I'm thoroughly enjoying the mandoline I mentioned yesterday. I've used it for tomatoes, patty pans, green peppers and sweet potatoes so far. And now, to further aid our healthy eating habits, we've ordered a new freezer!
We have one already, but it's probably the smallest little chest freezer on the market. I believe it's called "apartment sized". Teeny tiny, and barely able to keep up with us. Since we prefer to only purchase meat when it's on sale, it would be great to be able to buy in bulk to have some for more than just a week at a time. And since I love the convenience of bulk cooking and saving a portion for another time, this will be very helpful as well.
We've been talking about doing this for a while, but since we placed an order for 30lbs of grass-fed beef, we knew it was time to find a place to store it! And the fact that there is so much gorgeous and enormous produce at the farmer's market right now is added incentive. I could buy a few of those 6-8lb cauliflowers for $3 a head, chop them into florets, and freeze them for the winter. Having a new upright* freezer is going to open up a whole new world of kitchen convenience! (Plus I'll finally be able to store my ice cream maker's bowl in the freezer full-time, making it possible to enjoy frozen homemade treats far more frequently!) Oh, and does anyone know if you can freeze cabbage?
Breakfast: Kale and eggs with licorice tea.
Lunch: Two homemade sausage patties, roasted broccoli and tomatoes with olive oil, garlic and fresh basil.
Supper: A barbecued pork chop with homemade sauce, grilled patty pan and oven roasted cauliflower.
Snacks: Too many snack balls, and some frozen strawberries and bananas blended with coconut milk.
*It has to be an upright freezer for it to be useful for me. At 5'2", the bottom of a chest freezer is out of my reach!
What's in your homemade sausage patties? I plan on making some tomorrow with apple and fennel. Love to hear your recipe!
ReplyDeleteWish I could say I had my own recipe, but I just used Melissa Joulwan's mixture from Well Fed.
DeleteI freeze cabbage regularly.. this is what I do with most vegetable leftovers to avoid throwing out anything that has been in the fridge a few days.. I shred cabbage and use it in soups etc. Im not sure how it comes out for other uses but I also freeze celery, diced peppers, onions and broccoli for use later in soups /spaghetti sauce/chilli and the likes. You can also boil dried beans then freeze for convenience. I cant wait until I can have an upright freezer in terms of organizational ability for my food but for now we have a rather large chest freezer which I can reach all the way into... sigh! Enjoy your freezer and the produce in the farm belt and prices makes me drool a little. Enjoy the grass fed. I love knowing ours comes from "happy cows wandering the fields to eat!"
ReplyDeletedont forget herbs in ice cube trays.. saves a lot on costs here.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tips! I keep getting big bunches of basil in my veggie box and I have a hard time using it all before it wilts. Next time I'll try freezing it, too! And now I can't wait to get my hands on some cabbage on Saturday. Last week I saw one that was flat, about 4-5" tall, but as big around as a steering wheel! For $3! :)
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