Easy as Pie!

The other day I made my first pie and it was easy peasy so today I'm going to share my recipe with you. It's a really simple and delicious recipe that's easy for students and those who are looking for a cheap hot meal for supper!

Things you'll need: ceramic pie dish, chicken, 1 egg, pastry brush, puff pastry, mushrooms, onion, bacon, crème fresh, mixed herbs, and chicken stock.

Lakeland currently have an offer on their ceramic pie dishes at the moment so this is a link to one here: http://www.lakeland.co.uk/13249/Traditional-Enamel-16cm-Oblong-Pie-Dish

A ceramic pie dish is ideal because it saves you having to use lots of pots and pans. With a ceramic pie dish you can just bang all your ingredients in it and place it on the hob. It's ceramic so it acts like a pan essentially.

Method:

Once you have your ceramic pie dish, place it on the hob at the highest temperature with a tbsp. of oil. Then, chop up your mushrooms and onion and place them in the ceramic pie dish. Once they start to brown, chop up your chicken breasts and bacon into chunks and add them as well. Once the chicken is fully cooked, add your 200ml of chicken stock, 1tsp of mixed herbs and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Once you have done this, add 2 tbsps. of crème fresh, stir everything together and leave to simmer for 5 minutes or so. Then, crack open your egg into a bowl or a cup and use a fork to whisk it. Take you pastry brush, dip it into the egg and brush the edges of your pie dish. Once you have done this, take your pre rolled puff pastry, place it on the top, fold in the edges and use your pastry brush and egg to glaze your pie. Place your pie in the oven (180 degrees/gas mark 5) for around 15 to 20 minutes, checking it regularly.

Where to get the ingredients cheap: pre chopped chicken breast £2.50 at Lidl or 3 for £10 chicken breast at Morrisons. Puff pastry - 69p at Lidl. Crème Fresh- 90p 300ml at Morrisons. Mushrooms- 99p at Morrisons. 5kg onions - £1.39 at Lidl. Pre chopped bacon 81p at Morrisons. Mixed herbs 67p at Morrisons. Chicken stock 75p at Morrisons.

 

Gina xo

How to save on your food shopping bill

I have been a student for the past 4 years and when I moved out at 18 I had no idea how to cook and lived off Asda's savers meals 24/7. Not. Healthy. Ew. As I started to break out in spots, gain weight and feel pretty shitty I decided I was going to learn how to cook proper meals. So, I bought a recipe book of healthy meals and I soon realised I was spending £60 a week on meals just for myself! It sounds crazy but healthy food is expensive and in order to cook all of these "healthy" meals in my recipe book I needed so many ingredients. Eventually, I gave up and returned to microwave meals and takeaways. However, since moving to Edinburgh and living with my boyfriend who can't cook to save his life, I had to learn. So, my next few blog posts are going to be about saving money on food and how to make yummy healthy meals. This first blog post is going to tell you the smart way to do your food shopping so keep on reading!

First thing I did was I changed my supermarket to Lidl. Lidl is so much cheaper than Asda, Morrisons and Sainsburys.  You can get a lettuce for 20p! Crazy cheap. Now, don't be judgey. Just because it's cheap, does not mean it isn't good quality. I find that the fruit and vegetables especially is much better quality than fruit and veg you get from local stores. Seriously, buy an onion from Asda and one from the Lidl and taste the difference. Or..just trust me.

I then did a BIG shop. Now, what I mean by a big shop is stocking up on all cupboard foods. Things that you should definitely have in your food cupboard is: tins of chopped tomatoes, pasta, rice and noodles. I love a lot of Asian foods because they're really cheap and easy to make so if you're like me or want to try some Asian recipes then definitely stock up on your spices. Basic spices that you will need are: chilli, tumeric, garam masala, ground ginger, cumin and cinnamon. These ingredients come up all the time so it's really useful to have them in your cupboard at the ready. It's also important to stock up on herbs and basics such as: garlic granules, mixed herbs, coriander, baked beans, kidney beans, salt and pepper, gravy granules and coconut milk. The next part of your big shop is frozen foods. Things you should have in your freezer are: mixed veg, frozen berries, pastry, meat, potato wedges/chips and bread. Now, onto filling up the fridge: butter, cheese, ham, a smoked sausage, milk, eggs, yogurt, tomato puree, chilli puree, onion, potatoes pepper and mushrooms.

Once you've done your big shop, the next time you go food shopping it's most likely you will just need to buy your very basics: meat, milk and bread. My last BIG shop at the Lidl cost me £42.80 and that included sweet treats and other bits and bobs that I didn't mention above. Pretty amazing. If you want to discover how to make 7 easy meals that you can make with all of the above ingredients then follow my blog and keep an eye out for my next blog posts. Here's a little list of what I've been cooking this week! -->

1. Spaghetti Bolognese
2. Seasoned steaks with potato wedges, veg and gravy
3. Chicken curry with rice
4. Chicken pie
5. Chilli Con Carne
6. Smoked sausage pasta bake
    

Gina's on a Budget and She's Back!

Me oh my it's been a while! Well, I'm back. I've just recently graduated from Uni woo! Except. I'm now unemployed and living off savings. Not so good. But hey it's encouraged me to reboot this blog again and because now I really am skint, I really do know how to get by scraping the barrel. Yay!

After working in both Primark and Superdrug for the past 4 years, I've gained a lot of knowledge and experience in what the best cheap products are that are out there. So, the plan is to upload a few beauty tutorials using high street products and show you how to get the latest looks for school, work, uni, nights out etc ALL on the cheap WITHOUT making your own clothes or beauty products and stuff because.......AIN'T NOBODY GOT TIME FO DAT.

If you want me to review any particular products or give you information on beauty or fashion stuffs then send me a message or comment on my posts.

Thanks,

Much Love

 

Gina xo

My Beauty Must Haves!

Since I was 12 years old I've had so many problems with my skin including acne which has left the texture of my skin bumpy and older looking. I've tried a range of different moisturisers and skin care products even products from beauty salons and it just wasn't working for me. Then I discovered L'oreal's new Skin Perfection skin care range. L'oreal is one of my favourite brands and I have to say I'm really impressed by this skin care collection. The best thing about it is it's designed for people in their 20s who are past that oily skin stage and just want smooth healthy looking skin. I've been using the moisturiser and the Purifying Micellar Water for over a month now and I've seen a lot of improvement in my skin. My skin is smoother, there's less redness, no spots and I find my make up sits better with it on. So I would definitely recommend you check out their Skin Perfection range!

My other beauty must have is Garnier's caffeine eye roll on. This can be bought from Savers for £4.00 and is great for getting rid of dark circles around your eyes. I was watching a tv programme called Ten Years Younger and there were beauticians explaining how caffeine is really good for around your eyes and will make you look more awake and reduce dark circles. So I started to look for something with caffeine in it that was for around your eyes and I found this wee beauty. It's really great stuff and definitely comes in handy after a night out! It's really refreshing and cooling around your eyes as well which is a plus.

Gina xo

Maintaining Blonde Hair

When people go blonde they often give up as it is so much work and maintenance and yes I must agree it is. However once you get the right products and come up with a routine it's easy peasy! I have naturally dark brown hair yet my hair has been Barbie blonde for the past 3 years and before that I had blonde highlights since I was 13 years old and my hair is still thick and healthy.

If you're thinking about going blonde consider the current condition of your hair. If you already think your hair is damaged and needs some TLC then blonde is not for you! However if you feel your hair is in good condition then start looking up Youtube tutorials on how  to dye your hair and how many kits you will need. If you go to a hairdresser and say you are thinking of going completely blonde they will always recommend highlights so you spend £80 every 4 weeks. Do not bother with this. If you're really not confident about dying your hair yourself and you have £100 a month to spare then go to a hairdressers but if you're a skint student like me here's how you do it.

If you have brown hair or you're darker then I strongly recommend that you use Bblonde Maximum Lift blonding kit by Jerome Russell. It's the UK's No.1 blonding brand and that is because it turns your hair blonde and not ginger. YAY! It also doesn't dry your hair out as much as other brands like Loreal. When I apply this to my hair I leave it on for the full 90 minutes.I then do my roots with the same blonding kit every 6 to 8 weeks. If you have previously dyed your hair like me then you might get some brassy tones, however if you're dying your natural hair it will turn out blonde.

Once you have used your blonding kit you then want to apply PROVOKE Touch of Silver Twice a Week Brightening Shampoo all over your hair and leave it in for 5 to 10 minutes depending on how brassy/yellow your hair is. This shampoo can be quite expensive in Boots or Superdrug however at Savers it's only £1.99!

Once you have rinsed the shampoo out of your hair apply REDKEN Extreme Conditioner which is a professional conditioner that you can purchase from all Supercuts Hairdressers. It's usually £15 a bottle which sounds expensive but you only need to use it for a few days after you've dyed your hair just to repair any damage. After a few days you can go back to using a normal conditioner. Once your hair is towel dry use Elvive Full Restore Conditioning Repairing Spray all over your hair. This will help detangle your hair and will leave it soft and shiny. Then apply REDKEN Extreme Anti Snap Leave in Treatment which is also roughly £15  and can be bought from Supercuts. This will prevent your hair from breaking or becoming loose. To keep up the good condition of your hair even further, use an argon oil treatment or a hair mask once a month. I also apply Pantene Split End Serum to the ends of my hair every day to prevent split ends.

Gina xo

Champagne Pink Stiletto Nails for under £10

Nail art is becoming a huge trend across the globe and we’re starting to see more and more edgy looks. One of the latest trends is stiletto nails i.e crazy claws. They were only available from nail salons, however with my bargain hunting power I have found them on the high street for under a fiver; ‘Elegant Touch Totally Bare Stiletto Nails’ from Superdrug. They’re great quality, the glue is really strong and you can even buy them already painted for an extra quid. Booya! Trendy colours this season are bright neon colours, soft pastels, glitter, nudes and champagne pinks and golds. My favourite nail polish brands that are out there at the moment are definitely ModelsOwn and BarryM. All their nail polishes are great quality, £5 or less and only need 2 coats.

Champagne golds and pinks are a must this summer as they create a classy elegant look that's perfect for all those summer parties. In this blog post I am going to give you a quick step by step guide to pink champagne glitter stiletto nails using ‘BarryM Princess 351’ nail polish and ‘Elegant Touch Totally Bare Stiletto Nails’.

Firstly, go through the nails and check what sizes fit your nails and lay them out in order. Then using the glue provided, glue them on to your nails.

Once you have done this take your BarryM nail polish, apply 2 coats and let them dry for 10 minutes. You'll then have perfect champagne pink stiletto nails!

Gina xo