3 Chickens for the Freezer

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If I’m going to go through the trouble of roasting a chicken, I decided I might as well roast 3.  Hy-Vee had their whole roasters on sale for $.59 a lb a few weeks ago and I snagged 3 and filled my roaster.  Once they were cool, I deboned the meat and put some meat in 2 cup portions in the freezer plus 3 frozen 9 x 13 dishes of chicken enchiladas.  The plain bagged chicken can be used for chicken salad, chicken soup, burritoes etc.  Here’s the Rub recipe I used:

My Mama’s Herb Chicken Rub x 3:

1 Tablespoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons paprika

3/4 teaspoon savory

3/4 teaspon thyme

3/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Place chickens breast side up in a greased roasting pan.  Mix all spices and rub onto the breasts of the chickens.   Bake covered at 350 degrees for 2 hours or until the chickens are browned and tender.

Meal from Frozen Chicken Strips

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I just wanted to show you a photo of a meal you can make when you fill your freezer with marinated, grilled chicken strips.

This was torn romain with sliced baby bell peppers.  I topped it with the grilled chicken, 2 T of shredded cheese, and a sprinkling of leftover spanish rice.  I used salsa for dressing.  The whole salad had less than 200 calories but was very filling and tasty.

Carmel Apple Cookies

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This soft cookie recipe is a delicious taste of Autumn.  I tested this recipe with a spice cake mix (on sale for $.49) , but have a from scratch recipe following that should be great too.

Here’s the original as tested:

1 box spice cake mix

1/2 cup rolled oats

1 stick butter, melted

2 eggs

1 cup carmel chips (like the ones you melt for dipping apples)

1 peeled and chopped tart apple

Mix all ingredients well, folding in the chips and apple last.  If the dough feels too wet add a little more flour.  (This depends on how juicy the apple is.)  Drop by rounded spoonfuls on a greased cookie sheet.  Bake at 375 for 12-15 minutes.  Cool.  Makes 2 1/2 dozen.

From Scratch Recipe:  I haven’t tried this version, but it “should” work :).

1 stick of butter, softened

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 egg

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ginger

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

2 cups flour

1/2 cup rolled oats

1 cup carmel chips

1 peeled and chopped tart apple

Cream the butter and sugar.  Add the vanilla and eggs and mix well.  Stir in the salt, baking soda, flour, oats and spices until moistened.  Fold in chips and apple.  Bake at 375 for 12-15 minutes.

A ruffled apron

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Here’s another quick wedding gift idea for embellishing a purchased apron.   

I dug through my scraps and cut 3 7.5″ wide strips twice the width of the apron.  I hemmed the strips on 4 sides and gathered the top edge.

 

I top stitched the ruffles in place, so that the ends overlapped 1″.  This hid the gathering line on the lower ruffles.

To finish the look, I roll hemmed a 1 1/2 inch wide ruffle and stitched it across the top.

To complete the gift set, I purchased matching dish towels and cut them in half, hemming the cut edgest for a quick set of every day napkins.

Wrapping is half the fun.  I tied the napkins together with homemade bakers twine (cotton worsted yarn zigzagged over with red thread.  A pintuck foot really helps here.)

Grilled chicken for the Freezer

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With school starting and a generally busy schedule, I’m putting homemade convenience foods in my freezer every chance I get. The latest recipe started with a 10 lb bag of boneless skinless chicken breasts from Costco. I poured a bottle of chipolte lime marinade I snagged for $.50 right into the bag. And refririgerated for a couple of days until I had more time.

Then I placed them on a broiler pan and broiled on high for 5-7 minutes on each side.

Set them on a plate to cool while I cooked the rest. And then sliced them really thin.  I had in my mind restaurant style grilled chicken strips as I sliced.

Then I weighed the strips into 4 oz serving sizes and packaged them in snack size bags for the freezer.  Now all I have to do is microwave the frozen strips for 90 seconds and add them to a tossed salad or a pita for instant lunch.  It’s low-fat, high protein, and sooo tasty!!

Do you have a favorite chicken marinade recipe to share that I can try next time?  I’m out of $.50 bottles of  marinade 🙂 .

Overnight French Toast Casserole

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Here’s a make-ahead breakfast recipe for you.   I like to make it the night before and pop it into the oven right before I start my morning aerobics.  By the time I’m showered and dressed breakfast is ready to serve. 

1.  First cut a whole loaf of 100% whole grain day old bread into cubes and place in a greased 9 x 13 pan.

2.  Then mix 6 eggs, 3 cups of skim milk, a tablespoon of sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and a teaspoon of vanilla and pour over the bread.

3.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.

4.  In the morning dot with 2 tablespoons of butter cut into tiny bits and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar (about 1 tablespoon sugar and 1 teaspoon cinnamon.)  Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes. 

5.  Cut into 12 squares and serve with maple syrup or fruited and yogurt. Yum!

Quick Meal Stretch: Taco Meat for a Crowd

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Our hamburger comes in 2 lb frozen logs.  It barely feeds my family of 7 for a meal of tacos.  Once a week we add 4 extra mouths to our table and I knew it wouldn’t stretch.  I added 2 cups of cooked brown rice to our meat once it was browned and then added my taco spices to flavor it all together.  I loved the flavors and the children ate it well.  We had enough for lunch the next day.

3 Ingredient Taco Seasoning

1 teaspoon garlic salt

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1-2 Tablespoons chili powder

Mix spices and sprinkle on 2 lb cooked meat with 1/4 cup water.  Cook and and stir until most of the water has evaporated.

Freezer Lunch Idea–Mini Pizzas

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Like convenience foods?  I do!  But I like them best when I make them from scratch.  For these little pizzas, I put my favorite pizza dough ingredients in the bread machine and let it do the work for me. 

Then we rolled out the dough and cut it into circles using a jar lid from gallon sized penny candy jars.

A quick topping with jarred spaghetti sauce, turkey Italian Sausage (recipe to follow), and mozarella cheese.  I put veggies on some of them, because I like it that way.  Then bake at 400 for 15 minutes.  Cool and Slide meal portions into gallon size freezer bags and freeze.  To reheat, put frozen pizzas on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 20 minutes.  They are great with veggie sticks or a tossed salad.

Pizza Dough

1 2/3 cups warm water

1 Tablespoon olive oil

2 Tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon sea salt

4 cups whole wheat flour

1 Tablespoon yeast

Put all ingredients in the bread machine in the order listed and start a dough cycle.  This makes 2 extra large pizzas or 18-20 mini pizzas. 

Turkey Italian Sausage

1 lb ground lean turkey

1 teaspoon garlic salt

1 teaspoon whole or cracked fennel seed

1/4-1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon crushed basil

Spread turkey in a skillet, sprinkle with spices, cook and press the spices into the meat as you chop it into fine pieces with your spatula.  Easy and Yummy.  It is less expensive and less calories than buying traditional Italian sausage.

3-Step Homemade Chipolte Peppers

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The only thing my garden is producing right now is jalapenos.  That’s just fine with me.  I love southwest flavors!  We roasted our own jalapenos for a smoky chipolte flavor.  Here’s how.

1.  For a mild flavor slice the peppers in half and and remove the seeds.  Wear rubber gloves to protect your skin.  If you like them hot, skip this step.

2.  Pour a quart of cool water in a bowl and add a Tablespoon of sea salt.  Soak the peppers for a few hours or overnight.  You can put them in the fridge, I didn’t.  For extra smokey flavor, add a Tablespoon of liquid smoke.

3.  Remove peppers from water and place on a broiling pan.  Broil on high for about 3 minutes watching for the skins to bubble and brown.  You can use immediately or freeze for later use.

33 Lunch Ideas

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My family is big, sort of. When I’m in public people stare, but when I’m at homeschool coop I can say I “only” have 5 children. Most of them have 7-12. The point is, leftovers are becoming scarce. Leftovers used to be my lunch stand by, just warm it up and eat. Lately, I’ve been cooking a brand new meal for lunch. Now that our homeschool has started, it needs to be fast and filling. Here are 33 ideas for lunches that I can make quickly or start the night before in the slow cooker. Do you have any ideas to add? Please add your favorite lunch as a comment.

1 Egg Sandwiches with fried egg, bacon, and cheese
2 Egg Salad Sandwiches on bread, pitas, or buns
3 Egg Burritos plain or with sausage
4 Creamed eggs over freezer biscuits
5 Frittata
6 Breakfast casserole
7 Southwest grilled chicken salad pitas
8 Chicken salad in cheese puffs
9Tuna salad on bread, buns, or pitas
10 Banana dogs, banana with peanut butter and jelly on a whole wheat hot dog bun
11 Hot Dogs
12 Macaroni and cheese, plain or with tuna or hot dogs stirred in
13 Chili over baked potatoes
14 Baked breaded vegetable nuggets
15 Crumb coated cheese and rice balls with marinara dipping sauce
16 BBQ meatballs and baked fries
17 BBQ beef baked in biscuit dough in a muffin tin
18 Pizza toppings baked in biscuit dough in a muffin tin
19 Hamburger bun or English Muffin mini pizzas
20 Homemade chicken nuggets
21 Ham and cheese pockets (with small rounds of pizza dough folded in half and baked
22 Jack Mackerel Patties
23 Soup and Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
24 Grilled burritoes
25 Tostadas
26 Quesadillas, cheese, bean, pizza, or ham and cheese
27 Ranch veggie pizza
28 Croissant roll chicken pockets
29 Sausage gravy over freezer biscuits
30 BLTs
31 Submarine sandwiches, baked
32 chili
33 Potato soup