i grew about fourteen white burley plants this year, happily with success, and without pesticides or any other poisons. however, the nicotine produced by these 'naturally' grown plants is considerable, and is not always the best insect control possible. ironically, the high-alkaloid flowering tops and new leaves attract huge colonies of aphids, which don't look like they suffer for the experience. also, the ladybugs on the plants stayed quite healthy (as opposed to the confused claim in the posting above) and were my primary aphid predator--some ants helped, as well. As they crawled all over the plants for hours each day, there was clearly some contact. And there were the occasional leaf-cutting caterpillar (or whatever) that chewed up foliage, in some cases obviously getting pretty far, so instant nicotine death wasn't likely there. on certain other insects, i'm sure the nicotine is a good control, but i would not want cats or birds (or anything else) to suffer its toxicity. if a person were using commercially-grown tobacco, they'd be enlightened by checking out the reprinted article on the uses of radioactive materials in fertilization, as reprinted in the book The Emperor Wears No Clothes, by Jack Herer. It's primarily a cannabis book, but has other info of value like this. Best natural-type control? Pyrethrum works fine for me.

Anything that could be made ahead and frozen could also be (and in most cases would be better) made the night before and refrigerated, to be warmed up before serving. And even for those foods that don't suffer from being frozen, most will be better if you defrost them slowly rather than cooking them frozen. It's a lot easier to cook (or teach someone to cook) after dinner, when not hungry and under time pressure. Cooking skills take training and practice. It's hard for inexperienced cooks to connect between cooking techniques and results. Even if they were standing next to you while you cooked, it doesn't mean that they were paying attention. Even when an inexperienced cook can manage one or two things at a time doesn't mean that he can do several. My DH used to hate to cook because he thought he had to get several complicated dishes to the table at the same time. Once he realized that he should do no more than one dish that requires timing and learned how to assess which dishes can be kept warm, cooking became a lot easier for him. While I was waiting for the surgery (knee, so I was barely mobile before it and really needed help), I taught DH a bunch of techniques for fresh vegetables. I showed him how peeling and cutting up vegetables affects the outcome. By keeping cooking techniques simple -- either microwaving (with a sensor, so you just hit the fresh vegetable setting) or sauteing. That way he could see what it looked and smelled like when it was done, and that you don't need to grill to brown foods to enhance flavors. I showed him how to vary the seasonings. For example, for fresh broccoli, how just changing a small amount of oil from olive to sesame can make it taste different. The important thing, especially with men, is to focus on a result and then show them how to achieve it rather than give them a list of steps. While I was recuperating DH reached the point where he was experimenting with herbs! However, learning to cook creatively may lead the OP's DH to cook to his own taste. If all she wants is someone to follow orders, she is safer if he stays ignorant.

In case Annie doesn't come on, green pepper means green Bell pepper. Hot peppers would be specified by variety or called "hot peppers". Either way, I'll bet that batch of salsa has real punch! Tricia, I'm sure Annie's Catsup can be frozen, or you could do her recipe in stages, limiting your standing time at each stage, if you'd like to try canning. Day 1: Blanch and peel tomatoes. If you feel up to it, go ahead and heat until tomatoes are softened. [Rest time for you]. Cool a bit. Puree. [Can be done sitting]. Refrigerate. Day 2: Prep veggies. At this point you can go ahead with cooking or if that doesn't work for you, just refrigerate veggies. Day 3: Prepare Catsup. Refrigerate. Day 4: Prep jars (dishwasher). Heat lids and rings. Reheat Catsup, bottle and can. You may still prefer to freeze or feel this exceeds your limitations but if anyone on the Forum would like to do something like Annie's Catsup divided over time, this give an idea of how to approach it. A lot of these things can be prepared in stages, whether for freezing or canning. I hope that helps a little. Carol

The mayo would be my hesitation to freeze. Some recipes would freeze better than others me thinks. I would probably prep some of the parts ahead in kit form. Maybe grate the cheese now and portion in 1 lb zip lock getting all the air out. You could even add the spice and pepper. Chives and/or another herb would add nice color and flavor. Assemble the night before the first event and fridge them. (i think you have three balls to make?) The no-freeze lists are fine, even the first one posted if you read the copy. It was mentioned to not expect fresh when thawed, but perfectly edible to cook with. I recently roasted a half dozen red peppers and a few dozen halapenos, chopped/sliced, then froze in small useful portions. A bag of limes i juiced and froze in ice cube trays. Meyer lemons i freeze whole and grate a bit as needed... Many things freeze fine if used in cooking or cubed fruit going straight into a smoothy. Saran is a nice tight way to seal something like a cheese ball to keep its shape and get all the air out but it should be further sealed in something heavier like a freezer thick zip-lock. Or foil. Or freezer wrap, parchment. I use to make something i called an AntHill. Lined a small half dome soup bowl with saran, then line it with paper thin provolone from my deli. Lay in some nice herb leaves, chives, basil, parsley, thin slivers of sundried tomatoes...then another layer of thin prov...a layer of nutty pesto, then my cheese ball filling...usually white cheddar, cream cheese and some spice. Fold over the excess saran and chill overnight. Flipped over and un-molded it had a nice see-through design of herbs. Sprinkled with a trail of toasted black sesame seeds for the ants. It was my holiday go-to dish for a few years. Easy to travel to parties. Something like that, kept cold in a ceramic bowl in a chilly part of the fridge, i would be fine making it 4-5 days in advance. I would not freeze it for NewYears if i made it today. But i would shop for the ingredients and have them ready to make a day or two in advance. Cheese grated, herbs washed, and ready for assembly the night before.