Freezer Cooking For Young And Old – Frugal Challenge

Is freezer cooking a new idea, or an old idea?

You may remember that back in January, my friend Christine, TheMenuMom.com, had a freezer full of food to eat up.  She challenged her readers to join her in cleaning out the kitchen before they went shopping for more  food.  Click here to see how Christine’s challenge began.

I took the challenge and invited my dear readers to join me.  Click here if you’d like to see how my challenge began.

The response to this challenge was great.  Many of us found out that as we dug through our food supplies, we hardly had to leave the house to go grocery shopping.  Our meals were inventive and, most importantly, frugal.

When our refrigerators and freezers started to resemble this one,  many of us started thinking about re-stocking.

As I was reading the comments throughout this challenge, I noticed that there were many reasons that people stocked their freezers with ready-to-cook meals.

Many people, like myself and Christine, have young families with busy schedules so we need a house filled with food that’s ready for the oven.

Other families just like the convenience of having a freezer full of food so they don’t have to plan dinner every night.

And, some people remember their grandparents and parents stocking their freezer after the fall harvest.  That is what my friend Patti of RemarkableWrinklies.com says is the reason she loves to cook up big batches of food to put in the freezer.  Memories.

Old fashioned cooking is one of the frameworks around which The Hillbilly Housewife is formed.  Living simply, finding alternatives to the oftentimes unrewarding, expensive, and wasteful methods of keeping a home and feeding a family,  is what attracts people, like Patti, to The Hillbilly Housewife.

Like many people, Patti wondered what or who inspired me, a younger homemaker,  to do things the old fashioned way;  things like  “putting food by.”

I was pleased to be invited to  Patti’s website, RemarkableWrinklies.com, in order to answer these two questions:

1)  What or who is the inspiration for The Hillbilly Housewife, and 2) Does “putting food by“ today still have the same importance as it did years ago?

Please stop by RemarkableWrinklies.com and see why the past is so very present in everything we do here at Hillbilly Housewife.

“The more things change, the more they stay the same.”

Thank you, Patti, for allowing me to answer your questions and give your readers, some having lived a frugal lifestyle for many more years than I, a look into what inspires this humble Hillbilly Housewife.

p.s.  My frugal challenge today is to plan some freezer cooking in your own home and enjoy good old fashioned frugality!

To get started on the right foot, begin your freezer cooking with the right tools.  Take a look at our resource Freezer Cooking Made Simple by clicking on the picture here.  You’ll find easy to follow methods to get your freezer filled to the brim with hearty, family-friendly meals.

Continue reading Freezer Cooking For Young And Old – Frugal Challenge …

From Hillbilly Housewife Blog.

Harvest Time

Fall Harvest

I had a good sized indoor garden over the summer. It was a small jungle of coffee cans and upside-down soda bottles. At it’s glory, it really was a sight to see against my southeast facing windows. I hit a bad spell in my pregnancy and didn’t water the plants for about a week or so. In the end, they did okay. I got a lot of herbs and a good handful of green beans. My tomatoes didn’t make it and even the notoriously prolific zucchinis gave me nothing, but I got a good amount of lettuce for sandwiches. I’ll try again next year.

I visited my mother over the weekend. She had an outdoor garden. I got two pounds of the yummiest carrots that my step-dad is super proud of. I got about thirty-five pounds of pumpkin, which is awesome, because we only have one more store bought pumpkin left. My mom grew pumpkins for decorative purposes, but they were too small to carve. (Score!) I got about twenty pounds of apples from her small orchard and a pound of acorns, which can be soaked and eaten as nuts. Even though my garden was a bit of a flop, the harvest did not let me down. Don’t worry though, because before I came, my mom was going to give all of this to deer and other wild foragers, except the carrots, so she is not missing what I took.

Winter Harvest

Right now, I have a small window winter garden. I’m growing some lettuce for garnishes on sandwiches. It is common for us to get sandwiches to go when we go out to eat and the lettuce makes them even better. We don’t grow enough for a diet of salad, which is fine with me since I don’t like the ingredients in most store bought salad dressings. My husband only likes Italian dressing, and it’s just too low of a priority for me to make it from scratch at this point.

I am also growing some oregano. I love oregano. Even though we have a large quantity of dried oregano, I like having fresh oregano as well. I grew many more herbs over the summer, but I found I used oregano the most, so I decided to just grow oregano in my scaled down winter garden.

My prized plant, though, are my green onions. This may be the oldest tip around, but I had never heard it before a reader passed it along, so I consider it a gem. Buying green onions from the store doesn’t come under my $1.00 per pound for produce rule, so I rarely buy them. But you can plant them after cutting some off to eat. So I pushed some down into one of my coffee cans filled with dirt. Just leave a little of the green and the green onions will grow up.
Since I’m hoping it sticks around for a while, I bought organic for $1.58 instead of the regular green onions for $1.12. I planted the first one last Thursday. It has grown just about six inches in under a week. The first few days it grew kind of slow, then just shot right up. I’ve planted five so far and have more in my fridge that I am excited to eat up then plant.

I water all of the plants while I make breakfast, every day. Incorporating it with something I must do every day ensures that there will not be a garden massacre again.

Grocery Store Harvest

Potatoes are around $0.20 per pound around here. It is the time to buy. God designed it so that hearty foods would be harvested in the fall and they would keep throughout most of the winter if stored properly. I’ve been getting carrots for around $0.40 per pound and cabbage for $0.30 per pound. I’ve been making cortido, a Latin American sauerkraut. This is a great way to preserve harvest vegetables, as well as moving me closer to my nutritional goals. Of course, squashes and apples are a good buy right now, but I won’t be buying them too soon.

How has the harvest treated you? Are you extending it into the winter?

Continue reading Harvest Time …

From Under $1000 Per Month.

Frugal Thanksgiving tips

Thanksgiving is one of those holidays where it’s a little hard to figure out how to cut back on expenses.

The traditional menu is not all that expensive to begin with. The bigger headaches for dinner hosts involve logistics (Who’s cooking what? Who’s sitting where? How do I time the bird in comparison to the side dishes? Who’s doing the dishes?).

And there is little that can be done about travel expenses except hope that you can schedule an off-peak day to avoid the congestion. College kids sometimes get a bye and can bail out to a roommate’s or cousin’s home instead of traveling all the way back home (I went to a college roommate’s home one year); but family loyalties usually just have to be worked around.

But there are tips that the frugal living experts can share on how to deal with Thankgiving costs. Most of them involve planning ahead with menus and grocery purchases, rather than leaving the details to the last minute.

• BeingFrugal’s Frugal Thanksgiving tips.
• SavingAdvice’s Frugal Thanksgiving savings.
• The Frugal Foodie’s 10 steps to a frugal Thanksgiving.
• Creative Homemaking’s A frugal but elegant Thanksgiving buffet.

This week or next will be a good time to make a list of what foods you are expected to provide, or will be asking others to provide, for Thanksgiving. When the holiday feast sales start, and in my area the weekly grocery sales change over on Sunday or Monday, you want to be ready with your shopping list.

Just before or after Halloween is also a good time to look for any remaining fall / harvest decor or merchandise that may be on clearance while the stores move in the Christmas merchandise. I bought a fall wreath today for $5 that was originally selling for $20.

Continue reading Frugal Thanksgiving tips …

From Monroe on a Budget.

Freebie Friday

I cannot wait for the rest of this year! We have so many exciting things that will be happening here at Econobusters to help you with your frugal living–so many new things in the works!

Monday is the last newsletter for October. If you have leftover pumpkins, you will not want to miss this one! Remember that these newsletters are free and you can get a free menu planning E-Book for signing up. They are delivered each Monday to your in-box. Here is a run down of what you can expect to see us talking about in November: All Things Bread, Organizing for Fall, Thanksgiving, and Emergency Preparedness. If you have links, ideas, or recipes related to these topics, shoot Jennifer an email (jennifersikora@econobusters.com) with “newsletter” as the subject line with your idea.

Here are the freebies for this week:

• Jamin’s freebies are all about fall! From lapbooking to crafts, you will be ready for your own fall harvest with these great ideas.
• The Old Schoolhouse is offering for free a past Teacher’s Toolbox that includes a free lapbook from Hands of a Child on the American Government.
• If you have purchased Digests in the past and printed them out, don’t forget about the free binder covers that you can print out to go on the front of them.
• Visit Barnes and Nobles tomorrow and get a free cookie and hot chocolate!
• Get a free cookbook on Low-fat Favorite Recipes when you fill out this form.
• Free Blockbuster Express Kiosk Rental Code – Use the code: PUBLIX1 to rent free DVD for one night. This code expires on 11/25/2009
• Get a free pen sample from Ritter Pen.
• Free for today only from Homeschool Freebie of the Day: The Mary Frances Story Book.
• Free from Currclick: Bite Size Physics E-Book.
• Free from Fave Crafts: Quick and Easy Christmas Crafts.
• Another freebie from Fave Crafts: Sewing For Beginners.
• You can find many other free craft books from Fave Crafts by clicking here.

Please try and remember that we do our best to check ad content before posting a link. Because of Halloween coming up, there may be advertisements relating to that. While we try to avoid any links like that, sometimes it is impossible because of the constant change in content on other website.

If you find a link that is not good or no longer available, please email me and let me know.

Continue reading Freebie Friday …

From Econobusters.

Freebie Friday

We have lots of great freebies today! Before I get into all the freebies, I wanted to share with you about my favorite one that just became available today. Remember earlier in the week I told you about the free unit study called Autumn Treasures from The Old Schoolhouse? Well, it is available NOW!

Here are the freebies for this week:

• Carnation Evaporated Milk has a free Holiday E-Book recipe book ( I think I posted this one before, but I can’t remember so I am posting it again for you)!
• Jamin’s freebies this week are all about the Oregan Trail. I am sure these would make a great unit study!
• The Old Schoolhouse is giving away a free weE-book, Fall Harvest; Where’s The Fruit.
• Another free E-Book from The Old Schoolhouse: Understanding Down Syndrome.
• From Kap and Pen: Planning a Successful Treasure Hunt E-Book (thanks TOS).
• Get a free subscription to Living the Country Life magazine.
• Get free samples at Walgreen’s this Saturday!
• Get a free sample of Garnier shampoo and conditioner.
• Free 2010 calendar from Joyce Meyer ministries.
• Get a free meat thermometer just for filling out the form.
• Free Oust Freshen Your Home Gift Pack.
• Free 2010 devotional calendar from Ron Hutchcraft ministries.

Remember if you find a link that has expired or is no longer working, please let me know. Also, ads change periodically on websites, so visit using your own caution.

Happy Friday!

Continue reading Freebie Friday …

From Econobusters.

Freebie Friday

We have lots of great freebies today! Before I get into all the freebies, I wanted to share with you about my favorite one that just became available today. Remember earlier in the week I told you about the free unit study called Autumn Treasures from The Old Schoolhouse? Well, it is available NOW!

Here are the freebies for this week:

• Carnation Evaporated Milk has a free Holiday E-Book recipe book ( I think I posted this one before, but I can’t remember so I am posting it again for you)!
• Jamin’s freebies this week are all about the Oregan Trail. I am sure these would make a great unit study!
• The Old Schoolhouse is giving away a free weE-book, Fall Harvest; Where’s The Fruit.
• Another free E-Book from The Old Schoolhouse: Understanding Down Syndrome.
• From Kap and Pen: Planning a Successful Treasure Hunt E-Book (thanks TOS).
• Get a free subscription to Living the Country Life magazine.
• Get free samples at Walgreen’s this Saturday!
• Get a free sample of Garnier shampoo and conditioner.
• Free 2010 calendar from Joyce Meyer ministries.
• Get a free meat thermometer just for filling out the form.
• Free Oust Freshen Your Home Gift Pack.
• Free 2010 devotional calendar from Ron Hutchcraft ministries.

Remember if you find a link that has expired or is no longer working, please let me know. Also, ads change periodically on websites, so visit using your own caution.

Happy Friday!

Continue reading Freebie Friday …

From Econobusters.

Freebie Friday

We have lots of great freebies today! Before I get into all the freebies, I wanted to share with you about my favorite one that just became available today. Remember earlier in the week I told you about the free unit study called Autumn Treasures from The Old Schoolhouse? Well, it is available NOW!

Here are the freebies for this week:

• Carnation Evaporated Milk has a free Holiday E-Book recipe book ( I think I posted this one before, but I can’t remember so I am posting it again for you)!
• Jamin’s freebies this week are all about the Oregan Trail. I am sure these would make a great unit study!
• The Old Schoolhouse is giving away a free weE-book, Fall Harvest; Where’s The Fruit.
• Another free E-Book from The Old Schoolhouse: Understanding Down Syndrome.
• From Kap and Pen: Planning a Successful Treasure Hunt E-Book (thanks TOS).
• Get a free subscription to Living the Country Life magazine.
• Get free samples at Walgreen’s this Saturday!
• Get a free sample of Garnier shampoo and conditioner.
• Free 2010 calendar from Joyce Meyer ministries.
• Get a free meat thermometer just for filling out the form.
• Free Oust Freshen Your Home Gift Pack.
• Free 2010 devotional calendar from Ron Hutchcraft ministries.

Remember if you find a link that has expired or is no longer working, please let me know. Also, ads change periodically on websites, so visit using your own caution.

Happy Friday!

Continue reading Freebie Friday …

From Econobusters.

Freebie Friday

We have lots of great freebies today! Before I get into all the freebies, I wanted to share with you about my favorite one that just became available today. Remember earlier in the week I told you about the free unit study called Autumn Treasures from The Old Schoolhouse? Well, it is available NOW!

Here are the freebies for this week:

• Carnation Evaporated Milk has a free Holiday E-Book recipe book ( I think I posted this one before, but I can’t remember so I am posting it again for you)!
• Jamin’s freebies this week are all about the Oregan Trail. I am sure these would make a great unit study!
• The Old Schoolhouse is giving away a free weE-book, Fall Harvest; Where’s The Fruit.
• Another free E-Book from The Old Schoolhouse: Understanding Down Syndrome.
• From Kap and Pen: Planning a Successful Treasure Hunt E-Book (thanks TOS).
• Get a free subscription to Living the Country Life magazine.
• Get free samples at Walgreen’s this Saturday!
• Get a free sample of Garnier shampoo and conditioner.
• Free 2010 calendar from Joyce Meyer ministries.
• Get a free meat thermometer just for filling out the form.
• Free Oust Freshen Your Home Gift Pack.
• Free 2010 devotional calendar from Ron Hutchcraft ministries.

Remember if you find a link that has expired or is no longer working, please let me know. Also, ads change periodically on websites, so visit using your own caution.

Happy Friday!

Continue reading Freebie Friday …

From Econobusters.

Freebie Friday

We have lots of great freebies today! Before I get into all the freebies, I wanted to share with you about my favorite one that just became available today. Remember earlier in the week I told you about the free unit study called Autumn Treasures from The Old Schoolhouse? Well, it is available NOW!

Here are the freebies for this week:

• Carnation Evaporated Milk has a free Holiday E-Book recipe book ( I think I posted this one before, but I can’t remember so I am posting it again for you)!
• Jamin’s freebies this week are all about the Oregan Trail. I am sure these would make a great unit study!
• The Old Schoolhouse is giving away a free weE-book, Fall Harvest; Where’s The Fruit.
• Another free E-Book from The Old Schoolhouse: Understanding Down Syndrome.
• From Kap and Pen: Planning a Successful Treasure Hunt E-Book (thanks TOS).
• Get a free subscription to Living the Country Life magazine.
• Get free samples at Walgreen’s this Saturday!
• Get a free sample of Garnier shampoo and conditioner.
• Free 2010 calendar from Joyce Meyer ministries.
• Get a free meat thermometer just for filling out the form.
• Free Oust Freshen Your Home Gift Pack.
• Free 2010 devotional calendar from Ron Hutchcraft ministries.

Remember if you find a link that has expired or is no longer working, please let me know. Also, ads change periodically on websites, so visit using your own caution.

Happy Friday!

Continue reading Freebie Friday …

From Econobusters.

Freebie Friday

We have lots of great freebies today! Before I get into all the freebies, I wanted to share with you about my favorite one that just became available today. Remember earlier in the week I told you about the free unit study called Autumn Treasures from The Old Schoolhouse? Well, it is available NOW!

Here are the freebies for this week:

• Carnation Evaporated Milk has a free Holiday E-Book recipe book ( I think I posted this one before, but I can’t remember so I am posting it again for you)!
• Jamin’s freebies this week are all about the Oregan Trail. I am sure these would make a great unit study!
• The Old Schoolhouse is giving away a free weE-book, Fall Harvest; Where’s The Fruit.
• Another free E-Book from The Old Schoolhouse: Understanding Down Syndrome.
• From Kap and Pen: Planning a Successful Treasure Hunt E-Book (thanks TOS).
• Get a free subscription to Living the Country Life magazine.
• Get free samples at Walgreen’s this Saturday!
• Get a free sample of Garnier shampoo and conditioner.
• Free 2010 calendar from Joyce Meyer ministries.
• Get a free meat thermometer just for filling out the form.
• Free Oust Freshen Your Home Gift Pack.
• Free 2010 devotional calendar from Ron Hutchcraft ministries.

Remember if you find a link that has expired or is no longer working, please let me know. Also, ads change periodically on websites, so visit using your own caution.

Happy Friday!

Continue reading Freebie Friday …

From Econobusters.

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