Real Food Challenge on CNN!!!!

[chickencoop31320]

Quote:
Agreed

 

[PaulaJoAnne]

Have you ever tried cooking once a month?
Plan out 4 weeks of meals that all will enjoy, make the shopping list, shop Friday evening.
Then cook Saturday and SUnday if need be.
Freeze in meal portions.
THen all you have to do for four weeks, is pull the next days meals out the night before, and each day, prep any fresh vege you may need.

I have a trick for frozen veges.
I like buying the 5 pound bags to save money.
Boil a post of water, and right before you eat, dump them in.
It only takes 2-3 minutes for the veges to heat thru. Drain them and eat. They will still be a bit crispy.

Also, make use of crockpots. They can be used for once a month cooking.

ETA: I would be more then willing to help you figure out a way to do it!

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[Tala]

Quote:
Well every time I use the crock pot I burn stuff. Even if I set it on "keep warm" then leave for work for 10 hours it's still burnt on the bottom. Then I spend 2 weeks trying to get out of cleaning the darn thing since it's now all crusted over

I also don't get regular weekends so I have no idea how to shop Friday night and cook all Sat/Sun. For example this week I'm off on Monday, Thursday and Saturday.....

I have enough trouble thinking up 2 week's worth of meals coz I only shop on paydays. We have a lot of the same stuff twice as it is.

I have no idea what a "meal portion" is because I fix a family sized cassarole and it's gone by the next day. DH will eat about 4 servings himself (by the time he packs a lunch for work) and then munch on the leftovers all day long.

I really am open to figuing out a solution, but lets face it, my mom wasn't that great of a teacher and my grandma who did cook had the advantage of being a stay-at-home-housewife with grown kids and plenty of time to cook. I can't find the time to work, then build chicken coops and side projects, and take care of all the animals, and THEN spend hours in the kitchen too. I just MIGHT want to have a little R&R on my day off

ETA: I'm also puzzled by what people store food in for the month-long freezer thing. I raw feed my dogs and use Mason jars for their meat, but uh, I just don't see that working out for human food. I try to avoid microwaving in plastics so reheating would be a thing. Really I avoid the microwave entirely for the main part, but it exists.
We have a lot of Pyrex but they aren't big enough to freeze much in. Most of my baking dishes don't have a lid that you could use to keep the freezerburn ...

I never have been able to figure out how to freeze mass quantities of stuff without using plastic and without investing a bajillion dollars into new super-large Pyrex.

 

[PaulaJoAnne]

Time for a new crockpot

That one sounds like its not working correctly.

This sadly is the situation in most households today.
Mom never learned to cook well, and did not teach daughter to cook either.

You don't happen to have a Super Suppers near you?
They provide everything, including the cleanup, for once per week cooking.
Prices seem reasonable as well.
All you do is go in for a couple of hours, prep your meals, and go home.

One thing that I will ask very tenativly. Smack me if its out of line.
Is it costing your family more to have you work outside the home? And by more, I mean actual cash.

Quote:
Well every time I use the crock pot I burn stuff. Even if I set it on "keep warm" then leave for work for 10 hours it's still burnt on the bottom. Then I spend 2 weeks trying to get out of cleaning the darn thing since it's now all crusted over

I also don't get regular weekends so I have no idea how to shop Friday night and cook all Sat/Sun. For example this week I'm off on Monday, Thursday and Saturday.....

I have enough trouble thinking up 2 week's worth of meals coz I only shop on paydays. We have a lot of the same stuff twice as it is.

I have no idea what a "meal portion" is because I fix a family sized cassarole and it's gone by the next day. DH will eat about 4 servings himself (by the time he packs a lunch for work) and then munch on the leftovers all day long.

I really am open to figuing out a solution, but lets face it, my mom wasn't that great of a teacher and my grandma who did cook had the advantage of being a stay-at-home-housewife with grown kids and plenty of time to cook. I can't find the time to work, then build chicken coops and side projects, and take care of all the animals, and THEN spend hours in the kitchen too. I just MIGHT want to have a little R&R on my day off

 

[Tala]

Quote:
No it's helping us. I was unemployed for most of 2009 really. It SUCKED majorly.
I make almost as much as DH does, plus I bring home cash tips every night.
I don't think DH likes it when I "get" to stay at home and he "has" to work. I think it's really stressful on him knowing that if he got written up for something, it could mean losing the only source of income. The pressure is not so bad if we're both working. The sad fact of life is that I can cook and keep house till the cow's come home we still got a mortgage payment.

I don't mind working (most of the time) but it really does put me in a TIME CRUNCH though.

 

[PaulaJoAnne]

Yes, mortgages.....yuck!
we are dreaming more and more seriously about getting off grid.
Its a huge process, but steps have been taken here to eliminate every possible bill we can.
We heat with wood, and I am really hoping we can get a proper root cellar with easy access from the kitchen put in this summer.
Being able to turn off the fridge would be awesome!
Then there is the wood cookstove.......

I have determined the garden will be all root vegs and cabbage, and tires for beans and squash.
We might be able to manage eliminate 85% of our grocery bill.
We already hunt and fish.
THis way we can get that house payment doen sooner then ever.
It scares me to see most of our world dependant on everyone else for income and food.
What happens when job loss is permanent?

Anyways, not trying to push anything. I just get all fired up when I see what industrialization has wreaked on our world.

Quote:
No it's helping us. I was unemployed for most of 2009 really. It SUCKED majorly.
I make almost as much as DH does, plus I bring home cash tips every night.
I don't think DH likes it when I "get" to stay at home and he "has" to work. I think it's really stressful on him knowing that if he got written up for something, it could mean losing the only source of income. The pressure is not so bad if we're both working. The sad fact of life is that I can cook and keep house till the cow's come home we still got a mortgage payment.

I don't mind working (most of the time) but it really does put me in a TIME CRUNCH though.