Chicken Cacciatore - Freezer Meal

Chicken Cacciatore

3 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts (I added thighs also)
1 {26 oz} jar of spaghetti sauce
1 zucchini, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped


There are 2 different ways you can make this.

1. You can load all the ingredients into a gallon sized Ziplock bag, lay it flat, freeze, and cook it in the crockpot at a later date.

2. Layer the ingredients in a foil pan, seal and pop in the freezer.

Crockpot Cooking Method: Cook from frozen on high for 8 hours or until chicken is thoroughly cooked, or thaw overnight in the refrigerator overnight and cook on low for 4 to 6 hours or until chicken is thoroughly cooked.

Oven Cooking Method: Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Cook at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes or until chicken is cooked thoroughly.

Serve over cooked spaghetti noodles if desired. We ate it just in a bowl without the noodles.


Notes: You can pretty much add any veggie that you'd like to this. Next time I'm going to add mushrooms and more veggies.

Barbecued Meatballs - Freezer Meal

Barbecued Meatballs

Meatballs:

2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 cups milk
2 cups oats (quick-cooking or old fashioned — can also substitute bread crumbs)
1 onion, chopped
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 pounds raw ground beef (since you’ll be freezing this recipe uncooked, you’ll want to make sure the meat is fresh, not frozen)

Barbecue Sauce:

2 cups ketchup
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped onion (optional)
1 teaspoon Liquid Smoke (optional)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Combine all meatball ingredients and mix well. Shape into one-inch balls and lay on a cookie sheet.

To freeze: Freeze uncooked meatballs on a cookie sheet for one hour. Remove from cookie sheet and transfer to airtight ziptop freezer bags.

To serve: Thaw meatballs overnight (or for 8 hours) in the refrigerator. Put in a greased baking dish and bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 18 to 20 minutes. Drain.

While meatballs are cooking, combine Barbecue Sauce ingredients together in a saucepan on the stove. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for two minutes, stirring frequently.

Pour Barbecue Sauce over meatballs and bake for 10-20 minutes longer, or until done.

Crockpot Taco Soup - Freezer Meal

Crockpot Taco Soup

1 onion, chopped
1 (16 ounce) can chili beans, rinsed
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed
1 Bag Frozen whole kernel corn, no need to thaw
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
12 oz chicken or vegetable broth
2 (10 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with green chilis, undrained
1 package of taco seasoning (1.25 ounces)
2 whole skinless, boneless chicken breasts


Preparing: combine all ingredients in a ziplock bag. Flatten down so there is little to no air. Freeze.

Cooking Method: cook in crockpot on Low for 6-8 hours or High for 4-6.

Garnish with cheddar cheese, sour cream, &/or crushed tortilla chips

Make-Ahead Freezer Egg McMuffins

I'm always looking for things that save me time, keep me from having to cook all the time AND are healthy. This recipe is awesome! I make up 12 sausage, egg and cheese sandwiches at a time. Then wrap them, put them into a ziploc bag and place them into the freezer. Then we warm them up for breakfast when we need something quick.

Make-Ahead Freezer Egg McMuffins
Makes 12

2 Packages English Muffins (I use Sour Dough)
1 Dozen Eggs
12 Slices of Cheese (I use Cheddar)
12 Organic Sausage Patties (You can use bacon, Canadian bacon, or no meat)

Spray your pan of choice with olive oil. I use a muffin top/whoopie pan because the eggs come out almost the same size of the English muffins and they are the perfect thickness. Add your 12 eggs to the 12 slots in the pan you are using. Add black pepper and sea salt to your liking.

Bake eggs at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes (in a whoopie pan - if you are using a muffin pan I would cook them for 25-30 as they will be much thicker), until set. Although we normally like our egg yolks a little runny, I cooked these completely since I'd be freezing them. That's the way McDonald's makes them, too.

The baked eggs are easy to lift out with a small spatula. I just use my fingers since the whoopie pan is so easy to get them out and isn't a deep pan.

While the eggs bake, prepare the muffins by splitting them open and adding cheese slices (I folded in the corners of my cheese slices).

Add the baked eggs when they're ready and add the sausage patties to the top of the egg (or whatever meat you are using). Put the top of the muffin on and the sandwich is complete.

 

Wrap each individual sandwich.

Here are the instructions for wrapping them:


Wrap for microwave reheating. Wrap individual McMuffins in dry wax paper deli sheets. That way, you can put the wrapped sandwiches directly in the microwave for reheating. (You can also use pieces of wax or parchment paper.) After they're all wrapped, put them in freezer ziploc bags and freeze them. It takes under a minute to reheat a thawed McMuffin at full power in the microwave. A frozen one takes about 2-3 minutes at half power (turn it over after each minute).

Wrap for oven reheating. Wrap them in aluminum foil if you prefer to reheat them in the oven. This is a good option if you want to reheat several at one time. It takes approx. 30-40 minutes to reheat frozen McMuffins in a 350 degree oven. If they're thawed, it only takes about 15-20 minutes. The outside of the muffin gets crispy when these are warmed in the oven.

Feeding a crowd? Make up a bunch of these in advance, wrap them individually in foil, and reheat them all at once in the oven. They're easier to manage if you arrange them on large baking sheets for putting in and out of the oven. You'll need to increase the baking time a bit if you're reheating larger quantities.

Mini Maple Chocolate Chip Pancake Muffins

I made these for one of our camping trips because I wanted to pre-make as much food as I could to make meals quicker and less mess. They were so good and simple. We just warmed them up and dipped them in maple syrup or just ate them plain.

Mini Maple Chocolate Chip Pancake Muffins
Makes 24 mini pancake muffins

1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2/3 cup buttermilk
1 egg
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease a 24 cup mini muffin pan with non-stick spray.

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar in a medium bowl. Sift together with a wire whisk.

In another bowl, stir buttermilk, egg, maple syrup and melted butter until just combined.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir with a spoon until combined.

Stir in chocolate chips. Reserve a few chips to sprinkle on the tops.

Bake for 8-9 minutes.

Let cool slightly and remove from the pan. You may need to use a toothpick around the edges to separate the pancake muffins from the pan.

Waffle Chocolate Chip Cookies

My Grandma makes cookies in the waffle maker they are chocolate (Turtle Cookies she calls them). This is the same idea only chocolate chip cookies.

Waffle Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes about 20 cookies

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons firmly packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat your waffle iron.

2. In a bowl, whisk the butter and brown sugar until smooth. Add the eggs and vanilla, whisking to incorporate. Stir in the flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the oats and chocolate chips and stir to combine.

3. Spray the waffle iron with nonstick cooking spray.

4. Using a spoon or small scoop, place the dough onto each waffle section. Close the machine and cook until the cookies are set and beginning to brown. This won't take very long — probably two or three minutes, depending on the heat of your waffle iron. (They will be soft when you remove them and will firm up as they cool.)

5. Transfer the cooked cookies to a wire rack.

Avocado Baked Eggs

Here's a new spin on breakfast. Something healthy and quick to make.

Avocado Baked Eggs
Serves: 2        Total Time: 30 Minutes

1 Medium or Large Avocado
2 Small Eggs
2 Slices of Bacon, Cooked and Crumbled
2 Slices of Toast
Sea Salt, to taste
Black Pepper, to taste
Hot Sauce, optional
Fresh Chopped Tomatoes, optional


Preheat oven to 425*

Cut avocado in half and carefully remove the seed. Depending on how big the seed is, the hole in the avocado should be big enough for one small egg. But if the hole looks too small, scoop out a little at a time till it matches the amount of egg.

In a medium baking dish, try to rest the avocado half inside the edge of the dish so that the avocado doesn't tilt over. You need to keep the avocado from tilting so that the raw egg does not spill out.

Crack the egg directly in the avocado. Add salt and fresh cracked black pepper on top of the eggs, to taste.

Gently place the baking dish in oven and bake for about 15 minutes. Baking time will vary depending on how much egg you have and how big your avocado is. So keep checking the egg to see if it's cooked to your desired consistency.

Sprinkle crumbled bacon on top. Spread the avocado/egg onto toast. Add addition salt and pepper to taste, chopped tomatoes, hot sauce, if needed. Enjoy!