Lazy Day Stew

This is one of the previously mentioned freezer meals as well.  If you want to see any of the meal recipes in their original format, please follow the links in my original freezer meals introductory post. This recipe was very hearty and flavorful; I served it with pasta to soak up some of the juices and my husband said it was even better the next day as leftovers for his lunch.  The original recipe calls for potatoes, but I omitted them from my freezer bags in order to have more versatility.  I figured I could always throw potatoes into the crockpot if I wanted it to be an actual stew.  This recipe makes two freezer meals - divide evenly between two gallon-sized zip-top freezer bags, and lay flat to freeze.

Lazy Day Stew
4 lbs cubed stewing beef
10 oz pkg dried lima beans
2 15-oz cans tomato sauce (one in each bag)
2 Tbs. brown sugar (one in each bag)
4 c. baby carrots, sliced
2 c. onions chopped
2 c. celery chopped
2 t. minced garlic
2 large or 4 md. bay leaves
2 tsp. seasoning salt
2 c. water/broth (1 c. per meal, to be added at time of cooking)

Split between two bags.  Add 1 c. water/broth at time of cooking; cook on low 4-6 hours.  Serve as a soup, over noodles or rice, or with a big hunk of crusty bread for sopping up juices.

For a delicious, non-tomato based stew, check out my oven stew recipe!

Banana Oat Muffin

This post was inspired by a recipe from C&E.  I love some banana bread, but really, it's not the most healthy way to eat your fruit, what with all the sugar and oil.  Below, please find my adapted recipe.  And of course, enjoy!

Banana Oat Muffins
3 very ripe bananas
1 c. plain fat-free Greek yogurt
1 egg
3/4 c. honey
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 t. baking soda
1/4 t. cinnamon
1/16 t. nutmeg
2 1/2 c. oats
Optional:
chocolate chips, walnuts, banana slices, nutella, or other toppers/mix-ins

In a blender or liquid-tight food processor, combine all ingredients except oatmeal.  Add in oats 1/2 c. at a time pulsing to incorporate.  For "lumpier" muffins, barely combine.  For a finer texture, combine well.  Pour into greased or lined muffin tin.  Bake at 400 degrees for 15-25 minutes.  Makes 12-18 muffins.

Pesto Pork

The original recipe calls for 4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs.  But I had a rolled pork roast (bought as part of a package of pork loin roasts) from Costco, so I decided to give this recipe a try with pork. I also used Costco pesto sauce, bought in the refrigerated section.  I would not recommend using a shelf-stable pesto with this recipe, mostly because those tend to be made from dried basil and consist mostly of oil.  Homemade pesto would be ideal, though I have to tell you that the Kirkland's Signature pesto is a very close second, in my book, to homemade.  If freezer cooking, double the recipe and divide between two gallon-sized freezer zip-top plastic bags.

Crockpot Pesto Pork
1 4-lb pork roast/pork loin
1/2 c. prepared pesto sauce
1/4 t. black pepper
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 c. chicken broth (add when putting into crockpot)

Place all ingredients in crockpot (if freezer cooking, no need to thaw ahead of time); cook on high for 5-6 hours.  Pork will shred easily with tongs.

I served ours with steamed broccoli and brown rice, both seasoned with my homemade seasoning salt.  We will definitely be able to get a second meal out of this.  Maybe pesto pork tacos....

Crockpot garlic beer chicken

If you're on pinterest, odds are that you've seen the pins for the garlic chicken (baked in the oven) and the crockpot beer chicken.  I've made each recipe separately, but I decided to mash them together this time, and let me tell you - the results were mouth-watering!

Crockpot garlic beer chicken
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 12-oz. bottle of beer
3 cloves garlic, minced
herbs and salt and pepper to taste
1/2 large onion, cut into chunky rings

Spray crock with non-stick spray.  Place onion on bottom of crockpot and lay chicken on top.  Sprinkle with seasonings, pour beer over top, and top with garlic.  Cook on low for 6-8 hrs.

I tossed in some halved baby red potatoes to soak up the goodness and provide a ready starch for the meal.  I served steamed corn on the side.  If you don't serve the broth, ladle it out and freeze it in an ice cube tray to use to flavor other meals :)

Adventures in freezer cooking

Oh, ladies and gentlemen, I am tired.  So tired.  I just spent five hours chopping, dicing, portioning, tagging, and bagging vegetables and meals.  I piled way too much on my plate, so to speak.  Yes, I punned. ;)

Firstly, let me just say, chopping 10 lbs of onions in one go-'round was maybe not my best idea.  Do I have chopped onions in reserve now in my freezer to use at a later date?  You betcha.  And that will be nice.  But folks, my eyes are not thanking me right now.  They are still a little burn-y from all the onion fumes.  I was running the knife under cold water after each onion, and running each slice of onion under cold water before chopping it, and it still burned like lemon juice in a paper cut.

Secondly, I also chopped and bagged 4 bunches of celery and a quart-sized freezer bag of bell peppers.  I don't know about all of you, but peppers and celery do not stay fresh in my fridge very long.  So at least this way, I am not throwing away money by tossing spoiled produce.

Thirdly, if you decide to embark upon a freezer cooking session, I have a serious piece of two-pronged advice to give you.  Go big, and build a stash, or be modest and spend some time doing other things with your day.  Five hours is a long time to spend in the kitchen grouping ingredients for your recipes.  But now I have 14 meals (plus tonight's dinner is also in the crockpot) and a couple bags of chopped veggies to go, too.  At this point, I figure I can spend an hour a couple times later on this week and add three more recipes (that's six more meals) to my freezer arsenal.  At this rate, if I do one freezer-cooking session a week, I can always have some freezer meals on hand, and that is something that will be super nice for those days when life interferes.

Below, you can find the pages where I drew my recipes (or in some cases, my inspiration).  I will blog about each recipe as I thaw it, cook it, and we consume it, so you can look forward to those upcoming posts.  Some of the pages have multiple recipes on them, and I didn't make all of them, but if they interest you, you do your thing!

http://kristisrecipebox.blogspot.com/2011/09/crockpot-pork-chops.html
http://www.ringaroundtherosies.net/2012/02/freezer-cooking.html
http://www.laaloosh.com/2012/07/09/crock-pot-beer-chicken-recipe/
http://ldsliving.com/story/68979-easy-slow-cooker-recipes

Have you ever done any freezer cooking?  Are you interested in it?  What did you cook?  Did you like it or would you change the recipe the next time?  Do you have any advice for others who might want to freezer-cook?  What is your favorite freezer meal?

P.S. I will be blogging about tonight's dinner tomorrow (probably), so if you have chicken, beer, and garlic, and are looking for a meal idea, check back tomorrow (probably)!

Seasoning Salt

I love the zest added by a good seasoning salt blend.  Unfortunately, most seasoning salts on the market are more salt than seasoning, at least in my experience.  This mix has some zip to it, as well as a real depth of flavor.  If you like the zip, keep the tumeric.  If you're nervous about it having too much zip, decrease the amount of turmeric, but don't take it out entirely - it brings a nice dimension to the flavor that you won't regret!

Seasoned Salt
1 c. salt
4 T. sugar
4 T. black pepper
4 T. white pepper
1 T. paprika
1 t. turmeric
1 T. celery salt
1 T. onion powder
1 T. garlic powder
1 t. sage

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.  Store in an airtight container.

*Recipe notes: I use an empty 8 oz. shaker from a store-bought seasoned salt brand to keep some in my cupboard.  The rest I store in an airtight jar I bought from Ikea.  With this recipe, I can fill the shaker 2.5 times, so you definitely get a lot of bang for your buck.  Use this in any recipe that calls for seasoned salt, as well as at the table in place of regular salt, should you so choose.  You do need to use a small-grained salt for this, not Kosher salt.  The Kosher salt will not mix well in this recipe and you will wind up with disproportionately flavored dashes.  If you are used to Lawry's seasoned salt (or similar) you will get much more flavor with this blend without all the saltiness.  Start out using this in smaller amounts - you can always increase the flavor, but you will be hard-pressed to decrease it once you've added it!  Enjoy friends!

Healthier Oven-fried Tilapia

My family and I love fish.  We especially love fish and chips.  But that isn't exactly the healthiest way to enjoy a lean protein.  I was trolling through the trillions of tilapia recipes online and I found several that had elements I liked.  So I decided to do what I do best - mash them up and make my own!  Below, please find my new favorite oven-friend fish recipe.

Healthier Oven-fried Tilapia
2 fillets tilapia, thawed and patted dry
2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 c. panko bread crumbs
scant 1/16 tsp. chili powder
scant 1/8 tsp. (Hungarian) paprika
1 1/2 tsp. dried dill
1-2 tsp. (vegetable) oil

Line a large baking sheet with foil and drizzle with oil.  In a shallow dish, mix together bread crumbs, chili powder, paprika, and dill.  Coat tilapia fillets with mustard and then dredge in crumb mixture. Lay coated fillets on oiled baking sheet and loosely tent with foil.  Bake in a 425 degree oven 20-25 minutes, until fish is cooked through and flakes easily with a fork.

By Request! Green chile

Chile verde or green chile is something that is put on several different dishes in our former home state of Colorado.  Having spent a few years there, I fell in love with the yummy, smoky flavor; I even learned how to make green chile from a friend's mother.  This is a serious coupe all you chile verde lovers out there - the flavor of this is fantastic and only improves the second day!  This recipe will make you a fair-sized batch, but it is no big trick to double or triple it and freeze in quart bags to have on hand at any time you want.  It goes great on any Mexican fare you can think of, as well as eggs, steaks, chicken, pork chops - basically you name it and you can top it with green chile! ;)  This is also great meat-free.

Green Chile (chile verde)
3 4 oz. cans Ortega fire-roasted diced green chiles
1 4 oz. can Ortega diced jalapenos (this makes a decently zesty chile sauce, but if you want, you can dial back the spiciness by adding just a Tablespoon or two of the can instead of the whole 4 ounces)
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 c. chicken or vegetable broth
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. paprika
salt and pepper to taste
1 lb. ground beef/turkey/chicken or 1 can cooked chicken shredded optional

If using meat, cook meat thoroughly and drain if needed.  In a large saucepan, combine chiles, jalapenos, chili powder, cumin, coriander, paprika, salt, and pepper.  Stir well.  Mix cornstarch with 1/4 c. of the broth well, then add starchy broth and remaining broth to pan.  Stir in meat and bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat simmer to desired consistency (I usually go about 10-15 minutes).  If you allow to thicken too much, add water to thin.

Simple Chicken Guacamole Tostadas w/ Spanish Rice

If you watch Food Network, you might be familiar with Sandra Lee and her Semi-Homemade Meals show. I took a page out of her book last night and I whipped up some simple tostadas, blending some ideas I found on pinterest with my own recipe for tostadas.  If you've never had tostadas or don't usually make them, I like them as an alternative to tacos, just to switch it up - it's basically an open-faced soft taco, but the combinations and flavor possibilities are endless.  I also made a quick cilantro and onion relish and let it marinate while I was doing the rice and mixing together the chicken topping for the tostadas - my husband loved it!  Use the recipes below to create a meal or use them to create elements of a meal.

Spanish Rice
1 Tbsp butter (unsalted)
1/2 c. (jasmine) rice (don't use a minute rice here, use a long cooking one)
1 14.5 oz. can (reduced sodium) chicken broth
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 tsp. Kosher salt
1/4 tsp. ground oregano

In a saute pan over medium-low heat, melt butter and toast rice until grains are solid in color and brown (it should smell toasty), stirring frequently.  Pour in chicken broth and tomato sauce and stir well to combine.  Add in spices and stir; bring to boil and reduce to simmer.  Stir occasionally until rice is cooked through and liquid is absorbed.

Quick Cilantro Onion Relish
1/2 medium sweet onion, diced
juice of 1/2 a lemon
1 tsp. chopped cilantro (I used a prepared cilantro paste I bought in the produce section - it stays fresh so much longer!)
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. ground coriander

Combine all ingredients in a bowl, stir to combine, and let sit while dinner cooks!  Use to garnish tostadas.

Chicken Guacamole Tostadas
4 fajita-sized tortillas (I used corn, that's what I had on hand)
1 can cooked chicken
1 c. prepared guacamole (I used Wholly Guacamole, purchased from Costco)
1/2 c. shredded low-fat cheese (I used part-skim mozzarella)

Line a baking sheet with foil and preheat oven to 350.  In a medium-sized bowl, mix together drained, cooked chicken and guacamole (chicken should shred nicely).  Place tortillas on foil-lined baking sheet; divide chicken topping into four equal parts and spread on tortillas, as evenly as possible.  Top with cheese and bake in oven until heated through and the cheese is melted and golden in color.