Spring Happenings, and a Cheesy Frugal Breakthrough

It's been a while since I posted consistently, which I apologize for. But there have been other things keeping me occupied.

Like this...

 And this...

And these little (big!) guys!

 

When warm weather comes, I'd much rather be outside doing something than inside blogging about it.

I also made a trip with my mother- and sisters-in-law and some other ladies down to Shipshewana, IN to do some shopping. It's a popular "Amish tourism" place, if I can put it that way. We had lunch at Das Dutchman Essenhaus (complete with the famous Amish peanut butter) and also went to the flea market and some other shops. The big stop, however, was E & S Sales, a sweet bulk food store. When we left, the van was piled high- to the ceiling in some places. I came back with oatmeal, beans, rice, blackstrap molasses and CHEESE, of course. A huge 10-ish pound brick of mild cheddar and also a block of muenster. Best. Cheese. Ever.

My big frugal breakthrough this month was the cheese. Normally, run-of-the-mill cheese is $4 a pound at the grocery store. I can make my own cheeses for about $3 a pound, because that is what milk costs, plus all the time that goes into heating, cooling, curd-cutting and waiting. OR, I can by cheese in 10 lb. blocks at E & S Sales for $2 a pound. Folks, you can't even make cheese that cheap.

The problem with this is using a whole brick before it starts to mold in the refrigerator, and making it last until the next trip to E & S.  I fixed this problem by using my vacuum sealer  to make individual 2 lb. blocks of cheese. I use one of these every two weeks. So far the system has worked splendidly. I also sliced some of the muenster blocks and sealed them that way. Last week we had hamburgers and all I had to do was open the package. Very convenient!

I hope your spring has been as interesting and fun as mine. Have a great weekend!

-Bethany