We have a lot of leftovers and a fairly full pantry, so I have decided to join Crystal at Money Saving Mom and Jessica at Life as Mom and make January an Eat from the Pantry month. My plan is to only go to the grocery store 3 times in January. When I go shopping, I willRead More

I realized today that I make the first four dinners on this week’s menu about once a month.  They are easy fall back meals for busy times or exhausting weeks. I am still getting my strength back after a nasty flu, so I am content to rely on the old standards; my kids are justRead More

Jane at The Thrifty Countrywoman is having another Pantry Party. This month’s party features recipes that are made from Thanksgiving leftovers, as well as items commonly found in the pantry, refrigerator, and freezer. I think everything in this recipe, except the mushrooms, are commonly found in the kitchen. A lot of the ingredients will beRead More

Monday – Tomato Basil Pie and Garden Salad Tuesday – Penne with spinach and Chicken Wednesday – Roast Beef, Rice, and Glazed Carrots Thursday – Use leftover Roast and Rice to make Chinese Orange Beef Friday – YOYO Dinner Saturday –   Teriyaki Chicken, Asparagus and Lemongrass Risotto, and Garden Salad Sunday – Use leftover chickenRead More

My mother-in-law takes her nursing duties very seriously! When she has come to help out after I have had a baby or surgery she packs her cookbook, her favorite cooking tools, and the pink plastic gloves she wears when she cleans. She believes that by feeding me hearty meals I will regain my strength andRead More

This probably should have been included in last week’s awful food waste picture, but I was holding out hope that when opened it would still be useable. It wasn’t.  The coleslaw was an impulse buy several weeks ago, when it was a loss leader at our local store. It is a good example of whyRead More

It is going to be another pantry week. In the past I have had pantry weeks because of unexpected expenses, illness, and bad weather. This pantry week is a spontaneous response to my two year old’s sudden interest in the potty chair (YAY!). We are doing well so far and I don’t want to spoilRead More

We had our first freeze last weekend; we even had a bit of snow! It melted quickly here on the valley floor, but enough stuck in the mountains that some ski runs will open this weekend. Before the temperatures dropped, I was determined to harvest every thing I could from my garden. I picked everyRead More

As those of you who regularly frequent my blog know, on Fridays I document our food waste. One of the most obvious ways that I know to avoid food waste is to cook food that your family actually likes. But sometimes there are those food items that you prepare at holidays because they are aRead More

The high today was 95 degrees, but Wednesday night it is going to dip down to 25 degrees! I was too busy today making preparations for our first freeze to make Split Pea Soup, so I will make it on Thursday when it will be too cold to play outside. We will be continuing toRead More