I have a minimum (hopefully) of 3 more weeks before baby boy makes his appearance. Needless to say, I have started to become more and more anxious. I sat down the other day and made a list of all of the meals that still are tasty after freezing and tried to plan some of them into a meal schedule for the next two weeks. I'm going to try to share all of them throughout the next few weeks.
For starters, I made chicken pot pie. I found this recipe on Pinterest and it is amazing. It can be found among some other great freezer meals here
http://melissafallistestkitchen.blogspot.com/2012/02/freezer-cooking-2.html. Now one thing I think I do differently than a lot of people who make freezer meals, is that I do freezer meals one at a time. I just feel like for me, it causes less stress and also I can prepare meals based on what is on sale. As an example, this time I paid full price for the pie crusts but ideally I would be making this meal when pie crusts are on sale...usually sometime around a holiday of some sort.
Chicken Pot Pie (my adaptation)
6 chicken breast
2 onions
6 carrots
3 stalks celery
3 potatoes
4 tablespoons butter
42 oz chicken broth
3 cans cream of chicken soup
3 premade pie crusts
Wash & Trim ALL the Chicken Breasts. Put (6) Breasts in a pot of water on the stove and cook on med-medhigh heat for about 30 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.
· While the Chicken is cooking chop vegetables Melt (4) tablespoons butter in large sauce pot and add all chopped vegetables EXCEPT potatoes. While the veggies are sautéing, shred the cooked chicken breast with two forks and set aside. Add Chicken Broth (42oz) & diced Potato to pot with sautéed veggies after about 5 minutes and let simmer over med-med high heat until reduced by half.
· Remove pre-made pie crust from fridge. It will need to sit for (10) minutes before placing in round foil pans.
· After the Chicken Broth has reduced by half with the veggies- stir in shredded chicken, 3 cans peas and 3 cans cream of chicken. At this point you can add any sort of seasoning you would like. I usually add a bit of thyme and rosemary.
· Evenly distribute chicken/veg mixture into each pie pan. Top each with pie crust. Pinch sides of each together using your fingers or a fork. Cut 2-3 vents in the top using a sharp knife. WRAP WELL with plastic wrap. Using a permanent market- write on each one “Chicken Pot Pie, the date and 350 degrees 45 minutes” *or until golden and bubbly. Place in Freezer. In my case I keep one and bake one for dinner.
So now I have 2 meals ready for me. I already have some chicken enchiladas, hamburgers, and lasagna. Woohoo!
While scouring Pinterest (I love that site) for meals, I came across some freezer meals recommended by the Pioneer Woman. I know that she has some good stuff so I had to pin it and look for some new recipes. Well. I found one. But not for a meal. More for a yummy breakfast. Sweet rolls! Let me tell you. They were yummy! I followed her recipe, but for some reason I got a LOT more rolls than she said. I got 4 pans instead of 2! I was planning on freezing 1 and eating 1. Well, we ate 2 and froze 2. I also altered it a bit (because I needed more fruit filling) so I did half of them lemon raspberry and half lemon blueberry. I found the recipe here
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2013/07/freezer-cooking/
Ingredients
- FOR THE DOUGH:
- 4 cups Whole Milk
- 1 cup Sugar
- 1 cup Canola Oil
- 2 packages Active Dry Yeast, 0.25 Ounce Packets
- 8 cups All-purpose Flour
- 1 cup (additional) All-purpose Four
- 1 Tablespoon (heaping) Salt
- 1 teaspoon (scant) Baking Soda
- 1 teaspoon (heaping) Baking Powder
- FOR THE FILLING:
- 1 stick Butter
- 3/4 cups Sugar
- 2 whole Lemons, Zested
- 2 cups (Heaping) Fresh Blueberries
- FOR THE GLAZE:
- 1 whole Lemon, Juiced
- 2 whole Lemons, Zested
- 3 cups Powdered Sugar
- 2 cups Whole Milk, Or As Needed
- 1 dash Salt
- 3 Tablespoons Melted Butter
Makes 24 rolls.
For the dough:
Mix milk, 1 cup sugar, and canola oil in a large pot or Dutch oven. Heat over medium heat until very warm but not boiling. Remove from heat and allow to cool until warmer than lukewarm but not hot.
Sprinkle yeast over the surface of the liquid, then add in 8 cups flour. Stir gently until totally combined. Mixture will be very wet and sticky. Cover with a tea towel, keep in a draft-free place, and allow to sit for 1 hour.
After 1 hour, add in an additional cup of flour, as well as the salt, baking soda and baking powder. Mix until combined. Refrigerate dough, covered, until you need it. (Refrigerating the dough helps make it easier to handle.)
Preheat oven to 375 F. Butter a large baking dish (or a couple of smaller dishes) generously. you could use a 9x13 or two 9-inch pie pans which is what I did.
Melt 1 stick of butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Once melted remove from heat.
Divide dough in half. Store one half in the fridge for another use (another batch of these, a batch of cinnamon rolls, a batch of dinner rolls). Turn the other half of the dough onto a floured surface. Roll into a large rectangle, about 30 inches wide by 10 inches deep. Roll as thin as possible! Drizzle melted butter over the dough, using your fingers to spread evenly.
Using your fingers, mix sugar and lemon zest so that it's a nice, light yellow sugar. Sprinkle it all over the butter. Sprinkle the blueberries evenly over the surface.
Beginning at the side furthest from you, roll dough toward you until it’s in the shape of a tight log. Tuck as you go so the roll stays tight. Pinch the edges to seal the seam shut. With a sharp knife, slice into 1/2 thick hick rolls and lay the slices, cut side down, into the buttered baking dishes. Allow to rise for 20 minutes, then place in oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until deep golden brown on top.
To make the glaze: Add lemon juice, lemon zest, powdered sugar, milk, and dash of salt in a bowl. Add melted butter and whisk together until smooth. Taste it and add more of whatever it needs.
Remove rolls from oven and drizzle the glaze all over the rolls. Be sure to get it all around the edges and covering the surface so they’ll be nice and moist!
Serve warm or at room temperature.
