Freezer Challenge Update!
Alrighty.
It's been a week since I started my freezer challenge, and though it's not exactly empty in the freezer, it IS looking way more manageable.
Here's what I've been up to.
I used up my random frozen fruit...
in a smoothie, of course.
I used up a tortilla from the freezer and also some chipotle sauce leftover from fish tacos by making a scrambled egg breakfast taco.
Crazy delicious.
I used up the bacon from the freezer by making bacon/cheese quesadillas.
And I used up taco meat by serving, uh, tacos. CREATIVE. I know.
Apparently, I was motivated to use up anything that could be Tex-Mex.
I love Tex-Mex food with my whole heart, and I think I could eat it every single day.
So, what's left?
I still have to deal with the bread odds and ends (bread pudding, coming right up!), and I still have the chicken and sausage to use up, but I think that's gonna be easy.
Since this is Food Waste Friday and not just a freezer challenge update....
I lost all of these mushrooms. I don't know why they went bad so quickly (I didn't keep them covered in plastic or anything!), but they did.
And then I lost ¼ cup of pulled pork, plus the last few Brussels sprouts.
I got the Brussels sprouts in my produce box, and I roasted them in bacon fat (because bacon helps everything, right??)
Despite the bacon, they weren't super well-received here, so we didn't eat all of them that night. I did eat another helping of them leftover at lunch the next day, but I wasn't inspired enough to eat all the leftovers.
(On a side note: why must these things smell so bad when you cook them? Ugh.)
I'm considering opting out of Brussels sprouts in my produce box options, although maybe we just need to give them one more try.
Are they an acquired taste, perhaps??
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How are things on the food waste front at your house? Let us know in the comments!
(and feel free to drop a link if you blogged about food waste this week.)
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P.S. Last night I wrote up a few clarifications about my Earth day post.
We are eating from the pantry this week. The pantry was getting so full that you couldn't really easily see what was in there. It is finally beginning to get clean, unfortunately I found a couple things in there that were long past its expiration date.
I love Brussel sprouts but my kids don't and they really don't like the smell! They are delicious roasted and if you do them in foil mixed with other veggies on the BBQ you can avoid the smell. Bacon fat sounds yummy but I just use a little olive oil and salt and pepper.
I agree you must try the Brussels sprouts roasted! Similar to your roasted carrots recipe. They come out almost caramelized. Yum!!!
Brussels sprouts can be one of those love/hate vegetables. Not many people seem indifferent to them. Personally, I love them, but they can't be mushy and overcooked--then they become rather unappealing. (Funny thing, I never noticed "Brussels" has an "s" on the end of it! 40+ years and I never knew...)
I chop Brussel sprouts and saute them with garlic and onions in olive oil until they are just turning crispy. Yum!
I roast brussel sprouts - high heat (450 or so) after coating in olive oil, with salt and pepper. Roast until fork tender. Then, I drizzle a little maple syrup over them for the last few minutes. Kids used to eat them when they were younger, now the 12 year old won't touch them, but the 15 year old will eat them if I push it. When they first began resisting, I would process the roasted brussel sprouts in the food processor and use it as a sauce for pasta. Called it pesto, because my kids like traditional pesto and for a while I could process anything and call it pesto sauce and they would eat it!
Hi Kristen!
There's a genetic component to Brussels sprouts: some people (who carry a dominant form of a taste bud gene) can taste a bitter compound they contain (and therefore often don't like Brussels sprouts). People who have the recessive gene actually can't even taste the compound (and tend to like Brussels sprouts more!) So don't feel bad if you and your family don't like the sprouts... it could very well all be genetic. (I'm a science teacher, and we can actually test our students for the gene easily with a simple taste-test... it's a real hit with the kids!)
Here's an article that explains it a little more: http://www.theguardian.com/science/blog/2011/nov/01/brussel-sprout-gene
PS. I've been reading your blog since 2010 and this is the first time I've commented! Thanks for almost five years of enjoyment!
So interesting! Kind of like how to some people, cilantro tastes like soap.
My biochem PhD friend says the cilantro soap gene story is false - but didn't have the references at hand. So I still don't know if it's like an allergy (the real thing) or like the MSG migrane (bogus).
But if one doesn't like it, one doesn't like it. No biggie, I should hope.
Oh, really? I hadn't heard that. I'm firmly in the "Cilantro is delicous!" camp, so I'm good to go either way.
And yes. We are totally allowed to just not like things, whether there's a genetic basis for it or not.
I'll buy that excuse. I also think it's the same reason I declare that kale is unfit for human consumption.
I'm not able to do a freezer challenge due to the minimal amount that's kept in it. But there's typically always frozen fruit. frozen fruit is fab in smoothies - really makes a difference.
There is a save on my FWF post today. I'm not just whizzing up fruit to reduce potential food waste, but meat/veg also into soups. It almost (almost) makes me feel a little better on the amount of fruit that's been wasted this week.
Please try the Brussels sprouts again using Alton Brown's recipe from Food Network. There are toasted pecans, lightly sauteed thinly sliced Brussels sprouts, and cranberries. They are so delicious! I never liked Brussels sprouts until I tried them that way and now I even adore them roasted.
I love Brussels sprouts but it does apparently trigger the bitter reactor -- some people can't stand the "bitter" taste, and I think children are more prone than adults not to like bitter. I mix them with olive oil and salt and roast at like 400 until they're crispy with a bit of caramelizing... I have also cooked them under a meat, like chicken or duck. The fat then cooks on the Brussels sprouts and that also makes them tasty.
you could also try using a grater or mandolin to shave the Brussels sprouts and use them in a salad! Sounds kind of kooky at first but my uncle makes a shaved Brussels sprouts salad at his restaurant and it's super good! He dresses it with a lemon-y vinaigrette
You know, I wonder if raw would be a lot better. At least you'd avoid the smell!
Or send them to me!!!! I will eat them all for you!!!
Second the idea to put them in a salad. I HATE HATE HATE cooked cruciferous veggies (cabbage, broc, caul, b'sprouts, kale, etc.), but I LOVE them raw. (My daughter and DH are the exact opposite, can't stand them raw).
My mother used to cook brussels sprouts for Thanksgiving when I was a child. She overcooked them and stunk up the whole house. I never made them for my children. Son #2 lives close to a Farmer's Market in his town and buys them all the time. He roasts them with olive oil. Their 2 year old son LOVES them! I am totally amazed at that. I eat them there, but I do think it is an acquired taste. They taste better when they are fresh off the stalk in the fall than the frozen sprouts do.
Try this recipe. It turned my Brussels-sprouts-hating husband in to a believer.
http://tastykitchen.com/blog/2012/04/zesty-brussels-sprouts/
Good luck!
I used to hate brussel sprouts as a kid until my mom roasted them with sea salt. It's super easy, just wash them, light brush with olive oil, enough to get the sea salt to stick. Pop in the oven and roast for about a half hour - until tender and tasty with a crisp of outer leaves. And, they don't smell as much as when sautéed. I usually roast them whole, my brother cuts them in half. For ease, I usually line my roasting pan with aluminum foil (not frugal - but easy cleanup).
Good going on cleaning up the freezer. I love brussel sprots, one of my favoirte veggie. Yes they do have an order while cooking. I also think they are a acquired taste.
I learned to love Brussels sprouts at 35. I love them roasted, can't stand them steamed and mushy.
For bread scraps my go-to is an egg casserole. Cover bottom of a baking dish with them, then egg/milk/spices mixture, and lastly meat and cheese. We even eat it for dinner sometimes with muffins and smoothies.
Our family roast brussel spouts with squash and sea salt, yummy!
I have discovered a love of Brussels Sprouts on pizza. Sounds crazy, I know, but I ( and my 5 year old) love it! Here's what I do:
Prepare the dough as usual. Instead of pizza sauce, I apply olive oil to the crust. In a bowl, I place thinly sliced Brussels Sprouts, and mushrooms. Then I add the pizza cheese, kosher salt and pepper (to taste), and olive oil. I toss it all together and spread the whole mixture over the crust. You can add sliced salami if you'd like and you can also subtract the mushrooms if you don't like those.
Give it a try next time you have some b-sprouts and perhaps, like me, you will have a new favorite pizza!
This sounds amazing!!! I'll have to try it.
I love Brussels sprouts for...........breakfast.
http://foodformyfamily.com/recipes/brussels-sprouts-bacon-breakfast-hash
Sometimes, I add some sweet potato to it.
We love brussels sprouts now but I would say it took about six months of trying different recipes to really start enjoying them.
Our favorite recipe is a Martha Stewart one where you shred the sprouts and quick sauté them with olive oil, sea salt and lemon. If you are making a lot, let the grater blade on your food processor do the work for you.
The next time you make fish tacos you might want to try raw shredded brussels sprouts in place of cabbage in the slaw.
Hi, Kristen! I've been reading your blog for quite some time & love it! I have a tip for you for your mushrooms. As soon as you get them home, remove them from their store packaging & place them in a brown paper bag, fold down the top, & place back in the fridge away from the areas where they might freeze. They will keep better & longer! Keep up the great work on the food challenges! You always inspire me to do better with using up our leftovers before they go bad.
God Bless!
I was going to say the same thing as Steph! We used to get a ton of mushrooms in our CSA share and they told us to put them in the fridge in a paper bag. If you don't eat them and they dry completely, which they will eventually, you can take them out of the fridge and store them in a jar in the pantry. They can be re-hydrated at any point and they'll still taste good.
Also, I really need to do a freezer challenge!!! It's crazy in there.
This is always a fail for me because - apparently - brown bags are black holes to me. My eye just skips right over it.
The only way to eat brussels sprouts is raw in a salad!! Yes. I was a total disbeliever until I tried it a few months ago. Now I eat them pretty much every week. Sliced, with baby kale, a little red onion, dried cranberries, nuts and a little poppy seed dressing. Oh yum! Nutritious and filling too!
I also roast our Brussels sprouts in bacon fat but then I toss them with the bacon that I rendered that fat from and maple syrup. I tried this method on the grill last week and it was amazing.
I've also shredded them and cooked them in a preserved lemon and olive oil.
If I ever serve a veggie that not everyone loves I also serve a side of mashed potatoes. I encourage my son to mix his veggies with his potatoes and the potatoes usually cover up the taste but he is still eating his veggies.
Just a thought on the mushrooms - I have found they hold up better and last longer if I store them in a brown paper bag in the refrigerator. I just fold the top over a couple of times so it stays and they last about a week, usually. Sometimes a little longer. (of course, I remove them from the packaging they come in)
They're an acquired taste, in my experience! I only just learned to appreciate them. Our neighbors enjoy them roasted, but it took several dinners at their house before I honestly liked them ( the sprouts--I love my neighbors!)
My daughter (age 6) had been begging to try Brussels sprouts, so I bought some. I hadn't made them in quite a few years. I decided to roast them. I could stomach a few of them but almost started gagging at the fourth one. My husband and daughter finished them off with gusto. At least they didn't go to waste! That above comment about tasting bitterness is interesting because that is definitely something I don't like about them!
Hey Kristen! We didn't use to love Brussel Sprouts either. Roasting in coconut oil changed that completely for some of us - others are still unconvinced. However, if a Sprout Salad is what you are willing to try, NomNom Paelo's looks mighty good. I've never done it but reading the recipe makes me wonder what is holding me back! Althoug his does used cooked sprouts, I wonder if raw would be just as good. Happy trying!
http://nomnompaleo.com/post/66793339868/warm-brussels-sprouts-slaw-with-asian-citrus
You're really making a dent on that freezer! Good work.
I have the opposite problem right now. I'm cramming everything in my freezer to prepare for a new baby. I'm hoping we have enough in there for a few weeks worth of easy meals!
Here is how we did this week: http://wp.me/p4yT07-1of
I think that's a good way to fill a freezer! If mine was full of ready-to-bake meals, I'd feel fine. But this random stuff is a recipe for food waste.
Brussels sprouts lover here! Besides roasting them at a high heat, I've used them in stir fries. Slice them thinly, and saute as one would cabbage. My family loved them along with the other veggies.
I didn't try Brussels sprouts until I was an adult and I'm happy to say my entire household happily eats them. I've only ever cooked them one way, but it works for us. I chop them into halves (or quarters if they are big), coat and toss in oil and brown sugar (a must for getting rid of the bitter) and roast in a glass pan until they can be pierced with a fork. After I take them out of the oven, I sprinkle on a bit of that chunky kosher salt. Yum! We love them, but two of us (my 5 year old and I) are also sauteed kale lovers.
You should try the brussel sprouts deep fried, so yummy!!!!!
Isn't everything delicious deep fried?? 😉
Are brussel, sprouts an aquired taste. NO!!! I cannot, despite many attempts, eat them. They Smell like bad socks, and they taste like you have just licked a shag pile carpet. Gross, even if they are uber good for you. Vegemite on the other hand, yummo, and yes, it is an aquired taste, and no, you should not eat it by the spoonful, cause that is disgusting.
Jamie Oliver has a great recipe for brussel sprouts ....they're shredded with a food processor and cooked with bacon. YUMMMY! My sister in law makes them for Christmas and Thanksgiving and they are just the best!
Try this shaved brussel sprout recipes, great for people who don't really like them usually: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2009/10/sauteed-brussels-sprouts.html
Your post inspired me to take a look in my over-the-fridge freezer and, amongst other things I found 11 different kinds of end-of-breads!! 11!!! Bagels, croissants, raisins bread, pitas, tortillas, english muffins, etc... So I am making a commitment to myself to not buy anymore breads before those are all gone. (And... I have more in the chest freezer...)
Here is another way to enjoy Brussels sprouts:
http://orangette.blogspot.ca/2006/12/best-thing-since-brussels-sprouts.html
No "skinny-taste" here... 😉
Well, you lost mushrooms and I lost half of a large bag of carrots. I'm not sure what happened. I had noticed that last time we ate them, they weren't as good as usual, and then BAM. They were bad and mushy. First time we've lost a bag of carrots in AGES. My kiddo and I LOVE carrots so they rarely go bad here. If I notice they are sitting, I usually saute them and use them up. But this time.. such a waste. 🙁 I was so upset, I threw them in the trash and later thought, CRAP! I could've poured them in compost! I also lost 2 small heads of romaine lettuce. I flat out forgot and didn't eat it. *sigh* Been doing so well except for my limes that keep getting hard before I can even get any eaten!
Put balsamic vinegar on the sprouts, after you roast them to nearly burnt. Yum!
I roast Brussels sprouts using Cooks Illustrated's basic recipe. Basically, cut in half, toss in salt/pepper, olive oil and put on baking sheet cut side down. They recommend roasting at 500 degrees covered for 10 minutes and uncovered for 10-15 more. I find this gives some really nice caramelization which really helps to balance out the bitterness. I am usually rather sensitive to bitter flavors, but I love Brussels sprouts prepared this way! They have several variations of this basic recipe on their website, but I find the basic way is so delicious, I haven't branched out yet.
I love all the brussel sprout recipe links! I never had them until I was in my 30s. I wish I could rewind and eat them from the start. Here's a recipe that my 3 year requests and gobbles up: http://markbittman.com/less-meat-mondays-cannelini-with-shredded-bru/
We serve it over bulgur.
Like the taste, but not the smell? Grilling! Our go-to that I'm eating right now at lunch: two layers of foil, cut b.sprouts in half, drizzle olive oil over it and Lawry's seasoning salt. Wrap it up into a foil pack and grill for 20-25 minutes (varies depending on size of sprouts and how hot the grill is). Flip packet over every 5 minutes. Medium to medium heat is best. We have had preschoolers and grown, b.sprouts hating adults love this recipe and request it at dinner parties.
I'm not a fan of them roasted and hate them boiled/steamed, if that helps motivate you to try them again.
Oh, grilling sounds good! All the nasty smell can stay outdoors.
Thanks for inspiring my own freezer challenge. I am cleaning out all those frozen veggies and meats from winter. In with fresh spring veggies and fruits!
Brussels sprouts sliced sliced very thin do come in those chopped salad bags. You could get a healthier salad using them. Or sneak them into a stirfry.