Being Frugal with Your Time: In the Kitchen

So many people think of frugality as just saving money.  While that is all well & good (especially with everything that is going on in the world), it is important to remember that your time has a value attached to it as well. 

I often like to say that my husband's job is to bring in the paycheck and my job is to stretch that paycheck as far as I can.  That may be true, but it is my part-time job.  My full-time job is supposed to be taking care of my children and raising them to be good people.

And while I'm a big proponent of making things from scratch, part of the reason is because I really do enjoy cooking and baking.  But no matter if I am up to my elbows in flour or doing my Mama Leone impersonation (my monthly "make and freeze 4 lasagnas"), I still look for ways to cut my time in the kitchen.

1.  Fry bacon once a week and freeze it.  How many times do you have a recipe that calls for 2-6 slices of bacon?  You're standing there with a whole package of bacon (perhaps that you pulled out of the freezer) thinking "do I really want to go through the hassle/mess of just frying TWO slices"?  The next time you make bacon, just fry the whole pound (or two) and make up little bags of bacon for the freezer.  Then when you have a recipe that calls for a few slices?  You're Golden!

2.  Make Triple batches of everything and freeze them.  Do your kids wish they could have pancakes or French Toast for breakfast before school, but you're so busy getting them ready that you can barely throw a box of cereal at them?  The next time you make French Toast, pancakes or waffles for a weekend breakfast, just triple the recipe and keep cooking.  Once cooled, wrap them up in groups of 2-3 and pop them in the freezer!  One minute in the microwave and your kids are eating Sunday breakfast on Wednesday!

3.  Adopt FlyLady's "Clean Sink Policy".   People may think that this is the silliest thing they have ever heard, but there is something very powerful in always having a clean sink.  You would be amazed at how much more organized your entire life seems when you come down in the morning to a sink that is clean and free of dishes.  Just trust me on this one!

4.  Like the taste of homemade bread but hate the silly, stupid-looking loaves with the hole in them from the paddle mixer in your breadmaker (or is that just me?)  or just don't want to take the time to make it yourself?  Simply mix up your bread in the breadmaker on the Dough Setting and then transfer to a loaf pan when the cycle is complete.  Allow to rise for at least a half-hour and then bake at 350.  Even the most time-strapped can find the 3 minutes it takes to dump the ingredients in the machine and then the 2 to put it in the loaf pan!

5.  Clean as you go.  Like #3, this is purely psychological.  Rinsing a mixing bowl and throwing it in the dishwasher as soon as you finish using it?  It takes but a minute.  But allow those dishes to pile up and all of a sudden it seems like a much bigger task.  I don't know about you, but when I get overwhelmed, I tend to go in to panic mode and everything slows down or I think "Ugh!  I can't deal with this right now!" and I end up on the sofa with a bag of chips watching reruns of Deadliest Catch!

What are some of your favorite kitchen time-savers?