Blue Monday?

Apparently, today is the saddest day of the year, at least that's what Global Edmonton told me this morning while I was watching the news. I'm not feeling particularly blue, but I am pretty tired, and a little bit sick.

So my meal plan didn't work out as planned last weekend, and that's ok. Today, instead of yesterday, we're having beef stew for dinner. I'm not fussy or complicated. Sometimes all it takes to put a smile on my face is a bowl full of delicious stew and a complimentary glass of wine. Like Fergie from Viva Pinata says, "Mouth, I love you" (check out the video at around 8:33).

Sadly, I'll never be able to exactly recreate this pot of stew. I pulled a bag of bison drippings and beef gravy from the freezer to add to the pot and I think that made all the difference. One of the benefits of using your freezer in this way is to keep leftover almost anything- drippings, vegetables, rice, meat, tomato sauce, etc.- ready to go when you need an easy meal starter. This, in turn, keeps your food budget more trim, as you aren't trying to cook from the bottom up for every meal. Another benefit to keeping small portions of leftovers is to cut down on food waste. With the economy in many parts of the world losing ground, and food prices increasing on a regular basis, it's so important to avoid waste as much as possible. Definitely label your freezer bags. Even when I'm sure I'll remember what's in a particular bag, if I don't label it I usually forget.

When you set up your meal plan, make sure you periodically check your freezer for what you've got ready to use, and make sure you use it. Even frozen food eventually expires. 

Enjoy your week, friends!
Stacy