Tag Archives: Chest Freezer

Getting a Chest Freezer to Make Your Kitchen Life Easier

July 26, 2011 • Categories: Autism Diet & Implementation, Autism News • by

With all of that extra frozen storage space with a chest freezer, you can be sure to have all the ingredients you’ll need on hand for any special dietary need. You can buy meat, nuts, flours and other foods in bulk to save money and store them in your freezer until use.  To save time, cooking in large batches and freezing makes dinnertime fast and easy.  With the extra freezer space, you can always have nourishing meals on hand.

From a quick post I made on Facebook about my new chest freezer, I received many responses and questions from clients and friends.  I’ve been asked to share my research and experience.

Chest Freezers vs. Upright Freezers

At first, uprights are intriguing—namely, it is so much easier to store food on shelves and find things and are no-frost.  However, for many other reasons chest freezers are the way to go.

Chest freezers are more energy efficient.  I have a 7.2 cu ft. freezer by Frigidaire and it’s estimated to cost $30/year to run it!  Cold air sinks, so when you open the door of an upright, you’ll notice the cold air come down and out toward your feet.  When you open the lid of a chest freezer, the cold air sinks mostly in and toward the bottom of the freezer, saving energy.

During a power outage, a chest freezer will keep food frozen for 3 days, where as an upright is only 1 day.  Unless you have a backup generator, this is important so your food doesn’t go bad.

Capacity in a chest freezer is significantly better.  While the shelves of an upright are convenient, they do not provide an efficient use of space.

While you may be initially turned off by a freezer that needs manual defrosting, there are significant advantages that make it worthwhile.  Freezer burn is dehydration, due to exposure to air. No-frost (upright) freezers pull the moisture out of the freezer to keep ice from building up, but this promotes freezer burn, particularly with non-airtight packaging.  Wrapping your food is important but the freezer you choose is important as well.

Storing in the freezer

It’s best to store in manufacturer sealed packaging like some meat comes in.  If it’s not air-tight, wrap it in freezer paper or plastic wrap (if you choose), then in a ziplock-style freezer bag.

Butter freezes perfectly, so you can buy butter for making ghee and freeze it.  You can save 50% or more doing this.  Staples like nuts and flour store well in the freezer when stored in an airtight bag.  Soups, stews, stocks, and other homemade food store very well in the freezer. (Yes, you can store in glass, as long as you leave room at the top so the container doesn’t break.)  On the other hand, yogurt and potatoes do not store well in the freezer—yogurt separates and potatoes have a mushy texture (although I don’t mind this and freeze stews with potato frequently).

Label food and when you froze it – I typically do this on the freezer bag.  Keep an inventory of what goes into the freezer and mark it off when you use it.  This will help you keep track of what you have.

Organizing the Freezer

With a chest freezer, there is a lot of room but everything is piled on top of each other.  Use the wire basket for things you need to use first or small items.  I organize the rest with in bags.  I use Eco Bags that are made with a netting of string – so air circulation is not affected—and I group like foods together.  This way I can pull out two bags of frozen food and get to what’s at the bottom. Place newer items at the bottom if possible.

Size

Chest freezers will hold 20-30 lbs or more of meat per cubic foot.  Depending on your needs, a 7 cubic ft freezer is often sufficient for a family of 4.  After researching on Consumer Reports and other sites, I found the 7 cu ft. GE and Frigidaire freezers to be two good entry-level options for around $200.  I have one and have a good friend with the other.  I’ve heard good things about both.

Extras.  You may want to think of getting a few extras (either built into your unit or purchased separately), particularly a lock for safety with children, and an alarm if the temperature rises too high. You also may want to consider a back up generator if you have a large investment of food in your freezer.

My chest freezer is one of the best investments I’ve made to make my kitchen life easier.

 

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Fifteen Ways to Save Money: Special Diets on a Budget

July 14, 2011 • Categories: Autism Diet & Implementation, Autism News • by

 

GFCF Diet on a Budget

For gluten-free, casein-free and grain-free diets, prepared foods and even ingredients can be expensive.  Nutrient dense foods like grass-fed meat and eggs raised on pasture are also more costly.  How do you eat these important foods while remaining on a budget?  It’s not as hard as you think!

This is one of the top questions I get, but you do not need to let budget prevent you from getting your family the healthy and nutrition foods they need.  In fact, by following the suggestions below you may save even more money than before you started a special diet!

Here are some of my favorite ways to save money without spending hours in the kitchen:

1. Make your own flour blends and bake from scratch.  Flour blends and mixes can be expensive. Baking from scratch saves time and money.  Buy flours in bulk and keep them in the freezer, then mix them into small batches of flour blends.  You will save time and money.

2. Buy eggs straight from the farmer.  You can save 25% or more buying straight from the farmer, even over farmers’ market prices.

3. Invest in a chest freezer and buy in bulk.  A chest freezer is one of the best investments you can make.  You can pick up a freezer new or used to save money.  Families on special diets often have an increased need for freezer space to store things like gluten-free flours, nuts, meat, and more. Buy in bulk to save money and store it in your freezer.

4. Buy half a cow or go into a wholesale/coop order with other families.  Buying larger quantities on meat and animal foods straight from the farmer can save you 25% over smaller orders, and up to 50% compared with natural food stores.

5. Go to a farm and pick your own.  Not only is this a load of fun and encourages eating fruits and vegetables, but you can save money when you pick and purchase in season.

6. Make your own fermented foods.  One pint of sauerkraut can cost up to $8 a pint, and one bottle of kombucha over $3.  You can make both of these fermented foods at home for about 1/10 the price.  Neither are time consuming to make.  In about one hour, you can make these and clean up—give them a couple weeks on the counter and nature does the rest.  Once in the refrigerator they last for months, particularly sauerkraut can last for 6 months.

7. Look for your local “unsexy” farmers markets.  The fancy ones often have larger fees and attract more exclusive farms and products.  More local, “down and dirty” (pun intended) markets have great buys—often ½ or even 1/3 the price of others. I have one of top 10 farmers’ markets in the country and while I love it for it’s quality meat, raw food concoctions, and bakery quality fruit—there is another down the street that is missing the fanfare and fancy dishes, but has super great deals.

8. Try transitional if you can’t get organic. I was able to find transitional almonds (not sprayed with pesticides while converting to an organic farm) for $4 pound. They are truly raw, unlike 100% of those found in the store, and are ½ to 1/3 the price.

9. Barter with your farmer.  Many farmers need help on the farm or would love to trade food or other goods.  One of my friends trades homemade sprouted granola with her farmer for raw milk.

10. Go in with friends or join buying coop. Many companies will give wholesale pricing for coops that place “wholesale-sized” orders.  You can either join an established coop or start your own.  I belong to a coop that buys freeze-dried snacks, non-toxic body care products, and more.

11. Dehydrate.  Invest in a dehydrator or score one at a yard sale.  You can make beef jerky, dried fruit, and other foods—particularly when you have bulk or in season buys.  It is a good cost savings and easy way to store food.

12. Make your own ghee.  Ghee can be pricey and it’s easy to make your own.  You can save 50% by making it yourself.

13. Whole pasture-raised chickens can be expensive. For bone broth, save and store bones from the roasted carcass and your vegetable scraps such as the ends of carrots or the leafy part of celery in the freezer and use for stock when you have accumulated enough.

14. Plant a tree or a garden.  Fruit trees are a great way to have delicious, organic fruit for free!  A garden is also a great way to save money.  If you’re new to gardening or do not have a big plot of land plant herbs like basil in pots indoors or tomatoes and garlic on a patio.

15. Can your own – if you or a family member ends up with a tree full of plums or a bushel of tomatoes, can extras for off-season.

Share how you save money on a special diet.

 

Photo credit: By Images_of_money on Flicker, Creative Commons, July 13, 2011

 

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