New mugs, Zwilling storage and Pinkie is in and growing

I'm still living in the outernet, still loving it and still glad to be alive. I wrote about the outernet here if you have the time to read about it. Every time I walk out into the backyard and look around, I have a feeling of gratitude for everything I have, especially the gardens and access to the private, open space. The garden brings balance to my days, keeps me active and reminds me of the benefits of the past and the promise of the future. Earlier this morning, I planted my rose, Pinkie, in a large pot so she can climb up the lattice. When Pinkie flowers she will create a beautiful backdrop to the garden that I've spent almost three decades tending. I am one lucky gal.

I bought these gorgeous mugs recently and have been enjoying my morning cup of tea with them on the front verandah. They make me smile everytime I see them.

I've gone back to making bread. I have a loaf on the rise now and it should be ready by lunchtime. I plan on having a leg ham, salad and tomato relish sandwich for lunch with homemade lemon cordial and lots of ice.  The forecast temperature is 35C here today, I've just turned the airconditioner on and when I get a fair bit of this post written I'll look forward to doing the rest of my housework in comfort. I have a load of washing in, the weekly grocery shopping was delivered earlier and although I put all the cold things in the fridge and freezer, the rest is waiting for me on the kitchen table.

Some of you will remember I bought a Zwilling Fresh and Save vacuum starter pack in January this year. I've been using it non-stop since then. It's changed how I shop and cut my food wastage to almost zero. I recently bought a three pack of a small, medium and large glass container set and I'm using them for storing cold cuts, cheese, strawberries and leftovers. A good friend of mine bought a starter set when she heard about mine and recently she told me it’s been “life changing” for her. It's a truly wonderful system of food storage in a vacuum. When used correctly, it enables food to last five times longer than normal.

The two photos above are the new vacuum set I bought recently.

       

This is bacon stored in a Zwilling vacuum container. This lot is 4 weeks old, generally when it goes a bit slimy and disgusting, but this was as fresh as the day it went in. I finished off this bacon the following week and didn't waste any of it.

This lettuce looked good - it was three weeks old at this point - but it was bitter when stored in the plain glass container with no vacuum. I stored half this lettuce in a Zwilling container, finished it off when it was six weeks old and it was tasty and delicious.  Another batch of food saved from the compost.

This is more non-Zwilling storage but this time it worked out well. A cucumber from Woolworths with parsley and cherry tomatoes from my garden - so really fresh. The photo was taken at week three, I finished off this box in week four and all the food, including the cucumber were good to eat.

This beef ravioli will be eaten in a couple of weeks time after being stored in the fridge. 

I took a small amount of parmesan cheese off the top of this block and I know when I come back to eat more, it will be good to go after being stored in this Zwilling vacuum bag in the fridge.

The bags are easy to clean - I clean mine with a brush to get into all the corners and edges, then dry them in the sun on the back verandah.

Recently I decided to test the Zwilling against the methods of food storage I used in the past. What I discovered surprised me a bit but it was a pleasant surprise. When storing fruit and vegies in the plastic bags I bought them home from the supermarket in, vegetables and fruit lasted about a week. For instance, cucumbers and ripe capsicums went soft and mushy after a week, especially if they'd been cut into. Storing the same things in a plastic box with a clip down lid, they lasted a bit longer. But storing them in a glass box with a clip-on lid, well, they lasted three to four weeks. The Zwilling containers come out on top with taste though. The non-Zwilling glass containers with no vacuum looked good but the lettuce was bitter.  The food stored in the Zwilling boxes all looked and tasted fresh.  I'm certainly a Zwilling convert and I recommend the vacuum system to you.  I have no connection to the Zwilling company.

This is the relish I made last week.

Times are tough at the moment. For mortgage holders and for people who shop for groceries (at our two major supermarkets who say they're helping us as much as they can yet they're still making billions of dollars in profits 🙄) I hope you're keeping your head above water, especially at this time of year when usually we're shopping for Christmas presents and food. Try to make use of any produce you're growing to make christmas drinks and food. I've just made some cordial and tomato relish. I'll be storing it all but it will make it onto our Christmas table too. Everything you can make now will be less you have to spend later.  If you are struggling, I hope you get through the Christmas period and look forward to a better year in 2024. Be kind to yourself, don't let pressure from family and friends get to you and just do what you think is right. ❤️

Here are two recipes for relish I'm happy to share with you.

• Fast tomato relish - using tinned tomatoes
• Traditional tomato relish - using fresh tomatoes

And finally, here are a couple of photos of Gracie taken this week.  She's in good health but she had to endure a clipping and a bath this week.  Thankfully, she started talking to me again yesterday. 🫤