Freezer Friendz: Hearty Macaroni Casserole by Jackie

Friday, July 18, 2008

Hearty Macaroni Casserole by Jackie

Ingredients:
1 pkg. (7 1/4 oz.) macaroni and cheese dinner mix
1 lb. ground beef
1 c. chopped green pepper
1/2 c. chopped onion
1 can (14 1/2 oz) Italian diced tomatoes, undrained
1 c. (4 oz.) shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup French Fried Onions

Assembly:
Prepare macaroni and cheese according to package directions. Meanwhile, in large skillet, cook beef, green pepper and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add to prepared macaroni. Stir in tomatoes.

Spoon half of the mixture into greased 9x13 baking dish. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese. Top with remaining macaroni mixture. Cover and freeze for up to 3 months. Place French's Fried Onions into a pint size freezer Ziploc bag. Freeze.

Serving Day:
Thaw completely in the refrigerator. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes prior to baking. Bake covered at 350 for 30 minutes. Uncover & sprinkle French's Fried Onions (or 1 cup of cheddar cheese) on top. Bake 10 more minutes, or until heated through.

3 comments:

AnonymousAugust 25, 2008 at 8:31 PM
Okay - I thought this was DELICIOUS!! :) What a great idea to take to a summer bbq or something! A great twist on an old favorite! Kids were so-so on it (what do they know?!) - grown-ups devoured it! :)
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AnonymousSeptember 11, 2008 at 2:20 PM
Our family liked this meal.
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AnonymousSeptember 12, 2008 at 8:25 PM
Brian and I LOVED this! It was very flavorful and moist. The kids ranged from loving it to so-so, but overall it was a hit!
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Freezer Cooking Quick Tips

When wrapping meals for freezer: make sure to double wrap to prevent freezer burn. Using one layer of plastic wrap and a top layer of foil is best.

Freezer Bags: Use GOOD freezer bags! Don't skimp on cheapo freezer bags or your food will taste like plastic!

Meat in Freezer Meals: Thawed meat must be cooked before it can be refrozen. Frozen cooked meat can not be refrozen once thawed.

Freezing Soup: Pour soup into gallon size Ziploc bag. Lay bag of soup flat on a cookie sheet in the freezer until frozen, then remove cookie sheet. Doing this allows soup to freeze flat, so it can stack easily with other meals in your freezer.

Flash Marinade: Put raw chicken or beef in a ziploc baggie, pour in your marinade, then freeze. In the thawing process, your meat will be infused with the marinade and ready to cook!

Cooking Noodles: Cook noodles only 3 minutes, drain and immediately run under cold water to stop the cooking process. Noodles will freeze well and not turn to mush if done this way. Tip from freezerchicks blog site!

Slow-Cooking Chicken for the Freezer: You can fill crock pot with chicken breasts and pour a can of chicken broth over meat. Cook on high for 4 hours. Another method that gives the meat more flavor is to layer 1 sliced onion in the bottom of slow cooker. Top with chicken. Sprinkle with seasoned salt, pepper and garlic powder. Cook on low for 4 hours or until done. With either of these methods, you need to keep an eye on your meat to make sure you do not overcook. Shred or dice and freeze in 2 cup portions for use in casseroles, tacos, etc...

Freezing Cooked Ground Beef: You can boil ground beef, then freeze it - it will be easy to thaw and use for tacos or something similar! To do this, add raw ground beef to large pot. Add onion, salt & pepper. Fill pot with water until water is 1" above the top of the meat. Boil, stirring occasionally to break up chunks. Meat is finished when no longer pink. Drain off the water (which drains off the fat).

1lb. raw ground beef=12 oz. cooked ground beef=2 - 2.5

Freezing Sandwiches: You can make lunchmeat sandwiches ahead of time and freeze them. Just assemble the meat and cheese on bread and place in ziploc sandwich bags. Place all bagged sandwiches into a large ziploc freezer bag. I did this once with cheap sandwich bags and the sandwiches tasted like plastic; however, they taste fine if you use Ziploc bags. **PBJ works too, if bread is a higher quality wheat bread.

Freezer Efficiency: If your freezer isn't full, fill empty milk jugs 3/4 full with water and place in freezer. This helps your freezer not have to work so hard to stay cold, saving you money.

Substitutions: Here is a great source for figuring out substitions for your recipes when you start making something and realize you are missing an ingredient: http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/Common-Substitutions/Detail.aspx

Meet The Freezer Friendz!

Friday, July 18, 2008

Hearty Macaroni Casserole by Jackie

3 comments:

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