Meet The Freezer Friendz!

Looking for a way to simplify dinnertime in your home?
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Our freezer cooking recipes are sure to take the headache out of evening meal prep.
We invite you to leave comments after you try a recipe, as well.
We'd love to know what you think!

Thursday, December 4, 2008

Beef Enchiladas by Susan

Ingredients:
1 lb Ground Beef
1/2 to 3/4 C Salsa (I used medium)
1 can Refried Beans (We like Old El Paso)
1 can Enchilada Sauce (Old El Paso- mild)
2-3 cups Mexican style Cheese (can use whatever you prefer)
8-10 Burrito Size Flour Tortillas
9x13 pan
Pam or other cooking spray

Assembly:
Brown beef in skillet.
Add salsa, 1/4 to 1/2 of enchilada sauce, and refried beans. Mix over heat until combined well.
Take one Tortilla, scoop meat/bean mixture onto one end, add small handful of cheese, and roll up. If your pan is shorter fold edges "burrito" style. Place Tortillas seam side down in pan.
Pour remaining Enchilada Sauce over the top of the Tortillas and top with remaining cheese. Cover tightly with foil.

Serving Day:
Thaw completely. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook covered for 20-30 minutes until bubbly. Uncover and cook 5-10 more minutes or until cheese is browned.

This is a recipe we got from Chad's Mom and there is no "recipe". I did the best I could to measure, but we do cook this by eyeballing it, a little more/less won't hurt. We each have made changes and this is the way we like it best. I found some other Enchilada freezer recipes and followed their directions for assembly/serving day. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

BBQ Chicken Wings by Katie

Ingredients:
Chicken Wings
a bottle of your favorite BBQ Sauce

Assembly:
In a Ziplock bag, toss Chicken Wings in BBQ sauce. Freeze.

Serving Day:
Thaw completely. Pour onto a foil lined baking pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes. Enjoy!

Pepperoni Pasta by Katie

Ingredients:
1lb ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
1 medium green pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 jar (28 oz) spaghetti sauce
1 can (4 oz) mushroom stems and pieces, drained
1 pk. (3 1/2 oz) sliced pepperoni
8 oz rotini, cooked and drained
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
4 oz provolone cheese, shredded

Assembly:
In a large skillet, cook beef, onion, green pepper and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add spaghetti sauce, mushrooms and pepperoni. In a greased baking dish, layer half of the rotini and beef mixture. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of each cheese. Repeat layers.
(I added an extra layer of pepperoni before the last cheese layer.)
*Optional: Sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese. Cover and Freeze.

Serving Day:
Thaw completely. Bake, uncovered at 400 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until heated through. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving.

Potato and Ham Soup by Tish

Yields 6 Servings

Ingredients:
6 potatoes, diced (I use the small bagged Yukon Gold kind)
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 stalks of celery, diced
1/2 cup of onion, diced
6 cups of water
4 t. chicken bouillon granules, regular or low sodium variety
1/2 t. dried thyme
1/2 t. dried parsley flakes
black pepper to taste
1 cup of diced ham
3/4 cup of evaporated skim milk
1/4 cup of flour

Assembly:
Place all ingredients, except evaporated milk and flour, in a large stock pot and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook till potatoes are tender. In a separate bowl, whisk together evaporated milk and flour till there are no lumps. Add to the soup and stir in completely. Continue to cook until the soup has thicken slightly.

Freezing Instructions:
Cool soup completely. Then pour into family sized freezer bags or rigid containers and freeze.

Serving Day:
Thaw soup completely and reheat over low in a saucepan or in the microwave. Add shredded cheese on top if so desired. Serve with a salad and warm bread to round out the meal. Enjoy!

Debbie's Penne Bake

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef or sausage
1 jar pasta sauce
1 pound penne pasta
8 ounces Italian cheese

Assembly:
Brown the meat on the stove. Drain off fat. Add the jar of pasta sauce to the meat and bring to a boil. Let simmer. Cook pasta according to package directions. When cooked, drain the pasta and add it to the meat sauce. Toss to coat evenly. To freeze, put in 9x13 dish or freezer bag.

Serving Day:
Let pasta thaw completely. Place in a greased 9x13 dish. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. Top with cheese and let cook another 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted. Enjoy!

Monday, December 1, 2008

Farmer's Casserole from Wendy

Ingredients:
3 cups frozen shredded hash brown potatoes (24 oz. bag)
3/4 cup shredded Monterrey Jack cheese (3-4 oz.)
3/4 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese (3-4 oz.)
1 cup diced ham or Canadian style bacon
1-4.5 oz. can mild green chiles (optional)
1/4 cup green onions, sliced
4 beaten eggs (or 1 cup frozen egg product)
1-12 oz. can evaporated milk
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. salt

Assembly:
Grease a 2 qt. square baking dish. Arrange potatoes evenly in bottom of dish. Sprinkle with cheeses, ham, green chiles, and green onions. In medium mixing bowl, combine eggs, milk, pepper and salt. Pour egg mixture over potato mixture in dish. (If not freezing, cover and chill several hours or overnight, then follow serving day instructions.) Freeze.

Serving Day:
Thaw completely. Bake uncovered in a 350 degree oven for 40-45 minutes or until center appears set. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. If you prefer, extra shredded cheese can be sprinkled on top during the last 15 minutes of baking.

Recipe from Don't Panic-Dinner's in the Freezer by Martinez, Howell & Gracia.