Personally, New Year's Eve is sorta' a non-holiday--you know, one of those things where you're grateful to have an extra day off work/school, but there's really not a lot of actual celebration going on. Remember the whole Y2K fuss and commotion? People were prepared for the end of the world as we know it--computers crashing; the entire infrastructure of the globe totally imploding. I believe I was in bed by 10:00 that New Year's Eve. I remember waking up at midnight when our neighbors set off some fireworks, looking at the clock, seeing that it was still running (meaning there was no power outage) and promptly going back to sleep. Oh sure, there were times long ago, in college and shortly after, when I'd make the effort to dress up, make plans, and go out, but these days, after Christmas I'm pretty much done; ready to clean up, clean out, get organized again, and back on track. Hence: The January Freezer Challenge.
Remember all the garden or farmer's market goodies you've stashed away in there for winter? Or even those grocery store finds you stocked up on when they were on sale? Well guess what? It's here! Winter. The time you were looking towards back in July and August when you said to yourself "I'm going to put this away for winter" or "won't these tomatoes (or peppers or berries) taste good in the middle of winter?"
Here are some items I have that need to be used up: tomatoes, tons. peppers, whole and diced--(bell, Serrano, jalapeno), blueberries, dehydrated plums, chicken stock, ground turkey, and more recently I've added two turkey breasts (purchased fresh at Thanksgiving), leftover homemade cranberry sauce, some chicken strips, one enchilada casserole, and some cooked ground beef. Those are my first targets.
Now...I figured out the best way to deal with those frozen whole tomatoes. Remember? In August I just washed them, froze them whole, and bagged them up. Ok, the first time I tried to use them I thought it was a huge hassle because I stuck them in the microwave...bad idea. This time (I made fiesta chicken soup out of some yesterday) I set them out on the counter for a while until they thawed a little bit, then when I was able to easily cut out the core I did that...then ran under hot water for a second...skins slipped right off. I let them thaw further in the fridge and then popped them into the blender for puree. They were Romas so I didn't worry about the seeds. Oh my goodness, they were heavenly in soup. I will absolutely be doing tomatoes this way again next year.
I have one of the turkey breasts thawing. I'm going to roast it in my Pampered Chef deep covered baker...so tender and moist that way. Then make sandwiches, wraps, soups and whatever else out of it.
Other challenge items coming out this week: whole bell peppers. I washed them and cored them and froze them whole in the summer. This week they are getting stuffed with a beef mixture for a stuffed pepper dinner. Berries: I have a huge bag of frozen Costco berries, as well as local blueberries I froze in season. I still have tons of fresh apples too...so I'm thinking apple/berry sauce, crisps, and maybe some muffins.
Tomatoes: Those are coming out of the freezer and going to become fresh tomato soup to go with lunch sandwiches and wraps.
New Years' Resolutions? Those, to me, are akin to "dieting"...lofty goals that seem inspiring at first, but quickly turn defeating. No, I prefer to just keep refining, keep tweaking, keep reforming...no radical revolution that burns brightly for a moment then fizzles out, but instead the slow and steadily burning flame of permanent change.
For instance: I know for sure that eating "paleo", or caveman-like, is really the best thing for my body, personally. But for me to say: "Ok, Janury 1st it's gonna be full-on Paleo! No grains or dairy or sugar will ever pass my lips again!" Really? That's not realistic, and is a recipe for failure, or worse, a cycle of "dieting". No, I'm just looking at recent weeks and going "hmm, I see my skin is breaking out, my belly is bloated, and my thyroid is swollen...so what have I been putting into this system that has caused this change?" Well...a few unusual things: holiday foods, dairy, sugar, and I'm noticing a habit of eating carby-GF grains in the morning has emerged: GF muffins and breads have become the norm, not an occasional treat. Ok, so, quit buying so much GF bread--switch that muffin for an egg and veggie cup (made in muffin tin) and we'll soon see change.
Exercise? I notice that during the holidays my priorities have switched to getting things done for Christmas, because there was a time factor to consider--the 25th was coming, and was not going to wait for me. But now that it's over it's time to shift back to thinking about getting outside each day in a manner that is more important that other things, not less. Now, other things can wait. Before they could not, but now they can, and they will. I knew that this lower-priority place that exercise had taken was going to be temporary, and now it's back to situation-normal. No crazy burst of gym-membership buying, and workout clothes to purchase...just a shift of thought from "teacher gifts and Christmas cards have to come first today", to "getting out with my dog for a couple miles comes before other things". A priority shift. A re-evaluation of the hours of each day and what is most important.
What are the shifts taking place in your life now as we head into January? Want to take the freezer challenge with me? Let's get those goodies out of their frozen holding pattern and awaken those nutrients once again to nourish us in the cold months. All the while making room in those freezers for a February freezer cooking marathon that will bless us with a bit of extra time come spring, when life will start to get very busy again. Feel free to comment, and tell us what's coming out of your freezer this week.
I pulled out some green bell peppers last week - Harper's daycare gal gave us some venison sausage so I pulled that out, too. I sauteed them in a little olive oil and added a little onion. I am not a big green pepper fan, I love most veggies, but will even pull green peppers off pizza because I don't like them so much. These peppers, though, they are so different. They are from our CSA this summer. They had a huge harvest one week: I think 18 peppers was 1 item!! They are SO GOOD! They don't even taste like the same food! We had some crusty whole grain bread and butter with our sausage and peppers. Yum yum!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tip for the tomatoes, those suckers have been staring me down every time I open the freezer. :) I think that is what I will do tomorrow on my day off!
Mmmm...venison sausage and peppers! That sounds SO good right now. That sounds like a good breakfast idea too...or a combo that might make a yummy egg cup. I'm right with you on the difference between store-bought and fresh, local veggies--it truly is like they are two totally different things. Which is why I need little diversions like a freezer challenge this time of year. Keeps me from standing there weeping in the produce section of the grocery store while I wait for spring! A freezer challenge is a lot more productive...and a lot less awkward for the produce manager. ;)
ReplyDeleteYou two are inspiring me to actually fill my freezer in the summer with those delicious foods!! They always seem so plentiful at the time!! New garden plans are already being hatched!! Now I'm anxious for spring ~
DeleteFor freezer storage may I recommend growing roma tomatoes, or some other type of meaty plum tomato variety? The big heirloom varieties are so yummy fresh, but I'm finding that they are kinda watery coming out of the freezer, in my opinion. This is about the time all those gardening catalogs start arriving...fun to plan in the downtime while the garden rests. ;)
ReplyDelete