- I'd like to defrost my freezer. It has recently gotten very frosty (see photo below) and I need to dig out the top two shelves very soon. Ideally I'd like to defrost the sucker by May 1.
- I have an entire ham in the freezer. I'd like to cook it and grind all the meat so I can store it in nice, uniform-sized ziplocs instead of an awkwardly shaped ham.
- I have three large roasts I'd also like to cook and store in Ziplocs.
- There are a lot of beans so I'll be making some chili this week.
- I am picking up a 40# box of chicken breast Wednesday that I also have to make room for. My plan is to cook and shred at least 1/3 since we use shredded chicken in a lot of casseroles. Plus the shredded chicken will fit nicely in those uniform size Ziplocs. I'm also planning to put some whole breasts directly into marinades.
- I have a labor intensive meal swap this month. Chicken Pot Pie from scratch - I think I'll make the pie insides in advance and just fill the crusts a day or two beforehand. I'm hoping to unplug the freezer after that swap. We'll see.
- I have to make smoothies A LOT to use up some of the many, many frozen peaches I have.
- There is a fair amount of zucchini, but those don't take up much room. More challenging is the zucchini 'sauce' I made last year to substitute for vegetable oil. There is a lot of it left. Really, a lot. I might use some of it with some intensive baking.
- I have a big bulk pantry order arriving the first week of May. I am very aware of my already bulging bins! Either I use some up some dry goods or I buy more buckets. Maybe it's easier to just buy more buckets . . .
Katie