My pantry is also 4 deep freezers and 3 frigs along with canned and dehydrated goods. I have some cured food like garlic etc also,
As of this morning ALL deep freezers and frig freezers are FULL. I have 4 casseroles in the one I will need to get ate before corn comes in and I freeze it. I will need a turkey for Tday, a rib roast for Christmas, pork ribs or roast for NY day and lamb for Easter. I should have enough meat (might not be what we want). We have plenty of meat, maybe not what we will want on a certain day or time but we will eat what we have.
Tonight I can peach butter tomorrow will be mixed berry pie filling after that will be cherry pie filling.
I plan to grow more peas to freeze so I need room for that also. Since I am making mixed berry pie filling this week, that should pull out 6 lbs. of mixed berries to give more room.
I wrote out what we still need.
I will can green beans, Italian green beans, French style green beans and maybe some purple beans if they come on a bit more. Right now they are at just enough for a meal stage every two to three days.
I will can turnips, beets, tomatoes (sauce/ whole/juice), pasta sauce, apple sauce, apple butter, apple pie filling, caramel apple pie filling, cherry pie filling and maybe depending on the blackberries coming in ... more blackberry pie filling.
I have no red raspberries and we won't have black raspberries (plants died again) either so most likely that is a buy or go without. That goes for mincemeat pie filling also and mild hot pickled cauliflower.
I have dried peas and dried diced carrots that I can use for peas and carrots especially with my fried rice or casseroles.
If possible I will add winter squashes and pumpkin to the storage in the fall.
I told all the kids and grandkids that if they need help... they can come get 1 month of what I chose to give them. Everyone except Daughter 4 is back to work full time. Even she has stocked for 2 months herself using what she has earned with Door Dash. Son 2 has stocked 1 large package of TP for each of his 3 sisters and 1 niece that live in his area so they don't have to drive 4 hrs. round trip for just TP.
When I get my Flylady calendar https://shop.flylady.net/p/_Calendar
I will write what we can eat on each month and cross it off as we eat it...Daughter 4 used to do this years ago. I inventoried and figured it out.
Tomatoes is any of the tomatoes, sauce, pasta sauce, whole , or juice.
July/Sept/Nov/Jan/March and May we need to eat these fruits/veggies.
Tomatoes, corn, any of the green beans, pickle beets, spinach, hominy, asparagus, dried vegetable including dried potatoes, dried or canned beans or lentils, frozen fruit, peaches and applesauce once a week
dried fruit once a day
4 oz. juice once a day
Green tomato apple pie filling, beets, canned green tomatoes, pumpkin and canned mushrooms 2 times a month
mandarin oranges, and canned potatoes 3 times a month
once a month : peas, bean sprouts, veg all, wax beans, canned carrots, snowpeas, pineapple rings, pineapple chunks, pineapple tidbits, crushed pineapple, blackberries, plums, apples, cranberry sauce, fruit cocktail, mango, cherry pie filling, plum pie filling, mixed berry pie filling, peach pie filling, apple pie filling, and strawberry pie filling. ( Just a note Pie filling usually makes us 2 -3 meals of fruit)
Aug/Oct/Dec/Feb/April/June we need to eat these fruits
Tomatoes, corn, any of the green beans, pickle beets, spinach, hominy, asparagus, dried vegetable including dried potatoes, dried or canned beans or lentils, frozen fruit, peaches and applesauce once a week
dried fruit once a day
4 oz. juice once a day
Green tomato apple pie filling beets, canned green tomatoes, pumpkin and canned mushrooms 2 times a month
mandarin oranges and canned potatoes 3 times a month
once a month: snow peas, peas, bean sprouts, veg all, wax beans, canned carrots, tropical fruit, strawberries, pears, fruit cocktail, mango, pineapple rings, pineapple chunks, pineapple tidbits, crushed pineapple, blackberries, caramel apple pie filling, apple pie filling, mixed berry pie filling, plum pie filling, peach pie filling, strawberry pie filling.
In the fall I will stock sweet potatoes, potatoes and onions along with winter squashes. I will buy carrots, celery, colored bell peppers and fresh mushrooms and I will buy kraut, frozen broccoli, frozen cauliflower and frozen California blend vegs. as needed.
We set the grocery budget after checking out https://www.fns.usda.gov/cnpp/usda-food-plans-cost-food-reports-monthly-reports.
We decided on low cost... $504.70/ month. THEN we decide to figure out what we averaged on take out during the pandemic.
We set our budget for $250 a month including anything that we buy for stocking the pantry (food only). We also set the eating out budget at $250 a month. That is what we averaged since the pandemic hit. Granted we were trying to help our local restaurants but I really don't see us continuing to order take out once to twice a week. I don't see us going twice a week. I have a slip of paper taped to the wall under the budget and I deduct what we spend from the $250. IF there is some left in that budget at end of month, it get's put in savings. Same with grocery budget for when prices goes up or I need extra for stock up. Right now I am down 60 lbs. of sugar and 50 lbs. of flour.
We went through the pantry and moved somethings around (I found more green beans) so everything is together not here and there.
Fingers crossed.
Blessed Be
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