Shopping and Meals for the Past Week

I haven't done any grocery shopping since April 23, unless you count the road trip candy we bought last week along the way to Arizona. In case you're interested, I bought some black licorice, 2 Snickers bars (King-size), and Reeses Peanut Butter Cups (4-pack) to share. As I mentioned earlier this week, my total for the sharing candy was under $15. I made these purchases as little surprises when I'd go in to pay for gas. We did all cash for gas to get the better prices, so I always went inside to pay. With the first candy purchase, my family was somewhat astonished. Mom doesn't usually make impulse purchases. I like to keep my family guessing about me.

A couple of meals on the road:

The first night away: hotdogs and buns that I grabbed from the freezer, with sliced cabbage drizzled with slaw dressing (packed separately so the cabbage wouldn't wilt), canned green beans, applesauce. Yes, we brought paper plates, small paper cups (for the applesauce), and plastic forks (we washed the forks each night to reuse). I also packed small packets of the condiments we had in the fridge -- ketchup, mustard, hot sauce.

Another night: bean and cheese burritos (frozen homemade refried beans, thawed in 2 days), carrot sticks, canned green beans, raisins, applesauce. I didn't shop for anything new for the trip, instead grabbing foods from our pantry, fridge, and freezer.

At one point we found ourselves driving along historic Route 66 for about a mile. Kinda fun. We decided that if we make this trip again, we'll stay in one of the fun motor inns along 66.

I came home to a full pantry and freezer. I had milk in the freezer and milk is a driving ingredient in my need for grocery shopping.

When we walked in the door last Sunday, the first thing I did after unloading the car was grab a partial gallon of milk, loaf of homemade bread, and a quart of cooked pinto beans from the freezer. After starting the laundry I made an easy soup, using the cooked pinto beans, a large can of Italian-seasoned diced tomatoes, some beef bouillon, and olive oil. I let it simmer until the beans began to fall apart and thicken the soup. I served bread and butter with this simple meal. 

Here are the rest of this past week's suppers:

Monday
taco meat on cooked rice with refried beans and cheese, topped with salsa and bottom-of-the-bag tortilla chips, plus garden kale bulked up with frozen broccoli

Tuesday
chicken breast cooked in leftover pasta sauce (from my daughters' cooking in April) topped with the last slices of provolone cheese from my daughters' birthday picnic in the park in March, stuffed grape leaves, toast, and rhubarb sauce

Wednesday
bean burger patties, canned carrots, radish green-peanut noodles

Thursday
eggs, breakfast sausage, canned pineapple chunks, colcannon (using radish greens instead of kale in the potatoes), canned green beans

It rained a lot while we were gone. And we're still stuck in a wet pattern. I'm hoping this next week things turn around. But one of the blessings to a cool week is the Lilies of the Valley didn't all bloom at once during our week away. I picked a handful on Wednesday to enjoy indoors. Mmmm, so fragrant.

How was your week? What was on your menu? Any surprises at your grocery store this week?

Using the Green Leaves from a Bundle of Radishes, Grocery Store or Home-Grown

Do you grow radishes? Do you buy radishes with the greens still on? Those greens, even if they're semi-wilted, can be used in meals. No sense throwing them out.

You've read about me using the tender and young radish greens to add texture and zing to salads. But those mature ones (like on bundles of radishes from the store) are edible, too -- cooked and added to sides and main dishes. The trick is to blanch and puree them, then moderate the bitterness with other ingredients. My favorite extra ingredients to tame these greens include onions, garlic, bacon/sausage/ham (or their rendered fats), peanut butter, pinch sugar, and/or salt. In addition, tossing with cooked starchy foods, such as mashed potatoes, cooked pasta, or cooked rice, will also subdue that bitter bite. 

These are aging radish plants from this past winter that I grew indoors. I moved them outdoors when I needed my lights for starting seeds. The ones in these buckets never produced nice roots. But the mature greens still have food value.

I picked a bowl full to use in Wednesday's dinner. After washing, I microwaved the greens for a minute to quick steam them. I minced a clove of garlic, then pureed both greens and garlic together with some water, using my immersion blender.

I added a large spoonful of peanut butter to the greens-garlic puree in the skillet. I also added some chopped peanuts, onion powder, soy sauce, red pepper flakes and water enough to make a sauce, heating through over Med-Low. 

Meanwhile, I cooked pasta according to package directions. 

Once the pasta was cooked and drained, I tossed it with the radish green sauce. I adjusted for taste with another splash of soy sauce and this side dish was complete. 

I have enough radish greens growing in those buckets to make this dish one or two more times. As greens go, these might be too bitter on their own. But pureed, then combined with garlic and peanut butter (plus a couple other ingredients), not only are the greens palatable, but they made a dish that my family really enjoyed.

Just sharing in case you're like me, and you don't want to waste a single food right now.