The Three Rs

The lifestyle of an aspiring health-nister, moneyless, time poor, sole parent student, has been a work in progress. I’ve been achieving small successes in this seemingly ‘underprivileged’ life-style, at the steady pace of a snail. I’m going to attempt to make a few good attempts and ideas, into a few good habits. I shall reduce spending, reuse the dust collecting kitchen appliances and recycle some unused crap into cash.

A comb through of the chaos scattered among cupboards, boxes and shelves in my kitchen to pluck out unwanted goods, like they’re little nits, has been a good start to a thrifty lifestyle. Selling dusty appliances on Gumtree to buy time saving inventions has ticked important boxes of reduced spending and recycling. I first came across this brilliance through a recent purchase. I bought a yoghurt maker and a packet of bacteria off the internet for $80 delivered.

My son is lactose intolerant. Lactose free yoghurts, coconut yoghurts and soy yoghurts are ridiculously expensive. The added sugars and limited good bacteria’s left to grow in the less than fresh yoghurt leaves me with a sour taste as I lick my pointer finger to count the notes out for the cashier, as the tubs of yoghurt flick through the scanner. Five bucks, gets me four small tubs of marked up ‘healthy – but – almost – ice-cream’ yoghurt, marketed to people trying to be healthier or trying avoid a sore stomach. This adds up especially when the boy is yoghurt obsessed.

The yoghurt marker allows me to make coconut yoghurt, with no additives or sugars, just good old coconut milk heated to the exact temperature needed to kill the bad and grow the good bacteria’s yoghurt is so good for. I’m considering adding chia seeds and frozen berries, and freezing a batch as ‘ice-cream.’ Double-whammy of awesomeness right there.In ten weeks, I will have made a positive impact on our health and my wallet through this awesome buy.

In addition to the benefits of a yoghurt machine, I have recently rediscovered the benefits of a stowed away slow cooker and air fryer, rediscovered after said dusting session. I hope to turn these appliances into a daily habit. The slow cooker is time rich as it can be left on all day while I study or play with the boy and our pup. It is money rich as well, because I can chuck cheap cuts of meat into it with some veg. If I add just a bit of this herb and a bit of that seasoning, the flavor jumps in the mouth. Amazeballs. Not only is the slow cooker cheap, time rich and nutrient dense, it is also easy to portion up and freeze for a quick dinner on a busy night and easy packing into my boy’s day care lunch box.

The air fryer on the other hand is great for roasting hunky cuts of veg, such as pumpkin, sweet potato and potato. I have been packing these as snack foods for my son, instead of his usual packet of rice crackers or popcorn. I try to spice things up for him with an array of flavors. I have found a dash of ground cinnamon in a zip lock bag with the hunks of sweet potato are a hit. A small squirt of honey on the pumpkin or mixed herbs on the potato have worked well too. The beauty of the zip lock bags is, not only can I reuse them, it’s also easy to get a good coat of flavor over the veg as I can rub it in, using the flexible bag and my fingers finger tips without getting my hands or an extra bowl dirty.
If you have any other tips or tricks, please post them in the comments section and I will trial them. I will be sure to post about any hits I come across.



#_making_ends_meet
#being_resourceful
#proactive
#making_a_difference
#mindful
#tips
#lactose_intolerant
#yoghurt_machine
#air_fryer


%selfavenue