How to Roast a Pumpkin and Make Pumpkin Purée

I cannot believe it's been over a year since my last post! I also can't believe I never got this particular topic posted. Every year I roast at least one pumpkin so that I have a freezer stash of pumpkin purée to last me through the year and sate my pumpkin obsession. At least once every year I tell someone about the process of doing it. Four years ago, I took pictures of the step by step process. And yet, somehow, I still managed to lapse on writing it out to share.

Well, I'm finally going to do it! This year is the year! And now we can share our love for pumpkins just in time for Thanksgiving festivities!

So, first thing's first. We need to get a bit of misconception out of the way. Here's a truth bomb for you: all pumpkins are edible. Yep, that's right, from the tiny Jack-be-Little pumpkins to the huge monstrosities that seem ready to convert into a carriage to whisk a future princess off to a ball. Despite this little factoid, most from-scratch bakers limit themselves to the pie pumpkins which are small and thick walled and often require a feat of strength to prep them before they can cook 'em up.

It's not surprising though, the principal reasons provided for favoring pie pumpkins over others are the fact that pie pumpkins have more natural sugar making them sweeter and the larger the pumpkin is, the more water content it contains. The thing is though, by only selecting pie pumpkins to work with, you are volunteering for a serious workout and likely spending more money on the process than is necessary given the smaller yield provided by these little fruits. The reality is, since most pumpkin goodies have sugar in the recipes, the extra bit provided by the pie pumpkin is not even worth mentioning. Creating a savory dish? You can always sweeten it if needed, but then it'd be counter-productive. A decent fine mesh strainer can solve the excess water content issue easily. Yes, it takes more time, but if we are talking bang for your buck, the best bet is to get the largest pumpkin you can get that will fit on your pans and in your oven. Pro tip - if you, your friends, or your neighbors use pumpkins for Halloween decorations, they often remain in good enough condition afterward to go ahead and roast as long as they haven't been carved or decorated.

Ok, so, let's get started! Once I'm ready to get going, I like to give the pumpkins a scrub in the sink, just to make sure any dirt or critters that may have been on them from the outside are washed away. Next you are going to want to cut the pumpkin into roughly equal halves. Cut around the stem, so it will be on one of your halves.

Next, you'll want to scrape out the innards. I've used all kinds of tools, but honestly, those cheap little scrapers that come with the pumpkin carving kits are pretty fantastic for this job. Just keep a trash can near by so you can dump it right in. Because you aren't digging into the insides of an intact pumpkin (like when you carve it), this task is less messy than you may think.

After your pumpkin halves are cleaned out, you'll want to place the pumpkin halves face down on a foil lined cookie sheet. Your cookie sheet must have sides because the moisture from the pumpkin will drip down and can make a big ol' mess. You'll need sided pans to keep it in check. This moisture helps to steam the pumpkin while it cooks though, so it's a good thing to have it there.

Place the cookie sheets in the oven and roast (bake) the pumpkin at 450° for 45 min to 1 hour depending on the size of your pumpkin. Larger pumpkins or those with particularly thick walls will need to roast a bit longer. Typically, the part towards the top will pull away from the skin and drop to the cookie sheet leaving a funny shaped bubble. It's ok if the skin on that bubble gets a bit dark or even burned looking - after the flesh separates from it, it cooks up pretty fast. You'll know your pumpkin is done if a fork slides into the fleshy part like butter - smoother than butter really, especially if that butter is cold... In any case, if you don't want to handle the pumpkin to try to get a fork into the underside, you'll know it's done because the top of your "bubble" is getting dark and the edges of the pumpkin where it rests on the foil are dark. Ovens vary, so you may need to adjust time or temp if yours runs particularly hot or cooler than most.

Once you pull the pumpkin out of the oven, you'll need to let it cool enough that you can handle it, so take a break for 30 minutes or so. You may be able to flip each side over and scoop out the flesh, but in most cases after roasting, you can peel the skin right off and discard it. Same goes for the stem, it typically pulls right off. The fleshy part then takes a whirl in the food processor until smooth.

At this point, if you have a medium to large pumpkin, you'll want to strain the extra liquid off by placing your purée in a fine mesh strainer over a bowl for 20 minutes or so. If you choose not to strain it, you may yield more total purée, but then you may have to adjust recipes to avoid batters and such from being too runny. I didn't strain mine for the longest time and just worked around any watery issues. By straining ahead of time, I don't have to worry as much, though sometimes I then forget I need to add water to certain recipes. Oops.

After straining is complete, I measure out two cups of purée and place them into a quart sized freezer bag. This process is neater if you prop the bag in a large cup folding the top of the bag over the top of the cup to keep it in place. Two cups is roughly the size of a can of pumpkin purée, so this makes it easy to follow recipes that call for one can. I typically will then freeze these flat. To use them, I can pull the bags out of the freezer the day before or even several hours before I need to use them. They defrost amazingly quickly.

And that's it. Amaze your friends with your thrifty ways! Seriously though, a medium sized pumpkin can yield 4-5 quart sized bags turning a $4 pumpkin into 4-5 equivalent cans of pumpkin at 80¢ - $1 a piece. You may yield more or less, but it's a decent savings, especially if you grab your pumpkins on sale, pick up leftovers from local pumpkin patches looking to get rid of extras, or take your neighbor's "old" decorations off their hands. Offer up some pumpkin goodies as a trade and everybody wins!

Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo From Scratch in 35 min!

I'm still having difficulty convincing people that I don't like to cook. Weird right?

I get that I'm a bit of an anomaly when it comes to the kitchen. My desire to avoid too many processed foods and save money by making some things from home occasionally overwhelms my lack of interest in spending time over a hot stove. That being said, I try really hard to limit that amount of time spent over a hot stove and surprisingly manage to throw together a great number of meals in a pretty short amount of time. My favorite is when I can manage 30 minutes or less.

We are channeling Rachel Ray here....

With this meal I did miss the mark by 5 minutes. Gimme a break though, homemade pasta. With a rolling pin. No fancy equipment. Did I really say that? Type that? Why yes, I did. So here is the run down by time including ingredients I used so you can do the same. If you are feeling froggy.

Ribbit.


Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo from scratch in 35 min - with homemade pasta

5:30 pm
- Add 1 stick of butter to small saucepan (this will be for the alfredo sauce) and turn heat on low to melt
- Add 4 cups (or more) of water (I used slightly frozen chicken broth) to another larger pan and turn on high to boil for your pasta

5 minutes in 

- Cut 1.5lbs. of chicken breasts into 1/2" pieces and add to medium to large fry pan. Add your favorite oil for cooking if desired. I tend not to add anything simply because the chicken usually releases enough water while cooking that you don't really risk burning it if you stir fairly regularly. Add salt and pepper if desired, but the alfredo sauce will add salt to the final dish, so you may want to hold off until the end. Turn on heat to low/medium. Stir periodically.

5:35 pm
- Your chicken should be just starting to cook and your butter melting well. I still had some ice in my chicken broth at this point since it was homemade broth I had frozen and only mostly thawed out.
- For the pasta: In medium bowl, mix 1 cup of all purpose flour with 1/2 cup of water and a dash of salt. Feel free to use semolina flour if you want to get fancy, but all purpose works just fine. When the dough comes together, transfer it to a well floured surface and knead until it is elastic and not so sticky.

5:40pm
- Wrap your pasta dough in plastic and allow to rest. (Note: Here is where the pasta gurus will be pulling their hair out. In theory, you should knead for more than 5 minutes and rest for longer as well. Since I was trying to be all impressive with expediency, I took less than optimal time. It still turned out well).
- Stir chicken.
- To the melted butter, add 1/2 cup sour cream, 1/2 cup parmesan cheese (I use the good ol' sprinkle kind, but feel free to be fancy with fresh grated), 2-3 minced, crushed, or grated cloves of garlic (based on clove size and taste preference), and 1/4 cup (or more if needed) of milk to thin the mixture. Whisk until well blended. Turn the heat up slightly to help melt the cheese.

5:45pm
- Take the dough out of the plastic and divide into two equal parts. Flour your work surface well and roll it out to about 1/16-1/8" thick. Using a ruler and pizza cutter, cut the dough into thin strips. I don't measure, I just guess - the ruler helps me keep my cuts a bit straighter. Lay out pasta strips on a rack to dry slightly.
- Stir chicken, it should be cooking pretty well at this point.
- Stir alfredo sauce. Turn heat to low if looking well blended and mostly smooth.
- Pasta water/broth should be starting to simmer at this point.

5:55pm
- Steam some microwave steamable green beans or broccoli. I like broccoli with this meal since I can add butter and parmesan cheese to compliment the alfredo sauce.
- Add pasta to the boiling water or broth and let it cook. Since this is fresh made, it will only take a few minutes to cook.
- Stir chicken, it should be mostly done.

6:00pm
- Drain chicken of extra juices. Add alfredo sauce to pan with chicken. Strain pasta and add to chicken pan. Mix well to fully coat with the sauce, but take care not to rip apart the pasta.
- Remove veggies from microwave and mix with butter and parmesan cheese (if using broccoli).

6:05pm
- Plate your meal and enjoy!



Ok, now, just a few (dozen) notes:
- I did not do any prep ahead aside from setting out the frozen chicken and broth earlier in the day to thaw. There was no pre-measuring of ingredients. As I was making this, I was pulling things out of the pantry, fridge, and cabinets. Obviously gathering supplies and measuring ingredients ahead of time will expedite the whole process once you get going.
- I only used half of the pasta dough. My family isn't huge on pasta, so we only eat small amounts. If you roll out and cook both halves of the dough, you'd obviously be adding a bit of time. After dinner I did roll out the rest, cut it up and put it in the dehydrator to dry for a future meal.
- Feel free to opt for fresh or frozen broccoli that gets steamed on the stove. Just set that up at the beginning when you are setting up your other pots and it should be good to go by the time you finish everything else.
- Using jarred (or premade) sauce and premade pasta makes this meal go way faster, so keep that in mind since even without making it all at once (or not doing it all from scratch) it's still a quick meal.
- This meal fed my family of four with only some broccoli left over. You can probably do the full batch of pasta and up to 2 lbs of chicken with the same amount of sauce - the amounts I used resulted in extra sauce. Alternately, you don't have to use the whole batch of alfredo sauce and can save some for later.

And now for the recipe if you want it all in one place:

Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo

Afredo Sauce:
1 stick of butter
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4-1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
2-4 cloves minced garlic (to taste)
milk to thin if needed

Mix ingredients over low heat stirring frequently until well blended and cheese melted.

Fettuccine Pasta:
1 cup flour (semolina or all purpose work well)
1/2 cup water
dash of salt
extra flour for kneading

Mix ingredients in medium bowl until they come together. Transfer dough to floured surface and knead for about ten minutes until the dough is elastic and no longer sticky adding flour as needed. When correct consistency is achieved, wrap in plastic and let stand for about 20 minutes. After twenty minutes, divide dough into two parts wrapping one back in plastic while you work with the other. Roll out to about 1/16"-1/8" thick. Using a straight-edge or freehand, cut with pizza cutter or knife into thin strips about 1/4" wide. Lay out to dry slightly before cooking.

To cook, bring a full pot of salted water or broth to a boil and add pasta. When pasta is done, it will be slightly translucent and float at the top.

Chicken Breast:
1.5-2lbs. chicken breast cut into 1/2" cubes

Cook chicken in small amount of your favorite cooking oil until done.


Combine cooked pasta, alfredo sauce, and chicken. Serve with steamed vegetables and top with a sprinkle of parsley if desired.

Why I DIY: Seasoning Mixes

A sampling of my seasoning mixes. I know the Sharpie writing on the
jar doesn't look nice, but it actually makes washing the jars
easy as it comes of in the wash but has good staying power
with normal handling.

The other day I was attending a four year old's birthday party and my sweet friend was bragging on me and all the homemade things I make. One of the things specifically that came up was seasoning mixes. And I received a legitimate question (ok, two) from some of the attendees that were listening in: Why make your own? and How long do they last?

Now, to be honest, I hadn't given it much thought specifically. Most of the time I just roll seasoning mixes into a lot of the other things I make at home with my standard reasoning of: if I can make my own, why buy it? The second part to that is typically that in a lot of cases, you can make things from home for a lot cheaper than buying it. While this isn't always the case, usually making your own means losing more time than money. Also, prepackaged items are notorious for having preservatives (mostly artificial) to prolong shelf life which pinpoints the purpose for the second question about how long they last.

Let's delve into this a little deeper...

I never actually make veggie broth. This mix is a stand-in
for bouillon when I'm out.

When I was young I remember my mom having a well stocked spice cabinet. There was almost never an ingredient she didn't have. And while she didn't always make everything from scratch (even I don't do that), she still had the ability to do so in more than enough situations. It was always something that I wanted to make sure I established in my own home and I slowly but surely added herbs and spices to my collection. Certainly the big ones like garlic powder, chili powder, and oregano were some of the first along and usually purchased in larger containers. As a young adult with my own place, I did have some seasoning mixes that I purchased. Convenience was certainly a factor, but also, some of the more obscure seasonings I may not have had. Also, to be honest, in some cases, it never occurred to me to even try to make my own. There was almost that voice in my head saying this was a proprietary blend only available through manufacturers. It wasn't until I got much more into homemade foods that I really began to look closer and realized, "hey, I could make these."

I think the bug first hit me when I started my foray into pumpkin baking. Anyone who knows me knows I go gaga over almost anything pumpkin. I was looking forward to roasting my very first pumpkin for pumpkin purée and thus, I was looking for various recipes for pumpkin pie (among other pumpkin goodies) and realized that some called for pumpkin pie spice while others called for a variety of individual spices. While at first it seems like I should go for the premade spice mix so I didn't end up buying six different spices, I felt I didn't want to limit myself when it came to which recipes I could use. After all, looking at the ingredient list of pumpkin pie spice revealed that it actually had a selection of those other spices in it. That meant, that if I bought the individual ones, I could mix my own pumpkin pie spice and still have the other ones to add to my spice collection to use in other dishes.

A new batch of fajita seasoning prior to mixing it up.

After this revelation, it was like falling down the rabbit hole. One thing lead to another and another. In reality, I'm still working on using up some of my old (really old, but more about that later) mixes and either doing without or replacing them with homemade mixes, but most of the time, I make up the mixes myself. Now, if I run into a recipe I want to use that calls for a mix or a package, more often than not, I go searching for a recipe for the mix (assuming I don't already have it) rather than just buying it outright. After all, with as well stocked as my spice cabinet is, I probably have most of the ingredients I need anyway. If not, it's an opportunity to add a new one or two.

So let's go back to the inquiries that were presented to me. Why do it? and more to the point I'm getting to, how long do they last? I will be the first to admit that I don't care much for expiration dates. It's a bad habit, I know. That being said, I can't say I've noticed a decline in flavor of my spices since nine times out of ten I season to taste. Given that spices don't really go rancid or start growing things (obviously there are exceptions), I tend to keep them way longer than recommended. It hasn't killed me yet. I'm not saying everyone should do this, but it's a bad habit I will fully admit to. Granted, I've been known to toss several that get all caked up and chunky, but this is more an issue of humidity than it is the product actually going bad. Regardless of my bad habits though, making my own mixes actually helps me do a better job of keeping my seasonings "fresh." Because I'm using things I have on hand, it actually increases the turnover rate of my seasonings. Most of my mixes are for things I use on a regular basis, so I'm frequently mixing up new batches. I can't say that any of them have actually gone bad. While this was never a reason I started to make my own mixes, as I talked with the party goers, it became and awesome perk I hadn't even realized existed.

So, that's how it goes around here. I may as well use what I have on hand, right? Not to mention bragging rights. I like the bragging rights: Hey, I made that! =D

Ok, so, what you may be looking for after reading or skimming or skipping my blathering entirely, is some recipes. Well, I'll share them. I don't want to take credit for any of them since I didn't develop these recipes. Most came from books, blogs, and Pinterest. I'll add links to the appropriate ones that I can to give proper credit.

Here is a list of some of the most common mixes I use. If you are interested in another one that I didn't list, just let me know and I'll be happy to add it.

Barbecue Rub (came from a cookbook from a friend. I don't know the book.)
1/4 c packed brown sugar
1/4 c sweet paprika
3 Tbsp black pepper
3 Tbsp coarse salt
1 Tbsp hickory-smoked salt or more coarse salt
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp celery seeds
1 tsp cayenne pepper
(Keeps for 6 mo in airtight container according to the book.)

Cajun Blackening Seasoning Mix (by Flavor Mosaic)
Great with fish and chicken.

Celery Salt (seriously, why buy this?)
Equal parts celery seeds and salt. Grind the celery seeds if desired.
1/4 c celery seeds
1/4 c salt

Fajita Seasoning Mix 
(adapted from Budget Bytes Oven Fajitas recipe to create a bulk mix)
1/2 c chili powder
1/4 c paprika
4 tsp onion powder
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp cayenne pepper
8 tsp sugar
4 tsp salt
1/4 c corn starch
Mix well. Keep in airtight container. Use 3 Tbsp of mix per batch (for recipe linked above) or season to taste.

Italian Seasoning Mix (by Heavenly Homemakers)
Technically a mix for Italian dressing but also makes an easy go-to for spicing up Italian dishes. Bonus, the link above includes a recipe for Thousand Island dressing as well if you are interested.

Pumpkin Pie Spice (by My Baking Addiction)
I like this one because it has a more rounded out mix of ingredients. Some lack allspice, ginger, and/or cloves which I think is odd.

Montreal Steak Seasoning (from Field Guide to Herbs & Spices by Aliza Green as found on Chowhound)
This is my go-to steak seasoning. I absolutely love it. I use it most often on beef and venison roasts, but of course, it's great for steaks.

Taco Seasoning (by Kelly the Kitchen Kop)
Note: I tend to halve the amount of salt used for the whole jar recipe. I typically will salt my ground beef as I cook it and then I can always add more to taste.

Enjoy!

Homemade Tomato Sauce

It's been a while. I'm sorry. I totally flaked on "The Challenge" updates. It wasn't unbearable, but not the easiest of events. The challenge, that is, not the blogging of it. That, obviously, proved impossible. I did survive, though I wouldn't want to do it again. That means, before too much longer, hubs is going to have me attempt it again. That's just my luck.

In any case, back to the issue at hand. It's been a long time coming and many, many unused pictures, but I need to do a write-up about how I make tomato sauce. I'm constantly posting pictures from various stages of the process on my Facebook page, specifically on my "Restock Thursday" posts, so I figured it's about time. And I updated another one of my blogs, so I had to even it out. Forget the other four....

So, here we go!

The process is pretty basic. Grab veggies (ahem, tomatoes are fruits), cook down, purée, and can, er, jar in my case...

I don't measure much. If you've been following my blog or Facebook page, in the same manner as my chili, I just throw in what seems good in arbitrary amounts. Thus far, it has served me well.

Onward!

So, here we have tomatoes, garlic, onion, and some bell pepper (not pictured). You read that right, bell pepper. I love the bit of flavor it adds. Not too much though, you still want it to taste mostly like tomatoes. For this batch in particular, if you like measurements, I used about 5 lbs of Roma tomatoes, half an onion, most of that head of garlic, and about half a red bell pepper. I also always use salt and pepper. I don't know how much, maybe a tsp each? Or less... Most of the time I'm going to be adding salt and pepper to whatever I make with the tomato sauce, so I don't really stress about how much I do or don't add here.

Ok, so, first step, wash the tomatoes and cut the top bits off. I used to leave the seeds and skins, but after the natives kinda made a mention about not caring for the seeds in the final product, I started taking those out too. I chop the tomatoes into big chunks and use water running from the tap to help me clear out the seeds. The skins I leave on. I chop the onion into big chunks and add that. Then, I peel as many garlic cloves as I feel like at the time and toss those in too. When it comes to the red bell pepper, I add it if I have it. I cut those tops off and take the seeds out and usually cut it into strips. I've actually had quite a few lately as I've taken advantage of sales and stocked up. I've found that they freeze quite well, just chopped up which has really expedited fajita nights (and having the frozen peppers means fajitas more frequently too!) or when I need them to toss in with stir fry. So, in any case, I'll grab a small handful 1/4-1/2 a pepper's worth and add that to my pot as well. I top with salt and pepper and that's it for prep work!

Let's get going! Just add heat!

The next part of the process is long and drawn out. The pot goes on the stove to cook away on med/low heat. It takes hours, so make sure to do this on a day where you have time to be at home. You could cook it faster, but the hotter it gets, the more nutrients you can lose to overheating, not to mention, it could burn. Low and slow is the way to go. Like with brisket. Not that I've ever made one, but I'm Texan, so I know that's how to cook one. The tomatoes have plenty of water content, so you don't need to worry about starting them off with some. Just check the pot periodically and stir it if you feel like it. Eventually it will start to look like mush. I like to wait to allow as much extra moisture to evaporate off as possible. I like the sauce to be pretty thick and the amount that releases when it gets puréed is astounding.

Mushy veggies, liquid mostly gone.
If I have the time, I'd let it go longer.

Cooked down, but very liquidy

So, after you have some nice mush, it's time to purée. I will typically remove from heat and let it cool if I've got the time. My blender instructions indicate that you shouldn't use it with hot ingredients, so I try to give the manufacturer the benefit of the doubt that it actually makes a difference. It's probably a good idea to let it cool at least some. That does allow extra liquid to evaporate and prevents the top of you blender from exploding off due to extra pressure and steam building as you blend. Just sayin'.

Ok then, away you go with the puréeing! I like to go at the highest speed my blender achieves. Then I mix it up a bit with the lower speeds, for no real reason, just because.

Now, at this point, I deviate from a lot of other people. If you like to do the canning thing, go for it. I don't. I probably could, but fear of the unknown keeps me at bay. And I don't like the fact that it requires the use of lids that have to be replaced. However, if you are lacking the deep freeze that I use as the lifeblood of my kitchen, canning is a great option for storing at room temperature.

So, yeah, my sauce goes into pint sized mason jars. I use mostly pint sized jars because of convenience. Most cans in the store are 12-15 oz., so this is pretty equivalent if you use recipes that call for canned ingredients and you like to substitute your own like I do. Tomato sauce is usually available in 8 oz. and 15 oz. cans, so one pint sized jar is equivalent to two 8oz. cans. There ya go, I did the math for you. So, that's about it for me. I cap the jars and freeze.

Total yield varies, but I get roughly one jar per pound of tomatoes. It makes a difference how much liquid content there is, which is why I try to grab paste tomatoes when I can. Roma tomatoes are just the most commonly available. The extra veggies will add bulk as well as nutrients and flavor. We can discuss costs, if you want to go there. Most of the time, making your own sauce not going to be cheaper than buying conventional tomato sauce. I'm sorry. That's just how it is. If you can get an amazing deal on your tomatoes as in $.59 per pound, you might get comparable pricing, especially if you typically purchase organic. Finding organic tomatoes for that price is highly unlikely. I could be wrong. My solution to this issue is to limit tomato sauce uses when my stash is low. I try not to purchase tomatoes for sauce if I can't find them for less than $1 per pound. At that price I'll just get a small amount. When it's $.30-$.40 cheaper, I stock up and make more to have on hand later. This is one area where having the extra freezer space is a true blessing since I can maximize these types of sales and seasonal pricing. Even if it's not cheaper, making your own means it'll taste fresher and you avoid cans, not to mention you control the salt and additives, so there is that.

I hope you enjoy! Let me know what you think and if you have any questions!

Extra little tidbit for entertainment purposes... I actually had almost an entire blog post about how I make tomato sauce just waiting for me to review and post. I discovered it after publishing this one.

Extra little tidbit 2... I used pictures from at least 4 different tomato sauce making sessions, so please forgive me if quantities seem to change from image to image. They quite likely were very different. Like I said, a lot of unused photos. Some of these are from as far back as April 2015. Oops.

The Challenge

Using up some of our meat and poultry stores will admittedly
help prevent lack of rotation and tossing freezer burned items. 

At the beginning of the week, Hubs pointed out that we have a "full" pantry and a pretty well stocked deep freeze. He mentioned that we probably have at least a month worth of food. That may very well be accurate. I tend to shop sales and buy in bulk so that I maintain a well stocked pantry. I figure, that way, should our budget tighten or if I'm not able to get to the store for whatever reason for a couple of weeks, we are still usually in a pretty good spot and won't be hungry. Most of my cooking is based on using what I have on hand instead of deciding ahead of time what I'm going to make and then buying food to go along with it.

Thus enters the challenge. Could we actually make do with what we have on hand for a month? How about longer? Well, I'm going to start with a month. The challenge allows me to purchase some things that may not last or we go through quickly like bread (though usually I make my own), milk, and eggs.

Planning this month's meals, complete
with a few trash meals of not so healthy
foods. It's all about balance, right?

I've recently been trying to plan meals better. Not so much to buy for the menu, but create a menu based on what we have on hand. This helps me plan out our meals for the next month, especially if I'm not making purchases for things like meats and veggies. I can ration them out if needed.

No fears, I have plenty of tomato sauce.

One of the biggest challenges for me will be the lack of fresh produce. I'll have to depend on dry beans and frozen veggies for meals. I'll likely have to use some dried fruits for school lunches and snacks like raisins and fruit leather. It's a good thing I have a stash of frozen fruit - it's a great way to store fruit for future fruit leather or fruit snack use.

Another issue that made the timing of this challenge difficult is that I had several of the kids' snack items on my shopping list already. That means I'll have to get creative making snack items for school lunches and snacking at home. I probably shouldn't, but I rely on some crackers for easy, portable snacks, so we'll have to see what I can come up with.

We are nearing the end of the first week of this challenge. Typically breakfasts and lunches are easy, quick things, I don't usually cook for them unless I'm making something simple like an omelet or scrambled eggs. Over the duration of this challenge, I'll share the meals I've prepared and how I manage to make up for lack of easy snack foods for the kiddos.

This week's dinners were/are as follows:

Sunday - frozen pizza (no jabs about health factor here, sometimes I still rely on crappy food)
Monday - chicken chili (crock pot meal due to t-ball practice)
Tuesday - leftovers (I was feeling lazy and we had some red beans and rice and remnants of some other meals hanging out in the fridge)
Wednesday - burgers and fries (homemade burgers and buns)
Thursday - spaghetti and broccoli (ok, I used rotini instead of spaghetti, but it might as well be the same thing; homemade spaghetti sauce, of course)
Friday - teriyaki salmon and green beans (homemade sauce)
Saturday - chicken spaghetti

Homemade raisins, anyone?

Various things I've been working on in the kitchen to prep include finishing off the rest of our tomatoes for tomato sauce, started dehydrating the excessive grape stash for raisins (we were running out of raisins anyway), made two pots of shredded chicken/chicken broth, and made mango fruit leather. I have additional plans for more fruit leather, making fruit snacks, cooking up some dry beans for freezing, making apple sauce with some softening apples I have hanging around, making another batch of yogurt, making bouillon, and mixing up some homemade ice cream because I have some heavy cream that I don't want to go bad. It's ambitious and may not all get done before the week is out, but I'll get started on a bunch of it in the next couple of days.

Sadly, I couldn't even make it one week without a stop at the store. We were out of milk, so I stopped by yesterday to grab two gallons.

Stay posted for more updates as I see how this challenge works out for us!

Homemade Fruit Roll-ups/Fruit Leather

This post originally was seen on one of my other blogs My Mommy Blog about 2 years ago. Fruit leather is still one of my favorite tasty snack for my kiddos. Here is my step-by-step instructions, but really, it's all about picking a fruit, pureeing, adding sweetener (if desired), and dehydrating. Don't forget the pretty pictures. =)

On Cooking for Kids - Homemade Fruit Roll-ups/Fruit Leather

These were blackberry and banana fruit rolls. They looked
much better than they tasted, possibly because I'm not a fan
of super ripe bananas and the ones I used were pretty brown.
The kiddos didn't like them much either.

When I first was introduced to fruit leather, I was really confused. It sounded weird. Then I came to realize that it's basically strips of dehydrated fruit and other ingredients made as a healthy alternative to artificial fruit snacks like fruit rolls and other treats that have very little actual fruit in them. Some moms I knew even made their own fruit leather. I was fascinated and as someone that typically has treats in the car, purse, and/or diaper bag for my kiddos, I was really interested in another healthy option that didn't require an ice pack. I hate carrying around fruit, cheese, and other fresh snacks because of the requirement for refrigeration. I don't want to forget something that would spoil in the diaper bag if I happened to leave it in the car - not to mention the fact that I cram my little diaper bag full so to carry and ice pack and other snacks, I'd often have to carry another bag - who wants to do that?

I began looking into making these fruit treats, but was disappointed to find that they required a dehydrator which I did not have. I continued looking for recipes and found that they could be made with some success in the oven. Not mine, apparently. I'd like to offer encouragement to those that don't have dehydrators, but I'm not a success story in that respect. My oven goes to a minimum temp of 170 which is not low enough to dehydrate the fruit without burning ends and leaving the middle soggy. Keeping the door open or cracked to minimize the temp is not only a waste of energy and a good way to make an A/C pointless, but it's also a hazard to little ones when you have to keep it going for 10-12 hours. Not to mention tying up the oven that long. I had a few failed attempts at trying to regulate the temperature to keep it low, turning the oven on and off, opening the door frequently, etc. It didn't end well.

I got a dehydrator. Not specifically for this, but it was one of many reasons (along with setting dill on fire in the microwave while trying to dry it, but that's another story). I'm so happy about this purchase and now I make fruit leather on a regular basis. I've experimented with a lot of different kinds and I have my favorite methods, so here's some more insight on what I've made and how I've done it:

Strawberries & Cherries
- These can be done raw and whole. I've used fresh strawberries as well as thawed, previously frozen strawberries. I've only used fresh cherries, but I'd guess results would be similar with thawed, previously frozen cherries as well. 1 lb of fruit puréed in the blender with about 2-4 Tbsp of honey makes a perfect mixture. The honey is optional, of course, but sometimes if the fruit isn't fully ripe and sweet, it needs a bit of enhancement

Blackberries & Raspberries
- These can also be done raw and I've used both fresh and thawed, previously frozen berries. It's best to strain out the seeds from the puréed fruit when you use these and similar fruits. The seeds are edible, of course, but it does a number on texture. Even if you have a high powered super blender that chops the seeds, you'll still end up with a gritty texture, so I'd still recommend straining. 12 oz of fruit & 2-4 Tbsp of honey

Watermelon
- This one was mostly experimental, but turned out great. After removing seeds, purée the watermelon and strain off the liquid. The fruit leather is then made from the remaining pulp. Don't worry, there is still plenty of flavor. Don't discard the juice, it makes for a nice refreshing drink. I'm not sure on measurements on this, I just filled my blender with chopped watermelon pieces, strained, and added some honey.

Grapes
- Seedless grapes make this a lot easier. I cooked the grapes on the stove on low heat with a little bit of water until they started popping like cranberries and then put them whole in the blender. I then put them back on the stove on low heat and cooked down some more. I've only done this with red grapes, but I'm sure any variety would work. Once the grapes are thickened, you can set them up to dehydrate. 1 lb of fruit 2-4 Tbsp honey on this as well.

Apples & Cranberries
- For these, I set up my homemade sauces. I make unsweetened apple sauce from fresh apples (cook peeled apples with a small amount of water on the stove on low heat, purée once mushy to give a smooth texture), so for apple fruit leather, I just use that and sprinkle on cinnamon and sugar. I had made an excess of cranberry sauce from fresh cranberries for Thanksgiving last year and just used the sauce as-is for fruit leather - worked wonderfully.

I'm wanting to experiment with more fruit, but it will come as time goes on. I'll keep updating this blog with new ideas that have worked.

Ok, so, step by step:

Prepare fruit as described above, filling blender and purée.

Strain if necessary and blend again adding honey (or other sweetener of choice if any). You can see I'm really precise about measuring my honey.

The result after cooking and puréeing or just puréeing should be a relatively smooth liquid. If it is not smooth, blend for longer. If it is too runny, like in the case of watermelon, you may need to strain off some excess liquid so it doesn't run everywhere on your tray.

So, once you have your liquefied fruit mix, pour it out onto your dehydrator sheet. I like to oil mine because my sheets are not non-stick, and believe me, it will stick. Use your favorite oil or non-stick spray. Don't go overboard, you don't want the resultant fruit leather to be greasy.

I prefer not to spread it out too much because it will get significantly thinner as it dehydrates. Thicker pools will take longer, but result in thicker fruit strips, so this is what I prefer. In the picture below, it is spread out much more than I like and you can see it starting to creep out of the holes on the edge of the tray. That equals a big mess.

The temp setting may vary, but I like to do mine around 130 degrees. I do check on it from time to time and lower the temp if the edges are dehydrating too quickly or there are "cracks" developing. Alternately, I will increase the temp if it's going too slowly. The whole process can take 10-15 hours depending on the temp, fruit, and moisture content. In the picture below, you can see a "crack" in the upper left corner of the finished fruit. This is because it dehydrated unevenly. If your heat is too high, this can happen, so if you see it, you can cut back the temp. It doesn't ruin it, but it may not look as pretty and cut up as neatly, so it's entirely up to you.

Once the fruit is done, I peel it off the sheets and cut into 1 1/2 - 2 in strips that are about 3 - 4 in long depending on how big the whole fruit piece is. I like to use a pizza cutter for ease. You can cut them whatever size you like. I used to cut them to about fruit roll-up size and roll them, but I've been doing strips more lately because it's easier. And they last longer since the kids aren't eating such big pieces at a time.

And for a pretty display, you can roll them up and show them off.

I hope this helps if you are ever interested in making some of your own! Once you get the hang of it, you'll be able to make them easily and quickly. Strawberry are by far the most common ones I make, but I enjoy trying new things. It's also a great way to prolong the life of certain fruits that aren't getting consumed quickly enough.

Have you made fruit leather? What fruits and combos have you made?

Homemade Peanut Butter

I think among all the crunchy things that conventional individuals are likely to indulge in, natural peanut butter has got to be pretty high on the list of popularity. Granted, this is pure speculation, but it makes sense that this might be the case considering society's war on sugar. Ok, maybe I made this war up too, but there does seem to be a lot of emphasis on cutting back on sugar and peanut butter is an easy way to do it. Most conventional peanut butters are made with peanuts and sugar among other additives. If you ask me, I think the actual peanut flavor is dulled rather than enhanced by the sugar, but that's me. Either way, you are never hard-pressed to find natural peanut butter at even the most conventional of stores and some even have their own peanut butter machines so you can get it freshly ground in the store.

Crazy, these ingredients, in something
as simple as peanut butter

So why then, if it's so readily available would I make it myself? Well, the reality is that it may be easy to find, but it also can be expensive. A jar of natural peanut butter can run about $4 (at least where I've compared prices) for a 12 oz container. If you go through peanut butter like my kids do at times, that can seriously add up. I mean, my oldest ate peanut butter every day for the first 2/3 of the school year. That's a lot of peanut butter. On the flip-side, I can make approximately the same amount (or a little more) for less than $3. It doesn't sound like a lot of savings, but it can really add up.

Roasted salted peanuts

So, here goes with how I make it. You may be surprised to discover that you don't need any fancy equipment. Just peanuts and a food processor. A storage container is a good idea too. Maybe a measuring cup, but even that is negotiable. 

I typically will buy my peanuts in the bulk foods section at my local HEB (the benefits of living in Texas - unless you are in the Dallas area). I get the dry roasted salted. You could opt for unsalted, but your peanut butter might be a bit bland. You could also go all fancy and get honey roasted. I seriously want to try this sometime, but only for a treat. No way could that be our everyday peanut butter.

3 cups of peanuts make roughly a pound, and this is the amout I typically make at a time. It fits easily into a pint sized mason jar, filling it most the way, but not full - maybe 14-15 fluid oz.

3 cups fills my bowl about halfway.
Don't be worried if you don't have a high
speed blender. I used to make it the same
way in a really basic Black & Decker,
it just takes a bit more time, but the
results are the same.

So here's what you do: put the peanuts in your food processor and turn it on high. You may want ear plugs. Add that to the list of supplies. It is loud. That's basically it. The hardest part is waiting during the loud noise. I do stop mine periodically to check progress and scrape down the sides, but aside from that, it's a waiting game.

Peanut powder

Starting to release oils. Though it may
be the thickness you expect, it is
not ready at this point and will be very
grainy and dry.

When it first starts, the peanuts will get chopped into a fine powder. You may think it's not working, but just wait. The heat built up from the friction as well as the continued grinding of the peanuts will cause them to start releasing their oil and it will start to become more liquid. Once it starts to look smooth, you may think you are done. Don't be fooled. If you taste a sample when it first starts smoothing out, that will be the driest peanut butter you have ever tasted. It needs to go for longer. Don't despair if your processor gets hot, you can alway pause mid-process to let it cool then pick it up again.  Keep processing until it's more liquidy than you think peanut butter should be. When it's done, it will probably pour easier than mayo if you need a viscosity visual. Feel free to taste test for palatability and texture.

A nice shiny thick liquid is what you'll see
when it's ready.

This peanut butter pours easily when
freshly made.

I will be perfectly honest, it likely won't be exactly as perfectly velvety smooth as packaged commercial peanut butter. It may have a slightly grainy texture when eaten straight. In my experience though, once it is in a sandwich or fudge, you don't notice it.

Yum!

That's it. You are done. Yummy homemade peanut butter and bragging rights. I keep mine in the fridge, though it gets left on the counter quite a bit since it's easier to deal with a bit softer and more liquid. I have only ever experienced it separating once, and it was in the fridge, so I don't know what happened there. Regardless, when it comes to storage, Do what feels best to you. I really don't know shelf life since ours is always gone before it goes bad. With mostly fridge storage, ours stays good for at least a couple weeks.

I like labeling my jars with Shapies. It comes right off when
cleaned and leaves no residue like sticker labels.

 Happy grinding!


UPDATE!!!

Just after I finished posting this, I tried my hand at almond butter. The process is the same as with peanut butter, but what I found was that almonds are painfully slow at releasing their oil. Painfully slow. I had to stop my food processor multiple times mid-process to let it cool down. In the end though, I had beautiful, almond butter. I used 3 cups of almonds and about 1/2 tsp of salt. Delish!