Day One: On the Breadline

This day seems to have arrived very quickly.  With all the excitement of having a friend to stay whom I've not seen in over twenty years, my planned 'prep' for this little challenge hasn't actually taken place.  Perhaps that's a good thing.  Many people are plunged into desperate situations without any warning and have to cope; other people get there slowly, their situation worsening day by day and week by week.  With this breadline challenge of mine I only have £30 to spend on food and drink for the month, but can use whatever is already in the cupboards and 'fridge.

As I have had a houseguest there is perhaps a bit more in the 'fridge than would normally be there at this time of the month/week.  Am I the only person who plans a menu for visitors with two or three extra dishes in case they don't like my choices?  I shall shortly take an inventory of what is there so I can plan a menu for this week.  I know there are some good leftovers (yes, I always cook too much too) and some veg - although I fear it is getting a little old.  Still good enough for soup though, I am sure.    In the meantime  I've had a rake through the cookery books to see what I have that might help with my endeavours.

I clearly wasn't being very frugal when I bought two copies of 'Save with Jamie'! How does that happen? I also have a book called 'Macaroni - mac and cheese, but not as you know it' by Marshalls the pasta people.  However one quick flick through made me place it straight back on the shelf.  Their  'classic' macaroni and cheese has an almost equal weight of cheese to pasta - 500 grams for four portions.  I could feel my arteries harden as I read the recipe.  No wonder the Scots have such a bad health record.  So perhaps a month of bread-line cooking will also provide me with a slightly healthier diet (for a while anyway). Nonetheless, nothing I've already bought can go to waste, so these few treats that are left over from Shirley's visit will be eaten with relish.

These will have to last the month though, I can't be spending any of the £30 on this sort of thing (although as I don't really have a sweet tooth, I don't think I'll miss them much). A glass of wine will be missed however, and that top book of the pile will be studied closely.  I'm hoping I can find something nice to drink from a wine glass in the evening instead of my usual sauvignon blanc or merlot.

There will of course be no evenings-out for food with friends, or indeed meeting up for a quick coffee at the garden centre or local cafe.  So I also need to keep myself occupied and not fretting about the food budget.  It seems appropriate to focus craft activities this month on making the most of scraps.

I have bags of left-over sock wool, and have discovered that it makes a rather nice scarf if knitted 'in the round' on sock needles and finished with a nice pom-pom.  My project to learn to crochet is also providing opportunities to use up bits and pieces.  My main hobby of patchwork and quilting is of course the best example of "Use it up, wear it out, make do -- or do without", so perhaps it is also time to finish some of my 'WIPs' to a useable stage.

It's lunchtime, so best go and raid the 'fridge and see what can be conjured up.

If you'd like to sponsor me for this challenge and support  'Start-Up Stirling' you can do so here!