Saturday, June 5, 2010

Did I say I was back?

Perhaps I spoke too soon.... computer is still a little messed up and we are in the market for a new one, so it might be few and far between for posts... but I promised to tell y'all about something cool I did.... so here it is!

So every now and then, something comes your way that is both fun and makes your life easier. This month, I had the opportunity to join in a "Supper Swap" with some girls from my office. Here's how it works....

You pick a day/time/place to meet up. We met in the back of a Wal-mart parking lot on a Sunday evening. Each person in the group picks a freezable/storable meal to make. Then, depending on the number of people in the swap (it's 4 in our case), you make a dish for each family. So, you have a dish of your own to keep, 3 to give away, and you get 1 dish from each other person!

I ended up with 4 fantastic meals, and only had to buy the ingredients and prepare one! It may seem like a lot of work, but since I made enough of the same meal for 4 families, I was able to buy the ingredients in bulk, thus saving money. Also, the time I spent to make 4 of the same recipe was much less than it would take for me to make 4 different recipes.

Since it's only me and the hubby, each of these meals makes for great leftovers, or a great night to have over family or friends since we have plenty to share. I'm joining in the swap once each month which will give us about 1 pre-made meal a week. This works great for nights when I know we'll be busy -- and the other girls in the swap say it makes cooking with children around MUCH easier, too. The other benefit for me is exposure to recipes that I've never made before and might shy away from on my own. If we cook it and like it, I'll get the recipe and make it again some time!

I encourage you to get together with some friends and have a supper swap of your own... you won't regret it, PROMISE!

Hopefully more posts coming again sometime soon...
Lockslie :)