DIY solution to a cooking problem !!

[robgraham]

My self congratulations on this solution may be premature when SWMBO works out what I've done, but by then it will be done so I'm not caring too much !!

I'm retired - she isn't - so many mornings when I get up after she's set of for work, I find a billet-doux on the breakfast table containing some task she's dreamt up.

This morning it was to stew a lot of wind fall / reject apples and freeze them. Problem has always occurred in the past that the volumes frozen are too large and when unfrozen the apple goes to waste, so what could I find that would overcome this. I put off the task for inspiration till lunchtime when a chance visit to the greenhouse produced the solution - flowerpots with a bit of Al foil in the bottom, after a good washing of course.

Result is perfect - the 3" square ones hold 6 oz and a bigger round ones (4"+?) hold 12 oz. I just need now to get them frozen, remove the pots and store the resulting shapes in a poly bag before SWMBO finds out.

It's a man's world to find solutions like that!

Rob

[Toby]

Open Freezing....

1. Lay the things you want to freeze on greese proof paper. on a baking tray, not clumped together

1. Stick in freezer until frozen

2. Take out of freezer, and place items in a ziploc bag

1. Place bag to freezer

2. Refill baking tray and goto 1 until you have run out of things to freeze.

Now you have a ziploc bag full of bits of apple, or whatever, that are not stuck together, so you can remove exactly what you want, when you want it, just like the bag of oven chips.

Toby...

[NT]

Largish yogurt pots do the same job, but without the freakout factor :)

NT

[Tim Lamb]

In message , NT writes

We have a stack of empty Flora pots, ice cream cartons, Chinese take-away boxes for just these jobs.

The confusion comes when I am sent to fetch the ice-cream!

regards

[Toby]

Just realised it was stew you are freezing, not bits of food!

We make large batches of soup, and just portion them up in ziploc bags, then pop the bags in the freezer, either 1 or 2 portions per bag (so we can then have an odd number if we want!)

Toby...

[NT]

Have you got one of those fussy swmbos that doesnt like soup flavoured ice cream? Its funny how food appearance can change then frozen - some sort of labelling is necessary!

NT

[robgraham]

Thanks for all the suggestions, guys, It was a case of need-must as there's no small yoghurt containers around and I think all the soup poly bags are in use.

Labels are a good idea as now the blocks of apple mush are in a big poly bag they are pretty unidentifiable.

It'll be interesting to see if 'her-indoors' ever notices !

Rob

[Tim Lamb]

In message , NT writes

:-) They probably are. I never think to put on reading glasses before opening the freezer. The other issue is one of confidence. The shopper

*knows* that certain items are there but the searcher can readily be convinced otherwise.

Biggest mistake so far is when I made Shepherd's pie with frozen Chestnut stuffing!

regards

[Theo Markettos]

I had some frozen sliced sausages which turned out to be stock cubes!

Theo

[Dave]

I use Stick and lift by Avery. They do what it says on the pack.

Dave

[Jon Fairbairn]

We use the bottoms of cut from poly milk bottles: they're squarish so you get blocks that fill the space well.

[Owain]

That sounds quite nice actually.

Owain

[Stuart Noble]

Horseradish can look remarkably like grated cheese. Some sandwich!

[Andrew Gabriel]

Many years ago when my grandparents were still around, we were all at my parents for Christmas. One grandmother went off into the kitchen to make a cake. Mum poped in to the kitchen just as grandmother was sifting 4oz of dishwasher detergent into the butter and flour... Claimed it was the only sugar she could find!

[dennis]

poison is a woman's preferred method of murder, and she nearly got away with it.]

[Ophelia]

LOL, boy could you be in trubble:)))

[Tony Bryer]

I (from my 26th floor flat) went down to our postroom to collect my mail, leaving my mum (staying with me a few weeks) making breakfast. Came back to find the smoke detector sounding and my mum attacking one of the sprinklers with the mop. Fortunately she didn't set it off or it would have been a minor flood and something like a A$1000 charge from the fire brigade for an unnecessary callout.