Our Winter Freezer!

 

The back porch is serving so many alternative purposes during this deep freeze. It is way too cold to be grooming the dog out there. Even with the space heater on. We have a big bucket of rock salt -- which has now become impossible to find.  I also made a batch of vanilla ice cream and set it out there to freeze.  Frankie was also out of food, so I needed to cook for her.  That food is cooling out on the porch and will then go into the freezer.  But for now, it's plenty cold where it is.

I had an adventure in science today making ice cream.  The pot I used to create a makeshift double boiler has a curved rim. It's not the pot I usually use, it was just closer to the front of the cabinet, so I grabbed it.  For heating the base, I used a large Pyrex bowl.  The problem was that no steam or heat could escape from the pot.  That created an intense vacuum situation.  There was no way to separate the bowl from the pot. Unfortunately, my only option was to take a hammer to the bowl, which made quite an audible pop when it broke.  Now I will have to replace the bowl. It's possible that we have a ceramic bowl that's the same size in the basement. Hoarding has its advantages.

I had so much meat, that both crockpots were put to use.  Save-a-Lot had "Use or Freeze" ground beef and pork. It was half price, so I grabbed six pounds of meat.  A previous effort had produced bags of liver and veggies which I added to this batch.  Saying it smelled repulsive as it cooked, is an understatement.  This method requires water so that the meat will simmer.  Oatmeal is a great way to soak that up and add protein.  Lots of dog owners are against feeding carbs, but whole grains like oatmeal are nutritional and natural.  This is about four cups of oats, which ends up being 1/2 cup per day.  That's not a lot of extra grain.  Besides, my goal is to feed real food -- not a "caveman" diet for dogs. I know that wolves don't eat grains in nature, but dogs are omnivores and this is healthy.

Once the oatmeal is mixed in and the water is absorbed, it doesn't actually make up a whole lot of the content anyway. You might also notice the broccoli slaw I scored from Flash Food yesterday.  It is just an awesome way to add veggies to my homemade food without a lot of effort.

 

This is a going to last me a week, maybe a little more.  Frankie was frantic to help me clean up.  The most annoying part of making food myself is that she is absolutely wound up while it's cooking when I use the crockpot. She smells it, and she goes crazy.

My day wasn't all work.  Tommy had given me a gift certificate for a place called "Buffalo Hydration." They have an infrared sauna, infusion services, and vitamin injections.  There was a location near us, but it closed. The location I was able to use was a half hour away.  Going back there was not convenient, so I used the full value of the certificate for a 1/2 hour sauna, and three injections.  One was an anti-inflammatory cocktail that had turmeric and other stuff. I also got B vitamins and some vitamin D.  Don't know that I'd do this regularly, but I had a stiff lower back that now feels better!

Have you ever done a vitamin injection or infusion? I'm curious if others think they are worth it.