Truly Scrumptious (“as a Cherry Peach Parfait") Fruity Granola

Hello, friends!

After a week of switching direction, I'm back to the blog. I spent a lot of time working in the kitchen. We're at the end of a 3-week grocery shopping cycle, so I had a lot of near overripe produce to deal with. I also just needed to give the fridge a good clean out.

In looking through my home-canned goods, I discovered that we have a lot of jam and jelly from last summer. While our garden-grown, fresh fruit is yet months away, I thought now would be a good time to begin using some of these fruity preserves.

I thought I'd share one item I made and has been particularly appreciated -- fruity granola. I use either jam or jelly plus some dried fruit to add sweetness and fruit flavor. In addition, I added nuts and seeds to this batch (read below to see what I was trying to duplicate). This granola is also tasty as a fruity-only cereal. With the nuts, it makes a great out-of-hand snack as well as a dry cereal. 

❝"

Fruity Granola

3/4 cup of jam or jelly

2 tablespoons honey

2 tablespoons vegetable oil or melted butter

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon orange zest

3 cups oats

1 cup of dried fruit -- any combination of cranberries, apricots diced, cherries, golden raisins, or sweetened dried rhubarb dices

optional -- 3/4 cup of chopped almonds/hazelnuts (one or mixture of both), toasted

optional -- 2 to 3 tablespoons, total, sesame seeds, flax seeds, sunflower seeds, and/or pumpkin seeds

Butter a large jelly roll pan or baking sheet with raised edges. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a large microwavable bowl or casserole, microwave the the jelly or jam for about 30 to 45 seconds, until melted. Stir in the honey, oil or melted butter, almond extract, salt and orange zest. Toss with the oats and spread the mixture in the buttered jelly roll pan, pushing more of the coated oats to the edges of the pan and less in the center (for even baking).

Bake for 15-18 minutes. Turn off the oven. Stir the granola then leave in the cooling oven for 1  1/2 hour. After 1 1/2 hours, stir in dried fruit, nuts and seeds. Put back into the cooling oven for another 30 minutes to thoroughly dry.

If the granola does not have a crunchy texture, remove from the oven, preheat oven to 200 degrees F, turn the oven off, and place the tray back into the again cooling oven for 30 additional minutes. You don't want to bake the granola again, as the fruit will scorch. But it does work to put the granola into a cooling oven.

Once fully cooled, store in an airtight container.

There's a bakery on a nearby island in the Puget Sound, Blackbird Bakery. They're well-known in my area, especially for their pies, whole grain breads, and granola. The granola is loaded with nuts, seeds, dried fruit, and is lighter on the oats than most granolas. I first heard of Blackbird Bakery on the blog One Hundred Dollars a Month. The blog's author, Mavis Butterfield, posted about her experience there. Mavis used to live in the Puget Sound area but has since moved away. 

This Christmas, my brother and his wife sent us a large bag of Blackbird Bakery's granola. I recognized at once the bakery's name and unique raven logo on the packaging. This granola received a huge thumbs up from all of us. I'm usually only a so-so granola fan. But this stuff was very good. 

Fast-forward to this last week when I made a batch of my fruity granola enhanced with a bunch of nuts and seeds. My family thought this homemade granola was a close comparison to Blackbird's. 

What I used (listed as greatest to least): oats, toasted chopped almonds, crabapple jelly, dried sweetened cranberries, sliced dried apricots, honey, sesame seeds, flax seeds, vegetable oil, orange zest, almond extract, and salt.

For comparison, the ingredients' label on Blackbird's granola lists oats, hazelnuts, almonds, maple syrup, pumpkin seeds, honey, coconut, dried apricots, dried cranberries, sesame seeds, and unsalted butter.

As you can see, my fruity granola and Blackbird's have many ingredients in common. Mine was just a tad fruitier.

Truly scrumptious, just like the song from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Just to let you know . . .

I'm taking a couple of days off and will be back soon. This is my version of a vacation. Wishing you all a wonderful week!

Saying Be Mine with a Cupcake

Those pink, red, and chocolate pretzels were for someone outside our household. These Valentine cupcakes are for us. 

I used this scratch vanilla cake recipe, some Valentine-themed cake wrappers, pink frosting (dyed and flavored with maraschino cherry liquid), and then topped the baked cupcakes with holiday picks. I had bought the cake wrappers and holiday picks on clearance after Valentine's Day a couple of years ago. Now seemed as good as any time to use those fun things.

I pulled out our Valentine's Day tablecloth. I had bought this on clearance a few years ago and posted about that bargain then. Our kitchen table looks very Valentine-ish now. Over the years, I have collected several tablecloths for the kitchen to use when celebrating the various holidays. I love fabrics. And this is something that puts a smile on my family members' faces.

On another note, I went walking past the house with the gnome abode this morning. They saw my heart rock and moved it closer to the gnome family! That made me smile. It was very cold today, and snow flurries were flying. I hope you're safe and warm right now.

Just Fun

In the next neighborhood over, there's a family with young kids that have set up a little gnome abode at the base of a tree along the sidewalk. In October, they put out some mini Halloween decorations, and at Christmas, they had mini lights, a tiny tree, and an itty bitty wreath on the gnome's front door. The kids have painted rocks and placed them in the gnome's miniature woods. It's been a fun spot to visit when I'm on my walks.

Meanwhile, sometime last week, a very nice someone left two small, painted Valentine's rocks on our driveway. I decided to bring one of those rocks with me to place in the gnome's "yard" yesterday morning.

The new rock is the one with the red heart. I hope the children are as delighted as they've made me.

A Tiny Bit of Springtime Just before Winter Returns

We've had a somewhat mild winter so far, with a small amount of snow in December followed by lots of rain and clouds. I was kind of enjoying thinking we'd pretty much skipped winter this year. Then, of course, the cold air returned this week. 

Just before, though, I grabbed a small pot with two small pink primrose plants from the back deck and brought it indoors. This will be my tiny taste of springtime, even with snow on the ground outside by late this week.

I have neighbors with crocus and forsythia in bloom. I think we were all thinking winter had skipped us this year. 

I'll enjoy my primrose sitting on the windowsill until real spring comes.

50+ Soup Toppings to Transform a Plain Bowl of Soup

Yesterday, I made a large pot of split pea soup for our dinner. As I was putting everything together to serve, it just didn't look like very much. Instead of making something else to go with dinner, I decided to enhance the already-made soup with a bunch of toppings. Raiding my fridge, freezer and pantry turned up a whole lot of possibilities.

 Why top soup? Topping a bowl of soup is a last-minute way:

• to make something special out of something simple
• to add concentrated flavor bites
• to add freshness to long-cooked soups
• to boost nutrient value
• to retain the texture of topping ingredients
• to make a bowl of soup visually appealing
• to add texture to "cream of" soups
• to customize each serving according to individual taste

And so, I wrote out a list of soup topping possibilities.

For Crunch:

• cracker, pretzel, croutons, tortilla or corn chips, crumbled potato chips, bread crumbs sautéed in butter or oil with or without added herbs and minced garlic -- aka pangrattato
• toasted chopped nuts, toasted seeds (sunflower, sesame, pumpkin), toasted coconut

For Added Protein:

• diced hard-cooked egg, whole poached egg
• bacon bits, sausage crumbles or dices, pepperoni strips, ham cubes, pan-toasted hot dog slices
• shredded, diced, crumbled cheese
• strips or shreds of cooked chicken, beef, or turkey

For Freshness:

• minced fresh herbs
• thin lemon slices, lemon zest
• chopped fresh tomato, cucumber, bell pepper, celery, green onions (scallions), thinly sliced radishes
• small dices of fresh apple or pear, tossed with lemon juice

For Creaminess:

• sour cream, plain yogurt, unsweetened whipping cream (whipped or liquid), crème fraîche, cream cheese cubes
• ripe avocado cubes, guacamole, seasoned oil or plain olive oil, herb butter, peanut butter

For Flavor Boosting:

• salsa, chutney, pesto, olive tapenade, hot sauce, hoisin sauce, Sriracha, sesame oil
• minced or sliced garlic fried in oil, chopped or sliced onions sautéed in butter/oil, sautéed mushroom slices
• grated fresh ginger

For Added Texture

• cooked cheese tortellini
• cracklins (from rendering ham fat),
• sliced olives
• cooked whole pieces of vegetables that are also featured in a soup (such as asparagus tips topping  cream of asparagus soup)
• thawed frozen peas (to top split pea soup)
• stale bread cubes

While I topped individuals bowls for expediency last night, I also think a soup and toppings bar would be a fun way to do Soup Night.

What do you like to top your soup?

Valentine's Pretzel Treats for My Favorite Young Couple

using what I have on hand to make a tin full of treats for Valentine's Day

mini pretzels, semi-sweet chocolate chips, and pink and red Wilton's Candy Melts

I think they even look a little like hearts.

Making Budget Foods and Recipes User-Friendly: Saving on Homemade Pizza and Tomato Soup with Tomato Paste

Back to my weekend version of this blog -- basic frugal foods made easy. 

A lot of folks weren't raised learning basic frugal cooking skills. Instead, in their family homes of origin, a lot of foods that they consumed were what we'd recognize as convenience foods, such as boxed meal helpers. There's nothing at all wrong with that scenario. However, they now find themselves (through no fault of their own) on a very limited budget, unemployed or forced into early retirement due to this pandemic, struggling financially right now and looking for help so that they can help themselves. Enter Basic Frugal Foods Made Easy, my weekend version of this blog that goes back to the basics to help others make very delicious foods while sticking to a tight budget. Remember, once you learn a piece of information or a new skill, you own that information to use over and over again. 

Tomato paste is the unsung hero of the frugal pantry. If you have a can of tomato paste on your shelf, you can make pasta sauce, sloppy joe's, chili, pulled pork, hunter's sauce, ketchup, vegetable soup, pizza sauce, or tomato soup. 

In a cost analysis of tomato paste vs. tomato sauce, tomato paste is slightly cheaper in my area. Walmart's Great Value 12-oz can of tomato paste costs 92 cents, or 8.9 cents per 30 calorie portion. Walmart's Great Value 28-oz can of tomato sauce costs 87 cents, or 10 cents per 30 calorie portion. 

Tomato paste is also a simpler product than tomato sauce. Depending on brand, tomato paste contains either just tomatoes or tomatoes and citric acid. Tomato sauce contains tomatoes, salt, citric acid, and seasonings such as garlic, onion and spices. If tomato sauce is less expensive for you than tomato paste, then by all means, use tomato sauce in your own recipes if the added ingredients won't hamper your final dish. The other caveat is tomato sauce's relative thin consistency. User-review recommended pizza sauce for homemade pizzas indicates a thicker sauce prevents a soggy crust. Canned tomato sauce will need cooking down to reach that recommended thickness for a pizza sauce. 

In some ways, tomato paste is really a convenience food. If you can imagine the work that would go into making your own tomato paste from whole tomatoes -- cooking them down, pureeing, then straining to smooth texture -- you can appreciate having that done for you and for a lot less money than it would cost to buy the whole tomatoes and do the work yourself.

I have two super easy and quick recipes to share with you today -- pizza sauce and tomato soup. Both of these recipes have saved me money over the years, both replace common convenience products, and both require extremely little effort. 

sometimes I make pizza the traditional
way, on a dough crust then topped
with cheese and other yummies

Homemade Pizza Sauce

If you read the label on a bottle of Contadina Pizza sauce, you'll see that water and tomato paste are the first ingredients. Contadina's pizza sauce also contains sugar, salt, modified food starch (from corn), soybean oil, spices, garlic powder, carrot fiber, citric acid, potassium sorbate, and natural flavors. I'm not sure what some of those ingredients do for pizza sauce. But I can tell you this, my recipe is super simple and requires no cooking.

For a large 15 to 16-inch diameter pizza, I use about 2/3 to 1 cup of sauce. Leftovers can be frozen, or stored in the fridge for up to a week. 

Yield: about 1 cup
Cost: about 65 cents

Total time: under 3 minutes, start to finish

1/2 cup tomato paste (about 2/3 of a 6-oz can)

1 teaspoon crushed dried oregano (or 1/2 teaspoon oregano and 1/2 teaspoon dried basil)

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

pinch red pepper flakes

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup of water

Mix all ingredients in the same measuring cup used to measure the tomato paste. Easy-peasy, done. Spread onto pizza dough, split loaves of French bread, or pre-toasted slices of dense bread. 

sometimes I make pizza on
split loaves of French bread

For a price comparison: 1 cup of commercial pizza sauce costs between 60 and 96 cents. However, 1 cup of commercial sauce is thinner and less nutrient-dense, containing 100 calories. Whereas, 1 cup of homemade sauce is thicker and contains 122 calories, due to higher concentration of tomato paste, not food starches. If you prefer a thinner pizza sauce, you can thin the above recipe with an additional tablespoon of water.

and sometimes I spread pizza sauce on a
pre-toasted slice of homemade bread,
add some cheese and put under
the broiler for a pizza sandwich

Homemade Tomato Soup

The other recipe that I'll share today is for tomato soup, using canned tomato paste.

Tomato soup is simply tomato paste, seasonings and water. Let me show you what's in canned tomato soup. The ingredients in a can of Campbell's Condensed Tomato Soup are listed as follows: tomato puree (water, tomato paste), high fructose corn syrup, wheat flour, water, salt, potassium chloride, citric acid, natural flavoring, ascorbic acid (vitamin C), monopotassium phosphate, celery extract, garlic oil. Now, look at the ingredients in my recipe, below. See many similarities? And what do you see that is missing from my homemade version? My recipe is simple and pure. It also has 1/3 of the total sodium per same-size serving of Campbell's Tomato Soup (141 mg per 1/2 cup homemade vs. 480 mg per 1/2 cup Campbell's). 

Yield: 36 ounces

Cost: about 72-75 cents if I bought all of the ingredients at Walmart

Total time: under 20 minutes, start to finish

8 oz canned tomato paste

1  1/4 teaspoons onion powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 stalk of celery, finely chopped

28 oz. water

2 to 3 teaspoons lemon juice (I use bottled lemon juice but fresh squeezed would be better)

1 teaspoon fresh (or frozen) minced basil or 1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 teaspoon sugar 

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1/2 tablespoon flour

1/8 teaspoon garlic powder, optional

In a medium saucepan, mix together the tomato paste, onion powder, salt, and minced celery. Slowly mix in water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

 

Stir in lemon juice, basil, and sugar. 

In a small bowl, mix oil and flour. Stir into the hot soup. Simmer for another 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Adjust lemon juice, sugar, and/or salt to your preference. Add garlic powder, if desired. 

At this point, you can swirl in a couple of tablespoons of cream (for Cream of Tomato Soup) or serve as is. Garnish with shredded or crumbled cheese, sour cream, plain yogurt, minced herbs, croutons, or oyster crackers.

Leftover tomato soup stores well in the refrigerator for up to a week.

For a price comparison: Using Walmart Great Value Condensed Tomato Soup as a comparison, at 50 cents to make 21 1/2 ounces, GV commercial soup would cost 84 cents for a 36 ounce amount. Campbell's Tomato Soup would cost about $1.64 for a 36 ounce amount.

Questions

Could you use fresh onions and garlic instead of onion powder? Yes you can. Use 3 tablespoons of minced onions and 1/4 teaspoon minced garlic instead of the powders. Add at the same time as the celery.

Can you use herbs other than basil? Yes you can. Try rosemary, oregano, or parsley.

What if I want a completely smooth soup? This soup can be pureed after cooking using a stick blender or a pitcher blender to smooth out the bits of celery.

Can I make this fat-free? Yes. Instead of mixing oil and flour, make a slurry with 2 tablespoons of water and 1/2 tablespoon of flour, then whisk into the simmering soup and stir as the soup cooks 2 additional minutes.

Tomato paste is sold in 6 and 12-oz cans. What do I do with the remainder? Tomato paste freezes beautifully. When needed, thaw in the microwave in 30-second bursts or in the refrigerator overnight.

Tomato paste goes on sale periodically. Stocking up on a few extra cans when on sale is a way to reduce your cost on pizza sauce and tomato soup even further.

One of my missions, here, is to not only share recipes that put food on the table for less, but to put flavorful and nutrient-dense food on the table for less. Both of these recipes provide an end result that my family thinks tastes better than most commercial products while containing more of the nutritious ingredients and fewer of the questionable ones. 

Viva buona cucina!

Making Heart-Shaped Soaps

Hi, friends! More Valentine's stuff today.

So, you saw I was cleaning up my heart-shaped cookie cutter. You rightly guessed that I'd be using that cutter this next week.

Well, these are what I made with the cutter -- heart-shaped soaps to give as a gift to my son and daughter-in-law for a small Valentine's gift (they don't read my blog, so I think it's safe to reveal this here). 

Earlier this week, I mentioned that I need to work with what I have on hand. I can't run out to the mall to pick up a small gift or even go browse Michael's or other stores for supplies to make something.

In "shopping" my craft cupboard, this is what I came up with. I have a small amount of melt and pour soap base, soap coloring, peach soap scent, and this heart-shaped cookie cutter. I found a sturdy lid to a small box to use as a form in which to pour the melted, dyed, and fragranced soap.

I lined the box with plastic wrap and got to mixing and melting my ingredients. 

Once the soap had hardened for a couple of hours, I popped it out of the lined box onto a sheet of waxed paper. I used the cookie cutter to cut heart-shaped soaps out of the rectangle, pressing firmly, straight down in order to get as good of a heart as possible.

After the soaps sat for a day, I smoothed the corners with a rag to finish them.

I wrapped the soaps in a plastic treat bag then boxed them up.

With cut-out soaps, there are leftover scraps. I remelted those scraps and poured it all into a small, round plastic container (saved from an individual serving cup of applesauce). 

This circular soap is now our kitchen hand soap. Good timing, too, as we were just about to finish the last bar of hand soap. (We keep both liquid soap and bar soap at the sink, as some of us prefer one over another.)

Before I tried this technique, I wasn't sure how it would all turn out. A couple of tips:

• I think you could make other shapes of soaps using this technique. The caution would be to use simple shapes (as opposed to very intricate ones). 
• use a cutter that is still in very good condition with tightly welded seams 
• don't use a vintage cutter or one that has a lot of sentimental value, as cutting through soap could cause a split in the seam on an older and very well-used cutter. (In contrast cutting dough is a much gentler operation.) My cookie cutter, as old and well-used as it is, survived the soap-cutting. But I could see how the welded seam was a tiny bit stressed. (Some soap was pressed under a corner of the welding.)  
• limit the depth of the soap block to 3/4-inch for easier cutting of the soap

I like how these soaps turned out, and I think my son and daughter-in-law will be pleased with this gift. 

related posts:
Making Soap Using a Spaghetti Box as a Mold
Making Lavender Soap
Using Plastic Easter Eggs for Molds to Make Soap

Cleaning Corrosion from Tin-Plated Cookie Cutters

I always intend to do the right thing with my cookie cutters. But you know how it is. I get busy with something else entirely and my cutters just don't get the love they need.

Most of these older cookie cutters are tin-plate over steel. Over the years, the tin wears away in spots (usually the cutting edge), allowing a little rust to develop. In addition, tin actually tarnishes. My own cookie cutters can look like something I really don't want touching food. But I don't want to buy new ones to replace these old favorites, either.

So, what I do is buff the tarnish and rust right off, using a Scotch-brite pad (the other side of my kitchen sponge) and a paste of baking soda and water. It takes about 10 to 15 minutes to get the cutter clean enough to my satisfaction.

When cleaning up a cookie cutter, I focus on the cutting edge. It's this edge, that if rusty, can impart some really unlovely rust markings onto the cookie dough. Not a pretty sight.

After the corrosion has been buffed off, I wash the cutter in hot, soapy water and dry completely with a towel.

Finally, I use a small square of paper towel dipped in vegetable oil to give it a moisture-repellant coating. 

My cookie cutter is now ready to use.

The best way to take care of tin-plated cookie cutters is to wash in hot soapy water immediately after the last cookie cut-out. Rinse, shake dry, and put them into the oven after turning it off to completely dry all of the cracks and crevices of the cutters.

Valentine's Treats for My Family

A week ago or so, Kris asked in the comments if I had any plans for this Valentine's Day. With the holiday now just around the corner, I thought I'd share some of the things I'll be doing for my family to celebrate. More than just about any other year, this year, I really have to work with what I've got. So, here's the first of a handful of posts telling you what we'll be doing.

This first one is a family tradition that goes back over 30 years in my household and was inspired by a treat that my mother would make about 60 years ago.

For special days (birthdays, Christmas, St. Patrick's Day), my mom would make shaped pancakes to delight my sister, brother and I when we were small children. She would "draw" the shapes on the griddle with the tip of her large spoon and ordinary pancake batter that she thinned just a bit, making teddy bears, our initials, shamrocks, bells, "gingerbread" men, and Christmas trees.

When my own oldest child was a toddler, I discovered that hearts are also easy to "draw" with the batter. Ever since, I've made heart-shaped pancakes for my family nearly every year. Some years, I left the pancakes plain, so they could be to-go Valentine's breakfasts. Other years, when Valentine's fell on a weekend, I pulled out all the stops.

Well, this year, Valentine's Day is on a Sunday, which means I'll be up bright and early making heart-shaped pancakes with all the trimmings.

I use a large serving spoon to make the heart shapes, pouring the batter into a large blob, then drawing it down on one side.

And finishing the other half of the heart on the other side in the same way, just reverse.

They don't look perfect, but they're close enough.

Once flipped over, they begin to look better.

After they finish cooking, I plate them up then outline the edges with whipping cream and fill in the centers with whatever red or pink jelly or jam I happen to have. This year, I'll be using pink vanilla-rhubarb spread to fill the centers.

Pancakes are a very inexpensive treat that I can make for my family any time the mood strikes. The ingredients are basic -- flour, milk, egg, oil, sugar, salt, baking powder -- and items I always have on hand. Making them festive is the fun part. To this day, I think chocolate chip pancakes are still my daughters' favorite festive pancakes. But I also like to add colored sprinkles for confetti pancakes or top with fruity syrups to change things up from the traditional maple syrup. But for this upcoming holiday, it just wouldn't be Valentine's Day if I didn't make heart-shaped pancakes.

Tomorrow, I'll share another Valentine's treat I have ready and waiting.

"What on Earth Do They Eat?"

I made a grocery order just now, and I was wondering if the people who shop my order for me ever wonder how we're surviving on what looks like an imbalance of foods. Then I thought that you friends may also wonder how we're eating (and what we're eating), based on seeing what groceries I bought in January. Given what I posted, it would be reasonable to assume we ate nothing but produce, frozen French fries, ketchup and whipping cream for the whole month.

So, I thought I'd give you a rundown for all of our meals last month.

Breakfasts

• oatmeal (scratch, not instant)
• toast (homemade bread)
• Great Value brand of Cheerios
• semi-homemade donuts (canned biscuit dough formed into donuts and fried)
• homemade yogurt
• applesauce
• fresh fruit (apples, oranges, tangerines, bananas)
• frozen fruit (foraged blackberries, blueberries)
• juice
• dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, prunes)
• scratch muffins, coffeecake, cornbread
• eggs

Lunches

• sandwiches (using homemade bread, eggs, cheese, peanut butter, homemade hummus)
• salads and other raw veggies
• homemade soups
• eggs
• cooked dried beans
• any homemade bread product (leftover cornbread, muffins, flour tortillas, loaf bread)
• pasta and homemade sauce
  
• leftovers from previous night's dinner

Snacks

• pretzels, crackers
• nuts
• raisins
• fruit
• cookies, breads

Desserts

• cookies
• homemade pie
• scratch cupcakes
• coffeecake and snack cake
• ice cream (leftover from December)
• holiday candy
• rice pudding
• homemade milk and cornstarch pudding
• homemade cheesecake

Beverages

• milk
• juice
• coffee
• tea
• cocoa from homemade mix
• water
• sparkling cider (on New Years' day)

Dinners

• Hot Dogs, Buns, Sauerkraut, Hoppin' John, French Fries, Brussel Sprouts in Cheese Sauce, Scratch Cheesecake (using hot dogs, homemade buns, canned sauerkraut, dried black-eyed peas, rice, frozen peppers, seasonings, frozen French fries, frozen Brussel sprouts, scratch cheese sauce, homemade cheesecake)
• Chicken and Dumplings (using canned chicken and canned vegetables, scratch dumplings)
• Tuna Casserole, canned carrots, and applesauce (using canned tuna, canned soup, frozen and fresh veggies, cheese and onion powder, pasta, jarred applesauce, canned carrots)
• Chicken Nachos and Canned Corn (using canned chicken, corn tortillas, avocados, cheese, homemade salsa, lettuce, olives)
• Stir Fry (using rice, canned chicken, TVP, eggs, cabbage, canned carrots, frozen peas, nuts, soy sauce, sesame oil)
• Pigs in Blankets and carrot sticks, apple wedges, canned corn (using canned biscuit dough, hot dogs, carrots, apples, canned corn)
• Pizza (homemade crust or homemade French bread as crust, homemade pizza sauce, pepperoni, green pepper, frozen mushrooms, olives, canned pineapple, frozen ham from Christmas, cheese)
• TVP Meatballs and Marinara over Pasta (using TVP, eggs, tomato paste, canned tomatoes, herbs, seasonings, pasta)
• Spaghetti and Meat Sauce (using tomato paste, canned tomatoes, herbs, seasonings, onions, celery, ground beef, pasta)
• Vegetarian Lasagna (using tomato paste, canned tomatoes, herbs, onions, celery, frozen broccoli, TVP, pasta, mozzarella and Parmesan)
• Chicken Noodle Soup and Italian Bread (using canned chicken, canned and fresh veggies, pasta, herbs)
• Chicken, Vegetable, and Potato Soup  with Scratch Biscuits (using canned chicken, canned and fresh vegetables, garden potatoes, seasonings)
• Vegetarian Chili and Cornbread (using several types of beans, green pepper, onions, canned tomatoes, herbs/spices, avocados, cheese, homemade cornbread)
• Lentil-Vegetable Soup and Homemade Bread (using lentils, canned tomatoes, fresh and frozen vegetables, spices, herbs, Parmesan, homemade bread)
• Hummus and Italian Bread w/ Raw Veggies, Homemade Apple Cobbler (using dried beans, sesame seeds, olive oil, seasonings, homemade bread, carrots, celery)
• Tomato Soup and Toasted Cheese Sandwiches (using tomato paste, seasonings, homemade bread, cheese)
• Spinach Frittata, Muffins, Canned Fruit and Vegetables (using eggs, canned and frozen spinach, cheese, homemade pizza sauce, scratch muffins, canned fruits and vegetables)
• Burrito Bowls (using pinto beans, seasonings, rice, canned corn, homemade salsa, cheese, olives, avocados)
• Scrambled Eggs, Hash Browns, Canned Vegetables, Bacon (using eggs, cheese, garden potatoes, canned vegetables, bacon)

Many of these meals we did twice, either as leftovers or just repeated in the month. For side dishes, we used various canned and frozen vegetables, as well as fresh cabbage, lettuce, avocados, celery, carrots, oranges, tangerines, bananas, and apples.

January is a month when I take it easy on myself and don't expect anything spectacular. I used a lot of canned chicken this past month, as it's easy. We also ate eggs for several dinners and used dried beans a few times per week.  These are all easy foods, in my mind. I'll likely make more of an effort this next month, now that I've had a month of easier cooking as a break.

We ate every meal cooked from home, with exception to a single meal that my husband's office provided for him for a meeting one evening. One afternoon, a meal in a bag showed up on our doorstep. My husband's work seemed to feel they had to bribe their employees to all attend a Zoom meeting. Otherwise, all from home. 

Sometimes, it feels a bit boring to only eat our own cooking. But, for the most part, it's working, and no one is going hungry.

Active Dry Yeast, Instant Yeast, or Bread Machine Yeast?

There's a lot of confusing information out there about the different types of dry yeast stocked in the baking aisle of grocery stores. Walmart carries Active Dry Yeast, Rapid-Rise, Quick-Rise, Bread Machine Yeast, Instant Dry Yeast and a couple of these fancy yeasts, such as Platinum Instant Yeast with dough enhancers and Gold label SAF-Instant Yeast. Last spring, when every store was out of yeast, I was looking to get any reasonably-priced yeast I could find. You could say I was not at all picky by the time June rolled around. I eventually found 1-lb bags of SAF-Instant Yeast in stock and grabbed it while I could.

For the most part (for us home-bakers,) the differences between the most common dry yeasts are minimal. But it is helpful to understand the properties and benefits of each.

Active Dry Yeast (use 2 1/4 teaspoons enough for up to 4 cups of flour)

• widely available
• been around for decades -- If a bread recipe was published before 1970, this is likely the type of yeast originally used.
• The flavor of this yeast is preferred by many bakers for its milder, less-yeasty taste.
• In King Arthur's tests, Active Dry Yeast takes longer to fully rise, as much as twice as long.
• Since ADY takes longer to rise, this is a good yeast to choose when you need to focus your attention on something else for more than an hour during the rising process, such you need to run out to pick-up your kids, or run a very quick errand, without missing that crucial window to pop your loaves of bread into the oven.
• ADY is also the yeast to use for a recipe calling for 2 rise periods for the dough. Mostly, you find this extra rising in the instructions for older bread recipes.
• According to Red Star, you don't need to rehydrate the yeast in warm water first, although you can if your recipe calls for that step.
• Years ago, there was a more significant difference between ADY and Instant yeast. King Arthur's Flour says the difference today is minimal.
• For most applications, ADY and Instant Yeast can be used interchangeably, just don't expect the same timing on rising dough.
• If using a bread machine, Red Star recommends adjust the amount of yeast according to the the type used: for Active Dry Yeast, use 3/4 teaspoon yeast for every 1 cup of flour; for Instant Yeast, use 1/2 teaspoon yeast for every cup of flour.
• When using ADY, liquids (not including softening yeast) should be between 110 and 115 degrees F, per Fleischmann's website.

Instant Yeast  (2 1/4 teaspoons for up to 4 cups of flour)

• came onto the market in the 1970s
• may say "fast-rising", "highly active", or "fast acting" on the label
• not recommended for refrigerated or frozen yeast dough use -- per Red Star
• a smaller granule size of yeast compared to ADY
• considered an easy-to-work with yeast because it is added directly to the dry ingredients, dissolving into the dough very quickly (no need to proof in water)
• Instant Yeast loaves rise faster than ADY loaves because the yeast produces more carbon dioxide bubbles than ADY
• According to King Arthur's website, SAF-Instant Red is their preferred yeast for most bread baking.

The brand SAF has both a Red label and Gold Label Instant Yeast

• Saf-Instant Red is a basic instant yeast, good for almost all yeast bread -- artisan, pizza, sandwich, rolls, bagels
• SAF-Instant Gold is a particular yeast designed to work with very sweet doughs -- Challah, Panettone, Hawaiian bread or rolls

Rapid-Rise (Fleischmann's brand), Quick-Rise (Red Star brand), or Bread Machine Yeast (Fleischmann's brand) (use 2  1/4 teaspoons for up to 4 cups of flour)

• These are instant yeasts that may also contain enzymes to strengthen the gluten, accelerate fermentation and condition the dough.
• works 50% faster than ADY
• designed for one quick rise in the dough
• In King Arthur's test, the Quick-Rise yeast loaf initially rose faster than Instant or ADY, but after one hour of rising, lags behind the Instant Yeast loaf and requires an extra 15 minutes (still much faster than the ADY loaf).
• often used in bread machines
• Some bakers say this yeast does not produce as flavorful a loaf of bread as ADY or Instant Yeast, can be yeasty in flavor.
• Dough can be mixed and kneaded, then formed into a loaf immediately (single rise after loaf formation only).
• In using Bread Machine Yeast in the bread machine, softening in water is recommended. Use 1 teaspoon sugar, 1/2 cup water, 110-115 degrees F (from total amount called for in recipe), stir in yeast and allow to stand 5-10 minutes. Add to remaining ingredients. The remaining liquids should be about 80 degrees F for use in bread machine.
• For the regular cycle on bread machine, use 1/2 teaspoon Bread Machine Yeast for every cup of flour
• For 1-hour recipes or express setting on bread machine, you'll want to double or triple that amount of yeast for every cup of flour (1 to 1  1/2 teaspoons yeast for every cup of flour).
• When using Rapid Rise or Bread Machine yeast outside of the bread maker, Fleischmann's recommends a temperature of  120 to 130 degrees F for the liquid ingredients.
• You can use Rapid Rise, Instant Yeast, or Bread Machine Yeast interchangeably with minimal variation in outcome.

Additional info:

• 1 packet of yeast contains 2  1/4 teaspoons
• For doughs with greater than 1/2 cup of sugar for every 4 cups of flour (for instance, if your recipe calls for 3/4 cup sugar and 4 cups of flour), use an additional packet of ADY or Instant Yeast. Sugar retards the yeast activity in dough.
• Use 1 packet of yeast (2  1/4 teaspoons) for up to 4 cups of flour, 2 packets for up to 8 cups of flour, 3 packets for up to 12 cups of flour
• When dissolving ADY yeast for hand mixing or using a stand mixer, use water between 110 and 115 degrees F; but when dissolving ADY for a bread machine, use water that is 80 degrees F -- per Red Star's website
• Once opened, store large quantities of yeast (such as the bags) in an airtight container in the freezer or the refrigerator. Personally, I keep a small jar of yeast in the fridge and the rest of the bag in the freezer. King Arthur's website says that yeast stored in the freezer will keep and work as if it was fresh for a year. The article's author also says that they have had good results with yeast stored in the freezer for 6 years.
• When following a recipe that calls for Rapid Rise Yeast, you can substitute ADY at 25% more (recipe calls for 1 teaspoon Rapid Rise, sub 1  1/4 teaspoon ADY)
• When following a recipe that calls for ADY, you can substitute Rapid Rise in equals amounts, no change needed, per Fleischmann's website.
• If yeast is way beyond the expiration date, check its viability before proceeding with recipe. Soften 2  1/4 teaspoons of yeast in 1/4 cup water (100-110 degrees F. Stir in 1 teaspoon sugar and wait 10 minutes. If mixture is bubbly or foamy, the yeast is viable and can be used in your recipe (deducting 1/4 cup liquid from overall recipe).

sources:

kingarthurbaking.com

redstaryeast.com

fleischmannsyeast.com