Want to play a game? If it's with us, chances are it will be Ticket to Ride. American version, European, or Germany we like them all. We played several times while recently with family. My older brother Nate wins frequently (as does Geoff). Nate was sharing his philosophy about his winning streak and said it is all about efficiency. He tries to never make a move that is not a sure thing.
So why do I bring all this up? I guess cause I've been thinking some about efficiency recently. Before I was a mom, I was busy. But all of you who are mothers (and perhaps some who are married to them) will understand that once you have a kid, knowing how to do things efficiently has a whole new urgency at times.
One of the new revelations that I've had recently has to do with cooking meals. Last year I participated in a dinner co-op. That is a topic for another day and was fantastic. But it was recently dissolved at least temporarily when one of our friends up and moved to China...yeah, that's you Hewies! Anyway, I learned from that experience. And last week I put my new knowledge into practice.
On Monday, during Audrey's nap I made Monday AND Tuesday's main course. Since they had a couple shared ingredients, and I was in the cooking mode with everything out, it took about one hour to complete both dishes. Tuesday I rested easy knowing dinner was already in the fridge (something I used to do all the time with the dinner co-op). One of my other friends, Lori Davis makes sure she always has several meals in the freezer at any given time. That is the next thing I'm going to try. Also, I'm going to divide larger meals into two and freeze one (something Jill Tanner likes to do).
Anyway, these are my efficiency thoughts for the day. You all probably know all of it already, but I'm just learning, so I'd thought I'd share. :) Anyone have anything they have found works really well for them? Either in the kitchen domain or with cleaning/laundry/etc.? I'd love to hear your suggestions. Happy homemaking!
5 comments:
Great suggestions! I'm super conscious with regards to effiency in the kitchen too. As much as I love cooking, I never make a meal that will last just one night. I'll double the recipe so that it lasts at least 2 nights (and/or for lunches). And now that I'm working and dinner time is CRAZY busy, I've started utilizing my slow-cooker a lot. Just prep the night before, throw the stuff in in the morning, and come home to a delicious smelling house! =)
I just participated in a fun meal swap here in Iowa. There were 5 people in my group. We all made five 8x8 pans of something (in disposable cookware) and then just got together and swapped. Now I have 5 meals in my freezer just ready to go. Some of the things we swapped were: enchiladas, chicken/broccoli casserole, poppy seed chicken, southwest egg rolls and swedish ham meatballs. It has been a fun way to try some new things that weren't typically in my cooking repertoire. Plus, as long as you're making one thing, you might as well make a lot of it. I bet there would be some girls in New Haven interested in doing something similar! Let me know if you decide to do it and if you have any questions. I love having meals in the freezer just ready to pull out!
aargh, cooking, a thorn in my side. Thanks for the tips. I really need to plan better so I'm not stressed at dinner time.
I also freeze individual ingredients. I have a book about the best way to freeze practically anything. So when I have cabbage, celery, cooked rice, or anything else sitting around in my fridge I can freeze it to go in casseroles and soups later on.
Thanks so much for your ideas! I'm going to try them! I'll let you know later on how it goes!
Post a Comment