Making Do Without Missing A Thing---Putting It all Together--final week

   Could it be?

      Is it really true? 

Could there POSSIBLY be another appliance that I use as much as the six I listed in week three?

image courtesy

   Yes, dear reader it is true. In fact, I would say I use this appliance more than my deep freeze. Almost but not quite...yet... more than my dehydrator. 

*gasp*. 

I know, I know. *pat pat*

   But at the risk of having a phone call from a dear friend, 

who seems to think I have an outrageous influence on her husband 

(who is now the proud owner of a professional dehydrator and grain mill--HA!),

 I must confess there is an appliance that has made a HUGE difference for me in creating and planning the menus I have been using and sharing with you.

   *wait----is that the phone ringing?*

   I would not consider this appliance one that will necessarily save you money, but since we have been talking about saving money by trading time, then this one should definitely be in your line up.
   I can make brown rice....perfect brown rice in 12 minutes. That is six minutes to eight minutes off of the regular stove top time---and it turns out every. single. time. I can make filling for my enchiladas in one pot, in 35 minutes, and have it ready to go, perfectly warm and waiting AFTER WALKING AWAY. I can cook chicken parts, rice, and veggies in under 30 minutes, and they turn out beautiful.

When I am busy trading money for my time, something that cuts that time in half or MORE is very welcome at my home.

image courtesty

     I can make beans for a meal in under 30 minutes. NO kidding. From dry beans. So when you run out of canned beans (home canned), and store bought canned beans, all you have to do is follow the directions, throw it in there, and go work on something else. And they taste like the beans I can fairly often at 90 minutes in my pressure canner. Now, would I choose to do that all the time? Nope. But what I would choose to do is to have a plan B, because some days get really crazy in the Welcoming House, and sometimes 25 minutes is what I have to pull everything together. You have been there right?
   I know I shared with you a little bit as we talked about making Wheat Berry cereal. It is a bi-monthly staple for breakfast at our house. The kids love it, I love it, and man, it tastes pretty good. But I am leaning more and more and more on this appliance as I am going through this busy Spring and all the things that are on my plate each week.
   Now, just like the other appliances I shared, there is a slight learning curve. My husband purchased one for me for Christmas, and I have been diligently learning how to use it since then. I am quite sure I will get even better as the months pass and it becomes as popular around here as the occasional soda and chips that walk in the door.

I mean...this thing could actually REPLACE ME.......*gasp*.

sorry just had to add this one too--ha! image courtesy

 I have a twelve year old daughter who is very quickly learning to walk in some of my shoes (or outgrowing them), and who is starting her own binder and cookbook. I cant imagine just passing off the bread baking, or meal making one day, but I know it will happen. Dont think I wont go lock myself in the closet with my stash of Girlscout Samoas and do a wild happy dance all over the place! :) I mean, people, I have twins.

 Toddler twins. 

TWO YEAR OLD TWINS.

 It takes precious little for me to do a happy dance when something slides off my plate and on to someone else's. :)

   SO anyhow....Click right here to be taken to see a picture of the pressure cooker I own, and to see the current price. I was going to purchase mine from Amazon, but found it locally for a little cheaper, and that is always a bonus. Just so we are clear, if you click on that, and then decided to purchase that exact pressure cooker I get nothing out of the deal but the satisfaction of knowing someone else is now going to be saving time as well as money. :)

  " Ok Heather, you say, but how do I USE this thing??? "

Well, one of my very favorite links that has tons of recipes is this one:
1. http://fastcooking.ca/pressure_cookers/recipes_pressure_cooker_index.php
and this one:
2. http://missvickie.com/recipes/recipeframe.html
and this one:
3. http://www.fabulousfoods.com/articles/27942/how-to-cook-beans-in-a-pressure-cooker

   As the link says, the very last one is a chart showing all the different bean varieties out there and how long it takes to cook them. Some are recommended to be soaked, but if you keep looking around that site, it does tell you how to do it without soaking.
    I really really really hope some of you will consider it and write this down on your list of appliances to invest in. If you are busy and one of the things that has held you back is the amount of time that from-scratch cooking requires, then perhaps this appliance should be considered moving up in the line up. I think we paid just over $60 for mine locally, and Amazon was around $75. So a good savings for the amount of time it saves me each week. As much or more than my master mixes, which is saying something right there. :)

***before I close I wanted to say that someone shared with me that meats and other items can be kept in the freezer for much longer if you use a Food Saver machine that sucks air out and basically keeps it stable. I personally do not have one, but have been looking into them, and it looks like you can also use them with canning jars and that can make things last much longer in shelf stable condition as well, increasing their life long past the due date. I promise, when I do invest in one, you will be with me every step of the way as I learn about using it! If anyone reads this and has one, would you mind weighing in below in the comments? Tell me, was it worth it? Do you use it? How often? How variable is it (in other words, what do you use it in). How long have you had it and how has it held up? If there is someone reading who uses this and can tell me a lot about it, I would very much like to invite you to email me and perhaps we can set up a guest posting on it. :) Sounds fun, right?
   Tomorrow we will be covering week four with more tips and tricks. I hope you are learning and sharing!

Many Blessings to you and yours,

Heather