To Die For Carrot Cake

Completely worth the ridiculous amount of calories!

For Easter this year I decided to step up my game in bringing dessert to Mom and Dad's. I love to bake and really love carrot cake. After viewing various recipes on allrecipes.com, this is my adaptation of an Easter favorite. Honestly, this is so yummy, I'd suggest making this anytime. Forewarned - this is not a healthy recipe, but well worth the extra calories. Just run around the block about 50 times and you'll be good to go!

Carrot Cake with Decorative Carrots

Note: This recipe is entirely soy-free.
Makes 1 two-layered cake. Prep Time: 35 minutes; extra to decorate. Cook Time: approximately 1 hour.

Ingredients

Cake:
4 eggs
3/4 cups Canola Oil
2 cups white sugar
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
3 cups grated carrots-
1 cup chopped pecans

Cream Cheese Frosting: 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
8 oz. package of cream cheese, softened
4 cups confectioner's sugar
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 tsp. milk - I used fat free because that's what I had in the house, but if I had my druthers, I'd recommend whole milk for the extra richness.
1 cup chopped pecans - for when you frost the cake.
.
Instructions for the Cake:

1. Preheat the oven 350°F. Grease with some butter and sprinkle with a little flower two 9" round cake pans. Note: You can use cooking spray, BUT, they all have soy. So if you are baking with a soy allergy in mind, PLEASE read all your food labels; it's amazing how many products have soy.
2. Using my KitchenAid stand mixer (you can use a large bowl and hand mixer too), beat together the eggs, oil, white sugar and 2 teaspoons of vanilla. Add flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add in carrots and mix for several minutes. Add in pecans and mix for several more minutes.
3. Fold mixture evenly into the 2 cake pans.
4. Bake in the pre-heated over for 40-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean. Note: I start checking for "doneness" after 30-35 minutes, depending on your oven.
5. Let cool in pan and then turn over onto a cool surface/wire rack for further cooling.

Instructions for the Frosting:

1. Using the stand mixer, combine the butter, cream cheese, confectioner's sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla and milk. Beat until mixture is smooth and creamy - I did this for awhile to get it pretty fluffy.
2. To Frost the Cake: Once the cakes are cool. I placed one on a nice plate and frosted the top of it and then placed the second cake on top of it. I worked my worked my way around the cake and then smoothed out the frosting around the cake.
3. Nuts: I literally took small handfuls of the nuts and "smooshed" them gently onto the side of the bottom cake layer - it adds a nice, elegant touch (and tasty too!) to the cake.

Carrot Instructions:

Cute and Yummy!

1. I made some extra frosting and then divide the mixture into 2 bowls using the stand mixture. In one bowl you will need to add green food coloring for the carrot leaves - I ended up putting quite a few drops to get the color I wanted. For the Carrots: Same thing, but instead add yellow and red food coloring.
2. Using a round frosting tip for the carrot shape and a star tip for the leaves, I placed each frosting in a pastry bag with its corresponding tip.
3. First I made the leaves and worked my way clock-wise around the top of the cake. You may want to try this on a plate first to practice - it seemed to me that it's a matter of the pressure and amount you squeeze out of the bag to achieve the perfect leaf.
4. For the carrots, I used a round tip and started right under the base of the leaves. Start with a bit of a "bulb" and then pull down with the frosting to make a tail. Again practice makes perfect.

I will tell you I was a wreck adding the carrots to the cake because if you make a mistake, that's it...fiasco! But all turned out fine. Does Martha Stewart sweat when she does this????

Ready to wow guests

I hope you enjoy this cake - it really is delicious.

Enjoy!



Source: © 2011 May Family Recipes

Red Velvet Holiday Cupcakes...Yum! - December 2010

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Holly

For the holidays this year I thought I'd amp up my attempt at "Martha Stewartness" and make some holiday cupcakes. Cupcakes, just make me happy because they are these little works of compact art and yummy to boot!

I got the design idea from an office neighbor (thanks Misty!) who brought in these beautiful chocolate cupcakes with "holly leaves" on top of them. Honestly, when I saw them, I was just giddy, because I knew I would have to try to make them. And a big thanks to Misty for lending me the very cool holly leaf gum press.

Here's my interpretation of them with a Red Velvet Cupcake - perfect for the holiday season!

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Holly Leaves and Berries

Makes 30 (1 cupcake) servings. Prep Time: 20 minutes; Cook Time: 20 minutes

Cupcake Ingredients

2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened - yikes, I know...these aren't exactly healthy...but they are worth it!
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup milk
1 bottle (1 ounce) McCormick® Red Food Color
2 teaspoons McCormick® Pure Vanilla Extract

Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe follows)

Instructions

1.  Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. Set aside.

Mix the Dry Ingredients

2.  Beat butter and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed 5 minutes or until light and fluffy.

Beat in Eggs

3.  Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in sour cream, milk, food color and vanilla.

Add the Sour Cream

Mix in the Red Food Coloring

4.  Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until just blended. Do not over beat.

5.  Spoon batter into 30 paper-lined muffin cups, filling each cup 2/3 full.

Be Careful to Not Fill Too High!

6.  Bake 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into cupcake comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire rack 5 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely. 

Ready for Frosting

6.  Frost with Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting.

Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting

Instructions

Beat 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened, 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened, 2 tablespoons sour cream and 2 teaspoons McCormick® Pure Vanilla Extract in large bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in 1 box (16 ounces) confectioners' sugar until smooth.

Note: I used a frosting decorating bag - I sooo recommend this - it makes your cupcakes look pretty darn professional. This was my first try at it and after a few missteps, I was a cupcake decorating addict!

Source: McCormick®. Nutritional Information (Per Serving) : Calories: 272; Fat: 12 g; Carbohydrates: 38 g; Cholesterol: 63 mg; Sodium: 178 mg; Fiber: 1 g; Protein: 3 g

Fondant Holly Leaves and Berries

Note: You can make these ahead and put in the refrigerator to set.

What you'll need:

• Green fondant
• Red fondant
• Edible sparkle dust
• Fondant roller
• Holly leaf cookie cutter/sugar press

Instructions

1.  For the holly leaves: Place the green fondant on a cookie sheet or hard, clean surface. Use a fondant roller to roll out the fondant to the desired thickness. Hint: don't make it too thin or the "leaf" will be to flimsy to work with and it may break.

2. For the berries: Do the same above with the red fondant and roll 3 little balls for each holly leaf.

Red Fondant (Rolled Out)

Holly Berries

3.  To assemble the holly leaves and berries: Gently press the 3 holly berries above so that they stick together.

4.  Take a small amount of the frosting and put a it on the center of the holly leaf.

5.  Place the berries on top of the frosting so that it is "glued" to the holly leaf.

6. Voila! Pretty realistic and festive holly leaves with berries!

Holly Leaves with Berries

7.  With the frosting, holly leaves, berries and final cupcake, I did everything via an "assembly line" - just makes it easy.


Cupcakes...Cupcakes...Cupcakes Everywhere...Oh My!

8.  To give the cupcake a little extra holiday "sparkle", I sprinkled edible gold sparkle dust over each cupcake.

So the final cupcake, I think came out pretty darn good...don't you think?

Festive Holiday Treat...Yum!

Enjoy!

Maltese Torta

A word about this recipe: Ever since I can remember I have loved, loved, loved when my Mom made Torta. My Ukrainian-German mother, who is a phenomenal cook, has managed over the years to become an expert in Maltese cooking, which is my Dad's side of the family.

Malta, which is located in located in the Mediterranean Sea, is about 60 miles South of Sicily and about 175 miles from the coast of Africa (Tunisia) - my Grandparents emigrated in the late 1930s and settled in Stamford, CT.

Growing up visiting my Granparents every Sunday was a real treat for me: I loved listening to them conversing in Maltese (although unfortunately I did not understand what they were saying) and always anxiously awaiting to see what amazing Maltese dish Nanna would make. My favorites are the torta (see below) and pastizzi (a meat or cheese "pastry").

Torta is beyond easy to make and is a great dish to make especially in the winter.

I must admit that I have a hard time conceptualizing something that's basically a meat pie, because when I think of "pie", I think of dessert - but torta is so good I can't resist! This is truly a comfort food in my book. Actually, when I moved away from home in Connecticut, whenever I was somewhat homesick, I made torta and and it made me feel at home again - what's not to love about that!

I hope to try my hand at making pastizzi shortly - again, my Mom has managed to also make incredible pastizzi - you'd think she was a native Maltese - I've been putting it off for awhile, but I think I should face my "fear" and tackle this phyllo wonder! I'll post shortly.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:



2 Deep dish 9" pie shells
1 Lb ground beef (I use 95% lean)
3 Onions, chopped (or 1 ½ c) - you can use a fresh onions, but I highly recommend using frozen chopped onions - it saves you time and your eyes will thank you.
1 C peas - again, use frozen
¼ C fresh shredded parmesean cheese - you can play with this amount
2 Eggs
1 T olive oil
Salt to taste
Canned Milk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. On the stovetop on high, saute onions in olive oil.



3. Add meat. Saute until no longer brown. Drain fat.



4. On medium heat, add peas and parmesean cheese, stir until dispersed throughout.



6. Stir in eggs.



7. Salt to taste. (Jane’s Crazy Mixed Up Salt is fabulous).

8. Add to one pie shell. Cover with 2nd pie shell. Seal and use fork to poke with holes for steam. Brush with some canned milk.




9. Bake for 35-45 minutes.

Voila!



Source: Vassallo Family Recipe

Parmesan Garlic Chicken

Note: Freezer labels available. Feel free to email me if you'd like the PDF file.

A word about this recipe: What can I say? This was a phenomenally easy freezer meal to prepare and you can't miss with garlic. This was just "yum." My only "complaint" is that as we all know, if the chicken had its skin on it's always more tasty, but my current motto is...if you don't want your thighs to rub together...you don't need the chicken skin! At least that's what I keep telling myself...as I shove another celery stalk in my mouth to avoid visiting the freezer which currently houses ice cream....

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

6 servings:

6 boneless chicken breasts (pound thin)
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 envelope Italian salad dressing mix packet
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup olive oil

18 servings:

18 boneless chicken breasts (pound thin)
3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
3 envelope Italian salad dressing mix packet
6 cloves garlic, minced
1½ cup olive oil

36 servings:

36 boneless chicken breasts (pound thin)
6 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
6 envelope Italian salad dressing mix packet
12 cloves garlic, minced
3 cup olive oil

54 servings:

54 boneless chicken breasts (pound thin)
9 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
9 envelope Italian salad dressing mix packet
18 cloves garlic, minced
4½ cup olive oil

Directions:

1. Thaw completely.

2. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Unwrap desired number of chicken breasts and placed in a greased baking dish (I use olive oil spray).

3. Bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes until chicken is tender and no longer pink. (Check after 35 minutes so it doesn't dry out)

For Freezer Meals: Mix together cheese, garlic, and Italian dressing mix. Dip chicken breasts in olive oil, then coat with cheese mixture. Wrap each coated chicken breast individually in plastic wrap, then place in a freezer bag. Freeze, using freezer bag method. I put two pieces of chicken per bag - which would be 1 meal for Larry and I.

Nutritional Information (per serving): Calories: 299; Total Fat: 24g; Cholesterol: 51mg; Sodium: 560mg; Total Carbs: 2g; Protein: 18g.

Source: Don't Panic - More Dinner's in the Freezer: A Second Helping of Tasty Meals You Can Make Ahead, Susie Martinez, Vanda Howell & Bonnie Garcia

Easy Peasy Baked Fish in Spaghetti Sauce

A word about this recipe: The original recipe (Baked Fish in Spaghetti Sauce) came from the source noted below. In the book there is a recipe for spaghetti sauce that you can make from scratch to accompany this recipe and the recommendation to use Tilapia fillets. While I like to occasionally make my own spaghetti sauce, honestly, if you can find a great sale on sauce, why not save yourself some time and money and pop open a bottle of store bought sauce? For some reason sauce always seems to be on sale lately so I stock up so I have it on hand. My favorite (in terms of cost and taste) is Ragu Traditional Spaghetti Sauce Flavored with Meat. But honestly, there are a ton of choices out there, so it really depends on your individual tastes and budget.

To make it more of my own, I typically add a tablespoon of Italian seasonings, a smidge of sugar and about 2 tablespoons of Manischewitz Blackberry Wine, but you can use any red wine and play with the amounts. I got started on the Manischewitz Blackberry Wine (www.manischewitzwine.com) because my mom always used it her cooking and to me the Blackberry wine adds an added “kick” over red wine.

In terms of what type of fish you use for this recipe, really you can use whatever you like. Larry and I like Tilapia because it always seem to taste light and fresh, not “fishy.” I love seafood, but anytime fish smells or tastes too fishy I recommend not eating – it’s just a sign that it’s not too fresh – believe me, I’ve been burned a few times, so I’ve learned my lesson!

Personally I recommend Tilapia loins over the fillets. The loins just tend to be lighter in flavor and not fishy.

Larry and I tend to have our Tilapia with just olive oil and sprinkled with Old Bay Seasoning, but this recipe offers an alternative with sauce – just to mix things up so you don’t get bored with having the same old thing all the time. This was excellent - very moist and light in taste.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1½ lbs Frozen Tilapia (I recommend using loins - not "fishy" tasting)
2 C Spaghetti Sauce (make your own or buy)
2 T Italian Seasoning, smidge of sugar and 2 T Manischewitz (or to taste) – Jill’s recommendation

Directions:

1. Take desired number of fillets out of the freezer an thaw in refrigerator.

2. Pre-heat the oven to 350

3. After fish is thawed, pour ¾ C spaghetti sauce on the bottom of a baking dish and then use the remaining amount of sauce to cover the fish..
Bake at Dredge chicken through the flour mix.

4. Bake fish for approximately 20 minutes or until fish is flaky.

5. Serve with a side salad and brown rice.

For Freezer Meals: Keep frozen Tilapia loins and spaghetti sauce on hand for this quick, easy and healthy meal.

4 servings:

Source: [Adapted from] Once-a-Month Cooking, Mimi Wilson and Mary Beth Lagerborg

Top Sirloin with Red Wine Marinade

Note: Freezer labels available. Feel free to email me if you'd like the PDF file.

A word about this recipe: Ideally you want to grill the sirloin. But I saw the recipe and thought "what the hey...why not try this now...in mid-winter...on the broiler." The good thing was the broiler worked fine and we didn't burn the house down...AND...the sirloin was very tasty! I think the Worcestershire gave such a nice zing to this - not too much...not too little...just right. Looking forward to trying this on the grill once we finally catch a break and the snow finally subsides.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

6 servings:

2 lbs. top sirloin steak (can be cubed for kabobs)
¾ cup vegetable oil
⅓ cup soy sauce (I use low sodium)
2 T Worcestershire sauce
1 T dry mustard
1½ t black pepper
¼ cup red wine (I use Manischewitz Blackberry Wine)
¼ t dried parsley
3 T lemon juice
1 cloves garlic, minced

18 servings:

6 lbs. top sirloin steak (can be cubed for kabobs)
2¼ cup vegetable oil
1 cup soy sauce (I use low sodium)
¼ cup + 2 T Worcestershire sauce
3 T dry mustard
4½ t black pepper
¾ cup red wine (I use Manischewitz Blackberry Wine)
¾ t dried parsley
½ cup lemon juice
3 cloves garlic, minced

36 servings:

12 lbs. top sirloin steak (can be cubed for kabobs)
4½ cup vegetable oil
2 cup soy sauce (I use low sodium)
¾ cup Worcestershire sauce
¼ cup + 2 T dry mustard
3 T black pepper
1½ cup red wine (I use Manischewitz Blackberry Wine)
1½ t dried parsley
1 cup lemon juice
6 cloves garlic, minced

54 servings:

18 lbs. top sirloin steak (can be cubed for kabobs)
6¾ cup vegetable oil
3 cup soy sauce (I use low sodium)
1 cup + 2 T Worcestershire sauce
½ cup + 1 T dry mustard
¼ cup + 1½ t black pepper
2¼ cup red wine (I use Manischewitz Blackberry Wine)
2¼ t dried parsley
1½ cup lemon juice
9 cloves garlic, minced

Directions:

1. Thaw completely. Discard marinade.

2. Grill over medium heat until cooked according to preference. You can also broil.

3. If steak is cubed, grill on skewers with your favorite vegetables.

For Freezer Meals: Place sirloin, whole or cubed, in freezer bag. Mix remaining ingredients together to to form marinade and and pour over steak. Freeze, using freezer bag method. I put two pieces of steak per bag - which would be 1 meal for Larry and I.

Nutritional Information (per serving): Calories: 468; Total Fat: 27.4g; Cholesterol: 138mg; Sodium: 1221mg (this would not be as high if you use low sodium soy sauce); Total Carbs: 2g.

Source: Don't Panic - More Dinner's in the Freezer: A Second Helping of Tasty Meals You Can Make Ahead, Susie Martinez, Vanda Howell & Bonnie Garcia

New Year’s Resolution: Fall in Love with Your Freezer...Again!

One of my New Year’s Resolutions – among many, fortunately or unfortunately depending on how you look at it – is to really get back into freezer meal preparation (see In the Kitchen link). It makes a huge difference because: 1) we’re not scrambling for something to eat and then opting for Tommy’s (our favorite local hot dog joint when we get desperate, 2) it’s a healthier alternative to eating crap :) and 3) it’s great on the wallet; and as we all know, it’s rough out there right now with the economy, so every little bit counts.

So, I’ve been plowing through Internet sites and books at the library to add to my freezer meal binder (something I recommend – very handy). I’ll be posting the recipes shortly, as well as some PDFs of labels that I made that can be affixed to the freezer bag/container; the labels provide meal-day instructions for preparing the specific meal – this keeps your freezer organized and also let’s you know what the heck you have in your freezer – and it’s pretty amazing how quickly your freezer can go awry with various meats and meals forever disappearing into the freezer abyss!

Once I post a particular recipe, I’ll make note if there is a corresponding freezer label. If you would like to receive a particular label set, just email me your request with the name of the particular recipe and I will send you the file – my email address is located under the My Profile/Email - just click on View My Profile for my address.

Pork Piccata

Pork Piccata

A word about this recipe: I have to tell you...this is hands-down, one of the tastiest and quickest meals to make on a weeknight. Larry loves it and I get a kick out of it because it tastes gourmet and is so simple to make.

Enjoy!

Makes: 4 servings
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 8 minutes

Ingredients:

8 thin boneless pork cutlets (about 1 ½ to 2 pounds total). Note: You can also use chicken cutlets for chicken piccata.
¼ t salt
¼ t black pepper
⅓ cup all-purpose flour
2 T olive oil
1 cup chicken broth (I use low sodium)
3 T capers
2 T lemon juice
1 T butter



Directions:

1. Season both sides of the pork with salt and pepper. Dredge in flour and shake off excess. Discard remaining flour.

2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork and sauté for 2 minutes per side. Remove pork to a plate and keep warm.

3. Add broth and simmer 2 minutes, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Stir in capers and lemon juice. Return the pork to the skillet and simmer gently for about 1 to 2 minutes, until pork is heated through. Wisk in the butter.

4. Serve with a veggie and mashed potatoes (I add chives, sour cream and milk to the mashed potatoes).

Source: Family Circle, October 1, 2008

Lemon Glazed Chicken

A word about this recipe: This was excellent - very moist and light in taste. Again, after I baked the 2 chicken breasts, I immediately cut each breast in half and saved 2 of the halves for dinner the next night - that way you won't have the whole breast on your plate tempting you to eat it.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

3 servings:

3 Boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
½ cup flour
½ t pepper
¼ cup butter, melted
¼ cup honey
¼ cup lemon juice
1 T soy sauce

9 servings:

9 Boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1½ cup flour
1½ t pepper
¾ cup butter, melted
¾ cup honey
½ cup lemon juice
3 T soy sauce

18 servings:

18 Boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
3 cup flour
1 T pepper
1½ cup butter, melted
1½ cup honey
1 cup lemon juice
¼ cup + 2 T soy sauce

27 servings:

27 Boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
4½ cup flour
4½ T pepper
2¼ cup butter, melted
2¼ cup honey
1½ cup lemon juice
½ cup + 1 T soy sauce

Directions:

1. Pound chicken breasts to ½-inch thickness.

2. Mix flour and pepper together.

3. Dredge chicken through the flour mix.

4. Lay breasts flat on cookie sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and flash freeze for one hour.

For Freezer Meals: Mix together butter, honey, lemon juice, and soy sauce. Place in quart-size freezerbag (mixture will be watery). Freeze glaze, using freezer bag method. Place frozen chicken breasts in separate freezer bag and freeze. I put two chicken breasts per bag - which would be 1 meal for Larry and I.

Serving Day Instructions: Allow chicken breasts and glaze to thaw. Place chicken in baking dish, pour glaze over chicken breasts, and bake at 350° for 1 hour - check after 45 minutes. Glaze will thicken as it cooks. Use 1 bag of glaze per bag of chicken.

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

Cranberry Chicken

A word about this recipe: I never have had Catalina dressing before and was pretty skeptical about mixing it with the onion mix. But oh my...this is tasty! I opted to use the Kraft Light version dressing and I think it did not take away from the recipe. Also, since Larry and I are trying to watch our weight, after I baked the 2 chicken breasts, I immediately cut each breast in half and saved 2 of the halves for dinner the next night - that way you won't have the whole breast on your plate tempting you to eat it. This little method has been really helpful for us.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

4 servings:

8 oz. Kraft Catalina dressing (Light)
1 pkg. dry onion soup mix
1 - 1 lb. can whole-berry cranberry
4 boned chicken breasts

12 servings:

24 oz. Kraft Catalina dressing (Light)
3 pkgs. dry onion soup mix
3 - 1 lb. can whole-berry cranberry
12 boned chicken breasts

24 servings:

48 oz. Kraft Catalina dressing (Light)
6 pkgs. dry onion soup mix
6 - 1 lb. can whole-berry cranberry
24 boned chicken breasts

36 servings:

72 oz. Kraft Catalina dressing (Light)
9 pkgs. dry onion soup mix
9 - 1 lb. can whole-berry cranberry
36 boned chicken breasts

Directions:

1. Combine ingredients in a large bowl.

For Freezer Meals: Place chicken and mixture together in freezer bags. I put two chicken breasts per bag - which would be 1 meal for Larry and I. Freeze.

Serving Day Instructions: Thaw completely. Place chicken with cranberry sauce in greased baking dish, and bake uncovered at 350° for 1 - 1 ½ hours, but check after 45 minutes.

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

Moroccan Hamburgers

As promised, I wanted to share some of the recipes I discovered for investment cooking, AKA freezer meals. I can't tell you how much I am in love with this concept! As long as you rememberto take the meal out of the freezer the night before you are golden for dunner the following night.

As I mentioned before, you can either assemble and cook the recipes, then freeze or assemble and freeze uncooked. I definitely prefer the latter because you really are cooking the meal fresh and it tastes fresh rather than pulling a cooked meal out of the frezer and maybe having to deal with loss of flavor or freezer burn.

A word about this recipe: Make sure you finely chop up the onions and herbs - the hamburgers hold together better. We served the hambugers sans buns - much healthier because less carbs! I will also say that I'm not sure how "Moroccan" this tasted - it tasted very similar to meatloaf - not a bad thing, but something I wanted to at least note. Honestly I'd have to say that regular meatloaf has a better all-around taste - but it's a personal taste; I'm kind of "iffy" on this particular recipe.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 pounds ground beef
1 t salt
1 medium onion, finely chopped
½ t ground black pepper
⅓ cup finely chopped fresh parsley
¼ t ground red pepper
¼ cup fine dry breadcrumbs1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 large egg
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 t paprika
1 t ground cumin

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients thoroughly; shape into 8 (4-inch) patties. Cover and chill at least 2 hours.

For Freezer Meals: Freeze uncooked patties 5 to 6 months. Thaw before grilling.

Serving Day Instructions: Grill, covered with grill lid, over medium-high heat (350° to 400°) 6 to 8 minutes on each side or until beef is no longer pink.

Yield: 8 servings

Source: Southern Living, November 2003

Larry’s Famous Red Lentil Soup with Chicken

This may be out of order and I will post the recipes I mentioned earlier that I did on my frenzied meal assembly day, but I wanted to post another recipe that we (Larry) make often and freeze - Larry's fabulous Red Lentil Chicken Soup. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

3-4 chicken breasts, bone-in, skin-on
10 cups water or more
1 medium carrot, diced
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic
½ cup (or 3-4) fresh tomatoes, diced
Large pinch: ground saffron and ground ginger
¼ to ½ t crushed red pepper flakes
Salt to taste, about 2 ½ tsp.
1 ½ cups red lentils, rinsed twice in cold water (very important)
Egg noodles

Directions:

1. Put chicken breasts in a 4-to 5-quart pot; add water to cover. Heat to boil, reduce to a simmer and skim off any foam that rises to surface. When foam subsides, cover partly and simmer until chicken starts to fall off the bone.

2. Remove the chicken from the broth and pull off the bone. Shred the meat. Discard bone and skin.

3. While you are shredding the chicken, add the red lentils to the broth (don’t forget to rinse twice before adding).

4. Add the garlic, tomatoes, all the spices and the chicken to the broth. Salt and pepper to taste. (Jane’s Crazy Mixed Up Salt is fabulous - http://www.janeskrazy.com/home.asp - a favorite of Mom Vassallo’s!)

5. Bring to a boil again and reduce to a simmer, cover partly. Simmer gently until the veggies are soft and lentils are disintegrating, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. To prevent scorching, stir frequently and add more water as necessary.

6. In a separate pot boil water for the egg noodles. I add the pasta to the individual soup bowls and not in the soup pot because the pasta tends to get mushy.

7. Top individual servings with salt and pepper to taste; great with shredded parmesan.

8. Let soup completely cool before putting in the refrigerator.

For Freezer Meals: Let soup completely cool and then divide up into small containers for the freezer.

Sloth-ness Leads to Investment Cooking

I’m not sure how or why we started doing this, perhaps a lack of sustenance in the fridge, but it seems lately Larry and I have been going out for dinner probably a little to much.

Don’t get me wrong, we love to go out to eat, but I started to feel that perhaps, maybe, I was being a slouch with preparing our weekly meals. I love to cook and bake and I just think I’ve had zero desire to cook lately because everything seems to be a downer lately with the economy, the weather, the fact that it gets dark dreadfully early etc. – it’s no wonder we were driven out of the house for a little pick-me-up! Of course the down turned economy is precisely why we should be staying in and I decided I needed to get out of my funk and get back to my love of cooking.

Our major dilemma is that when I get home from work and when Larry stops for the night from his home office, we are just wiped. I mean it, as soon as I come in the front door I head for the chair and TV – I just feel I need to decompress. And unfortunately once I decompress, I decompress so much, that you can kiss dinner goodbye!

So I thought I’d get off my butt and start looking into how we can do some meal planning, make healthy meals and make some more time for us at night where we can relax and not feel guilty because we went out again for dinner.

Our solution: pre-preparing meals for the freezer, (investment cooking) in bulk, so we’re not fumbling around on any given weeknight trying to figure out what to make for dinner and then ultimately choosing Tommy’s our favorite hot dog place…not a good solution for the butt, thighs, gut…need I go on???

A couple of years ago Larry and I went to Simply Homemade, which offers the same concept of pre-paring meals. You pay them and they provide the food, spices etc. and all you have to do is assemble and go.

It’s actually a brilliant concept especially for busy couples and families. But we found that the meals started tasting a lot alike because the meals you prepared there used all the same spices etc. — it’s kind of like when you use a crock pot and everything starts to taste like stew. And of course there’s the convenience they offer but at a cost. So I thought, hey, we could do this at home and also save some money.

Anyway, I decided I was going to tackle this project full-force and hit the ground running. First I went to the library and took out all the freezer meal books and then I hit the Internet. I poured through a ton of recipes and tried to pick those that were healthy (lower in carbs) – hint…no casseroles!

So I waited for this past weekend to get things kicked started. I planned on shopping on Saturday and then assemble the meals on Sunday. However, sloth kicked in and I ended up doing everything on Sunday. Note to self…Walmart on a Sunday…not a good thing. I was there 3 hours and almost had a panic attack at buying all the meat. I know the point of investment cooking is to buy in bulk and then prepare meals for the whole month, but my gosh does it add up!

When I got home I set up all my stations and started assembling.



There are two kinds of investment cooking options: assembling and then freezing without baking or assembling, baking, and then freezing. I’ve done both, but thought with the meals I was preparing would be better using the former method.



Well after about 4 hours later and a ton of chicken cutlets later we now have over a month’s worth of food in our extra freezer!

I’ll post the recipes separately, but here’s what I made:

* Mini meatloaves
* Lemon Glazed Chicken Breasts
* Cranberry Chicken
* Moroccan Hamburgers

After testing the recipes, we were very pleased. And I really believe that this is the answer for nighttime bliss – not worrying about what to make for dinner. But I will tell you assembling all at once can be a little daunting, however, it was so worth it!