New England Clam Chowder

I'll be honest, I was a bit worried about this recipe. Mostly because the potatoes in my last recipe turned out like crud. I mean like, serious crud. Something about the russet variety didn't freeze well, nor did it taste good either.
It was completely horrid.

You don't get that recipe.

But this one... you get. Because, thank goodness, red potatoes freeze VERY well and this recipe turned out amazing! Even fooled my seafood-hating-children into eating it. They asked what was in it and I said, "Bacon, Potatoes, and Cheese... you like cheese." I just left out the clams part. And boy am I glad I did. They ate it! Didn't complain either(Though the kid that knew there was clams, only ate what she 'had' to, but she cleaned her plate. So she couldn't have believed it to be that bad!).

And I really wasn't sure how this would be coming out of the freezer, but it was fabulous. I'm so glad I made a double batch! So, if you'd like to make your own (and yes, it tastes like New England Clam Chowder!) here is the recipe.

 Put the following ingredients in a gallon ziplock:
1/2 pound bacon diced as small as possible, raw
1 (6.5-ounce) can minced clams, drained and chopped again small (if you have picky eaters)
5 small red potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks (I didn't peel mine, because I love color in my food)
1 onion, peeled and diced
1 cup sliced celery
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
4 cups chicken broth

Write on the outside of the bag Cook 6-8 hours on low. Blend some of the soup to naturally thicken. Then add 2 cups half-and-half and 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

I served ours with Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Cornbread (Added 2 tablespoons of sugar to the mix) and it was just the touch it desired! So definitely serve with cornbread.

Beef Quinoa Stew

Sometimes a recipe comes to me quite by mistake. I stick something in the crockpot and when I test it out half way through the cooking process, I think, "wow, this could really be good in THIS." That is when a recipe is born. And not only was it born, but it was devoured. Mostly by the adults, but the kids tolerated it. See it has the two deadly sins.

Mushrooms and Onions

At least the kids think so anyway. But we all know better.

So here is the fabulous recipe that I will surely make again and again.

And again.

Put the following ingredients in a gallon sized ziplock bag and seal:
2 pounds beef chuck, trimmed of excess fat and cut into thin slices (about 1/2 inch thick and 3 inches long)
1 large onion, chopped
1 pound mushrooms trimmed and quartered

Write on the outside of this bag: Low 8 hrs - high 6. Add second bag at hour 4.

In another gallon sized ziplock add the following:

16oz mixed frozen veggies (carrots, corn, beans, etc)
15oz canned diced potatoes (or fresh, make sure they are diced small)
1.5 cups of Quinoa
1  teaspoons of pepper

On the outside of this bag, write: Add to crockpot at hour 4 with 4-5 cups of beef broth.

This soup is hearty and seriously delicious. If you use a low sodium beef broth, be sure to add some salt, but I didn't and it didn't need any.

Corn Chowder

When I did my shopping this month, I spent a whole day scouring the internet for new freezer friendly meals (I hadn't tried). After shopping, I cooked all day and prepped all  my months meals. All in the matter of 24 hours. This is what is called ONCE A MONTH COOKING. And I love it. Especially on days like today when I'm totally not into spending any more time in the kitchen then I have to.

Yesterday, I pulled out the Corn Chowder from the freezer and knew it would hit the spot for at least 2 of the children as they would be frozen to the bone from sledding. So this morning, I stuck the half frozen meal into the crockpot (added the warmed chicken broth I'd just reconstituted) and forgot about it the rest of the day.

Shown here with my fresh Oat Flour Bread

I came back to the crockpot around 3:30 (after picking up the children who were disguised as frozen popsicles), and I tested out what would be our dinner in an hour and a half. Oh goodness, was it ever good. Now the real test would be the kids. Because after all, it has onions. I'm happy to report, that two of the three of the kids didn't even notice the onions and the third just knew I'd put something "yucky" in it that he didn't like. But he's been my picky eater since he was two, so I wasn't so surprised.

One thing I will say is that while this soup had exceptional flavor, I almost thought it could have done with half as many onions OR maybe the onion I used was just super potent  Whatever the case, it was a hit regardless. Just my preference would have been a little less onions. Dragon breath is only ever attractive to those who all eat the same meal.

Ingredients for the Ziplock:
1 - 16oz bag frozen white corn
2 - cans corn (and juice)
4 cups chicken broth
1 small diced onion
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 ounces (1/2 block) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese
(You will also need a blender)

You will notice there is no addition of salt. The salt/sodium comes from canned corn and chicken broth. So if you use a salt free corn, or choose to use a low sodium chicken broth, be sure to taste before you serve.

For the freezer: Put everything but the chicken broth in a gallon zip lock. If you have a system that allows you to add liquids to the bag without spilling it all over the place, then go for it. I didn't feel like finding the tall Tupperware crock I use, so I opted to omit the chicken broth until the day of cooking.

Seal the ziplock well and put it inside another ziplock(especially if you do add the chicken broth before the freezer).

Label the bag with "ADD 4CUPS CHICKEN BROTH" if you didn't add the chicken broth. Be sure to write "LOW 6-8 hours" too.

Instructions for cooking: Defrost 12+ hours. Crockpot low 6-8 hours. 30 minutes before serve time for blending. If you have a hand blender (which I don't but soooo desire one), this would be the perfect time to use it and "chowder-fy" the soup. I used my regular blender (imagine the mess) and only blitzed about half the soup then poured it back into the crock. Serve with crusty bread and/or crackers.

Results: The results were wonderful but almost a little too soupy. Maybe I will use 1 cup less broth next time, but no one else seemed to care. It did leave the meat and potato folks of my house wanting more. They felt like this was not dinner, but more like a soup course and they still desired something to sink their teeth into. Upon further review, we all decided that next time I would add some sort of meat. In fact, ham, turkey, or chicken would be a fabulous addition. And it might be a great way to incorporate some of my left overs.

We will definitely make this again and again.

Beef Stroganoff

I absolutely love beef. However, it doesn't love me. It's so sad. I just end up turning it into dust, usually. The last recipe was a beef recipe that turned out rather nicely, so when tonight's dinner defrosted in the frig (From the freezer - 24 hours of defrost) I had high hopes for another savory keeper!

And a keeper it is! Hurrah!

What I like about this recipe is that it's pretty simple for the freezer. Trim your meat, throw your veggies and broth in, then seal and freeze!

Now when I found this recipe, I was a little worried about the post prep, after the crockpot. I don't like dirtying pans in addition to a crockpot not to mention it looked like it had a lot of steps to get to the sauce, so I almost didn't make it. I'm glad I took a chance. Just one extra pot. Then back in the crock.

So here we go. 

For freezer - Ingredients in your ziplock:
2 pounds beef chuck, trimmed of excess fat and cut into slices
1 large onion, chopped
1 pound cut mushrooms
1 cup beef broth
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper

I know what you are thinking, "Really, that is it?" And yes, that is it. And let me just say right now, before I made the sauce this had an AMAZING flavor and I could have eaten the whole crock without the noff.

Once your ziplock is sealed stick it in your freezer with the following label:

Cook on high 4 hours or low 6 

Needed for day of prep:
4 Tablespoons butter
3 Tablespoons flour (I used quinoa flour)
Broth ladled out of the crockpot2 cups sour cream
1-3 Tablespoons Dijon Mustard
Salt Pepper to taste

After the meat is done: Melt butter in sauce pan. Add flour. mix well. Add broth and mix well. Bring to boil just for a second, add sour cream and Dijon. Salt and Pepper to taste. Add to crock and turn crock to warm until you are ready to eat.

Serve over a starch. We will use quinoa or corn noodles. Oh so good. Sooo good. I'm so glad I made a second meal of this. So glad.

Stork Meal 8: Sausage, Peppers, and Tatery Goodness

I was trying to think of a name for this epic meal of deliciousness, but I can't seem to find one that does it justice. And to call it Parika/Rosemary-EVOO-Kielbasa-Roasted-Red-Pepper-Potato-peperoncini-onion mix... just doesn't work. So, if you have any ideas... I'm all ears.

I actually found the original recipe on pinterest, but I never follow recipes. They are more like general guidelines. And this time, I'm glad I didn't follow it. Because in one pan I did exactly what the "recipe" said and in the other I did what I'm posting here.

And the score: pinterest zero, me epic win! ;)

(**I've made this meal many times now due to it's popularity among my household. I've begun to add anything and everything to the veggie mix with exceptional results! A cup of mushrooms, roasted red peppers AND fresh bell peppers, whatever I have fresh on hand that is in dire need of being cooked before I think it goes bad, Bam, I slap it in. Be brave and throw those bad boys in as extra color and flavor. You won't be disappointed.**)

Ingredients:
Polish Kielbasa (cut into slices)
4-5 red potatoes (1 inch cubes)
1 onion (sliced thin)
1-2 jars of roasted red peppers (diced)
       Alternately you could use 2-3 fresh bell peppers (pick something besides green)
2 tsps of rosemary (if you can, chop it up into smaller sticks ;))
3 tsps of smoked paprika
salt and pepper
extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)

AND, you need 1 jar of peperoncini peppers... or mild banana peppers but keep those in their jar until you serve!

To make the mix:
Mix sausage, potatoes, onion, red peppers, rosemary, smoked paprika, salt/pepper and EVOO all together in a large mixing bowl. Put the whole mix into a freezer bag and seal.

Write on the outside:
Defrost. Roast on 400 for 30-40 minutes. Top with peperoncinis and enjoy.

SOOO delish!



To see the other Stork Meals, click here.