Sunday, February 14, 2010

Time Savers Part II

Besides being a time-saver, this will save you $$.

Make your own 100 calorie packs.
What you need:
  • 100 calorie Ziploc bags or regular sandwich bags.
  • Open boxes of cereal, chips, goldfish, trail mix, Chex mix, etc.
Read the label to see how much you need for 100 calories. I measure the first one of each kind and then just eyeball it until the box or bag is empty. I also used 2 sleeves of whole wheat crackers and put peanut butter on them.
Today in about 45 minutes, I made about 60 snack packs of cereal, goldfish, and peanut butter crackers. I also made fridge packs of celery and carrots--enough to pack for a week's worth of lunches. You can cut up apples and just add a few drops of lemon juice.

I pack lunch for my husband, kindergartener and pre-schooler every day.
For the kids: fresh veggies, fruit, 100 cal pack, yogurt and a juice box. Done!
For DH: can of soup & box of frozen veggies (or leftovers from dinner), fiber one bar, yogurt, fresh fruit, soda, 100 cal packs.

Friday, February 12, 2010

Time Savers

Here are a few time savers I have recently started:
1. When you make pancakes, make the entire box. Wrap the rest individually and freeze. They go right in the toaster just like a waffle.
2. When you buy meat like chicken and ground beef, cook it all when you bring it home and place in freezer bags in the amounts you will use. I bought 12 pounds of ground beef for $1.28 per pound at a Harris Teeter grand opening. I cooked it all and put it in quart size freezer bags. I have made chili, sloppy joes, hamburger helper, lasagna and baked ziti in a zip by having the meat already cooked. It thaws so quickly under cold running water and in many dishes it can go in frozen.
The same is true for boneless chicken breasts. Cut them the way you will use them. I just made grilled chicken salads in no time by using my pre-cooked frozen chicken breast strips.
**I'll do a separate post on how to get 5 great meals from one whole chicken, some egg noodles, vegetables, and rice.
3. Buy one of those Pampered Chef stone mini-loaf pans. When you make bread or even a cake mix, using the mini-loaf will make 4. Eat one, give one away while hot, and freeze the remaining 2 for later. I do this for banana bread, Tastefully Simple beer bread, cakes, etc.

If you're not sure what can be frozen, take a look at your grocer's freezer section. If you can buy it frozen, you can freeze it yourself, save money, and avoid preservatives and other unnecessary ingredients.