I’m sure all of you have a great time-saving kitchen tip or nutrition tip, so I hope you’ll share them with us for today’s Real Food Wednesday! Keep reading for how to do that, and for more on how to get an extra chance to win the new Nina Planck book in the upcoming giveaway!
- Here are my meal planning/killer kitchen tips from past posts.
- Take a look at Ann Marie’s time-saving kitchen/nutrition tips.
Soon I’ll be announcing details on the upcoming giveaway – an advanced copy of Nina Planck’s new book, “Real Food for Mother & Baby”! This book isn’t due out until sometime in April, so be sure to Subscribe in a reader or Subscribe via e-mail so you know when the giveaway begins.
SOME GIVEAWAY SCOOP
***If you join in on today’s Real Food Wednesday blog carnival, by posting at your blog and linking back to this blog, you’ll earn an extra entry when the giveaway begins!
READ AN EXCERPT from the new book!
HOW TO JOIN IN ON REAL FOOD WEDNESDAY:
- IF YOU DON’T HAVE A BLOG, share your tips in the comments!
- IF YOU DO HAVE A BLOG, use “Mr. Linky” below to add a link to your post on this topic, keeping these rules in mind:
- PLEASE be sure to add a link in your post back to this post, so your readers can benefit from all the ideas, too. Also this helps out the other participants who are hoping to get more traffic to their blogs. Call it “blog carnival etiquette“.
- Do not link to your home page, only link to the specific post. (Otherwise later when new readers stumble upon this post and they go to your link, they won’t be able to find what they’re looking for.)
Thanks for playing nice. 
PAST RFW TOPICS:
By the way, it’s not too late to add your link or your comment to one of these past topics, as people are still going to these posts all the time! ***If you add your link, though, be sure to comment too, otherwise we won’t know to look for it – new comments have email notifications, but new links don’t.
- Real Food Testimonies – how has Real Food changed us?
- Healthy fast food (last-minute meal ideas)
- Real Food on a Budget
- Low-Carb Ideas
- Gluten-Free Real Food
- Rookie Tips from YOU (advice for beginners)
- Recipes using nutritious bone broth
UPCOMING TOPICS:
- Mar 11 @ Cheeseslave: Kid-Friendly Real Food – Healthy Food Kids Love!
- Mar 18 @ Kitchen Kop: Natural Body Care Products for Real Foodies
- Mar 25 @ Cheeseslave: Growing Real Food (What Are You Planting?)
- Ann Marie & I have decided that beginning in April, we won’t have specific topics, we’re opening it up so that you can share whatever you’d like to each week from your blog, or in a comment, as long as it relates to REAL FOOD! Whether it’s kitchen tips, ways to save money, favorite recipes, etc.
Welcome Works for me Wednesday readers!
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Learn more from the COMMENTS BELOW - join the conversation!
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{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
CHEESESLAVE 03.03.09 at 11:51 pm
Gosh I’m seriously sleep deprived. I thought I read your instructions clearly. It was only AFTER I wrote my post that I saw that you were asking for “time saving tips” — not just general nutrition tips.
Must go lie down and sleep now. So sorry that I did it wrong…
CHEESESLAVE’s last blog post..Top 15 Healthy Eating Tips (More Butter, Please)
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Kelly 03.04.09 at 12:17 am
Hey, guess what? I decided to change the title – I think people love to read about ANY good tips!!
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jeanne 03.04.09 at 8:08 am
I agree with Food Renegade . . . batch cooking and spending an hour or two one day of the week prepping for the entire week saves me tremendous time.
I am also a “list person” so I have a freezer inventory list, a list of this weeks meals, and a list of what I need to do each day for the next days meals (soaking, baking bread, etc.).
I have also found that having prepared snacks for my kids is a big thing for them. There is cheese sliced, veggies soaking in cold water, homemade pudding, and kefir for making smoothies always (okay most of the time) ready in the fridge. I keep frozen mini snack bags of berries and grapes in the freezer for quick snacks. (This is great in the summer. Also try freezing wedges of watermelon in the summer.) And there is always fresh fruit on the counter and crispy nuts in the pantry.
Another thing that saves me tremendous time is on Sunday I prebag all lunch box food. Then on a daily basis my kids just have to make sandwiches. The snack (popcorn, pretzels, granola, dried fruit and crispy nuts, etc.), the homemade cookie, and the veggie sticks are already to go.
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Stacey 03.04.09 at 8:40 am
I posted about my typical food prep day — I’m sure this is nothing new for anyone, but I’d love to hear what others do on their prep day or see if they have suggestions for me!
Stacey’s last blog post..Kitchen Prep/Baking Day
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Diane 03.04.09 at 9:33 am
This was fun! First time I joined in. I look forward to reading everyone else’s tips when I have some spare time! Hah! Maybe after all those tips I will actually have more free time!!
Diane’s last blog post..Trading With Others
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Martha 03.04.09 at 10:16 am
I’ve found it easier to start my bone broths immediately after a meal. I usually make them with bones leftover from the baked chicken, lamb roast, etc. Instead of sticking them in the fridge (and getting another item dirty) I put the bones straight in the pot with the water and vinegar and veggies. Then I can turn the heat on after it sits for an hour and have it skimmed and turned down before bed time. That makes it easy to let it go for at least 12 hours and gives me plenty of lee way to finish it the next day or the one after that.
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CompleteLee Blogger 03.04.09 at 10:27 am
I definitely agree it is worth it to find ways to cut down on kitchen time. Thanks for the carnival to share these tips. I just spent hours in the kitchen yesterday after coming home from the Farmer’s Market, washing fruits and veggies and partially preparing them for upcoming meals & snacks. My family eats so much better when there is clean fresh produce readily available for a snack!
CompleteLee Blogger’s last blog post..Share Your Love in 5 Minutes Brought to You by Mow-gLee
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Julie 03.04.09 at 11:01 am
I am helped by the comments. I’ll throw these ideas out. They have helped me. From watching Rachael Ray I learned that the “garbage bowl” on the counter helps speed up prep time and keeps the counter clean.
Also, it really helps to clean as you go when you cook. I was one of those cooks who had “all the pots and pans and ingredients out all at once and saved all the clean up for afterwards” kind of gal. If you CAYG (clean as you go) peace reigns in the kitchen!
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Annie - Hip Organic Mama 03.04.09 at 11:26 am
I goofed, I’ve been adding the home page instead of the post page so I fixed that with lucky 13, please delete number 6 and sorry for the error. Proud to be part of your food carnival! I’m so impressed with the Real Food blog group of smart supportive women spreading the word about what’s truly important in life. Thanks for everything you do.
Annie – Hip Organic Mama’s last blog post..Time-Saving Kitchen & Nutrition Tips – The Healthy Pantry
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Kelly 03.04.09 at 12:36 pm
Welcome old and new friends to Real Food Wednesday! Such great tips, I’ve already printed some out while the kids were picking up toys and have to come back later for more. Why does time FLY when I’m on the computer???? (They don’t pick up fast any other time!)
Thanks to all!
Kelly
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Julie 03.04.09 at 5:55 pm
I forgot to mention something I find I can’t do without: parchment paper. It makes clean-up and breeze. I get the unbleached brown kind.
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Rosy 03.04.09 at 7:57 pm
I come from a mix of my mother’s family style of cooking, which is peach jelly and bologna sandwiches, ya gross. And My dad’s family cooking, good old country goodness. One thing that I noticed that wasn’t here was the best way to season your cast iron cookware. This makes the food yummy and the pans easy to clean.
Heat an oven to 450 degrees. Rub a layer of lard, or bacon grease on the pan. Thin is best, but not too thin. Put pan in oven upside down over a cookie sheet. Leave for an hour or two. The oil will fill in the cracks of the iron’s surface and be non stick.
Remember never let you cast iron sit in the sink with water. If you must scrub it to get a burned on goody out, do it with steel wool, and re-season. Never ever put it in the dish washer, that is a big no no for cast iron. It will crack it, warp it, and rust it! I like to put mine on a burner on low after washing to burn off the extra water. By the time the burner is cooled the water is all steamed off.
With the nonstickness of your cast iron your cooking will be a lot easier, and not nasty Teflon!
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Judy 03.04.09 at 8:14 pm
I keep two dry erase markers at strategic points in the kitchen to mark my white lids to my mason jars. Y for yogurt, K for Kefir, MAYO with the date made, KNR is Kefir Not Ready which is the jar with the culture in it. I also label ferments if it’s not terribly clear what it is and usually the date. This just wipes off when I wash the lids. When I freeze broth, I use B for Beef, C for Chicken, L for Lamb and write out anything else that is not standard for me. This makes it so much easier for my husband to know what everything is.
I found a smal soft-sided cooler to carry my 4 jars of milk. I made a cardboard divider to keep the jars from touching. When I unload the milk, I refill the cooler with empty jars and put it in the car for the next time I pick up milk. I also keep some plastic bags in the side pocket for extras they sometimes have at the dairy.
Before I make anything, I find the storage containers I’m going to use. I really dislike the moment at 8pm when I’m tired and having to scramble to store the large batch of whatever I’m making. I’m a lot more inspired to start a huge cooking project than to tidy up the end of it.
-Judy
Judy’s last blog post..Memorium
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TeamBettendorf 03.04.09 at 8:15 pm
I posted my time saving tip. Real Food Wednesday is so fun.
TeamBettendorf’s last blog post..Real Food Wednesday – Time Saving Tip
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Sustainable Suppers 03.05.09 at 10:30 am
Right on, Martha: starting bone broths after meals is the way to go. I was nervous the first time I left the stove on all night, but there’s so much liquid on such low heat that even I cannot cause an accident.
Batch cooking and freezing is a major time savor, although I’m getting to the point where I need to invest in a separate freezer. Energy-efficient, of course. Any opinions on upright vs. horizontal?
~ Holly
Sustainable Suppers’s last blog post..Hair Teas, Chef Michael Schwartz interview, and Best Breakfasts!
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Kelly 03.06.09 at 9:27 am
Holly,
Upright takes up less room, but you have to watch your toes when you open it…if you overfill it like I do.
I’m still working my way through everyone’s entries, such great posts everyone!
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Kelly 03.13.09 at 11:11 am
“Mother Hen” – I hope you see this – I had to delete your link above because when I clicked on it I only got a Wordpress sign-in page saying your blog is “protected” (meaning only people who sign in can read it.)
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