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Chewin'the NewsApril 2008 |
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by Carol Santee, Nanci Slagle, Shelley Miller and Tammy Davis
FREEZER COOKING NEWS FROM NANCI (COMING SOON) Click here to view Nanci's section from October 07 FREEZER COOK OF THE MONTH WINNER CLOSING COMMENTS COOKIN' AT THE KEYBOARD WITH SHELLEY NOTES FROM TAMMY (COMING SOON) Click here to view Tammy's section from August 06 BONUS RECIPES MESSAGE BOARD UPDATES
FINAL THOUGHTS FROM TAMMY
Hello everyone and welcome Spring! I am so glad that it is finally
warming up and the sun is coming out. All the daffodils are blooming and
the crabapples will be blooming soon. I am looking forward to opening up
the windows in the house and letting the fresh air inside. I have
several pots of Amaryllis bulbs that my mom gave me when we moved into
our house. Every April the flowers start to come out and there are
usually some flowers left on the plant when I move it out to our deck
for the summer. They are spectacular! Another sign of Spring that I always watch for is the pair of ducks
that nest near our house every year. We have a creek that runs behind
our house and the ducks like to take the baby ducks there to get to a
pond that is down the street. It is always so much fun to watch the
"parade" go by as the momma duck leads the babies to the creek. We also
enjoy going down to the pond and watching all the duck families swim
around together. Last month I promised that I would share my Spring menu with you.
This time I took a different approach to menu planning. I tried to
select recipes based upon the cost to make them and the general
nutritional value of the recipe. This is difficult since many lower cost
recipes can be higher in fat or have high carbohydrates. I decided to concentrate on soups, crock pot meals and recipes with
chopped meats (stir fry recipes, casseroles, etc.). These are generally
less expensive than making a roast or serving chicken breasts. For
example, I can make beef stew for the family and use one pound of meat
for a six to eight servings. A roast for the entire family would require
at least 2 pounds to match the same number of servings. I also decided to group my recipes together by cooking method. I
started with a blank Worksheet G - Monthly Menu Planner. I chose my
recipes and filled in the menu by category. I decided that Here is my Spring menu: Here are some of the rules that I apply when trying to cook healthy
meals for my family: How do you change recipes to be healthy or more nutritious? Do you
have any helpful hints or cooking day tips to share with the rest of the
readers? Send your suggestions to me at
carol@30daygourmet.com
and I will share them in the next newsletter with the rest of the 30 Day
Gourmet cooks. This is a great soup! It is fun and easy to make your own tortilla
strips for the garnish. We have had Chicken Tortilla Soup at restaurants
and this soup is very similar to what we have tried in the past.
Click here to
view/print
this recipe!
We are always looking for a good marinade. The family really enjoys
this one. Hoisin sauce is a thick, dark sauce that is spicy-sweet.
Hoisin sauce can be found in the Chinese food section at your local
grocery store.
Click here to
view/print
this recipe!
FREEZER COOK OF THE MONTH Update
from Last Month's Winner In
last month's newsletter, the Freezer Cook of the Month,
Michelle, shared a story with us about Tracey. She was in an automobile
accident and Michelle made meals for Tracey's family while she was in
the hospital. Michelle wanted to share an update on Tracey's condition: Update on the family - Tracey spent 2 weeks
in Iowa City until the clotting got under control, and spent another 3
weeks at Covenant Medical Center in Waterloo. She is now home, and
moving around a little, but with
supervision. Her mother from Indiana has came in to help for a little
while. I have made more meals for the family, this time though I had a
couple of other John Deere wives that helped me. It is so encouraging to hear how you help others in need. Thanks,
Michelle, for sharing this update with us. Freezer
Cook of the Month Winner Our winner
this month is Cindy from Missouri. Cindy shares her story of how she was
introduced to 30 Day Gourmet and how she has used 30 Day Gourmet to help
others. Let's hear
from Cindy: To enter our contests, please post your stories on our message boards
or e-mail them to me at
carol@30daygourmet.com.
I hope
everyone is enjoying your Spring. Next month I will share some slow
cooker recipes. I love using my slow cooker for meals. It works out well
for days when we have track meets and we need to eat a late supper when
we get home. We walk in the door and dinner is ready! It is also great
to have slow cooker recipes that you make on cooking day. Do you have
any other topics that you would like to cover? Do you have any nagging
questions that need to be answered? Email me at
carol@30daygourmet.com.
I enjoy hearing from you!
Time Will Tell ...and time has told on me. I guess
I've been busy, or distracted, or something. I can't think of a good
reason, but it's been months since I've sent a newsletter your way. In
the closing comments of my last edition, I promised that we would hear
from my second-oldest daughter, Lauren. If you ever wonder if it's all worth
it, if your family really appreciates the effort you make, and if your
children will ever acknowledge everything you've invested in them, I
think you'll be encouraged by what Lauren has to share. Be patient and
persistent, because time will tell. From a Child's
Point of View
My mom started freezer cooking 10 years ago when I
was about six years old. In the same way that I didn’t understand
exactly why we needed to freezer cook, I didn’t understand what it
actually was. My six-year-old ignorance was barring my ability to see
the reason my mom was grating such a huge amount of cheese. The first time I was able to take advantage of
freezer cooking was when I was 8 years old. My mom taught me how to make
Sloppy Joe Buns, an accomplishment I was quite proud of at the time
because my older sister didn’t know how. No raw hamburger, no knives, no
frying pan…just the frozen package of ground beef, the seasonings, and
the rolls - and I could make lunch. Now, please don’t get me wrong. I’m
not trying to imply that life’s problems can be solved with a frozen
package of ground beef. Many recipes we make take more overhead than
just cooked hamburger. Over the years, as I’ve become more experienced
I’ve been able to take advantage of the results of freezer cooking to a
greater degree. Since my Sloppy Joe Bun days, I’ve been making meals on
a regular schedule. I’ve been able to ask, “So Mom, what do I make for
dinner?” She might reply, “You can make lasagna – the Italian sausage
and ground beef are thawing on the counter, the ricotta cheese is in the
fridge, and the noodles are in the bottom drawer.” Yeah, wow? That’s
what I thought. Now, most people shrink away from the thought of
freezer cooking, and I would as well, except for the fact that my
parents produced a software program called Advantage Cooking. You enter
your own recipe ingredients and instructions…and ding!...it makes your
grocery list, and generates all the different reports you’ll need to
make your cooking day run smoothly. It’s so easy you can have your kids
do it, which is something my mom took advantage of…hence, I’m speaking
from experience! :-) Looking back on the impact that freezer cooking has
had on me as a child and my continually increasing appreciation for it
as I grow up, I’ve realized that freezer cooking has been one of my
mom’s many gifts to me. As I analyze the possible outcomes of these past
10 years, I cringe to think what life would have been like if she had
not started freezer cooking. Those many days of cooking with my mom have
been great instructional times for me, as well as an opportunity to work
alongside her and my older sister on something beneficial for the whole
family. I will be forever grateful for the gift that she has brought to
our family through freezer cooking, and I look forward to the days when
it will be my responsibility to provide that gift to my family. Sloppy Joe Buns This is the recipe that Lauren talked about. They're the
perfect freezer meal: easy to make, easy to serve. They even have a SANE
option (Some Assembly Needed Eventually) for your cooking day. I love to eat these in the car. Pull the individually
wrapped buns out of the oven and place in a paper bag. Pass them around
the van when it's time to eat. They're an easy, inexpensive,
healthier-than-fast-food, hot meal.
Click here
to view/print this recipe! "Merge" Right The ingredient file can easily become cluttered with
entries that represent the same food item. For example, “Ground Beef”
may already exist in your ingredient list. When a new recipe is imported
(whether from the newsletter, website, or a friend), a redundant
ingredient, such as "Hamburger", could be automatically added to your
list. This is a great feature of the software, and I wouldn't want it
any other way. But it is also a little inconvenient when it comes to
reading the Grocery Report. I don't want to see both "Ground Beef" and
"Hamburger" on my shopping list. To eliminate the clutter in the ingredient file, as well
as on the Grocery Report, use the Merge option. It's a powerful feature,
and fun to use, especially if you're an organizational addict like me. For an explanation of how to use the "merge" feature,
read my article:
Download
a trial version of the software! It's free! Mother's Day is just around the corner, and what mother
wouldn't want some help in the kitchen? The
Advantage
Cooking software package would make a great gift. Or consider one of
the e-books!
All of the recipes in any of the e-books can be easily imported into the
software. Until next time...
(COMING SOON)
Click here to view Nanci's section from October '07
Click here to view Tammy's section from
August 06
P.O. Box 272
This site developed and maintained by
Nexis Technical Services, Inc.
This page was last updated on
Monday, August 04, 2008.
Copyright 2008 - 30 Day Gourmet.
All rights reserved.
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