Don't Throw That Away!!

Hello everyone!

I know it's been awhile since I last posted.  Life can get in the way like that! But I am back and excited to talk to you about Food Waste!

If you ask people what "Food Waste" is, you may get different answers, but most people of the 21st century believe that fats from meats, cooking liquid from veggies and pasta, bones, egg shells, and veggie scraps are food waste, but they are actually valuable food sources!! They are full of nutrients, flavor, and savings that are thrown away when not used! As a matter of fact, some even recycle themselves!  The mothers of WWII knew this, and they took advantage of every bit of food they could get their hands on.

As part of my obsession with WWII, we are planning a trip to London, to visit some historic sites.  To do that, we need to save our pennies.  That being said, our local market recently had chicken thighs on sale, buy one package, get one free. Thighs are a very fatty, which is awesome. (Yes, fatty meats ARE awesome!) I know modern health standards recommend limiting your fat intake, but the most recent research says the processed hydrogenated fats are deadly, but natural fats are actually good for us.  Now, I am not saying deep fry everything in lard,  but a TBSP of chicken fat has the same fat grams as butter, oil, or margarine, and twice the flavor!   The same goes with bacon fat. But I would like to note, I recommend only using fat rendered from uncured bacon only, as the nitrates and nitrites would end up in your food, and are known to cause health problems as well. Most grocery stores carry uncured bacon.  Its a little pricier, but so much healthier!  Use the fats for sauteing onions and peppers for a casserole, soup, or stew.  Mix raw root veggies with a few TBSP of melted fat and roast them instead of boiling.  You will never go back to plain old veggies again!

When roasting the chicken thighs for dinner, I was left with quite a bit of liquid.  The liquid separated into juices and fat.

Meat Juices	Meat Fat

I stored these away in my fridge for future use.  It is best to use it within a week, but if put in a freezer safe container (I like ice cube trays put in a Ziploc bag), you can save them indefinitely.

The meat juices are great for using in soups, gravies, sauces, etc.  Even better when combined with leftover water from cooking vegetables or pastas.

I whirred in the blender about a cup leftover veggies and their liquid, left over waffle fries (yes, I said waffle fries), leftover scrambled eggs (what??),  roasted chicken juices, some milk and a bullion cube, together to make an amazing cream soup full of protein and minerals.  My family liked it so much, they asked for seconds!

I had mentioned a few items that most people rightfully think of as trash; vegetable scraps, egg shells, and bones.  But no, these items make the most flavorful stocks! I usually gather scraps in a Ziploc bag over a course of a couple week, bones, veggie discards, egg shells, etc, and keep them in the freezer, adding as I go along.  Once the bag is full, I throw them all in a stainless steel pot with 6-8 cups of water and a couple TBSP of vinegar.  The vinegar breaks down the calcium in the egg shells and bones and puts it in your broth. Bring to a boil, then let simmer for 4 or 5 hours.  Let cool.  Put a strainer in a large bowl, and s l o w l y pour the broth in to the bowl. When the bowl is full to the top, set the strainer aside.  Now you can ladle your broth into freezer containers or into jars for canning (pressure canning recommended, see your canner for instructions). Note: I sometimes have to do this process two or three times to get all the broth out of the pot.  Once the broth is done, I put the vegetables and strainer, back in the bowl.  I will take a small plate with a small bowl of water on top as a weight and press as much broth out of the veggies as I can, usually about 2 cups worth.  All told, this broth process makes about 5-7 cups of broth.  How much is a quart of stock at the store, about $3-$5 dollars?  Over time, that adds up!   I also sometimes pick through to get the scraps of meat the might have still been on the bones.  This can yield up to a cup of meat, that can be used in a soup, sandwich spread, or pot pie.

Finally, I mentioned some of this food waste recycles itself.  Foods like onions, potatoes, celery, and lettuces, can be regrown. Here is a great article on how to do it. http://www.icreativeideas.com/13-vegetables-that-you-can-regrow-again-and-again/ . And here is a picture of my celery doing just that,
soon to go into my garden or a pot in my kitchen.

Our 21st Century disposable mindset has lead us to wasteful habits, and its time to break them! Re-purposing food waste is good for your health, good for the environment, but most of all good for the wallet! Rethink your waste!

Questions/Comments? Let us know.

Right to Dry Movement: Pro or Con?

This idealistic picture of the early 20th-century housewife describes how I feel when line drying my laundry. I love to dry my clothes outside. Apart from the economy of it, I have found going outside and hanging the clothes on the line very tranquil, almost meditative. The sunshine beaming down, the sound of nature, the fresh air, all would make for a calming break in my day.  Then we moved to Ohio. The Home Owners Association (HOA) for the subdivision we moved to does not allow clotheslines. I have had to revert to drying racks. I still get to hang my clothes outside, but very few of them at a time, in a confined area on our deck, away from the prying eyes of the neighborhood association members.  I suppose I understand their thinking. Clotheslines are a thing of the past, something used by people who cannot afford a laundry suite in the homes. They feel it "cheapens" our home values seeing other peoples linens flapping in the wind. But in a world where fuel costs are rising, pollution and greenhouse gasses are destroying our environment, and "all-natural" is the phrase of the day, should we be forced to use conventional appliances? Moreover, should a small group of individuals have the right to regulate how we choose to do something as basic as our laundry? These questions have started a movement.

The Right to Dry Movement began in Florida in the 1970s.  Many years later, Colorado, Utah, Maine and Hawaii, as well as Ontario Canada, followed suit, passing legislation allowing homeowners the right to line-dry their laundry, superseding Home Owner Association (HOAs) rules to the contrary.  There are now 19 states that have some sort of Right to Dry law on their books, and it continues to grow. While 6 states' laws explicitly affirm homeowners have a right to line dry their clothes, several other states say line drying falls under a "Solar Power" act, stating that line drying clothes is making  use of solar energy, therefore, protected from HOA laws.

There are several organizations focused on Right to Dry legislation, seeing this more as a homeowners' rights issue than anything else.  The best-known of these groups is Project Laundry List (http://laundrylist.org/) , founded by Alexander Lee in 1995. They state,

The Right to Dry is about reforming community associations and municipalities so that we can compost, garden, xeriscape, hang clotheslines, have screen windows, and participate in all sorts of frugal, green, common sense activities currently banned or severely restricted by many associations. (http://www.laundrylist.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/TheRightToDryGuide.pdf)

 For many people, the right to dry clothes on a clothesline is as fundamental as freedom itself, seeing the HOA laws an affront to  homeowner's rights.

Let me know what you think.  Should HOAs have the right to regulate line drying?

Drips and Drabs

This has been a crazy week for us. Our youngest had end-of-the-school-year performances at school, our air conditioning took a nose dive on three of the warmest record-breaking days of the year, and a houseful of family and friends came to town to celebrate the graduation of our oldest daughter from college! I have to say, now that it's over and done, I have neither the energy nor the inclination to make elaborate meals! The good thing that happens after guests have come and gone is we are left with Drips and Drabs. It's an expression indicating a little of this, a little of that, and leftover what-not. Being a proud, Homefront Kitchen woman, I could not possibly let them go to waste!

During WWII, homemakers were encouraged to use every scrap of food, as shortages were a common occurrence. Bones were turned into broth, fats were rendered from meats, drippings were stored for future use, and stale grains and baked goods were used as meat extenders, fillings, or dessert bases. Even the liquid found is canned goods, and water used to boil veggies, had a place in the kitchen, being used to replace water in gravies, as well as in soups and stews. Nothing was to go to waste!

In the fridge, I found two uncooked burger patties (about 3/4 of a pound total) left over from the BBQ, about 1/3 pound uncooked breakfast sausage from this morning, and some stale homemade bread, roughly 1/4 of a loaf.  I also found one ear of corn left over from dinner on Monday. Tonight's dinner menu will be Pinwheel Meatloaf, Corn Chowder, Roasted Green Beans, and Salad Greens. Using veggies is a great way to extend those Drips and Drabs, and make meals more nutritious. 

Meatloaf was a popular dish during WWII.  It was a great entree for times when meat was scarce, requiring less and making use of stale bread and/or cereal. Meat would be combined with egg, an extender (like cereal or bread crumbs), and spices. I am extending the meat further by filling it with stuffing. 

Pinwheel Meatloaf

Bake 60-70 min at 375° F

• About a pound of ground meat (Can be turkey, chicken, beef, sausage, pork, or any combination)
• About 3 cups fresh bread crumbs
• 1 fresh minced onion or 3 T dried minced onion or 3t onion powder
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup of milk or broth
• 1/2 cup oatmeal or crushed corn or bran flakes
• 1 T horseradish
• 1/4 cup Worcestershire 
• 1 1/2t salt
• 1/2 t pepper
• 1t dried mustard
• 1-2t sage
• 1 cup catsup

In a medium sized bowl place bread crumbs. Add 1/2t salt, sage, pepper, and 1/2 the onion. Add 1 egg and milk. Combine until milk is almost completely absorbed. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine meat, remaining onion, 1 egg, oatmeal, horseradish, Worcestershire, dried mustard, and 1t salt. 

Lay down a piece of parchment, oiled waxed paper, or greased aluminum foil. 

Pat the meat on the foil in the shape of a rectangle, about 1/4 inch thick. Put bread stuffing on the meat, leaving about 1/2 inch of meat all the way around. Roll into a loaf and place in a greased loaf pan. Bake 50 min at 375°.  Top with catsup and return to oven for 10 min.

Remove from oven and let stand 10-15 min. before slicing. 

Corn Chowder

I need to comment before I give the ingredients. As I had said previously, I had a leftover ear of corn. I removed the corn from the cob and put it aside.  Then I simmered the cob (cut into two pieces) in 2 cups of water for about an hour to get a corn liquor.  This was a common practice during leaner times so the full corn flavor would be there, even if there is only a little corn.  I also used bacon drippings as my fat.  It gives it a nice smokey flavor. However, using shortening or margarine is just as delicious.

                    

• 1 ear of corn, kernels cut from the cob
• Corn from cob (about 1/2-3/4 cup)
• 1 rib of celery, diced
• 1/4 cup bell pepper, diced
• 2 cups of water
• 1 cup of milk
• 1 cup of water (for a more rich soup, use all milk)
• 1 cup corn liquor
• 1 bullion (flavor of choice) cube
• 2T fat 
• 2T flour

In a saucepan over medium heat, add fat. Once melted, add flour and stir until well combined. 

Whisk in liquids, 1 cup at a time. Add bullion cube. Stir until dissolved. 

Add vegetables. Simmer 20 minutes, until celery is translucent and soft.

Serve. Would be delicious with bacon bits on top!

Remember, it doesn't take a lot of food to make a family-pleasing meal. Never let those Drips and Drabs go to waste! 

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Contact Homefront Kitchen at homefrontkitchen@gmail.com

Basic Baked Beans

During WWII, beans were an essential food.  With shortages and rationing of meats and grains, beans filled a void, being both a high-quality protein and a high fiber carbohydrate. Beans were also very versatile and could be combined with whole grains to make a complete protein.  Although the bean that was most popular during the war was the soybean, because it is the only bean that is a complete protein, there were many other beans that were very plentiful and used to make delicious meals.

After the war, the bean's glory fell to the waste side, being replaced by the meats and grains so dearly missed during those five difficult years.  Beans tend to come back into our periphery during difficult economic times, due to its good nutrition-to-dollar ratio. But, with America's obsession with health and fitness, beans are an excellent food to add to the modern diet.  It works well with many diet plans, such as Paleo, Vegetarian/Vegan, Meditarainian, as well as low-fat and diabetic.

In our household, we have a diabetic, a vegetarian and a person requiring a low-fat diet.  In an attempt to make the meals healthier, but still filling, I decided to start adding more beans to our diet.  Although canned beans are great, recent studies find BPA in canned goods at unhealthy levels. Dried beans are a great option but require a little more work and considerably more time. If you use a crock pot, pressure cooker or an oven, much of the work is saved.

In this post, I am going to focus on a great recipe for Basic Baked Beans that are made in a crockpot or dutch oven. It can also be made in the oven, but it is not as energy-efficient, unless you also have other things to cook, such as slow roasting a beef or poultry. I am also offering options for the bacon and non-bacon lover combined.  We use turkey bacon and vegan "bacon" around here to accommodate the necessary nutritional/taste needs, but in this picture below, I used liquid smoke.  I have to say it was enjoyed by all and tasted just like a popular brand of canned baked beans (and no dog had to give me the recipe)!

BASIC BAKED BEANS

• 1 lb. bag of Navy, Great Northern or Pea Beans, cleaned and sorted
• 1 medium Onion, chopped (1 C)
• 2/3 C Molasses
• 1/2 C Maple Sypup or Brown Sugar
• 1T Salt
• 1/3 t Pepper
• 1t Dry Mustard or 2 t Wet (Yellow) Mustard
  (Yellow mustard makes it just a little more tart)
• 1/3 C Catsup 
• 1/2 lb Bacon, chopped and browned or 2 T Liquid Smoke

Soak the beans overnight. If using a crockpot, put in 8 cups of water, and leave it on WARM all night. If using a dutch oven, just put the beans in the pot with 8 cups of water, using no heat.

In the morning, if using the crock pot, turn the crock pot on HIGH and let go for 3-4 hours, until the beans are tender but not mushy. If using a dutch oven, bring the beans to a boil in the soaking water. Reduce heat and simmer for 2-3 hours until the beans are tender but not mushy. 

Once cooked, drain beans but save the liquid.  I drain into a colander that is inside a large bowl. Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine remaining. Put beans back into the pot. Add remaining mixture. add just enough of the reserved liquid to just cover the beans.  In the crockpot, cook on LOW for 6-8 hours or HIGH for 4-6 hours. In Dutch Oven, cover and simmer for 6-8 hours, stirring often. You could also put the covered dutch oven in the oven at 300° for 6-8 hours.  You will know it is done when the liquid is thickened to the consistency of syrup.  Serve.

Makes the equivalent of three large cans of baked beans. After dinner, I froze the remaining in separate containers for future meals.

Leftover Love

Leftover Love

Although, like every good WWII Ration-conscious housewife, I keep a weekly menu, sometimes there are leftovers that need to be used and it is best to veer off the menu to use up what's in the fridge. 

During WWII, not using every scrap of food was considered unpatriotic. And sometimes, between shortages and ration point balancing, some foods were just plain unavailable. Buying in bulk was frowned upon, as everyone was expected to just use what they need. Consequently, leftovers became a very precious commodity in households. And further, a homemaker needed to know how to make leftovers into something new and delicious to keep her family happy and well fed.

I had a 2" x 10" piece of leftover cooked round steak, a cup and a half of corn meal mush, and some greens from the garden. From this bounty, I made Scotch Patties (I made up the name) with a horseradish sauce, soft dinner rolls, a blueberry, cherry and pecan salad with a balsamic vinaigrette (also leftover), and baked beans (a reheated leftover). According to my hubby, it was a wonderful feast! 

Scotch Patties

I called these Scotch Patties because it reminds me of Haggis when it is uncooked. When our daughter saw it, she thought it was the dog's food.... either way, its not pretty before it is fried, but wonderful after! In true WWII form, this recipe saves by using leftover meat, and cooking in a small amount of oil. 

2 Cups finely ground cooked meat (I used beef in this recipe)

1 Onion, minced (about 1/2 cup)

1/3 Cup Oatmeal, ground fine

1/4 Cup All Purpose Flour

2 Eggs

1-2 t Seasoned Salt, to taste

• Combine all the ingredients and let sit in the fridge for 30 min or more.
• Heat 1/2" oil in a skillet about to 325° ("Medium" on the stove)
• Shape into patties, and carefully place into the hot oil.
• Fry until brown (about 5 min.), turnover.  Continue to fry until brown.  Drain on paper.
• Repeat until all the patties are cooked.

Horseradish Sauce

2 T Horseradish

2 T Sour Cream

2 T Mayonnaise

• Combine well, chill.

Piece of Leftover Meat

Scotch Patties Frying

Yummy Dinner Rolls

I had about 1 1/2 Cup of Cornmeal Mush from breakfast the day before leftover in the fridge.  Of course it turned into a bit of a brick, as mush tends to do, but fortunately it crumbles pretty easily.  I might mention, if you have leftover oatmeal or Cream of Wheat, this will also work. And the amount of the leftover grain does not matter.  If you have less than 1 1/2 Cups, just add more flour until the dough is the proper consistency. Adding 1/2 Cup Currants, 1 T Cinnamon, and a dash of vanilla also would be a tasty treat!

1/4 Cup Warm Water (95°  - 115° )
1 t Sugar or Honey
1T (or 1 pkg) Dry Granular Yeast, or 1 Cake Quick Acting Yeast

• Dissolve the yeast in the water. 
• Let stand 5 minutes

1 t Salt

1/4 Cup Shortening or Rendered Fat or Oil

2 T Sugar

1 1/2 Cup Cooked, Cooled Corn Meal Mush

2-2 1/2 Cups Flour

• In a bowl, combine salt, shortening, sugar and crumbled mush. Blend until well combined.
• Add yeast mixture.
• Starting with 1 Cup, begin stirring in the flour.  Continue adding until the dough barely sticks to the side of the bowl, stirring with each addition.
• Turn onto a floured board and knead until the dough springs back when pressed.
• roll to 1/2 thickness, and cut with a biscuit cutter.  Re-knead when no more rolls can be cut out.  Repeat until dough it all used.
• Place rolls on greased baking sheet.  Let rise 1 hour or until doubled.
• Bake in preheated 400°  oven for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Leftover Mush

Yummy Soft Golden Rolls

Reducing Food Waste

I noticed lately, there has been a lot of food waste in our household. Actually, waste in general, but as far as food goes, it has been about 10-20% of our food in unused leftovers, frozen food that is collecting freezer burn, and stale grain items.  I decided the other day, before I buy food, I need to see what we already have and use that first, so I made out a menu plan using those items.  This is a habit that was highly encouraged during both WWI and WWII, as rationing was required in both wars due to shortages.

I inventoried what we had in the chest freezer, the basement pantry and our kitchen storage.  I found the following:

2# Beef Roast. 8 Chicken Drumsticks, 2-1#pkgs of Ground Beef, 5 Chicken Wings, a couple boneless/skinless Chicken breasts, a 1# Pkg of Hot Dogs, Frozen Stew Veggies (carrots, celery, potatoes, and pearl onions), 2 # Frozen Collards, 1 pkg Frozen Broccoli, 3-4 pkg Green Beans (why I keep buying them, I don't know), and 1 pkg each frozen Blueberries, Blackberries, Mixed Berries, and Peaches.  I also found canned mixed fruit, peaches, apricots, pears, baked beans, tomato sauce and diced tomatoes, several pkgs of pasta, a cake mix, pie fillings, canned and dried beans, rice, and various grains.  In the fridge there were a couple fresh pears, celery, carrots, leftover squash, leftover baked beans, cheese and eggs. I also found dried fruits, nuts, fresh potatoes, onions, and sweet potatoes.  I also have the staples of  flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt, spices, margarine, shortening, tea, coffee, condiments, etc. Taking ALL these items into consideration, I came up with the following menu. 

June Week 1 Menu
(Click to view full size) 

So far, so good.  Sometimes, there are little gremlins in the kitchen that like to eat foods I anticipate for other meals, like the "cheese napper", the "egg scrambler" and the "fresh fruit muncher". Wartime homemakers had a similar issue in that they would make out a menu, and an item they needed was not available due to shortages, so they would have to make on-the-fly menu changes, and still try to provide their families nourishing and satisfying meals.  I try to be adaptable as well. Most baked goods can still be made, should I run out of eggs, and dried fruits can make good additions to meals too.  I primarily use cheese as a flavoring, and less as a source of protein, making sure there is plenty of protein in other elements in the meal, from whole grains and legumes.  I try to use the fresh fruits and veggies first, and I anticipate leftovers in the meal plan. 

I'll have to let you know how this works out at the end of the week.  I am hoping in the future, by doing my shopping and cooking more carefully, and making a conscious effort to NOT waste, I not only will eliminate some of our waste, but also, shrink our grocery bill a bit.

Cheap easy antacid

I have heartburn, chronic, annoying heartburn.  Found a recipe in one of my LIFE magazines that actually works! This is not to be used often not more than once or twice a day as it is a little high in sodium, but boy, does it work!  It is also the basis of Alka Seltzer, fizz and all.

• 6 oz water (the colder, the better for taste)
• 2T Lemon or Lime juice
• 1/4t Baking Soda

Combine and stir until soda is dissolved.  Drink all at once.