Seasoned Hamburger Patties by Amy

Ingredients:
1 pound of lean ground beef
1 egg
1/2 to 3/4 cup of plain bread crumbs
1 teaspoon of mixed seasoning (I used Steak 'N Chop seasoning by Weber - ingredients are sea salt, garlic and onion spices and sugar.)

Assembly:
1. In a large bowl, mix all four ingredients with your clean hands. It's very therapeutic.
2. Grab a handful of the mixture, form into a ball and shape into a patty. I used a patty maker for uniformity.
3. Put wax/parchment paper between patties and place in a freezer bag. Freeze.

Serving Day:
1. Remove patties from the freezer and completely thaw.
2. Find the grill master in your family and grill the patties!
3. Put your favorite fixings on this mouth watering hamburger patty!

Pineapple Chicken Kabobs

Ingredients:
1 can pineapples (save the juice)
3 tbsp. soy sauce
4 tbsp. honey
3 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
3 tbsp. canola oil
1 tsp. sesame oil
1 tbsp. fresh grated ginger
4 cloves of garlic minced
1 1/2 sweet or red onion
2 lbs. of chicken
multi colored peppers (red, green, orange, yellow)
                 
Assembly:
Mix 1 can of pineapple juice with the soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, canola oil, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, onion and marinate the chicken 4-6 hours or overnight. Once chicken is marinated cut all of your vegetables and get ready to put everything on the skewers. Alternate the chunks of peppers, onions, pineapple, and chicken on the skewers.

Serving Day:
Fire that grill up!! Cook 8-12 minutes on a medium to high grill. Cook just enough to brown off the vegetables and chicken but do not let the chicken dry out. If you have time mix together a little honey, soy sauce, pineapple juice and heat it up on the stove then brush your kabobs once completed. 

Slow Cooker Honey Parmesan Pork by Jackie

Adapted from: http://www.yourhomebasedmom.com/slow-cooker-parmesan-honey-pork-roast/

Ingredients:

1 3-4 lb. boneless pork loin roast

⅔ C grated Parmesan cheese

½ C honey

3 Tbsp. soy sauce

1 Tbsp. dried basil

1 Tbsp. dried oregano

2 Tbsp. chopped garlic

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1/2 tsp. salt

Assembly:
Place pork roast in a gallon size Ziploc freezer bag.  Mix remaining ingredients in bowl and pour over roast.  Lay flat to freeze.

Serving Day:
Thaw completely.  Place roast in slow cooker and pour juices over the top.  Cook on low for 5-6 hours.  Serve as is or pour sauce over each slice.

Optional Glaze: 

After removing meat from slow cooker, strain juices and put into a small sauce pan.

In small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons cornstarch and 1/4 cup of chicken broth together.

Stir mixture into the juices.  Stir until thickened, over medium heat.

Cheesy Chicken Rotini by Jen

Ingredients:

• 22 oz. grilled skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch strips/pieces
• 1 pkg. (24 oz.) frozen broccoli, cauliflower and carrot blend
• 1-1/2 can (15 oz.) Rotel Diced Tomatoes & Green Chilies, undrained
• ¾ lb. (12 oz.) Velveeta cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubed
• 3 cups water
• 4 cups rotini (spiral) pasta, uncooked

 

Assembly:

Bag 1 - Pour 4 cups uncooked pasta
Bag 2 - Combine chicken, frozen vegetables, tomatoes, cheese in freezer bag.

Serving Day:
Thaw chicken mixture.

Bring to boil. Add pasta; stir. Cover; simmer on medium-low heat 10 min. or until pasta is tender. Drain and set aside. In a large skillet, pour bag 2 ingredients; stir. Cook, covered until Velveeta is completely melted and vegetables are crisp-tender, stirring frequently. Combine with pasta and serve.  

 

 

 

 

Tater Tot Casserole by Beth

Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/4 c. milk
16 oz. frozen mixed vegetables
28 oz. package frozen tater tots

Assembly:
In skillet, brown beef with onions; drain.  In large bowl, mix beef/onion mixture, soups, milk, and frozen veggies (no need to thaw).  Spread into greased foil casserole pan.  Top with frozen tots.  Cover with foil lid and freeze.

Serving Day:
Thaw in fridge.  Bake at 375 for 1 hour or until potatoes are golden brown and filling is heated through.  To crisp up tots, broil for 5 min. 

Jackie's Homemade Taco Seasoning

My kids LOVE taco Tuesday!  Since today is Cinco de Mayo and it happens to fall on a Tuesday, how could I not make tacos?!!  Over the last year, I have been trying to perfect a homemade taco seasoning for my family and we have settled on this recipe.  We like our tacos not too spicy and not too mild.  This is a good middle of the road recipe. 

You may be asking why anyone would take the time and effort to make their own seasoning.  Sure, the packets are quick and inexpensive, but they are also chock full of preservatives that I'd rather not put in the food I serve to my family.  Once you try this mix, you won't want to go back.  Packaged mix now tastes like chemicals to me, since we have been eating homemade for so long.

One batch will last you quite a while.  Cook and freezer your ground beef ahead of time and you can have a great meal in about 5 minutes.


Jackie's Homemade Taco Seasoning
This recipe yields about 2 cups of mix.

Ingredients:
1 cup + 1 Tbsp. chili powder
1 Tbsp. + 2 tsp. garlic powder
1 Tbsp. + 2 tsp. onion powder
1 Tbsp. + 2 tsp. dried oregano
3 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. paprika
1/2 c. + 2 Tbsp. cumin
1 Tbsp. + 2 tsp. black pepper
1/3 c. salt

Assembly:
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.  Store in an airtight container.

Serving Day:
Season one pound of cooked ground beef with 3 tablespoons of taco seasoning.  Add 1/2c. water and mix well.  Cook until meat is heated through.

Variations: 
Want to spice it up?  Increase the amount of chili powder and black pepper and add some crushed red pepper. 

Want it more mild?  Decrease the amount of pepper.

Want it more healthy?  Decrease the amount of salt.