Favorites

One of the categories you can search in this blog is Favorites. But what is a Meals Made Ahead favorite?

With four or five families eating each recipe, you can imagine that not every meal will go over well in each household. When we try a new recipe, which is often, we report back whether our family liked the meal. Sometimes a whole family likes a meal, sometimes it's just one our two in the family.

When all the families liked a recipe enough that we decide to make it again in our cooking group, that meal becomes a Favorite.

I recently went through and updated all the labels (through October 2009) so that any meal we've made again is now a Favorite. Any recipe we haven't made is labeled with Let's Try It. If we've made it once and at least one family has enjoyed it, it's labeled tried it and liked it.

I'm still not sure what to do with those recipes that we tried and all hated! We did have one of those a long time ago before I started the blog and, for obvious reasons, I never put the recipe up here. It was called Crowd Pleaser Casserole and it please no one!

We have 11 favorites so far. Check them all out here: Favorites. You can also choose favorites from the drop down catergory menu on the right side bar at any time.

When we try a new recipe, it sometimes takes me a while to go back and change it from let's try it to tried it and liked it, but as of today, they're accurate.

Quick Quiche *updated

The other day, I prepared the Quiche in a Bag we had made at a previous cooking day. I was getting so frustrated because it always takes at least an hour of baking before it looks set. I even take it out and let it sit for 10 minutes, thinking it would set up as it cools. But it didn't, so back into the oven it went. And we ended up eating our breakfast much later than I had intended.

So I went searching for a new recipe. I found this one at AllRecipes. I haven't tried it yet*, but it looks promising because it's got less milk but for the most part is the same as the recipe we've been using (different meat and cheese but those were adaptable anyway). I figure, if there's less milk, it will bake faster, right? I'll let you know. I'm going to switch the quiche recipe for my RMG cooking night to this one.

8 slices bacon
4 ounces shredded Swiss cheese
2 tablespoons butter, melted
4 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups milk


Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, crumble and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9 inch pie pan.

Line bottom of pie plate with cheese and crumbled bacon. Combine eggs, butter, onion, salt, flour and milk; whisk together until smooth; pour into pie pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 35 minutes, until set. Serve hot or cold.

For freezing, instead of following these directions, combine all ingredients (pre-cook the bacon) and transfer to a freezer zip top bag. Freeze. To prepare, thaw completely in fridge. Give the bag a few squeezes to distribute the ingredients. Pour into a prepared pie pan as directed above and cook at 350 until set.



*OMG! This is my new favorite quiche recipe. It baked in only 45 minutes @ 375 and it was so good! We added about a 1/2 cup of frozen spinach to the quiche and then I baked it in a homemade pie crust (that's why I upped the temp to 375). It was just a tiny bit frozen when I put it in so if making it fresh, I would start checking earlier.

Chicken Breasts in Phyllo

makes 12 servings

1 1/2 cups mayonnaise OR cream cheese
1 cup green onion, chopped
1/3 cup lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 t. dry tarragon
12 chicken breast halves, boned and skinned
salt and pepper to taste
24 sheets phyllo dough
1 1/2 cups butter, melted
1/3 cup parmesan cheese, freshly grated

Combine first 5 ingredients to make sauce. Lightly sprinkle chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Place 2 sheets of phyllo on working surface. Quickly brush each sheet with melted butter (about 2 t.) and stack on top of each other. Spread about 1 1/2 T. of sauce on each side of chicken. Place breast in in one corner of buttered phyllo sheets. Fold corner over breast, then fold sides over, and roll breast up in the sheets to form a package. Place in ungreased baking sheet. Repeat with remaining chicken breasts and phyllo sheets. Brush packets with remaining butter and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Wrap each chicken breast in plastic wrap and place in a freezer bag.

Thaw completely before baking. Bake at 375 degrees in an ungreased baking dish for 45-50 minutes or until golden. Serve immediately.

From Don't Panic-- Dinner's in the Freezer by Susie Martinez, Vanda Howell, & Bonnie Garcia

Nutrition information from SparkPeople: Meals Made Ahead cookbook:
Calories: 598.9 | Carbs: 24.1g | Fat: 26.7g | Fiber: 1g | Protein: 62g

Caribbean Jerk Chicken

from MomsBudget.com

2 1/2 lbs chicken pieces
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp ground red pepper flakes
1 envelope Italian salad dressing mix

Combine ingredients except chicken in a small bowl. Add chicken to a freezer bag, then add Caribbean Jerk mixture. Carefully move the chicken around so it is thoroughly coated, then freeze.

On cooking day, thaw in refrigerator and remove chicken pieces, disposing of the leftover marinade. Barbecue on a grill or bake in a 375 oven for approx 60 minutes (may vary depending on which chicken pieces are used.

MealsMadeAhead notes: We prefer to use boneless, skinless chicken breasts and they can probably be left whole to save even more time!

Taco Tartlets

Taco Tartlets:
1 pound ground beef (uncooked)
2 Tablespoons taco seasoning mix
2 Tablespoons ice water
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Tortilla Chip filling:
1 cup sour cream
2 Tablespoons taco sauce
2 ounces chopped black olives
3/4 cup coarsely crushed tortilla chips

Mix beef, seasoning and ice water. Press into bottom and sides of mini-muffin pan. Prepare Tortilla Chip filling in a different bowl. Place a spoonful of filling into each shell, mounding slightly. Sprinkle cheddar cheese over tops. Bake 7-8 minutes. Remove tartlets from pan with tip of knife. Serve immediately or freeze. (No directions how to reheat.)



Last December, Jodi and I got together to make appetizers we could have on hand in the freezer for the Holiday season. The original recipe gave no directions for reheating so I put the frozen tartlets on a cookie sheet and reheated them in the oven until hot. It worked fine. My family loved them! Note: They were a bit time consuming and fussy to make.

Turkey & Artichoke Stuffed Shells

1 (12-ounce) box jumbo pasta shells (recommended: Barilla)
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 large yellow onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound ground turkey
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus 1/2 teaspoon
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus 1/4 teaspoon
1 (8 to 10-ounce) package frozen artichokes, thawed and coarsely chopped
1 (15-ounce) container ricotta cheese
3/4 cup grated Parmesan
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

for final cooking day:
sauce of choice
1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and partially cook until tender but still very firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 4 to 5 minutes. Drain pasta.

Meanwhile, in a large heavy skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and the garlic and cook until the onions are soft and starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Add the ground turkey, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the meat is slightly golden and cooked through. Add the artichoke hearts and stir to combine. Remove from heat and let cool.

In a large bowl combine the cooled turkey mixture with the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, eggs, basil, parsley, and the remaining salt and pepper. Stir to combine.

Take a shell in the palm of your hand and stuff it with a large spoonful of turkey mixture, about 2 tablespoons. Place the stuffed shell in the baking dish. Continue filling the shells until the baking dish is full, about 24 shells. If freezing, cover tightly with plastic wrap and place in the freezer for up to 1 month.

To bake, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Cover the shells with pasta sauce of your choice. Top with shredded mozzarella cheese. Bake until the shells are warmed through and the cheese is beginning to brown, about 60 minutes (20 minutes if shells are unfrozen).

This recipe makes a huge batch and unless you are cooking for a dinner party you'll want to freeze a portion of the recipe. We usually divide one full recipe between two families and then split each of those portions into two meals, so about 1/4 recipe feeds a (two adult, 2 kid) family if other sides are served.



The original recipe plus the sauce recipe can be found here.

2 Weight Watchers points per shell with sauce and cheese.

Monica's BBQ Chicken

Once again, this is a recipe I found online a few months ago, but can not find the link. (It is the same page as the Potato Carrot Mounds were found on). This is another easy, family favorite!

Monica's BBQ Chicken

3 Pounds Chicken Pieces (Or All Breasts)--*I use boneless, skinless breasts.
½ Cup Soy Sauce
¾ Cup Brown Sugar
2 Tablespoons Oil
1 Teaspoon Ground Ginger
¼ Teaspoon Ground Pepper
½ Teaspoon Garlic Powder (Or 2 Cloves Mashed)

Prepare sauce and place chicken in it. Seal bag. Freeze. TO SERVE:Thaw chicken. Bake 350 degrees for 1/2 hour. Done when fork easily pierces meat. Heat remaining sauce and boil 2 minutes. Serve over rice, if desired.**NOTE - this makes two meals for our family of 6.

Freezer Garlic Bread

Very easy. Much less expensive than purchasing frozen garlic bread, especially if you can purchase the bread on sale. Recipe adapted from momsbudget.com.

• 1 loaf of French bread
• 1/2 cup butter, softened (NOT melted)
• 2 cloves of garlic, pressed

Make width-wise cuts in French bread, about an inch apart, not quite cutting all the way through. Mix the softened butter with the garlic. Spread the butter mixture between the slices. Wrap in aluminum foil and then place in a freezer bag.

To serve, remove from freezer and remove plastic wrap. Place in oven preheated to 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Open the foil wrapper to allow steam to vent. Increase oven to 450 degrees and continue heating for another 10 minutes. Serve.



Hint: If you have a Jimmy John's sub shop near you, they sell their day-old bread loafs for fifty cents each!

Nutrition information from SparkPeople: Meals Made Ahead cookbook: (assumes 1 pound loaf of bread and 12 slices/servings)

Cals: 172.1 | Fat: 8.8 g | Protein: 3.4 g | Carbs: 19.8 g | Fiber: 1.1 g

Low Fat Pizza Pasta Cassarole

Another of our favorites! To reduce fat even more, we substituted the regular pepperoni with turkey pepperoni. Recipe adapted from momsbudget.com .

• 1 pound extra lean ground beef, ground chicken or ground turkey or a mixture totaling one pound
• 2 Tablespoons onion, chopped
• 1 jar (28 ounces) spaghetti sauce
• 1/2 a box (about 8 ounces) whole wheat or multi-grain pasta, cooked for freezing
• 1 1/2 cups skim mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 3 ounces sliced turkey pepperoni

In a large skillet, cook ground meat with onion until meat is no longer pink. Drain grease. Add spaghetti sauce and noodles and mix well. Transfer mixture to a 9"x13" pan. Arrange pepperoni on top and then sprinkle with cheese.*

To freeze, cover the pan with its lid or aluminum foil. Add a label with the cooking instructions.

Cooking instructions: thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake 35-40 minutes or until heated through.

*The original recipe calls for the cheese first and the pepperoni on top. We have found the turkey pepperoni gets a bit too crispy this way. If you like your pepperoni extra crispy, feel free to put it on top of the cheese.

Simple Salisbury Steak

This Simple Salsibury Steak (originally found on FreezerChicks.blogspot.com) recipe has been made a couple of times by our Freezer Co-op with with rave reviews. Both of my picky children (and my picky hubby) eat this up with no complaints. Every one I have passed this recipe on to has praised it as well, so it is a real winner!

• 1 can of reduced-fat cream of mushroom soup
• 1 pound of ground beef
• 1/3 cup dry bread crumbs
• 1 egg beaten
• 1/4 cup finely chopped onion or equivalent in dried onion
• 1 1/2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms

In a bowl, mix together 1/4 cup of the soup, beef, bread crumbs, egg, and onion. Shape firmly into 6 patties. (If you are using raw meat, you can freeze it now and brown the mushrooms and freeze them too, or you can freeze everything after cooking)

In a skillet over medium heat, cook patties, a few at a time, until browned on both sides, spoon off fat, set aside.

Stir in remaining soup and mushrooms, return the patties to the skillet, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 20 minutes or until done, turning patties occasionally.

Allow to cool and place patties and sauce into freezer bag. Lay flat to freeze.

To cook: Allow to thaw. Reheat and eat!


View recipe at plantoeat.com

Sausage Biscuits

1/2 lb. pork breakfast sausage
1-1/2 cups baking mix
1 cup grated Cheddar cheese
1 egg, beaten
2 Tbsp. milk
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In large skillet, break up sausage and cook over medium heat until thoroughly cooked. Drain well and then drain on paper towels.

In a large bowl, mix baking mix, cheese and sausage until well distributed. In small bowl, beat together egg, milk and salt and pepper. Add to baking mix mixture and blend until mixture forms a ball. Shape into 24 balls, using about 1 Tbsp. of dough for each.

Place on ungreased baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes until browned and cooked through. Serve immediately or freeze. Reheat in microwave or oven until hot.

Make sure to read the comments for more tips!




from About.com

Apricot Marinade

Marinade:
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 cups apricot jam or preserves
2 cups french dressing
2 (1 oz each) packages of dry onion soup mix
2 garlic cloves, crushed

Meat options:
6 pork chops (about 1/2-3/4 inch thick)
or
6-8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Mix marinade ingredients together and divide into 2 freezer bags.

Freezing and cooking options:

1. Freeze just the marinade. Thaw the marinade when you're ready to cook. Place your meat choice (browned separately, if desired) in a baking dish and cover completely with the marinade. Bake at 350 until the pork or chicken is completely cooked.
2. Add half of your fresh meat choice to each bag of marinade. Freeze. Thaw completely before baking. Dump meat and marinade into a baking dish and bake at 350 until the pork or chicken is completely cooked.
3. Freeze just the marinade. Thaw just enough to get it out of the bag. Throw a few frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts into a large saucepan. Squeeze the slightly thawed sauce out of the bag over the chicken. Cover and heat over low to medium heat, stirring occasionally. Make sure chicken is cooked completely, then remove chicken and dice it. Or keep cooking until chicken falls apart with stirring. Return chicken to sauce. Serve over rice. Yummy!

Since the recipe makes two packages, you could split it up and make one per family if you need to keep costs down.

We found that you really need to use a good cut of pork to make this recipe worth it. If you don't like so much onion flavor, you can use one envelope of onion soup mix per 6 pork chops; I've tried it and it works just as well.

Adapted from this original recipe at Freezer Chicks.

Lemonade Chicken

This recipe came from Spark People Recipes. I've altered it to make enough for one meal for an average family. It tastes very much like the Orange Chicken you would find at a Chinese restaurant, except not at all spicy. If you want it spicy, I'm sure a few red pepper flakes would do the trick.

• 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken, cut into one-inch pieces
• 6 ounces (1/2 can) frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 3 tablespoons ketchup
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 1/2 cup water
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar (or brown sugar substitute such as Splen.da)
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

Brown chicken in oil. Combine all ingredients except oil and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer about 40 minutes or until chicken is tender. Combine cornstarch with 1/2 cup cold water and mix until blended. Stir cornstarch mixture into chicken until thick and bubbly. Allow to cool. Transfer to a zipper bag or other suitable container for freezing.

To reheat, just let thaw enough to get it out of the container. I brought mine back to a boil, but I'm not sure if that's necessary. Eat over rice or noodles.

(Jodi's) Busy Day Individual Meatloaves

Meatloaf:

• 1 pound of ground beef
• 2/3 cup crushed crackers
• 2/3 cup milk
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon sage
• 1/2 teaspoon thyme
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 3 tablespoons dried minced onion

(I typically double this recipe and use 1 lb beef and 1 lb turkey)

In a large bowl crumble meat. Cover with crackers/ Pour milk over crackers and allow to sit for a minute or so. Mix together. Add beaten egg, salt and onion. Mix. Add seasonings and mix very well. Make into 1/4 pound individual meatloaves. (You can freeze them individually or make one large meatloaf per 1 lb of meat). Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes (appx 45 minutes if making a large loaf)

Sauce:

• 1/3 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground mustard

Mix well and pour over meatloaf before baking. The sauce is the best part. When we make this for freezing, we put everything except the ketchup and soy sauce in a snack sized zipper bag with instructions to add them, mix, and top the meatloaf.

We have made this recipe as individual meatloaves and as 1 family loaf. This is one of our favorites and we've made it at least twice together and I've made it several times on my own for freezing. This is my default meatloaf recipe now!

View recipe at plantoeat.com