Freezer Challenge Update -- Cranberry Bread & Chicken Soup

I joined the The Frugal Girl's freezer challenge earlier this week, so I thought I'd come here to share an update.

I defrosted cranberries for cranberry bread, only to discover that I was out of flour. Ten pounds of flour later and that plan was back in place. I'd pulled them from the freezer in the name of trying this recipe for cranberry-orange bread.

Did I have an orange? Nope! But I do have a can of orange juice concentrate that's been haunting my freezer door for at least six months. A simple substitution.

I was pleased to also find a bag of chopped walnuts, but they turned out to be rancid, which I luckily discovered before adding them to the batter. The "freezer challenge" is about preparing good food, not spoiled food.

The cranberry bread turned out tasty and it's perfect timing, as I'm having an old coworker to the house tomorrow morning.

My second from the freezer meal is this homemade chicken soup. The meat was from a half eaten Costco rotisserie chicken found hiding in the basement freezer.

Exhibit A:

Chicken soup is a simple enough meal, although it's not a quick process. It's fairly easy though, as you just dump the chicken into an Instant Pot, add water, a couple bay leaves and hit the "broth" button. Of course, you can also do this on a standard stove top.

You then wait for the chicken to cool enough to handle, before even starting the manual deboning process. Let's just say you have to be in a patient mood.

I'd normally add potatoes and peas, but I didn't have any. Instead I sautéed an onion and threw in a double amount of diced carrots. (Soup really is about using what you have on hand.) Hey, whatever works . . . .

Lastly I added dried parsley, seasoned salt, pepper, dill, a couple already squeezed lemon wedges, chopped ginger, a spoon of Better Than Bouillon, soy sauce and a bit too much turmeric -- which explains the golden hue.

I don't think I've ever repeated a soup recipe -- it's always a witch's brew! This makes it the perfect freezer challenge meal.

Now your turn, are you doing a freezer challenge?

Katy Wolk-Stanley 

"Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without."

Click HERE to follow The Non-Consumer Advocate on Instagram.
Click HERE to join The Non-Consumer Advocate Facebook group.