One of the annoying things about recycling food containers is that you're supposed to get them relatively clean and rinsed-out before you put them in the recycling bin. This is particularly difficult with cooking oil because it clings to the inside of the bottle, and it doesn't mix with water to rinse out, and if … Continue reading Use those last drops of cooking oil!
leftovers
No-Bake Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie for Summer
This is not so much a recipe as an example of how to work with the food, and the weather, that you happen to have. Last weekend was very hot and humid, and we had some ingredients that needed to be used, including just two potatoes from our farm share--not enough to make a baked … Continue reading No-Bake Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie for Summer
A Week of Vegetarian Lunchbox Lunches
Daniel is the lunchbox-packing parent in our family. He was in charge of grinding up leftovers for baby Nicholas to eat at childcare, and he has packed a lunch for Nicholas to take to school every day for the past three grades and to day camp every day for the past two summers. We love … Continue reading A Week of Vegetarian Lunchbox Lunches
CONTEST: Name This Recipe!
I've developed a main dish that my family really likes, but we can't figure out what to call it! "That non-Mexican-flavored Mexican Pizza that fits in the toaster-oven" or "Beans and veggies and herbs baked on cornbread" is too cumbersome. Surely someone on the Internet will be able to think of the perfect, short, catchy … Continue reading CONTEST: Name This Recipe!
Freezing Cheese
We love cheese! However, with only three of us in the family, a block of cheese in the refrigerator can get moldy before we finish eating it. We came up with a cheese storage method that reduces the risk of mold, but it wasn't good enough for those times when we have either a large … Continue reading Freezing Cheese
Fast, Frugal, Fruit-Flavored Oatmeal (or, how to use up the jam stuck to the jar)
When a jar of jam is depleted to the point that it's difficult to gather up enough jam for a sandwich or a slice of toast, it's tempting to just chuck it. If you're going to recycle or reuse that jar, though, you need to remove every bit of jam...and if you're removing it, you … Continue reading Fast, Frugal, Fruit-Flavored Oatmeal (or, how to use up the jam stuck to the jar)
Four Weeks of Pesco-Vegetarian Dinners (early spring)
A pesco-vegetarian is someone who eats no meat except fish. That’s what we do when we’re at home and most of the time when we eat in other places. Here's what we ate for dinner (plus weekend lunches) for four weeks in March and April, including Easter, trying to make the most of seasonal produce … Continue reading Four Weeks of Pesco-Vegetarian Dinners (early spring)
What to Serve for a Big Reception or Party (specifically, Easter)
I noticed my article What to Serve for Coffee Hour drawing more readers as Easter approached--probably people looking for ideas to make their church coffee hours following the Easter services particularly festive. I have often taken charge of coordinating my church's reception after the Easter Vigil (the night before Easter Sunday), and this year's went … Continue reading What to Serve for a Big Reception or Party (specifically, Easter)
Mexican Pizza
I mentioned in my most recent multi-week menu post making Mexican Pizza, an easy and versatile meal that my mom makes frequently. As I wrote that, it occurred to me to ask Mom if there is a recipe for Mexican Pizza or she's just been winging it all along! She has no written recipe, but … Continue reading Mexican Pizza
Emergency Creamy Tomato Soup (healthier!)
Okay, it wasn't really an emergency. It was just that our eight-year-old Nicholas really wanted creamy tomato soup for dinner when both parents were recovering--more weakly than we'd hoped--from a stomach virus that the kid had several days earlier. Daniel and I both were very sick Monday, a little better Tuesday, and then I went … Continue reading Emergency Creamy Tomato Soup (healthier!)
Pumpkin Burritos
It may seem somewhat obvious that, if you can make Butternut Squash Burritos from the same recipe as Sweet Potato Burritos, you could also make Pumpkin Burritos. But if you're among the many people desperately searching the Internet this month for new and different ways to serve the remains of your jack o'lantern, it might … Continue reading Pumpkin Burritos
What to Do with Bread Heels
Some people consider the ends of a loaf of bread to be the best parts. My family, though, prefers the middle slices. Daniel often will eat the heel that is at the top of the bag, but by the time we get to the bottom of the bag, the other heel is less appealing. (This … Continue reading What to Do with Bread Heels
Summer Vegetable Sunflower Blop
Sometimes I have trouble thinking of a good name for a recipe, especially when it's something I have been making for myself without talking to anybody about it, because in my mind it can be called "kind of like what I made the other day" or "mmmmm" or "RY3A0128" or whatever. The name for today's … Continue reading Summer Vegetable Sunflower Blop
EASY Homemade Baby Food!
This is NOT a paid endorsement. This is my unsolicited review of a product I liked. This is an idea that's been around a while (both my mother and Daniel's say they had something like this when we were babies in the early 1970s) but I hardly ever see today's parents doing it or talking … Continue reading EASY Homemade Baby Food!
Thrifty Tips
Today is the Frugal Tips Edition of Works-for-Me Wednesday, so check out the money-saving ideas there! I happen to prefer the word "thrifty" myself. This is my big anthology of ways to save money! I have to start off by responding to Kristen (hostess of Works-for-Me Wednesday)'s first tip, which is to print your own … Continue reading Thrifty Tips
Butternut Squash Burritos
UPDATE: I'm linking this to Waste Not Want Not Wednesday, which is hosted at a gluten-free site. You could make this recipe gluten-free by using any type of gluten-free tortilla or wrap, by putting the filling over rice or quinoa in a bowl, or by being super-nutritious and wrapping the filling in big leaves of … Continue reading Butternut Squash Burritos
Four Weeks of Pesco-Vegetarian Dinners (early autumn)
A pesco-vegetarian is someone who eats no meat except fish. That's what we do when we're at home and most of the time when we eat in other places. Last week I explained my family's approach to menu planning, which is that I write the menu and do the weekend cooking, while Daniel cooks weeknight … Continue reading Four Weeks of Pesco-Vegetarian Dinners (early autumn)
Cauliflower leaves are edible!
Our CSA farm does not trim the outer leaves off a head of cauliflower because they help to keep the white part of the cauliflower clean until you're ready to eat it. The farm newsletter had mentioned from time to time that these leaves are edible, too, and we'd tried substituting them for kale in … Continue reading Cauliflower leaves are edible!
How to use old tofu and turn ramen noodles into a full meal!
The trouble with tofu is, if you don't use the whole block in one meal, you're supposed to store it in a container of water and change the water every day. That is pretty annoying! It's easy to forget it for a couple of days. Then, when you remember, it doesn't smell so good. I … Continue reading How to use old tofu and turn ramen noodles into a full meal!
Homemade Frozen Shredded Vegetables
Like reusing glass jars, this is an idea I've mentioned before that has increased its importance in my day-to-day life to the point that it deserves its own article! When you have more of a vegetable than you can eat before it goes bad, clean and shred the extra all at once, put measured portions … Continue reading Homemade Frozen Shredded Vegetables
The Earthling's Handbook 