Eaks!!! It's Inventory Time!!!! #3

I must admit that I cheated a bit with this series of photos, because I already began buying chicken and beef for Passover. And if I had a way of getting more home, I would have bought lots more last night at Rami Levy, since he had a great sale on poultry in Sha'ar Binyamin.

Before putting in the new stuff, this is how the freezer looked:

I still have some cooked meat, a meatloaf/moussaka and some beef in tomato sauce, in the freezer and half a pack of chicken breasts that must be finished before we go Kosher for Passover. I'm almost finished with the salmon I had bought months ago. But the big problem is that there's wholewheat flour and a cake up there, too. A lot of the rolls are eaten, but there's more to go.

There's plenty to get ready/done before Passover. This year, for the first time in four years, if my memory is correct, we'll be making a seder. It will be small, but still, we're hosting. I'm glad it's a Friday night seder, since that gives a full week from Shabbat to finish the kitchen and start cooking early.

One of the empty bedrooms has had a quasi-thorough cleaning. It's not a room that has seen food at all, but it must be made clean enough.

Weather reports have been springlike, perfect for opening the windows and hanging laundry.

Eaks!!! It's Inventory Time!!!!

It's times like this time of the year when I'm very glad that I don't have large freezer, and I don't have an extra freezer, because keeping track of the (chametz-forbidden on Passover) food to finish before the Pesach Holiday is complicated enough for me with my limited storage here.

At some point very soon, I'm going to have to put on my heavy gloves and check what's hidden in the back. As you can see, there are pittot, rolls, prepared food and lots of stuff hidden in those plastic bags. I know there's chicken (raw and cooked) and beef and cakes and flour, too. There's also a big mess of course as you can much too easily see.

Considering the mess, it's very obvious that I don't need a second freezer. There was a time I had a small one, but then fridges and their freezer sections were smaller, too. And even then I had trouble efficiently filling it. I make a point of generally having the basics for Shabbat cooking in the freezer, so if I end up not being able to shop, I can still make the chicken and meat. That doesn't take up all that much space.

I freeze leftovers, since my meat/chicken cooking is only once a week, and we just keep eating Shabbat food until I cook for the next Shabbat. I'm not home every evening. There are weeks that I'm not home any evening. This upcoming week may be one of those. And since my husband and I do have to eat, I just cook in advance, which isn't all that hard. Remember that we have five kids, and there was a time when they (and various guests) lived here with us, and I did cook everyday for all.

Shabbat Shalom and Chodesh Tov everyone!!

Pre-Passover Inventory Time

Yes, it's that time of the year. Think of it also as saving money before the heavy Pesach, Passover expenses. Check what you already have enough of, so you don't find yourself with more chametz, the food forbidden on Passover, when the Holiday begins.

I generally post photos of my freezer, yes, my small fridge freezer. Sometimes I'm totally amazed at what has been stored away all year waiting for a special occasion. I used to check around Purim, a bare month before Passover, but now we're just two at home and the freezer is larger than it was way back when the house was full of kids and guests.

I really should have started emptying it out around Chanuka, but I forgot. Now it's early in Shavat, and I have two months to go.

Finishing up the food makes for interesting menus.