Welcome to Friday! We had snow here this week and cold temperatures of 29 degrees on Tuesday. I brought out some extra blankets and even turned the heat on to take the chill out of the house one morning.
Quote of the Week
"By sowing frugality we reap liberty, a golden harvest." Agesilaus
In My Frugal Kitchen
On Monday I did some batch cooking and baked regular and sweet potatoes, and butternut squash for the week, made vegetable soup, and made hummus since receiving the Tahini in the mail.
I also worked on components for Veggie Burgers. I soaked the black beans and cooked them from scratch in my Instant Pot. I also made brown rice and already cooked the sweet potatoes. After that I only had to chop the vegetables and then make and bake them.
I like to use my Vidalia Chop Wizard for chopping vegetables, especially onions.
I have more than one in my kitchen because people sell them at yard sales. I think the reason for that is because they think they are hard to clean.
This little tool that comes with the chopper is great to clean out the top of the chopper.
Nowadays they sell this cleaning tool to make it easier to clean the top. But I've found that the original one works for me without this cleaning tool. I simply make sure to clean it right after I'm done using it with the sprayer attachment on my kitchen sink. It cleans up beautifully.
Here is the recipe for hummus I used:
Hummus
Ingredients:
2 cans Garbanzo beans or the equivalent of homemade beans3/4 cup aquafaba drain and reserve liquid aquafaba from beans 1/4 cup tahini1/4 cup lemon juice1 tbsp soy sauce or coconut aminos1 tsp ground cumin1/2 tsp garlic powder
Directions:
Drain the beans over a bowl to reserve the bean water.In high-speed blender, combine all the ingredients as listed above.Blend on high for 2 to 3 minutes or until creamy. Makes 3 1/2 cups of hummus.Keeps in fridge for 7 to 10 days.
This year for Thanksgiving we stayed home and did not gather with family. Walmart did not have any cornmeal when we ordered groceries, so I did not make dressing this year. In fact, I decided to go with a familiar recipe, Creamy Crockpot Chicken & Dressing, using Pepperidge Farm dressing. It was really nice to be able to put this on to cook in the morning and not have to fuss with making a huge dinner.
We've been making a lot of hot herbal teas since the weather has turned colder here this week. My favorite herbal teas are from Traditional Medicinals. One that I drink everyday is Reishi Mushroom. I'm not a fan of mushrooms, but they are very good nutrition wise and are considered a superfood. Dr. Joel Fuhrman includes them in his GBOMBS. I try to get mushrooms in every day in powder form, which is why I like the Om Mushroom products.
GBOMBS are the foods with the most scientific evidence to prevent cancer. It stands for Greens, Beans, Onions, Mushrooms, Berries, and Seeds. Eat them almost every day.”—Dr. Joel Fuhrman.
Saving on Entertainment
For movie night this week we watched another version of The Secret Garden. This one was made by the producers of Harry Potter. This was a new take on the beloved classic, but Bailey and I did not care for this version as they made some of the characters we love turn mean spirited.
Freebies
We received this free sampler box in the mail with an ant trap, Snuggle, and an air freshener.
The Chasing Foxes website has a free 2021 printable calendar located here if you're interested.
How was your week?
Belinda
~ Living within our Means ~
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means I will earn a small percentage from that sale. So, if you're going to be making a purchase from Amazon this week, I would certainly appreciate it if you would help me by going through my Amazon link 
I got 2 nose pore strips, a little pack of gummy bears and a sample size of coconut body lotion from Pinch Me this week. It takes so long for those samples to arrive, it's a big surprise when they come !
ReplyDeleteWhat neat samples! It does take a while for them to come, doesn't it? I like the surprise too.
DeleteSounds like a good week Belinda! I did a freezer and pantry inventory, shopped and stocked up mostly on meats for the rest of the month for $228. I also got a free $100 gift card for signing up for an Amazon Visa card :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Martha. That's terrific on the gift card! It's so good to do an inventory of your pantry from time to time, definitely a money saver by knowing what you have on hand and then using up what you have.
DeleteWell I learn something new...I hadn't heard of aquafaba, and it has been a long time since I made hummus. I need to buy some tahini too. Thanks for the recipe. I meant to tell you, we enjoyed the big mac sloppy joes!
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry that you weren't able to get together with family, but I think next year will be better in every way.
I like mushrooms but I'm not sure about drinking them. Does the tea taste like mushrooms?
Hope you have a good weekend.
Kathy,
DeleteThe tea does not taste like mushrooms at all. The OM Mushroom hot chocolate does though, so I would steer clear of that. I'm so glad you enjoyed the Big Mac Sloppy Joes. You're the second person to let me know that. They are so simple to make too, which is a bonus. I hope you have a good weekend too. :)
Thanks for the info on the tea. Our alternative practitioner told us to eat a big green salad every day and we have been for over 8 years. This week I read an article on glutathione deficiency and a link to those who get sickest from Covid. We did have the virus and had a very light case and it seems that our salad habit has kept our glutathione levels high all these years.
ReplyDeleteWe just came home from the grocery store and we got many items for free or pennies today. Paper goods isle was nearly empty. I have $31 to cash out with Ibotta which will help with holiday food. Hams seem to be pricey but we will hope for a good price and just buy one if that is all we can do this year.
You're welcome, Lana. That is good news about your salad habit and Covid. The plant based doctors are talking about how eating right is helping people who get Covid to not have such harsh symptoms or even not get it at all So, I've been upping our intake of them.
DeleteI'm glad to hear you were able to get free items or items for pennies. I have a roast that I bought in November tucked away into the freezer for our Christmas dinner this year. I hope you are able to find a good deal on your ham.
We drink a lot of herbal tea as well! Staying warm at this time of year.
ReplyDeleteWe've been:
-Selling a few things on eBay, creatively packaging & mailing with only repurposed items
-Making all meals at home
-Found a few deals on Black Friday
-Finished my holiday shopping, on budget
-Picked up a Friday Freebie at the store
-Picking all of my tomatoes & ripening them inside, as it's moderately sunny, but chilly these days
Sounds like a good and frugal week for you. I love that you all package your eBay items using repurposed materials. We do the same thing. Saves money and helps the environment by recycling those materials.
DeleteI have never made hummus so I must try.
ReplyDeleteIt has a great flavor with the tahini, Kim.
DeleteI have always wanted to try making hummus, but have held back. I am going to look for tahini the next time I am shopping.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
It's delicious, Jackie. Let us know if you try it and what you think, please.
DeleteI love hummus. But, I use Great Northern Beans instead of garbanzo. My friend was taught by her Jordanian fil. She said mine was authentic tasting.
ReplyDeleteOh, that is so neat. I have plenty of great norther beans, so I will have to give it a try.
DeleteIt sounds like a very frugal week, Belinda.
ReplyDeleteYour post reminded me that I didn’t make hummus for a while. 😊
Thank you, Nil. I need to make some more varieties of hummus, there are so many recipes out there. My friend Heather makes hummus out of beets and it's pink. I like beets, so I may like that too.
DeleteHi Belinda! I didn't like that version of The Secret Garden either. I was looking forward to it.
ReplyDeleteQuiet Thanksgiving. No Black Friday shopping. DH & I were not interested. I did buy a portable CD player. I have been wanting one for awhile now and keep looking in thrift stores. I finally broke down and splurged on one. I am happy with it. I thought they would be hard to find but everyone is buying them now. How funny is that? I guess a lot of teacher's are asking their student's to do a lot of audio books on CD's so parent's are trying to scramble to find players. Adults are taking their players out when they go for long walks or jogs. You can even get little cases for them that are super cute.
I didn't know that abut the portable cd players, Safyne. Very interesting. I like listening to audio books while I am doing mindless tasks, keeps things interesting.
DeleteI have never had hummus with soy sauce or liquid aminos. Will try it sometime! I do make it often and love a good punch of fresh cilantro, garlic and olive oil. Add a few drops of yellow bird ghost pepper condiment and I’m in paradise!
ReplyDeleteSounds delicious, Vanessa.
DeleteGreat frugal week Belinda! :) I love hummus, I've never made it on my own though! I'm planning the monthly shopping today!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Rain. We need to do our monthly shop pretty soon too.
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