3.12.10
Marching Into Fitness: Little Changes, Big Rewards
One of the mistakes that I find myself often repeating when it comes to altering my diet and fitness levels is that I take it on full force at a gazelle level and burn out quickly. I get so excited about my latest ambition to succeed at a healthier lifestyle and instead of setting off at a jogging pace, I take off at a sprint. This would be OK if it were a short little race but honestly, altering a lifestyle is more like taking on a marathon. You have to pace yourself. I mean, it’s not like I just overnight starting making unhealthier eating choices or not allowing myself to find time throughout my day to exercise. So I can’t expect myself to just change every bad habit overnight. (Though I wish I could!)
I have to keep reminding myself that little changes will bring big rewards and the most important thing I can do is to have patience and to continue to praise myself for each little accomplishment I make along the way.
I had really great success this last summer when I took on some little changes to my eating habits. I didn’t just completely stop eating junk food and switch to veggies or tofu or anything. But I just made tiny changes over time. Once again, I’ve taken on this same mindset and have had luck with eating healthier and squeezing in some exercise since I’ve been back from the Blissdom conference. I thought I would share some of the things that I’ve been doing. (But please, keep in mind something very important; you must never change your diet or exercise routine without consulting with your physician first. Also, what works for me, may not work for you. You must find what works well for you and keeps you the healthiest.):
1) Cut back on “nibbling” on food when I prepare meals – This is a tough one for me. I often find myself distracted when I cook and that seems to lead to eating part of a meal before I even get to the table! So now, I either chew gum, nibble on fruit or just altogether force myself to be conscious of what I’m eating. It also helps that I did a Freezer Cooking Session and I’m spending less time cooking this month.
2) Serving Food Family Style – I used to dish up the plates trying to take a guess at what everyone would like and to the amounts they’d eat. Now, I serve everything “family style” and we just take little bits of food at a time. If I do go to add food to my plate, I’m very aware of anything extra and take note of it—am I really hungry or did I not allow myself time to digest what I already ate? I also seem to have less food to throw away from our plates and more leftovers when we do this. But you have to be careful not to allow yourself too many extra servings, which can happen with the food being so easily accessible. (Ask your Dr./Nutritionist what are healthy portions for you to follow.)
3) Cut up fruit/veggies at each meal – Every night at dinner, I cut up a big bowl of fruit and/or veggies. I serve up what I think is a healthy portion of my other food and then when I feel like I’m still hungry, I choose to eat from the fruit/veggie bowl instead.
4) Quit eating what’s the kids leave on plates – I have a hard time throwing food out. So I let the kids choose what they want now (again from the family style serving). I always make sure they get their proper nutrition but by letting them make their own choices, there’s less to throw away. Also, I tend to put less on my own plate in case they pick something and don’t end up liking it. Otherwise, it’s so easy to end up eating way too much.
5) Choosing healthier foods – Overall, we eat fairly healthy as a family. But I am making even more of a conscious effort to make sure our snacks are healthy and that “junk food” or candy etc is something we have just at random or as a treat. Side dishes are more along the lines of yogurt, steamed veggies, or fruit and sometimes cheese or pickles, as opposed to fried or greasy foods.
6) I’m eating a little slower – It used to be a guarantee that I’d always be the last person done eating at any meal. But just over pregnancies and then trying to make sure I got myself and the little kids fed, I think I’ve almost trained myself to eat faster. I’ve been trying to make an effort to pace myself and actually try to enjoy my meals than to inhale them now. 
7) Squeezing in exercise when I can – I have a hard time getting in full exercise segments, as I mentioned, so I now opt for “Time for 10″ with the kids or even use the Just Dance
I actually did an entire series on 30 Ways (Ideas) for Losing a Pound last year. They mostly focus on eating habits and not diet/nutrition advice. I’ve had a lot of readers email me that they’ve had really good luck with them. But again, keep in mind the important fact that you must consult your physician before making any changes to your diet or exercise routine.
I hope that by sharing some of the little changes I’ve been making that it will help inspire you to seek out a few of your own so you can slowly start working towards a healthier lifestyle. I’d love to hear what works for you, as well. I’m hoping that you’ll also find those little changes that add up to big rewards in the end!
3.12.10
Gardening Fun: Planting Seeds with the Kids
So this week, the kids and I decided that we were going to work on getting some seeds started for our garden. After our library class, we headed over to Ace Hardware to see what kind of selection they offered. I love supporting the local businesses (and they are super friendly at ours) so that is why I chose to go there.
I let Nathan pick out several of them, as I thought that would make the experience more enjoyable for him to watch the plants that he chose as they grow. Some of the seeds said we could start indoors, while others said to wait to plant outside after the danger of frost is over. My FIL is a really great gardener and he always tells me to wait until around May 15th for most plants in our area. He’s never let me down with that advice so we’ll probably stick with it. He basically has two green thumbs so I trust his advice!
These are the seeds that we are going to plant now. I picked up some eggplant and tomatoes and I also grabbed some spearmint (for tea) and rosemary, as some of my recipes called for it. The kids can’t get enough cherry tomatoes so I had to pick up some of those. And I love the Roma tomatoes for tacos so I picked up a pack of them, as well.
These are mostly the ones that Nathan chose. He clung to the packet of Sunflowers like they were his baby. I’m really hoping those grow well after we plant them this spring. He also loved the Poppies and he chose the color of marigolds we’ll plant, as well. I also decided to try some zucchini from seeds, too.
I had saved up some yogurt and other containers to plant the seeds in but when I saw the “little greenhouse” that wasn’t very costly, I decided it would be the best route to go. It would just be easier for us to keep them all in one container and quicker to water. Don’t worry, I have other plans for the other containers I saved.
This is Nathan trying to fill the sections equally with dirt (can you tell he’s having fun?)
He had a blast watering down the dirt before we put the seeds in. I put our kitchen sink sprayer on real low and I was surprised at how well he did at making sure not to flood any of the sections—or the kitchen.
Next, he used the blunt end of a pen to create little holes for us to drop the seeds in. By this time, Kaydi had gone down for a nap, but she loved watching all that was going on up until then. It was a good thing she was napping as it took a lot of concentration to get those tiny little seeds into the dirt holes. Nathan did several of them and then I think he just got too antsy to help finish. But it was a nice little lesson in patience and hand-eye coordination. It’s hard picking up those little seeds, that’s for sure!
I watered everything down again after the seeds were planted, as it stated to do in the directions. This time, I didn’t let Nathan water them as I was afraid he’d flood the seeds out. Now we just wait for them to start growing and try to remember to water them often.
I’m hoping that the seeds will grow well. But if not, we still had a really fun time in planting them. I also had plenty of seeds left to share with a friend/family member so they can start a little garden, too.
I’m hoping that you are enjoying some gardening fun with your families, too. I’m hoping to show you some pictures of little plants here soon! Have any of you decided what you are going to plant this year? After seeing Teresa’s posting on rhubarb, I’m thinking maybe I should look into planting some this next year. I am a huge fan of strawberry rhubarb pie and I never think about growing it myself!
3.5.10
Gardening Fun: Butterfly, Bird and Flower Garden
As I mentioned last week, I’m doing a little gardening segment each week with mini-updates on our garden status. I am lucky to have the help of Money Saving Maine-ac, as I’m merely a newbie and knowledgeable only in tomato plants!
Over the last week, I’ve been trying to decide what I want to do with our yard this year. I stood on my deck for a bit looking around trying to picture what I wanted it to look like or where I’d want things to be. I reflected back to going to the Butterfly Exhibit at Brookfield Zoo the last few years. What a beautifully, magnificent place it was. I could have stayed in there all day watching the butterfly flutter to and fro and even stopping to get some water in the tiny pools of water they had created. Someday, I’ll have a large butterfly garden like that. But for now, I’m just interested in a mini-version. I found some good articles at HowStuffWorks and TheButterflySite. I’m going to be using the guidelines they offered there for picking out some plants.
Also, our Menards sells these rolled up seed mats that are just full of seeds for flowers that are geared to attracting butterflies. I bought one last year and gave it to my Mom and it did well. So I’m debating if I’m going to go that route or just buy some individual plants. We’ll see what treasures we find as it warms up a bit here.
A few years back, I found this great plant called a Weigela that was discounted at Wal-Mart. It turned into this beautiful bush in our backyard that attracted so many butterflies and even hummingbirds. The red color and long flowers are a huge draw for the hummingbirds. The best image I could find online of one was from a Maxwell Garden Center:
That one is real close to what ours looks like when it blooms. This year, I’m hoping to find another one and those will be my “endcaps” to our butterfly and bird haven. We picked up several bird feeders on clearance last year and the kids loved filling them up and watching the birds eat from them. I think I’m going to look for a discounted bird bath this year, as well.
I’d also love a little “bouquet” flower garden. This would be an area where we could go to cut some flowers for bringing mini-bouquets to people. So far, I’m thinking daisies, carnations and possibly a smaller rose bush.
As far as my veggie garden, I’m still debating if I’m going to do raised beds or if I’m going to bring in some higher-quality soil/compost, etc. I think I’ll have to price them both out and see which one is in our favor. But while scanning Amazon
So this week we are working on getting our “gameplan” together and then next week, the kids and I will start to plant our seeds indoors. I think it will be a fun little activity for all of us. I’ll share with you which seeds we end up choosing.
Have you all decided what you are planting this year? Has anyone tried the Square Foot Gardening?
3.3.10
Marching Into Fitness: “Time For 10″
One of the mistakes that I found that I made in my perception of exercise is that in order to get that 30 minutes of daily exercise that they recommend, that I had to do it in one big chunk. But when the day is over and I’ve taken care of the kids, my house and my blog, I was lucky to find 5 minutes, let alone 30. And when I did find that 30 minutes, I wanted to relax with a book or catch up on the 100 shows that I’ve missed that were quickly filling up our DVR.
But then I began to realize that any exercise was better than nothing at all. Yet, there was still that struggle of, “When do I have the time?” I kept missing the obvious—kids love to play—and playtime is exercise!
So for the last month or two, I’ve been doing this little thing twice a day with the kids that we call our “Time for 10.” I set our microwave timer for 10 minutes and we get in some form of exercise–even if it’s just enough to get our hearts pumping a little bit faster. Oh, and when that timer goes off, they bat their cute little eyes and sweet talk me with “5 more pwease!” Funny thing how just by doing these two little segments, I can easily get in 30 minutes a day.
We first started off with “crazy laps.” One of the floors of our house has three rooms connected with the same wall and it forms a square. So you can walk through all three rooms without having to use any doors. So when that timer starts, we run. And we giggle. And we jog. And sometimes we even have a silly hopping lap. And let me tell you, my son is a speed runner. It’s everything I can do not to let him tag me or run me over. And when I first started, 10 minutes seemed like an eternity! I kept thinking, “That timer has to be going off soon!”–Only to find out it was barely at the five minute mark. (And that, my friends, is when I really realized how out-of-shape I had become over the winter!!)
Other times, we’ve used simple balloons that I picked up at a dollar store and tossed them around with the rule that they aren’t allowed to touch the ground. I assure you, after 10 minutes of this, your heart will be racing after you are leaping and running to catch wherever it drifts off to. (and your cheeks will hurt from laughing!)
We add new little games as we think of them. My son was trying to talk me into buying some hula-hoops the other day and I just may take him up on the idea. The kids have come to look forward to this time. When I tell them that it’s “Time for 10–what does that mean?” Their cute little voices will squeak out “10! 10!” and they run to the microwave timer and they know we are in for some fun.
So don’t make the same mistake that I did and think that you need to carve out huge chunks of time each day. Just start off with 5 minutes here or 10 minutes there. The great thing that I’ve found is that after you get in a routine of exercising, you’ll find that you’re getting some extra energy from it and finding the time to fit it in won’t seem like such a struggle.
I’m hoping that you’ll take time out of your day for “Time For 10.”
Disclaimer: Never start a new exercise/diet regimen without consulting your Dr. first.
Note: This is an original series and cannot be shared without written permission from Coupon Geek.
3.2.10
Marching Into Fitness: New Series This Month
I always make March my month to put extra focus on fitness. It’s not one of those “summer’s coming I need to fit into a bathing suit/shorts” thing. No, it’s that I know the weather is going to warm up and the kids and I will be playing outside more and that will require extra conditioning to keep up with them! I tend to get a little bit lazier in the winter months.
Also, when the weather starts hitting those 40-50 degree temperatures here in Chicago, I’m going to break out my running shoes and make another attempt to train for that 5K. There’s just something magnificent about running in that kind of weather. You start off a little cold but when your run is over, you just walk and relax and join the cold winter breeze that cools you off.
Last year, I started off OK but hit some knee pain issues, which I hope will not happen again this year. I’ve got a new gameplan and if all else fails, I guess I’ll have to hire an (inexpensive) personal running coach. I’ve convinced my hubby that this is the year. He’s even agreed to run the 5K with me. My goal? There’s a Susan G Komen Race for the Cure here in Chicago in September that I’d love to be involved in.
So for this month, I have some little fitness tidbits planned. I even have some giveaways for some Wii fitness items and something that Weight Watchers gave me at Blissdom. The goal of the series is not to share lots of nutritional/fitness advice with you. I’m not an expert in either of those areas. But I hope that you will find a little inspiration to carve some time out of your week to put a little more focus on your health and fitting in some exercise and healthy eating habits.
So stay tuned and keep an open mind. The best thing you can give your family/kids is yourself—time playing and a long healthy life!
Disclaimer: Never start a new exercise/diet regimen without consulting your Dr. first.
Note: This is an original series and cannot be shared without written permission from Coupon Geek.
2.28.10
Freezer Cooking February: Breakfast Burritos and Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins Recipes (Guest Post)
I hope that you have enjoyed my Freezer Cooking February Series this month. I will continue to share Freezer Cooking info. and recipes with you but I did want to wrap-up the series. I have one last guest posting to share with you. This one comes from Tanya of The Domestic Contessa. She shares great recipes for breakfast burritos and banana chocolate chip muffins! Yum!! And here’s Tanya:
For me, breakfast is the hardest meal to plan for. I was finding that we were getting stuck in a rut – always the same thing. Cold cereal, hot cereal, eggs… repeat. Then, when I started working to keep our grocery budget at a lower number, the cold cereal was no longer an option. Between actually buying the cold cereal and then paying for the milk needed, it’s quite a budget drainer.
So that left us with hot cereal, eggs…repeat.
I started doing some research and brainstorming for easy ways to add variety to our breakfasts. Getting up early to spend a lot of time making something extravagant was not an option. Not to mention, I still had the budget thing to consider.
I finally found the solution to my dilemma – using my freezer! I try to plan for a day or two each month to cook batches of breakfast foods. I then wrap individual servings separately and freeze them. Then, in the morning, I just grab the amount of food we need from the freezer, thaw, and we eat!
I have found muffins are easy to make and freeze very well for at least a month. With the muffins, I wait until they are fully cooled and then place each muffin in its own sandwich baggie (the kind without the zipper). I then put all the muffin into a large freezer bag. When I need a muffin for breakfast, I take it out of the freezer bag, unwrap it from the sandwich baggie and put it in the microwave on defrost for about a minute. If we have yogurt, I’ll serve a muffin with that – or, it’s a nice thing to serve with a fried egg to add some variety.
Here are a couple of breakfast freezer foods that are a hit around our house:
Easy Freezer Burritos
I once made about 100 of these for a ladies brunch at our church. I made them up several days in advance and cooked them the morning of the brunch. They were a huge hit – no one would believe me when I said they were frozen!
12 eggs, beaten
2 TBS butter
1 lb. sausage, cooked and drained
½ cup chunky salsa
2 cups cheddar cheese, grated
24 flour tortillas
In a large skillet, melt butter. Add beaten eggs and cook in butter, stirring often, until scrambled and set. Add the cooked sausage and salsa; mix gently.
Place ½ cup egg mixture onto each tortilla and sprinkle with cheese. Roll burritos and place on parchment-lined cookie sheets; freeze until solid. Wrap each individually and place in freezer bags. Freeze.
To eat: Unwrap burritos. Loosely wrap in paper towel and microwave on High for 1-3 minutes. Makes 24 burritos
Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins
1 cup white flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
1/8 tsp. salt
1 cup mashed bananas (2 medium)
2/3 cup buttermilk
1 large egg
¼ tsp. vanilla flavoring
2 TBS oil
½ cup mini chocolate chips
Grease muffin tins. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine all dry ingredients. Combine the wet ingredients separately. Add wet ingredients to dry and stir JUST until mixed – do NOT over mix! Add the chocolate chips. Pour into muffin tin. Bake for 18-19 minutes. Remove to cooling rack. Freeze them as I mentioned above. Makes 12 muffins.
Thank you so much to Tanya of The Domestic Contessa for sharing these fabulous recipes. I can’t wait to try the burritos one! I was wishing I had the sausage on hand this weekend to make them in my last Freezer Cooking Session, but no such luck. It gives me something to look forward to for next time, though!
A very big thank you to all of my guest posters this month! I know that it takes awhile to type up information for these and it’s so greatly appreciated. Thank you for sharing your successes, failures and recipes with all of us.
And another big thank you to all of my reader friends for showing your interest in this series with your feedback and excitement. That increased the fun for me to do this! Stay tuned as even though February is over, the recipes are not! I’ll continue to share some with you all and do my best to help save a little time in your kitchen, as well!
2.27.10
Freezer Cooking February: My Latest Freezer Cooking Session
In case some of you were wondering where I’ve been, I’ve basically been in my kitchen ever since my last posting! I’ve been working on my latest freezer cooking session. I took on quite a bit this time since we were out of meals. Right away, I ran into a huge glitch–I cooked my chicken instead of marinating it. What a huge and costly mistake. I had to stop, losing precious time, and dig up another recipe that used cooked chicken. In the end, I switched out Turkey Enchiladas for Chicken, added a Turkey and Noodles recipe and saved the extra chicken to add to pasta dishes. (Even the best planning can go awry sometimes!) Honestly, I’m glad I made that mistake for two reasons: #1: I’ll always check my meats to make sure I’m writing them down correctly on how to “prep” them and #2: I really wanted Turkey and Noodles and got to use up a bag of Homestyle Noodles that was getting close to it’s expiration date. Bonus! So in the end, after hours of cooking, this is what I ended up with:
40 Mini Beef and Bean Burritos
23 Pizza Burgers
16 Chicken Enchiladas
Extra Chicken Enchilada Mix (Had more than I had tortillas for)
Around 50 Whole Wheat Pancakes
4 Tangy Pulled Pork Sandwiches (Taste of Home Feb/March 2010 Issue)
Enough Mix for 4 more Tangy Pulled Pork Sandwiches (wanted to make sure they froze well in the buns)
2 Turkey and Noodle Entrees
2 – 3/4lb bags of Seasoned Hamburger Meat (for quick tacos – used leftover from Burritos recipe)
2 Bags of Cubed Chicken (to add to pasta dishes)
1 Bag of Roasted Turkey (for hot turkey sandwiches)
3 Italian Beef for Sandwiches (I kept one for us for supper tonight)
Tonight, Nathan and I will make up some Banana Bread and some Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream. I also have ingredients for (but enough energy to make) Hot Rolls Mix and Corn Bread Mix that I can use to make pretzels, Swedish rolls, corn bread and corn dogs. I’ll save that for later in the week.
I know some of you are leery about trying a freezer cooking session because of limited freezer space, but if you choose the right recipe that you can lay out flat and stack, you can actually get a lot of meals right into your freezer about your fridge. I stacked a few of mine to give you an idea:
Just in this limited space, I have 2 Turkey and Noodle Entrees, Mixes for Pulled Pork and Enchiladas (to quickly add to rolls/tortillas), Seasoned Hamburger (to quickly make tacos) and Cubed Chicken/Turkey to add to pasta dishes, sandwiches, salads, etc.
Just these few things can help save you lots of time in the kitchen. Save them for when you know you’ll have a busy day.
I was actually thinking that for my next freezer cooking session, I would “pretend” I only have a freezer above my fridge and see what meals I can come up with to help you all get some of them stacked and save you some time, too.
And now, time to catch up on a couple postings and then relax!! Thanks for letting me share my day with you.
If you are new to the blog, you can check out the other postings I’ve done on the Freezer Cooking February Series that have tips on how to get started on your own freezer cooking session.
2.26.10
Freezer Cooking February: Pot Pies Recipe (Guest Post)
I hope you all are enjoying the Freezer Cooking February Series this month. I have another Guest Post to share with you today. This one is from Cristi of The King’s Court IV:
While I have only been Freezer Cooking for a few months now, I can truly say that it has changed the way things run in my household. Things run so much smoother! On those crazy days where everyone is going everywhere, for me to just pull out something healthy, pre-made and frozen, saves so much time and money. Most of the time when we are in those situations, the easiest thing to do would be to stop at some local fast-food place and grab a bite to eat, oftentimes to be left broke or feeling like that money could have been best spent elsewhere.
Here are some tips that have helped me so far:
* Try to menu plan around freezer cooking so that you make the most of your ingredients and reduce waste. I’m a little bias towards menu-planning anyway because I found myself several times with an abundance of fresh ingredients going bad, or having too much of an item that I only needed a small amount of!
* MAKE A LIST of what you are going to cook! I try to plan my meals around a few key items for that particular day so that way I’m not spending a lot of extra money buying items that I’ll only use once or twice. For example, for one package of blueberries I can make blueberry pancakes to freeze and use the remainder of them in muffins!
* MAKE A LIST of the groceries that you’ll need!! Nothing is worse than getting ready to “do your thing” in the kitchen only to find out that you are missing an ingredient!
* Remove air from freezer bags to reduce freezer burn.
* Allow foods to cool completely prior to packaging and freezing, to reduce freezer burn. There is nothing worse than a sad bag of meatballs to ruin a spaghetti dinner!
* Always label/date your items.
* Although you can keep things frozen for some time (depending on what you are freezing), I typically try to use up my dishes within 2 months.
Pot Pies Recipe:
This is an easy recipe because it is very flexible yet filling!
*You can substitute this recipe with turkey (great around the holidays) or beef. You may also use whatever veggies you have on hand! I always go heavy on the veggies and tend to use at least 1 cup each (or 1 can each depending on the vegetable), which helps me stretch this into 2 batches.
3 cooked chicken breasts*
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
¼ cup chopped celery
¼ cup chopped carrots
¼ cup chopped onions
Salt & Pepper to taste
¼ cup corn
¼ cup snow peas
2 ½ cups chicken stock
¼ cup plus 3 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
¼ cup cornstarch
3 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon chopped rosemary and thyme
Pastry: (if you increase the amount of vegetables, you’ll need additional puff pastry sheets)
1 sheet puff pastry
1 egg
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Break chicken breast (or other meat) apart into small pieces then set aside. Heat a medium size pot over medium high heat and coat with olive oil. Add garlic, shallots, celery and carrots, stir. Add onions, corn and peas. Season with salt and pepper.
Pour in chicken stock and ¼ cup heavy cream. Add unsalted butter and stir. Add pieces of chicken and bring to a boil. Mix cornstarch and water to create thickening agent then pour into the pot. Add chopped rosemary and thyme then stir. Stop here if you would like to freeze this. You can divide this mixture up into freezer bags (2-3) and freeze until ready. Just pull a bag out and thaw in the refrigerator when you are ready!
Simply reheat the mixture in a pot while allowing puff pastry to thaw as directed. Depending on the size baking dish you are using, cut the puff pastry sheet accordingly and set aside. Beat the egg to create an egg wash and set aside. Fill the baking dish with the chicken mixture. Cover with puff pastry and then cut off excess around sides. Take a fork and poke a few holes in top of puff pastry and brush egg wash onto puff pastry. Place in the oven and bake until the crust is golden brown.
Optional- When you are ready to bake, I like to use the aluminum tart pans for this, and I’ll make individual/smaller pies for everyone!
*BONUS- I almost always have leftover scraps due to using 2 sheets/tart pans. So with the leftovers I brush melted butter on them and sprinkle with cinnamon & sugar. Then I’ll make a glaze using powdered sugar and milk to pour over them, yummy!
Cristi
The King’s Court IV
A special thank you to Cristi for taking time to share this guest posting with us! I love her bonus tip on how to reuse those scraps of pastry–waste nothing and get a delicious treat, too!
I have another guest posting to share along with my latest freezer cooking session. So stay tuned!
2.26.10
Cutting Back on Paper Towels
After posting here that I do my best not to use paper towels and that a 12-pack would last us a year, or possibly more, I got several questions of, “How Do You Do It? Especially with two little kids?!”
Let me tell you that I thought that I could never break my “paper towel obsession” (especially after having a second child.) I felt like I spent half my day cleaning up spills and my first instinct was to run into the kitchen and grab a paper towel. Quick. Convenient.—-and yet costly and totally not good for the environment.
I first started with my “Paper Towel Challenge.” I simply put a Post-It note with my starting date on the paper towel roll. Each time I’d want to grab a paper towel, I actually thought twice about it and tried an alternate route. You see, I love challenging myself and my goal was to see how long I could make that one roll of paper towels last. It ended up lasting us 20 days.
This got me to thinking, hey, if I can go 20 days, I can probably just about do away with them completely. So I kept my eyes open for some super great deals on dish cloths in different colors and this is what we use now. I usually have three cloths going: one for floor spills, one for dishes and one for “kid clean-up.” They are real small and don’t add much to our laundry loads so I really don’t use any extra soap/water. I’ve had the cloths for over a year now and they are all still perfectly intact.
So simply put, the way to not use them is to not have them around! Now, I do buy them to keep on hand for our parties and playdates. I don’t expect everyone to quickly learn our “system” and adapt to it. Plus, when you have usually 15 kids in one house, more than one “kid clean-up” cloth is needed!
One question I get sometimes is “What do you do for cooking bacon in the microwave?” We actually use this Presto Microwave Bacon Cooker
Just try the “Paper Towel Challenge” for one month and see if you can cut back on your paper towel usage, too!
Also, if you’re looking to cut some costs in your budget, check out a few of my other postings in the “Cutting Costs” series that I did. I really do need to get a few more added to that series!
2.25.10
Gardening Fun: My Soon To Be Garden
Yes, it may not look like much all covered in snow and dog footprints but this picture will soon (hopefully) turn into an array of beautiful flowers and an abundance of veggies for us.
When I first met Teresa, she was a reader of mine who always sent me her fabulous deal findings. One day I told her that she really should start a blog of her own, as she had this great knack for finding deals. Well, she now has her own blog home at Money Saving Maine-iac. And I’m sooo glad that she took my advice because I always enjoy reading her stories and tips. She has this amazing way of making the outdoors a huge part of her family’s life. I asked her a few months ago if she’d consider taking a newbie under her wing and teaching her the ropes of gardening and she was quick to welcome me in with open arms.
I’m definitely no expert on the subject of gardening. My yard is full of clay soil, to the point that I could take a shovel to our yard and the kids and I could sit and make clay figures on a warm, sunny day! So I know I have quite a bit of work cut out for me. But I’m excited about it and I’ve decided that this is the year it’s going to happen. As a Cubs fan, I’m used to saying, “Maybe Next Year” but that all ends when it comes to the idea of having a bountiful garden.
I’ve mostly just dabbled in tomato plants up to this point, but I did have some luck with jalapeno plants last year. And that’s where most of my luck ended! So Teresa and I are hoping to get a little gardening segment up each Thursday sharing our experiences and all those little gardening things we are enjoying throughout the year.
Teresa found a Hardiness Zone Finder for determining which zone you are in simply by inputting your zipcode. I’m in Zone 5A, as is she! Even just this little bit of information is helpful when it comes to picking out your plants and flowers. It will help you find the ones that have a better success rate of growing and flourishing.
I haven’t decided what all will be in my garden yet, but I do know I’m going to try some seeds this year. I think this will be a fun little activity for me to do with the kids. And with my son’s help, we’ll have a better chance of remembering to water them, as it will be on our daily tasks list.
I’m hoping you’ll enjoy our segments and hopefully, like me, you’ll learn a lot as we go along.
(If you are looking for a fun series to read, check out Teresa’s “Yucky Stuff is the Lucky Stuff.” It’s my fave!)
2.24.10
Freezer Cooking February: Planning and Prep Work
In case you are new to this series, so far I’ve covered a few Freezer Cooking Methods, Resources/Books to consider, Supplies to Have on Hand and Tips on Recipe Choices.
In this segment, I’m going to go over a little bit more on planning, shopping and prep work. I’d done a few freezer cooking sessions where I just jumped right into them and they turned into complete disasters. So now, I spend about an hour prior to my sessions putting together a plan for my cooking day. It may seem a little “Type A” but when you’ve had a few chaotic messes, you’ll be thankful for the times you planned in advance.
At this point, I’ve chosen some recipes that I think I’ll use for my big cooking day. But this doesn’t mean these will be the ones I will definitely proceed with. I write down my recipes and then put them in order of heating element. Crockpot #1, Crockpot #2, Griddle, etc. I do this now because in my frantic rush to put together a session, I’ve actually “double-booked” my crockpots and oven! And this just put extra cooking time into my day (or even caused me to skip a recipe entirely before.)
After it looks like everything is going to work out smooth, I then take it one step further and write down my “End Results – Meals” plugging in Breakfasts, Lunches, Entrees and Snacks/Desserts. One time, I did an entire cooking session and had almost all soups and desserts when I was done! So this is why I do this now. I also make sure and jot down my plans for my meals on cooking day. Several times I’ve forgotten to allow for a lunch/supper on cooking day and had to quickly put together something or wait for one of my meals to finish. (which took away from what I could freeze to help me on a later busy day.) This is what my first list looked like when I was done:
Now that I’m sure of my recipes, I create a shopping list. There are several great spreadsheets that you can use. 30 Day Gourmet
Now before setting off on your shopping trip, I highly recommend that you consider doing the following:
*Cleaning out your fridge & freezer. You’ll need room for all of those groceries! Plus you might be surprised and find that a missing ingredient truly was hiding in there.
*If you find you have a lot of veggies on your list to chop, you might want to consider grabbing some frozen ones to speed up the process. One I love to get is chopped onions. Keeps my from crying on freezer cooking day!
On the last list that I make, I create my “Cooking Agenda.” I divide this into two areas: Prep Work and Cooking Day. There are several things that I can get done the day before my big cooking session. Prep Work items might include:
*Prior to starting, cleaning all counter tops, emptying the dishwasher and washing any lingering dirty dishes.
*Chopping Veggies that won’t wilt or turn brown
*Browning meats, such as turkey or hamburger
*Cooking Poultry and chopping them into correct sizes, such as strips or cubes, etc.
*Soaking Beans
*Preparing Marinades
*Cooking Pastas (I haven’t tried this yet.)
(These items, except for the beans, would go in the fridge until you need them the next day.)
It’s very important that if you are planning on cooking things such as whole chickens or turkeys that you plan on that extra day or so for them to thaw. You don’t want your day to be ruined by having a turkey that’s still frozen solid!
Now for my “Cooking Day” part of the list, I write up all of my tasks that I won’t complete during my Prep Work. I try to put them in order of how I want to complete them. This task is a good one to complete because sometimes, it’s just not obvious on how much you are about to undertake until it’s all listed. You might be surprised to realize you really planned on taking on too much for a one/two day cooking session. This is what my completed list for that one looked like:
I usually try to complete all of these before I do my shopping trip. That way, I can rearrange my game plan without causing an extra grocery trip or digging any deeper into my grocery budget if I find my original plan wasn’t going to work.
Yes, it all might seem a little extreme but when your cooking day goes a little smoother and you find that you are getting so many meals completed in one day, you’ll be patting yourself on the back for taking a little time to plan ahead – especially weeks later when you get to have those quick meals instead of spending hours in the kitchen!
At this point, I’ve shared with you all the information that you need up until the big cooking day. On cooking day, it all comes down to a little juggling act and hopefully you’ve planned it all out well so it will go smooth. Don’t forget to get plenty of sleep the night before, wear comfortable shoes the day of and drink plenty of water to keep yourself hydrated! It really is like a work-out in your own kitchen!
Also, I found another resource that I think might help those of you that have never tried a cooking session before. It’s called Frozen Assets: Lite and Easy.
I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I’ll be able to get in a successful freezer cooking session this weekend that I can share with you. I also have some more guest posts to share with you, as well. So stay tuned!
2.19.10
Freezer Cooking February: Cooking Failures and Chili Recipe (Guest Post)
I hope that you are all enjoying the Freezer Cooking February series. Today, I have another Guest Post, this time from Ann of 3 Girls and a Pug. She shares some Freezer Cooking Failures along with a great Chili Recipe. Take it away, Ann:
Freezer Bombs: Tips for Tasting Success With Freezer Meals
By Ann Springer (www.3girlsandapug.com)
From the second I turned on the “Baby Songs” DVD for my two toddler daughters – ages 18 months and 2 ½ at the time – I knew I had exactly 28 minutes to whip up a good meal. No, I wasn’t trying to impress Rachael Ray. Rather, I knew I had a small window of time before the clock figuratively struck midnight and I would again struggle to juggle cooking with one baby on my hip and the other one at my feet crying.
So, when I heard about the concept of freezer-meal cooking I couldn’t wait to test out this ingeniously efficient cooking method in my own kitchen. I made out my menu plan. I carefully crafted my shopping list and tied on my apron. Part way through the process, I decided I was a genius and I declared myself Best Homemaker Ever. Here I was preparing a month’s worth of meals so I could have more time to spend with my children, all while saving money on my food budget.
Later, when one of my many prepared freezer meals for the month thawed, so did my 15 minutes of fame. I lifted open the carefully wrapped tinfoil expecting to find delicious homemade chicken pot pie; instead I discovered a soupy, gray-colored mess. Words can’t describe the disgusting, watery meal before my eyes that I knew I could never allow to pass my lips.
I feared more disasters—like the chicken pot pie—were carefully sealed and labeled in my fridge like mini-bombs ready to ruin my night. Then I relaxed and realized that like all other failures in life, this was a learning experience. It wasn’t the end of a great relationship—it was merely a setback. It also meant we were ordering take out (which isn’t exactly a horrible end to a day either).
With that learning experience behind me, here are three tips from me, a self-proclaimed, freezer meal-diehard.
1. Figure out the quirks. - I pushed ahead despite my failures and discovered some things don’t freeze well – particularly raw items like potatoes, dough toppings, and items with cooked rice. Some sauces separate when frozen, too. I realized that this was just a matter of trial and error, with successes for some recipes and others I wouldn’t feed to the dog.
2. Be flexible. - Some recipes could be made up partially, frozen, defrosted, and then finished up the day we ate them. For example, I make one of my mom’s recipes that requires a mashed potato topping. (Mashed potatoes don’t freeze well.) I make the rest of the casserole and freeze it. On the day we eat it I add the potato topping while the casserole heats up. While this does take a bit more time it still saved a lot of time and money in the long run. It’s worth it if it’s a meal your family adores and loves.
3. Take breaks from the ritual. – It does take careful planning and a good chunk of time to commit to creating freezer meals, so it’s good to take a break from it for periods of time. As my kids have grown I’ve discovered freezer meals all over again. I’m able to involve the kids in the cooking process now and there’s nothing better than heating something yummy and healthy up after a long afternoon of soccer practice and piano lessons.
Below I share one of my favorite freezer meals. This meal makes me feel like I’m back in the running again for some sort of mommy accolades. It’s healthy, cheap, and easy to make, so you can’t go wrong.
Chili
1 package of dried beans (15-bean soup mix)
1 pound of ground meat (Turkey is the leanest. Or you can omit the meat if you prefer a vegetarian chili.)
1 medium onion
1 tablespoon garlic
1 small container of fresh salsa (from the refrigerated section)
1 package taco seasoning mix (or 3 tbsp. from a jar)
2 packages ranch dressing Mix
1 small can of corn, drained
1-2 cups of water
1-2 tablespoons of Tapatio or Tabasco hot sauce
1. Soak 1 package of beans overnight. Fill water ¾ of the way full in a large bowl. The beans should swell up and absorb a portion of the water.
2. Brown onion and garlic with meat.
3. Drain the beans and put them in a crock pot with the meat.
4. Add the rest of the ingredients in and stir together.
5. Cook on high for 4 to 6 hours or on low on the stove top for 1 to 2 hours.
Freeze the remainder into serving size, plastic re-sealable bags for lunch, campouts, or for a night when you’re too busy to cook a full meal.
Ann Springer is a published author of many magazine articles. Someday her tombstone will read, “Killer of Plants,” because in her house if you don’t bark or cry you just don’t get fed.
I had to laugh at her closing. I’ve given up on house plants myself right now because I can’t seem to take on the simple task of watering them regularly. Thank you, Ann, for sharing your tips and recipe with us! Make sure you check out her blog at 3 Girls and a Pug. (She has the cutest picture of her girls and pug together!) And stay tuned as I have the next installment of how to get started on freezer cooking coming up soon!
2.15.10
Freezer Cooking February: Supplies & Recipe Choices
In my last segment, I talked about two of the methods of freezer cooking along with some book resources to check out for potential recipes. If you missed it, you can read it HERE.
This time, I want to get into how to get started on a long-cooking session and some of the things you’ll want to have in place. One of the worst things you can do is to jump right into it without any planning. Without proper planning, you’ll be going in seven different directions, the sessions will take longer than they should and you’ll possibly not finish your goals. There are basically four stages to freezer cooking: Plan, Shop, Prep and Cook. This segment’s focus is going to be on part of the planning process.
Supplies You’ll Need
Now while I try to keep up with dishes as I cook, when it comes to long freezer cooking sessions, you might just be better off having some spare kitchen equipment handy. When I first started, I had only one set of measuring cups and spoons and it was an absolute nightmare. I spent so much time washing and rewashing that I really lost some time-saving ground throughout the day. Here are a few items that I recommend you have:
Multiple Measuring Cup Sets
Multiple Measuring Spoons
Multiple Cutting Boards–at least one for raw meat and one for veggies
Slotted Spoons
Whisks, Tongs, Spatulas
Strainer/Colander
Sharp Pairing Knives
Glass Dishes, if freezing casseroles
Several Cookie Sheets
Oven Mitts/Pot Holders
Sauce Pans/Skillets, preferably at least one with a lid
Some type of Roasting Pan or equivalent
Crockpot for slow-cooker recipes
Storage Containers – Ziploc, Food Saver, etc.
Sharpie Marker for dating all your food
Extra Kitchen Timers, if you don’t have a few already (Microwave, Oven)
Most of these items you probably have on hand. And if you don’t, I’m not recommending that you rush out and buy up everything in one shopping spree if you don’t have it. But as you see things on a good deal, add it to your collection to help you on future sessions. The multiple measuring cups and spoons are the ones I use the most and you can pick those up at most dollar stores if you need extras.
Recipe Choices & Planning Ahead
Everyone is different in how they plan their sessions. Like I said earlier, I usually just double recipes lately. But when I do decide to get in a freezer cooking session, I usually try to utilize every heating element I have, such as Crockpot, Stovetop, Griddle, Bread Machine and Oven. I have found that this is the best way for me to get the most recipes done in a shorter time. So, this is how I’ll choose my recipes, too, picking one for each area.
Since the Crockpot ones take the longest, I’ll start there. Then move on to the Bread Machine. Followed by the Oven, Griddle and Stovetop. I guess I just started doing it this way because I got tired of waiting for one recipe to finish before I could start the next. I can have a soup going in the crockpot, bread in the bread machine, a casserole dish on the stovetop, a turkey/chicken cooking in the oven while I’m making pancakes on the griddle. Yes, multi-tasking is key to getting it all done! During downtimes, I’ll bag/mark the previous recipe or make up mixes, such as a pancake mix, etc. until I can proceed with another oven or stovetop recipe.
When I go to choose my recipes, I keep in mind that I’d like to use all of these elements and pick them accordingly. Also, I try to find recipes that use similar ingredients but will still taste unique. For example, if I’m buying a bag of carrots, maybe I’ll make a soup in the crockpot and then a potpie in the oven and use up as many carrots as I can. This also comes in handy during “prep time” when I can peel and chop carrots all at once and have ingredients set to go for multiple recipes. The same goes for meats. For example, if you have a lot of chicken on hand, you can cook up several chicken pieces at once and then use them in various recipes. You can even cook some chicken strips/cubes to freeze separately to have on hand to throw into pastas, salads or casseroles.
The best way to make the most of your money is to try to make recipes around what you already have on-hand along with what’s on sale for that week. Now if you plan your session weeks in advance, you can keep your eye out for deals to fulfill those recipes that you want, too. Also, by using what you have on hand will help to free up some of the extra freezer space that you may need. You may find out that several of your current recipes will even freeze well. So don’t just stick to recipe books when making your choices.
I highly recommend that before you start a long freezer cooking session, that you test out your recipes first. Can you imagine making 5 meals of something you find out later that you don’t even like? When it comes time to do your first large session, you’ll still want to start yourself off with just a few recipes until you get the hang of everything. I took on too much my first time around and had to force myself into a second long cooking day to finish. Timing is everything so allow yourself a chance to learn how to time things properly.
Another great way to get several meals in a short session is to swap with friends. You can eat make one or two meals with enough food for each participant and then swap. This is a great way to try out and learn new recipes, too!
So up to this point, you have heard about the two methods you can choose from, resources to find recipes, supplies you’ll want to try to have on hand and what to consider when picking your recipe choices. Next time, I’ll talk about getting your shopping trip planned and prep work you’ll want to do before the big cooking day. So, stay tuned!
2.13.10
Read With Us: My February Pick
It was so hard deciding which book to pick to read for February. After going through about 10 choices, I decided to pick the book Dear John, by Nicholas Sparks for a few reasons.
I’ve been very happy with several of movies based on books by Nicholas Sparks, such as A Walk to Remember
So I thought that I’d give this new book a chance to see if it compares. I hope that you also have found a great pick for your February book that you are going to read.
Stay tuned as I’ll be doing a giveaway for a few copies of Dear John
NOTE: Dear John
2.12.10
Freezer Cooking February: Tips and Quiche in a Bag Recipe (Guest Post)
This is a guest post from my friend, Jenn of Super Jenn and Wii Mommies.
I really discovered the art of freezer meals after I got pregnant with my second child. I knew what I was in for this time around (or so I thought!) and I wanted to be prepared. I cooked and I froze…from casseroles to cookies, cakes and bread I was SURE to be prepared! Let’s suffice it to say I learned a LOT about how to, and how NOT to freeze food for my family that year.
Now I freeze food on a fairly regular basis. Meals that prepare a 9 x 13 casserole can most often be split into two servings and one saved for later, cookie dough in the freezer will save ANY rainy day in a house full of toddlers and breakfast on the go is super easy when you can pull muffins or waffles out of the freezer. I’m a big fan of sharing food with my pregnant and “new mom” friends…having a small stock pile in the freezer can make that any easy way for me to help them out as well.
Here are a couple of tips I picked up in my experimenting:
- “Flash Freeze” items that might stick together like cookie dough. Put them on a lined cookie sheet in the freezer for 8-12 hours uncovered then move them into your storage container or freezer bag. This way they won’t stick together and you can still avoid freezer burn.
- Whenever possible freezer items flat. Soups and stews can be frozen in a bag lying flat on a cookie sheet then stacked later. This makes them easier to store in your freezer and quicker to thaw when you are ready to use them. (This works for breast milk, too!)
- Always wrap your food in waxed paper or cling wrap first…then tin foil. I found out the hard way that if you put the foil on first you will have one heck of a time unwrapping it later!
- When possible, add items like cheese and sauce when you take the food out to prepare it. This just helps your meal to retain its texture a little more.
- I like to prepare meals in a glass square pan lined with plastic wrap. I fill the pan as I would if I were baking it then “flash freeze” it for 8-12 hours. Wrap it up the plastic wrap, then remove it from the pan and wrap it in foil and stick it in a gallon freezer bag and label with cooking directions. When I’m ready to prepare it I take it out and stick it back in the square glass pan. This saves me from losing my dishes to the freezer.
This is my newest favorite freezer recipe: Quiche in a Bag! This is also a great recipe to use when you are taking meals to others because it is a little more creative than your average pasta or chicken dish! It is so variable, it can be vegetarian, dairy-free and gluten free! We’ve made a few adjustments but the original recipe is from The Freezer Cooking Manual
Photo Courtesy of TheKitchn.com
Quiche in a Bag
1 c. Cooked meat (any meat diced or browned and crumbled)
3/4 c. Vegetable (any raw, blanched; thawed frozen; or canned, drained)
1 c. shredded cheese (you can exclude this or just add feta)
1/4 c. diced onion
1 c. milk (can sub dry milk and water, soy milk or rice milk)
4 eggs
1/8 t. Tabasco Sauce
1/2 c. flour (may substitute rice flour)
2 t. baking powder
Combine ingredients through Tabasco Sauce. Just throw it all in a gallon ziplock bag. Mix dry ingredients and add them to the bag. Seal bag. Squish to mix.
Seal, label and freeze. This works best if you freeze it flat on a cookie sheet first and then stack like I mentioned above.
To serve, thaw completely (take it out in the a.m. for supper). Shake and squish bag well. Pour into a spray-treated pan. (This is a crust=less quiche!) Sprinkle with paprika if desired. Bake at 375 for about 40 minutes until lightly browned on top and well set in the center. Cool about 5 minutes. If you are looking for a quicker cooking time you can make these in sprayed muffin or mini muffin tins as well.
This Guest Post is by Jenn of Super Jenn and one of the founders of the Wii Mommies. She is the sweetest person and a very good friend of mine. I hope you enjoy this recipe and tips she has shared. Thank you so much for your help, tips and recipe, Jenn!
Stay tuned for more recipes and info on how to get started on Freezer Cooking! And in case you missed it, you can read my first posting on Freezer Cooking Methods and Resources.
