At last a proper Yellow Sticker bargain from Asda, where butter has just gone up to £2 for 250g (what used to be ½ lb) and up to £1.89 at Aldi. So when I spotted some 500g packs at the back of their reduced chiller cabinet for £2.13, I grabbed 4 packs. The odd thing is that I've never seen butter in 500g packs anywhere around here before.
The home-grown tomatoes from the freezer, 3 red peppers and 2 red chilli's and all the other bits made 7 jars of my favourite red chutney/relish. A few will be given away and the rest will last me until next year. I completely forgot to get red onions so had to use ordinary which has spoiled the red-ness - but not the taste.
How's Low spend November going at the end of the third week?
Brought forward £331.75
Last Saturday Christmas Fairs £2.50 + £2.50 jigsaw (all for charity)
Rest of the weeks spending including the Brussel Sprout stalk + Keep Moving Group +Toothpaste + New Jar Lids + Food from Asda and Aldi including the 2kg of bargain butter and red and chili peppers for the Red Relish = £54.30
So to carry forward £391.05. Diesel to buy for the car and electric meter reading to ring in and then pay for this coming week and I shall ring and order 500litres of heating oil very soon.
Low spend November might suffer a setback because guess how many Christmas Fayres there are this weekend - all within about 10 miles ....................................................................................
Christmas Fayres, or the like, are taking over! Every village hall this time of year has one! Next weekend we have three in my "city" along with a Festival of Trees and Wreaths, the Annual Tree Lighting and Santa's Visit. More than enough!
ReplyDeleteI discovered one village has a fayre in the school and another in the village hall - both at the same time!
DeleteA real bargain with the butter. Well done. The thought of paying £2 a pack just seems too much.
ReplyDelete£2 a pack is an awful price - I still use Willow which is part butter and is much cheaper
DeleteWe often freeze our sprouts. You got a good buy.
ReplyDeleteI think frozen sprouts are available from the supermarket but they are not nice. I prefer fresh from the stalk
DeleteThe relish looks delicious. Have you ever posted the recipe?
ReplyDeleteIt's on the Recipes page - scroll right down 'til almost the end
DeleteLots of Christmas lights switch ones have been cancelled today as we have snow on top of heavy frost so it’s chaos. The market has been moved inside to the soon to be demolished shopping centre but unless the streets are cleared I don’t think the outside events will go ahead. I’m going to read and craft until Strictly comes on. Catriona
ReplyDeleteI've wasted 40 minutes of my life this morning going to a sale that was cancelled and another that isn't on until afternoon when I thought it was 10 am - so home to stay now!
DeleteThe Winter Carnival in the nearby market town has been cancelled because of warnings of high winds. It's very disappointing for the organisers who have put a lot of work into it. There are lots of indoor markets and fairs, though.
ReplyDeleteThere's a big Christmas street fayre in town tomorrow - I'm now going to look and see if it's being cancelled.
DeleteVery windy here - no snow, just rain
It is!
DeleteGorgeous sprouts :) I love 'em.
ReplyDeleteAngie
Me too - can't understand people who don't!
DeleteI think it's because they boil them until they are almost very like my mother-in-law used to: yuk. I cook them lightly in lots of different ways; husband doesn't mind them thinly sliced then stir fried with some bacon.
DeleteThat's almost GREY like the mother-in-law etc.
DeleteI like a bit of bite to mine too. Overcooked sprouts are yukky! Denise, your way sounds lovely!
DeleteAngie
That chutney looks delicious -- someone on your list will be very lucky! We had Brussels sprouts from the stalk the other night and I'll swear they were better. Plus, it's a very cool looking plant! It's interesting to hear butter prices. I'm not sure my math/measurements are right, but I think you have a better deal. Here in my area, a pound of butter (which looks about the same size as what you show) is about $4.50 at the grocery, although at some spots you can find it for $4.00. Someone told me there is a milk supply shortage to account for rising prices but it seems like it has been on the high side since summer.
ReplyDeleteI checked and $4 is £3.19 and a kg of butter here which is just over 1lb would be £3.80ish. Then I got lost in the comparisons!
DeleteWe used to go mad and buy our pigs the sprouts still on the stalks for Christmas they loved picking them off, and then they had the fibrous stalks to chew on later. Your chutney/relish looks lovely, and that would be red enough for me. :-)
ReplyDeleteAre you going to freeze all that bargain butter?
Yes butter is in the freezer . We used to hang up old sprout stalks for the chickens and watch them jump up and down!
DeleteI could use a larder to store sprouts like that!
ReplyDeleteSome butters have kept their price but reduced to 200g..used to seeing that with chocolate and sweets, but now butter and cheese..
I just stand them outside and hope the pigeons don't spot them!
DeleteThe sprouts look so fresh, they really are good this year I've noticed - all the rain we've had perhaps!
ReplyDeleteAnd your preserves look great too. I've nearly run out of my favourite homemade rhubarb and chilli jam but I froze rhubarb and might use some of it for another batch.
Alison in Wales x
These are the first stalks I've seen this season, hope I can get another one before Christmas, the market stall in town has them sometimes but they sell so quickly
DeleteThose sprouts look awesome. Butter is sold in both sizes here across the pond. You got a great deal on those pounds you found.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
According to websites supermarkets sell 1lb/500g packs but not in our local small towns, perhaps in the bigger shops.
DeletePleased to find a bargain at last
A great bargain with that butter. Tesco had some at £3 for 250g! I presume then they would drop the price to a slightly more reasonable one and claim it was a bargain.
ReplyDeleteShame about the Fairs. The one I want to go on (Llanarchaeron) is the same day as the Fair I am doing, although I could go on the Friday but it's such a long drive and back it would really tire me out.
Good grief £3 for 250g is crazy - but I reckon the 'specially selected' range - whatever that means - might be that much in Asda - I shall look
DeleteWow, I have never seen Brussel Sprouts sold here like that - we can only buy them loose or in bags. The only way to get truly fresh sprouts is to grow your own.
ReplyDeleteI wish I could grow my own here but the pigeons/slugs/ caterpillars ruin every sort of brassica I've ever tried here. - Very annoying
DeleteFresh sprouts are delicious. They were a lucky find as was the butter sale. Butter was once $2.50 for 4 sticks today it is close to $5.
ReplyDeleteYour chutney/relish looks great, and you are now well supplied.
The holiday spirit is now everywhere, and I do love it.
Butter is jumping up in price a lot this year. - so is everything else!
DeleteI enjoy going to Christmassy things and seeing what clever people have made - although I feel guilty for not buying!
Golly - I've never seen such gorgeous looking sprouts! But that will feed 50 - how will you ever get through them? The price of your butter is interesting - in New Zealand we buy usually 500g packs, and this week they vary between $6.49 and $8.29 on special at one of the major supermarket chains. That's £3.02 and £3.86 in your money. Of course 250g packs are more expensive, and the 'exotic' brands 500g is $8.50+ which is almost £4.
ReplyDeleteThere was the first of the local fairs this morning, and DH says it was very ordinary. Next weekend is the very big fair which many creatives spend months preparing for. I hope they do well, it is a big chunk of their income. Keep warm, keep well. And thank you for sharing your live with us.
If that stalk was feeding 50 they would only get about 2 each! I like a good amount - love fresh veg!
DeleteIt seems butter here is now more expensive than NZ and US - which is annoying to find as we have plenty of cows, grass and rain!
Hanging my head. I never knew Brussel Sprouts grew that way. I used to love them with vinegar (the way mum always did them!).
ReplyDeleteAh a good old Christmas Fayre. My sister said she was going one this weekend at my great-nephew's nursery. I do miss things like that.
Colin's family always put vinegar on sprouts, which first time I saw it thought it odd because my family didn't. I still don't
DeleteI haven't bought butter for a while. I went to Aldi's at some point at the end of August or early September, and they had a sale going on: $1.89 for a pound/four sticks of butter. So I bought six boxes to put in the freezer. I mentioned it to my sister and asked if she would like me to pick her up some. She said yes, and so I bought six more boxes. Then she didn't want it because she didn't realize it was unsalted butter. So. I have a lot of butter in the freezer. I've used two pounds since buying it. At that rate, it will last me for most of 2025!
ReplyDeleteA handy purchase - saved you a lot of $ for 2025
DeleteGreat comments to read through. I have never ever put vinegar on sprouts! But I like vinegar and I love sprouts so may just try it! I love buying sprouts on a stalk -
ReplyDeleteThey do taste better. I’ve never been able to grow them due to pests! I love a heaped pile
Of them but laughed thinking about the max my son will eat is 4! His preferred amount is 3!
Lovely to catch up again - I def need to make more time for it again x Rachel
Years ago when cooking for all the family, in laws etc at Christmas we would count the sprouts to make sure there was enough for everyone and then add 1 for youngest daughter!
DeleteI always prefer to buy the sprout stalks. I just put them outside the back door, they keep better and stay firm.
ReplyDeleteMy husband grew up with sprinkling vinegar onto his greens, not for me, thank you. But then, growing up, I never was keen on Sauerkraut either.
Your chutney looks delicious. Ever since I had a disaster, years ago, making Delia Smith's damson chutney, I stopped making it. Despite boiling and boiling it, it wouldn't set. Eventually I poured it into the jars, where it ended up like concrete, had to throw it with the jars as it just wouldn't budge! LOL
I look out for sprout stalks and was very pleased to find this actually in the village, otherwise it's only a market stall in Stowmarket and they don't have many
DeleteWe're looking out for stalks of sprouts, never ever seen 500g of butter!
ReplyDeleteI'd not seen 500g butter either and they don't have it in this Asda - except for these few packs in the Reduced chiller cabinet - all very strange
DeleteI went to Aldis at the end of summer, early September and discovered they had butter on sale for $1.89 for four sticks/a pound of butter. I bought 6 boxes, and then asked my sister if she wanted to me to pick up some for her. She did, and so I went back and bought another six boxes. Turns out it was unsalted butter, which she does not use. (Not sure why). Which is how I have came to have 12 pounds of butter in the freezer. I've used two boxes since then. At this rate, I'm covered for most of 2025.
ReplyDeleteI love brussel sprouts. Never heard of having them with vinegar though. Off to investigate!
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