Saturday, January 3, 2009

Recipes: crock pot and freezer meals

I've been trying out a few new recipes in addition to making some freezer meals. I thought I should post them here in case anyone is interested in trying them.

First a slow cooker chicken and dumpling recipe:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Slow-Cooker-Chicken-and-Dumplings/Detail.aspx

I made a few changes after reading the reviews. Instead of 2 cans of condensed cream of chicken soup I used one can of cream of celery and one can cream of chicken. I think both were the low sodium kind. Instead of water I used chicken broth. I added frozen peas and carrots when I added the refrigerated biscuits. The biscuits took more than 90 minutes before they weren't raw in the center. Only one tube of biscuits was needed in the crock pot. I used the other to bake in the oven just in case. They were nice to have with it but not necessary.

CHICKEN & RICE WRAPS
1 lb. Boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
2 c. water
1 c. mild salsa
1 pkg. Taco seasoning mix
2 cups instant rice, uncooked
8 - 12 flour tortillas

In skillet or saucepan, combine chicken, water, salsa and seasonings.
Bring to a boil.
Add rice and simmer on low for 5 minutes.
Spoon mixture into center of tortillas and wrap. You can add cheese to mixture before wrapping, if desired.

To FREEZE: Simply wrap each folded tortilla in tin foil and place in 1 gallon freezer bag. I like to have 8 to a bag (for our swaps).
To SERVE: Reheat and eat.
*I tried the filling for these and it was very good!

BEEF & BROCCOLI
1 lb. Ground beef, browned until crumbly and drained
1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped broccoli, thawed and drained
1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
½ c. chopped onion
¾ c. sour cream
¼ tsp. Salt
¼ tsp. Garlic powder
½ tsp. Italian seasoning
1 loaf frozen bread dough, thawed
To FREEZE: Combine ground beef with other ingredients (except bread dough) in a bowl. Roll our bread dough to a 9"x13" rectangle. Spoon filling onto one side of the dough, leaving a border of dough on three sides. Fold over bare side of dough and pinch ends together. Spray lightly with cooking spray and wrap in plastic wrap. Wrap again in tin foil and freeze.
To COOK:Thaw overnight in refrigerator. Unwrap calzone and place on cookie sheet. Loosely cover with plastic wrap to prevent drying. Allow to rise, but not double. Cook 20-30 minutes in a 350 degree oven until golden. Slice and serve.
*I thought the filling made enough for 2 BIG calzones.


Sweet and Sour Chicken

1 jar (8 oz.) Fat Free French Dressing

1 can (8 oz.) jelly whole cranberry sauce

1 package Dried Onion Soup Mix

1 bag stir-fry frozen vegetables

4 Boneless Chicken Breasts (you can add more or less - cut into cube pieces)

TO FREEZE: Dump all ingredients into 1 gallon Ziploc freezer bag. Lay flat in freezer.

TO SERVE: Mix all ingredients in a 13 x 9 glass pan. Cover with tin foil. Bake 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Stir and serve over rice or noodles.


*This smelled good. I thought the combination of cranberry sauce and french dressing would be strange but it looked good.


A homemade Mac and Cheese recipe:

http://www.recipezaar.com/Fannie-Farmers-Classic-Baked-Macaroni-and-Cheese-135350


* This isn't the healthiest but it was good! I made double and froze half of it. I'd use less bread crumbs the next time.


Another link full of freezer recipes:

http://www.recipezaar.com/recipes/oamc-freezer-make-ahead,main-dish?categ=285%2C89&ls=h&pg=3&Search=Search&s_type=%2Frecipes.php


Hope you find something you enjoy!

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