Pantry/Freezer Challenge: April 1-7

[JumpyTheFrog]

I thought we could start a weekly challenge where each week we each choose 3 items from the pantry/fridge/freezer that really need to be used up. It could be produce that you'd typically ignore until it went bad, something that's been in your freezer for years, some ingredient you bought for who-knows-why and just want gone, etc.

 

Why 3 items? I thought some people might feel overwhelmed at the long list of ingredients they have. This can be a baby step to reducing food waste, saving on groceries, or cleaning out the pantry.

Edited April 1, 2016 by HoppyTheToad

[JumpyTheFrog]

My list for this week:

 

-Eggs from Feburary: I used some of them earlier today to make gf cheese corn bread muffins.

-Black beans

-Green peppers

Edited April 2, 2016 by HoppyTheToad

[Ethel Mertz]

I think this is a great idea.

 

1. Beets

2. Avocados

3. Pancake Mix

 

[helena]

This weeks list:

- Vietnamese crepe powder

- raw unsalted almond butter

- panko bread crumbs

[nd293]

For this week:

 

- more of the dal (in accompaniments to masala dosa)

- more of the sticky rice (although now that I know how to cook that properly it might become a staple)

- the pasta flour - ravioli for dinner and to freeze

[Carrie12345]

Ham

Ham

more ham

 

If I get adventurous enough to open my chest freezer, I'll come back and edit my list, but I really need to process a lot of leftover Easter ham this weekend!

[AnnE-girl]

I'm not sure what I'll be using up this week, but I need to join you since we're hopefully moving in a month and a half.

[Jane in NC]

This is easy-peasy for me this week since I used up two pantry items last night!  I made risotto using the last of some dehydrated oyster mushrooms as well as the last bit of Carolina Gold rice which I added to the arborio rice.

 

I wanted to say that I'd use up the frozen pumpkin pulp but I swear it is reproducing!  Baked pumpkin oatmeal for breakfast tomorrow.

 

Still haven't used the mascarpone that has been hiding unopened in the fridge.  :leaving: 

[cjzimmer1]

I really like the idea of 3 things a week.  Seems a bit more manageable to have a specific goal.

 

Canned Salmon (I have about 8 cans of this stuff and it really needs to go but only 2 people will eat it so most times I just don't bother)

Large Pasta Shells for stuffing

Black eyed Peas (I bought them for something but no idea what, I've never eaten them before, any recipe suggestions that don't involve greens?)

 

 

[DawnM]

I really like the idea of 3 things a week.  Seems a bit more manageable to have a specific goal.

 

Canned Salmon (I have about 8 cans of this stuff and it really needs to go but only 2 people will eat it so most times I just don't bother)

Large Pasta Shells for stuffing

Black eyed Peas (I bought them for something but no idea what, I've never eaten them before, any recipe suggestions that don't involve greens?)

 

 

I use canned salmon to make salmon patties.  They are a big hit with everyone except DH.

[DawnM]

I will be using a 5 pound bag of chicken legs/thighs.

Potatoes

Lentils

Cans of black beans

 

 

I think the black beans and chicken can be used for tacos/burritos.   

Pan fried chicken and mashed potatoes for the chicken and potatoes

Lentils and chicken for Chicken Tikka Masala and dal

 

 

[JumpyTheFrog]

Ok, I just put a "use it up" casserole in the oven. Besides the chicken, oil, and spices, I put in the following that needed to be used:

 

A bag of coleslaw mix-These tend to go bad before I get around to using them. Not this time!

A sad looking yellow pepper

The small bell peppers nobody would eat from a veggie tray

Two jars of home canned tomatillos from 4-6 years ago

Black beans from the giant bag I bought in 2010

Edited April 2, 2016 by HoppyTheToad

[cjzimmer1]

I use canned salmon to make salmon patties.  They are a big hit with everyone except DH.

 

DH and one son are the only ones in the family who will eat fish of any kind.  They are both big fans of salmon patties but when you like neither the taste nor the smell it's kind of hard to motivate myself to make them hence the reason they are sitting around.  I got them when we were on WIC and I was nursing youngest otherwise we simply wouldn't have fish in the house.  Our choice was Salmon or tuna and tuna is even worse than salmon.

[Lady Florida.]

 

Still haven't used the mascarpone that has been hiding unopened in the fridge.  :leaving:

 

I meant to post in the other thread, but since we're on a new thread I'll post here. I don't know what kind of dishes you like to make but...

 

-Pasta. Use it in a baked pasta dish similar to the way you'd use ricotta. You can even mix ricotta and mascarpone in the same baked dish. You can also make a lighter pasta dish with lemon, mascarpone, garlic, and a fresh herb like basil. Add some halved grape or cherry tomatoes if you like for a pop of color and flavor.

 

-Mix it with some powdered sugar (or honey if you prefer but sugar is easier) and use it as a fruit dip. Whip it up well so it's nice and fluffy. 

 

-If you're feeling adventurous you can make tiramisu or cannoli. Cannolis are usually made with ricotta but you can use mascarpone or a mix of the two. Do you have Publix in NC? They usually sell the cannoli shells in the bakery. Mix in some powdered sugar and mini chocolate chips.

Edited April 2, 2016 by Lady Florida

[Lady Florida.]

I like the idea of three items a week. I can still try to use more, but won't feel bad if I don't.

 

This week I'll use-

 

1/2 box (about 1/2 pound) of ditalini

1 can of chick peas

a jar of olive tapenade I found in the back of the pantry

 

The ditalini and chick peas will become pasta e ceci (same as pasta fagioli but with chick peas instead of cannellini beans)

 

We have some good crackers that could probably count as item # 4 since they really should be used up. I'll pull out the crackers and tapenade one afternoon and possibly add some cut up veggies and hummus for a snack lunch.

[cjzimmer1]

I really like the idea of 3 things a week.  Seems a bit more manageable to have a specific goal.

 

Canned Salmon (I have about 8 cans of this stuff and it really needs to go but only 2 people will eat it so most times I just don't bother)

Large Pasta Shells for stuffing

Black eyed Peas (I bought them for something but no idea what, I've never eaten them before, any recipe suggestions that don't involve greens?)

 

I used one can of salmon for lunch for the two who liked that.  In the process I counted how many cans I actually had.  There is STILL 11 more cans to go.  I guess I will have to plan to make them every weekend for a while.  The plus side is that I also used up some of the pnako bread crumbs that while hanging around and they finished off the very old jar of tartar sauce in the fridge so we got rid of some bonus items as well.  Just wish it didn't smell so bad.

[dzingirl]

I made a list from memory of things I need to use up and it was a page long! That means I have way more than that I'm sure.

 

This week I'm going to try to use up these 3 things:

 

1/2 box Barilla Plus pasta (best by June 2014) - used 4/2, mixed 1/2 box with 1 lb regular pasta

1 box Uncle Ben's chicken and wild rice flavor rice (best by Aug 2015) - used 4/3

1 bag Bird's Eye Voila chicken stir fry that's been in my freezer a long time (best by 3/30/16) - used 4/4

 

1 bag Yoplait smoothie mix Strawberry, Mango, Pineapple (better by (7/15/14) - Do you think this is safe to eat?

 

I may use up some other stuff too. I'll add it to the list if I do.

Edited April 4, 2016 by dzingirl

[dzingirl]

Resurrecting the thread since it seems to have died. How's everyone doing with their three items this week? I have used my first 3 and am submitting 3 more:

 

- A roast that's been in my freezer since last February

- Potatoes in my pantry that are on the downhill slide

- Maybe about half the carrots in my fridge

- The rest of the Easter ham

- As many of the dozen eggs we hard-boiled for Easter as DD and I can consume before I decide they're too old (some people would probably say they already are)

 

Ok, so that's five things....I have a lot to use up.

[cjzimmer1]

I used the salmon for Saturday's lunch.  I cooked the black eyed peas in the ham broth from the Easter ham and then made a kind of taco dip with them and we ate it with chips for supper on Saturday.  Just made the stuffed shells for supper tonight.  I should pick 3 more and go for it but half my group is leaving Thursday for a few days so food consumption will drastically drop here so I'm not sure what I want to make because I don't want to eat the same thing the whole time they are gone.  So I think I will just wait till they are back and then I can use another can of salmon and find two other things to use up.

[AnnE-girl]

I used half of my frozen since 2013 chicken thighs in this soup http://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/slow-cooker-tortellini-spinach-soup/. The other half is getting baked with a maple Dijon sauce tomorrow. I also used up a carton of chicken broth and a can of diced tomatoes. Wednesday I'm making lasagna with noodles that I've had in the pantry for a while, Thursday will be chili using up frozen jalapeño and sweet peppers from last summer's CSA.

[Professormom]

Sorry, I thought this said panty/freezer challenge and I was intrigued :D Carry on.

[Artichoke]

I used half of my frozen since 2013 chicken thighs in this soup http://www.365daysofcrockpot.com/slow-cooker-tortellini-spinach-soup/. The other half is getting baked with a maple Dijon sauce tomorrow. I also used up a carton of chicken broth and a can of diced tomatoes. Wednesday I'm making lasagna with noodles that I've had in the pantry for a while, Thursday will be chili using up frozen jalapeño and sweet peppers from last summer's CSA.

Great idea I'll cook this to use up some chicken thighs and cream that we have. I'll add some small noodles ( broken in pieces ) and grate some leftover Parmesan on top. I don't have any cheese tortellini.

[Jane in NC]

Progress!  I used up the last of some Pepperidge Farm cornbread stuffing that was in the pantry.  I pounded turkey cutlets (from the freezer), topping this with the hydrated stuffing to which I added the last of a carton of stock from the fridge, onion, some wimpy celery, pecans and dried cherries.  I rolled 'er up, baked and served with sweet potatoes.  Quite tasty.

 

But... (there is always a but in these threads for me)..while exploring in the freezer, I found the remains of homemade stuffing buns that I had crumbled and baked for our Thanksgiving stuffing.  Sigh. Something else shall be stuffed down the road.

 

Kathy, thanks for the mascarpone tips. I need to make some birthday cupcakes at the end of the week.  Carrot cupcakes should pair well with mascarpone frosting.

 

I have some leftover chicken in tomato sauce that I'll serve with pasta for dinner tonight. Since dinner won't require much work, I thought I would bake something.  A bag of raw hazelnuts in the freezer called out to me.  Hazelnut cookies (like pecan sandies) might be just the ticket.

[Lady Florida.]

Well I created more when I used something up.

 

I made pasta e ceci. There was a minimum amount of sauce I'd need to use in order to match a can of chick peas. The rest of the pasta is gone but I have leftover sauce. I'll freeze it and use it for lunch for myself one day. There's only enough for one person anyway.

 

Haven't used the olive tapenade yet but it's early in the week.

 

Yesterday I found a half bag of Ore-Ida diced hash browns and a pack of cubed ham in the freezer. I added some veggies and made a breakfast casserole for dinner. Bonus - we had enough for breakfast this morning.

[dzingirl]

My roast with potatoes and carrots is in the oven, using up the roast that's been in my freezer since last Feb and several potatoes (one of which was half rotten) and some carrots.

 

Lest anyone think I'm bragging or over-achieving, I also finally cut into a pineapple I bought two weeks ago. I have been looking at it every day thinking I need to cut it up and then not getting around to it. I figured it was probably too far gone,but I cut into it anyhow hoping maybe part of it would still be edible. Alas, I am pretty sure it is not, so out it goes. I will eventually learn my lesson and only buy those when I am sure I'll cut them up in the next couple of days.

 

Went grocery shopping today and spent under $85 and that included a can of shortening. Trying not to buy much new stuff is definitely helping us use older stuff up.

[dzingirl]

Was looking forward to a bowl of Raisin Bran this morning from a box I just purchased yesterday. Instead, I was good and opened the box of frosted mini wheats I bought 4 years ago or so thinking my husband liked that cereal. (He does not.) It has a best by date of June 2012. It will take me a while to use it up since I don't eat cereal every day, but at least it's a start!

[cjzimmer1]

Was looking forward to a bowl of Raisin Bran this morning from a box I just purchased yesterday. Instead, I was good and opened the box of frosted mini wheats I bought 4 years ago or so thinking my husband liked that cereal. (He does not.) It has a best by date of June 2012. It will take me a while to use it up since I don't eat cereal every day, but at least it's a start!

 

Does it even taste good after that long?  I generally ignored best buy dates so eating something years old doesn't bother me in the least but I would think cereal would get very old tasting or maybe it's just fine.  Around here I'd give it to my kids and it would be gone in a day but we so rarely have cereal that they consider it a treat and inhale it.

[Lady Florida.]

Does it even taste good after that long?  I generally ignored best buy dates so eating something years old doesn't bother me in the least but I would think cereal would get very old tasting or maybe it's just fine.  Around here I'd give it to my kids and it would be gone in a day but we so rarely have cereal that they consider it a treat and inhale it.

 

Around here, once they're opened things like that will go stale. Stale for cereal, crackers, chips, etc. means they lose their crunch. Maybe because it hadn't been opened it was okay?

 

Yesterday ds found  and used a can of chicken noodle soup that he insisted I buy a few months ago when he had a cold. I told both dh and ds that I'll be making some interesting meals as I try to use things up in the pantry. Ds said he ate the soup because he thought it would help. I thought that was sweet of him.

 

For me personally, this challenge doesn't mean I can't buy anything besides stuff like milk, fruit & vegetables, etc. It just means I will try to plan meals that use what we have. The other night I bought frozen broccoli to add to the breakfast-for-dinner casserole. We will use the rest quickly so I didn't feel bad about buying an ingredient to add to what I was using up. If I had other fresh or frozen vegetables to use I would have done that instead. 

 

So, my challenge means if I can make an entire meal using what we have that's great. If not, I use as much as possible and only buy what I need to complete the dish.

Edited April 6, 2016 by Lady Florida

[Carrie12345]

Just wanted to report that there are now a million ham and cheese muffins in my freezer, thanks to my daughter!

There is also still a ton of sliced ham and ham bone in my freezer.  Sigh.

[dzingirl]

Does it even taste good after that long? I generally ignored best buy dates so eating something years old doesn't bother me in the least but I would think cereal would get very old tasting or maybe it's just fine. Around here I'd give it to my kids and it would be gone in a day but we so rarely have cereal that they consider it a treat and inhale it.

It was ok. Probably cause it hadn't been opened. I don't like that particular cereal much to begin with. Now that it's open, I'll probably have to try to consume it fairly quickly.

[dzingirl]

Ham and bean soup is in crockpot for tonight. Used up the rest of the ham (about 2 lbs) and threw the bone in too. Recipe only calls for a pound, but we're big meat eaters, so I don't think anyone will complain about a higher ham to bean ratio.

[JumpyTheFrog]

I'm eating the last of the "use it up" casserole right now. Well, technically I threw a little out because that section wound up being just cabbage. I think a whole lb of coleslaw mix was a little too much for the amount of other ingredients.

 

We are going on vacation soon so I think I will use the old eggs up tonight and make muffins to bring with us.

[tm919]

I used one can of salmon for lunch for the two who liked that.  In the process I counted how many cans I actually had.  There is STILL 11 more cans to go.  I guess I will have to plan to make them every weekend for a while.  The plus side is that I also used up some of the pnako bread crumbs that while hanging around and they finished off the very old jar of tartar sauce in the fridge so we got rid of some bonus items as well.  Just wish it didn't smell so bad.

We do salmon pie sometimes... mixing it with all that potato takes some of the "ew, canned salmon" effect out of it.

[JumpyTheFrog]

I finally used up all the old eggs! I had some bananas that were starting to turn brown so I made three loaves of banana bread. Since I used coconut flour I was able to use up two dozen eggs for the bread. Also, while getting the bananas I discovered two plantains I had forgotten about. I cooked them for the kids. I am glad I remembered to use them before they started to get moldy.

[cjzimmer1]

 

For me personally, this challenge doesn't mean I can't buy anything besides stuff like milk, fruit & vegetables, etc. It just means I will try to plan meals that use what we have. The other night I bought frozen broccoli to add to the breakfast-for-dinner casserole. We will use the rest quickly so I didn't feel bad about buying an ingredient to add to what I was using up. If I had other fresh or frozen vegetables to use I would have done that instead. 

 

So, my challenge means if I can make an entire meal using what we have that's great. If not, I use as much as possible and only buy what I need to complete the dish.

 

That's how I'm doing it too.  I'm not creative enough to only use pantry supplies.  When I used the black eyed peas on Saturday, I had to stop at Costco for chips and cheddar cheese.  Of course since they were Costco sized we had leftovers from it but that is fine because those two things will always go fast if I don't portion control them. 

 

[cjzimmer1]

We do salmon pie sometimes... mixing it with all that potato takes some of the "ew, canned salmon" effect out of it.

 

Do you have a recipe that you use?  I'm assuming ti is similar to a chicken pot pie but I've never really made those kind of things.  The sooner I can use it up the better.  I realize the salmon is taking up half a shelf of space.  Now that I've noticed how much space it is taking up I want it gone as quickly as possibly.

 

I did use another can up for supper tonight but one of my non fish eating kids walked upstairs and started gagging because of the smell.  I have a cold and can't smell anything so it seemed like the perfect time to use it up. I told the gagger that we only have TEN more cans to go.  He didn't appreciate my humor.

[dzingirl]

Just wanted to report that there are now a million ham and cheese muffins in my freezer, thanks to my daughter!

There is also still a ton of sliced ham and ham bone in my freezer. Sigh.

Would like your ham and cheese muffin recipe, if you get a chance to post a link.

[dzingirl]

For me personally, this challenge doesn't mean I can't buy anything besides stuff like milk, fruit & vegetables, etc. It just means I will try to plan meals that use what we have. The other night I bought frozen broccoli to add to the breakfast-for-dinner casserole. We will use the rest quickly so I didn't feel bad about buying an ingredient to add to what I was using up. If I had other fresh or frozen vegetables to use I would have done that instead.

 

So, my challenge means if I can make an entire meal using what we have that's great. If not, I use as much as possible and only buy what I need to complete the dish.

That's totally what I'm doing too. I didn't mean to make it sound like I'm only buying dairy and produce. My typical method of shopping is to stock up on things we use regularly when they're on sale. I think this saves us a lot of money. Sometimes I go a little overboard though, particularly in the winter when I worry about getting snowed in. So I'm just trying to be careful about what I buy. Yesterday, I did buy 8 jars of our favorite pasta sauce cause it was a really good price. We have pasta usually once a week, so that will likely be used up in 4-6 weeks. Our favorite pancake syrup was on sale too, but I didn't buy any because we have 3 full bottles and one partial left.

 

My ham and bean soup was totally delicious, BTW!

 

I'm so happy for this challenge. I really need to focus on using stuff up.

[kiana]

Found a cottage cheese container of frosting in the freezer. 

 

This clearly required a cake be baked to use it up. 

[nd293]

We've had two meals that included the sticky rice.

 

I finished the 'putu' (South African corn meal).

 

We had quinoa nachos. I liked them, not fantastic, but pretty good. Quinoa goes far, apparently, so I'm going to have to find a lot more uses for it if I'm going to finish what's in the pantry.

 

I used up baby tomatoes that were getting soft in a pasta sauce.

 

I also found several leftover bits of biscuit dough in the freezer and baked them all.

 

We have very limited pantry space - one tall narrow Ikea cupboard filled to max with careful placement of drawers and judicious use of Ikea containers - so I need to review and decide what items are staple and which ones are 'extras' to get used up. Somehow we recently ended up with many more types of food than we have space. I don't really but processed foods so most of these are grains.

[Jane in NC]

I ended up using one of the things destined for next week's list today:  sun dried tomatoes.  They were added along with some herbs and Parmesan to bread dough that is rising.  Carrot cupcakes are in the oven.  Eventually they'll be topped with mascarpone icing--assuming the mascarpone is still fine beyond its expiration date in an unopened carton.

 

This baking extravaganza has me wondering if I should do regular Baking Days during which I made several things. Efficient use of the oven and all that. Of course with summer coming, the baking activities will be limited.

[Lady Florida.]

I get the night off. We're meeting friends for dinner at a locally famous seafood restaurant.

[cjzimmer1]

Pulled a jar of canned dark cherries out of the cupboard. I bought them because they look interesting but then I never figured out what to do with them.  I dumped them in this morning's pot of oatmeal with some almond extract and chocolate chips and kids devoured it up and asked if there was anymore.  I also found a partial bag of raw cashews that I bought to make sauce when youngest was dairy free.  I'm going to turn them into homemade kind bars one of these days.

[dzingirl]

Yesterday, for the last day of this weekly challenge, we ate leftovers for dinner. The kids were not crazy about the ham and bean soup (even though DH and I thought it was great!), so I made them spaghetti. I used up a can of our less preferred pasta sauce that's been sitting a while, as I generally will reach for our preferred brand if we have it.

 

I also ate frosted mini wheats again yesterday and both kids ate some really old Cheerios (and liked them!)

 

I was going to use up a box of cake mix and a can of frosting that were a bit past best by date, but I didn't get to that. Might try to do that in the next week.

[Jane in NC]

Huzzah!  Mascarpone is gone!  I used half in the cupcake frosting--best dang frosting ever, mind you.  The other half went into a pasta dish that we had tonight, a riff on the Budget Bytes recipe for Easy Spinach Ricotta Pasta. It calls for a cup of ricotta.  I used one half cup of mascarpone and some grated Parmesan. Delish! I served this with roasted cauliflower. 

 

Compiling my freezer/pantry objectives for next week...

[dzingirl]

Tonight I made two boxes of Hamburger Helper Crunchy Taco variety for dinner. One box was past the best by date and one box was coming up on the best by date in June. That's my first item for week of 4/8-4/14. Note to self: Do not buy that variety again!