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

Cherryfudge

We've invited the family round tomorrow to let them admire our new path (stopped just short of charging admission ) so the fridge is full as we are now eight adults, two pre-schoolers and a baby. I suspect the pizzas and garlic bread will all be gone this time tomorrow, and we've made a couple of cakes and bought extra fruit, but I know we'll eat them if no one else does!

I made marmalade the other day, using one of those tinned marmalade mixes, and soup which has already been finished. I finished the last of the yogurt today as supper, but there's a new batch 'yogging' overnight.

There's a fair amount of cheese in the fridge, left over from holiday and having friends staying and me spotting Stilton on offer. I'm not supposed to eat much cheese so once I have freezer space, I'll have to cut it into chunks and freeze most of it.

I saw a Nancy B1rtwistle reel on Inst*gram about strawberries - washing them in a citric acid solution then putting them in a glass jar in the fridge to make them last up to two weeks, so I'm trying that out, and the same for blueberries. So I'm almost out of fridge space and almost out of freezer space and I've been enjoying my cooking so I'm glad there's an army to feed tomorrow!

Cherryfudge

We are back to having a little fridge and freezer space! All pizzas and garlic bread eaten, as well as all but about four slices of cake. It was quite funny as several people said 'Cake? Whose birthday is it?' They decided to celebrate the next family birthday even though the person wasn't present. We used to have cake every weekend, but this lot have perhaps got out of the habit as they had lots! I did cut the slices rather thinly, hoping it would make it all go round without embarrassment, but it soon became clear there was plenty - and people came back for more! DH can have the rest for lunches which will cut costs in pastries.

We also have half the humus left, a bowl of crudites, some coleslaw, quite a lot of bread (DH bought extra when we'd not fully decided what to feed the family), about half a melon and I still have some of an avocado, lots of blueberries and plenty of strawberries. There's also over two pints of yogurt! I think I'll be having that every day this coming week at this rate. Oh, and we didn't finish the lemon and spinach rice, so that's on my menu for tomorrow, but we had mackerel, rice and peas for lunch and finished the broccoli and cauliflower at the same time.

Watty1

I've been adding to cupboards rather than using up so need to get back to it.  Went to a trade event a few weeks ago and was given a goody bag.  Now, at the end  there were lots of goody bags left and a colleague and I were standing by them looking, so, helped ourselves to 6 each.  The goodies were not particularly exciting except a mini bottle of bottle of Haspak juice with ginger so ended up with this  https://www.haskapa.com/collections/juice-box

Drank one and didn't really enjoy it so just put the rest in the fridge.  I am however trying to seriously cut back on y alcohol intake so last night, instead of a glass of wine at the end of the day I mixed half a bottle with fizzy water for me and half with lemonade for my DP.  Served in a cocktail glass.  Felt quite special!

I'll use the rest up now.  I decided presentation was part of the fun - next time I will add ice and serve in a large wine glass

Cherryfudge

I've never tried that juice but it does sounds rather special along with fizzy water! It will be a twist of lemon and a sprig of mint next. Or perhaps frosted berries...

The trouble with buying BBQ chicken pizza for the family, is that I now really want some more. I think I'm in the habit of having extra slices of pizza in the freezer after friends come round but the family is getting bigger and more pizza gets eaten. At this rate I might well give in and get myself a pizza, but first I have the rice to eat up and it needs jazzing up somehow.

Oh, and while I was baking my contribution to the cake-fest (a simple chocolate cake without eggs that I've made a thousand times), I suddenly decided it would be nice to have tea bread next time. So now I want to bake a tea bread, even though I'd be better making yogurt cake, which at the moment I don't fancy.

LotsOfTea

I've always liked fruit juice with tonic water as I like the added bitterness. My favourite is grapefruit or cranberry juice with tonic - yum! Far too many soft drinks are really sweet which isn't good if you're wanting to cut back on booze but have something grown-up tasting. 

I've got a small portion of tomato risotto leftover which needs eating today but reheated risotto is generally rubbish so I'm going to dump it into some soup to add some heft and create a soup/stew hybrid. Stoup? It may be delicious, it may be disgusting. Only one way to find out!

Watty1

Thanks for the ideas. I don't like sweet tastes in drinks so those are rather nice - I have a few bottles left and the mint (I have that in tubs) and the lemon sound fab additions    There are still a few bottles in the fridge.  

Cherryfudge

I didn't make the tea bread or any further baking - it was a very busy week. I did have my BBQ chicken pizza though.

Father's Day was celebrated with a BBQ at the youngest's home and before that we did a spot of babysitting and were rewarded with huge portions from their local (award-winning) chippy. Between times I made a dhal and there are still two portions left. I don't remember what else we've had, but I've had to sort out the spice drawer and relegate some of the excess smoked paprika to the emergency food cupboard! There are still meringues in there: strange what some people count as emergency food,  

Cleaning out the bread bin fed the wild birds (soaked bread), me (biscuits) and the bin (stale crumbs). 

Various suitable scraps have been turned into bird food fat balls. I didn't know how to shape them so they are pressed into muffin cases and cooling. The birds are already descending on the refilled bird feeders and the soggy bread.

Our dinner tonight will be fishcakes from the freezer: I've just finished an avocado with lunch and some melon as a snack.

Fridge - to use up short term:
red and green peppers - now chopped and frozen
parsnips
3 x cheese (also threw some out and froze a lot)
2 portions dhal
tinned tuna
Cinnamon swirl pastry OOD
Milk
Yogurt
Cabbage
Carrots
2.5 lemons
garlic
blueberries
strawberries

Fridge - to use up longer term:
6 jars marrow jam! (It's okay on porridge so is very slowly going down)
2 jars anonymous home made jam
2 x lemon juice OOD
2 x lime juice OOD
curry paste OOD
3 x salad dressing of which 2 OOD
2 jars mayo
veg suet
2 x margarine
2 x butter of which 1 OOD
lard
beetroot
tomato puree
chorizo
Assorted tiny jars e.g. mustard.

Watty1

Having unpacked my online shop at the weekend I realised I have overfilled the cupboards (again) so I am back to focused using up.

Bread in bread maker and then curried green lentil soup made so that is lunches for a few days.  Last night dinner was a chicken and cashew nut dish in the slow cooker (found on line, I'm trying to use my slow cooker more as I'm tired at the end of the working day).

Best of all some very old dried up dates were smashed up in the blender with water and nuts and cacao powder and then rolled into truffle sized balls and chilled.  These are now in the freezer. Two or three with an after dinner coffee is a real treat.

Next I'll try the same with all the dried apricots.

Cherryfudge

Your date truffles sound sophisticated @Watty1, much more so than the little tray of bird food balls currently in my fridge! Do they crumble when bitten into? Or are the dates sticky enough to prevent that?

I daren't start facing my cupboards just yet: yesterday I found the ends of lots of small bags of things like sugar or nuts. It's the bitty-ness of it that's daunting.

LotsOfTea

Ooh, date truffles sound lovely @Watty1 and I have some dates in the cupboard. I might have a go at those myself. 

@Cherryfudge I fully understand why you might need emergency meringues. What if you suddenly had to make Eton mess in a hurry? 😂