Cheap & Cheerful suppers for a week with sickness in the house

Friday
(another busy day, mostly before noon, so dinner was again, easier)
*turkey minestrone soup (using frozen turkey in stock, garden kale and garden garlic, onions, carrots, canned tomatoes, frozen green beans, garbanzo beans and macaroni), topped with cheese
leftover French bread
*apple pie from the freezer

Saturday
*leftover turkey minestrone
sandwiches from an event I worked earlier this day
*salad with lettuce and cucumbers given to us, and tomatoes from our garden
fresh watermelon and blueberries, given to us

Sunday (catching a cold, not feeling like any sort of big production for a Sunday supper, used up some leftovers, and made an easy dinner)
scrambled eggs with onions and peppers (I cooked the onion and peppers to go into burritos for the next day's lunches, and made extra to fold into the eggs)
*oven roasted blue and white potatoes
*fresh pear slices
*salad of lettuce, cucumbers and garden tomatoes

Monday (my son had dinner at a friend's house on Sunday, and brought home some leftovers for us. The pork, cabbage and some of the potatoes were the leftovers.)
pork roast
red cabbage and apples
potatoes (I added a few more, to stretch this for the whole family)
Delicata squash
vanilla pudding for dessert

Tuesday (still feeling cruddy, thankfully I had a large container of beef chili in the freezer, and a watermelon given to us on Saturday)
beef chili
watermelon slices
French bread

Wednesday (no leftovers or frozen meals, so I had to cook from scratch, but feeing a bit better, so I was okay with this.)
roasted chicken leg quarters -- pulled the meat off bones, then tossed in herbs, garlic powder, onion powder, salt/pepper and some chicken broth -- very delicious for a quick and easy chicken dinner
*mashed purple potatoes, topped with gravy from the freezer
baked squash
*kale and onions sauteed in bacon fat (had bacon for breakfast, poured most of the fat into container for the freezer, then saved the pan for tonight's dinner for the kale)

Thursday
chicken soup
leftover apple muffins and French bread
*applesauce from freezer



Have you heard this? I don't remember where I read this, but when making large pots of soup containing noodles, with the intention of having leftovers, or holding some of the soup until later, to cook the noodles separately. Add the noodles to each bowl, just before serving. And save any leftover noodles in a separate container in the fridge. The noodles won't suck up the liquid in your soup, and get soggy.

I feel so thankful for friends who give leftovers, for the lady who coordinates teas and luncheons who offers things like watermelons and English cucumbers for us to take home, and for a freezer, which held some leftover entrees for us to eat, on those nights I was too wiped out to cook. I was able to put together dinners each night, which met nutritional needs for my one daughter who is working hard to keep her weight up. I'm just thankful, today.

Our weather has turned practically balmy this week, with daytime highs in the 50s, nearing 60 on some days. This has kept the fall garden doing well. I picked garden greens a few times this past week, to add to soups, or saute, as is. This is an "el nino" year, which means warmer than usual temperatures for us (also means a whole lot more rain, but I can live with that). Our "fall garden" could last well into winter. More kale, chard, radish, mustard greens and cabbage. Again, just feeling blessed and watched out for, right now.

So, tell me, what's been the most colorful dinner you've had this past week?

You know that nasty cold that my son had last week (prompting the surplus of milk)?

It seems to be a rather contagious little bugger of a cold.

I'm just getting over it, one daughter is right smack in the midst of it, and the other daughter is fighting it.

I fell behind on my work schedule, and now am playing catch-up. I'll be back tomorrow morning. I hope all is well with you!

When a gallon of milk is just too much for our family

I didn't think this would happen so soon. I got a Woohoo kind of deal on milk last week (really, it says so right on the price tag). It was 99 cents a gallon, and I also received the senior discount, bringing my price to 89 cents. I bought 5 gallons. I froze 4 of the gallons, right away. Then we started in on the 5th gallon. In the past, the fact that the milk was 2 days just before the sell-by date wouldn't have been a problem for us. But last week, one of my kids caught a nasty cold, and doesn't drink milk with a cold. Another kid is still drinking a higher fat content milk. And, I don't drink cow's milk. So, it was up to my husband and one daughter to consume a gallon in a matter of days. I made a batch of granola, to encourage some of the family members to use up this milk. Obviously, though, we fell behind in our milk consumption. Here, we were, November 9, 4 days past the sell-by date. Time to make haste with the milk!!

So, what was I to do?

Well, how about a batch of pancakes and a small batch of vanilla pudding.

Remember all of those apples?

How about a batch of apple muffins.

Then a couple of glasses of milk poured for dinner. Notice, the glassware doesn't match;-)

And what was left, about 1  1/2 cups, was put into a container for the freezer, for future pancakes.

What else could I have done with the milk (it's skim, so it wouldn't work very well for yogurt)? This isn't an idle question, as the very same set of circumstances could exist next week, when I thaw one of the other gallons.

Pumpkin Pie Frugal Hacks: The Crust

Those refrigerated, pre-rolled commercial crusts are super popular. I have friends and family who use them and think they're great. Many of us, here, just make our own crusts from scratch.

If you don't make your own pie pastry because you've never had success with a scratch crust, try this recipe. It's never gone wrong for me. The huge bonuses with this crust is it freezes well (either in a pie plate or as a patty of dough), and the recipe makes 5 crusts-worth of pastry.

When I first stumbled across this recipe, over 25 years ago, I was curious about a couple of the ingredients. So I did some research and here's what I discovered:

• the vinegar is a tenderizing ingredient
• the sugar is a tenderizing ingredient, but also adds a hint of flavor and browning
• the egg adds a bit of lightness to the baked crust, meaning that I can substitute 1 cup of whole wheat flour for 1 of the cups of all-purpose flour and still produce a good pastry. 

Fool-Proof Pie Crust (always tender and reliable)

This recipe makes a thin pie crust. If you prefer a thicker crust or your pie plate is extra large, divide the dough into 4 portions instead of 5.

This dough is freezer-friendly. Make the dough when you have time and freeze in patties or pie plates. Then when you bake a pie, you'll have the convenience of ready-made pastry

4 cups all-purpose flour (we like whole grains, here, so I use a blend of 1 part whole wheat to 3 parts all-purpose)
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1  3/4 cups shortening
1 large egg
1/2 cup cold water
1 tablespoon vinegar

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, salt, and sugar. Cut in shortening.

In a small bowl or measuring cup, beat together the egg, water, and vinegar. 

Combine the dry and liquid ingredients. Mix until the flour mixture is well-moistened.

Chill dough for 30 minutes.

Divide into 5 portions, shaping each portion into a flat, round patty. Wrap individually in plastic wrap.

This dough is very forgiving. Additional flour and handling will not toughen the baked product.

The dough will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or you can freeze it for use later. If freezing the dough, thaw it for about 1 hour at room temp or overnight in the fridge before rolling out. (When I freeze patties of dough, I put the wrapped disks of pastry dough in a large Ziploc bag. That seems to be enough freezer protection for this dough for a few months.)

When freezer space is abundant, I roll out the dough and place into pie tins before freezing. Pie crust is then ready when I am to put together a quick pie with the convenience of a commercial ready-made crust, but with the cost of homemade. 

Patties can also be rolled out flat onto a sheet of waxed paper and then wrapped around empty paper towel tubes and frozen. This works well for a ready-made top crust for a pie. Rolled-up dough thaws beautifully and is easily transferred to the top of a two-crust fruit pie or a simple crust on top of a casserole of meat and vegetable filling for a pot pie.

Ready-made, name-brand pie pastry sells for $2.46 for a two-count package at Walmart. That's $1.23 per crust. This scratch pastry costs me $2.50 or less, for about 50 cents per crust. That's less than half the price of the name-brand, ready-made crust. 

Cheap & Cheerful Suppers for early November

Friday
Pumpkin-Peanut-Black Bean Burger patties topped with curried mayonnaise
*oven-roasted white and purple potatoes
*fresh tomatoes
*fresh pears
*blackberry-rhubarb crisp for dessert

Saturday
chili with beef
homemade whole wheat French bread
*fruit salad (using up odds and ends of fresh fruit on hand)
popcorn balls

Sunday
corn souffle -- using frozen corn instead of canned, with green peppers as an add-in, and chicken pan drippings (from freezer) from roasting chicken legs, as part of the liquid for extra flavor
roasted acorn squash (mashed with butter, cinnamon and pinch of salt)
fresh oranges
leftover French bread
*leftover blackberry-rhubarb crisp

Monday
*turkey pot pie (with frozen turkey in stock, garden Swiss chard, garden beet greens, garden potatoes, onions, carrots, frozen peas and greens beans, under a scratch crust)
leftover roasted acorn squash
leftover popcorn balls

Tuesday
leftover Pumpkin-Peanut-Black Bean Burger patties, topped with
*fresh tomato slices and homemade 1000 Island dressing
brown rice (cooked in chicken stock, with minced onions and garlic, for extra flavor)
*kale and onions, sauteed in sausage fat from freezer
*applesauce from the freezer

Wednesday
turkey-bean burritos -- using frozen turkey, cooked in tomato juice and spices, along with refried black beans, chopped green pepper, black olives and diced tomatoes, in homemade flour tortillas
*apple, pear, dried cranberry and chopped almond salad (dressing made of mayonnaise and jelly)
frozen corn

Thursday (easy night, I'll be out in the afternoon)
homemade pizza from the freezer -- cheese and olive on homemade half and half whole wheat flour/white flour crust
fresh oranges
frozen green beans



As I was taking photos, I was noticing how much of each plate is covered in fruits or vegetables. some dinners are more so than others. It's a good way to ensure that no matter what else we ate that day, we are getting a full complement of fruits and veggies through our dinners. Seems to work for us.

The Pumpkin-Peanut-Black Bean Burger patties were a huge hit, and will be repeated. I used chunky-style peanut butter, which gave the patties an extra crunch.

And I love pot pies! I never do a bottom crust, as it just gets soggy. But there is something about that taste of top crust, along with a bite of gravy that makes my heart swoon! I'm in love. As much as I love summer berries and vine-ripe tomatoes, the comfort foods of autumn steal my heart every fall.

There is a lot of turkey in our menus these days. I thought it would be best if we finished off last year's turkey leftovers (in the freezer) before I added new turkey leftovers. I have a container of turkey in stock, thawing right now in the fridge, for a pot of Turkey Minestrone Soup for tonight's dinner.

What was the most delicious thing you ate this past week?

What to do when life gives you mealy apples? Turn them into a tasty snack

Our local produce stand closed for the season, the other day. I made sure a stop there was on my calendar before they closed. One of the items I picked up, was a 24-lb box of new-crop apples, at 37cents per pound. They were tagged as "new crop", so I thought they'd be good. They smell fantastic. But they've been a disappointment in texture. I should have asked to buy one at the case price, to check them out.

Bummer, right? However, I've discovered that I can salvage quite a lot of foods, at least the ones that haven't spoiled. These apples have good flavor. They're just not really crisp.

When a food is dried out, you add moisture. When it is too soggy, you dry it out. If it is bland-tasting, you add flavor. If it is too flavorful, you tone down the flavor with the addition of bland ingredients. With apples, that are verging on mealy, you change the texture and form of the apples.

Tossing the apples out isn't an option for my budget. But I do have a few possibilities. I could make some into applesauce. I could make a batch of spiced apple butter. I could add dices to breads, muffins or cookies.

What I am really wanting, though, is something that could be a snack or lunch item, without the extra ingredients of baked goods. I bought these as lunch and snack apples, so that is my hope and plan for most of them.

Enter the idea of turning these into apple chips/dried apple rings. They're simple to make. Slice thin, and dust apple rings with cinnamon and sugar, then dry. So easy and quick -- less hands-on time involved than baking a batch of cookies.

This is what I use:

1 apple per food dehydrator tray (I have a SnackMaster)
1 teaspoon of sugar per apple
1 scant teaspoon of cinnamon per apple

small serrated knife or mandoline
something to core the apple rings with (I have a small plastic orange-corer thingy)
large bowl for tossing apples with cinnamon and sugar

And this is how I make them:

Wash the apples well. Pat dry. Slice off the top. Slice apple into 1/8th inch slices, leaving skin on. One slice at a time, remove the center seed cavity of each slice, with corer.

Toss apples in the cinnamon and sugar mixture. I do this, gently, with my hands, and only toss one apple with cinnamon and sugar, at a time, to prevent the rings from breaking.

Place the slices on the food dehydrator trays, as close as possible, without overlapping. Set the temperature to 135 to 140 degrees F. Dehydrate for about 5 to 6 hours. Allow to cool, then pack in airtight container. About 2/3 the way through drying, I switch the trays around, top to bottom. In my machine, the bottom tray dries them faster, so this evens out the drying.

If you want your apple slices more like chips, allow to dry for slightly longer. When dry to your liking, spread them out on a cooling rack. Once cooled, pack in airtight containers. Check for condensation after a day. If there is any condensation inside the container, on the lid, or on the inside of the bag, they need more drying time. Just pop them back into the dehydrator for another hour, or spread on a baking sheet and put in an oven which is cooling after baking (check after 20 minutes).

The above photo shows all that was left from 4 apples. I ate the tops and bottoms of the apples, raw, as a snack after taking this photo. They just don't dry as well, because of the skin. So, after my snacking, all that remained was the core. Not bad on the "waste not" front.

These are soooo good. After dehydrating, there was not even a hint that the apples had been on the mealy side. Most of the time, when I try to salvage a food item, the salvaged item is not quite as good as the original should have been. But these apple chips are better than fresh apples, according to my family. And you'd never guess that I used mostly mealy apples for these.

Something to mention, though -- although I used apples verging on mealiness, really mealy apple slices will break when you try to core them, or handle too much. Unless you are really set on having perfect apple "rings", this shouldn't be too big of a problem, if you're just trying to use up mealy apples. Apple slices that are halved are snack-able, too. Once dry, however, even the mealy apples hold together nicely.

With our box of apples, we found the larger, darker red apples to be most mealy, and smaller, lighter colored to be less so. As a result, we've been eating the smaller apples, fresh, and in apple salad, and I used the larger ones to make most of these chips. So far, I've made 5 1-quart jars of cinnamon apple rings. I've got about half of the apples left. I may do some dried cinnamon apple pieces, for adding to granola, next.


No dehydrator? You can also make these cinnamon apple chips in an oven, set at 200 degrees F. Place apples on silpat or parchment-lined baking sheets. Turn every 30 minutes. They should be dry in about 1 & 1/2 hours to 2 hours.

November gardening -- snug as a bug, all tucked in for the cold

The nights are becoming quite chilly. I put an extra layer on the bed today when I changed the linens. A vegetable garden doesn't like the chill much either.

Most of what remains in our garden is under cover, now. I put the plastic, tunnel row covers over the kale, cabbage, Swiss chard, green onions, mustard greens and watercress. (I have radish greens planted in another spot in the garden. If they survived last night, I'll try to get 1 more cover out there to protect them.) The plastic row cover will prevent loss to light frost for the next few weeks. If it looks like we're in for a heavy frost and freeze, I can add a layer, short term, right on top of the tunnel.

There won't be much growth, this late in the season, but I can continue harvesting up until a deep freeze.

Watercress adds such a bright flavor to egg salad sandwiches. I was able to pick a large handful for our lunch, yesterday.

And I picked enough kale yesterday for a couple of meals. I filled the kitchen sink with water and dumped an arm load of kale leaves into the sink for cleaning. Now I won't have to go out in the cold rain tomorrow, to harvest leaves for dinner.

In the Pacific Northwest, gardeners like to talk of year round gardening, with respect to growing vegetables. In truth, there is little actual gardening in winter, here. And virtually no growth in the garden. But a year round garden here simply means that you can harvest from your garden through winter, if you have enough area planted. It takes some sort of cover, to prevent frost damage. And only the very cold hardy plants will survive into the coldest months.

In past years, I've given up on my garden around the first of November. This year, I hope to continue harvesting the greens at least, up until early January. Take a break. Then greens will return in March. This is my attempt at an almost year round garden. 

I love what I use, and I use what I love

I think of this as luxurious frugality.

I own a few sets of dishware. I use each set for different seasons and occasions. Some pieces were handed down to me. I have part of my grandmother's first set of china, a set that she and her mother, together hand-painted. And I have what remains of my parents' china from the 1950s.

Some of the sets of dishware were gifts to me. One set, our everyday dishes for spring and summer, was given to me as gifts spanning a few occasions, by my mother before she passed away. Another set was given to my husband and me, by my father, as Christmas gifts, for many years.

These last two sets, given to me by my parents, have needed some "filling out" of missing pieces, and a couple of replacement pieces, over the years. We do use these dishes daily. I keep a watchful eye for them when haunting the second-hand shops.

How is this frugal, to own so many sets of dishware? I've been using one set of these dishes for 34 years. I have never tired of this pattern. And just as I feel a need for a change with our tableware, a new season falls upon us, and I switch out one set of dishes for another.

You see, I don't think frugality means having few possessions. I think frugality means having the right possessions for ourselves. I don't buy things just to own them. I only settle my money on the things that truly bring joy to my sight.

I love what I use. And I use what I love.

On Sunday, as the leftover chili was reheating for lunch, one dear daughter and I took 10 minutes to put the spring and summer dishware away, and retrieve the fall and winter dishware. This is our fall and winter set. It's called Friendly Village by Johnson Brothers. Each piece has a different scene, most of them winter scenes. As I set the plates, bowls, cups, saucers and mugs on the dish dresser, I took a moment to gaze on each scene, and a smile washed across my face.

Yes, it's luxurious. And yes, it's also frugal.

October 2015 Grocery Spending Journal

When I can see that I'm going over my budget, month after month, and I'm not purchasing a lot of convenience or junk food, then I know that I need to increase my grocery budget, and decrease some other element of the overall household budget.

We have been spending more on groceries in recent months, in very large part due to increased nutritional needs for a few members of the family. And I have gone over budget, every month, for about 1 year. So, it's time to increase the food budget, once again. I do this in fairly small increments, with hopes to catch up within a few months. I had been budgeting $185 per month for groceries. I have now increased that amount to $200 even.

Oct. 4 Fred Meyer -- I'm out of milk and it's on sale with coupon this week, 99 cents/half gallon, limit 6. I buy 6. spent $5.94 (and I hang on to my coupon for Tuesday's Senior Discount Day).

Dollar Tree, making a monthly run for an assortment of items. I also buy 1 quart of soy milk. spent $1

Oct. 6 Fred Meyer, for 10% off Senior Discount Day. The discount applies to house-brand items. I search the flyer and the store aisles for great deals on my "regular" items. I first make a pass by the egg cooler. I've been hunting down the very best egg prices in my area, and Fred Meyer seems to be the place. It's the Cherry Lane, 5-dozen large egg pack that is the best price per dozen, at $9.89, that works out to about $1.98/dozen. Fred Meyer can barely keep stock of these eggs at our store. They are frequently sold out when I get there. As I'd just used my very last 2 eggs (from a purchase in August) over the weekend, I was hoping FM would have these 5-dozen packs in stock. I made myself get out and early to the store this morning, for best chance of buying the eggs. There were only 3 packages left, when I got there. I bought 1.

Also, heavy whipping cream was on sale in quarts. I bought 5, at $3.86 each. I had checked Cash & Carry's price (online) on heavy whipping cream on Monday, so I could compare prices when I shopped FM. FM had the better price. The expiration date is not until December. These are quart containers, so I will only be opening what I need at a time, and can keep some of the cream "fresh", through Thanksgiving (whipped cream on pies!), and if there happens to be any leftover, at the end of November, I can freeze, whipped, in mounds to use at Christmas dinner.

I also had my coupon for the sale milk, and was able to use the coupon plus the senior discount, so today, I bought 6 half-gallons of milk, at 89 cents each.

On one of the end-caps, I noticed cans of coffee on sale, and they had French Roast, which is my preferred coffee. If I can make myself a good cup of French Roast, then I don't feel like I want/need to go to a coffee house for a cup. So, buying French Roast on sale, and with my senior discount winds up being an even better bargain that just my out-the-door price. I save by minimizing stops at coffee houses. The sale price is $4.99 (large can, about 31 oz, I think), my discount is another 50 cents off, so I pay $4.49/can, I buy 3 cans.

I also always check the baking aisle. I have a few go-to prices in my head for various baking items. Semi-sweet chocolate chips are on sale in 12 oz packages, for $1.99, I save an extra 20 cents with discount, so I pay $1.79/ 12 oz package. I buy 6 bags. Also, salt is now 49 cents/canister. With my discount, it's 44 cents. I buy 4. I like to buy things like salt in multiples. I rarely run out this way.

My last stop is the bulk bins, in the nutrition center aisles. I buy sunflower seeds, raw, hulled for $1.34/lb, dry-roasted almonds at $6.29/lb, pitted dates at $2.49/ lb, flax seeds at $1.06/lb, and onion powder at $7.19/lb. The flax seeds and the pitted dates were on sale this month, so I tried to buy a supply that will last us a couple of months. The sunflower seeds are so much cheaper than the almonds, and serve a very similar purpose in baking and nutrition, so I bought more sunflower seeds than almonds, and will use the s.seeds more for snacks than the almonds.

And while I was in Fred Meyer, I checked the candy aisle. Lindt truffles were on sale for 25 cents each. I bought myself one, just because. I'm saving it for an emergency, you know, like, someone didn't do one of their chores and I had to do it for them, or the toilet seat was left up, or someone spilled something sticky on the kitchen floor and I stepped in it barefoot in the wee hours of the morning, while making my daily stagger to the coffee pot. That sort of emergency merits a truffle for my pain and suffering! Anyway, I spent $74.17

October 9. Fred Meyer to buy 6 half-gallons of orange juice, 99cents w/coupon. spent $5.94

October 15. So far this month I've spent $87.05, and we're half-way through the month. After my overage from last month, I have $119.39 for the month of October. Sooooo, it looks like I have $32.34 left. Will I make it? I don't know. There's a few things I want from Cash & Carry later this week. I was going to get a 5-lb bag of Mexi-blend cheese for just over $10 a bag, but now am thinking about scrapping that idea. Mexi-blend is not a favorite of mine. I prefer cheddar. So, I may skip the cheese this week, and wait for cheddar. But C & C also has large cans of roasted peanuts. They are so nice to have on hand. I can put a bowl out for guests, add a quick protein boost to packed lunches, add to salads, stir-fries and curries. I'm still thinking on this.

October 16. Cash & Carry for a 25-lb bag of carrots (10.48) and 3 #10 cans of sliced olives (4.27 each). I spent 23.29. No peanuts or cheese, afterall.

October 16. Fred Meyer, pumpkins for carving (and I'll cook them, too) 19cents/lb, I buy 3. Acorn squash $1 each (I find 3 that weigh over 4 lbs apiece), I buy 3, and butternut squash, 39 cents/lb., I buy 2. Also while there, I find marked down 2% milk, at $1.40/gallon. I buy 4. I spent 16.96

October 28. Cash & Carry, specifically for a case of eggs (15 dozen --180 eggs), for $26.95, but also for 1 5-lb bag of pizza blend cheese (pizza blend has provolone and cheddar, in addition to mozza -- it's slightly better on my tummy than straight mozzarella), for $10.48, 1 gallon of mayonnaise, for $6.25 (just in time, as I just this week finished off the last gallon, bought in spring), and a 50-lb sack of onions, for $9.98 (that's 19 cents per pound). This time of year, the onions are new crop, so still have months of keeping in them. Total spent today -- $53.66


total for the month of October -- $180.96. With previous month's overages, I had $119.39 for the month, so I was over by $61.57. This is actually an improvement over last month. Last month, I was over by $80. I'm closing the gap, and I feel confident that by early next year, I'll be back on track. I've been really stocking the pantry, fridge and freezer, the past few months. I took an inventory of what we are needing, and it's not a whole lot for the next couple of months.

November, in the US, is THE month of fall to stock up on many items. I'll be looking for cream cheese, turkey, potatoes, celery, and sweet potatoes/yams.

If you don't remember, last November I bought 7 bundles of celery. I will buy at least 9 this year. We went through the 7 very quickly. I chopped and froze at least half of that celery, including leaves. Celery leaves can discolor with time in the freezer, so I used those first in soups, sauces, stews and casseroles. And last year's purchase of 90 lbs of potatoes was just about right, for our family. I'll stick to that amount again this year.


I was able to do several online surveys for Fred Meyer, this month. In addition to the fuel rewards points from purchases, I have 30 cents off per gallon of gas, to spend next month. I'll wait until I am on "empty", to get the most gas at that discount as I can.


What I bought in October:
Dairy
milk -- 12 half-gallon jugs of whole milk, 4 gallons of 2% milk
shredded cheese -- 5-lbs of pizza blend cheese
heavy whipping cream -- 5 quarts
eggs -- 18 dozen
soy milk -- 1 quart

Produce
large bag of pitted dates from the bulk bins
6 half-gallons of orange juice
25 lbs of carrots
3 pumpkins
3 acorn squash
2 butternut squash
50 lbs of onions

Pantry items
3 big cans of coffee
6 bags of chocolate chips
4 canisters salt
sunflower seeds
almonds
flax seeds
onion powder
1 chocolate truffle
3 #10 cans of sliced olives
1 gallon mayonnaise

What I didn't buy -- I didn't buy any meat this month, as I still have plenty of chicken quarters, a whole ham, some ground beef, some pork roast, some ground turkey, some fish and some cooked turkey in the freezer. I'll be looking for whole turkeys and hams this holiday season, for the freezer.

Cheap & Cheerful Suppers for the last week of October

This supper (Wednesday) wins the prize,
 for tastiest dinner of the week -- full of flavor!

Friday
rice and bean burritos in homemade flour tortillas
*kale sauteed in bacon fat
* fresh pears and figs, with a melted jelly "dressing"
scratch chocolate pudding

Saturday
*oven-roasted purple and white potatoes
*pickled beets
*tomato wedges
bread and butter
pumpkin soup
gingerbread cookies

Sunday
pumpkin pie
milk
peanut butter sandwiches for anyone still hungry

Monday
roasted acorn squash
corn souffle
sausage
*sauteed kale in bacon fat

Tuesday
*turkey and dumplings (with leftover rice, leftover refried beans, garden chard, beet greens, onion, and purchased carrots, peas and green beans)
pumpkin bread

Wednesday (hodgepodge night)
rice and black beans (had to use up some leftover rice)
deviled eggs
oven-roasted carrots
mustard-glazed onions
*fresh pears
*fresh tomatoes

Thursday
black bean burger patties
*oven-roasted purple and white potatoes
*fresh tomatoes
*cole slaw
*blackberry-rhubarb crisp
^^^ too ambitious & too much work for this day, around noon, changed to:
*homemade pizza, with olives, sliced onions, frozen green pepper
*frozen applesauce

*indicates this meal item came from the garden/orchard, or was foraged


Do you know what the definition of hodgepodge is? A disorderly mixture. That's what Wednesday night's supper felt like to me. I was just trying to use as much of our garden produce as I could, followed by the most cheaply obtained foods (carrots, onions, rice, beans), and a few eggs for protein.

As you can see on the menu, there are far fewer asterisks next to meal items, meaning I am getting less and less from our garden. The upside to that, though, is without having to clean garden produce, making meals is a little bit quicker. I always appreciate that aspect of the garden coming to a close, and turning to frozen veggies or store-bought carrots and onions. Scrubbing garden produce is not one of my favorite chores. I think we wind up eating a fair amount of dirt (simply because I tire of scrubbing carrots or potatoes), and more than a few bugs (as picking them out of fruit and veggies takes time).

I am down to about a 10-day supply of fresh tomatoes. Sadly, they'll be gone after that. But then we get to eat oven-roasted canned whole tomatoes, again! We could get a frost early next week, with overnight lows for my area, now forecasted for about 39 degrees F, for Tuesday/Wednesday. So, later today, I'll put the plastic tunnel row cover over part of the garden. Hopefully this will "hold" the cabbage, kale, chard, mustard and radish greens, for another month.

What was on your menu this last week?

What buying eggs at a wholesaler looks like

My usual day to hit up Cash & Carry for their twice-monthly specials is Friday. However, this week, I really wanted one particular item. It wasn't in their Hot Sheet, or other weekly specials. every Monday, when I check the Hot Sheet online, I also do a "search" on a couple of items on which I'm watching the price, lately milk, canned pumpkin, and eggs. This week, until Nov. 1, the 15 dozen case of eggs are price-reduced to $26.95, or about $1.79 per dozen.

After seeing this price reduction, I immediately went to the USDA egg report for the week. (Yes, a super-geek like me reads the USDA egg report.) Wholesale egg prices in the US have steadily dropped since their high in August. If the bird flu turns out to be a non-issue this fall and winter, then we can expect egg prices, retail, to follow this drop in price. However, historically, egg prices climb again towards the first of the year, peaking in December/January. That doesn't mean we can't see loss-leader sales on eggs nearer the holidays. that can certainly still happen, but will likely have "limits" imposed.

So, at $1.79 per dozen, I am wanting to stock up on enough eggs, as I can, to tide us through the holidays, and at least util February, possibly into March. Easter in 2016 is March 27. The week before Easter, eggs are often a loss-leader at a few of my local stores, this last year at Walgreen's and Target. If I can buy and freeze eggs now, while the price is low,\ for me, I can avoid having to buy eggs at peak prices later.

That was my thought process earlier this week. I have noticed that I am not the only shopper at Cash & Carry watching prices closely, this fall. I have missed a couple of really good deals because I went too late in the week (and they don't do rain checks). With this knowledge, I got everything together to do my shopping there a couple of days earlier -- Wednesday morning, instead of Friday.

As is my usual practice when there is a great deal on an item in a store, that I want to make sure I get, I made a beeline to the dairy walk-in. Sure enough, 1 case of these eggs left.  Glad I went on Wednesday.

A case of 15 dozen eggs is often called "loose pack". Contrary to how that sounds, that doesn't mean that a bunch of eggs are loose, rolling around in the bottom of a cardboard box. Eggs are place in egg trays, 2  1/2 dozen per layer (like when you buy a 5-dozen pack of eggs at the supermarket), 6 layers deeps in a cardboard box way too big to fit on any of my refrigerator shelves.

To handle all of these eggs, I get out my supply of used egg cartons.

And begin transferring eggs to cartons, one at a time. I mark the sell-by date on one of these cartons, as I'll be disposing of the large box when I'm done, here.

The sell-by date on these eggs is Nov. 5. However, the USDA assures us that eggs are still safe to eat weeks beyond the sell-by date. They just won't be as fresh, which matters most with dishes like poached eggs, as the whites thin and don't hold their mound shape in simmering water as neatly. But the eggs are still edible, still delicious, still function as eggs should in cooking and baking.

Plus, you all know that I freeze eggs, to use months later. From my last batch of frozen eggs (around Easter) I recently found a container in the freezer containing 6 beaten eggs. I used those in a quiche last week, and they were still fine. That's 6 months of storage in the freezer, and still good.

I'll begin working on freezing these eggs some time next week.

Preparations

It's nearing the end of October and I know what is just around he corner. A lot of very good things happen in November. We have a couple of celebrations in November. But in my mind's eye, what I see is buckets of rain pouring out of the sky, for weeks on end, beginning in November.

We had, what seemed like, the longest summer ever here. I had myself convinced that it truly never would end. That we could go on eating from our garden through the holidays, into the new year and right up through the blooming of the tulips. Silly me.

When it rains here, the skies remain dark gray, from sun up to sun down, for several days on end. Then on that final day of a storm, the clouds begin to part and blue sky emerges, framed by puffy white clouds, for about 1 or 2 days, and then the dark skies, and cold and damp returns.

Knowing what we will have, soon, has made me absolutely force myself to be outside all that I can this month. One daughter and I rearranged the deck furniture just for this purpose. We placed the table and chairs right where the low angle of the sun will descend during the lunch hour for this month. She's home on Tuesdays and Thursdays this quarter. So, the two of us have our lunch on the deck, when the weather cooperates. I've been watching a spider spin his web this past month. He's preparing for winter, too.

In addition, the garden has needed my attention, love and hard work.

dill seeds for baking dilly bread this winter

I've been collecting seeds (for planting and cooking).

I have harvested and stored away many of the food stuffs from our little garden.

I had hoped to find prettier pots for the rosemary, but these will do for winter

I dug and potted two young rosemary bushes. I brought these inside for winter this year. I lost my rosemary two years ago due to freezing. Decided it would be better not to take any chances this year, with such young plants.

My potted mint is ready to move into the garage when it goes dormant. It sits on the deck, up against the house for now. I've cut and dried most of what's left, to use in tea this winter.

geranium cuttings to make baby plants

I've taken cuttings off of my favorite geraniums, to root for planting next spring.

my pink geraniums, two pots worth, to overwinter in the living room window

I've brought all of the lovely flowering pots that I can, into the indoor warmth of my house. Some of these I brought in just so I can prolong the feeling of summer a few weeks longer. Others I brought into the house, to overwinter, so they can cheat death and bloom another summer.

my Mother's Day dahlia tubers, kept dry, in the garage, until spring planting

And I dug the tubers from some beautiful flowers, to be held in darkness through winter, until the soil has warmed enough for replanting.

And now I wait. All is done. What needed to be, is now under cover. I can rest, knowing I have done what I can to prepare my garden for the coming rain and gray.

How much pureed pumpkin does a Jack o'lantern make?

I strained the pumpkin in a mesh sieve, saving the liquid for a pot of soup

In case you couldn't have guessed, the pie in yesterday's post was a pumpkin pie, using pumpkin that I cooked on Saturday.

Saturday was a cold and gray day. Nothing better than spending a few hours baking to warm things up. And as it IS the end of October, cooking up one of my Jack o'lantern pumpkins seemed most appropriate.

After last week's post on pumpkin pie frugal hacks, I decided to actually keep track of what 1 Jack o'lantern yields after cooking.

I used an 11 pound Jack o'lantern (if you remember, I paid 19 cents a pound, so $2.09 for the pumpkin).

I baked the pumpkin, stem included, cut in half, seeds scooped out, for about 2 hours at 300 degrees.

I scooped the flesh out with a spoon and ran it through the food processor. With each batch, I then put it in a mesh strainer over a cup, to strain excess liquid. I strained for about 10 minutes per batch.

My yields from one pumpkin:

10 cups of strained puree
3 cups of strained liquid, which I added to a pot of pumpkin soup that evening
2 cups of seeds for roasting

I could have strained the puree longer, and achieved a consistency similar to canned pumpkin. That likely would have reduced my yields to about 8 cups.

pumpkin soup for 4, using 2 cups of puree and all of the straining liquid,
plus a container of frozen ham stock

For the 10 cups of puree, my cost, then is about 41 cents per pound. Had I strained it further, my cost would have been about 52 cents per pound. If I count in the cost of the oven, it would add about 30 cents total. So my cost of pumpkin puree ranges from 48 cents per pound, to 60 cents per pound. And the seeds and soup liquid were a bonus, as was the heated kitchen.

about 2 cups of seeds for roasting and snacking in the afternoon

Not too bad!

and even this wasn't "wasted". The hungry compost heap "ate" it all.

And this is all that was left over.

Pie for dinner

It was that kind of day on Sunday. Just pie and milk for dinner. Some days are like that.

After church, I came home and made lunch for the family. Then I ran the girls around town for the afternoon. When I came in the door around 5:00, pie sounded about as good as anything else.

Don't tell the nutrition police! ;-)

Cheap & Cheerful Suppers for mid-October

Delicata squash

(This is Delicata squash. It's rind is creamy-yellow with orange and/or green stripes and softer than most winter squash (the "toughness" is similar to sugar pie pumpkin rind). It doesn't seem to keep as long as many of the hard-rind winter squash. It's flesh is pale orange, and not as high in beta carotene as the darker-fleshed squashes. However, it's one of our favorites for stuffing. Each squash half is about right for one serving. So, stuffing the halves, baked face up, with either meat or vegetable-based fillings makes for a nice presentation.)


Thursday
rice and beans
*curried pea and peanut slaw
*tomato wedges with leftover 1000 Island dressing
peanut butter cookies (yes, THE cookies)

Friday
*bean and ham soup with carrots and Swiss chard
cornbread (from scratch)
*cole slaw
*figs and pears
peanut butter cookies

Saturday
acorn squash
frozen peas
*salad of cabbage, shredded carrots, tomato and cucumber
leftover cornbread
peanut butter cookies

Sunday
leftover acorn squash
*pork, kale, cabbage, carrot stir fry, over
brown rice

Monday
BBQ pork sliders on homemade buns
*salad of pickled beet, beet greens, shredded carrots, tomatoes, cucumber
*applesauce (from freezer)
gingerbread cookies

Tuesday
*kale and bacon quiche
brown rice with peas
*fresh tomato wedges
*asian pear slices

Wednesday
*turkey pot pie (w/ garden potatoes, onions, carrots, bush beans, beet greens, Swiss chard, along with frozen turkey from September)
*rhubarb-apple-blackberry sauce

Thursday
*vegetable-bean soup (pinto beans, canned tomatoes, seasonings, Swiss chard, kale, carrots, green beans, peas)
Dollar Tree crackers with
*cream cheese and spiced fig jam
peanut butter cookies

individual servings of spiced fig jam topping cream cheese

This time of year, when I'm using the oven, I often throw in a winter squash that's been halved, seeded, and placed face down on a small, buttered baking pan. The cooked squash can be added to the next morning's oatmeal, scooped into a to-go container, dotted with butter and sprinkled with cinnamon, or I can make myself a quick lunch of squash soup, using some frozen soup stock, onion powder, and any other spices that sound good in the moment. If I want a richer soup as the main-stay of my lunch, then I swirl in a bit of heavy cream or butter, and some soy milk.

Meals this week, more so than last, have felt more autumnal, with turkey pot pie and soups. whenever possible, I aim to be taking something out of the oven, minutes before everyone shows up to the table. I can leave the oven door ajar, and we reap the benefits of the cooking oven, right next to the kitchen table. I will also announce, when calling for dinner, when we're having soup or stew, or some other meal item that would be so warming to eat, when it's actually still warm. We're using the furnace a little bit right now, not full-time, but a few hours per day. However, the house still can feel chilly in the furthest-from-the-furnace rooms. So, a warming dinner is very appreciated this month.

What was on your menu this past week?