Saturday's Run Down of Use It Up Kitchen

     Good morning. I'm a bit later this morning-let myself sleep in, after being up way too late last night. We had our first major internet/distance learning snafue with DD2 having worked hours and hours on a speech, several recordings and then couldn't get it uploaded or e-mailed and was due by midnight. She got creative, but not without a major anxiety and panic attack, while I helped by driving to McDonalds so we had two options to upload. Well, I ended up getting it via YouTube while she figured something out at home, so now he has two options to review. Thank you McDonald's for having great WIFI that works from outside in the pull up bay!  I'm also a bit later as I wanted to get a start on a few household things so did a quick clean of the bathroom, got a load of towels started and whipped up a batch of muffins. The muffins are my launch place for this post. 

     I would rather not have to go to the grocery store anymore than needed. I'm trying very hard to maximize anything fresh or already opened before using up a lot of unopened pantry items. The muffins were made because I had just under a cup of plain yogurt to use up. This was a carton with a April 4th date, but bought originally in early March for curry when DD2 was home for break-the intentional break. On Wednesday I also made another batch of curry, which she and I ate for supper, and she ate the next two days for lunch. The muffins were just  universal muffin  recipe, sugar, eggs, oil, yogurt in place of milk, flour, and oats. I used hefty amounts of various fall spice, cinnamon, nut meg, all spice, and ginger, and sprinkled cinnamon sugar on top before baking. 

     Besides the curry, which used two large carrots, two smallish potatoes, a zucchini, and the reminder  half of an onion, we used up other items. Lurking in the freezer was pita bread, which was the base for a couple personal  pizzas for Wednesday lunch, using more of that same onion that went into the curry, the last of a tomato, some frozen, but thawing spinach, and a bit of mozzarella and parmesan. . I opened a jar of sauce, but that went in the crockpot layered with the rest of a box of rotini pasta, the other zucchini, the rest of the frozen spinach, and a few halved cherry tomatoes on top. I heavily sparkled garlic and Italian seasoning each layer of sauce, pasta, and vegetables. I should have taken a picture because it looked and tasted very fresh with the addition of the tomatoes. Salad was more of the iceberg from Sunday's BLT's lunch, olives, and cherry tomatoes. 

     I did another cottage pie, using the last pork chop, cut in very small pieces, and remaining corn from Sunday night's supper. I added  a bunch, cut in half, of meatballs from the bag of meatballs I opened for Tuesday, some diced potatoes, and green beans, though canned. This used up the last of a box of instant mashed potatoes. Between leftover cottage pie and pasta, lunch is set. 

     Today, I'll need to use the last few pieces of DH's chicken in some sort of dish. I was thinking maybe fried rice to use up the last of a bag of frozen vegetables, and the two eggs from the older carton. There are two egg rolls in the freezer, DH and DD2 can have those, and I'll have more salad. Our daughter wants to make some sort of egg, potatoes, and tomato dish, so we'll turn the kitchen over to her tomorrow for brunch, and that will use up the last of the tomatoes, and leave us with just 1/2 carton of eggs, and maybe a couple potatoes. We're eating well, but yeah, the fresh stuff will be depleted by the end of the weekend. 

     Have you gotten more creative with using up fresh stuff to ensure it all is used? Are any old recipes, like I've gone to like universal muffins, making a come back in your kitchen?