Freezing Cheese & Product Reviews

I finally finished putting up our "Once A Month" grocery haul. This always takes a day or two, because I also reorganize and clean out our refrigerator and our freezers to make room for the new groceries. Since we still have to eat during this process, I also made lunch when I was able to stop for a bit.

One of the last things that I needed to do was package the 10-pounds of cheese for the freezer. I ordered Pepper Jack and Smoked Cheddar this time. We still have plenty of Colby jack and some mozzarella from a previous order. The mozzarella is running a bit low, so I will put it in my cart at Azure Standard, so I won't forget to order it in our next order. I keep an active list of needs and wants in my cart. I add and subtract things until I have the order I want to place. 

Pepper Jack grilled cheese sandwiches, homemade potato salad, sliced apples (of course)
and two types of probiotic salsas.

Both types of cheese were crafted by Rumiano.
I did not take a picture of the smoked cheddar package. 

Shaved pepper jack cheese and fresh homemade bread.

Lots of peppers, but the flavor is not too hot.

The trick to freezing cheese is to wrap it tightly with plastic wrap making sure that there is no air in between the wrap and the cheese. 

Softer cheeses freeze better than hard cheeses. Hard cheeses tend to crumble when grating after freezing, but other than that the flavor is not compromised.

I packaged the smoked cheddar in smaller portions,
because a little goes a long way. It is a lovely hard cheese with lots of smoke flavor.

We had a snack of roasted pumpkin seeds and dried mango slices after we finished up our long day. Both are superb Azure Market products. 

These are the two types of salsas that we 
ate with our meal. I really enjoyed both flavors. 

We have new landowners close by, so I want to give a shoutout to M & A and welcome
them to the wild west!

Blessings,

Mrs. Smith

We have Lots of Apples - Azure Standard

I ordered a 27-pound box of organic Cosmic Crisp apples from Azure Standard this month. They are bursting with flavor. Sweet and tart at the same time. They are similar to Honey Crisp apples as far as their crispness, size and sweetness. Definitely a winner in my book.  I had hoped to preserve the apples by canning apple pie filling, making fruit leather and drying slices, but we like them so much we are just going to eat them raw, make deserts and maybe juice some of them. 

Every apple is perfect!

They are colossal in size and flavor!

I believe I paid $1.65 a pound. This is a great price for organic apples, let alone Cosmic Crisp apples. 

I don't think that we will order apples again until the new crops are harvested in the fall. These apples should last 2-3 months if they are kept in a cool and dark place. It is still in the 20's and 30's here at night, so we will store them in our storage room until the temperature rises above 59 degrees in the room during the day, then we will put them in our refrigerator. If I think we won't be able to use them all up before they go bad, I will make and can some apple pie filling to preserve what we can't finish. 

Stay safe,

Mrs. Smith

Azure Standard - May Order Preview

We picked up our Azure Standard order for May recently. We ordered several new items to try out this time. We are very pleased with our order. I was very deliberate in my choices this month. I want to boost our health by adding high nutritional value foods to our meals. I blogged about quinoa being the healthiest food on earth last week. I want to share a few of the items that we purchased, the reasons why and how I plan to introduce them into our diet.

This is one of the meals I prepared from our Azure haul. Homemade sliced black peppered chicken, Bubbies probiotic horseradish, Wildbrine probiotic salsa rojo, Cosmic Crisp organic apple slices, Rumiano smoked cheddar cheese and homemade potato salad. Absolutely delicious! 

Number One Husband announced that he would only drink Alexandre Family Farms milk for now on after trying it, and that he was not sure what he has been drinking from the grocery store all his life, but it was not real milk. I do not care for milk at all. I do enjoy cultured foods made from milk, such as yogurt and cheese. We purchased a case. The bottles have expansion bottoms and can be frozen. Freezing the milk does not change the milk's consistency, unlike the regular milk purchased from the grocery store that separates once it has been frozen. This is very helpful when practicing once-a-month grocery shopping.

Pumpkin seeds are super healthy and are easily added into baked goods, salads or they can stand alone as a quick tasty snack. The description below is just a few of the benefits. There are many more, like sleep support, and others that are not listed below.

I copied this information from the Azure Standard website:

"Pumpkin seeds are a valuable source of zinc and other minerals such as phosphorus, magnesium, manganese and copper. What makes pumpkin seeds truly a health superfood is the diverse range of antioxidants including various forms of vitamin E and phenolic acids. Pumpkins seeds also contain health-supportive phytosterols, including beta-sitosterol, sitostanol and avenasterol."

Dried mangos are the next best option compared to fresh. I don't have to worry about them going bad before I can use them up. They are a great snack, can be easily added to fresh salads or baked goods. The nutritional value alone was reason enough to add this tasty treat to my pantry.

Azure Standard description excerpt: 

Besides having more than 20 different vitamins and minerals, mangos contain flavonoids like betacarotene, alphacarotene, and beta-cryptoxanthin, which help vitamin A to impart antioxidant strength and vision-protecting properties.

Mangos are a wonderful addition to salads, along with other fruits such as mandarin oranges, grapes, apples and pineapples. Impressive amounts of vitamin C, vitamin A, and flavonoids in mangos benefit a healthy immune function, normal blood pressure, good vision and strong bones, plus added protection from lung, mouth, colon, breast and prostate cancers, leukemia, and stroke.

Cacao nibs have a very strong chocolate flavor, a little goes a long way. I will add these little power packed treats to our smoothies and baked goods. They have all the flavor of dark chocolate without added sugars. 

Health benefits and uses stated on Azure Standards website:

Azure Market Organics cacao nibs begin their journey as whole cacao beans, which are then crushed into smaller fragments. The resulting nibs have a rich dark chocolate flavor and delightful crunch, perfect for a wide variety of delicious uses. Add them to smoothies, protein bars, cookies, muffins—anything you want to imbue with the taste of chocolate—or try sprinkling them over pancakes or your coffee or tea. They really stand out when combined with vanilla bean in desserts and breads. 

Our cacao nibs have a myriad of health benefits thanks to their protein content and high concentrations of vitamins, antioxidants, and minerals (including iron, magnesium, and potassium). Studies suggest that eating cacao products can lead to lowered blood pressure, inflammation, and stress, as well as reduced risk for diabetes and heart disease. Best of all, cacao nibs don’t have any added sugar, so you can enjoy their delicious chocolatey flavor and health benefits guilt-free! 

As we continue to try out new food finds from Azure Standard, I will share what we have discovered and the health benefits here on the blog. 

Until then, stay healthy and be blessed...

Mrs. Smith

Azure Standard - March Grocery Haul

We picked up a small grocery haul from Azure Standard for March. We purchased a larger amount in January during their sale, so we didn't need to purchase anything in February. I probably won't place an order in April. The trips, yes, I said trips, went well, only one close call, one wreck and we only witnessed one road rage incident. 

I ordered a 5 LB bag of organic kelp powder. It is an easy and inexpensive way to get the minerals we need from a natural source. This will last a very long time, since we will only use 1/4 teaspoon a day for both of us. The rest of the order is self-explanatory.  

We also received our Azure Cash from the last order we placed. It covered most of the shipping fee. We will probably only order every other month or quarterly from here on out to save on the cost of driving to our pick-up spot. It is well over a hundred miles round trip. I will also try to schedule grocery shopping and appointments around the pick-up times. This is easier said than done. We ended up having a six-hour layover in between my appointment with the oral surgeon and our pick-up time. We did our regular shopping, had our tires rotated and came back home. This cost us over $30 in extra fuel. UGH!!!

It was late when we got back home, so I didn't take pictures. I was tired, the new stitches in my mouth were hurting and I needed to get the frozen food put into the freezer. I made space when we got back home after the first trip, so it went smoothly. I also put up and packaged up our other groceries that we purchased. We don't have a large freezer, so our freezer space is limited. It all fit perfectly without any room to spare. We didn't buy a lot of groceries, but it was sure expensive. Every time we shop, we get less and less, and it costs more and more. We will still need to pick up fresh produce, milk and fuel about every other week or so. 

I don't care for shopping days although I am grateful to be able to buy groceries. Shopping days are usually long days. It's really tough when I can't find what's on the list. I then have to make on the spot substitutions or abandon my meal plans completely. This can blow up a budget fast. I was able to find everything this time even though I had to take a chance and drive across the city for one item that I couldn't do without nor substitute. It was a must have medical product. 

Traffic is always heavy, especially in the summer months. I despise the actions of tailgaters and driving bullies. Like tailgating is going to make someone go faster. These people are dangerous and only care about themselves. There were lots of patrol cars out on our route this time. This is unusual for this remote part of the county. All the highway and freeway signs warned of the impending snowstorm that was heading our way. So far, it has been a bust here at the ranch. 

It was worth the effort and overall, a nice uneventful trip for which I am grateful for. I am glad that I don't have to do it every week!

Blessings,

Mrs. Smith

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HS614 - Azure Market Organics Kelp Powder, Organic
1 of 1 shipped @$35.01 each / 5 lb

$35.01

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FG1111 - Azure Market Organics Sweet Potato, Diced, Frozen, Organic
1 of 1 shipped @$12.53 each / 5 lb

$12.53

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FG749 - Azure Husbandry Cherries, Bing, Pitted, Frozen, Transitional
1 of 1 shipped @$21.75 each / 5 lb

$21.75

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FG1117 - Azure Market Organics Red Beets, Diced, Frozen, Organic
1 of 1 shipped @$14.40 each / 5 lb

$14.40

---

CO730 - Wildbrine Kimchi, Raw, Fermented, Korean Style
1 of 1 shipped @$22.40 each / 4 lb

$22.40

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Product Subtotal: $106.09

Shipping: $9.02

Outstanding Credits and Balances

Azure Cash: $-6.26

Total to Charge: $108.85

Azure Standard And Another Polar Vortex...

We were driving on ice for part of our trip.

We saw the tail end of a wreck on the ice. I was glad when the road cleared up as we dropped in elevation. 

We awoke to an enormous wind, before the alarm clock went off at 5 Am, that sent our new canoe flying into the fence in the front yard form behind the barn. The wind knocked out all but 2G on our phone. 

It seems that we are about to experience a polar vortex. - 4 degrees tomorrow night. We should be -38 degrees with a sizable snowpack. Nope! This may be coldest that we have seen all winter. What in the word is going on? 

We had to be in the big city yesterday. In fact, we had to leave at 6 am, turn around come back home. If it were normal times, we would have stayed in the city and enjoyed all the things the city has to offer, but these are not normal times. We couldn't even hike. The wind chill was brutal. I re-scheduled an appointment due to the weather only to find out that the doctor called in sick. Another doctor came in early to see me. I was the first appointment of the day, so I didn't get the message before I had to leave. The message never came through. We took all precautions to keep from getting sick. 

We picked up our Azure Standard order and did our monthly shopping while we were in the city. We filled up on gas and saved a whole dollar per gallon. Too bad we had to come home due to appointments that were seven hours apart. I was so sleepy when I got home that I went to bed early.

We picked up 20 lbs. of apples. We will juice some of the apples with carrots, can some apple pie filling and we will eat fresh apples too.

There were a few that got bruised, but all in all they were very nice.

I haven't tried the Kimchi yet. I love Kimchi.

Cheese and carrots. 

This stuff is the real deal. 

Packaging the cheese for the freezer.

Soft cheese, like Mozzarella, freezes really well.

Kale for soups.

We picked up some potatoes.

We stopped at four stores to purchase the rest of our groceries and sundries. I stuck to my list and my desire to not get sick, so I didn't venture down the isles to see if there were shortages and price increases. I was laser focused and budget minded. We did stop at two stores just to try and find English muffins to no avail. 

Blessings,

Mrs. Smith

Simple Red Beans and Rice...

I had to pull out my 8-quart pressure cooker after picking up our grocery order from Azure Standard. We ordered a large bag of small red beans. They are our favorite variety of beans, mild flavored and very versatile. 

Mommas give the best gifts! Thanks Mom!

This bag was about the same price per pound as Walmart's non-organic beans. 

Beans will not cook on the stove at this altitude without a pressure cooker. I cooked my first pot of beans here on the stove for three days and they never did soften up. After that experience, I only cook beans and rice in a pressure cooker. 

They turned out perfectly. I made enough for our needs for the month.

I used a portion to make Simple Red Beans and Rice with Smoked Beef Jalapeño Cheddar Stuffed Sausage. Yum! 

Simple Red Beans and Rice

4 Cups Cooked Red Beans, undrained

4 Cups Cooked White Rice

4 Tbs Butter

Creole Seasoning to taste

In a skillet, melt butter. Add beans and creole seasoning, bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Continue cooking and start mashing the means with a potato masher until the beans have a refried consistency. Serve with a side of white rice.

 

I will share, in future blog posts, what we have tried form Azure Standard. I did try the clover honey yesterday and it is really good. I had it in a hot cup of tea. Number One Husband has eaten a couple of spoonsful, so it must be good because he doesn't do that. 

Shalom,

Mrs. Smith

Azure Standard Haul...

This is our first Azure Standard haul. It was amazing to see all the people, including children, taking items off the truck. There were over 40 adults along with many children. All the items were placed in alphabetical order by last name next to clipboards on the ground. It took about 20 minutes to get dozens of orders filled from the truck. I didn't take pictures of all the people for privacy reasons. 

Every able-bodied adult and child helped to distribute the items to their designated place next to their clipboard. It was very organized and fine-tuned. This is the largest drop Azure Standard has on this route. It was impressive to see everyone come together to make it happen in such a small amount of time. 

This is what we ordered...

24 pounds of raw clover honey or two gallons...

Coarse ground cornmeal and thick cut rolled oats...

10 pounds of dark rye flour...

And 5 pounds of hulled barley...

This was a fun trip into the city to do our once-a-month grocery shopping. We have had to be in town so much for various appointments and needs lately that we have gotten away from shopping only once a month and our budget paid the price. We also made stops at Walmart and Sam's for milk, produce and birthday party requests. Someone is having a birthday soon! Burgers, fries and cake are on the menu. 

Shalom,

Mrs. Smith