The Great Pantry/Chest Freezer Purge

We are fortunate to own a small chest freezer that we keep out in our garage.  It's the perfect size for the size of our family and great to have when things go on sale.   I've been known to buy butter, bread, creamer, cheese when prices are super low and freeze it all in our chest freezer.  I also keep our meat and larger items (such as tubs of ice cream....not mine.....it's the men I live with...lol).

The problem is without an inventory sheet, I would forget what I have in there, so I use a freezer inventory sheet I found on the internet.  Just google "Freezer Inventory Template" and you'll find a gazillion of them.   It's been a lifesaver in regards to knowing what you have in your freezer.

Lately I've been on a purging and organizing mission, starting with my pantry which you can read about HERE, so I've decided to dedicate the next month before the holiday season starts to USE WHAT WE HAVE in both our pantry, refrigerator freezer and chest freezer.  Unless the sale is really too good to pass up, I'm not buying meat or any pantry items until we make a big dent in what we already have.

This is also the week before we leave for Seattle.  It's a work trip for my husband and I'm tagging along because neither of us have been there.....so, even though our son will still be around, I think this is a perfect week to use up some of what we have.  When I did the grocery shopping on Friday morning, I only spent $40 and that was mostly for fresh produce and dairy.


Here's what our menu looks like this week to make the most of what we have and it's a little more convenient because of our schedules -

Sunday

Stuffed Peppers (Pepper bought on sale, ground beef from the freezer)
Garlic Bread (Bread from freezer)
Tossed Salad (Iceberg lettuce bought on sale for 99 cents a head, an English cucumber I picked up from Trader Joe's and tomatoes from our garden)

Monday

Grilled Ham & Cheese Sandwiches (using up the luncheon ham, cheese and garlic bread)
Oven Baked French Fries (Ore-Ida - what can I say?....my family loves them)

Tuesday

Pork Stir-fry (Using boneless pork chops in our freezer, broccoli, onions, cabbage and anything else I find in our crisper)
Brown Rice


Wednesday

(This has to be an easy night for my husband as I'm in class that night)
Turkey Cheddar Sausages
Jalapeno Cheddar Potatoes
French Style Green Beans with Dill

Thursday

Trader Joe's Fish Nuggets
Veggie Quinoa and Rice Dish (my husband may opt for a baked potato....we shall see...)


Friday

BBQ Ribs (from our freezer)
Potato Casserole
Salad (using up as much vegies in the crisper as I can)

Saturday

Saturday, I'm going to be at the Get Inspired 14 scrapbook crop at the Fairgrounds for most of the day and evening, so my family is on what we call a "Fend For Yourself Night" or "FFYN" as it's know around here.  I won't be able to stay at the crop as long as the rest of my friends because we have to be up at 4:00am the next morning to head to the airport, so I'll be heading out after dinner.

We'll be there a full week and once we are back home, I think we'll be eating out of our freezer and panty at least up until Thanksgiving and the money saved will help pay for holiday food.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great week!