T.T.: Efficient Food Processing

If you've been reading here a long time--a reeeeally long time, like 12 years--you might remember this post about Rita the Puppy and her nighttime potty issue. The MiL was out of town at the time, which is why I was taking care of Rita. And when the MiL got back, she felt so bad about the inconvenience caused by Rita that she bought me a food processor.

I have mentally thanked Rita many times for that food processor over the years.

However. 

As much as I appreciate having a food processor when it comes time to shred three gallons of cabbage for sauerkraut or whatever, I do not like hauling the thing out and washing its many pieces. Which is why I make sure that I make the most of it when I do.

I never, ever use the food processor for only one thing. A common sequence for me is making breadcrumbs first, then making pesto, then making a marinara sauce. I don't have to even rinse the food processor out in between, because I don't care if small bits of breadcrumbs are in the pesto, or if the pesto is in the marinara.

When doing this, keep in mind that the purpose is to not have to actually wash it in between uses. So the first use should be for a food that doesn't have fat in it, like shredding vegetables, because then it can just be rinsed out and re-used.

Last time I used the food processor, I first used it to shred cabbage and carrots for coleslaw, then I shredded asadero cheese to freeze. I had had shredding the cheese in the back of my mind for a few days, but I waited until I was using the food processor for something else before doing the cheese.

Coleslaw on the left, cheese on the right. And shreds of each all over the counter, because shredding is messy.

I suppose this sort of goes along with my habit of trying to use dishes more than once to save on having to wash so many. So I guess your takeaway from this can be that I'm always looking for ways to reduce dishes. And that efficiency makes me happy.