Getting your monies worth

I love a food bargin, I really like to get my monies worth and in the last week I have snapped up 2 great bargains.

The first bargain was from our local fruit and vegetable store where I try and do all my shopping for fresh produce other than at farmers markets.

Often the fruit and vegetable store has boxes out the front full of goods that are slightly past their best, a bit bruised etc and going for a song.

Last week I pick up a box that included:

1.3kg of Potato's

3 Apples with small soft spots

3 Big Red Capsicums with some soft spots

2 Pears each with a bruise

920gm of Snow Peas (this is what was left after topping and tailing and discarding the not so good ones that got fed to the chooks any way)

And the cost for the great haul of goodies.... $3.00

Yes that is correct, three little gold coins from my purse and I left with a box full of food.

The apples and pears got used up in juices and the potato's were put in the pantry.

The capsicums were diced and frozen ready for adding to pizza of into any manner of dishes that needed a bit of something extra.

And after top and tailing the snow peas the ones that made it past hubby, who was conveniently lurking in the kitchen, were blanched and frozen ready for adding to stir-fry's.

On a side note I later discovered a bag of snow peas stashed away in the fridge for his lunch the next day so the 920gm is actually less that what there was.

The second great bargain I got was some Broccoli.  It was on sale for $1.99kg, now that may not be the cheapest it has ever been or will be over the current season but it was cheaper than I had seen it in quite a while so I grabbed 4 large heads (just over a kilo) and headed home with my find.

I blanched all of the florets and froze them and then moved on to the stems.

Now I know that the stems are often discarded but treated correctly I think they are a great addition to stir-fry's and help to bulk them up if you are short on other ingredients.

I basically make big matchsticks out of them blanch them and freeze them, then they are on hand for when I need them.

Broccoli Stems blanched and frozen and the frozen Broccoli heads ready to go in the freezer

The other day I was reading a recipe for banana skin curry so I am interested on hearing about what other people find uses for instead of throwing it away.

What do you do?