Just curious who else is living super frugal

[jdopler]

Just have to share in my newest adventure. I love hot sauce, but everything is getting so expensive. When Mother Earth News posted an article to make your own, I had to try!
OMG! So easy and fun. now I can tweak the recipe exactly to my own taste. Unfortunately the recipe isn't posted on their website, but basically you puree peppers (fresh or soaked dried) with garlic, seasonings, salt and let it ferment for a month to blend flavors. you can also just add vinegar and use right away or add whey for a lactofermented sauce. I am planning to age mine and see how the flavors change. If anyone else wants to try this let me know how yours turns out.
ETA: found this website with detailed instructions. http://nourishedkitchen.com/fermented-hot-chili-sauce-recipe/

 

[seamsewnice]

Read this thread through, and is interesting what people are doing to make life more manageable financially. Thought I was living quite frugal but found out there are those that are doing much more to be frugal than I. Lots of great tips here. Goodwill is great but free is better, sharing is even better. When we stop and smell the roses it's amazing what we don't need to live. There are those that live on the streets and get by on even less. My grandmother who lived through the depression always said "waste not want not", is so true. There's a sense of satisfaction in being satisfied with what we have and doing with fewer things saves so much time and money. There's a quote there is more happiness in giving than receiving, in otherwords we don't have to have to be happy it's the other way around!!!! Keep all the great tips coming.

 

[In His Service]

Most of my family absolutely loves hot sauce...I am definitely going to try some of that very soon.

 

[Blue Ridge Hillbilly]

When we were kids there was no such thing as toilet tissue. We used corn cobs instead. You have heard the old expression "rough as a cob", well where do you think that expression came from? The corn that was used for feeding livestock usually came with a red cob and corn that was used for eating (sweet corn) came on a white cob. When you went to the barn or the woods to "do your business"(we did not even have a Johnny House), you would take two cobs with you. One white cob and one red cob. The red cob was used first to clean yourself up with. The white cob was then used to see if you did a good job with the red cob. Now we have all the convenience that we can think of. My mother never bought a roll of paper towels in her life time. she used dish cloths and they were washed on "washday" like everything else. I was 5 years old when our old house was wired for electricity. I remember meals cooked on a woodstove and carried many loads of stove wood to put in the woodbox behind the old cookstove. My children who, are all college educated, almost turn their noses up at some of the things that me and my wife like to eat. We don't give our money to fancy restaurants and waitresses who are insulted with less than a 20% tip (what city folks call a gratuity). We eat food grown in our garden and love the tomatoes, green beans, okra, corn and so on. I am glad to see folks on this thread learning to live frugally. We had all better get used to a more austere lifestyle. This country is bankrupt and the folks in charge are beginning to realize that there are no answers to the financial quagmire that we find ourselves in. We all had better start learning how to live on less and enjoy simple foods and lifestyles. Do you know that there are only about 5 global food conglomerates that control the entire worlds food supply? Do you know that there are only 3 days of food on the shelves and in warehouses in America? Think of what would happen if there was a world event that would disrupt the supply chain? Remember how quickly the store shelves were emptied in Japan after the Tsunami? People need to get their heads out of the sand and start doing something each day to prepare for such an event. Now is the time to get out of debt. Sell your toys if you can and get out of debt. Stash some cash money away at home so you can get your hands on some cash in case we have a run on banks. Don't get caught without a food supply and essential items for daily living. You need to become a safe haven for your families by being prepared for "hard times" because they are coming. I could go on but I won't. My theory is that "I want to be part of the solution and not part of the problem". My father and mother were products of the "Great Depression". I am thankful that they showed me how to live simple and to enjoy the simple things of life.

 

[Wifezilla]

jd, this is the recipe I use for hot sauce. Mmmmmm!

http://www.vietworldkitchen.com/blo...cha-chile-sauce-recipe-tuong-ot-sriracha.html

 

[Rathbone]

Quote:
I can't afford to go out and buy one but sooner or later I will find one at a yard sale or on craigslist. Until then, I am going to keep honing my water bath skills. I will say this: Being poor makes the learning curve sharper. I am trying to approach this as a fun learning journey but one thing I am noticing is the amount of stress I experience when something I make fails. I can't afford to waste money on food that doesn't turn out well. And working full time I cannot afford to waste my time either. Ugh! Trying not to get frustrated and be patient with myself that I simply cannot pull off a perfect product every time.

roasted red pepper spread for bruschetta.

My thought was that it would make a nice "fancy" canning gift for Christmas presents. (yes I am already worrying over what I will be giving since there simply is NO MONEY to be buying gifts). I thought I would make up for it by working my tail off and making home-made gifts. I am displeased because - although this isn't bad tasting - it isn't as good as what I used to buy.

 

[Rathbone]

Quote:
I know beekissed commented on this but it was what jumped out at me too. I love this way of thinking and living.

 

[Rathbone]

Quote:
I absolutely love this idea. I hate the temporary feel most birthday/holiday gifts have. This is such a lasting gift. Beautiful idea. We planted a tree for the birth of each of our children. Even though half of them are grown and gone it is so nice to tend the tree and think of them. And they love coming home and checking their tree; they love picking fruit or receiving a jar of jam made from the fruit of their tree.

 

[Acre of Blessings]

Went to the library today while out getting animal feed and a few things from the grocery store.. I picked up a book by John Seymour called Self-Sufficient Life and how to live it. Just in the first few pages I came across something that John had written in 1976 and I think it will fit in great right here.......


"We had never had any real conscious drive to self-sufficiency. We had thought, like alot of other people, that it would be nice to grow our own vegetables. But living here has altered our sense of values. We find that we no longer place the same importance on artifacts and gadgets as other people do. Also, every time we buy some factory-made article, we wonder what sort of people made it~if they enjoyed making it or if it was just a bore~what sort of life the maker, or makers, lead.

I wonder where all this activity is leading. Is it really leading to a better or richer or simpler life for people? Or not? I wonder about the nature of progress. One can progress in so many different directions. Up a gum-tree, for example. I know that the modern factory worker is supposed to lead an "easier" life than, say, the peasant. But I wonder if this supposition is correct. And I wonder if, whether "easier" or not, it is a better life? Simpler? Healthier? More spiritually satisfying? Or not?

So far as we can, we can import our needs from small and honest craftsman and tradesman. We suscribe as little as we can to the tycoons, and the ad-men, and the boys with their expense accounts. If we could subscribe to nothing at all, we would be the better pleased."

John Seymour~~ Fat of the Land~~ 1976

 

[Rathbone]

Acre - that was perfect!