On My Other Blog ....

I'm writing a Bible study titled A Glimpse of Anna, over on my other blog Likewise Ye Older Women.  I posted lesson 1 today.  All ladies are invited to come take a peak at it.

patsi
A Working Pantry

Pantry Challenge #9 ... 2014

Here’s my to-do list from pantry challenge #8:

Shop sales and loss leaders.  Done!  See what we purchased at CVS for $1.64 out-of-pocket here.

Vacuum seal seafood breader.  Didn’t get done!

My husband found more overripe bananas so I need to make banana walnut muffins. Done!  I made 3 loaves of banana bread instead and then froze enough bananas to make 3 more batches of muffins or bread.

Can water to add to our water storage.  Didn’t get done!

Finish dehydrating carrots.  Done! I added 2 pints to our pantry.

Dehydrate onions.  This is no longer a need as we’ve been using a lot of onions in our cooking and with meals lately.

Dehydrate garlic and make garlic powder and minced garlic.  Didn’t get done!

In Addition:

I added 9 bags of shredded cheddar cheese to my pantry from a bulk purchase we made at Sam’s Club.

1 package of sliced almonds left over from making almond extract.

My husband opened up a HUGE (2 box package) box of honey nut cheerios (We got it on clearance because the box was damaged.) to have a bowl of cheerios and blueberries for lunch one day.  Instead of clipping the top of the bag inside the box he opened to keep the contents fresh, I filled quart jars and vacuum sealed them.  I added 2 quarts to my pantry.  By vacuum sealing them, they will remain fresh until he’s ready for more.

I made more elderberry syrup.

I started 3 more quarts of cider fire.

I had about 6 jalapeño peppers left from making cider fire so I chopped them up and dehydrated them.  I added one half pint of dried jalapeno peppers to my pantry.

I added 5 bottles of Dawn Dishwashing liquid to my pantry.

Here’s my to-do list for this week:

Shop sales and loss leaders. 

Vacuum seal seafood breader. 

Vacuum seal the other box of honey nut cheerios that we purchased on clearance.

Can water to add to our water storage.  I’ve decided to try out the reusuable Tattler lids that I purchased last fall but haven’t used yet because I haven't felt real comfortable with how to use them.  I figure if I don’t get the lids right, the water won’t be a loss since it can be re-canned.

Dehydrate garlic and make garlic powder and minced garlic.

That’s what I’ve done, how about you?  What have you added to your pantry this week?

patsi

A Working Pantry 



This post linked to:  Homestead Barn Hop

Q & A: Freezing Cottage Cheese

Here's a question that I received from a reader and since I don't know the answer I thought I would ask all of you ...

I was wondering if you know how well cottage cheese freezes. I recently bought a bulk amount because I use it in lieu of ricotta cheese and well--its either freeze or eat it all every night this week. Do you know how the texture holds up?

Can you help this reader?  Leave your answer in the comments below or email me at pantrytalk @ yahoo (dot) com.

Thanks!

patsi
A Working Pantry

My CVS Shopping Trip: Total Out-of-Pocket ... $1.64

I knew that CVS had their Dawn Dishwashing Detergent on sale last week for $.99 per bottle and that there were Dawn Coupons in the recent P &G insert.  So, armed with coupons, ECB's from a previous CVS shopping trip and a plan I headed out to see what I could score ...

 

 

 

And all of this for $1.64!



Since I wash dishes by hand, we go through a lot of dishwashing detergent and Dawn is my favorite so, when I find it on sale and have coupons, I stock up.

 

And of course, a little candy to enjoy and some to store away for future candy enjoyment by vacuum sealing in a jar ...

 

Plus the gold coins that will be used for a Saint Patrick Day's activity in the 4, 5 and 6 year olds Bible Class that I teach.

 

I really try not to buy stuff that we won't use regardless of how good a deal it is (space limitations in my house), but everything pictured above will be used or is being used already.  Smart Couponing for things that your family uses equals big savings when it comes to keeping your pantry well-stocked! 

 

patsi

A Working Pantry

 



Gardening Notes 2014 Update

Want to read our most recent gardening notes for this year? 

Go HERE!

patsi
A Working Pantry

The Cycle of Pantry Building and Using ...

Today, I've been busy adding things to the freezer part of my pantry ...

 

We purchased a bulk bag of shredded cheddar cheese at Sam's Club recently and I'm just now getting around to preserving it.  I measured out 2 cups of cheese for each bag and vacuum sealed it.  As you can see, I added 9 bags to the pantry part of my freezer plus I left enough in the refrigerator to use over the next couple of weeks.

 

 



  I had some leftover sliced almonds from making almond extract so I measured them out, vacuum sealed them and added them to the pantry part of my freezer.

 

 

I had several banana's left from my baking session on Tuesday so froze them by vacuum sealing.  I added 3 packages like you see above.  Each package contains enough bananas to make a recipe of banana walnut muffins or bread.  I noted this information on each package.

 

... but my pantry is not just about building, it's about using out of it too ...

 

Today, I used out of my pantry ...

 

1 package of frozen sausage links, which we had for breakfast, from my freezer that we purchased on clearance several weeks back, brought home and froze.

 

1 quart and 1 pint of homemade sauerkraut to add to the neck bones I took out of the freezer for supper/dinner tonight.

1 quart of home canned chicken broth to cook the neck bones and sauerkraut in.

 

1 home preserved frozen bag of cream style corn to go with our neck bones and sauerkraut for supper/dinner tonight.

 

1 package of 6 banana walnut muffins from the freezer to go in the refrigerator to have for breakfast and or snacks the rest of the week.

 

1 half-gallon of frozen milk to set in the refrigerator to thaw for use in cooking and for eating the rest of the week.  (This is the some of the milk we found on clearance approximately 3 weeks ago and brought home and froze.)

1 chicken breast from the freezer to cook on the Panini grill and chop up for use in salads the rest of the week.

1 package of homemade ham and biscuits from the freezer to thaw in the refrigerator for breakfast in the morning.

 

So, you see the cycle of living out of my pantry includes building and using in some form or another every day!

 

patsi

A Working Pantry

 

 

  This post linked to:  Frugal Days, Sustainable Ways; HomeAcre Hop; The Homesteaders Hop; Clever Chicks Blog Hop; Homestead Barn Hop

Getting Healthier in 2014: March

Things are really getting busy at my house with gardening and such so, although I will continue to work on getting healthier in 2014 every day, I will be updating everyone on a monthly basis instead of weekly.

In February I added a new goal of drinking 32 ounces of water daily.  How did I do?  I did it … one day I realized after supper that I hadn’t drank any water, so I grabbed two bottles and started drinking.  It’s not the way I prefer to get it in, but at this stage in my getting healthier journey consistency is very important for me until I establish a pattern.

I also continued January’s goal of walking 1 mile 5 days each week … how did I do?  I’m really proud of myself in this area and in spite of time constraints some days; I am still able to get in 4 – 5 days per week of walking for 30 minutes.  I’m beginning to feel stronger too, I know I have a long way to go, but I’m on my way.

Here’s a real BIGGIE for me and is a habit that I’ve had a good part of my life … I know they’re bad for me … I know that I’m addicted to them … I’m trying to give them up and for the past several weeks I've only had one when my husband and I went out for our weekly date to Sam's Club (That's a whole other story and it is something that has become very precious to my husband and I.) … it’s diet soda’s.  I know, they are really, really, really bad for me, and I realized that if I was really going to get serious about getting healthier in 2014 I had to address this issue.  So, I replaced diet sodas with oolong tea and it seems to be working.  I’m not having caffeine withdrawal as the tea has caffeine in it.  The tea does not have all the other harmful ingredients that diet sodas have and since I’m sweetening it with stevia; I’m eliminating the artificial sweeteners as well.  I’ve had a successful start on giving up the diet sodas; however, I am well aware of their addicting power and am taking it one day at a time.  My goal is to get to a point where I am drinking less tea and more water.  Am also looking into different ways to flavor water without preservatives and sweeteners.

For March I’m keeping a food diary.  I want to get a handle on what I’m eating most and what I’m lacking that needs to be included in my daily consumption of food.  I’ll include the time of day I eat, what I eat and the amounts.  One month of this should give me the information I’m looking for and better help me to know the changes I need to make in my diet for improved health.

I almost forgot ... drum roll please .... I lost 3 lbs in February!  Woot!  Woot!

Look for the next update the first of April!

patsi

A Working Pantry