TIME AND MONEY SAVING TIPS
SHRED YOUR CHEESE AHEAD OF TIME
It's often cheaper to buy large blocks of cheese and chunk cheese has better flavor and texture than the pre-shredded kind. If I'm going to be using cheese several times in the same week, I'll divide the chunk into recipe size portions and shred them in my food processor all on the same day. I wrap each portion of cheese in plastic wrap, dump it into a zipper bag and insert a note with the quantity and recipe I'll be using it in. If I end up with extra cheese, I'll wrap it the same way and freeze it for later. Now I've got freshly shredded cheese and only had to dirty my food processor once.
MAKE YOUR OWN PRE-WASHED BAGGED LETTUCE
I don't care for the pre-washed bagged salad mixtures. To me they taste half rotten and only last a day or so before having to be thrown out. I buy fresh leaf lettuce then, when I get home from the store, I wrap it unwashed in a linen towel and put it in a plastic bag. Every couple days, I take off enough leaves for about 2 days worth of salad, wash and spin them in my salad spinner until as dry as possible, then put them in a gallon size zipper bag between two sheets of paper towels. The lettuce stays fresh tasting this way for 2-3 days at least.
I don't care for the pre-washed bagged salad mixtures. To me they taste half rotten and only last a day or so before having to be thrown out. I buy fresh leaf lettuce then, when I get home from the store, I wrap it unwashed in a linen towel and put it in a plastic bag. Every couple days, I take off enough leaves for about 2 days worth of salad, wash and spin them in my salad spinner until as dry as possible, then put them in a gallon size zipper bag between two sheets of paper towels. The lettuce stays fresh tasting this way for 2-3 days at least.
BROWN YOUR MEAT AHEAD OF TIME
This tip is similar to the cheese grating tip. If I'm going to dirty a frying pan anyway, I will brown whatever hamburger or bulk sausage I will need for the week in batches. I then put it in either zipper bags (cool first) or plastic storage containers and label with the quantity and recipe it will be used in.
This tip is similar to the cheese grating tip. If I'm going to dirty a frying pan anyway, I will brown whatever hamburger or bulk sausage I will need for the week in batches. I then put it in either zipper bags (cool first) or plastic storage containers and label with the quantity and recipe it will be used in.
NO OILY SPRAY MESS
Do you find that when you spray non-stick cooking spray on your baking pans, it tends to get all over your counter or sink or anything in the surrounding area? If the dishes in your dishwasher are dirty, just open the door, hold the baking pan in front of the opening and spray towards the open dishwasher. Any stray mist will end up on the already dirty dishes.
Do you find that when you spray non-stick cooking spray on your baking pans, it tends to get all over your counter or sink or anything in the surrounding area? If the dishes in your dishwasher are dirty, just open the door, hold the baking pan in front of the opening and spray towards the open dishwasher. Any stray mist will end up on the already dirty dishes.
GRILL EXTRA CHICKEN OR BURGERS
If I'm going to be using my counter top contact grill (George Foreman, GE, etc.) to grill boneless chicken breasts or hamburger patties, I will often grill a few extra and freeze them for future meals. Why clean your grill more often than you have to? You could also do this with your outdoor grill.
If I'm going to be using my counter top contact grill (George Foreman, GE, etc.) to grill boneless chicken breasts or hamburger patties, I will often grill a few extra and freeze them for future meals. Why clean your grill more often than you have to? You could also do this with your outdoor grill.
FREEZER TIP
I like to keep small storage bags of the following things on hand in the freezer. This is a good way to use up veggies that will go bad before you have a chance to use them up, little bits of leftover meats, and other things. They come in very handy when making omelets and other dishes as well as when making a recipe that calls for a very small amount of some ingredient.
I like to keep small storage bags of the following things on hand in the freezer. This is a good way to use up veggies that will go bad before you have a chance to use them up, little bits of leftover meats, and other things. They come in very handy when making omelets and other dishes as well as when making a recipe that calls for a very small amount of some ingredient.
Whenever I need to use bell peppers in recipes, I chop off the tops and bottoms. I chop those, spread them on a baking sheet and freeze them. Once they're frozen, I store them in a zipper bag in the freezer to use on pizzas and in casseroles, etc.
- Chopped green and red peppers
- Chopped jalapeno and other hot peppers
- Diced, raw or crisp-cooked bacon
- Diced ham
- Crumbled, cooked breakfast sausage (nice to add to eggs in the morning)
- Crumbled, cooked Italian sausage (good on pizza)
- Crumbled, cooked ground beef
- Diced, cooked chicken
- Cooked, diced roast beef or pork
- Chopped onions
- Sliced mushrooms
- Chopped celery
- Chopped leeks
- Chopped green onions
- Cilantro (wash, dry well and chop)
- Parsley (wash, dry well and chop)
- Spoonfuls of tomato paste, individually frozen
- Lemon or lime juice (freeze in ice cube trays, then store in plastic bag)
- Lemon, orange or lime peel (peel in large pieces, then chop frozen, as needed)
- Nuts
- Sesame seeds
- Sunflower kernels
- Berries such as strawberries, blueberries and raspberries
STORING CUCUMBER FOR SALADS
When I buy a cucumber to use in salads, I'll chop off one end, then peel about an inch or so of the skin off that end. I cover the exposed end with a piece of plastic wrap and secure it with a small rubber band. This keeps the rest of the cucumber fresh until I need to peel a bit more.
When I buy a cucumber to use in salads, I'll chop off one end, then peel about an inch or so of the skin off that end. I cover the exposed end with a piece of plastic wrap and secure it with a small rubber band. This keeps the rest of the cucumber fresh until I need to peel a bit more.
ONION SIZES
This is not really a time saving tip, but more of a warning about using onions in your low carb cooking. Onions can add great flavor to your food, but they are quite high in carbs. Fortunately, a little bit of onion goes a long way. When I visited the USDA site to get the carb count for onions, I was surprised to find that what I considered a large onion was in fact what they call a small onion. It's not easy to find tiny onions where I shop. The most common is about the size of a grapefruit! That's extreme, but I always assumed that a large onion was somewhere around the size of a softball. That is until I took the time to weigh one. To remove any confusion as to what the various sizes of onions look like, I've come up with the following as a guideline:
This is not really a time saving tip, but more of a warning about using onions in your low carb cooking. Onions can add great flavor to your food, but they are quite high in carbs. Fortunately, a little bit of onion goes a long way. When I visited the USDA site to get the carb count for onions, I was surprised to find that what I considered a large onion was in fact what they call a small onion. It's not easy to find tiny onions where I shop. The most common is about the size of a grapefruit! That's extreme, but I always assumed that a large onion was somewhere around the size of a softball. That is until I took the time to weigh one. To remove any confusion as to what the various sizes of onions look like, I've come up with the following as a guideline:
- Small onion, 70 grams or 2.5 ounces (6 net carbs) - about the size of a golf ball or about 1 3/4 inches in diameter.
- Medium onion, 110 grams or 4 ounces (9.5 net carbs) - about the size of a tennis ball or 2 1/2 inches in diameter.
- Large onion, 150 grams or 5.25 ounces (13 net carbs) - approximately the size of an 8 ounce can of tomato sauce, minus the corners and would easily fit inside a 1/2 cup measuring cup whole and unpeeled.
- Extra large onion, 340 grams or 12 ounces (20 net carbs) - about the size of a softball or 3 1/2-4 inches in diameter.
- Jumbo onion, 510 grams or 1 pound 2 ounces (32 net carbs) - about the size of a grapefruit or 4 1/2 inches in diameter.
KEEPING CELERY FRESH
I'd read over and over that storing celery wrapped in aluminum foil would keep it fresh longer. I doubted that it would really make a difference and never got around to trying it until recently. I have to say that it really does keep it fresh a lot longer! Remove the celery from its wrapper and completely enclose in a large piece of wide heavy duty foil. It will make the difference between celery that spoils within a few days or lasts a couple weeks or possibly longer. If your celery is too long to fit crosswise on the foil, place it diagonally from corner to corner on a square of foil. Roll it up then fold the corners over each end.
I'd read over and over that storing celery wrapped in aluminum foil would keep it fresh longer. I doubted that it would really make a difference and never got around to trying it until recently. I have to say that it really does keep it fresh a lot longer! Remove the celery from its wrapper and completely enclose in a large piece of wide heavy duty foil. It will make the difference between celery that spoils within a few days or lasts a couple weeks or possibly longer. If your celery is too long to fit crosswise on the foil, place it diagonally from corner to corner on a square of foil. Roll it up then fold the corners over each end.
KEEP IT CHUNKY
Because we don't have the additional bulk of rice or pasta in many of our low carb dishes, I find that it helps to fool myself into thinking I'm eating a more substantial dish or sauce if I keep the ingredients a little bit chunky. For example, when I make egg salad, I don't finely chop the eggs. I cut them into bite-sized pieces. I do the same when I brown hamburger for chili, casseroles or tomato sauces. I don't break the pieces down too small, but not quite the size of meatballs. This gives you a bit more to chew on.
Because we don't have the additional bulk of rice or pasta in many of our low carb dishes, I find that it helps to fool myself into thinking I'm eating a more substantial dish or sauce if I keep the ingredients a little bit chunky. For example, when I make egg salad, I don't finely chop the eggs. I cut them into bite-sized pieces. I do the same when I brown hamburger for chili, casseroles or tomato sauces. I don't break the pieces down too small, but not quite the size of meatballs. This gives you a bit more to chew on.
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