No one can say we are suffering around here while using things up! Yesterday, Rob cooked one of our turkeys on the barbecue. It was smoked for a few hours, then the heat was turned up and it was finished. We are going to have quite a few friends and family coming over this weekend to help us get the place ready to list next Thursday. This seemed like the easiest way to make a lot of good food for the weekend. I’m going to take all of the meat off the bones this morning, and send the bones home with a friend, since I am too busy to deal with them today. Then, I will warm the meat up each day.
I found a small bag of brown rice on the shelf. It had been there for a while and had been a promotion at Safeway–buy some tortillas and get the rice for free. I cooked the entire bag. I also cooked some lentils. I found a recipe for a brown rice/lentil salad that I will have the 4H kids make today with part of the rice and lentils. I will make that salad again to have on hand for the weekend, saving both time and money.
The other foods that I used up this week were mainly the normal ones we use each week, such as lots of home-canned fruit, green beans, tomato products, etc.
I did use a little jar of horseradish sauce on a roast. It sounds strange, but years ago I found a recipe where you put the roast into the crock pot and cover the top with an entire tiny, little jar of horseradish sauce, then cook all day. Somehow, the horseradish mellows out in the process and it is not as overwhelming as I thought it would be the first time I made it. It came out great. I used a bunch of carrots, too, cooked along with the roast. I am getting to the bottom of the 10 lb. bag I bought over a month ago at Costco. Right now, our meals are simple, due to the many, many hours we are using on the house, so that was it that day, both for lunch (for me) and dinner (for all of us)–roast and carrots. There is always fruit to fill in with if someone is hungrier than that. There is still some roast left and I will probably grind it up in the food processor and use it for sandwiches, mixed with mayo and relish.
I hope you were able to get into your cupboards and freezers and find some good treasures to use up this week as well! Food storage is like money in the bank as long as you remember to “withdraw” it before it goes bad:)
I LOVE your idea of making a big turkey to serve all those people over the next week. Such an easy way to serve inexpensive meat. I’d put out some buns and some condiments so they can make their own sandwiches! Add a simple salad to go with it and you’ve got a lovely, simple meal. Of course, turkey noodle soup would also be pretty quick to put together as well, if a hot meal is in order.
You have so inspired me with this project. I have been able to clean up a lot of food over the last couple of months. Last week I made cream of cauliflower and cheese soup with some frozen cauliflower from 2014. I also used some frozen applesauce from 2014, blended with an orange that was too soft to eat fresh, and made more fruit leather in the dehydrator. This week I used another expired cake mix, a butter pecan flavour to which I added maple syrup, then baked into cupcakes. They were a HUGE hit with everyone. Only one more expired cake mix to go, then I can watch the sales for some more. I like having them in the pantry for making birthday cakes and they are easy to make if my daughter takes a notion she want to try baking something (rare, but still handy to have). Anyways, thank you so much for your inspiration and good luck with finishing all your moving chores this week!!!!
Thanks, Rhonda. It’s nice to know that other people are getting some things cleaned out as well. It is going to feel good to have fresh things for me, as well. As for the turkey–I’m just glad I have it! I so appreciate all the help I’m getting from these people, I want to feel them well. The lentil/rice salad turned out really good at 4H today, so I’ll make that for everyone tomorrow, too.