not noodles.

Spoonie hack: ice cube trays!

Make a batch of pasta sauce - which is no more effort than making a single portion - and freeze what you don’t use. (Btw, if you have parmesan rind cook that straight in the sauce. It’ll season the sauce in the most deliciously salty cheesy way, just take it out before you eat)

Pop out however many cubes you want to use and reheat straight from frozen in a saucepan or the microwave.

Ice cube trays are my new favourite tbh.

Herbs looking kinda sad? Make pesto and freeze cubes of it, or just chop the herbs and freeze with olive oil.

Live alone and won’t use a full jar of curry paste before it gets mouldy? Freeze it in handy portion sized pieces.

Love chocolate? Melt some and make peanut butter cups!!!

I always say thrifty food doesn’t have to be bland. That’s definitely true of this dish.

It’s hot, tasty, and full of vitamins. Best of all, it’s super filling!

RICE AND BEANS Time: 10mins Spoons: 2

Dice a tomato, slice a spring onion, and chop a clove of garlic and half a green chilli.

In a little olive oil, fry the tomato and onion for 2 minutes. Add the garlic and chilli and fry for 1 more minute.

Add half a can of beans (I used white) and a teaspoon of paprika. Cook for 2 minutes.

Add a teaspoon each of red wine vinegar and water. Add some leftover cooked rice, cook for 1 minute or until heated through.

Food does not get easier than this! The prep is as easy as opening two cans and ripping some leaves.

If that’s not reason enough to make this, it’s super healthy, filling, and delicious. The beans are full of fibre, the tuna is packed with protein, and the rocket delivers a punch of iron.

Still not convinced? I left half of mine in the fridge for 3 days and it only got better!

TUNA BUTTER BEAN SALAD Time: 3mins Spoons: 1-2

Open and drain a can each of butter beans and tuna.

Boil the beans for 5 minutes then drain again.

Mix the beans and tuna with some torn up rocket.

CHEATS ETON MESS Time: 2mins Spoons: 1

Squirt some shop bought whip cream into your serving bowl.

Wash some strawberries. Using a knife or the edge of a spoon, cut the strawberries into bitesize chunks. Add to the bowl.

Crumble a shop bought meringue nest. Add to the bowl.

WHITE BEAN BROCCOLI SALAD Time: 5mins Spoons: 1-2

Cut some broccoli into florets or use a frozen bag. On a baking tray, lightly toss with olive oil and salt.

Put the tray under the grill on high for 5 minutes or until browned.

Chop some tomato and red onion.

Drain a can of white beans. Mix with the tomato, onion, and broccoli.

So tonight I had the house to myself, which means it’s got to be a treat dinner! There happened to be chicken, bacon, mushrooms, and cream in the fridge. This one basically wrote itself XD

CREAMY CHICKEN AND MUSHROOM PENNE Time: 20mins Spoons: 4-5

Slice about 6 mushrooms and set aside. Chop a chicken breast and a piece of bacon into bite size pieces.

Put a frying pan on a medium heat and add a teaspoon of olive oil. Add the chicken with a pinch of salt and pepper, cook for about 5 minutes until cooked through.

Add the bacon, mushrooms, and a crushed garlic clove. Cook for 3 minutes or until mushrooms are golden and bacon is cooked through. Remove from the heat.

Boil a saucepan of water. Add a handful of pasta and a big pinch of salt. Cook for about 8 minutes or until al dente then drain.

This easy sauce can be made with condiments probably already sitting in your cupboard.

It’s creamy, tangy, and sweet. The peanut butter is full of protein and the veggies provide the vitamins.

If you want to make it even easier, use pre cooked noodles for a refreshing cold noodle salad.

PEANUT NOODLES Time: 5mins Spoons: 2

Mix a teaspoon of peanut butter, a tablespoon of sweet chilli sauce, a teaspoon of oil (sesame if you have it), a tablespoon of lime or lemon juice, and a tablespoon of soy sauce.

Cut up some red pepper, broccoli, and spring onion.

Cook some instant noodles for about 3 minutes, adding the veggies in the last minute.

I’m really starting to love microwave eggs. They’re so quick and don’t require much effort at all.

My only gripe is that the line between perfectly gooey and upsettingly hard yolks is microscopic.

It’ll take some practice and more than one disappointingly hard yolk, but when you get the technique, microwave eggs will light up your mornings!

MICROWAVE POACHED EGG Time: 2mins Spoons: 1

Break an egg into a cup or bowl.

Pour on about 1/3 of a cup of cold water. Add a drop of vinegar (to help the egg hold together). Cover with a plate.

Depending on how powerful your microwave is, microwave the egg at either 75% or 50% power for 60 seconds.

Check the egg. If it doesn’t look cooked yet, microwave in 20 second bursts until it does.

Remove with a slotted spoon and serve on hot buttered toast.

Often I sit consumed in daydreams of living in my own place, usually wondering how I could feed myself on the cheap.

Invariably this leads me to the rubber chicken.

If you’ve not come across that term, it’s a popular habit of roasting a whole chicken and stretching the leftovers to make meals for up to an entire week!

Big money saver, but requires a fair bit of creativity to stop dinners getting boring.

This Thai chicken salad will definitely be one delicious use of my future rubber chickens!

CRUNCHY THAI CHICKEN SALAD Time: 5mins Spoons: 1-2

Finely slice two broccoli florets, some red onion, and red pepper.

Roughly slice some little gem or other crunchy lettuce.

Mix with torn up rotisserie or leftover roasted chicken.

For the dressing, mix a teaspoon of mango and ginger chutney (plain mango would also work), and a splash each of lime juice, soy sauce, and fish sauce. Add a drop of any neutral oil - I used sunflower.

Not long ago I told you my Moroccan egg couscous was a packed lunch game changer.

It just levelled up.

Tomorrow I’m working a late shift so my lunch will have to double up as my dinner. I made a batch of my new fave couscous, then spotted the leftover roast pork in the fridge.

I ripped up some of the pork then mixed it with a teaspoon of ginger and mango chutney, plus a bit of salt and pepper.

I’ve never been so eager to go to work XD

A retro british classic! This is so quick to put together, really refreshing, and super tasty. If you have the prawns then you’ll almost definitely have everything else you need to make this!

PRAWN COCKTAIL Time: 5 mins Spoons: 1

Make a Marie Rose sauce by mixing two spoonfuls of mayo and/or greek yoghurt, a spoonful of ketchup, a dash each of Worcestershire sauce and lemon juice, an optional dash of tabasco, and seasoning.

When I woke up today, I decided I wanted an egg for breakfast. I also remembered there are loads of peppers in the fridge.

After changing my mind a hundred or so times, I decided to make a breakfast fajita.

I’m so glad I did! This is delicious, and could easily be made for dinner as well. If you want a meat version, just add chorizo or cooked chicken.

MICROWAVE BREAKFAST FAJITA Time: 5mins Spoons: 2

Cut some Bell peppers (I used yellow, red, and green) into thin slices. Toss with half a teaspoon of olive oil, then place on a tea plate. Microwave for two minutes - you’ll smell when it’s ready!

Slice a spring onion, add to the peppers. Sprinkle with paprika. Clear a space in the centre of the plate.

Crack an egg into a large mug. Put the mug in the middle of the plate. Microwave for 30 second intervals until the white has set.