3 chicken breasts, 2 meals

 One of the ways I stretch chicken is by cooking up 3 chicken breasts in the multi cooker, shredding it and using half for chicken wraps and then the other half in a chicken cottage pie. 

The shredded chicken recipe I use is this one HERE. I use it more for the cooking time, which is 20 mins on high on the pressure cooker setting. I just add a tin of crushed and sieved tomatoes on top of the 3 chicken breasts. Sometimes I use flavoured tomatoes or add some flavouring (I like the Pepper and Me pastes) but as I am using it for the cottage pie I will pour the sauce onto the chicken being used for the wraps but not the other half.

I try and avoid chicken heavy meals such as curries as you have to use more chicken to fill tummies but it is nice to have some chicken meals as well.

Homemade burger sauce

One of my kids in particular loves burger sauce and has been using it in all sorts of meals...I do have to admit his egg sandwiches are awesome!!
I thought I would give it a try making my own as even the cheaper homebrand versions are $3.70 for 330mls and the packaging from going through multiple bottles is not great for the planet either. I found the recipe HERE which I used as a base and tweaked for our preference.

½ cup mayo 
¼ cup tomato sauce 
2 heaped teaspoons of gherkin relish
1 tsp of sugar (which I added after mixing the previous ingredients and taste testing)

Super easy, especially using the gherkin relish and you could use different brands of mayo and sauce to alter the taste as well. The recipe says it keeps for 5 days in the fridge so best to make one lot at a time. 

Reading glasses

 Today I went for my eye test-which as an AA member I get for free every 2 years. Unfortunately (but not surprisingly) my eyes have changed and I need new lenses. I was hoping that by keeping the same frames, which I love, that it would work out cheaper, but crazily, it is cheaper to pay for new frames and lenses!! I go to Specsavers, which is cheaper than other options but the minimum quote for 1 pair of replacement glasses/lenses was $424. At a time when I am very aware of the fact our income will be dropping this is a big amount of money for one item so I asked for a copy of my prescription so I can shop around.
I know that Costco have an Optometry department and had seen some posts comparing prices so decided to give them a call for a quote. Based on my prescription they were able to give me a price. It is definitely cheaper to use my old frames but they need to see them to know if this is possible. For lenses only the quote was $190 and for lenses and frames the lenses are $160 + the cost of the frames I choose (which start at $100). I am planning a trip with my sister in the next few weeks so will take my frames in then and see what the options are. 

If this proves to be a successful mission my Costco membership will have paid itself off for the next few years!

Stretching out cleansing products

While having a shower this morning and making a note to add shower gel to the shopping list it occurred to me that we could save money on this by using a foaming dispenser like we do with our household hand soap. We have been using the foaming dispensers for hand soap for years, using the normal liquid soap refills but using approx 1-2cm at the bottom of the dispenser then topping up with water. We have survived through COVID times with this so I don't think it lessens the effectiveness of the product. 

With 6 of us in the house this will definitely be an area that will benefit from savings! 

I searched online for the dispensers as I was looking for bigger sizes then the handsoap and came across a website that was having a closing down sale and got 2 x 500ml dispensers for $10 (+ postage). Once they arrive we will trial them out and update! Watch this space...

**update** the bottles arrived and success! I have put a bottle in each of the showers and it will definitely save on overuse and purchasing of shower gel.

Savoury mince mix

We used a basic savoury mince mix for our mince based dishes...always have as it is a good way to get veges in...so the kids don't know any different! Even our nachoes have mixed veges in!! This feeds all 6 of us a decent serving.


500g premium mince ($13 if full price)
500g frozen mixed vege ($1.50)
1 tin brown lentils ($1.70)
1 tin baked beans ($1.30)
1 tin crushed and sieved tomatoes ($1.40)
1 beef stock cube (29c)

=$19.19 total for the meal (cheaper if you get the mince on special) or $3.20 per serve.

We just alter this based on the meal...e.g add seasoning for mexican meals.

Today we had a cottage pie but instead of the usual mashed potatoes I used potato gems on top. These went down a treat! I also added some bbq sauce to the mince mix. 

Costco savings

New Zealand recently had it's first Costco store open in Auckland. I went along with a friend who was a member first before deciding whether to pay the $60 yearly membership fee. In the first trip I managed to score some great deals on clothing (labelled shorts, socks and underwear for less than half the normal price) as well as some food bargains.
The most significant savings for us on that trip was the premium beef mince. 
Mince is one of our main meat sources and we buy the premium for the reduced fat and better quality (finding a piece of gristle in my meal is an instant turn off!). This usually costs around $9-$13 per 500g, which is the amount I would use for 1 meal. Costco was selling 3.3kg of mince for approx $44, which works out at just under $7 per 500g.
I decided to weigh the mince as I split it into 500g portions and in fact managed to get 7 portions of between 500-520g taking each portion to approximately $6.30.

My advice with Costco is don't be suckered into buying things you wouldn't normally buy and also make sure you price check! A number of items were in fact cheaper in other places (especially during holidays sales) and it's not a saving if you wouldn't normally buy it! 

Homemade yogurt (Easiyo)

Yoghurt is something that has become a regular for multiple members of the household and I have also been buying the expensive brand Greek yogurt as a lunch food for when I am working (at over $5 for a small tub that lasts 2 days). I remember looking at the Easiyo sachets on and off over the years and they have never been that much cheaper and have had limited variety, so hasn't been something I have explored recently.

On my savvy scrimping mission I decided to have another look. There are definitely more flavours available now and even one with fruit bits (which is something that will go down well in this family), but the supermarket prices are still at a par with the fresh versions when on special. HOWEVER.... What I have discovered is that Easiyo now has a subscription service! You have the choice of 8, 12 or 20 sachets and can select whether you want the subscription monthly, 2 monthly or 3 monthly. Obviously the more you order the cheaper they become...but even for the 8 sachet option the price per 1kg of yoghurt is $4, which comes in cheaper than the pre made on special (and on par for the sachets on special).
Unfortunately I seem to have got rid of my Easiyo maker so my mission for this week is to go to the op shops and see if I can find one second hand...and if not I will buy new, knowing that I will recoop the cost pretty quickly with the savings of $4-$5.

*Update* I managed to find an Easiyo maker, with the 1 litre container and 2 smaller containers for $6 at the Hospice Shop, the sachets were on special for $4 at Countdown so I grabbed a couple. My husband isn't convinced the family will eat the yoghurt so I haven't signed up for the subscription yet.

Creamy Pesto Pasta

This is one of our go to recipes that all members of the family enjoy, feels indulgent and is cost effective.

Below is the recipe and the pricing for the ingredients and where I usually get them from.


500g dry pasta ($1 from The Warehouse)
1 carton of long life cream ($3.60 from Countdown)
1 jar of Barilla basil pesto - this is our preferred brand, you can get cheaper ($5.50 from Countdown)
500g of frozen mixed veges ($3 per kg from Countdown)
Sprinkle of tasty grated cheese per serve ($10.90 for 550g- $1.09 estimate of 100g used for all serves)


Cook the pasta in a large stock pot. Defrost the veges in the microwave.
Heat the pesto in a pan...I usually add some pasta water to wash out the jar. Add the cream and simmer at a medium until warmed through. Add extra pasta water to thin the consistency to a sauce. Add the thawed vegetables and mix.
Drain the pasta and return to the stock pot. Add creamy pesto and vege sauce to pasta and mix. Serve and sprinkle a small amount of the grated cheese on top.

This recipe serves 5 large servings as a full meal so works out at $2.54 per serve or $12.69 for the meal.

Jarrah Swiss replacement

One of my regular 'indulgences' is my morning mocha. I will often have at least 1 more during the day (whether at work or home). My drink of choice is Jarrah Swiss and coming in at $7 a jar when not on special, it is one of the first things I have tried to cut back on. I spent some time looking at different recipes and will be trialling and tweaking. I tried to look for a recipe that had an equivalent serving size (e.g 2 heaped teaspoons) and came across this recipe which I have made to trial. I did add extra coffee as there was an extra ¼ cup left in the packet. My first impression was that it seemed richer...I usually have a very large morning coffee when not eating breakfast but found this was too much this morning. We also add a splash of milk to our Jarrah. Tomorrow I will trial it with a smaller cup and without the extra milk to see what I think. I have a lot to get through...the recipe made just over a litre container full!

2 cups instant skim milk powder ($2.50 from a 1kg bag ($10) from Countdown)
2 cups white sugar (88c from a 1.5kg bag ($3.30) from Countdown)
1 cup instant coffee (I used 1 ¼) ($2.80-using whole 90g bag)
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder ($1.79-from 375g box ($5.90) from Countdown
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence

Blend together all ingredients, store in an airtight container. Experiment with serving size. I am trialling 2 heaped teaspoons for a normal sized coffee cup...this is the recommended serving of Jarrah so best comparison.

This recipe made 54 servings (of 2 heaped tsp) which works out at 15c a serve compared to 35c for Jarrah.

*Update* I have found this recipe too 'rich' for my tastebuds...too cocoa-ey. I have made the serving size slightly smaller (2 heaped spoons for my larger coffee cup instead of the usual 3) and after some haphazard research on how to counteract the cocoa taste I added a small pinch of salt to my cup of coffee this morning. This does seem to have helped a little but am wondering whether I need to use drinking chocolate in place of cocoa for future batches...perhaps replacing the sugar/cocoa in the above recipe. This would likely raise the cost per serving quite substantially though.

2023-The year of the Savvy Scrimper

I've been back at full time work now for over 7 years and have found over that time that convenience and being time poor has had an impact on my spending habits. This year brings about a drop in income from the last 2 years and a need to rein in the spending again. With this is mind I am going back to my savvy scrimping days...hence the blog! 

We have different seasons in our life and with that comes the need for different ways to save and different goals (as well as different bills to pay!). This blog reflects my season...as a full time working mum to 4, one primary aged and 3 secondary. Our goal is to be able to meet our financial obligations as well as try and save so that we can still go on family adventures, and this blog is my way of recording the tips and tricks I find work for us along the way.