Pantry Freezer Challenge/Week 2

Saturday: Chili Dogs, Chips, Fruit.  It wasn't about to expire, but there was a can of chili in my pantry that was not a favorite brand.  I had hot dogs leftover from the last time the kiddos were here that I'd popped in the freezer.  I loaded the hot dogs, wrapped in foil and put them in the oven.  It was lovely and delicious, but messy.

Nachos.  The can of chili was barely touched to doctor the hot dogs, so I used the rest of the can to make nachos in the oven.  Another easy meal for the evening.

Sunday:  Pork Loin roast, onion rings, popcorn chicken, cucumber and tomato salad, Honeydew Melon.  Leftover roast and salad.  The onion rings, popcorn chicken and the melon were from today's grocery shop.

I was hungry, hungry when I went into the grocery.  Truly hungry.  I had a short list which included fresh fruit, chips, half and half.  John said, "If you see anything in the deli..."  The popcorn chicken is more than enough for two people and reasonable enough.  The onion rings were sitting next to the popcorn chicken.  

So disappointed when I got to the car.  Both the chicken and the onion rings were cold.  They were meant to be warm, but they weren't.  Hence, we heated those when we got home.  Because it was late when we arrived, I thought I'd just go ahead with an early supper and raided the fridge.  There wasn't much roast, just a nice slice each. There was exactly 2 heaping tablespoons of the salad for each of us. So I'm glad we had the popcorn chicken and onion rings to piece out the meal.

Why was I buying chips and bread and such today?  Because it occurred to me as I walked into the grocery that I've got three kids to feed the next 3 days.  I quickly formulated a plan that included mostly what we had at home, but knew for sure I'd need fruit, and figured chips would help, too.  I grabbed bagels as my extra bread.  

I found myself thinking at supper that @ $2.99 a pound if I see another pork loin roast is an affordable sliced meat. I'd cut it into 1-pound portions instead of 2-pound roasts and slice it thinner for sandwich meat.

Monday:  Eggs, Hashbrowns, sausage, toast.  Can you tell I was HUNGRY this morning?  Funny thing, I could barely eat any of it.  I filled up very quickly.  I made extras because I knew the kids were coming in this morning, but they were under orders to not eat a thing from their dad, not because he was being mean but because he's working on getting them used to school schedule this week and warned them that not eating at home will only result in hunger at school.

BLT's, White peach.  John and I were the only ones eating lunch, as the children were already back at home.  That white peach was just lovely.  I bought it at Publix yesterday and it was huge.  It has such a different taste than a yellow or orange fleshed peach.  It's much more delicate, less bitter, less acidic, almost floral.  It made for a nice change and reminded me of the white peach tree my parents had on their five-acre farm.

Meatloaf, Zucchini au gratin (me), Italian Green Beans and Mashed potatoes (John).   I set meat out to thaw this morning thinking ahead. I have extra meatloaf even though I make a small loaf.  I've planned that into meals later this week.

There were also some leftover mashed potatoes.  I'll make those into something for another meal, as well.  

Tuesday:  Biscuits, leftover sausages.  I woke with a hunger for biscuits this morning.  I baked them in the new toaster oven and cut the heat down from the more usual 450 to 375.  I'm glad I did because they were fully baked within 10 minutes.  Some of the bottoms burned a bit.  I've no idea why since they were on a pan.  It's all still a learning curve.  I've yet to make decently toasted toast in the thing, lol.  

A batch of biscuits always nets us leftovers and that is no problem.  I had already planned to have biscuits as bread for one of our suppers this week.  And I like them split and toasted with cheese as breakfast when I have leftovers.

Egg Salad Sandwiches, Chips.  I had boiled eggs in the fridge and knew that if I didn't make something with them now, they'd just sit there.  John loves egg salad.  I tolerate it.  He was happy and that made me happy.

Teriyaki Chicken with Broccoli, peppers and onions, Rice, Egg Rolls.  I got this meal prepped yesterday afternoon when I was making meatloaf.  It marinated in the fridge.  I popped it in the oven and cooked the rice at the same time the Wacky Cake baked.  I don't mind reheating food for supper, especially if it means we avoid having the oven on in the evening hours when the house tends to be warmest already.

I'll tell you now that it wasn't the greatest.  In my usual fashion rather than err on the side of caution, I had the temperature too high and cooked it too long.  Phooey.  We ate it all the same but while it didn't burn it was definitely not the best it could have been.

Wednesday:  Ham and Cheese Sandwiches, Chips, Boiled Peanuts, Cherry Tomatoes.  I serve sandwiches on hamburger buns because the kids assured me that they'd had nothing for breakfast this morning.  Millie and Isaac ate bagels.  John and I just had those as well.  

Mind you all they did have Peach ice cream (or Peach and strawberry twist ice creams) so they weren't very hungry.  I demanded they eat some form of protein since they'd had all that sugar.  Glad I did.  Sam picked them up extra early!

Cubed Steak, Mashed Potato Cakes, Baked Beans Gravy, biscuits.  When I took out ground beef the other day, I thought I had more ground beef out.  It turned out I'd grabbed a package of cubed steaks instead.  I just made a smaller meatloaf and planned this meal instead.

When I went to get the potatoes from the fridge, I found a full pint jar of baked beans that I knew was in there but then had forgotten.  I decided to get them out and use them now even though it wasn't on either of the menus I planned for this meat this week.

Thursday:  Leftover Biscuits, toasted with cheese.  That's the biscuits done.  Yay!

Minestrone Soup, Garlic Bread.

Meatloaf Sandwich for John.  I had sliced meatloaf and leftover hash browns which I ended sharing with John.  We were going to have the Zucchini Wacky cake for dessert tonight, but it had spoiled just that quickly.  I should have stored it in the fridge, but there was no room, and I thought the kitchen was cool enough.  Live and learn.

Friday:  We ate out.  We brought home leftovers which we'll have for supper.  

Other:

I made pickles from three of the cucumbers Sam had given us a couple of weeks ago.  They were holding well in the fridge, but I'd rather pickle them now than take the chance of losing them. I saved one fresh one to use as a side dish or to make sandwiches one day this week. 

There were four zucchini in the fridge at the start of this week. I took one of the smaller varieties and made the zucchini gratin which was just enough for two servings.  It really was enough for two.  I ate the whole thing, skipping the potatoes and beans I served to John with that meal.  I figured the lower carb zucchini would be a good option for me.  

I grated the two smaller zucchinis to make an 8x8 Wacky Cake with cream cheese frosting.  The recipe called for 1.5 cups and each of the zucchini measured just 3/4 cup when I grated them up.

I diced the last and largest zucchini and made a batch of Minestrone soup (the vegetable base.  I'll cook the protein pasta later and add separately).  The minestrone also used up a broccoli stem end (about 1/2 cup when chopped).  I added two quarts of chicken broth and two small portions of spinach and kale from the freezer.  The last two are the sort of items I tend to 'save' and never use.  Glad to have them out of the freezer and in a meal which is where they were meant to end up.

I put two quarts of Minestrone into the freezer.

I bought a gallon sized bag of peanuts at the farm store.  I'd planned to share with Sam and Katie, but he didn't want any (though he ate a huge plateful) and I realized they wouldn't last until I got to Katie's on Sunday.  So, I put three-quart containers of boiled peanuts in the freezer.  I put the peanuts in the containers then filled the containers with water and made sure the peanuts were covered.  I don't know if this is going to work or not, but we'll see.

I had some cherries I'd not eaten.  They were in a glass jar and holding up well, but I decided to pop them in the freezer, pits and all.  I'll pit them later.  I'd bitten off more than I could chew that particular kitchen work session and the freezer seemed the best option when I was so hot, tired and DONE

Now....anyone want to make suggestions for using the six containers of ham broth I've saved?  In total, I'd say I've got about two and a half quarts, and this is full strength stuff that will need added water to tone it down.  I do plan to use at least 1 quart of it to make 15 bean soup this fall.  I have the beans in my pantry, and the ham chunks and broth in the freezer.  But one more suggestion for use would be helpful.

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