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

ruby_eskimo

Hopping back into the thread as we need to make better use of what we have in the house and when I post here, I always end up doing better with that! 

Took a couple of Ostrich burgers out of the freezer along with some brioche buns that were lurking in there leftover from a BBQ back in August!  Will serve with some salad bits and pop the last of the small potatoes from the garden in the air fryer with some mixed herbs.  Lunch might be a cup soup with the last of the cheese and crackers from Christmas.  

Will have to make an effort to inventory the kitchen tomorrow to aid with meal planning for the next week or two.

LotsOfTea

Yesterday I made butternut squash soup with a spoonful of 'lazy chillis' added because I can't resist making everything spicy. I did stop myself adding anything chilli-related to the leek and potato soup I made the day before but I was tempted. I also made soda bread to go with the soup which was lovely. That's plenty of both left today so that's lunch sorted. Tea yesterday was some roasted cauliflower, 'shicken' tikka kebabs and flatbread. I've got quite a lot of the kebabs in the freezer as I did a bulk order with a discount a few months back and although they seemed to stay frozen when the freezer broke I'm trying to use everything up that was in there pretty swiftly just in case. 

Topher

Does anybody doing this (using up) get twitchy when they see the emptying storage spaces? I’m challenging -within myself - the idea that having an over stuffed pantry, fridge, freezer and cupboard, shores me up against want. I have in the past experienced serious want. I’m trying to adjust so I use the “dashing out for a stock-up shop” urge and channel it instead into batch cooking so I have a stack of meal bases or actual meals, gathering in the freezer. I’ve got an active audit going, recording using up, and becoming an audit of meal bases to be accessed. That explains what I’m doing, but that empty storage is really hard to settle with. 

Nelliegrace

I used the last Christmas 5p parsnips from the garage in a blitzed soup with onion, celery, red lentils and Marigold stock powder. Rib sticking stuff. 
There is a swede and enough potatoes left for swedey mashed potatoes with the haggis, with red cabbage on Burns Night. None wasted.

The freezer is well stocked with weekly portions of cheeses bought in the Christmas sales, and I made some butter from reduced price brandy cream. 

Cherryfudge

Topher said:

Does anybody doing this (using up) get twitchy when they see the emptying storage spaces? I’m challenging -within myself - the idea that having an over stuffed pantry, fridge, freezer and cupboard, shores me up against want. I have in the past experienced serious want. I’m trying to adjust so I use the “dashing out for a stock-up shop” urge and channel it instead into batch cooking so I have a stack of meal bases or actual meals, gathering in the freezer. I’ve got an active audit going, recording using up, and becoming an audit of meal bases to be accessed. That explains what I’m doing, but that empty storage is really hard to settle with. 

Would it work to fill the gaps with bread or similar that's bulky, or containers of water that will help keep the temperature low when frozen, but can be removed without being damaged?

Perhaps that could become a way of measuring available space? 'I have two x 1 litre bottles of water in my freezer.' 'Wow, I don't think I could fir one in mine.'

JIL

Topher said:

Does anybody doing this (using up) get twitchy when they see the emptying storage spaces? I’m challenging -within myself - the idea that having an over stuffed pantry, fridge, freezer and cupboard, shores me up against want. I have in the past experienced serious want. I’m trying to adjust so I use the “dashing out for a stock-up shop” urge and channel it instead into batch cooking so I have a stack of meal bases or actual meals, gathering in the freezer. I’ve got an active audit going, recording using up, and becoming an audit of meal bases to be accessed. That explains what I’m doing, but that empty storage is really hard to settle with. 

That's me,  clear spaces and fill them up.  Especially if I see bargains and I end up in the same place I was before. 
I had two freezers, now I have four. Its ridiculous. I regularly take everything out and reorganize.  Fish in one area, home made ready meals in another, vegetables in another, gluten free in another, dogs stuff.......
Then stuff gets shoved anywhere and it cant be found and gets replaced.  
My new years resolution is to clear stuff, donate a freezer and be more organised.  A work in progress, but I'm meal planning out of stocks.

 The small chest freezer I want to give away, has become the "use up next fortnight freezer"  So if I make a cottage pie or lasagna I make two.  (Helped getting the christmas potatoes and cheese down) One goes in there.  

Once I've created enough other space in other freezers, I will donate and apply the use up in the next fortnight to a couple of drawers.  No more buying because it's a bargain. That's the theory anyway.