Dec 15-20 Meal Plan

I picked up our quarter of beef today. Our freezer is quite full from this and the season's produce. It is easy to shop/ meal plan from the basement now!

• Portuguese baked eggs
• Bacon and bean soup (slow cooker)
• Chicken tortilla soup (slow cooker)
• Corned beef and cabbage (slow cooker)
• Sourdough rye bread (bread machine)

That homemade corned beef ended up being awesome - even hubby commented on how tender and tasty it was. We will definitely do that again!

Dec 8-13 Meal Plan

Things are certainly getting busier these weeks before Christmas. Most things last week were slow cooker recipes.

• Chicken Corn Chowder
• Beef and Veggie Soup
• Sausage and Lentil Soup
• Buttermilk Rye Bread (in the bread machine) 

All soups made with homemade chicken or beef stock, and seasonal (stored) veggies. 

Beef brisket in spiced brine.

I did also take some time last week to start some corned beef - a brisket in a brine solution for several days. The recipe uses beet juice to help with the pink color! It sat in the solution for a few days before boiling, and made some tasty corned beef.

Water kefir.

I also restarted some of my ferments this past week. I have maintained a sourdough culture for many years now, and also a yogurt and buttermilk culture for a year or so. 

I am trying to start up a batch of purchased dry water kefir grains, and so far, not much activity.

I also have an older Kombucha scoby from the fridge that I am trying to bring back to life.

My attempt at milk kefir ended with accidentally feeding the grains to the chickens, thinking it was bad yogurt. I will them again at some point...

Each of them needs their own space, so there have been funny looking jars spread all over the kitchen recently. Hubby doesn't even ask anymore. :)

Wordless Wednesday

Dec 1-6 Weekly Meal Plan

It takes a good plan to make most things happen. Having home-cooked food for most meals certainly takes a bit of planning, and a few hours to make happen. I usually take a half day each week to prep for the majority of the week, and this saves a lot of stress during the work week.
The links are close to the recipes I used, since I always improvise a bit based on what is here!

Cast Iron Butternut Squash Gratin

• Peach coffee cake
• Butternut Squash Gratin (much prettier than mine).
• Sausage, potato and kale breakfast bake
• Carrot, sweet potato and coconut milk soup
• Turkey and veggie soup

If I had more time (isn't that always the case?), I would love to photograph and write down what I make each week, but I will just try my best for now.

Happy December

December means it is time to celebrate. Christmas is coming. Before Christmas is the winter solstice, and I am all for the lengthening daylight. Until then, break out the decorations and lights!

We brought our tree home the day after Thanksgiving - the earlier, the better, right? It is from a farm a few miles away and will hopefully stay fresh for quite some time. We spent a bit of time choosing our perfect tree, and cut our own. I don't think we are totally sold on the whole process, but it was nice to experience something that is a tradition in many other families. The tree sure smells nice, and I feel good about the fact that it wasn't trucked in from the other side of the country.

Earlier this week, the high temperatures were in the single digits, but I still spent a while outside. I trimmed some of the too-low hanging branches of our evergreens in order to make wreathes for our doors.

The wreathes are not super fancy, but they were super free. I saved wreath forms and decorations from previous years, and spent an hour or so putting everything together. A few dried hydrangeas added to natural-type style. It's nice to have one less thing to buy at this time of year

The Seed Savers Exchange catalog arrived on December 1st - time to make the seed wish list for next year. Only five or so months until the spring garden!

Wordless Wednesday