#everybitcountschallenge. Week 10.
The week started with a really busy day! I am working through some lists and so I made my first batch of Christmas cakes today.
Last night I got my fruit soaking and this smells really good! Every time you go into the kitchen you stir the fruit. By morning it is plump and beautiful.
I have used this recipe for many years. It can be made in any size tin or even in Muffin trays for little individual cakes. These can be heated and then I just call it pudding! It keeps a long time in a sealed tin. Usually up to a year. I like to have a cake on hand so I make extras and stash them away. You can find the recipe here.
I decided to make more smaller cakes. When you see the prices of things in the shops it is a massive shock how expensive they are. Last year in a local shop of handmade goods a Christmas cake was $60. It is true ingredients soon add up. I start buying my ingredients months before I need them so I get most of them on special... and later I will wrap my cakes nicely and decorate them. So more but smaller cakes is my tactic. Next week I will make another batch.
Watching the Facebook page of the fruit and veggie shop in town I struck a deal! The hugest heads of Broccoli I have ever seen were $1.99 a kilo. Broccoli has been up to $8 and $9 a kilo so this is a great price for us. It was beautiful and so fresh.
I got ten kilos! After a wash I cut it up and blanched it for 2 minutes. When it was properly cold I bagged it up into meal size portions. We like broccoli a lot and I made generous amounts.
Two minutes is my magic number. When I do it this way it is absolutely as good as fresh. Andy has never realised. ` The ends that were too woody I put through the food processor and grated them and the chickens and ducks got those. Mostly I cut my Broccoli as long as possible so we eat most of the stems. I froze 24 large packages. This reminds me... tomorrow Mum and I are going to town so I had better check the online specials.
Wherever I go I take a small coin purse with loose change for op shops. (Thrift stores.) I also keep a purse full of coins and have a little challenge of turning loose change into something good. When I paid for the Broccoli the lady was keen to get some change so I turned it into the hugest bag of veggies. I just love turning a little into a lot! It can be done!
Using my food processor I made some dried fruit calls. These are a good snack and now I can make them much more easily.
I made scones and froze some and took some to Mum.
I bought a big pack of bacon and divided it into portions and froze them.
So I had cakes, broccoli, scones and bacon. I am not counting the fruit balls as they didn't actually go into storage where as with cakes one of them will be put away. This is my logic anyway!
This will be my last #everybitcountschallenge post for now as I am just really pushed for time at the moment. I will continue to put up as much as I can and keep up with my harvest as it comes in and I will report this all in my Friday posts.
I want to encourage you to diligently work on your pantry and get ahead all you can. We already had severe price rises... now to add to it mass areas of Australia are flooded. Enormous areas of crops are gone. We are told now electricity will go up 50% more net year! Last week they said it was 30% !!
If you are heading into winter then please have all you need and if you are like me in Spring then plant all you can and keep your eyes open for possibilities like fruit that is falling from trees... go and ask! Ask and you shall receive! Prepare ahead and save jars and be ready to preserve whatever comes your way.
Finally... I took a BIG leap which is a little scary but I ordered a freeze drier. I have been thinking about it for a while as they are now available in Australia. There was a long waiting list and the soonest delivery was next April. I saw early in the week that a delivery had arrived and a few were available. So right there and then I ordered one. It is a major purchase. I am going to have to do a house rearrange to set it up. I am going to have to learn a lot! So a new adventure begins. AND you can freeze dry flowers... for cakes and soaps and decor... I wish there were more hours in the day or I wasn't worn out by evening! But really if we keep at things it adds up and every bit does count.xxx
I look forward to your posts on the freeze dryer. I've been doing some research on them but haven't decided if the cost of machine and electricity can be justified for us.
ReplyDeleteLove reading your posts. Linda
Dear Linda, Thank you! I will do my best. Kristy in the Tuesday club has been sharing a lot on hers and taught me a fair bit. It is a daunting leap and it took me a long time to decide. Many thanks, Annabel.xxx
DeleteThank you for taking your time and challenge us to save, use and be aware of every little bit. It was very useful to me, every time I felt dog tired this summer/autumn I was thinking of you and all the industrious bluebirds and now I feel quite prepared facing winter and hard times. Thank you and take care. Much love from Laura_s_world in Romania
ReplyDeleteDear Laura, Thank you for telling me that! I know it would be cold there now but keep going however you can before the true cold of winter. I know you have done a lot and it is wonderful. When the weather is too cold I know you will knit and be busy away indoors! With much love Annabel.xxx
DeleteI take the woody parts of broccoli and cook them until soft. I then puree the stalks plus cooking water in my food processor. This can be used in making soup and sauces.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I do too, some of these were quite brown which put me off hence the chicken feed. The food processor is so good! The ends of asparagus also are good, I dont chop them off so much as I see some do.xxx
DeleteI too love broccoli and learned a few years ago that the stems are very tender if you peel off the outer layer (like a carrot) and then slice in rounds.Electricity prices are getting scary and I'm praying for the poor people in Ukraine who have no electricity !Thanks for keeping me motivated and for giving me ideas that I've never thought of before even though I'm a grandmother !
ReplyDeleteThank you so much! Yes electricity is a serious issue. Within one wee were were told ours is going up another 30% Then they said 50% and last night the news said 80%. It never ends. The scary combination of sub zero temperatures and no heating and unaffordable food worries me deeply hence me always nagging everyone so much! xxx
DeleteYou've been busy (as usual) Annabel! I wish I had half your energy. Looking forward to learning what the rest of the Bluebirds have been doing.
ReplyDeleteI continued to top up items I normally buy in bulk at Winco. Every time I look in my pantry, I see another hole to fill! Over the past week, I was able to buy some canned goods at fair prices. These are items I'd normally buy by the case, but in most cases they were digital coupons with a limit of 5.
The best buy was bacon for $1.99 lb. and I bought about 5 lbs., most of which I will freeze. 80/20% ground beef was $2.77 lb. and I bought 9 pounds. I divided it into 1/2 lb. packages and a few 1/4 lb. patties (I don't usually bother with patties, but I like having some around). I also bought two tri-tip beef roasts for $5.99 lb. The larger one may become Christmas dinner. My son likes to cook tri-tips in his smoker.
I made a double batch of meatballs and froze half for a ready meal. Having about 7 meals ready to go in the freezer is one of the best things I've learned here! (And it saved me when we had Covid). I try to serve one every few weeks and replace it to keep things moving.
We still have not had frost, which is late for us. Today I canned the last of the ripe tomatoes and got 4 pints--waste not, want not. I reused lids on all the jars and they all sealed (again). I still need to pick the green tomatoes to ripen indoors.
I have not seen Lorna post on any of the blogs we both follow. I hope she is OK!
Dear Maxine, Lorna has had trouble getting her comments to post. I miss her posts terribly too and hope what ever the issue is will resolve as I have tried everything I can think of.
DeleteYou are doing really well adding to the pantry and spotting any gaps. You found great deals on the meats and added a lot! And the canned goods are excellent too. I think I might follow your lead with the meatballs.
I am so glad you like the ready frozen meals. To me they are a life saver when sick but could be if unable to leave the house or other reasons. Also if someone else is sick or in a crisis I can go to my freezer and give them dinner at a moments notice. I need to build up my meals again as I have given a lot to my daughter to help her lately. When I am done with my giant re arrange and setting up for the freeze drier I think I will make some meal prep my next goal.
Well done on the last tomatoes! I also use recycled jars and lids. Tomato is just so useful all winter. You have done so well for the week! With love Annabel.xxx
Hi, what a busy week you had, I am amazed at how much you get done. It is a great idea to take advantage of the specials like the broccoli to seize the opportunity to fill the freezer. Best wishes Lyn
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Lyn. Seize the opportunity is a good way to put it. When we see a good deal now I think we have to act fast. xxx
DeleteI've never heard of a freeze dryer. I had to google it!
ReplyDeleteDear Frogdancer Jones, Most of the you tubers I follow have freeze driers and this first got me interested. Acre Homestead, RoseRed, Jamerill Stewart and others. I was just amazed. But they weren't available in Australia until more recently. I am so excited! With love Annabel.xxx
DeleteCongratulations on the freeze drier, I am excited to see your photos and to hear about it. Well done on the excellent buys and the bagging up of all the broccoli. That is a fantastic price. Lots of love, Lily
ReplyDeleteHello Annabel and all the bluebirds 😊 I have been traveling from the NW, USA to California to see my husband who is on temporary assignment for work. While here in California I stopped by a Dollar General and found canning lids 70%off which made them $1.05 a dozen I bought 72 dozen ! That will be enough lids for years I couldn't believe my luck!!! I thought I would not be building my pantry this week 😂 While here I stocked his pantry up with items he could use and liked at reasonable prices. So even if you are not home opportunity comes your way ☺️ have a wonderful weekend love Gaila in the NW USA
ReplyDeleteChef Jacques Pepin never broke off asparagus. Instead, he'd take a vegetable peeler and peel off the tough outer skin of the lower portion and then steam them. I've learned to do the same with broccoli and I'll shred those to use in spaghetti or vegetable soup or a casserole. It's just added vegetables and nutrients. However, I reckon the chickens provide enough eggs (and more chickens when you incubate eggs!) your broccoli stems were put to extra good use in feeding them!
ReplyDeleteI used some leftover butternut squash and some frozen bananas to make up muffins and a loaf of Pumpkin Banana bread. I roasted two whole chickens. I gave the bread and one of the chickens to my daughter who moved to another state this weekend. So, she had ready food to start at the new house. I also put together a chicken pot pie for her and another for our meal. I did everything twice, lol. I made up a batch of pizza dough and put half in the freezer. I accepted a bag of sugar, some canned goods, seasonings, and frozen things from my daughter as she packed up her home. These were items she hadn't used and realized she likely wouldn't or that she had far more than she could reasonably use. So peaches, soup, blueberries, and green beans went into my freezer. Corn, tomatoes, liquid smoke, oatmeal went into my pantry.