Quote:
Originally Posted by Radiance
I like that compromise!  and I am sure some of my coworker friends will buy into it too!
In the mean time, still struggling, my son was sick for a week, then I came under during the weekend. My meal plan came down the drains, food spolied.... ah. How do you adapt your cooking plans when sick?
remember, single mom of toddler with full time job...
THis has been a real toughy! arg |
It all depends on what your cooking plans were. You are in a tough spot if you don't have another adult to help you in times like these. That said, you really do need a back up plan should this happen again.
It begins with your food storage. We eat a lot of fresh produce. I was having such a hard time with spoilage that I did a ton of research on it. There is an order to the food that you eat. You eat strawberries before apples. Brocolli before cauliflower. Asparagus before brocolli. That sort of thing based on typical shelf life.
You have to keep fruit/veggies that emit off gases away from those that don't. Etc etc.
I'm sure you've read on other threads that I have purchased some specialty food storage containers for the things that I was having the most trouble with. Even if you didn't do this, I have found that the way I organize my fridge will go a long way to helping me use what needs to be used. Produce drawers are virtually worthless, you need to get those items up on the shelves.
And if possible, get your produce prepped when you can. It'll help you use them later when time is short. Don't put half an onion in a baggie in the fridge and hide in your produce drawer. Chop the whole onion and put the unused chopped onion in an inexpensive, washable (trashable) plastic container. Now you have chopped onion ready for the next usage.
Don't wash one leaf of lettuce, dry it and put it on a sandwich. Wash the whole head, wrap it in a damp paper towel and have it be ready to go. Don't just wash a single stalk of celery, wash the whole thing, shorten the stalks, put in plain site.
I had a saying. If you are going to cook, cook a lot. It doesn't take much more time to prep the entirety of whatever you are dealing with than asingle serving.
Finally, it's good to know what can be frozen and how. You can freeze fresh fruit, but you often steam veggies before freezing. Have the tools on hand so that even if you aren't sick, you can deal with what's happening to the items in your fridge.
Know some recipes that will make use of overripe items. Like broth, soup (good for most veggies), or chili (great for wrinkled bell peppers). Or baked fruit.
It's lateand I see that I'm typing a lot. I like to talk. I hope I've offered some helpful suggestions. I've been struggling with this very same issue and have figured out ways to deal. I'll stop now. Let me know if this info sparks any more specifics...
10-28-2009, 08:37 AM
