Food for the Freezer

Every now and again, I get the urge to stock my freezer with meals. When the urge comes, I am afraid to ignore it lest it never revisit.

After having it since its release (SHAMED!), I finally opened Survive Before 5, my cousin Tricia's ebook for cooking toddler meals. As I should have expected, it's absolutely amazing. There are recipes for breakfast, lunch, and snacks; and Tricia thought of absolutely everything to help moms plan meals, cook them, and even let your toddlers help in the kitchen!

The recipes all show measurements for 1, 2, 4, or 6 kids; there are "toddler tasks" on each recipe card; and a grocery list, instructions, and labels all accompany the recipes. Not to mention sweet pictures of Isaac and Tessa, my cousins-once-removed. (Right? Never can remember the technical term there.)

I am really not an ebook person, honestly, and I don't promote them much. But if you have toddlers and would like to have simple meals on hand that they will probably eat, you NEED Survive Before 5!

I am making a majority of the recipes from the cookbook along with a few other things to stock our freezer and deliver to friends. I thought I'd share our plan in case you're searching for a good freezer meal to make.

(And yes, keeping the oven on all day when it's 100 degrees is ridiculous ... but I am hopeful this will save me from turning it on for the rest of August!)

From the ebook:
toddler french toast sticks
homemade spaghetti o’s
individual mac & cheese cups
corndog muffins
homemade cheesy rice
apple chicken nuggets
individual pizzas
homemade yogurt
peanut butter banana yogurt pops
peanut butter granola bars

And a few more things:
Batter-Dipped Chicken Sandwiches

Source: parentingmiracles.net via Vanderbilt Wife on Pinterest

Slow Cooker Jambalaya
Easy Taco Bake (ate one, one for freezer)
Carrot Muffins with Cream Cheese Filling
Bacon and Egg Biscuit Cups
Summer Vegetable Chowder (with kielbasa instead of hot dogs)
A pork loin recipe from How to Cook Everything

I am hoping all of this will fit in my little above-the-fridge freezer!

Have you done any freezer cooking lately? What are your favorite recipes for freezing?

----
Subscribe to the RSS feed or by e-mail.
Twitter much? I'm vanderbiltwife there, too.
Join my Facebook Fan Group

Thanksgiving Dinner Turkey Burgers

I have not felt super inspired lately when it comes to cooking. I've been using old standbys a lot more than I usually do; which is fine, and probably makes my husband happy. But nearly every morning I sit and look at the entire bed of sage at my neighbor's house that we planted together. I love sage.

So this week I decided to try a simple recipe creation and go for it! These burgers turned out delicious. To me, they taste just like turkey and stuffing (and by stuffing, I mean my Grandma's, not that nasty wet cornbread stuff they eat in Tennessee).

Thanksgiving Dinner Turkey Burgers

a Vanderbilt Wife original

3 stalks celery, chopped fine
2 Tablespoons finely diced yellow onion (I used half of a very small onion)
10 leaves fresh sage, sliced
olive oil
salt and pepper
1 egg
1 lb. ground turkey
.5 teaspoon poultry seasoning
.5 cup bread crumbs (Italian is fine if that's what you have on hand)
Hamburger buns (I prefer to make these Whole Wheat Buns from scratch)
Optional: Cranberry sauce, heated slightly to thin it out

Dice celery, onion, and sage. Yes, having a copy of Hook in the background will help you concentrate. (P.S. I LOVE my Henckels Signature knives. Please send more, Santa.)

Warm 1T olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Saute celery, onions, and sage. Season generously with salt and pepper. Let cook until onions are translucent and just starting to turn brown.

Beat one egg in a medium mixing bowl. Combine with turkey. Add in vegetables, poultry seasoning, and bread crumbs until just incorporated. Make into four even patties.

Heat 1T olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add patties to pan; cook until done through, about 5-6 minutes per side. Turn down heat if they start to get too brown or burn.

If you are using cranberry sauce, brush it on the patties when they are close to being finished.

Serve on buns with desired condiments. I just used mayonnaise, but I think mayo/cranberry sauce, cranberry sauce/ketchup, or grainy mustard would all be delicious. Or hey, just slap some mashed potatoes on there too. (I'm pregnant. I can't help it.)

And for that real Thanksgiving dinner, may I suggest a great tool? My cousin Tricia just released her first e-cookbook! It's a freezer menu for a complete holiday meal for 8 or 16 people. So you could make all the recipes NOW, and then kick back and relax in November while everyone else scurries about!

The cookbook is super-beautiful and includes 11 recipes for appetizers, sides, entrees, and dessert, as well as instructions and a grocery list to keep you organized. I am a big fan of freezer cooking and Tricia's methods make everything much simpler.

The ebook is $9.99, but if you order it before November 1, you can use the code OAMM40 to get it for $5.99--40% off!

So have your turkey burgers now, and your turkey ready to go for the Big Turkey Day in one fell swoop with this post. :)

E-book links are affiliate links.

----
Subscribe to the RSS feed or by e-mail.
Twitter much? I'm vanderbiltwife there, too.
Join my Facebook Fan Group
A few of my favorite things on my Tumblr page

Once a Month Mom Tweet-Up in Atlanta!

There is nothing more fun for a blogger than hanging out with other bloggers in real life. That's why we go to conferences. That's why I've driven to Atlanta several times just to see some good friends!

I'm so excited to announce that most all of the #sisterchicks will be part of this fall's Once a Month Mom Tweet-Up in Atlanta!

You can see the fine details on Tricia's post, there, but the lowdown is:

When: October 23, 6-9 p.m. but tickets are released THIS Thursday, October 7, at 7 p.m. EST
Where: Bread Beckers in Woodstock, GA, outside Atlanta
Why: So we can get together, have fun, eat, and test products
How much: It's FREE! But only open to the first 75 people who register.

So if you live anywhere near Atlanta, you should come out and meet me and the other darling #sisterchicks! (And we will miss you, Jen and Mary!!)

• Mandi of It’s Come 2 This (Atlanta, Georgia)
• Amanda of Oh Amanda and Impress Your Kids (Atlanta, Georgia)
• Staci of Simply Staci (Atlanta, Georgia)
• Becky of The Violet Fig (Atlanta, Georgia)
• Jessie of Vanderbilt Wife (Chattanooga, Tennessee)
• Christine of I Dream of Clean (Nashville, Tennessee)
• Jill of The Diaper Diaries (Grand Rapids, Michigan) – YES! She is flying in for this! Woot!
• And of course, Tricia, the famous Once a Month Mom I have the privilege of being related to :) (Dayton, Ohio)

We're very thankful to the sponsors of this great event:

The Bread Beckers is more than a Kitchen Store. It is everything you need to make fresh bread at home grinding your own fresh wheat flour and more! They sell grain mills, mixers, grains, beans, baking supplies and ingredients, bake ware, bulk food co-ops/buying clubs, and cooking classes. What is more perfect for an OAMM function than a store that sells in BULK!!! They also have a BEAUTIFUL kitchen/classroom that we will be using for the event. You are going to be so excited when you see this venue! They are located in Woodstock, Georgia.

CUTCO Cutlery is the largest manufacturer and marketer of high-quality kitchen cutlery and accessories in the United States and Canada. Vector Marketing is the exclusive marketer of CUTCO products, which are sold throughout the U.S. and Canada by authorized sales representatives. Both CUTCO Cutlery and Vector Marketing are subsidiaries of CUTCO Corporation.

Additional Product Sponsors:

• Imprint Anti-Fatique Kitchen Mats
• General Motors/Chevrolet
• FujiFilm
• Crocs
• Rubbermaid
• Longaberger
• Blue Avocado
• Cheryl & Co

----
Subscribe to the RSS feed or by e-mail.
Twitter much? I'm vanderbiltwife there, too.
Join my Facebook Fan Group
A few of my favorite things on my Tumblr page

Menu Plan Monday

I'm pretty happy with how well we stuck to the menu plan for last week! Sticking to a plan is not exactly my forte. This week we'll be eating almost exclusively from the freezer. Looking forward to a light cooking week.

Sunday: Ravioli Lasagna, salad
Monday: Flank Steak Pinwheels, Baked Potatoes, Fresh Peach Crisp
Tuesday: Leftovers (Mommy taking dinner to Bible Study)
Wednesday: Grilled Chicken Pesto Wraps, cut veggies, Tex-Mex Rice Cakes
Thursday: Pasta with Turkey Meatballs (see recipe below)
Friday: Stuffed Buffalo Chicken, Cream Cheese Noodles, veggies
Saturday: playing by ear--we have company and I'm going to the Tennessee Distinguished Young Woman program (formerly Junior Miss)

During my gall bladder issue that wasn't my gall bladder at all, I found myself trying to cook with as little fat as humanly possible. I was happy to make up this recipe using super lowfat ground turkey breast. The parsley and turkey come together to make really scrumptious meatballs!

Pasta with Turkey Meatballs

1 lb. pasta, any kind
3/4 lb. ground lean turkey meat
1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
1 egg white
1 T dried parsley
salt and pepper
oil
1 jar or recipe tomato sauce
grated Parmesan cheese

In a bowl, mix together turkey, panko, egg white, parsley, salt, and pepper. Form into small, 1/2-inch meatballs.

Heat some olive oil in a large skillet. Add meatballs and let brown on all sides. When brown, add tomato sauce. Bring to a simmer. Cover; reduce heat to medium-low. Let cook while you make pasta.

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain; add pasta to saucepan with other ingredients. Mix well. Serve with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese.


Click on the banner to see hundreds of menu plans at OrgJunkie.

----
Subscribe to the RSS feed or by e-mail.
Twitter much? I'm vanderbiltwife there, too.
Join my Facebook Fan Group
A few of my favorite things on my Tumblr page

Nesting and Heat Make a Girl Very Tired

My house is no longer simply a nest; it's a bona fide three-story bird condo.

So, it's 900 degrees outside. I'm pretty sure it's only 850 degrees inside our lovely 1950 home. (If someone would like to come install ceiling fans, I'd be much obliged.)

And yet my nesting is on, full-force.

Last week my husband and a combination of houseguests moved every stick of furniture in our house into another room (with the exception of Libbie's room--wouldn't want her to have to endure TOO much change). Today I decided I desperately needed to do some once-a-month cooking. I'm not quite insane enough to attempt a whole menu by myself, but I am going to try to do quite a few dishes. So I printed recipes. Made a list. Shopped. And were I not pouring buckets of sweat, I would be totally ready to attack in the kitchen.

Have I mentioned I have 300 loads of laundry to do? We still need to rearrange closets? Oh, and I have a toddler I'm supposed to, you know, check on occasionally?

I'm ready to check into a mental institution. As long as they need their floors mopped and dust bunnies cleaned up.

Here are the recipes I'm attempting over the next two days. I am preparing to revel in the bliss of a stocked freezer!

Tomato Basil Hamburgers x 2 *
Grilled Chicken Pesto Wraps x 2 *
Black Bean and Mango Chicken Salad x 4 *
Stuffed Buffalo Chicken x 2 *
Italian Flank Steak Pinwheels x 2 *
Ravioli Lasagna x 2 **
Toddler French Toast Sticks
sausage breakfast burritos
Grilled Chicken Pasta Alfredo - to take to a new mom

*from the Summer 2010 Once a Month Mom menu
**from the March 2010 Once a Month Mom menu

Have you done any freezer cooking lately?

----
Subscribe to the RSS feed or by e-mail.
Twitter much? I'm vanderbiltwife there, too.
Join my Facebook Fan Group
A few of my favorite things on my Tumblr page

Whole Foods in a Hurry: The Grand Finale

Last Saturday, I cooked my entire Whole Foods in a Hurry menu. Without a partner, except for my husband who pitched in when Libbie was asleep. (He watched her the rest of the day--that is definitely helping as well!)

We've already started eating through many of the meals. Some have been great; some I'm disappointed with. I think that's the case in any big cooking project--not everything is going to be an A+. I thought I'd do a recap of each recipe with notes on taste if we've had it already. Hope this helps!

But first, here's me about an hour in. Scary, aren't I?

Apricot Breakfast Bars: I think I actually only used half the butter I was supposed to. Oops. But they are still amazingly delicious. I will be repeating this recipe for a long time!

 

Blueberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake: I haven't defrosted one of these yet, but I've had them from frozen before and they were great. Can't wait to dig into one soon! As I mentioned in the video, the batter is super-duper thick. That is normal and what makes it so tasty! I mixed in the berries with my hands to make sure it was really incorporated, and then pressed it into the pans with my hands as well. I made one blueberry and one mixed berry (both with frozen berries). (Picture is on the way into the oven.)

Christmas Eggs: My husband made these. Please scrub your egg pan out immediately if you don't want to do battle with it later. :) Libbie and I had them for breakfast, and sadly being frozen made the eggs a funny texture and very watery. While I would make the recipe again, I don't know if I would freeze it. Oh well!

Sloppy Joes: No notes here. Tasted good upon sampling! 

Make-Ahead Wraps: I was frightened by how watery the rice still was when it was done, but when I let it sit and cool it thickened considerably, and--like the author said--once I mixed it all together it was a perfect consistency. Sadly these are REALLY spicy for me. My husband loves them, of course. I am super sensitive to spicy foods and if I made them again I would make them without the cayenne pepper. But live and learn! [Also note that the author said to use a package of Southwest seasoning. I used a recipe for Emeril's Southwest Seasoning to try to keep it more 'Whole Foods.' So her seasoning may not have been as spicy.]

Pizza Pockets: The longer the dough sat, the easier it was to work with. I LOVE the flavor of the flaky dough and the pockets are delicious! Love that they can go straight from frozen into the oven for a quick lunch. They probably did take the most time, though, with the assembly factor. Also a learning curve! It took me a while to get them so the filling didn't all spill out.

Baked Chicken Burgers: The easiest of easy! I forgot to add the onion when freezing, so I just sprinkled in some dried minced onion before I mixed in the mayo to cook them. They were absolutely divine on these homemade buns.

Before we get into dinners, want to see how I looked 4.5 hours into the cooking?

Gnocchi with Sausage and Swiss Chard (Rachael Ray 365):  While this is a recipe we love normally, it wasn't great for the freezer. The red chard dyed the whole thing red, it leaked through my freezer bags upon defrosting, and the long sitting time made it more spicy (not a good thing for me!). AND I made 4 servings. Hm. Also, I paid $3.99/bunch for my red Swiss chard--yikes! If you used spinach or another green instead, I wouldn't blame you!

Taco Bake: While we haven't tried one from the freezer yet, I know this is a recipe I really like and I've been assured it freezes well.

Italian Cream Cheese Chicken Casserole: As I mentioned in my menu plan this week, I was a little disappointed on how this froze. I tasted the sauce before freezing and it was so delicious and creamy. Sadly, when it defrosted and cooked it lost a lot of the creaminess. Maybe adding some cream or milk and stirring before heating it in the oven would help. The flavor was still nice.

Sweet Aromatic Chicken: All kinds of yum. The easiest dump recipe ever, and super duper exquisitely tasty. I don't know if the fact we used free-range chicken made a difference or not, but the chicken just fell right off the bone and we gobbled it right up.

Tuscan Lemon Chicken: Haven't tried this one yet, but I love lemon and garlic and am looking forward to it!

Pulled Pork with Lexington Red Sauce: I made the mistake of using a picnic roast instead of a Boston Butt, and it didn't fall off the bone like it usually does. Still got a good bit shredded and sauced and hoping it's still delicious!

Unstuffed Cabbage: We had the most trouble with this recipe. I think I've amended the directions enough that you shouldn't have the same problems. I hope! I did find it rather bland when I tasted it so add some extra salt or some other spice you like. Libbie and I are trying it tomorrow night and I'll let you know how it goes.

Tilapia and Pepper Packets: Easy to assemble. Again, I wish I had left out the cayenne pepper because I didn't like the spicy flavor mixed in with the other tastes. We used frozen flounder and it worked well.

So there you go. It's definitely been a wild ride and I have much more appreciation for what Tricia does each month! It was a ton of work, but I am SO GLAD to have my freezer stocked with meals. It's already made a huge difference in that busy time of evening. We're able to really enjoy each other's company once Mr. V gets home rather than me battling Libbie out of the kitchen and trying to get everyone fed before her bedtime.


Have you tried any of these recipes yet? Would love to hear your experience!

If you've missed any of the posts in this series, they're all labeled as Whole Foods in a Hurry. <-- click there!

Added to Tasty Tuesday at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam.

----
Subscribe to the RSS feed or by e-mail.
Twitter much? I'm vanderbiltwife there, too.
Join my Facebook Fan Group
A few of my favorite things on my Tumblr page

Whole Foods in a Hurry: Week 4--Reflections and Instructions

Oy vey! I just added up all the groceries I bought for this challenge. I knew it would be higher than doing a "normal" OAMC and my goal was to keep it under $200. I did, at $184.14 (this does not include items I already had on hand).

So that's good, right? Well, except that I didn't buy all grass-fed or free-range meats, organic dairy or veggies, etc. My chicken thighs, as mentioned, were organic; my beef was the Publix GreenWise ground chuck, which is raised without hormones or antibiotics and is organic. I did buy organic ketchup since regular ketchup has HFCS and other icky stuff, and I bought cage-free eggs (but at Wal-Mart, and honestly I don't really trust their brand).

The rest of the chicken, the pork, the vegetables--none of it was "up to par" in what many would call "whole foods."

But you know what? It's still a big leap for me, and I'm working my way across the ravine. Using all whole grains, very few canned items, no HFCS, no soy--it's definitely a vast improvement! And I'll keep working until I can get to a place of being able to store that half a cow in a freezer and have beef for $3/pound. As it warms up, I'm excited to scavenge the farmer's market and seek out some local farms for real cage-free chickens and eggs.

I hope some of you are planning on cooking this great menu! I've already done some taste-testing and I'm excited about digging into the rest of the items in my freezer. It's VERY stocked!

Here are the recipes modified for your Big Day and here are the instructions. Here is the grocery list if you need that, too!

Next week, I'll share with you how my Big Cooking Day went--including vlogs of me (with icky hair...in t-shirt...no make-up...and exhausted! Aren't you lucky?).

Missed a week? Here's the Why, the Menu, and the Budgeting.

The time for submitting your freezer menus to Once a Month Mom is up, but you can still compete in the Cook-Off if you want to win some awesome prizes! Tricia revealed the three top menus we chose on Friday, and you can vote on which one you want to be the March menu every day at Once a Month Mom.

----
Subscribe to the RSS feed or by e-mail.
Twitter much? I'm vanderbiltwife there, too.
Join my Facebook Fan Group
A few of my favorite things on my Tumblr page

Menu Plan Monday

I did my once-a-month-cooking on Saturday (LOOONG post to come on that) so you can expect most of my meals in the next month to come from the freezer! I am so excited to have finished--with the help of my husband--and I can't wait to start devouring the yummy fruit of our work.

Sunday: Tilapia and Pepper Packets, loaded smashed potatoes, creamed spinach
Monday: Italian Cream Cheese Chicken Casserole
Tuesday: free pancake day at IHOP!
Wednesday: Gnocchi with Sausage and Swiss Chard (Rachael Ray 365)
Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: potato soup with Monterey Jack, homemade bread
Saturday: I'm going to a baby shower in Nashville with Libbie, so Mr. V will have to deal with what's in the fridge or go out :)

For more wonderful menu plans, visit I'm an Organizing Junkie.

----
Subscribe to the RSS feed or by e-mail.
Twitter much? I'm vanderbiltwife there, too.
Join my Facebook Fan Group
A few of my favorite things on my Tumblr page

Whole Foods in a Hurry: Week 2--The Menu

Tricia's done such a good job outlining how to make a once-a-month-cooking menu there's no way I need to repeat her here! I used many of her steps in creating my Whole Foods in a Hurry Menu.

Here's what I took into consideration, though, that she doesn't: I wanted as much as possible to be fresh and unprocessed. No cream of mushroom soup. No canned crescent rolls or jarred pasta sauces. (Not that Tricia uses a ton of recipes with these. Many of her menu recipes are whole-food happy!)

Once I got into it, I found the hardest part was picking meals that would not be too labor-intensive on your Big Day for cooking. I wanted to bake too many things. Have too many pots on the stove.

So you will probably notice there is a lot of ground beef and chicken in this menu. That's for two reasons: it's just easier to brown a LOT of ground beef at one time and split it up, and those are things that most people like. Like I mentioned before, I probably won't be using grass-fed beef or free-range chicken unless I can find a great deal on it. But you're welcome to do so!

So without further ado, here's the menu I'll be cooking at the end of the month! And I hope you'll be right in there with me, cooking up a storm.

Breakfasts:
Apricot Breakfast Bars
Blueberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake (Blueberry or Raspberry)
Christmas Eggs

Lunches:
Sloppy Joes
Make-Ahead Wraps
Pizza Pockets
Baked Chicken Burgers

Dinners:
Gnocchi with Sausage and Swiss Chard (Rachael Ray 365)
Taco Bake
Italian Cream Cheese Chicken Casserole
Sweet Aromatic Chicken
Tuscan Lemon Chicken
Pork BBQ with Lexington Red Sauce
Unstuffed Cabbage
Tilapia and Pepper Packets

Some of these recipes will have slight adjustments for ease in the kitchen, but that gives you the basic idea! And if you want to start shopping, here's the grocery list I've compiled. Which is hopefully correct ...

Remember that you only have until Monday, February 15 to submit your own menu in the Once a Month Mom & DOLE Frozen Menu Contest for a chance to win $250 cash and some great prizes!

Stay tuned next week for how I'm going to budget this ... dun-dun-duh!!

For the first post in the series, see Week 1--Why?

----
Subscribe to the RSS feed or by e-mail.
Twitter much? I'm vanderbiltwife there, too.
Join my Facebook Fan Group

Whole Foods in a Hurry: Week 1--Why?

I've really been longing to go to a "whole foods" or "real foods" sort of diet for a long time. It just makes sense: eating unprocessed foods, what our grandparents were eating before we figured out to make cream of chicken soup in a can and how to import vegetables from Chile.

While I'd like to say I'll be able to jump right in to eating raw dairy products, grass-fed beef, and organic everything, with our budget right now I'm just working on making baby steps. I've already cut margarine, vegetable oils, shortening, and high fructose corn syrup out of our diets (mostly). 

When Tricia asked if I would partner with her on her Once a Month Mom blogiversary party, I knew it would be a great chance to do what I've wanted to do for awhile: plan a "whole foods" once-a-month-cooking menu and MAKE IT!

So during February, I'll be talking once a week about how I'm planning the menu, budgeting and shopping for it, and cooking it. I'm so excited to share this with you. And I also have some great news!

If you want to create your own once-a-month-cooking menu (does not have to be whole foods), you can enter it in the Once a Month Mom & DOLE Frozen Menu Contest for a chance to win $250 cash, a Once a Month Mom apron, a pair of Crocs, and five coupons for free DOLE Frozen products!! Your menu will also be used as the March 2010 Once a Month Mom menu (great for YOUR blog traffic--I get more hits from OAMM than Google, even!).

First and second runner ups will also get some fun prizes!

So, who's in this with me? I'm excited and nervous, but I need to do this. Having the foods in the freezer will help me commit to the whole foods lifestyle, as well as give me more time to bake bread, make breakfast, and exercise--all goals I have for myself.

I am not being compensated for this adventure except with a few DOLE coupons. But I want one of my readers to win the contest!! And for me, whole foods is going to mean unprocessed as much as possible. I won't likely be using all grass-fed meats or all organic, although the menu will be easily customizable to those things.

----
Subscribe to the RSS feed or by e-mail.
Twitter much? I'm vanderbiltwife there, too.
Join my Facebook Fan Group

Freezer Cooking Day, A Little Late

For several months in a row, I've watched Twitter overflow with tales of Baking/Freezer Cooking/Once a Month Cooking day (#oamc). Jealously I seethed as I sat at my computer desk, unable to participate because of this inconvenient thing I call working outside the home full time.

It dawned on me, however, that I don't have to do it that day to participate. No, I don't get to live Twitter and blog with the other participants, but it doesn't mean I can't stock my freezer a little!

This afternoon, I made out a list of meals that should last us until Christmas, given that Mr. V is not coming home next weekend so mostly it will be me and the baby. I mainly surveyed the pantry, freezer, and fridge and went from there.

Here is my menu plan until Christmas:

Hamburgers, French Fries, Baby Carrots

Mettwurst [similar to kielbasa, found on clearance and froze] on Buns with Peppers and Onions, Sweet Potatoes, Beans

Spaghetti with Butter, Bacon, and Parmesan

Baked Pineapple, Sausage, Eggs, Hashbrowns

Islander Pork Roast (already in freezer), Rice, Bok Choy

Grilled Cheese, Soup

Chicken, Broccoli, and Cheese Casserole (henceforth known as CBCC)

Pancakes, Eggs, Grits, Sausage

I also needed to make some treats to take into the office. So here's how it went.

Wednesday night, I made Toddler French Toast Sticks for Libbie (which she loves. But that doesn't mean anything, since two weeks ago she loved these muffins and now she won't touch one). That took about an hour. (Note: grease your pan really well, mine stuck badly.)



Then today (Saturday), I spent an hour and a half in the kitchen and did the following:

--Made a double batch of Rice Krispie Treats
--While the butter melted for those, cut up green peppers and onions and put them in a freezer bag for the Mettwurst Sandwiches
--While the marshmallows melted, partially cooked the broccoli for CBCC in the microwave
--Cooked the chicken in a skillet with olive oil and set aside to cool (for CBCC)
--Cut up and cooked bacon in the same skillet for Spaghetti
--chopped bok choy and froze
--Made bread crumbs and cream sauce for CBCC and put the dish together
--Mixed group beef with Worcestershire sauce, shaped into patties, and froze
--Dipped/spread Rice Krispie Treats with melted chocolate



While this won't be everything needed for the month, I think it's a good deal of work for an hour and a half! And I'm having to have a delicious treat to share with my work team in lieu of presents.

I'd also like to make pancakes, sugar cookies, and peanut butter cookies either tonight or tomorrow.

Linked to Baking Day and Menu Plan Monday.

Once-a-Month Cooking Recipes: A Review

Since some people asked when I did it, I decided to do recipe reviews for all of the Once-a-Month-Cooking dishes Meredith and I made in May. While there weren't many recipes that wowed me, I would totally do it again for the ease of being able to pop a dish in the oven. It was a great experience. We did the April Menu from Once a Month Mom.

Egg muffins: YUM! They got very puffy. I warmed mine about 45 seconds wrapped in a napkin to absorb water, as recommended. I think I would like them better with bacon or sausage, but understand the ham was because that's what other recipes called for and made it easy. I love having a hot breakfast I can stick in my bag for work. I did find, however, that as I approached 6 weeks in the freezer, they were inedibly salty. Strange?

Frozen fruit cups: I think I should have gotten the cream cheese mixture a little more smooth--it is rather chunky, but that's my fault. Meredith and I used blackberries instead of blueberries and canned pineapple instead of fresh. The fruit is delicious and I've really enjoyed these. Also great for on-the-go!

Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Coffee Cake: Absolutely wonderful! I would definitely make this again.

Ham & Potato Pockets: The first time I made these by myself, I made them with dehydrated onion flakes. I think I liked that better than the actual onion. I had a hard time stuffing these all in the crescent dough. And the batch we made during OAMC didn't get done enough, causing them to be doughy when reheated. But when I made them right--the first time--they were great!

Slow Cooker Chicken Barbecue: I didn't really care for the flavor of the BBQ sauce. I've made Mr. V eat it, and he likes it.

Cheddar Butter Burgers: Um, buttery! The first time I made them in a frying pan, so they sat in all the leaked-out butter. Still tasty, just different. Loved the cheese all the way through. A little small for a big bakery bun.

Chicken Pesto Spinach Salad: Pasta salads were not meant to be frozen. This one defrosted OK, but I had to mix in more mayo to make it creamy. The nuts needed to be added after the defrosting, because frozen and defrosted they were soggy. The crunch of the nuts would have been nice.

Hammy Cheese: The flavors were good, but the pasta dried out because there wasn't enough sauce. We added some broccoli and that was a good touch.

Ham and Hashbrown Bake: Fattening, yummy deliciousness.

Pizza-Stuffed Meatloaf: You can see my opinion on it here.

Burritos: Wow, these were absolutely delicious. Meredith and I kinda oops-ed on the recipes and ended up mixing all the sauce and beef mixture together. So we put some inside and some on the top. Still fantastic. Go, Aunt Susan (creator of this recipe)!

No Fuss Chicken Cordon Bleu: The chicken/ham/cheese part was tasty. I thought the sauce got a little runny upon defrosting, but it was still pretty good. I liked the carrots in the sauce as a great vegetable addition. They still had a bite after all the cooking and I loved that!

Maple Honey Mustard Pork Chops: We grilled these and didn't boil down the marinade for the sauce. I didn't taste a lot of the flavors because of this, but they were nice and tender and pleasant.

Beef Fajitas: I really enjoyed this recipes. The marinade gave the beef a good kick! We used canola oil to replace the tequila, and that was fine. We are eating this again tonight, and I'm excited!

Orange-Apricot Pork Chops: Dumped the whole bag of stuff, still frozen, in the crockpot and let it cook on low 10 hours. Really tasty. As Mr. V pointed out, it was using normal ham flavoring (cloves, brown sugar, cinnamon) on pork chops instead. The cloves really made it. Might be better as a winter dish with the spices, but very tasty nevertheless!

Menu Plan Monday

Planning meals for Sundays is a laugh in our household. For one, we almost always eat breakfast at Sunday School and eat out after church service. Then, we are either too stuffed for dinner or we scrounge around for leftovers. So now you know why I am no longer going to plan for Sundays—it just seems silly!

I am trying to empty us out of my May once-a-month-cooking so I can maybe tackle it again (with Megs, if she wants)! I have so enjoyed having these meals to pop in the oven when I get home from work.

We apparently had a weird week, because we didn’t get to many of the meals I planned last week. I ended up making two meals on Wednesday night that we then noshed on the rest of the week (except for my dinner with Megs on Thursday). Saturday night we ended up eating the rest of my Cheddar Butter Burgers with friends to celebrate the 4th. It was great!

Here’s my plan for this coming week.

Monday
Breakfast: oatmeal, peach
Lunch: leftover Mexican Stuffed Shells, raw vegetables, ranch dressing
Dinner: leftover Chicken Cordon Bleu

Tuesday
Breakfast: Eggs with cheese, toast
Lunch: Out with work team
Dinner: Beef Fajitas, Rice

Wednesday
Breakfast: Sweet Potato Hash
Lunch: Sandwich, Peach, Veggies
Dinner: Church (Roasted Chicken)

Thursday
Breakfast: Sweet Potato Hash
Lunch: Frozen Meal (not part of the “whole foods” plan, but it’s in the freezer so I feel obliged), veggies, fruit
Dinner: Ham and Hashbrown Bake, veggie

Friday
Breakfast: Grits with cheese, toast
Lunch: Sandwich, Fruit, Soup from cafeteria
Dinner: Leftover Ham and Hashbrown Bake

Saturday
Breakfast: French Toast or Pancakes, Bacon
Lunch: Leftovers/Sandwiches/Whatever’s in the Fridge
Dinner: Baked Pasta with Meatloaf Mix from OAMC*

For more menu plans, click over to I'm an Organizing Junkie.

* Meredith and I both thought the Pizza-Stuffed Meatloaf was inedible. I think it didn’t lend itself to freezing; also, we used high-fat meat because we were buying in bulk and being frugal, and so the meatloaf was sitting in several inches of fat while it cooked. I couldn’t seem to get mine hot, either.

I love Kate at Cooking During Stolen Moments so I hate to write that! I am sure when she made it fresh it turned out just fine; it was just something about the freezing. Meredith suggested we use the meat mixture for spaghetti, so that’s the basic way I am going—defrosting the meatloaf, browning the whole mix, draining off all the fat, and then mixing it with spaghetti sauce and combining with some whole wheat elbows I have on hand. Then I will sprinkle with more mozzarella and bake.

Menu Plan Monday

You'll notice my plan is a little different this week, in that it includes breakfast and lunch. I am making an effort to eat more healthy, whole foods, and I feel like I need to plan these meals. We'll see if it lasts, but I did some thinking on vacation and really feel like I need to cut out a lot of processed stuff--especially because I don't want Libbie eating that junk, and I need to set a good example.

I've also decided to forgo the explanation of what I bought/what it cost unless I have a really great deal to share.

Sunday
breakfast-church
lunch-probably out
dinner--catfish, fried green tomatoes, fruit salad

Monday
breakfast-brown sugar muffin, fruit
lunch-chicken salad pita, celery sticks, hummus, fruit
dinner-Country Spinach Salad (going to sort of try to recreate this from Bob Evans)

Tuesday
breakfast-blueberry smoothie
lunch-salad with chicken, cheese, sunflower seeds, fruit; carrot sticks
dinner--Mexican stuffed shells

Wednesday
breakfast-muffin, one egg
lunch-chicken salad pita, fruit, hummus and veggies
dinner-Chicken Cordon Bleu, egg noodles (OAMC)

Thursday
breakfast-cheesy eggs, raisin bread
lunch-leftovers
dinner-Impossible Cheeseburger Pie

Friday
breakfast-muffins and fruit
lunch-sweet potato hash
dinner-Beej Fajitas (OAMC), rice, tortilla chips and salsa

Saturday
breakfast-pancakes, bananas
lunch-leftovers
dinner-Cheddar Butter Burgers, carrots, chips and salsa

D0 you plans your meals? All of them or just dinner?

For more menu plans, check out Org Junkie.

Vacation Food

We're headed out to Gatlinburg tomorrow with my parents and sister. We are actually staying in "Scenic Wear's Valley," more toward Pigeon Forge. I am SO looking forward to it. Especially to this:



In case I haven't mentioned it one or, oh, 100 times, I am a major bath girl. I love my long, hot baths with a good book. And a hot tub is like a good bath PLUS extra goodness. I plan on spending a lot of time in that baby.

The great thing about renting a house, cabin, condo, whatever, is that there is a kitchen so you don't have to eat out every meal. Mr. V and I are bringing Pop-Tarts (only brown sugar cinnamon, of course--his breakfast of choice for the last 5 years), cereal, and strawberry muffins (assuming I do actually make them tonight). I'm also bringing all of the maple pork chops we made for my share of the Once a Month Cooking. That should be enough for all five of us and great to throw on the grill.

My mom and I have been going back and forth on other easy vacation meals we could make. I love these Aussie Meat Pies from Rachael Ray 365, but wonder if they are too heavy for summer fare. I keep thinking fresh, in season, grilling ... hmm. We don't have a grill at home so that's not my forte, but it sounds SO good for a vacation in a cabin in the woods.

So. What are your suggestions?

[P.S. For more food linkage, come back tonight/tomorrow for Family Recipe Fridays! I'm sharing an awesome summer cake recipe this week & Mr. Linky is back in business.]

We Came, We Cooked, We Conquered

First of all, the big news in our household right now is that Mr. V's mother went to high school with Billy Mays. He just found out and is very excited.

But, you know, there was also this little thing called once-a-month cooking that took place in our household today.

Some of y'all may know that Tricia from Once A Month Mom is my first cousin. She and her friend Cortney started this site in February to help organize once-a-month cooking days. They make out the menus, set you up with shopping lists and instructions, and give all kinds of great tips! I've used several of the recipes lately (Mexican stuffed shells, ham and hashbrown bake, orange marmalade fish) just as our regular dinners, and they've all been very good.

On April 24, I sent one innocent e-mail to Meredith from Like Merchant Ships, telling her if she was ever interested in trying the once-a-month cooking, I would be game. I knew she had linked to Once a Month Mom before and, being the Frugal Queen, thought she might be interested. Forty e-mails later, we found ourselves at my house today, food spilling out of the refrigerator and off the table, with a list of 15 recipes to make.

We worked for a little under six hours and managed to finish them all without pulling our hair entirely out! Meredith confessed to be so nervous she couldn't sleep, while I told her about my Twitter to Tricia telling her I thought I was going to throw up I was so scared (Trish told me not to throw up in the food).

It's one of those things where it's hard to know where to start. But we just dug into the instructions and got cooking. I'm glad we did it. It's not something I would want to do every month, but it feels great to have so many meals in the freezer. I know I'll be able to just pop something in the oven when I get home from work and then have time to play with Libbie, instead of my normal habit of making dinner during those precious 2 hours we have before she goes to sleep.

It was a long day; I'm tired but happy. Now I'm going to go watch Bedtime Stories with Mr. V and relax (and listen to him go on and on about Billy Mays some more).

Prepping

I'm cleaning and pulling things out of the cupboard to get ready for once-a-month-cooking with Meredith tomorrow.

Am I nuts? Have you seen how Like Merchant Ships is all about keeping your house pretty, and serving your family milk out of a glass pitcher? And I've met Meredith several times--and she is serene and just like she comes across on the site.

Have you noticed that the subtitle of my site is "trying to be the housewife I'm not"? Generally that means I don't clean, I can't find my shoes, and I have absolutely no taste in decorating or fashion.

It would be one thing to attempt this daunting task by myself and whole 'nother one when I am worrying about disappointing someone I barely know with my mess and confusion. I hope she will be forgiving.

I'm a little nervous. It's good to know I'm not the only one.