Saturday, December 29, 2012

A (Scary) Food Waste Update - Plus, What to Do with Those Leftovers!

It's been much longer than I planned for it to be since I last weighed in on my Holiday Food Waste Challenge. Unfortunately, a *really* nasty virus swooped in and felled our family the week before Christmas and we've been trying to get out from under it ever since. I'm still not 100% recovered but I managed to stumble over to the fridge and do a bit of an excavation.

There's nothing like being laid up in bed to throw you off your game, and add the biggest holiday of the year into the mix, and it's pretty much a recipe for a food waste disaster! The irony of having the most food waste we've had in a long time during my official Food Waste Challenge has not escaped me.

Here's what I dug out of the refrigerator that is no longer fit to eat:

Some leftover cheese sauce from Taco Platters, 3 blueberry pancakes, a couple spoonfuls of leftover cooked vegetables, and, most unfortunately, an entire head of broccoli.

Since my last update, I also had to toss out two horrifically moldy organic lemons from a 2 pound bag I bought on sale. Whenever I buy organic lemons I always seem to forget that they spoil a lot faster than their non-organic counterparts. I also had to toss a clementine that was rotten in the middle - I don't think there was much I could have done to prevent that one, as the rest of the oranges in that box still appear to be fine.

Yeah, it's a half decent amount.of spoiled food. It does represent a full 4 weeks of food wastage, so it's still much, much less than the average family throws away. That doesn't mean I'm happy about it, it just could have been a LOT worse all things considered.

I'm hoping that you have avoided this unpleasant bug that's been going around, and that you've done better than we have on the food waste front.

If you have some holiday leftovers that still need using up, now's the time to make sure they don't go to waste!

My Everything-But-the-Kitchen-Sink Lentil Soup is perfect for using up any number of leftover tidbits - vegetables, bits of meat, and even gravy easily slide into this soup and it always comes out tasting great.

Leftover turkey or ham both make delicious versions of this coconut curry and these pinwheels.

If you need more inspiration dealing with the remnants of the Big Bird, you can find my Making the Most of Roast Turkey post here.

Swimming in a sea of leftover mashed potatoes? They can be frozen in 1 cup portions for use in my Refrigerator Bread Dough.

If it's sweet stuff that's overrunning your kitchen, most desserts lend themselves well to freezing (except things like puddings and custards, so eat those first!) Whipping cream can be whipped and dropped onto a parchment or wax paper lined cookie sheet in spoonfuls for freezing. Once the mounds of cream are solid, pack then into freezer bags for longer term storage, and you have the perfect amount to top a single dessert or a mug of hot cocoa!

How was your food waste over the holidays? Do you have a clever way to use up those festive leftovers?

Monday, December 17, 2012

Weekly Menu Retrospective #92

Welcome to my weekly roundup of the past week's eats. I prefer to report what we ate in the last week, rather than what we're planning to eat in the coming week. Why? The reason is pretty simple: although I usually have a general idea of what we're going to eat in the next week or so, life often unfolds a little differently than planned, and I adjust my menu plan on a near-daily basis to accommodate leftovers and other not-possible-to-plan-ahead circumstances. I find this is the easiest way to ensure that I minimize our family's food waste. I'm also willing to admit that I'm a rather spontaneous cook, given to preparing foods that strike me as the most appealing thing to eat right here and now!

If you'd like a whole book full of inexpensive, quick and kid-approved recipes,
check out my book, Cheap Appétit : The Complete Guide to Feeding Your Family for Less Than $400 a Month (While Eating Better Than You Ever Thought Possible) on Amazon (Amazon.com, Amazon.ca and Amazon UK) and Barnes and Noble.  It's gotten multiple 5 star reviews!! I've included page references to recipes that are in the book in my menu plans so you can locate them quickly. For more details about the book, go here.   Cookbooks make great Christmas gifts :)

Breakfasts:
Granola (p. 92), Banana Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins (variation of this recipe on p. 96), leftover cornbread, leftover Coconut Milk & Millet Porridge, blueberry buttermilk pancakes

Lunches: 
leftovers, sandwiches, pizza 

Dinners:

Monday: I was out at a potluck (I brought the Red Lentil Dal on p. 113), everyone else had leftover pizza for dinner!

Tuesday: Taco Platters

Wednesday: Black Bean Chili (meatless version, p. 160), cornbread (p. 212)

Thursday: Lemon & Garlic Chicken (p. 184), Roasted Root Vegetables (p. 202)

Friday: Pasta e Fagioli (p. 168)

Saturday: Classic Beef Burgers (p. 125), Easy Oven Fries (p. 194)

Sunday: Roast chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, carrots and peas, selection of Christmas cookies

In keeping with my local and organic challenge, I'd also like to note the local and/or organic items on this week's menu:

Organic: coconut (in granola), coconut oil (in granola), coconut milk, canola oil, raisins (in granola), sunflower and pumpkin seeds (in granola), bananas, coffee (locally roasted and delivered by bike!), tortilla chips, lentils, corn (in chili), mustard, parsley, orange peel, Fairytale tea

Local: potatoes, carrots, onions, apples, garlic, red peppers, salsa (home-canned), pickles (home-canned) ground beef, chicken legs and sausage (from VG Meats), honey (unpasteurized), milk, eggs, sour cream 

Local AND organic: peanut butter,
sesame seeds (used to top bread loaves), oats (in granola), cornmeal, apple cider vinegar, millet, popcorn, whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour

For more great meal ideas, check out Menu Plan Monday at orgjunkie.com.

(P.S. Want to join in on my Holiday Food Waste Challenge? All the details are here.)
  
Love what you read here? Find out how you can help support this blog. 

Want to stay connected in between blog posts?

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Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Our Frugal Stocking Stuffer Plan


Last week I shared our frugal gifting plans for this Christmas, and I promised to come back and share our stocking stuffer plans this week.

(BTW, if you're a member of my immediate family, you better not be reading this post or you won't be very surprised on Christmas morning ::grin::)

There's no doubt about it, you can rip right through your entire holiday gift budget on stocking stuffers alone if you're not careful. Our stockings are by no means extravagantly filled, but I'd rather have a smaller amount of good quality items than a large amount of crap! Since we are all foodies around here, you'll notice most of the items are of an edible nature :)

I actually happen to (mostly) know what's going in my own stocking this year, too, which is fine with me. I think hubby also has a couple of small surprises up his sleeve to add to the goodies I already know about.

What goes in ALL of our stockings:
-Homemade candies (cracker toffee, candied peanuts)
-Chai-Chocolate Chip Biscotti
-An apple and a clementine or two (traditional for the very bottom of the stocking!)

What's going in the boys' stockings:
-Mint Meltaway chocolates (from Walker's Chocolates, a local business)
-Gift cards for Subway and Tim Hortons (These will cost us nothing out of pocket as my husband received them as gifts. There are locations of each right in our neighbourhood, and since the boys are now teenagers they enjoy going there with friends)
-Glee Gum (an all-natural chewing gum)
-Gingerbread Spice tea (a favourite with both of them)
-a can of Blue Sky natural soda (These were on sale for 69 cents each at Fortinos. I used a $1.00-off-when-you-buy-2 online printable coupon from The Healthy Shopper and got both cans for 59 cents total, including tax!)
-Assorted pens, pencils and erasers (they've almost used up their stash from the fall)

What's going in hubby's stocking:
-Camino chocolate covered coffee beans (Fair Trade, organic, and yummy, purchased through ONFC)
-Camino Dark Mint chocolate bar (purchased on sale at Fortino's)
-A homemade citrus-spice herbal tea blend
-A bar of the manly-scented "His" glycerin bar soap from The Guelph Soap Company (locally produced)

What's going in MY stocking:
-Camino raw cacao nibs (Fair Trade, organic and kind of addictive - purchased through ONFC)
-Vanilla Body Butter from The All Natural Face (I received a $5.00 gift code from this company, no minimum purchase. I ended up paying only $3.00 *with* shipping for this product. This contains both mango butter and jojoba oil, neither of which I've tried before, so I look forward to giving it a whirl).
-A bar of Honey, Goat's Milk and Oatmeal soap from The Guelph Soap Company

There may be some other last-minute additions to this list, but these items will make up the bulk of our stockings. I don't have an exact total spent because I still have to buy a few of these items, but my rough estimate is that we will come in under $30 to fill 4 stockings! The cost for the homemade food items comes out of our grocery budget so I'm not counting them in the total, but that would probably add only another $5-$10 even if you did add those expenses in. I'm pleased that we were able to include a variety of locally and/or ethically produced items, while staying within our modest budget!

What are you filling stockings with this year?

Monday, December 10, 2012

Weekly Menu Retrospective #91

Welcome to my weekly roundup of the past week's eats. I prefer to report what we ate in the last week, rather than what we're planning to eat in the coming week. Why? The reason is pretty simple: although I usually have a general idea of what we're going to eat in the next week or so, life often unfolds a little differently than planned, and I adjust my menu plan on a near-daily basis to accommodate leftovers and other not-possible-to-plan-ahead circumstances. I find this is the easiest way to ensure that I minimize our family's food waste. I'm also willing to admit that I'm a rather spontaneous cook, given to preparing foods that strike me as the most appealing thing to eat right here and now!

If you'd like a whole book full of inexpensive, quick and kid-approved recipes,
check out my book, Cheap Appétit : The Complete Guide to Feeding Your Family for Less Than $400 a Month (While Eating Better Than You Ever Thought Possible) on Amazon (Amazon.com, Amazon.ca and Amazon UK) and Barnes and Noble.  It's gotten multiple 5 star reviews!! I've included page references to recipes that are in the book in my menu plans so you can locate them quickly. For more details about the book, go here.   Cookbooks make great Christmas gifts :)

Breakfasts:
Granola (p. 92), Banana Blueberry Muffins (variation of this recipe on p. 96), peanut butter toast, Coconut Milk & Millet Porridge (recipe coming soon!)

Lunches: 
leftovers, sandwiches, pizza 

Dinners:

Monday: Cheesy Mac & Beef Skillet (p. 148)

Tuesday: African-Style Vegetable Stew (p. 161)

Wednesday: Spinach, Sausage and Mozzarella Egg Puff (variation of the recipe on p. 181)

Thursday: Pizza in a Flash (p. 133) (this was for the boys only, hubby and I were out for the evening)

Friday: Whole family out for a pasta dinner fundraiser

Saturday: Cabbage and Beef Soup (p. 167)

Sunday: Leftover Cabbage & Beef Soup (hubby was out for the evening and I was baking all afternoon so we just had a quick reheated meal so I didn't make even more dishes!!)

In keeping with my local and organic challenge, I'd also like to note the local and/or organic items on this week's menu:

Organic: coconut (in granola), coconut oil (in granola), coconut milk, bananas, canola oil, raisins (in granola), sunflower and pumpkin seeds (in granola), coffee (locally roasted and delivered by bike!), Fairytale tea, peppermint (for tea), Dijon mustard

Local: potatoes, carrots, onions, apples, cabbage, red peppers, garlic, salsa (home-canned), ground beef and sausage (from VG Meats), honey (unpasteurized), milk, eggs, sour cream 

Local AND organic: peanut butter,
sesame seeds (used to top bread loaves), oats (in granola), cornmeal, apple cider vinegar, millet, popcorn, whole wheat flour

For more great meal ideas, check out Menu Plan Monday at orgjunkie.com.

(P.S. Want to join in on my Holiday Food Waste Challenge? All the details are here.)
  
Love what you read here? Find out how you can help support this blog. 

Want to stay connected in between blog posts?

Click HERE to follow me on Pinterest 

Click HERE to follow me on Twitter

Click HERE to like Abundance on a Dime on Facebook and get updates and tips on living frugally

Click HERE to like Cheap Appétit on Facebook and get updates and tips on frugal eating and cooking

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Our Frugal Christmas Gift Plan for 2012


Our Christmas plans for this year look a lot different than last year's did. Our gift budget is MUCH smaller this year and basically we are aiming for another Hundred Dollar Holiday, more or less (well, hopefully not much more!)

(If you're on my gift list, please stop reading NOW as there are major gift spoilers ahead!)

Hubby and I have agreed that we are going to be very modest with gifts for each other this year. In fact, there are not really going to be any surprises for either of us as we have made specific requests of what we would like. I don't really mind this at all as I know I'll receive things I want and/or need and that no money or effort's been wasted on something I will eventually consign to the "donate" bin.

I've asked Joe to get two things fixed for me this year: my sports watch, which needs both a new battery and band, and the Lagostina Dutch oven I bought at a yard sale for $4 on the Victoria Day weekend. Although the Dutch oven appeared to be in very good condition when I gave it a quick inspection pre-purchase, as it turns out a tiny part of the bottom is coming away from the main part of the pot. It looks like it should be fixable with a small solder, and Joe knows someone who should be able to do this repair. I'm also getting one new item, the Celestial Tea Strainer from Mountain Rose Herbs (more about them later in this post). I'm experimenting more and more with loose blends of herbs for teas, so this is both a functional and beautiful addition to my tea making supplies.

Joe has requested new flannel pajama pants and boxers, both of which he definitely needs! We may also end up doing a quick thrift store shopping trip and picking out a small item each that we both want, depending on how much gets spent on other gifts.

Christmas gifts on a budget for teenage boys can be pretty tricky, I have to admit! I have come up with what I believe to be a decent plan, though: NEW BIKES! Both boys really need new bikes and have been riding bikes that were a bit too small for them for the last year or so. They are now both adult size (both taller than me!) and need adult-sized bikes. We are hoping to put together two suitable bikes for under $50. Thankfully Joe has a lot of experience rebuilding bikes so hopefully we can make this happen. We already have the bike for my older son, a good quality Peugeot that Joe trash-picked a couple years back (it's appallingly easy to trash-pick decent bikes when you live close to a university). It's been patiently awaiting some TLC and repair. Thankfully it doesn't need too many parts replaced - just a few broken spokes and some elbow (and bike) grease! My younger son really wants a road bike rather than a mountain bike, so we're hoping to track something down at Recycle Cycles or New Hope Bikes. Kijiji is another possibility; however I'd rather purchase from one of the bike organizations as it will help support cycling promotion in our city. We definitely need to get a move on this to get things done before Christmas!

For my 15 year old, a passionate climber, we're also going to purchase this Knots & Ropes for Climbers book from Mountain Equipment Co-op. For my 13 year old, (my artistic kid) I'm planning on buying some decent quality markers from the Canadian-owned chain Curry's Art Store (and the local store is conveniently located within walking distance of home, too!)

Of course there will be stockings, too - I'll discuss what we're filling those with next week, so stay tuned :)

As far as friends and family go, I am keeping it simple this year and everyone is basically getting a combination of books, homemade salve and a food basket.

The books are from two sources: my gift cupboard stash (yard-saled for under a dollar apiece) and an unexpected but gratefully received recent windfall of free books passed on to me by a friend - about 4 dozen books! I divided these into 3 categories: books someone in our house would like to read, books in brand-new giftable condition, and books that we didn't need and were too worn out for gifting. The final category got passed on to a new home through Freecycle, and quite miraculously, there is something to suit nearly everyone on my list in the "giftable" book pile (thank goodness my friends and family are all avid readers!)

The homemade salve I am making is a variation of this Simple Lavender Salve from A Delightful Home - I am going to double the recipe and use half lavender, half calendula to provide a truly skin-soothing salve for our harsh Canadian winters!

Food baskets are something everyone on our Christmas list has come to expect from us; we've been doing them for years and I think if we ever stopped there would be some very disappointed people in our gift-giving circle :)

This year we'll be doing the "standard" items we always include like pickles and Cran-Raspberry Jam (I have some Ontario-grown cranberries stashed in the freezer for this recipe), herb vinegar, homemade candies (Cracker Toffee, Chocolate Barks and Candied Peanuts), Granola and Chocolate-Peanut GranolaI'm also going to be trying my hand at something new: creating my own herbal tea blends using herbs from Mountain Rose Herbs. I'm anxiously awaiting my first order from them right now and hoping it arrives early this week! I usually include some type of quick bread in my gift baskets too, but I haven't made up my mind what I'm making this year (although I guess I better do that soon, huh?)

Want more ideas for creating a great holiday on a small budget? Find all of my Christmas on a Dime posts here, and check out my Homemade Christmas board on Pinterest - I'm always adding new ideas to it!

What are your plans for frugal gift-giving this year?

(P.S. If there's someone on your gift list with a tight grocery budget, please consider giving them a copy of my book. It's successfully helped lots of people reduce their food bill by 40-60% while still eating well (no extreme couponing required!). You could even make a gift basket with some of the staple items necessary for the recipes. YOU can help make a family's life a little easier this Christmas with this thoughtful gift).

Love what you read here? Find out how you can help support this blog. 

Want to stay connected in between blog posts?

Click HERE to follow me on Pinterest 

Click HERE to follow me on Twitter

Click HERE to like Abundance on a Dime on Facebook and get updates and tips on living frugally

Click HERE to like Cheap Appétit on Facebook and get updates and tips on frugal eating and cooking

Monday, December 3, 2012

Weekly Menu Retrospective #90

Welcome to my weekly roundup of the past week's eats. I prefer to report what we ate in the last week, rather than what we're planning to eat in the coming week. Why? The reason is pretty simple: although I usually have a general idea of what we're going to eat in the next week or so, life often unfolds a little differently than planned, and I adjust my menu plan on a near-daily basis to accommodate leftovers and other not-possible-to-plan-ahead circumstances. I find this is the easiest way to ensure that I minimize our family's food waste. I'm also willing to admit that I'm a rather spontaneous cook, given to preparing foods that strike me as the most appealing thing to eat right here and now!

If you'd like a whole book full of inexpensive, quick and kid-approved recipes,
check out my book, Cheap Appétit : The Complete Guide to Feeding Your Family for Less Than $400 a Month (While Eating Better Than You Ever Thought Possible) on Amazon (Amazon.com, Amazon.ca and Amazon UK) and Barnes and Noble.  It's gotten multiple 5 star reviews!! I've included page references to recipes that are in the book in my menu plans so you can locate them quickly. For more details about the book, go here.   Cookbooks make great Christmas gifts :)

Breakfasts:
Granola (p. 92), Aloha Muffins (p. 99), peanut butter toast, French toast

Lunches: 
leftovers, sandwiches, pizza 

Dinners:

Monday: Everything-But-the-Kitchen-Sink Lentil Soup (p. 162), leftover Creamy Cucumber Salad (p. 205), leftover Chocolate Quinoa Cake

Tuesday: Sausage and Apple Saute (p. 137)

Wednesday: Macaroni and Cheese (plain version of this recipe on p. 174), broccoli and carrots

Thursday: Taco-Spiced Beef and Bean Pocket Sandwiches, Colourful Cabbage Salad (p.207)

Friday: Potato, Bacon and Egg Hash (variation of Make-It-Your-Way Potato Hash, p. 140)

Saturday: Sausage and Lentil Stew (p. 158), Cornbread (p. 212)

Sunday: Pork and Apple Stew (p. 156), leftover cornbread, Pear Crisp

In keeping with my local and organic challenge, I'd also like to note the local and/or organic items on this week's menu:

Organic: coconut (in granola), coconut oil (in granola), canola oil, raisins (in granola), sunflower and pumpkin seeds (in granola), coffee (locally roasted and delivered by bike!), quinoa, lentils

Local: potatoes, carrots, onions, apples, cabbage, cucumbers, garlic, salsa (home-canned), ground beef, pork and sausage (from VG Meats), honey (unpasteurized), milk, eggs, sour cream 

Local AND organic: peanut butter,
sesame seeds (used to top bread loaves), oats (in granola), cornmeal, apple cider vinegar, millet, popcorn, whole wheat flour

For more great meal ideas, check out Menu Plan Monday at orgjunkie.com.

(P.S. Want to join in on my Holiday Food Waste Challenge? All the details are here.)
  
Love what you read here? Find out how you can help support this blog. 

Want to stay connected in between blog posts?

Click HERE to follow me on Pinterest 

Click HERE to follow me on Twitter

Click HERE to like Abundance on a Dime on Facebook and get updates and tips on living frugally

Click HERE to like Cheap Appétit on Facebook and get updates and tips on frugal eating and cooking
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