Really Using Things Up

     I did not want to leave the house yesterday at all. After a crazy week where Thursday night was my only night I didn't have something after work and my night in the big city being one of "the girls" for my nieces bachelorette do, I skipped showering and getting dressed in real clothes all day. I did take pup out for a good walk, but admittedly, just had boots, a long coat, and my pajama pants still on. I only  had enough laundry soap for two small loads, whites, and permanent press so DH had clothes for work. I used a spot of shampoo for some delicate sweaters and a few of my work pieces-this is a hack I have used for years as the shampoo is good for getting human oils out and freshen clothes, but isn't strong enough for clothes that need a good laundering. I kind of use it sparingly like Woolite. No special trip out for laundry soap yesterday. 

     While trying to figure out meal plans for the week I had overlooked a couple things already on  hand. I still had about a pound or more of pork loin from Christmas in the freezer-forgot I put it in there, and it took a moment to figure out the package. I took that out to thaw and it will be dinner tonight, cooked with a sweet sour sauce in my mini crock pot with sweet potato wedges I'll try in the air fryer. I reserved about 1/4 of it for plain cold sandwiches for DH, and another 1/4 for fried rice, to use up the 1/2 bag of frozen vegetables opened in the freezer. That's dinner tomorrow. I made an effort on a simple rustic yeast bread yesterday. It's not great but passable, and will be good for toast, and cut thick to hold the pork as I'm sure it will fall apart as it slow cooks in the sauce, perfect for a sandwich.

     Speaking of the rice, I'll cook up the last of my long grain rice, 2/3rds for the fried rice, and the remaining 1/3 to make stuffed peppers. I had forgotten that I only used one green, one yellow, and the orange pepper last week for the taco bar. leaving me with two green and a yellow. Sadly, one of  the green peppers slimed  a bit, but will be mostly useable after I cut away the slime. I'll cut the remaining two peppers in half as I think they bake better and I will stuffed them with a combination of rice, cooked green pepper, celery, and onion, cream cheese, a little sour cream. I'll bake today and put in a dish ready to top with the last of the shredded cheese from the taco bar. These will be part of a quick meal with any leftovers on Wednesday before trivia and for DH when he gets home. Look at me, three days of meals ready to go!

     Sometimes I am appalled at my wastefulness and amount of new food I shop for when there is already so much here. Of course having a well stocked pantry is great for rainy days both literally and financially and stocking up when things are  less expensive keeps the overall grocery budget low. I just hate when I discover that I wasted perfectly good food because I was either disorganized and didn't see it, or couldn't be bothered using it up properly. I admit I feel a little virtuous when I do salvage things or find things forgotten about and can turn them into a decent meals. This was three examples of food that might have gone into the garbage can, and instead fed us well. Thanks to using things up, I only need minimal purchases this week-mostly fresh food. Are you good at using up the last of items naturally? Are you like me, and have to really think about what you have on hand or else tend to buy things before using up others?