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Food for free

Take a look at the Supermarkets page for more food saving tips.

I love nothing better first thing in the morning than a refreshing cup of  mint tea.  But never buy it, simply pop  a sprig of mint from your garden into a mug and pour boiling water over it. Delicious and totally free!   

As an evacuee during the war my mother ate stinging nettles.  Now they are back in-vogue.  Iron and mineral rich, they taste like spinach when cooked.  The sting disappears when they are cooked.  They are an age-old treatment against rheumatism and arthritic aches and, infused in hot water and water, are also a sore throat remedy.

To make stinging nettle soup

Wearing gloves, pick the tops of young nettles.  Not the tough old leaves or the roots, which will stain your clothes so beware.  There are two cooking methods:
1. Steam over boiling water
2. Fry 1lb (500g) of nettles in butter, add 2lb (1kg) of undrained boiled potatoes plus a dash of stock.  Bring to the  boil, cool and blend.  Serve with fromage frais and pepper.

If using  method 1,  freeze some  of the plain soup in  ice-cube trays and use to treat stinging nettle stings.

You can find lots of information about  unusual " found foods" from Richard Mabey's classic book Food For Free, available in  a pocket-size edition useful for outdoor forages.    The cheapest I have found is £3.49 from www.tesco.com, search  its book list. 

Take a look at the Supermarket Savings page for more food tips.

I love nothing better first thing in the morning than a refreshing cup of  mint tea.  But never buy it, simply pop  a sprig of mint from your garden into a mug and pour boiling water over it. Delicious and totally free!   

As an evacuee during the war my mother ate stinging nettles.  Now they are back in-vogue.  Iron and mineral rich, they taste like spinach when cooked.  The sting disappears when they are cooked.  They are an age-old treatment against rheumatism and arthritic aches and, infused in hot water and water, are also a sore throat remedy.

Tip for coffee savings Which? magazine found that people could save on average £126 a year by switching to an Independent coffee shop from a chain...

See Jane's top tips on VideoJug: Cheap Cooking Ideas, Saving Money On Your Shopping, Budgeting Tips, Identifying Shop Tricks, Reducing The Cost Of Air Travel, Saving Money On Mobile Phones, Saving Electricity, Offers And Bargains Explained, Cheap Cleaning Alternatives, Reducing Your Car Costs