[Freezer] Twice Baked Potatoes

I made these a couple weeks ago and they were good.  Really good.  I concocted this recipe from the general idea of twice baked potatoes and a few different "freezer friendly" mashed potato recipes.  It seems that using milk when you make mashed potatoes for the freezer, is part of what makes them thaw weird.  Go figure.  So, while this recipe isn't exactly artery friendly, it's really yummy.  I didn't use any light sour cream or light cream cheese so I'm not sure how those substitutions would hold up in the freezer.  Maybe I'll experiment later.

[Freezer] Twice Baked Potatoes

2 1/2 lbs of baking potatoes (I chose smaller potatoes as I intended them to serve as a side dish)

2 Tbs shortening

Salt

4 oz softened cream cheese

1 Tbs Butter

2 cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese

1/4-3/4 cups Sour Cream

1.  Wash your potatoes and rub shortening on the skins.  Then sprinkle with salt.  This step adds a lot of flavor to the potatoes.

2.  Bake potatoes on a baking sheet (I cooked mine at 425 for an hour) until fork tender.

3.  Let potatoes cool until you can handle them.  Cut them in half and scoop out the meat of the potato into a mixing bowl.

4.  Add cream cheese, cheddar cheese and butter and mash thoroughly.  Add sour cream until your potatoes are the consistency of a thick mashed potato, or cookie dough.  Amount of sour cream will vary depending on how much potato filling you have.

5.  Fill your potatoes.  

6.  [Freezing] If you're freezing them, let them cool at this point and put the baking sheet in the freezer until they're set.  Then wrap in plastic wrap to prevent freezer burn and place in zip top bag to freeze.  

7.  [Baking] Place thawed (or just prepared) Twice Baked Potatoes on a baking sheet.  Add a bit of cheese to the top for looks and bake at 375 for 20 minutes, or until cheese is melted and potatoes are completely heated.  Baking time will vary by size of potatoes.   You can also add bacon bits before baking or chopped steamed broccoli or chili after baking.  

Cooking for One: These are a great dish to stash in the freezer if you're cooking for a small family or just one or two people - each can be pulled and thawed separately and easily baked in a toaster oven with a "bake" setting.

Freezer Friday: Cookie Dough & Twice Baked Potatoes

This week was grocery week and there was a lot of eating of leftovers.  Have I mentioned that both HandyMan and G-Tot will eat just about anything I put in front of them?  Happily.  Makes for a happy Mama!  Especially this week since I had a bit of extra work on my plate.  So the leftovers were devoured, groceries were purchased and Thursday morning, G-Tot was out in the yard helping HandyMan with projects and I got alone cooking time- for a while anyway!

I whipped up cookie dough for the freezer.  Usually I'll scoop it out and freeze the dough balls so they're ready to bake, this time I was lazy and just put it into containers.  I press plastic wrap into the top of the cookie dough so that it won't grow those little ice crystals around the top that seriously mess with the flavor of a good cookie.

I also made twice baked potatoes for the freezer.  This is a new recipe for me to try to freeze, but I used a mashed potato recipe from my Freezer Pleaser's cookbook and have high hopes.  The ones we had for lunch were fantastic.  They'll go great beside kielbasa or burgers this summer and this fall I'm thinking of topping them with chili, steamed broccoli, etc.

I also got a batch of granola made, but that just went to the pantry.  That's about all for this week.  Did you get anything stashed in your freezer this week?

Freezer Friday - Desserts & Casseroles

This week I loaded up the freezer with some yummy desserts and casseroles.  My 8x8 pans are my go-to for freezing things like bars and casseroles because I can freeze them in the pan, then remove them and they fit nicely in my vacuum seal bags or a gallon freezer bag.  It was a small investment that has paid for itself over and over!  When it's time to bake the frozen items, I put them back in an 8x8 pan (usually my glass one), thaw and cook or heat.  Easy peasy!

Here's the rundown of this week's freezer cooking:


Fudge Oat Bars 
I found this recipe for Chocolate Oat Squares a while ago and they are fantastic!  I doubled the recipe to make 4- 8x8 pans of these great little treats.  One for the oven (it was a rainy grey afternoon that required something warm and yummy) and three for the freezer.   These bars like an oatmeal chocolate chip cookie - only better!  The only modification I made was to substitute part white-whole-wheat flour for some of the all purpose flour (2 cup WWW for 2-1/2 cups All Purpose on the doubled recipe).

I found that having a bit of flour in a measuring cup to dip  my fingers in make pressing the cookie crust in the pans much easier.  Also, for the top pieces, I pressed the dough out on wax paper and then used a small spatula to pick up as large of pieces as I could.  I dipped the small spatula in the flour as well when I was doing the top "crumble" pieces.

Tips for Freezing: 

• Line your pans with wax paper before pressing the crust in.  You may leave the paper or remove it to transfer the "block" to a freezer bag".   DO make sure to remove it before thawing and baking!
• Spread chocolate layer just to the edge of the crust, but try not to hit the wax paper as it sticks pretty bad once frozen.
• Let "block" thaw in the fridge before baking for best results.

To the Freezer this Week: 

:: 3 pans of Oat Fudge Bars

:: 1 round Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

:: 2 pans Beef Salsa Casserole (inspired by this recipe- I was tired and cooking on the fly so I only loosely followed the recipe)

Back to Freezer Fridays: Cran-Apple Crisp Bars

Way back when, I posted a regular Freezer Friday post of what batch cooking I'd done that week or fresh produce had been put away for the colder months to come.  Life shifted, things change and I lost track of the habit.

A few things have pushed me back into the practice:
1.  I'm having a baby in 7 weeks (more or less).  I know the farther into the pregnancy I get, the less I'm going to want to cook.  And after the baby gets here, the easier the meals are - the better!
2.  I've gotten my hands on some great domestic produce lately and it was begging to be canned/frozen.
3.  I inventoried the freezer and found a lot of random ingredients that will be much better in a complete meal than getting frost-bite on their own little container in the corner of the freezer.

As an added bonus, a blog I follow is running a "Four Weeks to Fill Your Freezer" feature in May so I'm hoping to get some good recipes from there!

So I bring back Freezer Fridays.  In the past I posted a lot of original recipes.  Not so much anymore.  I've found and altered a lot of the online recipes I find that have turned out fantastic.  I will put the alterations in along with the links to the recipes.  I really don't have time to reinvent the wheel here!

Without further ado, here's what went into the freezer this week (and what random ingredients I used up from the freezer!)

Cran-Apple Crisp Bars:

I started with this Cranberry Oat Bar recipe that I've made before and loved.  I altered it.  A lot.  So here's my version.  And since I was cooking for the freezer, and using up cranberries I had in the freezer- I tripled it to make 3-8x8 pans.

Filling

6 cups fresh or frozen cranberries
2 cup sugar
1 cup Unsweetened Apple Sauce

In a small saucepan over medium high heat, combine the cranberries, white sugar and apple sauce. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and cook until the mixture has reduced to a jam-like consistency.

Crumble
1 1/4 white whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup margarine


In a medium bowl, cream together margarine and brown sugar.  Combine dry ingredients and mix into margarine/butter batter. Press half of this mixture firmly into the bottom of prepared pan (wax paper for freezer or liberally greased for oven). Spread the cranberry sauce evenly over the base, then crumble the remaining oat mixture over the top.

At this point, all three of mine went to the freezer.  When it's time to bake them, I'll take them out, remove wax paper, put them in a greased pan and bake in a preheat oven to 350 degrees F for 10 to 15 minutes (probably a little longer), until the top is golden brown and filling is bubbly.

Cool completely before cutting into bars.

* * * * *

Also to the freezer/pantry this week:

• Roasted Tomato Marinara (Thanks Florida for the awesome tomatoes!) - This was a one-off type deal.  I skimmed over a few recipes and made it up as I went along.  The end result is really yummy, sadly I don't have an exact recipe.
• Bacon Egg & Cheese Sandwiches

Applesauce, Pepper Jelly & Tomato Sauce - oh MY!

Friday on my way home I hit the produce stand and gathered apples, peppers and the other sundry fruits and vegetables I needed for the fridge. While I got dinner ready, GTot and HandyMan picked tomatoes from the garden.

After supper, HandyMan and I got to work.  The order of business: Applesauce, Pepper Jelly (Hot & Mild), and Tomato Sauce.

I have a great KitchenAid attachment that makes the applesauce a breeze.  GTot was allowed up on the counter to watch the tomatoes squish thorough and thought it was the coolest thing!  "Mommy!! My applesauce!"

Then it was on to the Pepper Jelly.  I used this recipe as it is written for the hot jelly and replaced 5 jalapenos with a 5th bell pepper for the mild jelly.  The mild has very little bite and is fabulous with cream cheese.  I had some for breakfast this morning on fresh bread.  YUM!  I'm too chicken to try the hot stuff.  I'll bust it out when my Dad comes to visit next month.

Finally, we cooked up some tomato sauce.  GTot helping again to get the stems off the tomatoes.  I'm a hack-job of a canner.  I'm making it up as I go along and I really hope that this great stuff I've put into jars actually stays good and we can enjoy it in the months to come.  One of my 'experiments' was the tomato sauce.  I added balsamic vinegar and basil to it while it was cooking.  I'm thinking it should be fine.  The batch I made and had for dinner earlier this week was great, so now I'm just hoping that the canned version will be just as good!

The stash above came from 2 1/2 hours of work in the kitchen.  Not too shabby.

This post is linked up at An Oregon Cottage's Tuesday Garden Party.

Pretty, Pretty Jars

This year is the first year that I've done any measurable amount of canning.  I think it's in my blood.  Both of my grandmothers canned extensively.  Grandma Jean's jams and jelly were family legends and favorites around the holidays.  Grandma Foy made sweet pickles that were amazing - sadly the recipe has gone MIA in the family archives.  My mom did some canning when I was a kid and we had a garden.  I've done a couple batches of jam in the past, and applesauce.  Handyman handled the dill pickled green beans.  It all added up to about a dozen jars in the pantry for the winter.

This year, my freezer is a smaller and I'm feeling the impact as I've had a pretty successful garden year so far and the pumpkins and winter squash are promising to need their space in the freezer.  I've rearranged some storage in my house and made room for home-canned goods.

I think I may unleashed a monster.   On Wednesday, it was a 2 pints of garlic pickled green beans, strawberry jam, blueberry jam and lemon blueberry jam.  The jam was to shift the berries from the freezer to the pantry - and turned out oh-so-yummy!  Thursday it was this week's stash of tomatoes.   I keep finding more fun recipes of fun things to make and can.

Is it work? Yes.  Will it be worth it in February when my family is eating produce that I know came from my yard, or locally in season?  Absolutely!

Tuesday Garden Party:

While the mornings have begun to feel like fall with cooler temperatures, my garden is still speaking summer: tomatoes and zucchini!  Carrots, basil and asparagus are also making regular appearances in my picking bucket.

This is the first year in about four years that we planted the tomatoes in beds instead of upside down pots.  I've forgotten what a treasure hunt it is to pick tomatoes in beds.  Our beds are raised and usually I have to walk around them twice to make sure I've gotten everything.  Then as I walk away, another flash of ruby will peek out from under the foliage and I dash back to pick again! 

I'm shifting some of my preservation to canning this year as I realized how quickly my smaller freezer is filling up!  (The winter's worth of chicken purchased on sale is part of the overload!)  So I dug down deep and found blueberries left over from last summer and some strawberries this summer that I had thrown in thinking HandyMan was going to use them for pies.  He didn't.  So now, those berries are headed for jam.  This week's tomatoes are headed for Canned Tomato Bruschetta Topping.  I think there will also be a couple more jars of dill green beans and some apple sauce heading into the canner.

What are you using your garden produce for this week?

This post is linked up at An Oregon Cottage's Tuesday Garden Party.

Freezer Friday & Batch Cooking

When I laid out my freezer cooking and batch cooking Plan for the month, I knew it was just a plan.  Due to varying schedules and things that come up, I knew things would be shuffled and changed.

Such is the story of this weeks menu.  I had intended to make Chicken and Dumplings.  Then I realized I had potatoes that I needed to use and hadn't made Chicken Pot Pie yet this winter.  So on Monday I made the freezer version of this recipe.  The ingredients remain the same, the order of cooking is what changes.

I cooked up the broth, chicken and all the veggies in the crock pot.  Then I divided out the veggies into three containers.  One for the oven and two for the freezer.  I added the cream of chicken and a can of water to the dish headed for the oven and dropped biscuits on top once the base got bubbly.  I sent the other two containers to the freezer.  When it's time to cook them, they'll get matched up with cream of chicken, a bit of water and biscuit dough.  I cut the potatoes a little on the big side since they tend to break down in the freezer, but the rest of the mixture will hold up well.

I also mixed up an amazing batch of Cranberry Orange Bread.  Two loaves, one to MOPs, one here at home.  They barely lasted three days.  All that remain are crumbs!  I think I have another bag of cranberries in the freezer.  If I can find them, I'll be making this again!  I left the nuts out, used half white whole wheat and put a glaze on the top.  It was absolutely delicious!

Up on the Batch Cooking Menu for next week: Chicken Stuffing Casserole, Minestrone and since our temperatures are back in the single digits, probably some baked goods!

February Batch/Freezer Cooking

This month I'm taking a different approach to my batch/freezer cooking.  While it is not uncommon for me to go off-menu and whip up a batch of [insert whim here] and freeze a portion of it for a later meal, right now I'm really working hard to stick to the menu.

When I was making my February menu, I was weighing three main considerations:

:: Budget During the early months in the year, I like to shave down my grocery budget so that I have extra in the summer months when fresh produce is in season.  This extra gets used for pick-your-own berries and our favorite farm stand and does well to fill our freezer for next winter.  The other budget consideration is that I'm really trying to stay on grocery budget and have jumped on the "cash only" bandwagon to see if that works.  So far so good!

::Time I love getting multiple meals out of one chunk of time and only have to clean up once.  But right now, the calendar won't allow me a good, empty day to work on freezer cooking. (and the budget doesn't give me all my grocery money at once anymore - I'm learning to split the big shopping up twice a month instead of once a month)

::Replenishing While having meals in the freezer that are ready to pull out, thaw and cook makes mealtime so much easier, these meals do not magically appear.  When my freezer stash gets low, I have to plan on how to restock.

Since my January menu used a lot of my freezer meals, my February menu will be working to replenish them.  I will be posting recipes in my Freezer Friday posts and updating the list below with links as the month goes on.

Ham & Cheese Rolls

Burritos

Chicken & Dumplings  Chicken & Biscuits

Chicken Stuffing Casserole

Minestrone

Spaghetti Bake

White Bean Chili

Beef & Vegetable Stew

The Best Made Plans: December Freezer Cooking

I made a great freezer cooking plan last week.  I was going to go shopping on Friday and then be off and cooking for the weekend.  It was a great plan, and then life happened.  Very early morning, grumpy toddler, and a lost grocery list started Friday off.  Finding that someone had hit my car and the following paper work finished out Friday in the late hours of Friday evening.

Motivation on Saturday was slim, but I did manage to get some of my list done. Easy Sugar Cookies and Molasses Cookies are in the freezer.  I got my three batches of beans cooked up, measured and to the freezer yesterday.  I also got two taco-bakes to the freezer.  The rest of the list will wait until another day.  There's always later.

I'm with LifeAsMom: January will be a Pantry/Freezer challenge month.

Freezer Friday: Stashing Christmas Goodies

Between now and Christmas, most households will bake more than they do at any other point in the year.  I'm sure none of this comes as a surprise as images of fudge, cookies, candy and family favorites dance in your heads!

Baking really can be a lot of work: mixing, baking, clean-up, repeat.  If you bake smart and store safely, you can take a lot of the chore out of baking, and just enjoy the results.  Here are a few tips to take the stress out of baking this Christmas.

Smart Storage

The best way to keep your goodies fresh is to bake them as freshly as possible.  Air and moisture are the enemy of most baked goods.  Air tight containers, plastic wrap and zip-top bags are your best defense against stale goodies.  In some cases, you may want to double your defenses.

Cookies

Cookies can be a real pain in the neck and keep you tied to the oven for hours on end.  However, if you scoop and freeze your favorite cookie dough, you can have fresh cookies on hand in about five minutes longer than your baking time, whenever you need them.   Sugar cookies can be made, rolled and frozen on a quiet evening, and then baked and decorated with half the mess later.  Slice-type cookies, like my Coconut Fudge Cookies, can also be a wonderful time saver as the "logs" of cookie dough can be frozen ahead of time.  Thaw, slice, bake and you're ready to go.  Just remember to wrap cookie dough logs in plastic wrap tightly and then store in a freezer zip-top bag to keep them fresh.  Cookie dough balls can be frozen on a cookie sheet and then placed in an airtight container or zip-top bag once they're hard.  I layer my cut-out sugar cookies between wax paper in an air-tight container.  Your darling child forgot to tell you that they need a dozen cookies for a party on Saturday, no problem.  An impromptu gathering and you need to bring something to share, no problem.  Sugar craving after a day of shopping, no problem!

Fudge

Fudge is also a great prep-ahead goody.  Prepare it as you normally would, but do not cut it.  Remove it from the pan in as large of pieces as you can and wrap them tightly in plastic wrap and then in a freezer zip top bag.  Fudge can be refrigerated happily for about three weeks.  For longer storage, put it in the freezer but allow it to thaw as slowly as possible before cutting.

Candies

Many candies can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator or in air tight containers.  Brittles and Peanut Butter Balls are two that come to mind that our family loves.  Most can be made weeks in advance, and stay very fresh with the proper protection.

With a little planning, you can bake in peace and fully enjoy your Christmas!

Freezer Friday: Marinara & White Bean Chili

This week I restocked my freezer with marinara.  I think it's different every time I make it depending on what I have for veggies that need to be used.  I started with my HV Marinara and twisted it a little by adding carrots too since I had some in the freezer that needed to be thrown out hidden somewhere.  I ended up with about nine quarts of marinara all portioned out for future meals-all for less than $6.  More reasons why I love making my on marinara!

I also put together this Chicken and White Bean Chili that was great!  We at half the batch this week and the rest went to the freezer for later.  I used broth and chicken from a Chicken Cooking Day and beans from a day of cooking and freezing beans.  This recipe came together very quickly and was quite yummy!  Today I'm making a stock pot of Beef and Veggie soup which will make quick meals this weekend and in the coming months.

White Bean & Chicken Chili

6 cup White beans, cooked and divided

6 cup Chicken Broth

2 medium Onions

4 cups cooked Chicken, chopped
1 can of  RoTel diced tomatoes (or regular diced tomatoes & chilies)

1 tsp Chili powder
1 Tbs Salt
1 tsp Black Pepper

Directions:

1.  Puree three cups of the white beans.

2.  Combine all ingredients in a large stock pot or your slow cooker.  Since all ingredients are cooked, you can just heat it through low and slow to combine all the ingredients.  If cooking on the stove, be sure to stir regularly as the pureed beans tend to sink can burn to the bottom of the pan.

This post is linked up at Life As Mom's Frugal Friday.

November Freezer Cooking

It's hard to believe that it is November already!  Since this is a full month and my freezer and pantry are pretty stocked, I'm just replenishing things that I've run out of and replenishing my soup supply.  I will be putting

away our garden potatoes to make side dishes easier later on.  I'm experimenting with a couple bread recipes that I'm hoping will freeze well enough to batch them up later.  Here are a few of the things that I'm working on that I know will go to the pantry and freezer:

:: Biscuit Mixes

:: Chicken Broth

:: Mashed Potatoes

:: Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts (just separated club pack & bagged)

:: Ground Beef  (just separated club pack & bagged)

Also on the menu this month to be prepared in batch freezing quantities HV Marinara, Beef & Barley Soup, Black & Pinto Beans and White Chili.   What are you cooking this month?

Linked up at Life As Mom's November Freezer Cooking Party

October Freezer Baking

This month I planned most of my menu around meals that were already hanging out in the freezer from my September Freezer Cooking, so the bulk of my freezer cooking for October is baking.  I love fresh baked goods, I hate cleaning up the mess.  I've found that by batch baking, I can get the best of both worlds.  Some things go into the freezer already baked, others head for the freezer flash frozen so they can be pulled out, baked and eaten fresh and warm.

This is more than I would normally be baking, but we have quite a few engagements this month that we're signed up to bring baked goods for.  The prep work now, will save me a lot of time and dishes later!  Here's the list of what I'm working on:

Pumpkin Applesauce Bread -recipe to follow, baked and frozen

HV Zucchini Bread -baked and frozen

Double Chocolate Pecan Cookies -Scooped & Frozen

Sugar Cookies -cut & frozen-directions to follow

Pie Crusts -I take no credit - it's HandyMan's Department!

And I've been dying to try the Chocolate Butterhorns so I'm hoping to get them in the freezer this time around too!

Sloppy Lasagna -Pasta is on the menu. I'm trying a variation of this recipe and will make three pans instead of large quantities of leftovers.

Happy cooking!

This post is linked up at Life As Mom's October Freezer Cooking post.  Check it out for lots of great ideas.

Freezer Friday: September Batch Cooking

I'm not sure about where everyone else lives, but it has been hot here this week!  I love batch cooking: it saves me time and money in the long run.  I had laid out my September batch cooking plan on Monday and got to work.

After shopping, getting elbow deep in food stuffs, and recognizing that it was hot, the plan got tweaked a little (soufflé can wait  until Monday when it's cooler!) and some things made it to the freezer that were bonus items (more cheap green and red peppers).  Here is what has made it to my freezer and the pantry for the coming month(s):

Freezer:

2 Ranch Bean Kits (modified Cowboy Beans)

1 Bean kit for 3 Bean Chili

1-9x13 and 2-8x8 pans of Grilled Chicken Enchiladas (Recipe to come)

4-8x8 Lasagnas

6 Grilled Chicken Breast Packets (thaw, heat & chop for salads, fajitas, pasta etc)

8 containers (2 & 4  cup) of Beans - Black, Pinto and Northern

2# Ground Beef to be used for Taco meat later

6  Pepper Bombs each of Red and Green peppers

I still have plans (and 10 pounds of potatoes) to make mashed potatos as well - just didn't get to it yet.

Pantry


Instant Oatmeal packets

3 Biscuit kits

3 Cornbread kits

After all that work, I even remembered to mark off my freezer list so I know what's actually in there!

Special thanks to my local grocery stores who had lean ground beef $1.99/lb and boneless/skinless chicken breasts at $1.69/lb this week!  Also due to some great sales, I've  got my pantry stocked on cereal and pasta as well.  The hope is that all I will have to buy for the rest of the month is milk, eggs and fresh produce.  I'm also hoping to spend a little less time on meal prep and squeeze in some more regular exercise.

Freezer Friday: Pepper Bombs & Portioned Squash

This time of the year, my local produce market often has deals that are just too good to pass up.  This week it was large baskets of beautiful red peppers.  I got 16 red bell peppers for $4.  I got half of them chopped up into Pepper Bombs yesterday and will try to get the rest in the freezer today.



I also have come into some zucchini and yellow squash (from the gardens of others) that have been shredded and pureed and frozen in portions.  This way when I'm ready to make my Hidden Veggie desserts and breads, my veggies will be ready.

What have you put away for a cooler day?

Freezer Friday: Planning A Party

I find that my freezer is my best friend when I'm planning a party or an event with a lot of food prep.  In a week I will be hosting a number of house guests, for The Weekend and even more friends and family for a lunch on Sunday.  This Weekend of fun is preceded by a week of Vacation Bible School at our church where I am organizing all the snacks.  (You can see where this is going can't you!)

I started by making my menu.  I planed to have quick breads on hand for breakfast and then the two larger meals for the masses would be Fajitas and Beef Brisket Sandwiches with assorted salads as side dishes.

I decided to do as much prep work as I could to avoid the chaos of cooking while I have a house full of people.  Here's some of the prepped items that have made it to my freezer:

*Quick breads:  I made double batches of three of my favorite breads, one would be breakfast for the current week I baked, the others went to the freezer to have on hand for The Weekend.  I was working on using up last year's squashes from the freezer so I've made Spiced Applesauce Bread, Blueberry Bread (with all those fresh blueberries we picked) and a healthified version of this Chocolate - Chocolate Chip Zucchini Zucchini bread (which I will post soon).

*Potato Salad Prep: I cleaned, peeled and chopped and boiled potatoes as if I were making the Potato Salad, then instead of making the salad -I threw them in the freezer.  Once they're thawed, I can mix up the dressing and make the potato salad and nobody will know (except my mom, because she helped, and maybe my sister in law because I think she reads this sometimes!)

*Beans: I also cooked up black beans and portioned them to the freezer, planning one portion to be used with Fajitas.

Having the menu prepared ahead of time also made it easy when folks asked what could they bring.  I could assign someone a pasta salad and someone else baked beans and know that there were two less things that I needed to prepare.  I also planned a little bit of flexibility into my menu.  I knew I wanted to do a BBQ style sandwich, but waited to see what was on sale for meat: brisket or pork.

With some planning you can shave your costs for large parties and gatherings as well as saving yourself a lot of work while you're trying to visit with family and friends.

Freezer Friday: Peanut Butter Cup Pie

I'm always looking for easy recipes that present themselves as a more laborious dish than they really are.  In the summer, the less time in the oven or at the stove the better.  This fantastic Peanut Butter Cup pie is tweaked from a recipe used at Sonlight Camp, where HandyMan and I have spent some time.  The best part, no oven and no stove necessary!  It is easily made the night (or a week) before and placed in the freezer to "chill out" until it is needed.  The only way it will last a week in the freezer is if it's well hidden or if you're out of town!

To make this for a crowd, I'm going to try putting a graham cracker crust in the bottom of a 9x13 pan and doubling the filling.  Then cutting it into squares once its frozen.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

Peanut Butter Cup Pie

1 premade Graham Cracker Crust

4 ounces Cream Cheese, at room temperature

1/2 cup Peanut Butter

1/2 cup Powdered Sugar

1/2 cup Milk

1 teaspoon Vanilla

1-8 ounce tub of Whipped Topping

Hot Fudge topping & Peanut Butter Cups to garnish with.

Directions

1.  Cream together the peanut butter and cream cheese.

2.  Add vanilla and powdered sugar and blend completely.  Mix in milk.

3. Fold whipped topping into the peanut butter mixture.

4.  Pour into crust and garnish with hot fudge and peanut butter cups.

5.  Place pie into the freezer and allow to freeze until firm.  (4-6 hours).  Slice and serve!

Freezer Friday: Blueberries

One of my favorite things about where we live is the organic blueberry orchard where we pick every year.  Their bushes are all 5 to 7 feet tall and picking is easy!  So far we've made it home with about 6 quarts of berries for less than $12 - can't beat that!  And it's a fun family outing to boot!

I portioned some of the blueberries for HV Blueberry Bread and pies and sent them to the freezer.  The rest I loaded into the dehydrator:

24 hours later, I had about 6 cups of dehydrated blueberries - with not additives! - that GBaby loves to snack on and I will use when I make granola.  I have a feeling that these will go fast so I'm hoping to make it out to the orchard for more berries next week!

This post is linked at:

Life As Mom's Frugal Friday

A Few of My Favorite Things

Freezer Friday: New Freezer Challenge

This week I got a new freezer.  I was so excited to stack a sale, a coupon, and a rewards gift card and a state rebate all together to get $180 off the cost of my new freezer.  The new freezer is EnergyStar rated which means is should run the electric meter a little slower than the 30 year electricity monster that was in the garage before.  And the icing on the cake, the new freezer will fit inside the house, not in the detached garage.  The challenge is that it is a 15 cubic foot freezer replacing a 20 cubic foot freezer.

So from this transition, I found all kinds of things in the freezer that need to get used.  My challenge in June is to include some of the frozen veggies in my baking this month.  Applesauce, carrots, zucchini, yellow squash, blueberries and strawberries all have destinations in baked goods this month so stay tuned for the results of my creative baking!

I did find a bit of room in the new freezer to stash this week’s freezer projects: pizza kits and Marinara.

What made it to your freezer this week?