I've been thinking a lot about this lately, and today it all came together. As my little ones would say "I made a new friend" last night...and while we were talking about living healthy, natural AND gluten free, it helped me organize my thought a little bit.
Today, we made a 23 lb turkey...talk about frugal! What a lot of meals we'll be getting out of that! But, I made over 10 quarts of cream turkey gravy and am freezing tons of it....since it is thickened with cornstarch, it is gluten free , and will be perfect for any recipe that calls for "cream of ....soup"! Add celery, and I have cream of celery soup...the same with mushrooms. I will be needing a lot of crockpot meals starting soon due to the children's activities starting back up again soon, so this will really come in handy!
One of the things that has saved us the most money eating gluten free, is having an electric grain mill. I do have a hand mill, but will probably only use it if necessary...as it makes my rice very gritty/grainy. We go to asian markets and buy huge bags of sweet rice to grind, tapioca starch and rice noodles, and order sweet brown rice, millet, navy beans, buckwheat and quinoa from a natural foods co-op....sometimes, we'll also go to Trader Joe's and stock up on GF pasta and GF frozen waffles (these, at $2.00 a box are great to have around!).
Once a month or so, I'll grind my grains and store them in big containers in my freezer...then I have them handy to bake with. We'll bake muffins, make gf pancakes, and sweet breads for breakfasts and lunches....we'll make gf (what I call) flatbread for toast or sandwiches, and biscuits to have with soups or stews. Buying my grains in bulk really saves a lot of money, and with my grain mill...I don't have to buy any mixes...my mill grinds so finely. I can also change the degree of fineness , to very coarse and make cornmeal as well.
The brand of grain mill that I recommend is called the K-Tec grain mill. It is the only mill (that I am aware of ) made in the USA, and grinds the finest as well. I have many friends who have mills and their's don't grind quite as finely. It is VERY loud, but saving so much money...it's worth it, I think! I've also had great customer service from them as well. I don't know how to link on this computer, but if you search for K-Tec Kitchen Mill you'll find it.
So...that is mainly how I save money gluten free...hardly any cereal, no mixes or pre-made things (except pasta and occasionally waffles)...we'll have tacos...and use corn shells. I just pre-ordered a cookbook and can't wait to get it that is all crockpot, and all gluten free! You can check it out
http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/
Along the left side you can check out the recipes in alphabetical order, too. I'm off to have some dessert my oldest daughter made today...and maybe a game of Uno with the little ones. Have a blessed Sabbath! ~Sue~
1 comment:
Way to go, Mrs. Gorecki!!
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