Flash Freeze It

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I'm going to take a leap here and assume you enjoy saving both time and money. Flash freezing will help you accomplish both of those with little effort.

The money saving comes from stocking up when fresh items such as onion, potato, celery, carrot, blueberry, grape...etc are on sale. The time saving comes from having items cut and ready to use while cooking.

Let's use celery as an example. When it's on sale, I stock up and take advantage of the deal. I wash it and cut it into pieces I will use in soups and such. What then needs to be done is to line a cookie sheet with parchment paper, lay the celery pieces out in a single layer, pop the cookie sheet in the freezer for about an hour and presto! You have just done a flash freeze. Label quart size freezer bags with the contents and date. Put the frozen celery in the bag and toss it back into the freezer for later use. When you need some celery for a dish, pull the desired amount out of the bag. The reason for the flash freeze is to keep you from having one big frozen clump of celery in the bag.

I especially like to do this with onions so I get all the crying out of the way at one time.

Grapes and blueberries are also great for flash freezing. They can then be eaten either frozen or thawed. I do want to caution you though, don't thaw out a large amount at one time. Once thawed, the grapes need to be eaten in a relatively short amount of time or they tend to get a little mush factor going.

Watch those sale fliers for great deals, stock up and save yourself both money and time in the long-run.

Apple of a Day

Apples, apples, everywhere are apples! At least, that's how it was in my kitchen yesterday...and I enjoyed every minute of it.

My dear friend, Alicia, came over yesterday for a lesson in canning. When we talked about getting together, I don't think she really had any idea what she was getting herself into. She was a trooper though. I showed her what to do and she put up 13 quarts of applesauce, filled the dehydrator, made three batches for leathers AND made her very first pie! I'm sure she slept well last night.

Providing for our own needs is becoming a lost art. It's wonderful to see someone get excited about it. Alicia has also re-newed my interest in it. I've been wanting to teach myself to can meat and soups the last couple of winters, I just haven't seemed to get it done. Now though, I have inspiration! Once I learn, then I will teach this to Alicia also. I guess with only having biological sons, I haven't had a daughter at my side to teach these skills to.

If canning/preserving is something you are interested in but don't have anyone to teach you, don't despair! I didn't either. I purchased Ball's Blue Book of Canning at Wal-Mart, watched yard sales for supplies, used the internet alot, and just learned my way through it.

So, dear reader, get out and get yourself some fresh fruit and veggies and preserve away!

Sunday coupon fun

I've gotten back into the whole coupon thing again. I go in spurts with it. Right now I'm really enjoying it. There are a group of us ladies that get together once a month after church to swap our coupons (q's). It's a great time of fellowship as well as helping one another with our q's and our tips for savings.

Sunday is an exciting time for me! I cut out my q's from the Sunday papers and also from my favorite online spots. I then sit with my pen and circle what I want from the sale ads (comps). The real joy for me comes when I can use both comps and q's at the same time! Oh what happiness I feel! I compile my shopping list in my notebook, writing out my comps by store, noting any q's to go with them. Then I list just the q's that I need to use up before they expire. I take all this with me to Wal-Mart as they honor competitors ads. It saves me the 30 mile drive to all the other stores.

Now the REAL fun begins. I do my shopping, making sure to keep my comps seperate from the rest of my shopping, this makes check out easier. I load all my comps at the check out first, giving the cashier the price I will be paying for that item. The cashiers appriciate when this process is well organized. Also, by being organized, it looks as if I know what I am doing and very seldom am I ever questioned. When everything is rung, I then hand my q's and watch the register to make sure they are rung correctly.

This whole process is so very enjoyable to me! What is even more enjoyable is putting these items in my pantry. I can stand back and look at all savings sitting on the shelves.

I am also careful not to waste any q's. I take my unwanted q's to the swap. What is not used there or has expired is sent to a woman who sends them over-seas for our military families to use.