My kitchen is an average one. I like to think of it as a homey sort of room. No fancy countertops, but lots of drawers.
They’re packed with utensils, necessary equipment (in my mind at least!). I’m fortunate. My dearly beloved guy doesn’t know much about this food production area, but he supports all my efforts in it. Some would say there is a bit of an ulterior motive in this, but we both feel quite okay about it. |
One of the best investments I’ve ever made is the purchase of an upright freezer. It’s too big to have a place in the kitchen, but has been perfectly happy in the garage. Actually, it’s about 20 years old, but still behaves just as it should.
The biggest thing to remember about freezing leftovers and kitchen scraps is to exclude air. If you don’t you will get freezer burn, which really downgrades the quality of your food. So you can use freezer bags for things like sauces and soups, plus prepared veggies and fruits, but meats and fish do best if you vacuum seal them. So yeah, you have to save your money to buy a vacuum sealer! But mine again is old, still works like a charm.
Make your own convenience foods. I buy a bag of onions, and chop them all at one time in my food processor. Pack them in freezer bags, and they’re ready to go when I want to cook a meal. Same with peppers. No blanching required for these two items. Hint here: to get just the quantity you want, spread them out on a cookie sheet before you freeze them, then they don’t freeze into a block of ice in the freezer!
Thaw the night before. You’re always eating good food.
You can freeze just about anything! Freeze the kitchen scraps over a week, you can then make a wonderful stock for soup.10 cups! So much better than buying stock. Or bought soup. You know exactly what goes into your food.
Be adventurous. Scraps, leftovers, herbs, veggies, fruit, pastry, dairy, nuts, you name it, you can quite possibly successfully freeze it! Science in the kitchen, and your skills get better and better. So does your satisfaction level.
What do you freeze? Let us know in the comments below!
Amaryllis
I will keep the big bulb in its pot after it finishes flowering. By that time it will have sent out some leaves to make food for the next year, so it will be cared for, watered and fertilized during spring and summer.
After summer watering stops, and it is just kept in a cool place until the bulb goes dormant. After 2-5 months it will start growing again. At this point water sparingly, as you enjoy seeing a daily miracle.
It truly is the gift that keeps on giving, so you can help someone make a lovely collection of these undemanding beauties.