I am pretty happy with how Week One of Freezer February is going! I know it is only Wednesday, but I feel like I have already made some major progress. We went grocery shopping on Sunday and I made sure to prepare an extensive list before we left. This helped to eliminate "extra" buying since I already knew the bill would be higher than usual (makes sense if I am making two weeks worth of meals in one week). I also had to buy some disposable/recyclable containers for the frozen meals. I wanted the frozen meals to be easy to make and clean up. I have listed the recipes below and what I did to freeze them. I am posting the recipes as if you were to make one meal (except for the chicken pot pie). Pulled BBQ Chicken Panini (Supper Yummy & Easy)
Servings: 2-4
Ingredients:
1 large Chicken Breast
1 bottle of Sweet Baby Rays - Honey BBQ Sauce
4 stalks of Celery - chopped
1 bunch of Green Onions - chopped
Slices of Monetary Jack Cheese
Ciabatta Bread
Directions:
Put chicken and 1/2 bottle of BBQ sauce in crock pot. Cook on low for 6hrs or high for 4hrs. Remove chicken and dump out cooked BBQ sauce. Pull chicken apart into shreds with a fork. Place back into crock pot with chopped celery & chopped green onions. Add remaining BBQ sauce, mix well, and put on warm. Slice ciabatta bread and add chicken mixture plus one slice of cheese. Grill on panini press (honestly I don't own one, but I do have a sandwich maker that I put it on for a minute to melt the cheese).
To Freeze:
Place chicken mixture into individual size freezer bags. Defrost overnight or in microwave. I wanted to make small bags full so someone could just make a sandwich when they wanted.
Quick & Easy Vegetable Lasagna
Servings: 4-6
Ingredients:
8 oz No Boil Lasagna Pasta (Mueller's Brand)
26 oz Jar of Chunky Vegetable Pasta Sauce -- I use Ragu Super Vegetable Primavera
16 oz Container of Ricotta Cheese
8 oz Mozzarella Cheese
1 green pepper
1/2 onion
Handfull of mushrooms.
8x8 square baking dish
Foil
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Chop green pepper, onion, and mushrooms. Cook on skillet until soft. Poor pasta sauce into a bowl and mix in fresh veggies. (I do this so the lasagna has a "meaty" texture to it)
3. Spread a thin layer of pasta sauce on bottom of baking dish.
4. Place a layer of lasagna pasta (uncooked - no boil brand) over the sauce. Break pasta into halves to get them to fit, if necessary.
5. Spread a layer of ricotta cheese over hard pasta. Use up half the container.
6. Spread a generous layer of pasta sauce over the ricotta cheese. Make sure that no pasta is exposed.
7. Layer half of the mozzarella cheese on top of the pasta sauce
8. Repeat steps 4-7
*** To freeze stop here! Cover dish with foil or lid - label with date and directions ***
9. Cover the baking dish with foil and place in preheated oven for 40 minutes.
10. After 40 minutes uncover the dish and put back into the oven for an additional 15 minutes.
11. Let stand for a few minutes after removing from oven (makes it easier to cut and plate).
To Freeze:
Stop at the baking step. Defrost over night and continue with the directions for baking.
White Bean Chicken Chili - Mom's Recipe
Servings: 8
Ingredients:
1 package of Chicken Tenders OR 1 large Chicken Breast
48 oz jar of White Great Northern Beans
8 oz jar Mild Salsa
1/2 small block of Pepper Jack Cheese
3 cups Water
Directions:
1. Cook chicken on stove and set aside to cool.
2. Drain beans and add to soup pot. Add 3 cups of water and salsa - bring to a boil.
3. Chop cheese into pieces and add to pot. Stir until all of the cheese has melted.
4. Pull chicken into pieces and add to pot.
To Freeze:
Cool completely and place in freezer bag. Make sure to remove air from the bag. Store flat. Defrost over night. My plan is to warm in crock pot or on stove.
Sweet & Sour Meatballs
Servings: 4
Ingredients/Directions:
Meatballs:
1lb Ground Turkey (or beef - never tried beef before)
1/3 cup Milk
1/2 cup Plain Bread Crumbs (if too sticky add more)
1 T Salt
1 T Worcestershire Sauce
1 Egg
Mix all together & roll into 1 inch balls. Bake at 350 for 25min on a non-stick cookie sheet. I flip the meatballs half way through so they won't burn.
Sauce:
1 can of Pineapple Chunks (with juice - don't drain)
2/3 cup Vinegar
1/2 cup Brown Sugar
2 T Cornstarch
2 T Soy Sauce (La Choy)
Optional - 1 chopped green pepper
On stove in a pot mix pineapple, brown sugar, and cornstarch. Heat, then add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Add meatballs and other veggies. Serve over brown rice.
To Freeze:
Freeze meatballs after baking. Have other ingredients on hand to make sauce when needed. Defrost overnight.
Chicken Pot Pie - Freezer Pleasers Recipe Book
Servings: Makes 2 Pies
Ingredients:
4 cups of cubed cooked chicken
4 cups frozen Southern-style hash browns, thawed
1 package (16 ounces) frozen mixed vegetables, thawed and drained
2 cans (10-3/4 ounce) condensed cream of chicken soup undiluted
1 cup milk
1 cup (8oz) sour cream
2 tablespoons flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 package (15 ounces) refrigerated pie pastry
Directions:
1. In a large bowl, combine chicken, potatoes, vegetables, soup, sour cream, milk, flour, and seasonings. Divided between two 9 inch deep dish pie plates. Roll out pastry to fit the top of each pie. Cut slits in pastry. Place over filling, trim, seal and flute edges.
2. Cover and freeze one potpie for up to 3 months. Bake the second pot pie at 400 for 35 - 40 minutes or until golden brown.
To Use Frozen Pie:
Remove from freezer 30 minutes prior to baking. Cover edges loosely with foil; place on baking sheet. Bake at 425 for 30 minutes. Reduce heat to 350, remove foil and bake 55 minutes longer or until golden brown.
Well there you have it folks. One week of frozen meals will be complete by Friday. All I have left to make are the meatballs and chicken pot pies! Hope this helps!
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