Thermomix and your weekly grocery shop

**squishie** · 31-07-2012 15:30

Oh yeah, sorbet! It was just like slushie lol!

**Pesca77** · 31-07-2012 15:54

Yep all of those 'natural' foods cooked at the demos are awesome - BUT you need to have all the individual grains and ingredients first on hand. This part is both expensive and a PITA to remember/organise sometimes.

I just need to get off my butt and do a big shop of all the small items you need to get started, to be able to randomly cook these wonderful foods whenever....

**squishie** · 31-07-2012 16:01

See, I already menu plan and shop weekly etc so that part isn't an issue for me. I do cook with packet stuff too much though cause its so convenient. The thermomix would make it easier/just as easy to cook from scratch.

**Benji** · 31-07-2012 16:04

I guess they're not for everybody! Hmm, some food for thought. Glad I read this thread! Might see how my friends go with theirs before I commit to buying one.

**Wastingtime** · 31-07-2012 16:18

I've had one for a few months and yes you need to do some extra shopping for grains etc. in the beginning but then that becomes your 'normal' shop...and your old normal shop isn't your normal shop anymore.

We have food allergies to contend with (lots of them) and three kids and study and still use it every day without fail. I don't ever not use my thermomix at dinner time.

Sometimes I go to the effort of making a brand new meal from one of their recipe books and altering it to our tastes. Other times I use their recipe books as a guide for my own dinners.
I've never had anything fail in the thermomix and we're a dairy, egg, nut free household.

Our grocery bill has gone down $50-$100 every week and I don't think I utilise the thermomix to its full potential due to me not having a ton of time to play with it but it has definitely been a great investment for us.

Things I never buy any more that I used to:

Peanut butter, tinned tomatoes, I have halved my rice milk bill (so good...that stuff is expensive for the one we like), I have yet to perfect a yoghurt but I have a recipe I want to try and when I do if it works that will save me another $23 a week, I never buy grated cheese any more.

Things I do make in it -

Rice milk/soy milk.
Bread rolls (not bread...no time to make a loaf of bread every day)
Garlic bread (my daughter loves this as she's never been able to have garlic bread before)
Pizza's with our own dairy free cheese (made out of polenta)
Quinoa porridge
scrambled tofu (tastes like scrambled eggs)
cheese straws
apple and cinnamon scrolls and cheese scrolls
smoothies/green smoothies/juices
every night it is used for dinner like I said...for anything from a stir fry, to steamed fish and vegies with a yummy sauce cooking in the bottom of it, vegetable stew, quick soups, risotto's, lasagna (the meat and the sauce), bolognaise, vegetable pie, nachos etc. etc. We don't eat a lot of meat so haven't done too much with meat but my mum does and loves it.

Then there's the convenience factor...it chops vegies in seconds, it chops garlic in seconds too, then say I'm making lasagna I chuck the vegies in, chop them for 3 seconds, throw in the meat and put it on to cook for ten minutes...in that time I'm doing something else in the house instead of standing over the stove so my meat doesn't burn. Then after ten minutes I throw in the rest of my ingredients and walk away for 20 minutes...and I don't end up with sauce splatters all over my kitchen. Then I layer it in my lasagna tray, quickly wash out the thermomix bowl and throw in three ingredients and 7 minutes later my white sauce is ready...and it is perfect white sauce every single time. Making everything from scratch with lasagna I'd spend 30 minutes cleaning up the mess I created...now it takes me 10 minutes max.

I'm also rather fond of a hot chocolate at the end of the night and get one going while I clean up the kitchen, or put some washing away.

It's brilliant. I think those who don't have time to be in the kitchen are those who benefit the most! Put in a little bit of effort in the beginning getting the ingredients/tweaking recipes to your taste etc. and you'll never be without it! I even pack ours and take it away with us in the campervan. It's brilliant

ETA- I totall forgot hommus. Oh how I love hommus!!! Quick, easy, so healthy and takes 2 minutes (including prep time), chop up some vegie sticks for the kids and a yummy, healthy, quick afternoon tea!

**faroutbrusselsprout** · 31-07-2012 16:21

You are my IDOL!!
I want to be just like you.. Sounds awesome.
I am really feeling overwhelmed with all our allergies. Can you tell me where you mainly got your recipes from??

**FiveInTheBed** · 31-07-2012 16:26

I'll be back later ( just waiting for my apple risotto to cool, while I supervise the kids using the happy to play ' cool math games ' )

I have saved a decent amount on groceries, often wander to the checkout thinking ' is that ALL I need?'

I have bought more spices, that's the one thing I have noticed!

FOB what cookbooks have you got?
Have you checked out quirky Jo on fb?

Sent from my LT15i using BubHub

**faroutbrusselsprout** · 31-07-2012 16:32

Originally Posted by FiveInTheBed

I'll be back later ( just waiting for my apple risotto to cool, while I supervise the kids using the happy to play ' cool math games ' )

I have saved a decent amount on groceries, often wander to the checkout thinking ' is that ALL I need?'

I have bought more spices, that's the one thing I have noticed!

FOB what cookbooks have you got?
Have you checked out quirky Jo on fb?

Sent from my LT15i using BubHub

Yes you ridiculously amazing thermo mother, I've read her blog. I just got all overwhelmed and felt like crying when I read all the crazy flours and grains I need..

**Wastingtime** · 31-07-2012 16:34

Originally Posted by faroutbrusselsprout

You are my IDOL!!
I want to be just like you.. Sounds awesome.
I am really feeling overwhelmed with all our allergies. Can you tell me where you mainly got your recipes from??

hahaha! My husband would have killed me had I got it and not used it so that was a bit of motivation...divorce over the lack of use of a thermomix

A lot of the recipes are my own and then I just use one of their recipes as a guide for times and speeds etc. But other times I google and just make sure I put thermomix in the recipe. There's groups on FB etc. and people have blogs. Lots of people with allergies use them and I'm not fantastic in the kitchen so I generally just google and try someone else's experiment.
Oh and I lied...I haven't successfully made yoghurt....yet. I have ingredients bought to try and make some more this week. I've only tried twice though. I am busy and I HHAAAAATTTTTTEEEEEEEEE cooking. Seriously, hate it. Was a 'we'll buy this packet sauce, and this jar sauce' kind of person before my daughter was born with all of her allergies and then standing in the kitchen make everything from scratch was some kind of torture for me...especially when looking at the way my kitchen looked afterwards.

My husband came shopping with me last weekend (never happens) and we went to Woolworths and came out spending $87 there. Now I buy my fruit and vegies and meat from elsewhere but even so we never, ever, ever spent less than $200 at Woolworths and for the last couple of months before buying the thermomix we were spending more around the $250 mark. Husband looked at me and said 'it seems like we have forgotten a lot of stuff, that's way too cheap.' We hadn't forgotten anything. $23 of that money was on yoghurt...yoghurt that soon I will hopefully not have to buy as well

You do have to take a bit of time getting recipes and stocking up your pantry. I have some of the books, the rest I use google. And now some of the recipes I know off by heart so I don't even need to get my recipes out...it's like when I used to cook before thermie, only 1000 times better in terms of ease and convenience!
Next time your procastinating uni, think of your fave meals and start googling for thermomix recipes!