Freezer audit time

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New shoot

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Freezer audit time
« on: March 06, 2017, 11:05 »
Defrosted the freezer yesterday and had a good audit session.  I'm getting ready for the new season crops - ever the optimist me  :lol:

Anyway, after I made extra efforts to preserve as much as I could for the winter, I have also made a real effort to use up the produce, so this year we only have left :

A small bag of wilted greens frozen in ice-cube trays, so they are small cubes
4 small tubs of roasted squash
1 tub of braised red cabbage
2 tubs of homemade tomato sauce
A few small bags of frozen berries - rasps, tayberries and loganberries

We have a very few Buffy Ball squash in the shed, some dried beans and then the pickles, chutneys and jellies and that's it.

It has saved me a small fortune in shopping bills all winter, but all that is left on the plot is some leeks and cabbage, so my 'hungry gap' planning needs still need work  ;)  :lol:  Pea-shoot recipes anyone ?



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madcat

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #1 on: March 06, 2017, 15:47 »
I am impressed!  At the courage to do the audit and the success of eating what you have frozen.  We have a couple of meals of kale and maybe another of sprouts and then there is nothing left in the ground.   :( There are a few squash left on the shelf and the last of the apples in the kitchen, plus spuds shooting merrily in the shed. The sorrel is showing well though, so sorrel sauce isn't that far off.   :)

But the freezers .....  There are a lot of runners still in there and parsnip (rescued from the rodents) and fruit.  The hungry gap wont be hungry, but what do you want with your runners for dinner today dear?
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mumofstig

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #2 on: March 06, 2017, 15:53 »
All I have left from last year's harvest are some tubs of rhubarb, when this year's is already 6ins tall!  ::) and some mixed raspberries and boysenberries, fit only to make jam with. Best get a move on with that then  :lol:
oh forgot 2 jars of tomatoes on the shelf.

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Mrs Bee

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #3 on: March 06, 2017, 17:15 »
I do an inventory of the freezers every month and keep a book with the contents written down. Very useful when you have 3 very large freezers.

 I have used all the tomatoes but I still have gooseberries, blackberries, blackcurrants and a few raspberries.
Lots of grated celeriac, Beans French, runner, broad, borlotti and flageolet and parsnips.  Quite a bit to keep us going through the hungry gap.

And 22 turkey drumsticks which were a bargain at bag of 15 for a fiver.

Thinking about it I could probably not shop for a month and still eat well. :lol:

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mrs bouquet

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #4 on: March 06, 2017, 19:13 »
I've also got 3 freezers, one of which is a small chest, and one is a front opening under a worktop, the other is self-defrosting.  They all live in the garage.  So in the first 2 all I can see is ice  :lol: :lol: :lol:  I feel really guilty now :blush: Mrs Bouquet
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snowdrops

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #5 on: March 06, 2017, 19:58 »
I've recently done an inventory of my 2 freezers, I'd bought 2 write on wipe off boards to try & keep up with what's there & what's been taken out. I look at it at when I plan the menu for the week, well that's the theory, itsworked for the last 3 weeks😇
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Growster...

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #6 on: March 06, 2017, 20:09 »
Blimey!

We have two under-counter freezers, and they're both stuffed to the gills, still...

We do, however, buy stuff on offer, like meat and readies for tiresome days, but there's still about a gallon of blackcurrants, and also loads of raspberries, sausages (Korkers), which we can't get locally now, plus pumpkin and squash, not to mention bags of tomatoes galore...

There's a lot of stewed apple from last year as well, and loads of peas and broad beans, but hey, the year is young! Leftovers always end up in labelled bags, and there's a lamb tagine I've had my eye on for some time, which I might doss down with some spinach pasta!

We always buy cheap chicken for slow-cooking anyway, but when beef is on offer (last week), or lamb (like today), then it's a hard-hearted Growster who walks on by! And we also have a lot of really nice pasta like ravioli on hand, which can double for an evening meal instead of a sandwich!

Mrs Growster is ruminating on how to cook the lamb, and so far we've got to a 'mains' roast, a shepherd's pie or two, and lots sliced and frozen for sandwiches and possibly soup, but we're getting out of soup mode at the moment as spring has arrived, but we may well return...:0)

Our freezer list gets hammered about once a month, and I always forget something anyway as it's my job because Mrs Growster has such tender arms, they can't lift the heaviest 'shelves' easily! (I nearly said drawers, but this is a family forum isn't it..;0)

What on earth did we do before freezers, eh?

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Growster...

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #7 on: March 06, 2017, 20:11 »
Sorry, forgot, there's always at least three soups for two in there as well, not sure which one though, may have to go and check..;0)

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compostqueen

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #8 on: March 06, 2017, 20:47 »
I was sorting the freezer out, and I gave been given a lovely secon hand one. We were moving it to the outbuilding yesterday when I slipped  down the steps and ended up with the damned thing on top of me. Thankfully it wasn't a big one  ::)

After all the kerfuffle my OH forgot to turn it on  🙄

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snowdrops

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #9 on: March 06, 2017, 21:28 »
I was sorting the freezer out, and I gave been given a lovely secon hand one. We were moving it to the outbuilding yesterday when I slipped  down the steps and ended up with the damned thing on top of me. Thankfully it wasn't a big one  ::)

After all the kerfuffle my OH forgot to turn it on  🙄

Oh dear you are in the wars CQ😦

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Growster...

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #10 on: March 06, 2017, 21:44 »
I was sorting the freezer out, and I gave been given a lovely secon hand one. We were moving it to the outbuilding yesterday when I slipped  down the steps and ended up with the damned thing on top of me. Thankfully it wasn't a big one  ::)

After all the kerfuffle my OH forgot to turn it on  🙄

I've told you before, CQ, don't go moving freezers 'sans thermals'..;0)

Hope all is OK and at least OH has taken you out to buy several gourmet dishes from M and S or Waitrose to hide the bruises...


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compostqueen

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #11 on: March 08, 2017, 00:07 »
I have a huge bruise but it's ok otherwise  :)

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New shoot

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #12 on: March 08, 2017, 21:14 »
OK, my latest brainwave to keep the freezer in order is to have a properly ordered scraps section.  I won't throw food out, so tend to to amass small packages of anonymous 'bits'. 

These are now being bagged together and labelled in collections of things I thing will mix.  My bagged selection today is the pickings from a roast chicken, a couple of rashers of bacon and the solid stock from the bottom of the chicken roasting pan (cooled and scraped clean of fat).  I'm thinking that could be mixed with white sauce and veg and the pie maker could make an outing  :)

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madcat

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #13 on: March 09, 2017, 11:12 »
I have been inspecting the remaining potatoes in store - and it is cook 'em up and freeze time.  They are growing faster than the ones out for chitting! 
That means freezer space and this far through the year that shouldn't be an issue, should it?  Only ....  I have frozen the parsnips as the rodents were starting on them in the ground (and the canker), reduced the remaining apples to puree before they rotted and frozen, chopped and frozen the last of the bag of carrots (I buy big bags of pony carrots) etc etc etc.  Result - they are full ..... So how ... :unsure: :unsure: ::)

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New shoot

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Re: Freezer audit time
« Reply #14 on: March 09, 2017, 11:25 »
Do you have a dehydrator?  The apple puree could turn into apple leather, the carrots will dry, plus you can make  home-dried mash flakes if you are feeling adventurous.

Failing that, jar the apples, make the carrots into a chutney and freeze the spuds  :unsure:
« Last Edit: March 09, 2017, 11:28 by New shoot »


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