Source: aturtleslifeforme.com via Kelly on Pinterest

Wonderful site that has 40 meals to make for the freezer!

Successful Freezer Cook!

Our Freezer cooking group met this morning, all with their own meat and I had set up all the little stations. Our goal to each prepare and take home 14 meals. We met at 8am and was finished by 1045. We accomplished about 130 meals! Here is what everyone took home

Two each of the Mexican Lasagna

Two Wild Rice Chicken Bake

Two Parmesan Sage Pork Chops

Two Chicken Tacos, I also did beef taco meat (I had extra meat)

Two White Chicken Chili

We also did Two Italian Cream Chicken and Two Orange Chicken, I forgot to take pictures of those. Sorry!!

Menu for Freezer Cook #2

So far I have come up with a few great ideas for our freezer cooking group. Let me know what you think

Fettucine Alfredo with Blackened Chicken

Buffalo Bleu Cheese Burgers

Mango Vegetable Chicken Bake

Chicken Ranch Ranchero over Rice

Teriyaki Chicken

Healthy Pork Chops with Pineapple Salsa

 
Coconut Chicken with Apricot Sauce

Chicken Parmesan Pesto Stuffed Shells

Cafe Rio Pulled Pork for Cafe Rio Salads

Crockpot Chicken or Beef Fajitas

Mexican Beef and Rice

Tator Tot Casserole

Not definite, waiting for my freezer groups input. 

Shopping List for Freezer Cooking First Cook

Well ladies, here is the shopping list for our first cook. It took forever to figure quantities, but here it is. Just so everyone knows. I will do the shopping for our group. Most of this is very low prep work, wanted to keep as simple as possible for the first time. For the average price of everything I have in my pricebook we are at about $69 per person or family and that is for 14 dinners (it will go up a tiny bit I have not figured in the price of  bread crumbs) in our group for two weeks worth of dinners! I think that is pretty good so far!

boneless skinless Chicken Breasts - 108 pounds
Cream cheese - 128 ounces
Cream of chicken soup - 16 cans
Dry Italian seasoning pkg. - 16 pkgs.
All purpose Flour - 12 1/2 cups
Salt - 1/2 cup
Pepper - 1/4 cup
 Bread Crumbs - 36 cups

 Sage  1 ½ cups

 Lemon zest - 1/2 cup

 Eggs - 48

Pork chops - 96

Wild rice - 40 cups cooked

Cream mushroom soup - 16

Sour cream - 3 ½ pounds

Lemon juice - 1 cup

Onions - 8 cups

Green chiles 16 small cans

White beans 32 cans

Cilantro ½ cup

oil - 6 cups

Chicken broth - 24 cups

Garlic - 32 cloves

Cumin - ¾ cup

oregano - ½ cup

Flour tortillas  - 192

taco seasoning  -32 pkg

Lime juice - 3 cups

Corn tortillas - 144

Refried beans - 16 cans

Ground beef or ground turkey - 32 pounds

Shredded cheddar or taco cheese -  40 cups

Bottle olive oil

balsamic vinegar - 5 Tbsp.

Ketchup - 3 cups

frozen OJ -  96 oz.

Brown sugar - 4 cups

 Grated Parmesan Cheese - 24 cups

Old Fashion School Lunch Rolls

Oh my goodness these are amazing! I just made these this afternoon. I can't stop eating them! They are the best!

2 1/2 POUNDS of flour I bolded that so you would see it's not cups!!
1/2 cup dry milk
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp. salt
1/4 cup instant yeast
3/4 cup melted, cooled butter or shortening (room temperature)
3 cups lukewarm water

Sift together all of the dry ingredients. Mix well, add yeast, lukewarm water, and cooled melted butter. Beat in kitchen aid on low for 15 Minutes, VERY IMPORTANT!

It will look sticky! It is suppose it, don't worry.
Let rise.
Roll out onto lightly floured surface to 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick. Cut out rolls with cutter or can use pizza cutter for square rolls. Place on greased pans. Let rise again.

 Made 5 pans worth of rolls! I think now I would have made mine bigger but these are perfect for little hands!!

Bake at 350 degrees until done (depending on the pan I did about 12 min) butter tops. Makes about 65 rolls!

Freezer Cooking Group First Cook

Ok, well our freezer cooking group has had it's first little quick meeting and we are doing just 2 weeks to start off with. We have decided on a menu and will meet in about 2 weeks.
Here is the menu and recipes! I will add pictures after we meet again.
Chicken Tacos
Skillet Cordon Bleu
White Chicken Chili
Wild Rice Chicken Bake
Parmesan Sage Pork Chops
Italian Cream Chicken
Mexican Lasagna
Slow Cooker Orange Chicken
We will be making 2 of each of these for each member in our group (8 of us) which will be a total of 128 meals wow that's alot. I think that's why we decided to keep it at just two weeks for now.

Chicken Tacos
2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts sliced or diced
1 pkg. taco seasoning mix (I make my own so it's equivalent to 2 Tbsp.)
3 Tbsp. lime juice
2 Tbsp. veg. oil
12 small tortillas
Mix all ingredients minus tortillas, in ziploc freezer bag. To serve thaw and warm in a skillet with a little oil. Serve on tortillas with fresh toppings, i.e. tomatoes, lettuce, sour cream.

For our group to do two of these we will need
192 tortillas
32 pounds chicken
16 pkgs taco seasoning
3 c. lime juice
2 c. veg. oil

Skillet Cordon bleu
I think we are going to change this recipe out it is way too much prep for now.

White Chicken Chili
3 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
1/2 cup chopped onion
4 oz. can green chilies
2 cans white beans
1/2 tsp cilantro
1/4 c. oil
1 1/2 c. chicken broth
2 cloves crushed garlic
2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. ground red pepper (opt.)

Chop onion and garlic, saute in pan with chicken. Cool, combine all ingredients in freezer bag. To serve, thaw and warm over medium heat or on low in crockpot.

For our group to do two of these we will need
48 chicken breasts
8 cups onion
16 cans green chilies
32 cans white beans (I may convince them to just make these from dry beans, huge $ saver)
1/2 c. cilantro
4 c. oil
24 c. chicken broth
32 cloves garlic
3/4 c. cumin
1/2 c. oregano

More to come I will post this for now but the rest is coming I promise!!
Wild Rice chicken Bake
5 cups cooked wild rice
2 cans cream mushroom soup
8 oz. sour cream
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
3 cups cooked chicken
(We always add 1 cup celery and 1 cup onions and 1 cup waterchestnuts! Not every kid will eat these so this is the kid friendly version)
Spread 2 1/2 cups cooked rice on bottom of pan. Mix soup, sour cream and lemon juice together in a separate bowl. Layer half soup mixture over rice, then add the chicken. Layer again the rest of the rice, soup mixture. Freeze. ( For my recipe I mix everything together, and freeze in a gallon freezer bag and this recipe makes two bags or two meals).
To serve thaw and bake til warm through. Is great with steamed broccoli and salad.

For our group we will need
40 cups cooked wild rice
16 cans cream mushroom soup
3 1/2 pounds sour cream
1 cup lemon juice
24 cups cooked chicken

Parmesan Sage Pork Chops
1/4 cup flour plus 2 Tbsp.
3/4 tsp salt
dash pepper
2 1/4 cups soft bread crumbs
1 1/2 cups grated parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp and 1 1/2 tsp. rubbed sage
1 1/2 tsp grated lemon zest
3 eggs, lightly beaten
6 bone-in pork loin chops (we prefer boneless if in the budget)
3 Tbsp. olive oil
3 Tbsp. butter
In a shallow bowl combine the flour salt and pepper. In another bowl mix the bread crumbs, parmesan, sage and lemon zest. Place eggs in a bowl, beaten. Coat pork chops in flour mixture, then egg, then coat with the bread crumb mixture. Place on cookie sheet and freeze, place in freezer bag.
To cook, thaw over night in fridge, then in a skillet brown chops in oil and butter for 2 minutes each side.Transfer to a baking dish and bake uncovered at 450 for 10-15 min. or meat thermometer reads 160 degrees.

For our group we will need
6 cups flour
1/4 cup salt
1/4 cup pepper
36 cups bread crumbs
24 cups parmesan
1 1/2 cups sage
1/2 cup lemon zest
48 eggs
96 pork chops


The butter and oil will be provided by each family because it will made at home.

Italian Cream Chicken
4-5 boneless skinless chicken breasts, frozen
1 pkg. cream cheese
1 can cream chicken soup
1 pkg. dry italian dressing seasoning

Place cream cheese, softened, soup and italian seasoning in freezer bag and squish. Place frozen chicken breasts in bag. Lay flat and freeze. To serve place in crockpot. Cook on high for 5-6 hours until chicken is falling apart. Serve over hot egg noodles, penne pasta or rice.

For our cooking group we will need
64 chicken breasts
16 pkgs. cream cheese
16 cans cream chicken soup
16 pkgs. italian dressing mix

 Mexican Lasagna
9 corn tortillas
1 can refried beans
2 pounds ground beef or ground turkey (we actually use taco flavored TVP)
1 pkg. taco seasoning
2 1/2 cups cheese, shredded

Cook beef or turkey, drain add taco seasoning, and 1/4 cup water. Put a layer of corn tortillas in 9x13 pan then layer with 1/3 of refried beans. We like to add a layer of salsa and black olives in ours. Sometimes we will take out the meat and do black beans. Then layer 1/3 of the meat, and sprinkle some cheese. Repeat layers 2 more times. Freeze. To serve:  thaw in fridge 24 to 48 hours ahead of time. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 min. Top with sourcream, lettuce and salsa.

For our group we will need
144 corn tortillas
16 cans refried beans (we should just make our own would be way way cheaper!)
32 pounds ground beef or turkey (or again could be vegetarian and use black beans)
16 pkg. taco seasoning
40 cups shredded cheese

Slow Cooker Orange Chicken
4-5 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut in bite sized pieces
1/3 cup flour
olive oil
1/2 Tbsp. salt
1 tsp. balsamic vinegar
3 Tbsp. ketchup
6 oz. frozen orange juice concentrate
4 Tbsp. brown sugar

Dredge chicken in flour. Freeze or you can cook and freeze, I don't prefer this method. Cook in oil and cook until brown. Cool, place on cookie sheet to flash freeze. Place all other ingredients in freezer bag and squish. Place chicken in bag also. To serve, pour into crockpot and cook on high 4-5 hours. Serve over jasmine rice.

For our group we will need
80 boneless skinless chicken breasts
6 1/2 cups flour
olive oil
8 Tbsp. salt
5 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
3 cups ketchup
96 oz. oj
4 cups brown sugar

WOW!! Now to post the shopping list!! What a chore!!

End of School Year Pizza

We have made it a tradition to have pizza for lunch at the end of every school year on the last day, usually the kids have a half day. In the past I have just had it delivered but I wanted to be more frugal and well we just like homemade better.

Here is my whole wheat pizza dough recipe.
2 c. warm water
4 Tbsp. yeast
 2 Tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. salt
1/4 c. oil
5 1/2 to 6 cups whole white wheat (I usually do 2 cups white and the rest whole wheat)
2 Tbsp. Italian seasoning
1 Tbsp. garlic powder

Dissolve yeast in water and sugar. Add oil, salt, and 2 cups of the flour. Beat with mixer 2- 3 min. Stir in rest of flour. Knead, let rise for 10 min. Punch down; let rest for 5 min.
Shape into 2 large pizzas or we do a jelly roll size pizza, just easier!
Add sauce and toppings of your choice bake at 400 degrees for 15-18 min.

Here is ours we had for lunch today just cheese and pepperoni, before we cooked it.

And here it is all hot and out of the oven.

Drip Catcher for our Camping Jug

Well last weekend was our church's father and son campout and Brian wanted to used our jug and mix Gatorade in it. I buy the powder in bulk so it is very economical. I knew that our jug dripped a little but it seems to drip just a little bit more for a few seconds after getting a drink. I had seen somewhere I can't remember probably pinterest LOL someone made a holder for their sponge on the kitchen faucet with an old shampoo bottle. So, I tried it for a drip catcher for our jug. I thought it turned out quite well. Sorry there is no pattern, I totally eyeballed it!

I had to rig it with tape too because I made the circle too big to go over the spout.
Here is one more picture, a different angle.

My Own Creation!

I really wanted to throw something in the crockpot today at around 2pm and I am about out of freezer meals so I looked around at what I had and man does it smell good! I had about 2 pounds of chicken tenders, frozen I put those in the crockpot. Poured over that a bottle of Aldi's brand Herb and Garlic marinade. I chopped up 2 onions, 5 gold yukon potatoes, and 2 zucchini. I think we will just call it Herb and Garlic Chicken and Veg. Mmmm!

Butterfly Feet for Mothers Day

I had to add this cute picture! I do home childcare and we made these really cute butterfly footprints with a poem that fit perfectly! It was our project for the kids mommies for mothers day! I got the idea from of course non other than Pinterest!

Freezing Bell Peppers

Well they had a great sale on peppers and my local store and I bought alot! I love doing this and chopping, slicing and freezing! Huge money saver and saves room in the fridge/freezer!

Strawberry Pineapple Banana Smoothie!

Just made the best smoothie for breakfast this morning.
1 banana
6 frozen strawberries
1 cup frozen pineapple
1 individual serving container strawberry banana yogurt
1/4 cup skim milk
blend- YUM!!

Freezer Recipes

Taco Soup
2 pounds cooked hamburger
2 cans hominy, not drained
2 cans corn, not drained
2 cans green chilis (4 oz)
2 cans chili beans
2 cans black beans
2 pkg. taco seasoning mix
2 pkg. hidden valley ranch seasoning mix
mix all divide into two gallon size freezer bags, freeze flat on a cookie sheet. To cook, thaw 24 hours ahead then warm through or can put in crockpot on low until warm.
Serve over tortilla chips top with cheese or sour cream

Mexican Beef and Rice
2 pounds hamburger, cooked
1 large can olives, drained and sliced
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
4 cups cooked rice
2 pkg. taco seasoning mix
2 small cans tomato sauce
mix all into two gallon size freezer bags, "squish" together, forgot to make sure you know it is important to get as much of the air out of the bags to avoid freezer burn! Freeze flat on a cookie sheet. To serve warm through, can be put in crockpot on low. Serve with tortilla chips and top with sour cream, can also use as a filling in a flour tortilla along with avocado and lettuce.

Sloppy Joes
3 pounds cooked hamburger
2 cups onion, chopped
3 tomatoes chopped or can use 2 cans chopped tomatoes
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp salt and pepper
Sauce
1 (30 oz) can tomato sauce
15 oz can v8
7 tsp worcestershire sauce
7 Tbsp brown sugar
7 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp ground red pepper, optional
1/2 tsp chili powder, optional
Mix well, divide into three small freezer bags, "squish" together. Lay flat to freeze, can place in crockpot on low to serve. Serve on buns with pickle spears.

Taco Meat
- self explanatory
one note, I do use my own already made taco seasoning instead of buying it from the store.
 When time to use, you can just microwave for about 4 -5 minutes and your ready for tacos!!

Tater Tot Casserole
2 pounds ground beef, cooked and drained
mix in 2 cans cream mushroom soup or make your own
layer your choice of vegetables, sometimes we will use peas, canned or frozen, this time we used frozen mix veggies.
top with tater tots and shredded cheese.
Layer each in a 8 x 8 pan (I use the glad ware that can be used in micro, dishwasher, and oven and freezer).
To cook thaw 24 hours in fridge then cook 350 for about 25 min or until bubbly.

Beef Stroganoff
3-4 pounds ground beef, cooked and drained
3 onions sliced thin, cooked with ground beef
2 packages onion soup mix or make your own
4 cans sliced mushrooms, or fresh or frozen will work
2 lg boxes of beef stock or beef bouillon and water
bring to simmer, add 4 Tbsp of flour to 1/2 cold water and mix into the pan, will thicken quickly. Lower heat, don't add sour cream until right before serving.
Freeze in 3-4 freezer bags, lay flat to freeze.
To serve can put in crockpot or warm on stovetop, add 1 cup sour cream right before serving, serve over hot egg noodles or rice.

Baja Citrus Swai
Ok, I really cheat here but I can't find a good hm recipe for the seasoning that compares to this.
I buy the McCormick Grill Mates Baja Citrus Marinade and add the vinegar, water and oil to this
We also buy the Swai Filets from WalMart, they come frozen individually packaged. I open then and cut them in half because they are quite large fillets. So three filets are plenty for our family. I layer then in a gallon freezer bag and dump the seasoning and other ingredients, swish it around a bit.
To serve thaw 24 hours in fridge, then grill or bake.

Ok, this isn't all of them but it's a start!!

Cheap Way to Build Food Storage

One of my favorite stores to just go see what I can find is Big Lots! I like to go at least a few times a month to see if I can find any really great deals usually on food. Well I lucked out tonight. I ran over there and look what I found! Gossner shelf stable milk that's good for two more years! For only $1.00! Also 8 packs of individual Jif Peanut Butter To Go for only$1.00. I bought all they had. Then I was very lucky to find this canned ham my kids absolutely LOVE! I bought all they had of those too. They were only $.85 each. These are all great and cheap and perfect for 72 hour kits.

Family Favorite Freezer Recipes

Well, I am going to put up a more in depth post with our family favorite freezer recipes. I am working from home now and am able to have a little bit more time getting a little more organized and boy do I need to work more on our freezer! I have been doing freezer cooking for about 11 years. I love it! It is a great way to be organized, plan a menu and stick to it, and of course save a ton of $$$ on your grocery budget.
These are just a few of our favorites. Recipes to follow soon. I will be cooking these over the next few days and posting pictures.

Mexichicken
Chicken Broccoli
sloppy Joes
Mexican Beef and Rice
Russian Stew
Twice Baked Potatoes
Enchilada Pie
Breakfast Burritos
Wild Rice Chicken
Stromboli
Chicken Spaghetti
Manicotti
Lemon Chicken

Food Storage Beef Stew

1 cup dried onions
1 cup dried carrots
3 cups water
2 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
3 cups water
1 can (15oz) green beans, with liquid
1 can (15oz) corn, with liquid
8-10 cubes beef bouillon
1 Tbsp. dried garlic
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. kitchen bouquet
salt and pepper
2 cans (15oz) beef chunks, with liquid
Mashed potatoes
Rehydrate onions and carrots in 3 cups water for 15 min. Drain. In a large pot on high heat, add oil, onions and carrots, saute for 1 min. Sprinkle flour in and lightly brown. Add 3 cups water and stir until thickened. Add green beans, corn, bouillon, garlic, worcestershire sauce, kitchen bouquet, salt and pepper to taste. Turn down heat to medium low. Add beef and juice, being careful not to shred the chunks. Cover and simmer for 30 min. Serve stew over prepared mashed potatoes.

RS Freezer Frenzy

Well tonight our lovely RS prepared freezer meals as our monthly activity. It was so much fun! One of the ladies in our organization tallied up a list and purchased all the ingredients. Those that signed up brought their own meat (enough for their families) for two meals. We were also asked to bring two extra chicken breasts so that while we were doing these meals for ourselves we made them for other families that might need a meal to be brought in. Sometimes when there is an illness, baby born, death, etc. we take meals over to help out that family. I will have to find out how many "extra meals" we were able to do. They were great!

We made Teriyaki Chicken, and Cranberry Chicken. Thanks for all your hard work Holly!
Cranberry Chicken
In a gallon freezer bag mix the following
1 can cranberry sauce
1 cup french dressing
1 pkg. onion soup mix
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts (my mom did pork loin chops)
mix in bag and freeze flat, to serve thaw 24 hours prior to cooking in fridge. Place in 9x13 pan and cook for 45 min at 350. Serve with rice (our favorite is Jasmine).

Teriyaki Chicken 
In a gallon freezer bag, mix the following
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 can chunk pineapple, undrained
1 small package of baby carrots
1 onion, chunked
1 (10 oz) bottle teriyaki sauce
1 tsp garlic minced
1 1/2 cup water
To serve, thaw 24 hours prior to cooking in fridge. Place in crockpot and cook on low for 6-8 hours. High for 4 hours. Serve with rice (again, ours is Jasmine).

Make Your Own Dehydrated Potatoes

I just had a mix of red and yukon potatoes  (5 lb).

Well I decided to take on the dreaded task of dehydrating some potatoes and hope that they turn out.  I started with washing the potatoes, then put them through my food processor.

Bring large pot of water to a boil, immerse potatoes in bring back to a boil and blanche for 8 minutes. Take out and place immediately in a bowl of ice cold water (it works best with a metal basket or colander). Place a single layer on towel and blot dry. Place on dehydrator trays and let process for 24 hours.

Hot Chocolate Cupcakes

I know this is really bad but I love Duncan Hines Cake Mix !! So I still get my duncan hines  and use my food storage and make it somewhat healthy here is the recipe for these really yummy cupcakes.

1 box devils food duncan hines cake mix
6 Tbsp egg powder + 9 Tbsp water (or you can use 3 eggs)
1 1/3 cup water
1/3 cup mashed black beans

mix all ingredients, pour into cupcake liners in muffin tin. Bake 350 for 20 min.

Hot Chocolate Butter Cream
My kiddos love lots of frosting (who doesn't)
so we doubled this recipe for the frosting.
1 cup shortening (we use butter flavored)
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cream of tartar
1 pound powdered sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 single serving hot chocolate mix or 2 Tbsp. of your own hot cocoa mix
whip until mixed well.

Pumpkin Spice Bread

2 cups canned pumpkin
3 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 cup oil
4 eggs (I used powdered eggs)
3 1/3 cups flour (I used whole wheat flour)
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp nutmeg
3/4 cup ground cloves
I added 2 cups chopped walnuts

Heat oven to 350 degrees, mix ingredients well, pour into two greased loaf pans. Bake for 60-70 min.