Friday, October 02, 2009
Whew! Sorry about the sketchiness of posts this week. Here I did so good last week on posting all of my stuff that I purchased and this week I have done horrible. I have a couple of pictures for you but they really don't even come close to showing everything that I actually got. So I decided to not even show them.
A HUGE eye opener this week was how much $$ I actually spend. I went through all of my $75.00 this week! It was all gone yesterday. How? I am not sure. I also did not do as well with writing everything down. But I will try for a recap.
$5.00 for flowers for Grandma
$12.00 for a half bushel of pears
$8.84 at Meijer
$7.74 at Meijer ( I will be getting $3.00 back from this though)
$20.00 approximately at Walgreens
$15.00 at Costco for bacon for Caleb and lunch for Caleb
That leaves me short just a couple of dollars. I'm not even sure where that went. :( So I did horrible on my budget this week but that means I will just have to work harder next week to ensure that I can recover from it. Caleb will be gone too which will save me $15.00 from Costco. :) Plus I won't be buying any more huge amount of pears. That will definitely help too.
I am amazed though how fast I really do go through the moola for the week. I am not sure how I do it but it is becoming more and more clear to me that I spend the majority of our money not on food but on deals. Deals that are supposed to be free...but aren't. I need to recognize that, move on, and STOP getting so many. Easier said than done. I wonder if there is a class for addiction to deals? Hmmm, might be something for me to check on.
On a side note, I saw this:
"Basic Fruit Leather
Pureed fruit can be dried on special, heavy plastic sheets in your electric dehydrator. To prepare apples or pears for leather making, wash fruit thoroughly, remove seeds, puree in a blender or food processor until smooth. Mixture should be of pouring consistency. It is important to add honey to help keep the leather pliable when dried. If the puree is too thick, add liquid to thin. If too tart, add more honey or sugar. Heat apple or pear mixture to 190° F to prevent oxidization, cool before pouring onto dehydrator trays. Coat trays with a layer of fruit puree about 1/8 inch thick. Dry at 135° F until leathery. Be careful there are no moisture pockets. Roll up fruit leather while warm, wrap in plastic and store. Makes a great, easy to pack snack for any outing.
Applesauce Puree for Fruit Roll-ups
I make applesauce by quartering the apples, trimming off the blossom and stems ends, put in pan and add a little water then simmer stirring frequently, until soft. I then put the cooked apples through a food mill or strainer to remove the peels and seeds. Add about 1 tablespoon honey per cup of applesauce to keep the fruit leather pliable so it can be rolled up. This results in a nice smooth puree for making fruit leather. (If it's too thick to spread easily, add more water.) -KE
Fruit Leather Made from Applesauce Puree
Lightly grease dehydrator trays and spread puree evenly and thinly onto trays. Set temperature at 130-140° F. (55-60° C.) and dry until fruit leather feels dry and pliable, with no sticky spots. Remove from trays and cut into pieces. Roll in wax paper and fasten rolls with a strip of freezer tape. For long-term storage, put roll-ups in freezer bags or quart yogurt containers and store in freezer.
Anybody up for trying? It looks like fun to me! Now I just need to see if either I have one of those trays for my itty bitty dehydrator or if the father in law has one for his commercial sized one. :) Oh the fun of being able to store up food! I am loving it this year!
A HUGE eye opener this week was how much $$ I actually spend. I went through all of my $75.00 this week! It was all gone yesterday. How? I am not sure. I also did not do as well with writing everything down. But I will try for a recap.
$5.00 for flowers for Grandma
$12.00 for a half bushel of pears
$8.84 at Meijer
$7.74 at Meijer ( I will be getting $3.00 back from this though)
$20.00 approximately at Walgreens
$15.00 at Costco for bacon for Caleb and lunch for Caleb
That leaves me short just a couple of dollars. I'm not even sure where that went. :( So I did horrible on my budget this week but that means I will just have to work harder next week to ensure that I can recover from it. Caleb will be gone too which will save me $15.00 from Costco. :) Plus I won't be buying any more huge amount of pears. That will definitely help too.
I am amazed though how fast I really do go through the moola for the week. I am not sure how I do it but it is becoming more and more clear to me that I spend the majority of our money not on food but on deals. Deals that are supposed to be free...but aren't. I need to recognize that, move on, and STOP getting so many. Easier said than done. I wonder if there is a class for addiction to deals? Hmmm, might be something for me to check on.
On a side note, I saw this:
"Basic Fruit Leather
Pureed fruit can be dried on special, heavy plastic sheets in your electric dehydrator. To prepare apples or pears for leather making, wash fruit thoroughly, remove seeds, puree in a blender or food processor until smooth. Mixture should be of pouring consistency. It is important to add honey to help keep the leather pliable when dried. If the puree is too thick, add liquid to thin. If too tart, add more honey or sugar. Heat apple or pear mixture to 190° F to prevent oxidization, cool before pouring onto dehydrator trays. Coat trays with a layer of fruit puree about 1/8 inch thick. Dry at 135° F until leathery. Be careful there are no moisture pockets. Roll up fruit leather while warm, wrap in plastic and store. Makes a great, easy to pack snack for any outing.
Applesauce Puree for Fruit Roll-ups
I make applesauce by quartering the apples, trimming off the blossom and stems ends, put in pan and add a little water then simmer stirring frequently, until soft. I then put the cooked apples through a food mill or strainer to remove the peels and seeds. Add about 1 tablespoon honey per cup of applesauce to keep the fruit leather pliable so it can be rolled up. This results in a nice smooth puree for making fruit leather. (If it's too thick to spread easily, add more water.) -KE
Fruit Leather Made from Applesauce Puree
Lightly grease dehydrator trays and spread puree evenly and thinly onto trays. Set temperature at 130-140° F. (55-60° C.) and dry until fruit leather feels dry and pliable, with no sticky spots. Remove from trays and cut into pieces. Roll in wax paper and fasten rolls with a strip of freezer tape. For long-term storage, put roll-ups in freezer bags or quart yogurt containers and store in freezer.
Anybody up for trying? It looks like fun to me! Now I just need to see if either I have one of those trays for my itty bitty dehydrator or if the father in law has one for his commercial sized one. :) Oh the fun of being able to store up food! I am loving it this year!
Labels: $300.00 monthly challenge
