September 16, 2019 • 24 mins
Whether or not you are currently a homesteader, I’m willing to bet that we both share this common problem. Time is our most valuable commodity, and usually the first and easiest thing to sacrifice is a good home cooked meal. Today I’m here to not only explain why you don’t have to sacrifice cooking from scratch but also provide the tools you need to make your home cooked meals a reality.
Some highlights from the episode:
- Why humans are born to create
- Why menu planning will save you time and money
- Why big batches are your friend
- The best tools for prepping meals
If you're falling in love with the idea of an old-fashioned kitchen full of incredible homemade food, check out my free Heritage Kitchen handbook at http://www.heritagekitchenhandbook.com
OTHER HELPFUL RESOURCES FOR YOUR HOMESTEAD:
- Sign up for weekly musings from my homestead: http://theprairiehomestead.com/letter
- Get my free homesteading tutorials & recipes here: www.theprairiehomestead.com
- Jill on Instagram: @jill.winger
- Jill on Facebook: http://facebook.com/theprairiehomestead
- Apply to be a guest on the Old-Fashioned on Purpose podcast: https://www.theprairiehomestead.com/podcast-guest-application
Did you enjoy listening to this episode? Please drop a comment below or leave a review to let us know. This can help other folks learn about this podcast and we also really appreciate the feedback!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to the old fashioned on purpose podcast.
In today's episode, we're goingto dive into how to cook from
scratch when your time islimited because you know I may
have written a cookbook and Imight have a blog with some
recipes on it, but that doesn'tmean I spend all day in the
(00:21):
kitchen.
Keep listening because I'm goingto share my very best secrets
for keeping from scratch food onyour table, even though I know
you're just as busy as I am.
I'm your host Jill winger andfor the last 10 years I've been
helping people who feel a littleuninspired by modern life, learn
(00:44):
how to leave the rat race andcreate the life they really want
by growing their own food andmastering old fashioned skills.
As we start this episode, I justwant to say that cooking from
scratch is a very consciouschoice for me because I am well
(01:07):
aware that there are bazillionsof pre-made ingredient options
out there.
Everything from frozen TVdinners to boxes of hamburger
helper to even those premademeal plan boxes you can get
through the mail.
I know there are a lot of fasterways to get food on the table
(01:29):
other than chopping and sautéingand stirring and kneading it
yourself.
And I also am well aware thatI'd have a lot more free time
during the day if I opted intomore convenient options.
However, all that being said, Istill choose to go the homemade
(01:52):
route in most things, let's sayeighty to ninety percent of what
we eat now.
Partially that's because it'susually way healthier to cook
from scratch and it also allowsus to use the food that we grow
ourselves, which is really a bigreason because I wouldn't be
spending all this time growingvegetables and you know, meats
(02:15):
and eggs if I wasn't going tocook with it.
But really the most importantreason I think for me and why I
continue to cook from scratch,even though my life is just
downright insane sometimes isbecause it's about the quality
of life for me.
(02:36):
Now.
That's kind of funny when youthink about it, because if
you've ever looked at the labelsof processed food at the grocery
store, the industrialized worldof food, like one of their
biggest claims is that theirpre-packaged, convenience
options will increase yourquality of life, right?
(02:57):
And if we look back decades whenthe industrialized food
revelation really startedhappening, it's biggest selling
point is that it would liberatethe housewife, right?
It would make their liveseasier.
They wouldn't be in the kitchenall day.
They wouldn't have to make thecakes from scratch because now
we have Betty Crocker box cakes,cake mixes.
(03:20):
So it's kind of funny.
But I stand here and I'mclaiming the opposite.
I wholeheartedly believe thathumans are wired to make things.
We're supposed to be makers,y'all and creators and
producers, we are designed tobuild, to improve, to expand and
(03:46):
create with our hands.
That can be in the kitchen or itcan be elsewhere.
But we have that need inside ofus.
Now the tension comes in herebecause we live in a time in our
modern societies ofunprecedented ease, right?
(04:06):
It's easier than ever to getthings done these days.
Everything happens at the pressof a button.
We have apps and automations andwhereas our ancestors would have
spent most of their days findingfood and just staying alive,
it's much easier for us.
(04:28):
Now I want to just say rightnow, right up front that I am
not against technology.
I have an iPhone and I use alaptop and I have an online
business, so I need technology.
But I think when we get sowrapped up in that we really get
stripped of the joy that comeswith producing and creating with
(04:52):
our own wo hands.
And that is why you will see meon my little soapbox continually
begging folks to fall in lovewith their kitchens, whether
that's for the very first timeor maybe rekindling an old
forgotten romance that got alittle dusty as life happens.
(05:16):
All of that being said,hopefully you're feeling a
stirring inside of you to getback in the kitchen and try some
new things and look at it not asdrudgery, but as an intentional
act that creates a higherquality of life for you and your
family.
But this is a big but (05:34):
that's fun and great and romantic and
all those things, but how do weembrace from scratch cooking
while still having one foot inour very modern, very busy world
because that's really thequestion, isn't it?
And we can think about grandmamaking her pie crusts and
canning her tomatoes or thestories of Ma ingles in the log
(05:57):
cabin baking the bread, but theydidn't have as much to do more
than likely as we do.
Or maybe they had lots to do,but it was different.
Right?
They were washing their clothesby hand and looking in foraging
for food, but they didn't haveto drive their kids to soccer
and go to PTA meetings and runbusinesses work outside the
(06:20):
home.
That's different.
Right?
Our modern lives set us updifferently.
I am still a firm believer thatyou can have both.
And so here are some of my besttips for cooking from scratch
when your time is very limitedbecause even though I work from
home and we homeschool and youknow I'm at home a lot, I don't
(06:45):
spend all day in the kitchen.
I just can't.
I have a lot of moving pieces inmy life.
I'm out and about outside, andin my office.
I just have a lot of differentthings going on.
So six to eight hours a day inthe kitchen is not an option for
me.
And I'm guessing it's not anoption for you either.
So here are my secrets.
(07:06):
Okay?
Number one, this is not earthshattering, but I really want
you to let it sink in because itdoes matter.
So plan ahead.
Your menu planning does not haveto be extravagant or even that
detailed.
But Holy Moly, you guys, myweeks are so much smoother.
(07:29):
If I take five minutes or tenminutes at the beginning of the
week to sketch out what we'll behaving for supper the next few
days.
Okay.
It makes a massive difference.
Being on the office in thekitchen always, always, always
beats being on the defensivebecause the defensive usually
(07:51):
equates to putting weird orunhealthy stuff out on the table
as a last minute resort to feedthe hungry hordes that are your
family.
So if you plan ahead, you canmake sure things are defrosted,
you can make sure you havethings set out.
If there's different littlecomponents that need to be made
ahead, you can have that readyto go.
(08:13):
Everything flows cause I don'tknow about you, but there's
nothing worse than getting toabout two o'clock in the
afternoon and realizing you havenothing planned for supper and
everything is frozen solid.
So planning ahead, I am actuallynot one of those super fancy
menu planner gals.
(08:33):
I know there's tons of systemsand planners and worksheets out
there that you can get.
If that's your jam, go for it.
Actually keep it much moresimple.
I have a paper planner that's mybrain.
Everything is in my paperplanner and I just have a line
at the end of each day where Iwrite in what we're having for.
(08:55):
And I usually don't plan outbreakfast and lunches.
Supper is my main focus.
I'm going to talk about this ina minute, but that kind of keeps
me on track and I generallydon't necessarily even plan out
vegetables.
I plan out just the main courseof that meal and then I just
(09:16):
toss in whatever vegetables Ihave in the freezer or the
garden or the refrigerator.
So it's very simple, but itmakes all the difference.
Okay.
Tip number two is to make doubleor triple or quadruple whenever
possible.
Now there's hree reasons I woulddo this.
(09:37):
So number one, I think this ismy most common reason for making
extra is so we have leftoversthe next day.
I don't like making an entirelunch spread.
I'd rather do simple lunches orleftovers because we're usually,
you know, either in the middleof school we homeschool, you
know, you the school year orwe're outside.
(10:00):
So being in the kitchen for twohours before lunch, prepping
food doesn't really work for me.
So I make double to haveleftovers for lunch.
I make double to eat later inthe week or I make double to
freeze.
To be perfectly honest, I don'tknow why, but I haven't really
got into the whole freezer mealthing yet.
(10:22):
I know there's folks who justswear by it and I have plenty of
recipes for fantastic freezermeals.
It just isn't something I'veever gotten the routine of.
So if that's your jam, go forit.
Like that's a fabulous plan.
You can make extra, you know, Ifigure if I have the kitchen
dirty and the bowls and thespoons and the mixer or whatever
(10:43):
already out and covered in food,I might as well get more bang
for my buck while it's outthere.
And I only have to do dishesonce.
So some of my favorite things tomake ahead or to make in big
batches are homemade pesto.
And so I like to do this,especially in late summer when I
(11:04):
have a lot of greens in thegarden.
If you have my cookbook, I havea recipe for homestead pesto in
there, which basically replacesBasil with random greens,
whether it's Kale, spinach, evenspicier things like mustard
greens, beet tops, whatever.
You can use those to make pestoand it freezes beautifully.
(11:27):
So if I am overwhelmed withgreens, I make a giant batch of
Pesto in my food processor andthen I freeze it and we use it
all winter when there's nothingfresh and put it on a pastas and
all sorts of yummy skilletmeals.
I also always, always make a tonof homemade stock.
(11:49):
So beef stock, chicken stock, Idon't really do a lot of stock.
I have a little bit in the past.
Those are always done in verylarge batches, at least a
gallon.
And my routine is, you know,roasting a chicken for supper,
eating it for supper, pullingthe leftover meat off the bones
for a soup or a skillet meallater in the week.
(12:11):
And then I throw that thechicken bones in the skin, in
any of the leftover bits into myinstant pot or my slow cooker.
And I let that baby go allnight.
In the case of a slow cooker,instant pot doesn't take that
long and that makes about agallon of broth and I usually
just keep that in a jar and therefrigerator use it up within
seven to ten days and then juststart the cycle all over again.
(12:34):
You can also freeze broth, youcan can broth but make lots
because it's a beautifulfoundation for all sorts of
recipes.
I also do homemade yogurt inlarge batches, especially what
our milk cow is producing.
Well, I'll take a gallon or twoof milk and put it into quart
jars and make a gallon or two ofyogurt and that lasts us for
(12:57):
quite a while because yogurtwill stay good in the fridge for
a very long time.
Now all those recipes are in theprairie homestead cookbook if
you want to grab them with moreof my little notes and
techniques, but those are someof my favorite bulk ingredients
to make.
I also like to have a repertoireof easy to make standby meals
(13:18):
and these have saved the daymore than one time because if I
happen to not have planned verywell or plans change and the
meat's not defrosting as fast asI thought or I'm not going to be
around to do some of the prep Ihad originally planned, I have a
list of easy meals that I cankind of make without having to
(13:41):
think about it.
And those fill in the gaps inthe case of an emergency because
town and pizza and delivery,while delivery is not an option
out here, pizza is a long waysaway.
So that really actually did alot in teaching me how to plan
and cook because there is nobackup where I live and maybe
you have backup and there'snothing wrong with getting a
(14:03):
pizza when you need it, but Idon't have that option so I've
got to build my own backup.
But some of my favoriterepertoire meals are tacos.
You can't go wrong with Tacos.
I always have tons of groundbeef in the freezer.
It's easy to defrost.
If I need to do it in a hurry, Ijust do it in a bowl of hot
water.
(14:24):
I also like to do shredded porkor beef sandwiches.
That's good for a last minutecompany meal.
If you have like a day, you knowthey're coming, but you're going
to be busy on the day that theyarrive.
Pop a pork shoulder or a beefroast in the Crockpot, shred it,
season it, slap it on somesandwich buns.
Super easy.
Super good.
(14:45):
Pan Fried pork chops are alwaysa hit and they don't take a lot
of brainpower.
Roasted chicken, one of myfavorites.
Stick some whole potatoes andcarrots in the bottom.
Some herbs call it good.
Stick it in the oven.
And my probably my easiestcheater meal is we call them
Idaho tacos cause instead of aTortilla we use a baked potato,
(15:09):
you know, get it baked potatoes,Idaho, and we bake the potato
and then we will put whateverleftover meat is in the fridge,
whether it's bacon, although Imean seriously, who has leftover
bacon?
Never.
I never have leftover bacon.
But if you do, you could usebacon or ground beef like
seasons with Taco seasoning orleftover chop chicken.
(15:32):
We put the meat on the bakedpotatoes, add some cheese, sour
cream, butter, chives, whateveryou want.
And those are Idaho Tacos.
Super easy.
So create your own list of yourfavorite standby meals that you
can throw in at a minutes noticeand they will save the day at
some point, I promise.
(15:54):
Okay, my next tip is to investin good appliances.
Now some of you may find thisshocking because sometimes
people get a little bit of thewrong idea because I love old
fashioned things and heritagekitchen skills.
But that doesn't mean I'mchurning my butter in a butter
(16:16):
churn with a stick, right?
In order to eat well and stilllive in a modern life with
activities and obligations.
I depend on appliances.
Now I have some rules when itcomes to appliances, they have
to be multipurpose and notgimmicky.
(16:38):
And what I mean by that is, youknow, if you ever watch
infomercials or you know, yousee the latest greatest thing on
the shelves at Walmart atChristmas time, there's a lot of
gimmicky appliances out there.
I'm not going to actually namethem cause I feel like this
might offend some people causesome people have their favorite
appliances.
But there's just some that I ampersonally not interested in
(16:59):
because they serve, you know,just one purpose.
So I don't like a lot ofappliances.
The ones I love and the ones Iuse a ton or my slow cooker
obviously.
But that's not a surprise.
My food processor, I love myfood processor, my high powered
(17:19):
blender, I have a blend tech andmy instant pot.
I depend on those our things anda few others.
But those were the main ones toallow me to live this from
scratch homestead life while I'mstill having one foot or a foot
and a half in a fast pacedmodern life as well.
(17:42):
So here are the few of the waysI use these appliances to make
my life easier.
The slow cooking whole chickensis a breeze.
Roasts are fantastic.
Soups and Stews, I will oftenuse it to make homemade beef
broth or chicken stock.
You know, there's bazillions ofslow cooker recipes out there.
(18:05):
Collect your favorites and usethem.
That slow cooker is my bestfriend.
I also use my instant pot quitea bit.
Now, one little note is Iactually don't love the instant
pot for creating whole meals andthere's a few exceptions, but
for the most part, I've found itto be just not my favorite.
(18:28):
It's like if I'm trying to makea soup, I just don't like the
textures as much.
I don't like being able to notadjust the salts in the herbs
while the soup is cooking.
It's just not my favorite andthat's totally me.
You may have a completelydifferent opinion.
So I don't use my instant potfor doing a lot of meats or a
lot of whole meals, but I do useit, I'd say almost every day for
(18:54):
cooking, either rice or quinoa.
We eat a lot of quinoa forbreakfast.
I use it for, this is myfavorite in the whole world.
Guys.
Cooking whole and soaked.
Yes.
Unsoaked beans, like dry beans,like navy beans, pinto beans,
black beans in like less thansixty minutes.
(19:15):
You can go from dry bean on theshelf to cooked and ready to eat
in less than sixty minutes.
It's, it's mind boggling and itworks.
I use it to cook chunks ofsquash or pumpkin cause I just
kinda always found like you hackopen a squash, which is a ordeal
in and of itself or a Pumpkin.
(19:36):
You scrape the seeds out, youstick it on a baking tray.
You know, sometimes it takes along time in the oven so you can
pop those babies in your instantpot, add a little water and I
can't remember the exact time.
I think it's like eight to tenminutes of active cooking time.
There'll be done ready to eat ormash or whatever.
I also love this, this has beenmind blowing for a lot of my
(19:58):
audience, steaming fresh eggs inthe instant pot.
And a lot of these techniquesare in my prairie homestead
cookbook in case you're wantingthem.
But you can take farm fresheggs, which as many of you know
traditionally are impossible topeel because the shells are on
there like glue.
If you steam them in yourinstant pot, the shells fall
(20:21):
right off and you can makedeviled eggs or whatever.
It's magic.
I also use it to make homemadebroth or stock.
If I'm in a hurry, sometimes Ikind of go fifty fifty sometimes
I do that with a slow cookersometimes with the instant pot,
but works great.
And then my favorite things todo with a food processor are
making butter, making homemademayonaise, making pestos,
(20:44):
chopping large amounts of onionsor peppers because I cry so bad
with onions.
I am the worst.
I have got to have the mostsensitive eyes with onions in
the universe and also shreddingcheese.
So I have a recipe that callsfor a bunch of cheese.
There is no way I'm doing thatby hand.
I popped those chunks in thefood processor and it's ready to
(21:05):
go.
Okay, last little secret.
And I kind of alluded to this aminute ago, but I'm going to
encourage you as you're menuplanning and cooking from
scratch is to focus on that onelarger meal per day and then
fill in the gaps with the othermeals with little easier
(21:26):
options.
So for us the larger meal issupper that might be different
for you depending on yourschedule.
I really put most of my focus onsupper each day and making it,
you know, a main course and aside and a vegetable and trying
to make sure there are some sortof leftovers.
Then we eat the leftovers forlunch, which simplifies lunch
(21:48):
and breakfast I keep it prettysimple.
I don't do a lot of fancy stufffor breakfasts.
My husband Christian doesn'treally love breakfast and we're
always kind of in a hurry to getout the door or into the project
of the days.
So what I do with breakfast is Ihave a rotation of kind of a
topical rotation.
(22:08):
So I'm trying to remember.
Mondays we have either oatmealor quinoa,Tuesdays we have eggs
and toast.
Wednesdays we'll have smoothies.
Thursdays we'll have pancakes orwaffles.
And so I kind of, that gives mea little leeway so we don't have
to eat the exact same thingevery week.
You know, like on Mondays weeither pick quinoa or oatmeal or
(22:33):
maybe I'll do my homemade creamof wheat or something like that.
So it's in that category.
But that just keeps me on track.
So when I wake up in the morningand I'm like, oh my gosh, the
children want to eat again.
Cause that just happens everyday.
You know, I know a little bitmore of a game plan of where I'm
headed.
So to wrap it all up, I want youto remember as you are
(22:56):
incorporating more from scratchfoods into your schedule is just
a really go with baby steps.
Just do what you can.
If you need to use someconvenience options.
It's okay.
Like it's not the end of theworld.
There are times I still usestore-bought tortillas and
store-bought chips because whileI know how to make those things
(23:18):
from scratch, it's not always inthe schedule.
And it's okay, give yourselfsome grace.
Don't beat yourself up and justdo what you can and enjoy the
process.
So if you are falling in lovewith the idea of an old
fashioned intentional kitchenfull of nourishing food and rich
(23:39):
memories, you will love myheritage kitchen handbook.
I've packed little ebook full ofmy very best tricks for cooking
and eating like a farmer, evenif you live in the city and you
can grab it free atwww.heritagekitchenhandbook.com
(24:02):
and that's it folks.
Thanks for listening.
If you have a minute, I'd be sohonored to have you subscribe
and leave a quick review over oniTunes so more people can find
this podcast and embrace thishomestead life.
I'll catch up with you on thenext episode on the old
fashioned on purpose podcast.
Welcome to the old fashioned on purpose podcast.
In today's episode, we're goingto dive into how to cook from
scratch when your time islimited because you know I may
have written a cookbook and Imight have a blog with some
recipes on it, but that doesn'tmean I spend all day in the
(00:21):
kitchen.
Keep listening because I'm goingto share my very best secrets
for keeping from scratch food onyour table, even though I know
you're just as busy as I am.
I'm your host Jill winger andfor the last 10 years I've been
helping people who feel a littleuninspired by modern life, learn
(00:44):
how to leave the rat race andcreate the life they really want
by growing their own food andmastering old fashioned skills.
As we start this episode, I justwant to say that cooking from
scratch is a very consciouschoice for me because I am well
(01:07):
aware that there are bazillionsof pre-made ingredient options
out there.
Everything from frozen TVdinners to boxes of hamburger
helper to even those premademeal plan boxes you can get
through the mail.
I know there are a lot of fasterways to get food on the table
(01:29):
other than chopping and sautéingand stirring and kneading it
yourself.
And I also am well aware thatI'd have a lot more free time
during the day if I opted intomore convenient options.
However, all that being said, Istill choose to go the homemade
(01:52):
route in most things, let's sayeighty to ninety percent of what
we eat now.
Partially that's because it'susually way healthier to cook
from scratch and it also allowsus to use the food that we grow
ourselves, which is really a bigreason because I wouldn't be
spending all this time growingvegetables and you know, meats
(02:15):
and eggs if I wasn't going tocook with it.
But really the most importantreason I think for me and why I
continue to cook from scratch,even though my life is just
downright insane sometimes isbecause it's about the quality
of life for me.
(02:36):
Now.
That's kind of funny when youthink about it, because if
you've ever looked at the labelsof processed food at the grocery
store, the industrialized worldof food, like one of their
biggest claims is that theirpre-packaged, convenience
options will increase yourquality of life, right?
(02:57):
And if we look back decades whenthe industrialized food
revelation really startedhappening, it's biggest selling
point is that it would liberatethe housewife, right?
It would make their liveseasier.
They wouldn't be in the kitchenall day.
They wouldn't have to make thecakes from scratch because now
we have Betty Crocker box cakes,cake mixes.
(03:20):
So it's kind of funny.
But I stand here and I'mclaiming the opposite.
I wholeheartedly believe thathumans are wired to make things.
We're supposed to be makers,y'all and creators and
producers, we are designed tobuild, to improve, to expand and
(03:46):
create with our hands.
That can be in the kitchen or itcan be elsewhere.
But we have that need inside ofus.
Now the tension comes in herebecause we live in a time in our
modern societies ofunprecedented ease, right?
(04:06):
It's easier than ever to getthings done these days.
Everything happens at the pressof a button.
We have apps and automations andwhereas our ancestors would have
spent most of their days findingfood and just staying alive,
it's much easier for us.
(04:28):
Now I want to just say rightnow, right up front that I am
not against technology.
I have an iPhone and I use alaptop and I have an online
business, so I need technology.
But I think when we get sowrapped up in that we really get
stripped of the joy that comeswith producing and creating with
(04:52):
our own wo hands.
And that is why you will see meon my little soapbox continually
begging folks to fall in lovewith their kitchens, whether
that's for the very first timeor maybe rekindling an old
forgotten romance that got alittle dusty as life happens.
(05:16):
All of that being said,hopefully you're feeling a
stirring inside of you to getback in the kitchen and try some
new things and look at it not asdrudgery, but as an intentional
act that creates a higherquality of life for you and your
family.
But this is a big but (05:34):
that's fun and great and romantic and
all those things, but how do weembrace from scratch cooking
while still having one foot inour very modern, very busy world
because that's really thequestion, isn't it?
And we can think about grandmamaking her pie crusts and
canning her tomatoes or thestories of Ma ingles in the log
(05:57):
cabin baking the bread, but theydidn't have as much to do more
than likely as we do.
Or maybe they had lots to do,but it was different.
Right?
They were washing their clothesby hand and looking in foraging
for food, but they didn't haveto drive their kids to soccer
and go to PTA meetings and runbusinesses work outside the
(06:20):
home.
That's different.
Right?
Our modern lives set us updifferently.
I am still a firm believer thatyou can have both.
And so here are some of my besttips for cooking from scratch
when your time is very limitedbecause even though I work from
home and we homeschool and youknow I'm at home a lot, I don't
(06:45):
spend all day in the kitchen.
I just can't.
I have a lot of moving pieces inmy life.
I'm out and about outside, andin my office.
I just have a lot of differentthings going on.
So six to eight hours a day inthe kitchen is not an option for
me.
And I'm guessing it's not anoption for you either.
So here are my secrets.
(07:06):
Okay?
Number one, this is not earthshattering, but I really want
you to let it sink in because itdoes matter.
So plan ahead.
Your menu planning does not haveto be extravagant or even that
detailed.
But Holy Moly, you guys, myweeks are so much smoother.
(07:29):
If I take five minutes or tenminutes at the beginning of the
week to sketch out what we'll behaving for supper the next few
days.
Okay.
It makes a massive difference.
Being on the office in thekitchen always, always, always
beats being on the defensivebecause the defensive usually
(07:51):
equates to putting weird orunhealthy stuff out on the table
as a last minute resort to feedthe hungry hordes that are your
family.
So if you plan ahead, you canmake sure things are defrosted,
you can make sure you havethings set out.
If there's different littlecomponents that need to be made
ahead, you can have that readyto go.
(08:13):
Everything flows cause I don'tknow about you, but there's
nothing worse than getting toabout two o'clock in the
afternoon and realizing you havenothing planned for supper and
everything is frozen solid.
So planning ahead, I am actuallynot one of those super fancy
menu planner gals.
(08:33):
I know there's tons of systemsand planners and worksheets out
there that you can get.
If that's your jam, go for it.
Actually keep it much moresimple.
I have a paper planner that's mybrain.
Everything is in my paperplanner and I just have a line
at the end of each day where Iwrite in what we're having for.
(08:55):
And I usually don't plan outbreakfast and lunches.
Supper is my main focus.
I'm going to talk about this ina minute, but that kind of keeps
me on track and I generallydon't necessarily even plan out
vegetables.
I plan out just the main courseof that meal and then I just
(09:16):
toss in whatever vegetables Ihave in the freezer or the
garden or the refrigerator.
So it's very simple, but itmakes all the difference.
Okay.
Tip number two is to make doubleor triple or quadruple whenever
possible.
Now there's hree reasons I woulddo this.
(09:37):
So number one, I think this ismy most common reason for making
extra is so we have leftoversthe next day.
I don't like making an entirelunch spread.
I'd rather do simple lunches orleftovers because we're usually,
you know, either in the middleof school we homeschool, you
know, you the school year orwe're outside.
(10:00):
So being in the kitchen for twohours before lunch, prepping
food doesn't really work for me.
So I make double to haveleftovers for lunch.
I make double to eat later inthe week or I make double to
freeze.
To be perfectly honest, I don'tknow why, but I haven't really
got into the whole freezer mealthing yet.
(10:22):
I know there's folks who justswear by it and I have plenty of
recipes for fantastic freezermeals.
It just isn't something I'veever gotten the routine of.
So if that's your jam, go forit.
Like that's a fabulous plan.
You can make extra, you know, Ifigure if I have the kitchen
dirty and the bowls and thespoons and the mixer or whatever
(10:43):
already out and covered in food,I might as well get more bang
for my buck while it's outthere.
And I only have to do dishesonce.
So some of my favorite things tomake ahead or to make in big
batches are homemade pesto.
And so I like to do this,especially in late summer when I
(11:04):
have a lot of greens in thegarden.
If you have my cookbook, I havea recipe for homestead pesto in
there, which basically replacesBasil with random greens,
whether it's Kale, spinach, evenspicier things like mustard
greens, beet tops, whatever.
You can use those to make pestoand it freezes beautifully.
(11:27):
So if I am overwhelmed withgreens, I make a giant batch of
Pesto in my food processor andthen I freeze it and we use it
all winter when there's nothingfresh and put it on a pastas and
all sorts of yummy skilletmeals.
I also always, always make a tonof homemade stock.
(11:49):
So beef stock, chicken stock, Idon't really do a lot of stock.
I have a little bit in the past.
Those are always done in verylarge batches, at least a
gallon.
And my routine is, you know,roasting a chicken for supper,
eating it for supper, pullingthe leftover meat off the bones
for a soup or a skillet meallater in the week.
(12:11):
And then I throw that thechicken bones in the skin, in
any of the leftover bits into myinstant pot or my slow cooker.
And I let that baby go allnight.
In the case of a slow cooker,instant pot doesn't take that
long and that makes about agallon of broth and I usually
just keep that in a jar and therefrigerator use it up within
seven to ten days and then juststart the cycle all over again.
(12:34):
You can also freeze broth, youcan can broth but make lots
because it's a beautifulfoundation for all sorts of
recipes.
I also do homemade yogurt inlarge batches, especially what
our milk cow is producing.
Well, I'll take a gallon or twoof milk and put it into quart
jars and make a gallon or two ofyogurt and that lasts us for
(12:57):
quite a while because yogurtwill stay good in the fridge for
a very long time.
Now all those recipes are in theprairie homestead cookbook if
you want to grab them with moreof my little notes and
techniques, but those are someof my favorite bulk ingredients
to make.
I also like to have a repertoireof easy to make standby meals
(13:18):
and these have saved the daymore than one time because if I
happen to not have planned verywell or plans change and the
meat's not defrosting as fast asI thought or I'm not going to be
around to do some of the prep Ihad originally planned, I have a
list of easy meals that I cankind of make without having to
(13:41):
think about it.
And those fill in the gaps inthe case of an emergency because
town and pizza and delivery,while delivery is not an option
out here, pizza is a long waysaway.
So that really actually did alot in teaching me how to plan
and cook because there is nobackup where I live and maybe
you have backup and there'snothing wrong with getting a
(14:03):
pizza when you need it, but Idon't have that option so I've
got to build my own backup.
But some of my favoriterepertoire meals are tacos.
You can't go wrong with Tacos.
I always have tons of groundbeef in the freezer.
It's easy to defrost.
If I need to do it in a hurry, Ijust do it in a bowl of hot
water.
(14:24):
I also like to do shredded porkor beef sandwiches.
That's good for a last minutecompany meal.
If you have like a day, you knowthey're coming, but you're going
to be busy on the day that theyarrive.
Pop a pork shoulder or a beefroast in the Crockpot, shred it,
season it, slap it on somesandwich buns.
Super easy.
Super good.
(14:45):
Pan Fried pork chops are alwaysa hit and they don't take a lot
of brainpower.
Roasted chicken, one of myfavorites.
Stick some whole potatoes andcarrots in the bottom.
Some herbs call it good.
Stick it in the oven.
And my probably my easiestcheater meal is we call them
Idaho tacos cause instead of aTortilla we use a baked potato,
(15:09):
you know, get it baked potatoes,Idaho, and we bake the potato
and then we will put whateverleftover meat is in the fridge,
whether it's bacon, although Imean seriously, who has leftover
bacon?
Never.
I never have leftover bacon.
But if you do, you could usebacon or ground beef like
seasons with Taco seasoning orleftover chop chicken.
(15:32):
We put the meat on the bakedpotatoes, add some cheese, sour
cream, butter, chives, whateveryou want.
And those are Idaho Tacos.
Super easy.
So create your own list of yourfavorite standby meals that you
can throw in at a minutes noticeand they will save the day at
some point, I promise.
(15:54):
Okay, my next tip is to investin good appliances.
Now some of you may find thisshocking because sometimes
people get a little bit of thewrong idea because I love old
fashioned things and heritagekitchen skills.
But that doesn't mean I'mchurning my butter in a butter
(16:16):
churn with a stick, right?
In order to eat well and stilllive in a modern life with
activities and obligations.
I depend on appliances.
Now I have some rules when itcomes to appliances, they have
to be multipurpose and notgimmicky.
(16:38):
And what I mean by that is, youknow, if you ever watch
infomercials or you know, yousee the latest greatest thing on
the shelves at Walmart atChristmas time, there's a lot of
gimmicky appliances out there.
I'm not going to actually namethem cause I feel like this
might offend some people causesome people have their favorite
appliances.
But there's just some that I ampersonally not interested in
(16:59):
because they serve, you know,just one purpose.
So I don't like a lot ofappliances.
The ones I love and the ones Iuse a ton or my slow cooker
obviously.
But that's not a surprise.
My food processor, I love myfood processor, my high powered
(17:19):
blender, I have a blend tech andmy instant pot.
I depend on those our things anda few others.
But those were the main ones toallow me to live this from
scratch homestead life while I'mstill having one foot or a foot
and a half in a fast pacedmodern life as well.
(17:42):
So here are the few of the waysI use these appliances to make
my life easier.
The slow cooking whole chickensis a breeze.
Roasts are fantastic.
Soups and Stews, I will oftenuse it to make homemade beef
broth or chicken stock.
You know, there's bazillions ofslow cooker recipes out there.
(18:05):
Collect your favorites and usethem.
That slow cooker is my bestfriend.
I also use my instant pot quitea bit.
Now, one little note is Iactually don't love the instant
pot for creating whole meals andthere's a few exceptions, but
for the most part, I've found itto be just not my favorite.
(18:28):
It's like if I'm trying to makea soup, I just don't like the
textures as much.
I don't like being able to notadjust the salts in the herbs
while the soup is cooking.
It's just not my favorite andthat's totally me.
You may have a completelydifferent opinion.
So I don't use my instant potfor doing a lot of meats or a
lot of whole meals, but I do useit, I'd say almost every day for
(18:54):
cooking, either rice or quinoa.
We eat a lot of quinoa forbreakfast.
I use it for, this is myfavorite in the whole world.
Guys.
Cooking whole and soaked.
Yes.
Unsoaked beans, like dry beans,like navy beans, pinto beans,
black beans in like less thansixty minutes.
(19:15):
You can go from dry bean on theshelf to cooked and ready to eat
in less than sixty minutes.
It's, it's mind boggling and itworks.
I use it to cook chunks ofsquash or pumpkin cause I just
kinda always found like you hackopen a squash, which is a ordeal
in and of itself or a Pumpkin.
(19:36):
You scrape the seeds out, youstick it on a baking tray.
You know, sometimes it takes along time in the oven so you can
pop those babies in your instantpot, add a little water and I
can't remember the exact time.
I think it's like eight to tenminutes of active cooking time.
There'll be done ready to eat ormash or whatever.
I also love this, this has beenmind blowing for a lot of my
(19:58):
audience, steaming fresh eggs inthe instant pot.
And a lot of these techniquesare in my prairie homestead
cookbook in case you're wantingthem.
But you can take farm fresheggs, which as many of you know
traditionally are impossible topeel because the shells are on
there like glue.
If you steam them in yourinstant pot, the shells fall
(20:21):
right off and you can makedeviled eggs or whatever.
It's magic.
I also use it to make homemadebroth or stock.
If I'm in a hurry, sometimes Ikind of go fifty fifty sometimes
I do that with a slow cookersometimes with the instant pot,
but works great.
And then my favorite things todo with a food processor are
making butter, making homemademayonaise, making pestos,
(20:44):
chopping large amounts of onionsor peppers because I cry so bad
with onions.
I am the worst.
I have got to have the mostsensitive eyes with onions in
the universe and also shreddingcheese.
So I have a recipe that callsfor a bunch of cheese.
There is no way I'm doing thatby hand.
I popped those chunks in thefood processor and it's ready to
(21:05):
go.
Okay, last little secret.
And I kind of alluded to this aminute ago, but I'm going to
encourage you as you're menuplanning and cooking from
scratch is to focus on that onelarger meal per day and then
fill in the gaps with the othermeals with little easier
(21:26):
options.
So for us the larger meal issupper that might be different
for you depending on yourschedule.
I really put most of my focus onsupper each day and making it,
you know, a main course and aside and a vegetable and trying
to make sure there are some sortof leftovers.
Then we eat the leftovers forlunch, which simplifies lunch
(21:48):
and breakfast I keep it prettysimple.
I don't do a lot of fancy stufffor breakfasts.
My husband Christian doesn'treally love breakfast and we're
always kind of in a hurry to getout the door or into the project
of the days.
So what I do with breakfast is Ihave a rotation of kind of a
topical rotation.
(22:08):
So I'm trying to remember.
Mondays we have either oatmealor quinoa,Tuesdays we have eggs
and toast.
Wednesdays we'll have smoothies.
Thursdays we'll have pancakes orwaffles.
And so I kind of, that gives mea little leeway so we don't have
to eat the exact same thingevery week.
You know, like on Mondays weeither pick quinoa or oatmeal or
(22:33):
maybe I'll do my homemade creamof wheat or something like that.
So it's in that category.
But that just keeps me on track.
So when I wake up in the morningand I'm like, oh my gosh, the
children want to eat again.
Cause that just happens everyday.
You know, I know a little bitmore of a game plan of where I'm
headed.
So to wrap it all up, I want youto remember as you are
(22:56):
incorporating more from scratchfoods into your schedule is just
a really go with baby steps.
Just do what you can.
If you need to use someconvenience options.
It's okay.
Like it's not the end of theworld.
There are times I still usestore-bought tortillas and
store-bought chips because whileI know how to make those things
(23:18):
from scratch, it's not always inthe schedule.
And it's okay, give yourselfsome grace.
Don't beat yourself up and justdo what you can and enjoy the
process.
So if you are falling in lovewith the idea of an old
fashioned intentional kitchenfull of nourishing food and rich
(23:39):
memories, you will love myheritage kitchen handbook.
I've packed little ebook full ofmy very best tricks for cooking
and eating like a farmer, evenif you live in the city and you
can grab it free atwww.heritagekitchenhandbook.com
(24:02):
and that's it folks.
Thanks for listening.
If you have a minute, I'd be sohonored to have you subscribe
and leave a quick review over oniTunes so more people can find
this podcast and embrace thishomestead life.
I'll catch up with you on thenext episode on the old
fashioned on purpose podcast.
Popular Podcasts
Bookmarked by Reese's Book Club
Welcome to Bookmarked by Reese’s Book Club — the podcast where great stories, bold women, and irresistible conversations collide! Hosted by award-winning journalist Danielle Robay, each week new episodes balance thoughtful literary insight with the fervor of buzzy book trends, pop culture and more. Bookmarked brings together celebrities, tastemakers, influencers and authors from Reese's Book Club and beyond to share stories that transcend the page. Pull up a chair. You’re not just listening — you’re part of the conversation.
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com