Can we talk about the fact that I watch every single one of your videos? I’m 26.. not frugal, fit, or a mom and yet I’m faithful to this channel 😂 Can’t stop, won’t stop.
I did a pantry challenge for January and February. I only went to the store twice for fresh veggies, milk and eggs. I spent a total of $40 in 2 months. It was glorious!
Love how you put Haley on blast for her dry cookies 😂 If no one will eat them, you can grind them up and use it for the crust for a peanut butter cheesecake.
Noooo.make them into ice cream sandwiches. Ice ream will add some moisture. Could then dip in melted chocolate and roll in crushed peanuts.. Bet the family would devour them that way.
For your dry cookies just put a slice of bread in there with them like grandma used to! My husband told me this and at first I didnt believe him but it works! It keeps/makes the cookies softer! 😊
I am doing this challenge along with you, and keeping a running total on the few things that I actually do end up getting, like fresh fruits... I will try to keep that cost down to under $50 for the month.
That's my goal too! I did this in January and spent $64 on fresh stuff, but in February I only spent $45. March was chaos and we won't talk about that, but $50 for April sounds doable. We'll see! =)
I would say 65% Of the pantry could be Utilized if you are dedicated to this challenge!...you got this! 😉 I'm a big fan of repurposing leftovers into different meals. I come from a big family and growing up you eat everything.
I've got to join you on this! We have deer and bear meat in our freezer from hunting last fall, my husband and I were both blessed with a buck, so two deer and a bear! Plus all my home canned garden goods from harvest season last year and the usual odds and ends. This is a cool challenge! Thank you for sharing with us.🥰
Christine you are so funny and I love the way you present especially when you are laying down on the chest freezer in the basement. I’ve been a long time subscriber and I love the way you explain just common sense stuff. Maybe I drank too much wine today but I just wanna say, “thank you “keep up the good work. 🍷🥓🧀🧈🥩🥩🥩
I am currently working on going through my spice cabinet and using up all the spices I have before I go purchase more. There are definitely spices that I favor more than others (I see you cumin and ginger), so plenty of forgotten and unloved spices get pushed to the back. I am learning some new spice combinations and discovering new recipes during this process. It has been an adventure thus far! :)
I need to do this. I went on an indian food kick and bought all the spices to learn some recipes. I do not use cardamom pods and star anise as much as you might think in my daily cooking. Lol
Yes you can use those to make bone broth. Just thaw the bones roast in the oven at 400*F for 20-30 minutes with whatever herbs you like add to stock pot (or Instapot) with veggies (carrot, celery, onion) and 1 or 2 tablespoons of white vinegar and simmer for at least 4 hours.
@@denbyerece5744 Definitely freeze this. Canning it can kill off the nutrients more quickly. I always freeze in canning jars, leave about 2 inches of headspace for fluid expansion.
I feel ya on the major food storage. It is just hard to stop buying when things are sometimes unavailable but I doing this with you!!! That pupper is adorbs
Use the peanut butter cookies to make ice cream sandwiches with your daily harvest ice creams. The ice cream will give moisture to the cookies. Plus is a novelty item kids love
I did this for March where I didn't do any grocery shopping for the entire month. Lots of brain cells for meal planning were involved, but it was easier than expected! Sill have not gone shopping but probably should this weekend for fresh produce and chicken, at least!
I am doing this now. I’m making jambalaya, Italian stuffed peppers, meat sauce (bolognese) on spaghetti squash and French bread pizza. I don’t store as much as you Christine - I would be overwhelmed! You’re a pro at this! Always inspiring, thank you!
That was epic! My four year old thinks you are hilarious. I do not have a big pantry stock up, but I am aiming to spend less on groceries this month. First three meals: haddock and steamed veggies on side. Chicken curry broccoli casserole. Steak and potatoes. Happy April cooking challenge!!
I watched a pantry organization video of yours a while back and went and bought the large bins for my own pantry....life-changing!!!! TY TY TY for that idea ❤
I like to freeze my butter too! I put 4 packages in a gallon size ziplock freezer bag. I feel like I can keep it all together better and I also feel like it keeps it from drying out and absorbing freezer smells. Love your videos, they inspire me to get in my pantry/freezer and start using it up!
I love bad jokes, corny jokes, dad jokes, mom jokes-keep‘em coming! I am so bad with meal planning. Since I live alone, I’m not motivated to follow through with a plan and I end up opening a can of soup or making a sandwich (grilled cheese or peanut butter and jam). I did buy a rotisserie chicken for some chicken salad so fingers crossed. 🤞🏾
I live alone as well and have learned that I can’t keep a meal plan either! I do best if I keep multi purpose items around and do just bowl meals - burrito bowls, buddha bowls, Asian influenced rice bowls, salad bowls, etc.. using different sauces to change the flavors up.
I love your channel and ideas and recommendations!! I've been struggling for a few months since I had covid and your budgeting and ideas have helped me and my 2 sons sooo much. Thank you for being you. Best wishes to you, Dave and the kids. 🙂❤
I’ve have followed you for a long long time. About to keep binge watching and taking notes! Making chicken and dumplings, baked salmon and chicken salad.
This was my plan this month, too. Last time I went to the store, I reached max capacity of my chest freezer. On the menu will be spaghetti with meatballs, sausage and cabbage soup, chicken enchiladas, and bison chili (I found clearance bison at my Kroger!).
I work for a group home & we have pantry challenge weekends like this! The company is amazed we have money left over every month 😁 (state regulated grocery check, it’s almost $300/week for 4 people & 4 staff). Putting lentils with sloppy joe’s, meatloaf or soup is a good way to boost nutrition and use them up!
1) today - no cook Friday to use up already made food in the fridge. 2) 2 Blackberry cobblers, one for us and one for a picnic we are going to tomorrow. 3) Kimchi pancakes (leftover purchased kimchi so I can get the huge container off of the top shelf of my fridge. All 3 involve food we own with no additional purchases.
I just did my grocery list for the month and we basically need milk, fresh fruits and veg, and some snacks for the kids. I have a ton of stuff in the freezer and pantry that I plan to use up. Meal plan includes: chili, taco pasta, red beans and rice, homemade pizza, and chicken pot pie :)
I was marveling at the new side-by-side fridge, gushing outright. And then you bought in the old side-by-side, aka, wall-in-the-middle. The olde enemy.
It is expensive getting a stockpile started, but it is so worth it. I just finished a three month pantry challenge. I went to the grocery store minimally for the items needed to complete a recipe. Saved a lot of money and made a nice dent in my freezer.
Good for you Rachel. I try to do this but..can do better I’m sure with some help from my husband and grown son who lives with us, as I have lower back problems and surgeries are a no go. Guess it’s pain shots instead. I will always try to do what I know I need to, I’ve never been a lazy person. But..we’re in our late 60’s now,I’m not at young as I use to been. Any suggestions?
@@sandradummer4726 My biggest time saver is prepping items so they are ready to use. I will cut up chicken, green peppers, and onions to freeze in ziploc bags. It is easy to pull out just the amount that I need for the recipe and not have to spend a lot of time cutting. I also precook ground beef and freeze in the portion I need for recipes. This makes it easy to throw in a meal when needed. I also just cook on Sundays. I make something for breakfast, lunch, and supper and that is what I eat all week. I’m only feeding one person, so you may need to cook a couple times a week.
Christine, seriously you have your own mini grocery store. I bet you could feed your family with what you have on hand for at least 6 months if not more. You would probably need things like eggs, milk & produce here & there, but you are set!!!! When we buy a roast, we always buy one that's enough for 2 meals. The first meal is a traditional roast, gravy, mashed potatoes etc. The leftover meat is used the next day or 2 days later, for roast beef hash. Honest to God, I'm not sure which one I like the best, the roast or the hash!! YUM!! Now I'm getting hungry! I love your channel!
Love your channel. I'm totally hopping on board for the April storage clean out! First 3 meals: pork ribs, spicy chicken alfredo, and fish tacos!! Woohooo! Let's go!
I am moving out of my house in July so I am all in on this challenge. I’ve been making every meal from my pantry/freezer since mid March. Only picking up a few of my husbands favorite things when he runs out but I am determined to clear out as much as I can before I move. Love both your dogs….so cute!
Sounds like a great idea to clear out my stash of items. Starting with chili today and cornbread. Tomorrow is soup and Sunday will be leftovers Thanks for sharing and encouraging a challenge
😂 Christine, i took myself out on a breakfast date and am watching this - laughed so loud at the ‘emperors new groove’ box reference! 📦…”and then I’ll put that box in another box” 😅
I went to several stores yesterday and this week the prices are up even more than last week. It is not ending but getting worse. I'm glad I started many moons ago getting things when they were cheaper!
Agreed. I’m fully stocked, maybe overstocked 😂. I’m only buying the loss leaders but probably should stop because I’m out of room. I could probably not go for three months 😳. Blessings to you.
@Susiefloosie I hear you! I’ve been building my pantry for the past 6 years because of this chick right here. The brown sugar and at Kroger prepandemic was 99 cents now its 1.49. Canned peaches used to be just .59 and now it’s .79. It’s really remarkable .rice have stayed the same as well as peanut butter.
75% of the pantry! I will do also! My first three meals....tonight was shrimp and baked potatoes with butter and fresh chives from the garden and lemonade. I had Bacon and Cranberry juice this am for breakfast. My next two dinners....1-meatloaf with tomato gravy, green beans, mashed potatoes and homemade banana bread. 2-Flounder with a salad. Breakfast will be oatmeal and cranberry juice and salads for lunch. I only shop by coupons (paper and digital and shop the sales flyers. If it's not on sale, I'm not buying it.) I'm stocking up more pantry wise and moving things around because I garden and this year I want to double or more what I usually grow. :)
I’m going to be doing this a ton this month too! We have soooo much food. So many pantry meal challenge videos coming up. April is gonna be the month of pantry cooking and saving money ❤️.
Hey Christine!! Love love love your channel ❤️ have you considered doing a challenge where you don't buy ANYTHING from the grocery store for a whole month?? You have more than plenty of food to do that and that video or video series would be epic!!!! Also, have you got a generator that can run your chest freezer and fridges in case your power goes out? Where I live (Christchurch NZ) we had a huge earthquake in 2011 and we were without power for 5 weeks. We had to run a generator 2 hrs per day to keep our fridge freezer cold. We were also without water and sewer for nearly 3 months, it was like camping at home! I look at your chest freezer and can only think of the waste if your power went out!!
Went out today to load up on produce to start our own challenge for April. My first recipes are: 1. chicken fried rice w/ teriyaki chicken drums and broccoli (from leftover chicken and rice casserole, extra drums I didn’t use in the casserole, and various packets of soy sauce we needed to get OUT) 2. Burgers (freezer buns FTW) and carrot fries 3. Beef quesadillas w/ salsa and elote (middle kiddo is loving learning to cook) 4. Spaghetti and salad 5. Stir fry (veggie and noodles) Can’t wait to see what you come up with!
Love a pantry cleanout! I do it (kind of) to the extreme before Passover every year, since there are certain foods I can't eat over the holiday, and those meals are always the most creative
There is no way I’m eating into our stockpile given what’s going on right now. You’re MUCH more optimistic then me. Still stocking it to the rafters. 🤷🏻♀️
Our family...same..we have always had a stockpile since we first hot married but the last 3 years we have amped up our backstock. We will not relax until there are some changes.
I’m still bringing in more than we are using but it feels great to come up with a full Sunday dinner without buying anything new! Storing canned goods and dry goods so it is 100% navigable without sifting is the key. I only wish we had an additional freezer other than just the tiny lower freezer we have.
I'm with ya BUT this is a good motivator for me to get through the things that are getting a little long in the tooth! Makes room for some fresher items.
The frozen grapes are my absolute favorite snack and I always have a bunch in my freezer. I'm on board with the pantry clean out. My three meals are going to be, starting tonight from the freezer, pork tenderloin, with sweet potatoes and salad (that are going to have to get tossed if I don't make salad)... Butter chicken and then a steak that I purchased last June. (These three meals will probably last me close to two weeks)
Use the peanut butter cookies to make a pie crust for a quiche of eggs, cheese, and evaporated milk. That will make a great dinner. 🙂 On another note, Your dog is adorable. Mine is 16 years old this summer. 🙂 I was trying to share some info about custard recipes but for some reason those didn't post. Wanted to let you know that smalltownwoman has recipe's for that if anyone's interested. By the way, I love your videos. They are full of fun ideas. ❤
@@DC-pr2bq It's not a custard. No sugar. 4 eggs, 1 small can of evaporated milk blended together with a dash of salt and poured over cheese inside of a pie crust with a little bit of peanut butter cookies crushed into the dough makes for a fantastic quiche...don't forget to add parsley to the topping.🥧🙂🥧🙂🥧🙂🥧🙂🥧🙂🥧
I'm doing this too! I made chili yesterday, and I am currently working though all of the chicken that is in my freezer from every time it has been on sale in the last year.
I feel like you will use up 10% or so of your food storage. You have SO much and it would be a great way to see just how long your food storage could last you in a true emergency. Also, the peanut butter cookies could be a pie crust for a chocolate pie or a peanut butter cream pie 😍
Go for it girl. We cleaned out our Deep Freezer in July 2019, looks like I may have to do this this year once’s it get a bit warmer. I love going through our storage or frozen foods, anything to Spring clean, and it helps me to get motivated to move things in our home to clean with husband and grown son help as I have lower back problems and can’t hardly walk. It’s bad for me, but..with help hopeful we can get something done.
I decided to do this a month ago and am still doing it. I decided to go through and gut everything out, fully go through everything, clean the cans and check dates before cleaning the cabinets inside and out and make a list of exactly what I have and use it. Everything must go!!! I decided that this year is “Spring Clean Out 2022”. I am cleaning out more than the refrigerator and freezer and deep freezer. I hope you have a chance to clean out both refrigerators and freezers and clean them with “Clorox Clean-Up” and fresh water. I haven’t cleaned out my back up storage but that will be cleaned out too. So, I made an agreement with my neighbor and we are doing it together. Good luck with gutting everything out.
I live in an apartment with very little storage space! I'm also somewhat limited as far as income goes- I'm with you on this challenge tho! I have set a budget of 50.00 for groceries this month. I am anticipating using this for fresh produce. My first 3 meals using only what I have on hand will be a seafood gumbo, roasted chicken breast with rice pilaf and broccoli salad and finally a Boston butt in the crockpot for barbecue. I have options to make quiche, various pasta dishes including pasta salad. Canned Pink Salmon for salmon patties and all the ingredients for homemade artisans bread! The last I learned how to make by watching Frugal Fit Mom! Thank you Christine for your inspiration and recipes 🌻
I love freezer/pantry vids, but especially now in these uncertain times. It does my heart so much good to see families are prepared for possible food scarcity, etc. I've been following your channel for two years, and you're still in my Top 3 Faves!!! Thanks for all you hard work and sharing your life / tips with us!!
If you make any sort of custard pie, you can use the dry peanut butter cookies for a crumb crust. Seriously delish with the right filling! And thanks for showing us Rogue again! She needs to make at least a cameo appearance in every video, truly! :)
I stopped meal planning in March and started buying what sounded good at the store. I made a list on my phone of "Easy Dinners" aka meals I don't need a recipe for. It has worked SO WELL in helping me utilize what I already have in my pantry and cook meals my family loves eating...plus it's actually saving us a little (I mean...with food prices not *that* much) moolah. Can't wait to see how you feed your family this month!
I'm gonna guess you can use up 60% this month - good luck! Pantry & Fridge & Freezer April Clean Out Meals 1) Leek, bacon & cheddar quiche 2) Asparagus soup using leek broth 3) Fish pie (frozen fish & veg and topped with potato & cheese) 4) Spanish rice with pork ragu 5) Veggie coconut curry 6) Flat bread pizza Use up lettuce and fresh veggies for salads Week 1 done ♥ PS pasta night Friday's always using up pantry/fridge/freezer staples too
This is crazy! I just left the store . I don’t intend to go back most of the month other than for milk or a few ingredients I may need for a meal! My pantry is full! My freezer is absolutely full. The drawers I keep beans and pasta and rice etc in are crammed full! My big bowls I keep onions, potatoes, etc in are so full. I am not going anywhere anytime soon! Ha I buy on sale and clearance and buy and eat to the sales. We are so blessed. Even with these high prices and all the trucking issues and all when you have some extra you are blessed indeed.
Honey sriracha chicken with jasmine rice and stir fry veggies… chicken parm with spaghetti… pork chops with green beans, corn, and mashed potatoes. Thanks for helping me make a decision for this weeks meal plan!
Since I lost my job as of yesterday, I plan to do clean out my pantry/freezer for the next while. My next few meals are going to be sliced pork chops in the slow cooker, in a creamy italian sauce, with asparagus and left over stuffing. (this will probably take me a few days to eat). Then i will do homemade pizza with salami. And then after that will be some chopped up hot dogs and peppers with spicy sauce over rice.
Edit, the sliced pork chops in the slow cooker, with italian dressing, a onion soup mix packet and a can of cream of celery soup, ended up making the kind of a gravy, so i ended up making mashed potatoes to spoon the mixture over, and put some of the crispy fried onions on top. It is delicious
This makes me feel better about my 2 pantries, chest freezer and my fridge/freezer. Don’t have nearly as much as you do! I could probably clean out stuff though!
I had planned to do the same through April I will need fresh produce but minimal purchases. My three meals to begin is beef barley vegetable soup, pork chop with vegetables and roast beef with vegetables. Good luck Christine!
I'm in on the challenge. I did this in January and saved a bunch of money by staying out of the grocery stores. We are on diets and eating very low carbs so I won't be using most of my pantry items. I will be using chicken and beef roasts and pork that has been in the freezer for awhile. I will only be buying fresh vegs for salads and items on Markdown (if they are a really good bargin) and advertised loss leaders if it's something I can use or store. I will also use any frozen vegetables from my freezer.
Crumble Peanut Butter Cookies to top yogurt add Blackberries and Dessert or snack is served ! Flatbread, Tomato Sauce, a little Bacon, mix up some Eggs and yup a Breakfast Pizza. Add Spinach, & Onion yum An inventory list might be a good idea. I have just my refrigerator freezer and it is so so full. When I do an inventory it comes in handy. * I am having short Ribs, Mashed Potato, Salad mix * leftover Veggie , Black Bean, Corn Soup * Flatbread Pizza, 3 - 4 Cheeses, Tomato, Spinach, Onion with Bacon Bits
Meals I already have on hand are spam loco moco, chicken pot pie(use pancake mix for topping), crockpot potato soup, chili, lasagna, tater tot casserole, leftover cabbage rolls from freezer. Very new to the stock up process with only one regular fridge/freezer. Looking at adding to long term dry food storage while looking for a small chest freezer for the two of us. I love your videos! 😊
Christine, don't worry about your pantry/freezer/food storage being/looking "perfect" in the eyes of others because amazingly enough, they don't live in your house and don't use your pantry! Mine is chaos and so is everyone else's. Lol 😆 love these videos, keep doing your thing, girl!
I live in an apartment and I buy approximately $20 extra every month. I cannot store very much however but I have a refrigerator with a freezer and had room for a small chest freezer as well. I utilize the top of the chest freezer with our coffee pot and coffee. I also take what I am using for the month and make it available by planning for what I need and keep that in my refrigerator freezer for easy access. I have enough stocked for at least a whole extra month or two. I am guessing that you could use 45% good luck! I’m rooting for you…
Just finished my winter pantry and did my shopping haul yesterday on April 1st ( Happy Foods Day!) Not going back to the stores for the month? Challenge accepted! First three meals BLTs with home fries ( gotta use up my potatoes), chicken pot pies, beef and barley soup (these will use up my old onions, carrots, celery and potatoes). Remember to rotate your food! Your puppy is sooo cute!
Idea, if you can't get rid of the peanut butter cookies just throw them in the food processor & grind them up until they are the texture of ground Graham crackers, add butter & make them into a pie crust to press in a big Pirex baking dish & make a peanut butter cheesecake or a creamy dessert that goes well with peanut butter.
Wow, that’s crazy! You could probably eat a year without having to go to the grocery store! Couple ideas because you have lots of bread, bacon & roasts. You can make BLTs & Mississippi roast.
We just finished shelf cooking yesterday. We did the entire month of March without cheating too! We did allow for purchasing dairy (milk, eggs mostly). Our shelfs are bare now.
You have tuns of food your family are blessed. Just Goes to show what you can do if you put your mind to it xx this is my pantry motivation deffo starting getting a long term food stash xx
Wow! If anyone could cook through all of this food, it’s you! Go get ‘em! That’s A LOT of food storage!!! It would stress me out to have that much but I am impressed that you can manage all of that! Can’t wait to see what you make! 😋
Use the peanut butter cookies to make a trifle. Dry cookies are the best for this as they absorb more. Or as crumble. You did have a lot of milk and dry cookies are great with milk...
My favorite thing to make with black lentils is dal makhani. So delicious and filling! First three meals: gumbo with chicken/andouille/shrimp, beef roast with potatoes and carrots, and chicken rice loaf with green beans. 🙌🏻
I'm actually in stock up mode because we just moved 2 months ago & we used most food before moving. I'm finally getting my kitchen settled & am rebuilding pantry & freezer stock.
I loved this video. The tiny truck. I watched it drive off the screen. The box in a box. 🤣🤣 Yes, you do not need to go shopping. 🤣🤣 So much food. Then again, a good clearance deal.....can't go wrong. 😁
I want discount grocery shopping two store ..yes I uploaded that video on my channel..I found discounts too... I am like this is how frugal fit mom feels finding clearance!!! I love clearance finds ! It's was great to finally find one.
Can we talk about the fact that I watch every single one of your videos? I’m 26.. not frugal, fit, or a mom and yet I’m faithful to this channel 😂 Can’t stop, won’t stop.
😂😂 same, not frugal or fit but am a mum. Love her personality and humor tho
Sameee 😂I’m 22. I’m trying to be more frugal tho
Crumble up those peanut butter cookies and use as a crust for something. Chocolate cream pie? Some sort of cheesecake?
Yes, I thought ice cream toppers. Keep in freezer with the ice cream.
Over ice cream 👀
Maybe an ice cream pie to use up some of that daily harvest stuff.
I was thinking a Reese pieces pie would be BOMB
I have a half tin of Christmas butter cookies that I plan to crush up for a crust for some kind of pie!
I did a pantry challenge for January and February. I only went to the store twice for fresh veggies, milk and eggs. I spent a total of $40 in 2 months. It was glorious!
Wow!
Great job!
I could live without going to the store for next 5 years
@@livingoffgridalaska3492 high blood pressure is a great motivator to stay away from canned or packaged foods.
Love how you put Haley on blast for her dry cookies 😂 If no one will eat them, you can grind them up and use it for the crust for a peanut butter cheesecake.
Make some peanut butter sandwich cookies by sticking two cookies together with jelly or jam. Yum!
Noooo.make them into ice cream sandwiches. Ice ream will add some moisture. Could then dip in melted chocolate and roll in crushed peanuts.. Bet the family would devour them that way.
Turn them into cookie butter!
Or use as a topping for ice cream or pudding.
GREAT IDEA!
For your dry cookies just put a slice of bread in there with them like grandma used to! My husband told me this and at first I didnt believe him but it works! It keeps/makes the cookies softer! 😊
Grew up with that and totally forgot that hack!
New to me! Thanks.
Or crumble them and sprinkle over ice cream.
Or dunk in milk yum
Great idea! Or grind them up and use them like you would a graham cracker crust for a pie.
I am doing this challenge along with you, and keeping a running total on the few things that I actually do end up getting, like fresh fruits... I will try to keep that cost down to under $50 for the month.
That's my goal too! I did this in January and spent $64 on fresh stuff, but in February I only spent $45. March was chaos and we won't talk about that, but $50 for April sounds doable. We'll see! =)
Wow that’s great!
Great idea
ROCK STAR!!!!! I want to get to this point!!
I’m going to do the April challenge as well. Plan on spending no more than $25 each week.
I would say 65% Of the pantry could be Utilized if you are dedicated to this challenge!...you got this! 😉
I'm a big fan of repurposing leftovers into different meals. I come from a big family and growing up you eat everything.
I've got to join you on this! We have deer and bear meat in our freezer from hunting last fall, my husband and I were both blessed with a buck, so two deer and a bear! Plus all my home canned garden goods from harvest season last year and the usual odds and ends. This is a cool challenge! Thank you for sharing with us.🥰
Christine you are so funny and I love the way you present especially when you are laying down on the chest freezer in the basement.
I’ve been a long time subscriber and I love the way you explain just common sense stuff.
Maybe I drank too much wine today but I just wanna say,
“thank you “keep up the good work.
🍷🥓🧀🧈🥩🥩🥩
I am currently working on going through my spice cabinet and using up all the spices I have before I go purchase more. There are definitely spices that I favor more than others (I see you cumin and ginger), so plenty of forgotten and unloved spices get pushed to the back. I am learning some new spice combinations and discovering new recipes during this process. It has been an adventure thus far! :)
I've been doing this too! I also go through cumin, garlic powder, and onion powder frequently
Look up butter chicken. You can probably use both of them in that recipe. Have fun learning new recipes
I need to do this. I went on an indian food kick and bought all the spices to learn some recipes. I do not use cardamom pods and star anise as much as you might think in my daily cooking. Lol
Yes you can use those to make bone broth. Just thaw the bones roast in the oven at 400*F for 20-30 minutes with whatever herbs you like add to stock pot (or Instapot) with veggies (carrot, celery, onion) and 1 or 2 tablespoons of white vinegar and simmer for at least 4 hours.
Ty I’m assuming you can freeze it once it cools? Or more beneficial to use fresh?
You can definitely freeze broth!
@@denbyerece5744 Definitely freeze this. Canning it can kill off the nutrients more quickly. I always freeze in canning jars, leave about 2 inches of headspace for fluid expansion.
I'm so glad that you just did this! I've been using everything from my food storage lately to make my grocery budget go further. Love ya girl! 💖🌵
I do mine in a crockpot overnight.
Add couple slices bread to bag cookies to soften.
I feel ya on the major food storage. It is just hard to stop buying when things are sometimes unavailable but I doing this with you!!! That pupper is adorbs
Use the peanut butter cookies to make ice cream sandwiches with your daily harvest ice creams. The ice cream will give moisture to the cookies. Plus is a novelty item kids love
I did this for March where I didn't do any grocery shopping for the entire month. Lots of brain cells for meal planning were involved, but it was easier than expected! Sill have not gone shopping but probably should this weekend for fresh produce and chicken, at least!
I am doing this now. I’m making jambalaya, Italian stuffed peppers, meat sauce (bolognese) on spaghetti squash and French bread pizza. I don’t store as much as you Christine - I would be overwhelmed! You’re a pro at this! Always inspiring, thank you!
Hi 👋 Anita how are you doing ?
Hope you don’t mind if I subscribe to your channel
That was epic! My four year old thinks you are hilarious.
I do not have a big pantry stock up, but I am aiming to spend less on groceries this month. First three meals: haddock and steamed veggies on side. Chicken curry broccoli casserole. Steak and potatoes.
Happy April cooking challenge!!
I watched a pantry organization video of yours a while back and went and bought the large bins for my own pantry....life-changing!!!! TY TY TY for that idea ❤
Hi 👋 Mary how are you doing?
Hope you don’t mind if I subscribe to your channel
I like to freeze my butter too! I put 4 packages in a gallon size ziplock freezer bag. I feel like I can keep it all together better and I also feel like it keeps it from drying out and absorbing freezer smells. Love your videos, they inspire me to get in my pantry/freezer and start using it up!
I started canning butter. I buy it on sale and when I get at least 10 pounds I can it. Last 5 years and sooo easy to do!
@@jenniferkleine4713 I am intrigued with canning butter! That sounds interesting. How would I go about finding out how to do that?
Thanks for the tip about the ziplock!
There are tons of videos on it. DM me if you have any questions.
@@jenniferkleine4713 just be careful! Death by butter poisoning would be a terrible thing to write on your tombstone!
You and your family are very blessed to have such an abundance of resources in you food storage and pantry. 😊
I love bad jokes, corny jokes, dad jokes, mom jokes-keep‘em coming! I am so bad with meal planning. Since I live alone, I’m not motivated to follow through with a plan and I end up opening a can of soup or making a sandwich (grilled cheese or peanut butter and jam). I did buy a rotisserie chicken for some chicken salad so fingers crossed. 🤞🏾
I live alone as well and have learned that I can’t keep a meal plan either! I do best if I keep multi purpose items around and do just bowl meals - burrito bowls, buddha bowls, Asian influenced rice bowls, salad bowls, etc.. using different sauces to change the flavors up.
@@claragoforth3645that sounds doable and a great idea. Thanks!
@@claragoforth3645 Same, the sauces make all the difference!
Homemade pizza, Sheet pan chicken and roast potatoes, carrots, beets and broccoli, Frozen fish & chips, cole slaw. Always have a deep pantry.
I love your channel and ideas and recommendations!! I've been struggling for a few months since I had covid and your budgeting and ideas have helped me and my 2 sons sooo much. Thank you for being you. Best wishes to you, Dave and the kids. 🙂❤
I loved when you did the videos where you would make a meal plan for the whole month with what you had!
Pantry/Freezer clean out meals:
Spaghetti & Meatballs
Pineapple crockpot chicken w/ rice
Enchilada casserole
Split pea soup
I’ve have followed you for a long long time. About to keep binge watching and taking notes! Making chicken and dumplings, baked salmon and chicken salad.
This was my plan this month, too. Last time I went to the store, I reached max capacity of my chest freezer. On the menu will be spaghetti with meatballs, sausage and cabbage soup, chicken enchiladas, and bison chili (I found clearance bison at my Kroger!).
My husband loves frozen grapes. They get a slushie texture when you eat them frozen.
I work for a group home & we have pantry challenge weekends like this! The company is amazed we have money left over every month 😁 (state regulated grocery check, it’s almost $300/week for 4 people & 4 staff). Putting lentils with sloppy joe’s, meatloaf or soup is a good way to boost nutrition and use them up!
You should be stocking up that pantry with the extra!
Awesome!
1) today - no cook Friday to use up already made food in the fridge.
2) 2 Blackberry cobblers, one for us and one for a picnic we are going to tomorrow.
3) Kimchi pancakes (leftover purchased kimchi so I can get the huge container off of the top shelf of my fridge.
All 3 involve food we own with no additional purchases.
I just did my grocery list for the month and we basically need milk, fresh fruits and veg, and some snacks for the kids. I have a ton of stuff in the freezer and pantry that I plan to use up. Meal plan includes: chili, taco pasta, red beans and rice, homemade pizza, and chicken pot pie :)
I was marveling at the new side-by-side fridge, gushing outright. And then you bought in the old side-by-side, aka, wall-in-the-middle. The olde enemy.
It is expensive getting a stockpile started, but it is so worth it. I just finished a three month pantry challenge. I went to the grocery store minimally for the items needed to complete a recipe. Saved a lot of money and made a nice dent in my freezer.
Good for you Rachel. I try to do this but..can do better I’m sure with some help from my husband and grown son who lives with us, as I have lower back problems and surgeries are a no go. Guess it’s pain shots instead. I will always try to do what I know I need to, I’ve never been a lazy person. But..we’re in our late 60’s now,I’m not at young as I use to been. Any suggestions?
@@sandradummer4726 My biggest time saver is prepping items so they are ready to use. I will cut up chicken, green peppers, and onions to freeze in ziploc bags. It is easy to pull out just the amount that I need for the recipe and not have to spend a lot of time cutting. I also precook ground beef and freeze in the portion I need for recipes. This makes it easy to throw in a meal when needed. I also just cook on Sundays. I make something for breakfast, lunch, and supper and that is what I eat all week. I’m only feeding one person, so you may need to cook a couple times a week.
Christine, seriously you have your own mini grocery store. I bet you could feed your family with what you have on hand for at least 6 months if not more. You would probably need things like eggs, milk & produce here & there, but you are set!!!! When we buy a roast, we always buy one that's enough for 2 meals. The first meal is a traditional roast, gravy, mashed potatoes etc. The leftover meat is used the next day or 2 days later, for roast beef hash. Honest to God, I'm not sure which one I like the best, the roast or the hash!! YUM!! Now I'm getting hungry! I love your channel!
Love your channel. I'm totally hopping on board for the April storage clean out! First 3 meals: pork ribs, spicy chicken alfredo, and fish tacos!! Woohooo! Let's go!
I am moving out of my house in July so I am all in on this challenge. I’ve been making every meal from my pantry/freezer since mid March. Only picking up a few of my husbands favorite things when he runs out but I am determined to clear out as much as I can before I move. Love both your dogs….so cute!
Sounds like a great idea to clear out my stash of items. Starting with chili today and cornbread. Tomorrow is soup and Sunday will be leftovers Thanks for sharing and encouraging a challenge
😂 Christine, i took myself out on a breakfast date and am watching this - laughed so loud at the ‘emperors new groove’ box reference! 📦…”and then I’ll put that box in another box” 😅
I went to several stores yesterday and this week the prices are up even more than last week. It is not ending but getting worse. I'm glad I started many moons ago getting things when they were cheaper!
Agreed. I’m fully stocked, maybe overstocked 😂. I’m only buying the loss leaders but probably should stop because I’m out of room. I could probably not go for three months 😳. Blessings to you.
@Susiefloosie I hear you! I’ve been building my pantry for the past 6 years because of this chick right here.
The brown sugar and at Kroger prepandemic was 99 cents now its 1.49.
Canned peaches used to be just .59 and now it’s .79.
It’s really remarkable .rice have stayed the same as well as peanut butter.
@@firequeen2194 keep going! Lol! I stopped in 2019 cause I saw I had quite a bit. It lasted us almost two years.
75% of the pantry! I will do also! My first three meals....tonight was shrimp and baked potatoes with butter and fresh chives from the garden and lemonade. I had Bacon and Cranberry juice this am for breakfast. My next two dinners....1-meatloaf with tomato gravy, green beans, mashed potatoes and homemade banana bread. 2-Flounder with a salad. Breakfast will be oatmeal and cranberry juice and salads for lunch. I only shop by coupons (paper and digital and shop the sales flyers. If it's not on sale, I'm not buying it.) I'm stocking up more pantry wise and moving things around because I garden and this year I want to double or more what I usually grow. :)
I’m going to be doing this a ton this month too! We have soooo much food. So many pantry meal challenge videos coming up. April is gonna be the month of pantry cooking and saving money ❤️.
It must be nice living a life of such abundance. Your life is blessed!
Let's go with 25%. Still a challenge but more doable. Love your sense of humor. The X Files and the laying on the freezer, love you.
There is something about it being spring that makes me always want to organize our food storage.
Hey Christine!! Love love love your channel ❤️ have you considered doing a challenge where you don't buy ANYTHING from the grocery store for a whole month?? You have more than plenty of food to do that and that video or video series would be epic!!!! Also, have you got a generator that can run your chest freezer and fridges in case your power goes out? Where I live (Christchurch NZ) we had a huge earthquake in 2011 and we were without power for 5 weeks. We had to run a generator 2 hrs per day to keep our fridge freezer cold. We were also without water and sewer for nearly 3 months, it was like camping at home! I look at your chest freezer and can only think of the waste if your power went out!!
I buy almond milk from the Dollar Tree “and a branch “ now. It’s shelf stable and lasts a long time in storage.
It is half the cost of box milk from the grocery and just as good
Went out today to load up on produce to start our own challenge for April. My first recipes are:
1. chicken fried rice w/ teriyaki chicken drums and broccoli (from leftover chicken and rice casserole, extra drums I didn’t use in the casserole, and various packets of soy sauce we needed to get OUT)
2. Burgers (freezer buns FTW) and carrot fries
3. Beef quesadillas w/ salsa and elote (middle kiddo is loving learning to cook)
4. Spaghetti and salad
5. Stir fry (veggie and noodles)
Can’t wait to see what you come up with!
I’ve been thinking of doing this too! Can’t wait for all your recipe ideas!
That's going to be a ton of cooking!
Love a pantry cleanout! I do it (kind of) to the extreme before Passover every year, since there are certain foods I can't eat over the holiday, and those meals are always the most creative
Frozen Grapes are my favorite summer snack. When we camp I keep grapes in the freezer. They are like bite sized popsicles.
There is no way I’m eating into our stockpile given what’s going on right now. You’re MUCH more optimistic then me. Still stocking it to the rafters. 🤷🏻♀️
Our family...same..we have always had a stockpile since we first hot married but the last 3 years we have amped up our backstock. We will not relax until there are some changes.
I’m still bringing in more than we are using but it feels great to come up with a full Sunday dinner without buying anything new!
Storing canned goods and dry goods so it is 100% navigable without sifting is the key. I only wish we had an additional freezer other than just the tiny lower freezer we have.
Same here.
I'm with ya BUT this is a good motivator for me to get through the things that are getting a little long in the tooth! Makes room for some fresher items.
I love how happy you get when you find clearance brats and bacon in your freezer. I am the same way. I love bargain food!
This is a great challenge. I’m not sure what I’m gonna find in my freezer😬
Your energy always makes me smile and I love your shirt!!!
Yes! April storage clean out!! I’m on board!!
Christine, where can I get that T Shirt?? I need to get one for my smart butt daughter, lol!!!
I need one for myself 😂
Me too
Me too…for son!
Looks like you are set up for protein.
We too will be working through our pantry.
Have a great weekend!
The frozen grapes are my absolute favorite snack and I always have a bunch in my freezer.
I'm on board with the pantry clean out. My three meals are going to be, starting tonight from the freezer, pork tenderloin, with sweet potatoes and salad (that are going to have to get tossed if I don't make salad)... Butter chicken and then a steak that I purchased last June. (These three meals will probably last me close to two weeks)
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Use the peanut butter cookies to make a pie crust for a quiche of eggs, cheese, and evaporated milk. That will make a great dinner. 🙂
On another note,
Your dog is adorable. Mine is 16 years old this summer. 🙂
I was trying to share some info about custard recipes but for some reason those didn't post.
Wanted to let you know that smalltownwoman has recipe's for that if anyone's interested.
By the way, I love your videos. They are full of fun ideas. ❤
@@DC-pr2bq It's not a custard. No sugar. 4 eggs, 1 small can of evaporated milk blended together with a dash of salt and poured over cheese inside of a pie crust with a little bit of peanut butter cookies crushed into the dough makes for a fantastic quiche...don't forget to add parsley to the topping.🥧🙂🥧🙂🥧🙂🥧🙂🥧🙂🥧
Cheese with peanut butter?
@@leahgary1107 Custard doesn’t have to be sweet. They can be savory. Custard needs eggs and milk or cream.
@@hannahkayee831 It's not cheese with peanut butter. It's using leftover cookies in a very unique way is all. It gives a pie crust a nice texture.
I'm doing this too! I made chili yesterday, and I am currently working though all of the chicken that is in my freezer from every time it has been on sale in the last year.
I feel like you will use up 10% or so of your food storage. You have SO much and it would be a great way to see just how long your food storage could last you in a true emergency.
Also, the peanut butter cookies could be a pie crust for a chocolate pie or a peanut butter cream pie 😍
Go for it girl. We cleaned out our Deep Freezer in July 2019, looks like I may have to do this this year once’s it get a bit warmer. I love going through our storage or frozen foods, anything to Spring clean, and it helps me to get motivated to move things in our home to clean with husband and grown son help as I have lower back problems and can’t hardly walk. It’s bad for me, but..with help hopeful we can get something done.
I decided to do this a month ago and am still doing it. I decided to go through and gut everything out, fully go through everything, clean the cans and check dates before cleaning the cabinets inside and out and make a list of exactly what I have and use it. Everything must go!!! I decided that this year is “Spring Clean Out 2022”. I am cleaning out more than the refrigerator and freezer and deep freezer. I hope you have a chance to clean out both refrigerators and freezers and clean them with “Clorox Clean-Up” and fresh water. I haven’t cleaned out my back up storage but that will be cleaned out too. So, I made an agreement with my neighbor and we are doing it together. Good luck with gutting everything out.
Great idea to do with a friend! I've got a friend/neighbor that I'm going to suggest this to. 🙂
I live in an apartment with very little storage space! I'm also somewhat limited as far as income goes- I'm with you on this challenge tho! I have set a budget of 50.00 for groceries this month. I am anticipating using this for fresh produce. My first 3 meals using only what I have on hand will be a seafood gumbo, roasted chicken breast with rice pilaf and broccoli salad and finally a Boston butt in the crockpot for barbecue. I have options to make quiche, various pasta dishes including pasta salad. Canned Pink Salmon for salmon patties and all the ingredients for homemade artisans bread! The last I learned how to make by watching Frugal Fit Mom! Thank you Christine for your inspiration and recipes 🌻
I love freezer/pantry vids, but especially now in these uncertain times. It does my heart so much good to see families are prepared for possible food scarcity, etc. I've been following your channel for two years, and you're still in my Top 3 Faves!!! Thanks for all you hard work and sharing your life / tips with us!!
If you make any sort of custard pie, you can use the dry peanut butter cookies for a crumb crust. Seriously delish with the right filling! And thanks for showing us Rogue again! She needs to make at least a cameo appearance in every video, truly! :)
I stopped meal planning in March and started buying what sounded good at the store. I made a list on my phone of "Easy Dinners" aka meals I don't need a recipe for. It has worked SO WELL in helping me utilize what I already have in my pantry and cook meals my family loves eating...plus it's actually saving us a little (I mean...with food prices not *that* much) moolah. Can't wait to see how you feed your family this month!
I'm gonna guess you can use up 60% this month - good luck!
Pantry & Fridge & Freezer April Clean Out Meals
1) Leek, bacon & cheddar quiche
2) Asparagus soup using leek broth
3) Fish pie (frozen fish & veg and topped with potato & cheese)
4) Spanish rice with pork ragu
5) Veggie coconut curry
6) Flat bread pizza
Use up lettuce and fresh veggies for salads
Week 1 done ♥ PS pasta night Friday's always using up pantry/fridge/freezer staples too
This is crazy! I just left the store . I don’t intend to go back most of the month other than for milk or a few ingredients I may need for a meal! My pantry is full! My freezer is absolutely full. The drawers I keep beans and pasta and rice etc in are crammed full! My big bowls I keep onions, potatoes, etc in are so full. I am not going anywhere anytime soon! Ha I buy on sale and clearance and buy and eat to the sales. We are so blessed. Even with these high prices and all the trucking issues and all when you have some extra you are blessed indeed.
Honey sriracha chicken with jasmine rice and stir fry veggies… chicken parm with spaghetti… pork chops with green beans, corn, and mashed potatoes. Thanks for helping me make a decision for this weeks meal plan!
Since I lost my job as of yesterday, I plan to do clean out my pantry/freezer for the next while. My next few meals are going to be sliced pork chops in the slow cooker, in a creamy italian sauce, with asparagus and left over stuffing. (this will probably take me a few days to eat). Then i will do homemade pizza with salami. And then after that will be some chopped up hot dogs and peppers with spicy sauce over rice.
Edit, the sliced pork chops in the slow cooker, with italian dressing, a onion soup mix packet and a can of cream of celery soup, ended up making the kind of a gravy, so i ended up making mashed potatoes to spoon the mixture over, and put some of the crispy fried onions on top. It is delicious
This makes me feel better about my 2 pantries, chest freezer and my fridge/freezer. Don’t have nearly as much as you do! I could probably clean out stuff though!
I’m at the time in my life where I see your freezer full of gold and goals!
Hi Christine
Beef brisket ( tomato sauce in crockpot)
Chicken with Homemade stuffing
Shepherds pie
I had planned to do the same through April I will need fresh produce but minimal purchases. My three meals to begin is beef barley vegetable soup, pork chop with vegetables and roast beef with vegetables. Good luck Christine!
I'm in on the challenge. I did this in January and saved a bunch of money by staying out of the grocery stores. We are on diets and eating very low carbs so I won't be using most of my pantry items. I will be using chicken and beef roasts and pork that has been in the freezer for awhile. I will only be buying fresh vegs for salads and items on Markdown (if they are a really good bargin) and advertised loss leaders if it's something I can use or store. I will also use any frozen vegetables from my freezer.
My 3 are Brown sugar Pork Loin Roast, Orange Chicken and tuna noodle casserole. I only have to buy celery and balsamic vinegar!! Win!!!
you can do a lot with soup bones, they are good in soups and soup beans, and yes broths,
Crumble Peanut Butter Cookies to top yogurt add Blackberries and Dessert or snack is served !
Flatbread, Tomato Sauce, a little Bacon, mix up some Eggs and yup a Breakfast Pizza. Add Spinach, & Onion yum
An inventory list might be a good idea. I have just my refrigerator freezer and it is so so full. When I do an inventory it comes in handy.
* I am having short Ribs, Mashed Potato, Salad mix
* leftover Veggie , Black Bean, Corn Soup
* Flatbread Pizza, 3 - 4 Cheeses, Tomato, Spinach, Onion with Bacon Bits
Love the colors! Those black, gray splotches are beautiful! What kind of dog is she and how big will she get?
Meals I already have on hand are spam loco moco, chicken pot pie(use pancake mix for topping), crockpot potato soup, chili, lasagna, tater tot casserole, leftover cabbage rolls from freezer. Very new to the stock up process with only one regular fridge/freezer. Looking at adding to long term dry food storage while looking for a small chest freezer for the two of us. I love your videos! 😊
The dry cookies can be used to make ice cream sandwiches or crumbled and put on yogurt for a dessert parfait.
Christine, don't worry about your pantry/freezer/food storage being/looking "perfect" in the eyes of others because amazingly enough, they don't live in your house and don't use your pantry! Mine is chaos and so is everyone else's. Lol 😆 love these videos, keep doing your thing, girl!
I live in an apartment and I buy approximately $20 extra every month. I cannot store very much however but I have a refrigerator with a freezer and had room for a small chest freezer as well. I utilize the top of the chest freezer with our coffee pot and coffee. I also take what I am using for the month and make it available by planning for what I need and keep that in my refrigerator freezer for easy access. I have enough stocked for at least a whole extra month or two. I am guessing that you could use 45% good luck! I’m rooting for you…
Just finished my winter pantry and did my shopping haul yesterday on April 1st ( Happy Foods Day!) Not going back to the stores for the month? Challenge accepted! First three meals BLTs with home fries ( gotta use up my potatoes), chicken pot pies, beef and barley soup (these will use up my old onions, carrots, celery and potatoes). Remember to rotate your food! Your puppy is sooo cute!
Take the pb cookies and make a pie crust from them. You have plenty of butter, lol. Then a lite creamy pie. Or use them as an ice cream mix in.
My dad Jack Reddy (RIP) worked for years for Kitchen Aid. glad to see that yours still works!
Idea, if you can't get rid of the peanut butter cookies just throw them in the food processor & grind them up until they are the texture of ground Graham crackers, add butter & make them into a pie crust to press in a big Pirex baking dish & make a peanut butter cheesecake or a creamy dessert that goes well with peanut butter.
Wow, that’s crazy! You could probably eat a year without having to go to the grocery store! Couple ideas because you have lots of bread, bacon & roasts. You can make BLTs & Mississippi roast.
We just finished shelf cooking yesterday. We did the entire month of March without cheating too! We did allow for purchasing dairy (milk, eggs mostly). Our shelfs are bare now.
You have tuns of food your family are blessed. Just Goes to show what you can do if you put your mind to it xx this is my pantry motivation deffo starting getting a long term food stash xx
Wow! If anyone could cook through all of this food, it’s you! Go get ‘em! That’s A LOT of food storage!!! It would stress me out to have that much but I am impressed that you can manage all of that! Can’t wait to see what you make! 😋
I’d say sit, come and stay are the first important training points!! 🐶
Use the peanut butter cookies to make a trifle. Dry cookies are the best for this as they absorb more. Or as crumble. You did have a lot of milk and dry cookies are great with milk...
My favorite thing to make with black lentils is dal makhani. So delicious and filling! First three meals: gumbo with chicken/andouille/shrimp, beef roast with potatoes and carrots, and chicken rice loaf with green beans. 🙌🏻
With dry cookies you can pulse them into crumbs and use them as a crust for a cheesecake or pudding mix.
I'm actually in stock up mode because we just moved 2 months ago & we used most food before moving. I'm finally getting my kitchen settled & am rebuilding pantry & freezer stock.
I loved this video. The tiny truck. I watched it drive off the screen. The box in a box. 🤣🤣 Yes, you do not need to go shopping. 🤣🤣 So much food. Then again, a good clearance deal.....can't go wrong. 😁
Already on it! Enchiladas, burgers, and split pea soup are my first three dinners!😊
I want discount grocery shopping two store ..yes I uploaded that video on my channel..I found discounts too... I am like this is how frugal fit mom feels finding clearance!!! I love clearance finds ! It's was great to finally find one.