Tip for Today

Since I go to the grocery store twice a month, I buy alot of meat at one time and freeze it until we need it. It used to drive me crazy, because I always got ice on my meat, and I would swear it tasted different. I finally found a good way to freeze the meat, no ice and it still tastes the same. This is a simple tip, but it saved me from icy, yucky meat so I think it is worth mentioning.

This is the meat I bought today for the rest of January meals.

I cut the beef into 3 parts (it is a 3 lb. package)

Put one section, press it down and wrap in plastic wrap

Put all 3 sections in ziploc bag, and into the freezer

I separated the chicken into 2 sections, wrapped them, and put them in a freezer bag, too

**I put all the meals for the rest of the month on the sidebar over there. If I have already done a post on them, you can click and see it. As I cook the other things, I will post them. I think I like this better than the weekly menu posts. Those were just too long. Tonight is Poor Man's Steak and broccoli.

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

I bought some pumpkins at Walmart this week. I intended on cutting them open, toasting the seeds and roasting the pumpkin to have some fresh pumpkin. Well, apparently there are pie pumpkins just for that sort of thing, and I didn't get pie pumpkins. So, my kids and I still cut open the large non-pie pumpkins and roasted the seeds, but it ended there. I found some cute pumpkin tattoos, so they had fun putting cute pumpkin faces on their large, non-pie pumpkins.

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds
*recipe from allrecipes.com

1 cup raw pumpkin seeds, rinsed and dried (I put the seeds in a large bowl of water and most of the pulp stuff drifted to the bottom, so I just had to dry them well)
6 Tbsp. white sugar, divided
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 250. Spread pumpkin seeds in a single layer on a baking sheet. Toast for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally until dry and toasted (mine got slightly darker).

In a large bowl, stir together 2 Tbsp. sugar, salt and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the seeds and sprinkle remaining sugar over them. Stir with a wooden spoon until the sugar melts, about 45 seconds (mine took longer than that). Pour seeds into bowl with spiced sugar and stir until coated. Allow to cool before serving. Store in an airtight container.
My kids have been eating these all day, they are good. This was fun!

How to...

I love my wooden cutting board, but it needed a good cleaning and I had no idea to go about that. Of course, all I have to do is type "cleaning wooden cutting board" in my Google toolbar, and- voilah!! This info is from ehow.com.

Step 1:

Wipe down the board with a sponge and hot, soapy water immediately after use.

Step 2:

Get rid of minor stains by sprinkling table salt on the affected area and rubbing the area with a lemon wedge.

Step 3:

Use an abrasive antibacterial cleaner and scouring pad for tougher stains.

Step 4:

Rub the board with fine sandpaper to get rid of severe stains. Be sure to rub along the grain of the wood.

Step 5:

Rinse the board well.

Step 6:

Wipe off excess water with a clean towel and lean the board against a countertop to allow for even drying.