Chili is in the jars toward the front. Beef-vegetable soup is in the wide-mouth jars. Dijon chicken is in the plastic freezer container (my glass ones are still in a box!). I have a couple of ham bones waiting to be used in some bean soup. Can you tell I love soup?
Last Thursday, Kathy mentioned her Aunt Shirley’s canning record for 1935 on her Homestead Happenings blog. As I was reading it, I was feeling a bit wistful thinking about all of the canned peaches and pears my mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother would can every summer. There was something nice about going to the pantry in the middle of winter and pulling out those quart-sized jars.
Perhaps I’m feeling a bit overly-wistful because I’m still in the process of rebuilding my food supply. I didn’t realize how much I relied on my well-stocked freezer and pantry until after the move. I couldn’t just reach into my freezer and pull out a homemade “planned over” frozen dinner to reheat in the middle of the week. And after forgetting to buy it for the past month every time I went to the grocery store, ketchup finally made it home with me this past weekend!
My “frozen larder” (aka the freezer) has started filling up again. Last week, the leftover dijon chicken went into a plastic freezer box to be enjoyed in the future. I made some beef-vegetable soup over the dreary weekend and filled 1-pint jars with it to put into the freezer (I find the wide-mouth ones are better than the “jelly” ones but I use both kinds). I made chili last night and three pint-sized jars joined the soup and the chicken.
One of the things I love about filling my freezer with my leftovers is that I essentially only need to plan meals for half of the month. The second half of the month is just a repeat of the first half. And, since most recipes serve six and there are only two of us, each recipe will make three meals. Eventually, I only need to buy food for a few nights each week because I can pull the rest from the freezer.
During the two months where neither of us had the tools to cook meals, we relied on either store-bought frozen meals (me) or take-out (him). Last night we both agreed that it is nice being able to have home-cooked meals again. I am looking forward to having a well-stocked frozen larder again!
I am so glad you got your “homemaking mojo” back again with the return to some sort of normal. It is hard to be disrupted from the things one is used to doing. Hurrah! for easy meal planning & the ability to utilize wisely one’s resources.
I just finished up last week’s lentil-barley stew that served us for a couple of evening meals & lunch for me now that I’m home at that time.
I wouldn’t say I have my “homemaking mojo” back completely, yet, but I am seeing light at the end of the tunnel!
As I was leaving the house, I realized that I had forgotten to make my lunch. It was nice to just be able to reach in and grab one of the jars of chili. I keep a nice bowl and placemat in my office. There was a couple of envious looks in the break room while I was zapping my chili in my nice bowl!
Lentil-barley stew sounds sooooo good!
Thanks for the mention, Dr. J. You’d be surprised (or maybe you wouldn’t) at how many people in my age group don’t cook. I cook and we either eat leftovers or freeze for later use. We’re conscious of good nutrition and open to new ideas.
It’s so good to meet again in this place.
Dr J, I am glad you are getting back to the comfort of home cooked meals your health will thank you for it. I was wondering if you have considered pressure canning your soups, it is easy to do and will free up a lot of freezer space. Also noticed that you freeze things in glass, I have never seen that done before have you considered using plastic BPA free freezer containers. Wondering if the freezer containers might be a tad safer for you.
Hi Martha, Since I’m not worried about freezer space, I’ve never considered pressure canning my soups. The soups are usually consumed within a couple of weeks. In fact, the chili is already gone because I took it to work with me for lunch!
I got the idea of using canning jars for freezing from a simple living forum eons ago and I really like using them. The only thing I have to be careful about is making sure I have left enough headspace in them before putting on the lid so that the liquid can expand. Otherwise, it is quite safe to use them because they are designed to handle temperature extremes. In the 13 years I’ve been using canning jars, I’ve only lost one to a crack because of lack of headspace, not a break. I was able to take it out of the freezer and throw it away without any fuss or muss. In addition to the canning jars, I also use Pyrex storage containers when I can. I happen to prefer glass over plastic (and am so glad that my storage containers are finally unpacked!) but I know that it is my own preference and not everyone would want to go that route.