The all new using what you have from your Freezer, Cupboard or Shed (Barn)

Cairnpapple

Pollie said:

You can also make gram flour flatbreads . Just whisk 150g gram flour, salt, pepper and 200ml cold water. Leave for 30 mins. Oil a 14cm frying pan and pour in enough batter to make thin flatbread. Cook a few mins until golden brown, turn over and cook the other side.

that sounds easy, thanks!

Cherryfudge

In: another big shop of store cupboard staples to take advantage of offers. The emergency cupboard is just about full now though I took out some hot chocolate. I was quite pleased at all the discounts I managed to lump together, though of course it means spending more money to get them. (Paradoxically).

I think the only things bought that aren't often on the shopping list were apple juice for DH, which we do get sometimes, and baking apples to make a pudding to take when we go to our daughter's on Monday.

Out: the breaded fish that I probably mentioned yesterday.

LotsOfTea

Finally made a proper start at emptying the freezer today. We used a pack of sausages, a small tub of ice cream and finished a bag of peas off. I also took out a few slices of bread that I froze before we went away for half term which can be used for toast for breakfast tomorrow. The next task is definitely to do an inventory so I can work it all into meal plans. 

I'm fairly sure I'm going to find a lot odd bits and bobs like one fish finger or one burger. I'm going in!

Cherryfudge

When all the family still lived at home, about one Saturday a month was 'finish up the freezer' day. I'd make chips and everyone chose from the odd fishfingers, sausages etc. I think I may have added beans most times.

It wasn't an overall solution to random freezer contents but it helped stop the problem getting too far out of hand.

Cairnpapple

Cherryfudge said:

When all the family still lived at home, about one Saturday a month was 'finish up the freezer' day. I'd make chips and everyone chose from the odd fishfingers, sausages etc. I think I may have added beans most times.

It wasn't an overall solution to random freezer contents but it helped stop the problem getting too far out of hand.

love this idea!

Cherryfudge

By way of a PS: it's probably a good idea to check you have reserve supplies in case there aren't enough oddments! It works for sweet treats too.

DH finished the tuna pasta for dinner today and I had veggie chilli from the freezer. I finally remembered to open the stollen I bought at Christmas so that's now being eaten, and I've turned three more lemons into lemon curd, which led to me discovering that getting the traces out of the bowl with a spatula and polishing them off makes a perfectly acceptable alternative to licking out the cake mix bowl while the cake is cooking.

LotsOfTea

Cherryfudge said:

When all the family still lived at home, about one Saturday a month was 'finish up the freezer' day. I'd make chips and everyone chose from the odd fishfingers, sausages etc. I think I may have added beans most times.

It wasn't an overall solution to random freezer contents but it helped stop the problem getting too far out of hand.

That is an excellent idea!

I've completed the freezer audit and there are a fair few tubs full of what I've had to categorize "random veg stew" and lots of things I didn't know I had. Since I'm not sure how long most of it has been in there I decided to start using anything meaty up first as veg is less likely to be a problem. I've taken out a packet of ham that DS can have in his sarnies this week, some leftover chicken from a roast that DH can have added to some Dal I've got in the fridge, a packet of bacon that the menfolk can have as bacon butties and a pack of two burgers that had been frozen from fresh that they can have for tea in the next couple of days. I just need to get some burger buns. It turns out I've got plenty of veggie burgers I can hoik out for myself as well. 

I also took out a half loaf of banana and chocolate cake for puddings over the next few days.

I've got the full list stuck to the fridge door and I feel much more in control now. 

Cherryfudge

@LotsOfTea, that's an impressive achievement! You've got quite a few meals sorted already so your shopping budget will thank you too.  

TracyS66

Cherryfudge said:

When all the family still lived at home, about one Saturday a month was 'finish up the freezer' day. I'd make chips and everyone chose from the odd fishfingers, sausages etc. I think I may have added beans most times.

It wasn't an overall solution to random freezer contents but it helped stop the problem getting too far out of hand.

We do this I call it the bits and bobs dinner, all on the table in the oven trays its cooked in to save on washing up, its a great idea to use up those odds and sods 

Cherryfudge

Out: chicken, in: chorizo, salmon.

I think I'm subconsciously sabotaging my freezer space. Just when I had room in two drawers, there was salmon marked down, and suddenly the space I was gloating over is gone...