns (free!) $1.17
Snack: Microwave croutons (made from 1/4 loaf sourdough, margarine & spices), 1 cup OJ $1.01
Other: Tea with milk, Nanaimo bar (free!), Multivitamin and Ca/ D $0.31
Day 3 Total: $4.95
*Vegan chili made with tofu ground, canned black beans and chickpeas, frozen mixed vegetables, canned tomatoes, onion, garlic & spices. I costed the entire pot at $6.51 (8 cups); however I could have saved about $1.50 by cooking my own beans and using the cheaper yellow onions.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment