Reconciling scratch-cooking and the busy lifestyle, batch by batch @ Saver Queen

Reconciling scratch-cooking and the busy lifestyle, batch by batch

Posted on March 28th, 2010 Saver Queen 18 comments

In my post, “Finding foodie fulfillment” , reader Angela directed me to Jamie Oliver’s TED speech, which is brilliant. I have a lot to say on the matter, but I thought I’d focus on documenting my own strategy to make eating good, nutritious, delicious food a consistent part of my lifestyle.

Jamie’s speech (and his series’ such as Ministry of Food and School Dinners) reveal that for many American and British families (and I would argue that many Canadians are following suit here,) food is no longer a part of family routine and ritual. Many children are not learning how to cook, and culinary traditions are losing out to fast foods and mass consumption that goes hand in hand with a need for instant gratification. Instead of cooking and eating together, families are alienated from one another as they eat in their cars or in front of television sets. But another part of the problem is that working long hours are not always conducive to long hours spent in front a stove. So for a while now, I’ve wanted to share my own strategy for making scratch-cooking and scratch-baking possible within the confines of a busy lifestyle and full-time work. (And being single).

When I first heard about batch cooking, I pictured women slaving away in a kitchen all day, cooking a week’s worth of meals for a large family, and thought, “that’s not for me.” But now batch cooking is an integral part of my strategy to eat well.

Eating food that is high in taste and nutrition is important to me, and I don’t like relying on convenience foods, as my readers well know. I prefer to skip buying foods that I can make myself, such as bread, cookies, crackers, cereal, desserts, dips, hummus, salad dressings, sauces, salsa, snacks, etc. I know this sounds like a lot of work, but I’ve actually got it down to a fine art now, so that I spend minimal time in the kitchen and simultaneously reap the rewards of a DIY approach to food.

Batch cooking is usually touted as a way to save on your electric bill, because you use the oven to make multiple batches at once, and it’s also commonly argued to be a great way to save time. I’d argue that batch cooking accomplishes both of these goals and more. For one thing, it is a tremendous weight-loss aid, because it creates meals that are always on hand – quick, healthy, homemade convienience foods. When I get home from work, I’m usually pretty hungry. Rather than having to snack before I start the long process of making dinner, or giving into cravings and picking up fast food or junk food, I am able to heat up or prepare a healthy meal within minutes, subverting the instinct to give in to unhealthy cravings. It’s hard to justify stopping at a fast food restaurant when I know that preparing my own meal at home would actually take less time than stopping at the drive through. Most of my weekly meals require re-heating, or perhaps require me to just make some rice, cook some pasta, dress a salad, or make some kind of simple addition to the meal.

So, how is batch cooking accomplished? My strategy is to make a few meals and snacks at once on Saturday or Sunday. I choose my meals based on what I have available to me. If I have eggplant, tomatoes and cheese on hand, I might make spaghetti sauce, eggplant parmesan, vegetarian lasagna, and/or pizza, all which require eggplant, tomatoes, and cheese. If I have a head of cabbage, I might decide to make a cabbage & white bean soup, and simultaneously make a minestrone soup. I will slice the rest of the cabbage to make cabbage roll skillet, or add to a salad, later in the week. If I make pizza, I almost always make two at once, and the same goes with quiche. I eat one while it’s fresh, and the freeze the other.

Homemade spaghetti sauce with roasted garlic

If you think this means you’ll spend a week eating nothing but eggplant or cabbage, fear not. My strategy is to keep a small portion to eat throughout the week and freeze other portions, so that I can enjoy more selection. You can also come up with different ways to eat leftovers. (For example, leftover cabbage roll skillet is great when wrapped in a tortilla and served with sour cream; eggplant parmesan is delicious on a crusty baguette and served with extra marina sauce, just like you’d eat a meatball sub.) When I make soup, I frequently make at least two soups at once, because they usually require many of the same ingredients, such as garlic, ginger, onions, celery, carrots, and potatoes. But depending on the main ingredients (say, Butternut squash, or Carrot and Ginger, their tastes can be quite different.)

I’ve heard different things on the merits of cutting up vegetables in advance of eating them. Some say that they lose their nutrition as they lose their freshness. Personally, I like to cut-up veggies and keep them crisp in water, because it means that I’m more likely to eat them as snacks or as an addition to a quick lunchtime meal. If I have a batch of homemade hummus in the fridge, it’s easy to reach for the ready-to-eat veggies and enjoy a healthy snack. If I have to go to the trouble of cutting everything up, I likely won’t bother. So you have to weigh the risk of a slightly-less nutritious carrot stick versus the risk of not eating the carrot at all, and reaching for some chips, instead. For the same reason, I like to wash and tear my lettuce in one go, rather than a little at the time. If I prepare a few days’ worth of salad and salad dressing, I’m much more likely to have a salad at dinner. I look at it as protecting myself against my own laziness.

When batch cooking, remember to take advantage of the oven’s heat to roast some garlic. If you love roasted garlic like I do, a great strategy is to roast it while you’re baking at a similar temperature (around 450). When done, pop the garlic out of its skin and mix it with some olive oil right away. Keep it covered in the fridge, and it’s an instant topping for pizza, pasta, garlic bread or flatbread, and also works well in salad dressings throughout the week. You can also use the residual oven heat to dry tomatoes or herbs. All of these tricks require minimal effort but make delicious additions to your meals, and are environmentally-friendly solutions to using less electricity.

The benefits of this strategy have been numerous – I maintain a healthy weight effortlessly, I enjoy great tasting food, I don’t have to rely on convenience foods or fast foods, and I eat foods that are very healthy. If I had to start from square one every night and cook a whole new meal from scratch, I guarantee I wouldn’t have the patience to do it, and I’d be snacking on junk food a whole lot more. The final benefit? A low cost meal plan. For the last four months I’ve averaged $121 a month on food. That includes personal care items, and works out to be less than $30 a week!

What are your favourite strategies for saving time in the kitchen?

Groceries
18 responses to “Reconciling scratch-cooking and the busy lifestyle, batch by batch”
1. E March 28th, 2010 at 15:45
  
  Good read. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this. I had a friend suggest I do the same thing – this whole batch cooking thing. The tough part is that I don’t have a microwave, so reheating things can be a challenge sometimes. I think I also need better pots and get some oven gear.
  
  I REALLY need to tryout your cooking! Reading your post made me want to come over and get some good food! I would be interested in trying out your hummous…
2. Saver Queen March 28th, 2010 at 15:56
  
  Thanks, E! Yeah, without a microwave it can be a challenge – although a lot can be done on the stove or in an oven or toaster oven. Garage sale season is coming up!
  
  My hummus it the best ever!
3. bcsmithereens March 28th, 2010 at 17:29
  
  Thanks!
  
  In January I tried Once-A-Month Cooking, by Mimi Wilson & Mary Beth Lagerborg. We’re still eating meals from it! I must say that to initially start out from scratch was tough on the grocery bill, and it was absolutely EXHAUSTING! But, when I can sit down for more than 2 months afterwards and enjoy the meals from that work, I think it’s worth it.
  
  This past month I also tried to deal with fresh veggies by cutting them all up and having them ready-to-eat. We’ve eaten way more veggies and salads this way. I love eating salads, but I hate the work that goes into them… leaving me salad-less. Now it’s so easy to just throw in pre-washed and cut things to make a salad.
  
  I guess, like anything else, change is hard, but if you really weigh the pros and cons out, batch/bulk cooking is the way to go!
  
  Thanks for sharing!
4. Saver Queen March 28th, 2010 at 17:32
  
  Wow, once-a-month cooking DOES sound like a real challenge! It must have been nice not to have to worry about meals for an entire month, though! It’s true, like you say, that change is hard. I think a good alternative is to just try a little at a time, instead of going whole hog. For example, even just making one or two meals or soups on the weekends can go along way towards making the weekdays a little easier!
5. psychsarah March 28th, 2010 at 20:46
  
  I’m sooooo with you on this one! It’s a rare weekend when I don’t make a pot of soup or sauce (pasta/pizza). When I make a casserole or lasagna or something and we don’t eat it all I freeze it in single serving portions for another day when we’re not up for cooking.
  
  You gave me a great idea to make two pizzas at once-don’t know why I didn’t think of that. How do you freeze them so they don’t get freezer burned? Also, how long do you usually heat them for after freezing? I love making my own pizza with dough in the breadmaker, sauce by the potful (so easy and tastier/less salty than canned) and fresh veggies.
  
  The roasted garlic is a fantastic idea too! Thanks for the inspiration One more idea-if you like carmelized onions, make a ton when you do it. It’s not a hard task, but it takes a while. I do it while I’m making something else, as you just have to stir it every so often. Like the garlic, you can store it with a bit of olive oil and it tastes great on foccacia/pizza or even as a side with meat.
6. Saver Queen March 28th, 2010 at 22:36
  
  Psychsarah – the carmelized onions is a great idea. I love carmelized onions but since it takes a while, I don’t make them as often as I’d like, so cooking a lot of them in one batch is an excellent solution.
  
  For the pizza, I would freeze it on the back of a baking sheet, and then once it’s firm, cover it in foil and or saran wrap. I’m not sure how long it will last before getting freezer burnt, but layers of foil or wrap should protect it pretty well. Usually i eat mine pretty quickly because a delicious homemade pizza waiting for me in the freezer is a hard thing to resist. I can’t remember how long to bake it for after that, (I really should record my methods) so I would just watch it carefully to see if the cheese is bubbling and the crust is browning. The good thing about pizzas is that since they are relatively thin (especially if you like a thinner crust) they don’t take a lot of time to bake, even when frozen. I love making dough with the bread maker as well – it’s so easy and delicious!
7. psychsarah March 28th, 2010 at 23:42
  
  Thanks for the feedback about the pizza. I’m totally going to do that next time If I remember, I’ll write down how long it takes to bake after freezing and get back to you!
8. Saver Queen March 29th, 2010 at 21:50
  
  Thanks, Sarah! If you can remember and let me know that would be wonderful, haha!
9. Catherine March 30th, 2010 at 14:16
  
  It does my heart good to come here and read your blog SQ and the responses. For some reason I love to know that there are like-minded people out there. In these days of rush, rush, rush and instant everything, no one seems to take the time to enjoy an excellent meal prepared with loving hands and shared with those you love.
  It depends on what time of year it is for me to decide what I’m up to. I especially like the Fall as that is when I like to batch cook beef or chicken pot pies, shepherds pie etc. Whatever I make for dinner I make lots and freeze the leftovers. As you say, it is wonderful to pull something from the freezer in the a.m. and know dinner while be waiting when you get home.
  I like to cut up veggies and put them in water – celery lasts so much longer that way. And, as you all say, it is ready and waiting and tastes refreshing.
  I’m just waiting for some warm weather so that there is a harvest of red peppers this year. Not enough heat last year and so I couldn’t make my red pepper sauce – and I’m all out!
  My Mom always batch cooked and canned like mad. I loved to walk in the house after school and smell something wonderful and always tried to do the same for our children.
  With regards to the frozen pizza psychsarah I usually wrap them as SQ suggests to freeze and bake them hot – about 400 or so for about 15-20 minutes. I don’t have a breadmaker and make my buns etc. from scratch…in fact, I have dough for hot cross buns rising in the fridge as I type.
  Have a good day all – I look forward to more ideas here!
10. Angela March 31st, 2010 at 16:25
  
  I also have a question about pizza! I would love to make and freeze some. I have a breadmaker which makes wonderful pizza dough but I’ve not used it that much. The last time I made pizza, I used the breadmaker for the dough then put the pizza on a tray, covered it with toppings and cooked it.
  What I’m wondering is – if I wanted to freeze the pizza, at what stage would I do that? Do you cook the pizza with all the toppings, let it cool down and then freeze it?
  Or do you freeze it with the dough uncooked and then reheat it from frozen?
  Any suggestions – I’m a little lost on this one and I don’t want to experiment because it’s quite a lot of work to do the pizza in the first place! Would love to know the answer though as the few bought pizzas I’ve eaten have been really high in sodium and not as tasty either!
11. Saver Queen March 31st, 2010 at 22:24
  
  Catherine – it’s so lovely to hear your voice on the blog, as always! MMM hot cross buns – they sound delicious!
  
  Angela – you don’t have to cook it first, just slide it into the freezer on a baking sheet, uncooked. Once it’s firm, you can remove the baking sheet and wrap it. When you take it out of the freezer, remove the packaging and slide it into the oven. Don’t defrost it.
  
  By the way, I’ve tried this with biscuit dough too, and it works as well. And you can do this with quiche as well.
12. Angela April 1st, 2010 at 07:27
  
  Thanks SQ! So do you put the toppings on before you freeze it? Or after (when you are just about to cook it?)
  
  It’s a while since I cooked one but I think I used to take the dough out of the breadmaker and then have to leave it to rest and double in size in a warm place before putting the toppings on and putting it in the oven to cook – so I’m also guessing I would have to let it double before I put it in the freezer?
  
  Just want to check before I attempt this again!
13. Saver Queen April 1st, 2010 at 18:02
  
  Angela, after you get the pizza dough out of the breadmaker, knead for about 1 minute, then let rest for 15 minutes. Then roll dough out to fit the pan. Place on a baking sheet. Then let rise for 20-25 minutes in a warm place. Then cover with sauce, then toppings, then cheese. Then – instead of baking it – pop it into the freezer. Remove once firm to wrap it. This should work. Good luck!
14. Catherine April 2nd, 2010 at 12:23
  
  Easter Trick….
  Hi all~ wanted to pass on what I just finished doing. I save the juice from the beets I pickle (with the secret ingredient ;o) and then hard boil eggs. Put the shelled eggs into a clean canning jar. Don’t jam too many into the jar. I like them to float a bit so every bit of the egg is covered with the juice. Bring the beet juice to a boil and pour over the eggs. Put on the top. You can do this about a week ahead or whenever you find the time before Easter Sunday. Doing this will stain the white of the egg purple and when you slice the egg it will have the yellow inside. Easter colours!
  Happy Easter Everyone!
15. Apples and Porsches » Blog Archive » Wholestyle on the Web April 2nd, 2010 at 13:02
  
  [...] Saver Queen: Reconciling Scratch Cooking and the Busy Lifestyle, Batch by Batch A gallon of spaghetti sauce seems like a lot of food and work, but it can save you time and money [...]
16. Angela April 2nd, 2010 at 13:48
  
  SQ – thanks so much! I am definitely going to try this! And it’s so nice to have the info you gave – believe or not I’ve been hunting for it for months!
17. Saver Queen April 2nd, 2010 at 23:13
  
  Catherine, so glad that you stopped by to share those tips. They’re great! I hope you have a wonderful Easter!
  
  Angela – good luck! Hope you stop by to let us know how it goes!
18. Melaniesd May 6th, 2010 at 15:07
  
  I also love to batch cook. Thanks for the pizza tip! I’m going to try that.
  
  I like to make big batches of spaghetti sauce. It’s so handy to have around. I also bake in bulk. Muffins freeze wonderfully! I usually freeze them by the 1/2 dozen in medium freezer bags. They defrost in no time and taste fresh.
  
  A few tips I’ll offer:
  -loaf pans are great for smaller servings (1-3 people.)
  For casseroles or lasagna etc, line the pan with tin foil and ensure you have some overhang. once the item is frozen, pop it out of the pan and wrap it to freeze. Then you are not tying up your pan and you simply pop it back in when you are ready to bake it.
  
  Another fun thing is to prepare a week or 2 menu with a friend. Go splits on the cost of ingredients and batch cook together. This way you each get your fair share of meals ready to freeze and only 1/2 the work! – plus great time with friends.
  
  My friend buys prepared pie crusts to have on hand when she is having a turkey dinner over the holidays. She and her mom make turkey pot pies with the leftovers right after dinner. It only takes them a short amount of time and this way they don’t have a ton of leftovers to deal with.
  
  Now that I’m working full time, I don’t batch cook as often. Hubby is on supper duty most week nights while he is in school. I’m sure we will be batch cooking a lot more once he is back to work.
  
  PS: SQ – glad to see you back blogging more regularly.
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Reconciling scratch-cooking and the busy lifestyle, batch by batch

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