My level headed method helps me reach my goals

My daily book has been helping me save my goals and achieve all year. At the start of the year I bought an A4 meeting book, with section dividers. This gives me a section for my goals, one for 'major lists' that will go through the whole year and lists of different levels. To give you an example, it's this one here: http://www.createl.com.au/buy/meeting-record-book-purple/2578P

I count general housework as Level 1, things like tidying up/sorting, paper cleaning as Level 2 and Level 3 as big things that need other help, such as tax or renovating/new major organisation of the house and so on.

I work full time at a job that has many night and after hour events, so find myself doing a lot of Level 1 on the weekends. However, unless I make a conscious effort, I do not get much of Level 2 or 3 done. Using this book both at work and home helps me to be really organised!

Make your own nut butters for a fraction of shop prices

I save a fortune on buying nut butters by making my own. Almond butter, cashew butter and good quality peanut butter can be fairly expensive to buy so instead I buy roasted almonds for about $4 at a bulk supplier (Bin Inn if you're in NZ) and blend it in my Nutribullet with the addition of a smidgeon of olive oil. This gives me twice the quantity of a shop-bought jar which would cost at least $12! You can also add a little honey or chia seeds to add variety. I use the same method to make cashew butter. I simply buy 200g of cashews for $4.80 from an Indian grocer, roast them in the oven and blend them with the addition of a little olive oil to start the process. At around $15 a jar to buy at health food stores, this is a terrific saving!

$13 mince mix makes base for 7 meals

This super basic mince recipe saves me up to $100 a month on takeaways, thanks to the convenience of having meals already 'half made'.

All you need are:
2kg minced beef
2 cups of red lentils
2 tbsp of vegetable stock powder, or four vegetable stock cubes
1 tsp dried garlic granules
1 dsp dried onion flakes
4 cups of water.

Place all the ingredients into a crockpot and cook on high for two hours, stirring every 30 minutes. It should be thick, aromatic and an unattractive brown colour (don't let this worry you!).

One batch costs just $13 to make and is enough to serve as a base for seven meals for our family (two children and two adults). This saves heaps of money and time too. I usually freeze the mince in margarine tubs, as that seems to be the right amount for one meal for our family.

The meals I made are:

1. Piemaker pies.
   Allow one heaped tablespoon of basic mince per pie. Pour the mince into a small saucepan and add a large spoonful of gravy powder, or a dessertspoon of cornflour and some Vegemite for colour. Heat and stir until thickened. Spoon into pastry cases and cook in the piemaker.

2. Mexican enchiladas.
   I use Mountain Bread or make my own crepes. Lay the bread or crepes in u-shapes in a large baking dish. Mix the mince with an equal amount of tinned or home-made refried beans. Spread the mixture in a sausage shape down the middle of each crepe, fold each side of the crepe over, sprinkle with grated cheese and bake at 180C until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Serve on a bed of rice, topped with natural yoghurt and some salsa.

3. Stuffed capsicums.
   Halve enough capsicums for half or one per person. Spoon the mince straight into the capsicums, top with some mashed potato, pumpkin or sweet potato. Sprinkle with cheese and bake for 40 mins at 180C. Kids love these as the capsicum sweetens when baked.

4. Baked spuds with topping.
   Allow one potato of appropriate size per person. Cook in the microwave according to manufacturer's instructions. Split a cross in the top and pile filling into the opening. Top with natural yoghurt or sour cream and chopped, sauteed bacon. Allow one large tablespoon of filling per potato. Mix the filling with one tin of baked beans and heat in a small saucepan before pouring on to the potatoes.

5. Spring rolls.
   Mix about four tablespoons of mince mixture with a packet of cooked and cooled Two Minute Noodles, some shredded carrot, and 1/2 teaspoon Chinese five spice. Using filo pastry sheets or spring roll wrappers, fold a small handful of filling into each spring roll. Spray liberally with cooking spray and bake at 180C for 20-30 mins.

6. Greek pasta bake (Pastito).
   Heat a container of mince mixture with a 400g tin of peeled tomatoes. Cook enough macaroni for your family and drain well. Mix with the meat mixture and spoon into a large baking dish and top with your favourite white sauce or cheese sauce. Sprinkle on some grated cheese and bake for 40 minutes at 200C.

7. Shepherds pie.
   Add any vegetables of your choice to the mince mixture. Place into a baking dish and top with mashed potato, pumpkin or sweet potato then bake until heated and the potato browns.

Cheap Challenge snack

Here's a great way to save heaps of money on popcorn.
 
I buy a packet of 200 Home Brand paper bags for about $3.00 from Woolworths and a 500g bag of No Frills popcorn kernels for $1.16 from Franklins. I smear some butter in the bottom of a bag and pour in about 100g of kernels. I then seal off the top of the bag by folding it over twice.
 
I set the microwave to cook on High for about three minutes but I always listen closely because the time it takes the kernels to pop depends on how much I have placed in the bag. When the frequency of the 'pops' slows to about three to five per second, I stop the microwave and let the remaining kernels stop popping before removing the bag from the microwave and adding salt.
 
For a healthier version, I simply cut out the butter and salt. I sometimes add chilli flakes or chicken salt, however, there's lots of room to experiment with a variety of flavours. Each bag of popcorn works out to about $0.25c per serve, a huge saving on the ready-made variety at the supermarket.