October 2019 15k SPAM Thread

[txjennah PE]

What's the same? Overspending on groceries AND eating out? I hope not!!

Lmao yep to both!  We were doing better with eating out, but then Thanksgiving week vacation happened.

 

[leggo PE]

Currently we have paper towels but I wont buy more when theyre out.

You can use rags, microfiber towels, or cut up tshirts as replacements.

We somehow don't have a surplus of old t-shirts or rags or anything like that. It.might be unusual, but we have gotten pretty good at donating no longer worn clothes when either of us gets something new.

I think I'm not going to but any more paper towels too, especially since we have on site laundry so washing anything that gets very dirty isn't really an issue.

I super, HIGHLY recommend Skoy cloth (https://www.skoycloth.com/). I've been using their "cloths" for almost 10 years. You use them new, as they get crummy, you demote them to sink/tub/toilet/cat box duty, then you toss. I get months and months of usage out of them with an occasional zap in the microwave or a quick boil to knock out smells. They also come in different sizes (e.g. I like the bigger ones for dish drying duty, no lint either!). There are some knockoffs you can buy at the big box stores, but Skoy is the best and it's a family-owned import biz. Pitch over. Ditch the paper!

Interesting! I don't have a microwave though ( @LyceeFruit, unite!). I was thinking more typical cloth. But if those Skoy cloths are biodegradable, are they compostable?

 

[squaretaper LIT AF PE]

Microwave not required, just an additional tool to clean. I usually do a quick boil. No data on compostability, but seriously I can get almost a year out of each cloth, it's ridiculous (probably because I don't scrub with it, I have the Skoy scrubber for that and a plastic scraper + chainmail thingy for the cast iron pan).

 

[leggo PE]

Hmmm, my budget is based off a lot of history/research into what I like to buy, but I def know I can trim it down if I really need to.  Some times I do a "no buy" food week, where I go through my cupboards, see what I have, and make something from that.  Grab some noodles, maybe a can of something, use stuff at the back of my fridge that I forgot about.  Have you experimented with doing something like that?  I think you need to start by just listing what you buy when you go shopping, maybe for an entire month.  Are there things you're buying over and over again that you can maybe get a bigger package of?  Are there pre-mixed things you are buying that might be cheaper to make by hand (like me switching to buying quinoa in bulk instead of the pre-made salad at Costco).

Also, it sounds like your palette gets bored.  Is it possible to start a rotating leftover schedule going?  I used to do something like that where whatever I made, I'd keep half out to eat and the other half to freeze.  When I moved that half into the freezer, I'd take out something I had frozen previously.  So I'd be moving maybe half of my soup into the freezer, but while doing that I'd pull out maybe 2 chicken breasts for something future in the next day or two.  As for making something different every night...is dinner always something complex/requiring many ingredients?  Or do you switch to 'cereal-dinner' to relax the wallet and your palette?  For meat being expensive = true, but do you do the full portion all the time?  There will often be recipes that ask for 2-lbs of beef and I usually drop it if I'm adding in veggies or beans or whatever.

Thoughts?  Sorry for the text dump.

We do freeze some leftovers, but that's mainly soups or chilis I will make. The problem with our freezer right now is that it's full of bread products I've made... Right now, it's got muffins, sourdough pretzels, and probably 2 or 2.5 loaves of sourdough bread, quartered and pre-sliced for ease of user with meals during the week. I think I need to start getting better about giving away the bread I bake to friends. Our freezer also stores the alcohol we keep on hand for Bobaritas... Which now that I think about it, obviously doesn't need to be frozen off we're not having Bobaritas every night (which we are not).

Some of the meals we cook are more complicated than others, but some are super simple, like tonight. We're having tofu stirfry with Jasmine rice and froze veggies.

I'm very good about meal planning and creating a menu around what is on the menu for the week, so I'm not buying a bunch of extra stuff. I also rarely buy anything that's not on my list.

We did a no buy grocery week last week, actually, but we don't do that regularly. I do know we have a lot of things like grains and beans and diced tomatoes in the cupboards. I will admit that I'm not great at coming up with recipes to use up shelf stable ingredients, but I'd love to free up our cabinets and pantry!

 

[leggo PE]

Lmao yep to both!  We were doing better with eating out, but then Thanksgiving week vacation happened.

Well, on that case, I feel your pain! 

 

[squaretaper LIT AF PE]

Our freezer also stores the alcohol we keep on hand for Bobaritas...

Is a Bobarita...a boozy bubble tea?

Edit: Ooh! Unintended ToP! :bananalama:

 

[leggo PE]

Is a Bobarita...a boozy bubble tea?

Edit: Ooh! Unintended ToP! :bananalama:

It's a take on a margarita that is highly alcoholic, created by and named after my husband's uncle Bob.
 

It has nothing to do with boba teas.

 

[squaretaper LIT AF PE]

It has nothing to do with boba teas.

Ok, just checking. Thank goodness! Because...that would be gross. And boba tea is already gross.

Also related, I am very interested in the Bobarita recipe. Is it proprietary? If not, PLEASE SHARE. I need a drink to celebrate if I pass and for numbing if I don't!

 

[squaretaper LIT AF PE]

Also, SPAM.

 

[squaretaper LIT AF PE]

 

[JayKay PE]

We somehow don't have a surplus of old t-shirts or rags or anything like that. It.might be unusual, but we have gotten pretty good at donating no longer worn clothes when either of us gets something new.

I use washcloths?  Like, I'll get a package of towels for the bathroom and it usually comes with big towels, medium towels, and the little hand towels.  I almost never use the hand towels, but I started using them in the kitchen.  I can throw them in the regular laundry when they get really gross, but I like them because they're absorbent.  

As for food...def experiment with freezing different things.  Sometimes I'll make a huge bowl of taco meat and have it in smaller portions, like a six taco portion, and then I'll freeze that.  Bam, it can be used in multiple different recipes or as a base for another chili.  Or I'll make smoothies just to free up space from frozen fruits, and then I'll pop the smoothie back into the freezer for later use.  Def start giving away your bread (or adding more to your diet).  Great way of making friends at the office!  Nobody wants to say no to the cookie/bread girl!  And take alcohol out of the freezer/throw it in the fridge if you need to keep it cool for some reason.

It sounds like your meal planning uses a ton of fresh ingredients, which is great, but it does make things more expensive in general.  I would def start looking into the cupboard and seeing if you can meal plan more with those ingredients?  I always want to meal plan my week out, but half the time I'll not eat as much/or eat too much and the schedule gets thrown off.  So usually I meal plan day by day, where I figure out what I want for dinner the night before.  If I am missing an ingredient, I'll swing by the grocery as I drive home from the gym, but I try to also jut use what I have at home.  Has led to a lot less 'I'm already buying a bunch of food, I'm gonna impulse buy" and more, "I'm tired after the gym, I just need a gravy packet and some potatoes, I want to get in and out".  

 

[Tiger15]

I use washcloths?  Like, I'll get a package of towels for the bathroom and it usually comes with big towels, medium towels, and the little hand towels.  I almost never use the hand towels, but I started using them in the kitchen.  ...

 

[JayKay PE]

*video snip*

I knew someone was going to bring that up!  I don't like using wash cloths in the shower because they get cold/soggy and I feel don't 'scrub' enough.  I instead use one of those exfloiating cloth thingies that let me get my back and everything.

 

[Tiger15]

I knew someone was going to bring that up!  I don't like using wash cloths in the shower because they get cold/soggy and I feel don't 'scrub' enough.  I instead use one of those exfloiating cloth thingies that let me get my back and everything.

LOL, sorry. It wasn't personal. I just couldn't resist.

 

[Tiger15]

I knew someone was going to bring that up!  I don't like using wash cloths in the shower because they get cold/soggy and I feel don't 'scrub' enough.  I instead use one of those exfloiating cloth thingies that let me get my back and everything.

LOL, sorry. It wasn't personal. I just couldn't resist.

I also saw a thing recently that some significant majority of Americans don't wash their legs. I don't remember where, and I'm very skeptical.

 

[MadamPirate PE]

Ok, just checking. Thank goodness! Because...that would be gross. And boba tea is already gross.

Also related, I am very interested in the Bobarita recipe. Is it proprietary? If not, PLEASE SHARE. I need a drink to celebrate if I pass and for numbing if I don't!

Try Malort. 

 

[JayKay PE]

I also saw a thing recently that some significant majority of Americans don't wash their legs. I don't remember where, and I'm very skeptical.

Nah, I totally get where you're coming from.  It supposedly is a "thing" that white people don't use a cloth, which I think is hella gross.  Maybe my mom just raised me right, or I was always caked in dirt (probable), but we always had a washcloth or those little exfoliating mitts to get rid of gross skin.

As for people not washing their legs...I could see this being a thing.  I mean, so many people I feel just wash their hair/body and think the 'clean' water cleans their legs.  I def scrub mah leggie-legs.  JK shower routine (because I am a creature of habit and like sharing tmi): Step in, shampoo hair, repeat (if ultra greasy), scrub face/wash with bar soap, conditioner in hair, loofah scrubbie + moisturizer body wash = whole front of body/pits/that nonsense + legs, shave (if needed), rescrub legs after shaving, wash out hair conditioner, use the loofah scrubbie on back to get rid of conditioner residue on shoulders, turn off water and squeeze out copious amounts of water from hair.

Usually takes me 15-20 min if I'm relaxing and shaving.  Way less if I am in panicked shower/just want to get to bed shower.

 

[Tiger15]

Nah, I totally get where you're coming from.  It supposedly is a "thing" that white people don't use a cloth, which I think is hella gross.  Maybe my mom just raised me right, or I was always caked in dirt (probable), but we always had a washcloth or those little exfoliating mitts to get rid of gross skin.

As for people not washing their legs...I could see this being a thing.  I mean, so many people I feel just wash their hair/body and think the 'clean' water cleans their legs.  I def scrub mah leggie-legs.  JK shower routine (because I am a creature of habit and like sharing tmi): Step in, shampoo hair, repeat (if ultra greasy), scrub face/wash with bar soap, conditioner in hair, loofah scrubbie + moisturizer body wash = whole front of body/pits/that nonsense + legs, shave (if needed), rescrub legs after shaving, wash out hair conditioner, use the loofah scrubbie on back to get rid of conditioner residue on shoulders, turn off water and squeeze out copious amounts of water from hair.

Usually takes me 15-20 min if I'm relaxing and shaving.  Way less if I am in panicked shower/just want to get to bed shower.

LMAO @ "that nonsense" 

 

[Tiger15]

I think I might start spamming with funny videos. Good distraction for everyone.

 

[leggo PE]

Also related, I am very interested in the Bobarita recipe. Is it proprietary? If not, PLEASE SHARE. I need a drink to celebrate if I pass and for numbing if I don't!

To make a Bobarita, you need three things, and three things only. There are no substitutions. It's not a Bobarita if it doesn't have these three ingredients:

1. Herradura Repasado Tequila

2. Cointreau

3. Fresh lime juice (either juiced yourself or if you're buying it at the store because you're making a big batch, make sure the only ingredient in the bottle is lime juice - no added sugars!)

Before serving, the Cointreau and the Herradura should be thoroughly frozen. Mix the frozen Herradura, frozen Cointreau, and pure lime juice in the following ratio: 1.5-2:1:1. Do NOT serve over ice. Do NOT mix it with ice and strain it through. The drink should be cold from the alcohol having been frozen. Serve immediately.

If you want to make it in advance, mix the Herradura and the Cointreau ahead of time and store in the freezer. Shake with the lime juice when about to served.

Now, if you're paying attention, you'll see that this cocktail usually ends up with about 3  shots of liquor in it (2 from the Herradura and 1 from the Cointreau). It absolutely damn delicious, and extremely strong. You'll usually feel it by the end of one, and then want another because they're so delicious. I have never made it through more than two of them in succession.