Last week, I picked several recipes from the current Taste of Home magazine. I made substitutions according to ingredients I had, and cooked happily away. Soon, I realized, there was much too much food in the refrigerator, and I stopped cooking. Leftover time!
On Wednesday, I made the Slow Cooker Beef Tostadas on page 33. I used frozen peppers I had from last summer’s garden instead of what they called for, and then added a jar of my Salsa Verde.
I just grabbed a package of round steak from the freezer, and did not pay any attention to how much was in the package. There were 3 nice-sized pieces of meat. So, Wednesday night, while I finished my last lesson, they ate the meat as tacos. I ate taco salad with the meat in the van on the way to church. We again ate tacos over the weekend, and again, last night for dinner. Today, I took the rest of the meat/sauce and put some black beans and tomatoes with it and we will have taco soup for dinner. I sure hope that finishes it off! Wow, I got a lot of mileage from that.
Friday, there were several appointments I had to do with my kids, and went shopping in the middle. The last one was Patsy’s caseworker, who, through no fault of her own, got involved with another case. So, after calling, she ended up coming late. She did not leave until 5:35. I had to be in a near-by town by 6 to get ready for my piano recital. Yikes! So, no one got dinner that night, for the first time I can ever remember. Surprisingly, no one died or even thought they were going to. Afterwards, we grabbed this and that to eat and went to bed.
This week, I am home more than normal, but am packing up. I hope to do simple meals based on things I want to use up.
Tuesday: Black bean taco soup (using the last 2 cans of black beans and leftover meat) French bread I got on clearance a while back.
I am packing a lunch with tuna sandwiches, celery sticks, cut up apples and drinks. I am going to the used home-school book store to turn in the rest of my un-needed books. What they don’t want I will donate. I plan to get a Biology book for Ja’Ana for next year in exchange.
Wednesday:
Lunch: My aunt will be here helping. We will have salad, and leftover soup.
Dinner: Turkey rice soup in crock pot. We will be busy all day, packing, and doing school with Ja’Ana, and taking a load to the storage unit.
Thursday: Lunch: Pack a lunch. We have to be gone for the appraisal during the lunch hour.
Dinner: Leftovers or sandwiches after dance class. OR: Pull something from the freezer that looks easy to cook, or off the shelf (such as a can of soup)
Friday: Lunch: Soup or quesidillas
Dinner: Barbecued chicken, potatoes, green beans
Saturday: Pack lunch: We plan to take a load to my sister’s, till in the morning, and work in the garden in the afternoon.
Dinner: Rob will barbecue pork chops. Frozen veggies, potatoes
Sunday: We will go out for lunch for Mother’s day, and eat leftovers for dinner.
Definitely going to have too try that beef tostados recipe…sounds delicious! Thanks for renewing my love of Taste of Home recipes.
We tried the Mandarin pork stiry fry last week, and everyone enjoyed it.
Hope the packing and appraisal goes well. Glad that you will have a garden this summer too.
Happy Mother’s Day!
Thank you! I’m glad to hear the Mandarin stir fry is good–I haven’t gotten around to that one yet. Happy Mother’s Day, to you, too.
Menu looks awesome!!
Thanks! I’m just waiting for 2 to return home so we can eat the taco soup! Rob went to get Lovana from work:)
We were out all day. Grabbed a rotisserie chicken and headed home with it. Quick and easy!
Crock pot for us tonight!
Used mine yesterday. Hehehe
I stopped to get a small piece of meat to cook in the crock pot yesterday and all the pieces were so big and so expensive. I thought about asking the butcher to cut a piece in thirds for me but I didn’t feel like waiting around while he was busy with someone else. So I took a little bit of chicken I had in the fridge and cut it up and made chicken salad but I didn’t put enough seasoning in it. Oh well, it was good enough and filling and I will use the last little bit of chicken and doctor it up more. It is hard cooking for one. I don’t mind left overs for a day or two, in fact that is pretty good, but I get enough leftovers for a week and that is a little much!
Barbara,
I have to say that cooking too much is almost always a problem for me, even though we only have 5 of us at home now. There was a time where I was cooking for 11 every day–we were in a multi-generational living situation, and Rob and I had quite a few children at home at the time, plus the grandmas, etc. At that time we used to say “there’s no bad food decision.” No matter what we cooked, it was eaten quickly–everyone only needed to take a small portion and it was gone.
Now it’s a different story. I can’t even imagine what it will be like to cook for 1 or even 2. As it is my freezer is full of little bits of this and that! When I was younger I always saw my mom slip little cottage cheese cartons of leftovers to older ladies (usually those that lived alone) for their freezers and wondered why they would want our leftovers. Now, I get it!
Good luck on finishing up that chicken in a way that tastes terrific.