I've done better at the amount of throwing food that I allowed to get bad, but we have huge room for improvement. Remember the $30 spent at the apple orchard on cider and apples? I left apples in the bag for too long and a few started getting mushy and brown. At nearly $1 an apple, that was just not smart. Top on my list today is to cut up the soft ones, mix the with some sugar, a pinch of baking soda and a bit of lemon juice, and freeze what I don't use today when I make an apple crisp. A couple months from now, I can pull out a ready bag of apples for another crisp or DH and DS's favorite when he is home, Dutch apple pie, which is essentially an apple pie topped with apple crisp topping instead of a second crust.
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| Apples are meant to be eaten, not just sit in a basket. |
Another area of waste I need to control better, and importantly for DH and my health and weight, is portion control. I didn't end up making a homemade pizza last night as when DD2 got home from choir, it was very nice out and she and I decided to take pup for a long walk. I learned some of DH's shop was on multiple frozen pizzas. That would do for supper. Normally, with frozen pizza, I would just assume we would need two. But when I looked at the weight, and the thickness of the pizza toppings on the Ale Haus brand, we decided one should be enough. DH ate three slices, and DD2 and I each had two 1/2-plenty. Had I baked more than one, yes there would have been a few slices left over, but DH and I surely would have eaten at least a slice more each, feeling overly full. That says more about my will power than not wasting, but over eating is wasteful as it moves beyond nutrition and enjoyment into just eating because it is there. Portion control alone should help me shake off the pounds I put back on since vacation loss.
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| At 31.8 ounces, this is a massive frozen pizza. |
Food waste is just one area to tackle. I'll keep looking for more ways to stretch what we already have to serve a purpose, replenishing consumables less frequently, and not adding to our stash of stuff for one or two time use. I hope to not waste time and money by mindlessly going out for dinner and overspending, but include dining out intentionally as part of our entertainment plan instead of giving into laziness. None of this will put DD2 through college or pay for the new front door. It will though help us save in small ways that cumulatively add up, improve our physical and mental health, and support a mindfulness of maximizing all the resources we have to better good.
I think your other blog post has been deleted? I do find blogging humbling, so agree with your point. I sometimes look back at what I've posted & feel so humbled by all of the gifts we have, and while I feel that it's important to maximize all of our spending, we're doing it from a good place of plenty, vs having it be a life's necessity.
ReplyDeleteAs for us, it's a pretty standard weekend. We had no soccer games, so I did a lot of kitchen prep. I made 3 dozen muffins & 2 dozen burritos for the freezer. I'd noted our freezer was overly crowded (time for a freezer clean out), but the point was made more clear today. I tried to find grilled chicken (we freeze in batches after M grills)& we had run out & I didn't notice. Time to get the freezer in check, so we save more money.
And, we definitely try to manage portions well. It helps that we plan for leftovers. There are meals where the kids eat more than I expect, but typically M & I stick to the planned servings. On leftover night, there's almost never anything left, even if we want to go over. ;-)
I did some kitchen prep as well, but muffins have been less successful. They've been good, but after the first on, I seem to be the only one eating them. I took down and then put my other post back up. It was a mess of a mind dump. but feel free to read..
DeleteSince doing keto I am keenly aware of portions and am ashamed of what I had considered normal.
ReplyDeleteIt has become an issue with me again. I'm not a bear and do not need to stock up for winter hibernation.
DeleteI always cooked healthy and am so happy that my kids eat everything and love healthy food (pomegranate and smoked duck salad being one of their favourites). That being said, I remember thinking I had to add some kind of starch to all our meals as I had 3 men to take care of right! But now I'm on my own I should probably learn to knock that starch on the head. And I should probably learn to stop cooking for a family. Honestly, that is hard. I'm so used to cooking for 4-5 it really is difficult to just cook for 1. So I'm off to kidnap a few stragglers to feed.
ReplyDeleteTHe over cooking may be part of my issue-I cook then eat too much. DH will often skip a meal so if he overeats, his overall calories are not so bad, but not me. They are all sitting in my thigh and stomach-and arms these days. Why!
DeleteI have been over-buying, though fortunately that hasn't transferred into over eating. I now have less than a pound to lose to my target weight. I know the over-buying is connected to anxiety, and now have to get a grip on it again. I made a start yesterday when I found meals in the freezer for all of this week- things I have cooked and frozen. That greatly reduced this week's grocery spend. Yet another financial crisis has hit my family, so I have to cut back so I can help out. That's on top of last week's terminal diagnosis for another family member. I'm wondering when it is all going to end
ReplyDeleteI so over bought last year with mom that I hardly will buy anything at the Holiday sales. Shame on me. I try to be careful of food waste, but some times the chickens eat well.
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