Category Archives: freezer cooking

Friday Things

Posted in California, cooking, freezer cooking, seasonal things, simple foods, Uncategorized by

I’m in the middle of making spinach and mushroom crepes. I had to go down to the Holiday Market for gruyere and ended up spending $77.00. Food is really expensive and it seems every time I’m in the store it’s almost $100. I haven’t totaled this month up but I’m sure it’s going to be VERY high. Both Costco and the Azure order(which will be here next week) were around $300. So right there that’s $600. Oh well, I’ll just blame it on the holidays and inflation. sigh^^>>^^.

The kids took off in the Santa Fe for Hollywood this morning. Hopefully, it’s a good trip for them and fun too. My daughter, whose an author of Gay/lesbian Vampires, Werewolves, and other unworldly beings books, is there for the Whatpad convention for paid writers. I think there are awards being given and she is up for one. Her books are read worldwide and she has a big following. My son and his friend are going to the world tour concert by Elton John at Dodger stadium.

I won’t be going to the gym or pool unless I have B drive me in the truck. I could use my daughter’s Honda Fit but it’s such a small car it makes me nervous. So that’s ok, I can wait til next week if necessary.

Our days continue to be beautiful. There are still leaves on the trees so probably in the next storm they’ll all come down. We had a tree person look at the snags on the bottom of the property and he quoted $1500. I just laughed and said they can fall. I would prefer they don’t fall on the neighbor’s fence again but I’m not paying that kind of money for 2 snags. I’m hoping we can find someone who’s a logger( and needs work) to drop them for $100.

Next week is Thanksgiving and I plan on having most of our simple meal prepped and done by Wednesday except for the turkey, I made the nut loaf yesterday and froze that. I’ll use the canned cranberry sauce I made and then make mashed potatoes, green beans and, stuffing. I’m sure my sister’s family,which is quite large as she had 5 kids and they all have kids, will miss her. We never spent Thanksgiving together but I’ll miss talking to her. We were never really close but in these last 15 years she has been there for me and my family. So I’ll raise a glass to her. 🙂

a new adventure

Posted in cooking, freezer cooking by

I asked on the Facebook no buy club in our area if anyone had a pressure canner they weren’t using anymore. I specifically said a Presto or All American. I had a nice lady respond with this:

It’s not the one I wanted but all the parts are there and it hadn’t been used. There is one chip in the handle but that’s all. I gave her a strawberry jam and the blackberry. I said I’d drop off some pickles and salsa too.

So yesterday after swimming, I did the first recommended thing which is to add a quart of water and some vinegar and get it up to 5lbs of pressure. I didn’t really know what to expect and didn’t realize the clicking( when the lb gauge is working) was the sound I supposed to hear and that is supposed to go 1-4 times a minute. So I learned something from that. Today I will try the 10lb gauge( this is what they recommend doing) and let it come up to pressure. Because this one doesn’t have the pressure gauge dial (that’s when you can see the pressure amount)you have to wait at least 1/2 hour for it to come off pressure. So today I’m making the chicken stock, and tomorrow or even later will try pressure canning it. The value in doing this is that it is then shelf stable. I’m still undecided if this is really something I want to do but with this free one I can experiment some and then if I want to buy the Presto on with the gauge dial I will next year.

Someone asked about my freezer containers. So here’s the one I do enchiladas, lasagna, casserole type things in.

Here’s the one for soups, stews etc. that’s minestrone from the other night.

This is the Ball recipe I’m going to use.

I also knitted 2 more dish cloths.

The small one is just a coaster size for a glass or wine glass. I find knitting very relaxing although I’ll never be the knitter my sister was. She did all kinds of things,sweaters, hats, although I don’t think she ever gave me one 😦

Well, I’m off to check on my chicken stock and batch cook some lasagnas.

Frugal Friday, I guess.

Posted in budgeting, budgets, cash envelopes, cooking, freezer cooking by

No, just kidding 🙂 It’s been a fairly frugal week except for our 2 year Septic pumping. This house only has a 900-gallon tank(which is now illegal but back then was acceptable.), so we need to have it pumped every 2-3 years. It was $575 so not too bad really, and we have that in our annual bills account.

But food-wise, it’s been a low-spend week. I have plenty of things in both the fridge and freezer to use. This past week I made baked herb chicken with our cherry tomato compote, veggie sausage bake, cheese toasties with avocado and tomato, and pasta with tomatoes, and mozzarella. Tonight is pizza night and I’m not sure that’s what I’m doing. It’s early yet so I have time to think about it. First thing this morning is to blanch and freeze some local corn. I haven’t seen the sales for 10 for $1.00 come up. Maybe I missed it. So this was 2 for $1.00. I got just 10. Then I have more tomatoes to process but I may wait and do that tomorrow.

Barclay was supposed to get his port out this morning ( a milestone after 3 1/2 years) but he got a rash ( we think from his Shingrex shot) and the doctor said he should wait for it to be gone. He’s going to call his team nurse this morning to check on it.

We went out for a coffee at the local cafe and had iced americanos. That was $10 with a scone and came out of his personal money. Since we are doing cash envelopes again, he’s getting $100 a month for fun money. That’s working out very well. Also, he’s in charge of the cash envelopes for chicken food, and home depot. I’m still working out how much those should be REALISTICALLY. A budget only works if it fits what you need to spend and have the $ to fund the line item. So far, I have Tractor Supply at $50, and Home Depot stuff at $200.

We are going to have to take my VW to the shop as the coolant is still leaking. Hopefully, it won’t be too much. I don’t really keep a car repair fund so I guess I better start that.

I just finished the corn and got 3 small baggies of shucked corn. So maybe 20 more ears of corn.

Simple Sunday

Posted in Blood test, California, Flylady, freezer cooking, swimming, Uncategorized, Walking by

A busy morning so far.

We walked and no one else showed up till just as we were done. So that was nice. Then I made some blueberry pancakes for breakfast with veggie sausage patties and eggs.

I wanted to do a quick kitchen reboot since I did that zone last week but it’s on the Flylady list for this week so I went ahead and just did a quick deeper clean up. But I did wash the floor on my hands and knees and got all the stuck -on things that the microfiber mop doesn’t catch. Then I did a bathroom clean up too.

I had some cottage cheese to use up so I made 2 cheese lasagna for the freezer. I had half a bag of shredded mozarella to use too. I used a jar of Rao sauce. I think for dinner I’ll do some of that Korean tofu that was so good with some ramen noodles.

The news about the mass shooting in Sacramento is very disturbing as the Golden 1 center is a hub of restaurants and bars and just people out at night. Why ?? And when we will have more gun control?. It’s so horrible to think of those 6 dead people and 10 injured and the trauma for everyone and the incredible sadness of the families. So awful.

I have my labs tomorrow and then swimming on Tuesday. the pool was very busy on Saturday which was a little unusual. Most Saturdays it’s full but not all the lanes are doubled up. Some people were waiting for lanes even which doesn’t happen very often. I’m hoping when the Roseville Aquatic center opens next month some of these swimmers will go there. I believe it is a bigger pool but I actually haven’t seen it.

Overall it should be a warm week weather wise and I’ll probably BBQ a couple of times.

Simple Sunday and a cancellation:(

Posted in California, camping, decluttering, Flylady, freezer cooking, travel, Uncategorized by

It is a windy rainy Sunday and we didn’t walk even with Frogg Toggs. I just felt why bother since the wind is quite blustery. Plus, there’s always tomorrow.

So speaking of tomorrow…. I opened my email yesterday about 3 pm and went WHAT!!!!! Recreation.gov ( the California State Park system ) cancelled New Brighton’s reservations due to the incoming storm. Well, I’m glad they want to be safe but after Monday the weather looked fine. But done is done so I guess we’ll see what fun things we can do this week. I am disappointed though. This was the RV trip where we were going to learn about using the sewer hose in a dump station as New Brighton has one.

The movie Dune is out and my son said it was pretty good. Usually I don’t do movies( besides Covid) because it overloads my sensory input and I often feel sick afterwards. So maybe not that, we’ll see. He did say it was a slow paced movie.

Yesterday I did a bunch of batch cooking. I had bought a 15lb bag of bakers from Costco, so I did 10 potatoes which translates into 11 halves since I pile the potato with the filling which is potato, cheddar cheese, sour cream, and butter. these double stuffed potatoes are great for quick dinners and freeze beautifully. I’m actually finishing the rest today which is about 6 more potatoes. Then I made a turkey breast and that was quite good. My daughter made the golden gravy which is nutritional yeast and tamari and water and pepper. Yumm.

This week I plan on cooking as much as possible from the freezer and pantry. I went to our local CSA farm on Thursday and bought some more hard squash, so I’ll cook some of that as side dishes. I have some tofu to use so I plan on a tofu curry. Plus we have some frozen fish to use and half a bag of french fries. That should clear out quite a bit from the freezer/fridge.

Since we’re not going to Capitola for the week, I’ll swim a couple of times. Since this was supposed to be a vacation week I’ll keep doing stuff to a minimum. I have made a few more loop pot holders and watched a YT channel on binding off which helped as the loops were coming off at the end. Plus from that tutorial it linked the website so I was able to order some new loops. These loops and frame must be from when Z and I did this in hand work back in 4th or 5th grade. Funny how many purges these have gone thru and made the cut:)

Flylady zone is the living room this week. I have put up a few of my vintage Halloween items but not all. Trying to keep it more minimal.

Well, our power has gone off a few times already for a few minutes so I’m guessing we’re going to lose power sometime today with the winds.

Simple Sunday on a beautiful October day

Posted in cooking, freezer cooking, Walking, Flylady by

A lovely walk started the day. We ended up doing 4 rounds since(he who shall not be named) left at 6:45. He must be getting there right before us because he walks about 45 minutes. It’s ok…it’s dark and he is wearing now a headlamp. I wonder if someone said something to him about walking in the dark and coming up on people, which originally was our gripe with him. Anyway, we can’t see him and he’s on his side of the path( our other gripe is him walking in the middle of the path with his dog to his left, which puts him straight at us.) But he is moving over so a big improvement.

This is Gus, one of the kitties. He’s the biggest of all the kitties and very sweet.

The other night I made a delicious frittata and crispy potatoes. This was taken before it was cooked.

I added some of the pickled jalapenos on top and it was yummy.

This morning I whipped up a dish of spanakopita,one of our favorites, and made one freezer container too. I used a recipe from America’s test kitchen so we’ll see. The difference was beating 2 eggs with the feta and adding a bit of sour cream.

Yesterday, I also made borscht in the Instapot and we’ll have some of that too and then I put 2 containers in the freezer.

I’ve been playing ‘crafty’ and pulled out my old loops for making pot holders. This was our craft/handwork project in 4 or 5th grade. I think 4th.

These are 2 of the originals. How’s that for making something that actually lasts. They do look a bit worn.

Here’s the one I made the other day!!! I’m not very crafty at all, but occasionally I like to pretend and do something like this. It’s a bit hard on my hands( arthritis stuff) but I persevered.

This week is the bathroom zone and I’ll do some of that in a bit.

Here’s the back of the truck loaded….where does it all come from.??

Project: cooking thru my cookbooks or else…

Posted in cooking, freezer cooking, simple foods, project cooking thru my cookbooks by

The first book, “Kitchen Counter Cooking School “is one of my all time favorite books. It’s not a cookbook per se but accounts of the author writing about teaching some basics of cooking. The recipes are true keepers. The Alfredo sauce is remarkable and if you’ve never made homemade fettuccine alfredo, you absolutely must. It is so easy. Just follow her instructions about the simmering of the cream.

The” Goldy’s Kitchen” is also a favorite as her series about Goldy, a caterer, is so much fun. I just made the Mexican torta and it’s excellent. Her Spinach soup is my gold standard although I use an immersion blender to blend it smooth.

Both are keepers.

I like both these mark Bittman’s but the “How to cook everything” is I think better.

The other one is his new book and it’s okay and I’ve made a few things out of it but most of the fancier recipes I wouldn’t make. I will keep for now.

Most of the rest of the my cookbooks are keepers but I’ll still go thru some for the project.

Yesterday, after I got back from Sacto, I blanched and froze 6 bags of corn. Corn is coming in from the valley 5 for$1.00. I plan on getting another batch done this weekend.

Happy St. Patrick’s day

Posted in California, cancer, cooking, freezer cooking, home stuff, meal planning, Myeloma, reading, Uncategorized by

That really does say it all.

Today is Velcade day. Round 3, shot #2.

This last cycle has been a little tougher. Not sure why. I feel a little more run down even though my labs are ok. My lymphocytes are a little low but not out of normal. Maybe it’s just a build up of stuff in my system.

I had a good drive down to the infusion center. They are very nice and very with it. I decided to go back into Costco before my appt for two reasons. One, they had some sweats on sale for $10 and I bought one the other day and they fit nice and are heavy enough for cold morning walks so I wanted a second pair. Since my wardrobe is very limited and small when I like something I try and buy multiples. The other reason is I had seen a nice rug for B’s office ( our entryway) and it was just $50. That’s for a 5×7 rug which is an excellent price. Costco was very empty even compared to Monday when we went and I was in and out in 15 minutes.

This morning I started chopping vegetables for Tucson stew which we are having tonight. We’ve had this on rotation almost every 2 weeks, it’s that good. My daughter will make some brown rice later. Then after I got home I made up some taco meat( from last night) pintos, cheese burritos to freeze.

Then I had a piece of steak I’d defrosted and needed to use so I cut it up into small pieces and cooked it over high heat. It seared nicely. I’m not sure what I use it for but it’s done. My son was thinking of a beef stew/shepherd’s pie. So now I’m relaxing till I take Dex about 1 or so.

Exciting news!! Our garden shed showed up yesterday. It’s wrapped in plastic so if it rains it should be ok. Plus we got our stimulus money so that amount covers the price of the shed( $999 on sale, plus tax). There’s enough left to save some and maybe start buying what we need for the barn fence.

Well, I’m off to read some before Dex time.:)

Simple Sunday

Posted in cooking, Flylady, freezer cooking, ikea, Walking by

Perfect fall weather. The mornings are cool and days get warm. We still haven’t had any outdoor fires in the fire pit because of fire danger. We need some rain to do that.

Not now:(

Our walks are stress free since we’re the only ones there that early. The stars have been spectacular. Venus is very bright and Mars is quite red. We we’re leaving at 6 and the first person showed up so hopefully we can maintain this schedule. Frankly, it’s worth it to be out the door just a little earlier. As I said to B this morning, we can do it now but who knows the future. A year from now? or when I start Velcade? I may not be up to it so we might as well do this while we can.

This week is the Living room zone if you follow Flylady. I did ours including window washing. I need to do the outside windows this coming week. I try and do them each quarter. I use the outside bottle of windex that attaches to a hose. It works quite well.

Today is a mellow day without too much on the docket. I’m planning on soup for dinner with salad. Yesterday I prepped 15 baked potatoes( Costco, big bag) for double stuffed potatoes. That’s 30 halves. But when you pile it on you do get less. So I ended up with 20 halves. I left 4 out and froze the rest. The potatoes were really nice so if you’re in Costco, that’s a good buy. I guessing that’s because the harvest is happening in Idaho. Plus the value is incredible. 15 lbs of bakers for $5.69. I think down at the Holiday they are .99 a pound right now. Also, double stuffed potatoes freeze beautifully.

This coming week has some appts. I have a dental cleaning and we are tentatively going to Ikea to get 2 chairs for the sunporch. We’ll see. It depends how the week shapes up and my mood. The pantry from Ikea is still unavailable so that won’t be happening. But Ikea is fun and affordable.

Blue Skies

Posted in California, cooking, freezer cooking, home improvement, husband, prepper pantry by

It feels like a miracle that the sky is blue. We even ate dinner out on the patio. A miracle!!!

I do hope that’s the last of the smoky skies and that the tired overworked firefighters get a break.

We both got our flu shots and both had headaches for most of the day. But it only lasted 1 day so not too bad. B also had his IGIV on Tuesday and I dropped him off and my daughter went 4 hours later to pick him up. After I dropped him off I went to Winco and spent $130. Not really prepper stuff, just food to use and eat now. Bread, cheese, canned chilis, Amys enchiladas,spinach, tofu, tea, and 3 different kinds of trail mix to snack on. There was other stuff but I can’t remember.

This morning I’m making a zucchini bread from one of the last zucchini from the garden. Most things are done although I have maybe one more big batch of tomatoes to cook and then put thru the food mill. If you ever have an abundance of tomatoes and want to can or freeze a food mill is the way to go. I think I bought mine years ago at Crate and Barrel maybe for $50. But it removes the skins and most seeds.

Yesterday I made applesauce from apples from our one tree. They are a Golden delicious. Again I cut and quartered and cored, then just cooked down. Then I put thru the food mill. I ended up with 5 pints and tomorrow I will do the next box. The apples aren’t as big as we’ve had in the past and I think one trick is to remove some apples when they are small so that the tree can put more energy into the remaining. I don’t know if this is true but seems logical.

Tonight is pizza night but no one feels like a pizza so we are maybe going to do sandwiches. This week I did make a few newish recipes. One was from Tassajara cooking,it was mushroom stroganoff. I had a lot of mushrooms to use up. It’s a good recipe. Then I made a chili relleno casserole that used eggs. It too was quite good. Right now we are getting an abundance of eggs from the girls so that recipe used 8 eggs. They are on the small side. Also, I’m experimenting with freezing the beaten eggs. I guess this is a real thing so I’ve done a few baggies and will defrost one this weekend and see how it goes. You basically do a light whip of the eggs. You don’t want a lot of air. Then you do add a pinch of salt. I’m quite curious if this will work for scrambled eggs.

The pine floor has been a complete PITA. Honestly, I told Barclay, I don’t remember it being a problem last time at all. This time, he’s had to redo 4 boards, then plane them down and now sanding. If I knew it was going to do this I would have just done a laminate in a pine pattern. Oh well, he’s almost ready to do the Varathane on top so that’s that.

Well, that’s all the news.

Oh wait, I just got the Woodward book from Amazon, so excited to read that today.