Make-Ahead Chimichangas

We stored the wrapped chimichangas in a couple gallon plastic bags with the instructions written on them as a reminder. We've only had them from frozen in the oven, but they are very good. Doug bakes for 55 min wrapped and only 5 min unwrapped so they're not quite so crunchy.

INGREDIENTS:
3 cups cooked chicken
16 ounces salsa
16 ounces refried beans
4 ounces green chili peppers, diced in can
1 envelope burrito seasoning mix or taco seasoning mix
16 flour tortillas (7- or 8-inch)
16 ounces cheddar cheese, cut into sixteen 5 x 1/2 inch sticks

DIRECTIONS:
1. Using two forks, shred cooked meat or chicken (should have about 3 cups).

2. In a large pot combine meat or chicken, salsa, beans, undrained chili peppers, and seasoning mix.

3. For each chimichanga, place 1/3 cup meat mixture atop a tortilla, near one edge.

4. Top with a cheese stick.

5. Fold in sides; roll up, starting with cheese side.

6. To prepare, wrap frozen chimichangas individually in foil.

7. Bake in a 350 degree F. oven about 50 minutes or until heated through. Or, thaw chimichangas in refrigerator overnight. Bake about 30 minutes. Unwrap. Bake 10 minutes more or until tortilla is crisp and brown.

Serves: 8

Old-Fashioned Chicken and Noodles

I found this recipe in Country Home and decided to make it for some friends who are under the weather. I used chicken thighs and the slow cooker method, and it couldn't have been easier! After 8 hours, I simply grabbed the thigh bones with tongs and the meat literally fell off when I gently shook it.

3 medium onions, chopped (1 1/2 cups)
3 stalks celery, sliced (1 1/2 cups)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. olive oil or butter
3 lb. meaty chicken pieces (drumsticks, thighs, and breast halves), skinned
4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 cup water
4 carrots, sliced (2 cups)
1 Tbsp. snipped fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 16-oz. pkg. frozen egg noodles
4 tsp. cornstarch
1 1/2 cups frozen peas
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
Fresh Thyme sprigs (optional)

1. In a Dutch oven cook onions, celery, and garlic in olive oil just until tender. Add chicken pieces, broth, water, carrots, 1 tablespoon thyme, bay leaf, poultry seasoning, salt, and pepper. Bring to boiling. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, for 25 to 30 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Remove from heat. Remove chicken; set aside to cool slightly. Return pan to heat; bring broth mixture to boiling. Add frozen noodles and bring to boiling again. Reduce heat and cook, covered, for 20 to 25 minutes or until noodles are desired doneness. Meanwhile, remove meat from bones; discard bones. Chop the chicken. Remove bay leaf from noodle mixture and discard. Add cooked chicken to noodle mixture.

2. In a small bowl dissolve cornstarch in 2 tablespoons water. Add cornstarch mixture to pan along with peas and lemon juice. Cook and stir until slightly thickened and bubbly; cook and stir 2 minutes more. Garnish with thyme sprigs.

Makes 8 servings.

SLOW-COOKER DIRECTIONS: In 5- to 6-quart slow cooker place onion, celery, garlic, carrots, thyme, bay leaf, poultry seasoning, salt, and black pepper (omit olive oil and cooking of vegetables in oil). Place chicken pieces on top of vegetables. Pour chicken broth over chicken, omitting the 1 cup water. Cover; cook on low-heat setting 8 to 9 hours or on high-heat setting 4 to 4 1/2 hours. Remove chicken from cooker; cool slightly. Remove bay leaf; discard. Meanwhile, in a separate pan cook noodles according to package directions; drain. Remove chicken from bones; discard bones. Chop chicken; return to cooker with cooked noodles, peas, and lemon juice. (Omit cornstarch and water thickening step.) Stir to combine. Garnish as directed, if desired.

Penne with Rosemary Chicken

After making this recipe the first time, I think that the pasta should be cooked al dente before freezing. Will try next time and let you know how it turned out.

Ingredients:
Nonstick cooking spray
1 pound diced cooked chicken
1 pound penne pasta
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheese blend
½ cup yellow onion, diced
1 tablespoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
2 tbsp pimentos, drained (optional)
2 cups milk
1 ½ 15-ounce can(s) cream of mushroom soup

Directions:
Place all the ingredients into a large bowl and stir to combine. Transfer the mixture to a resealable freezer bag.

For dinner tonight:
Preheat the oven to 350F. Place the contents of a bag into 9x13 sprayed baking dish and cover with foil. Bake for 1 to 1 ¼ hours. Or, place in a crock pot, set on low heat, and cook for 5 to 6 hours.

To freeze:
Label, date, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before cooking as directed above.

Serves: 6

Six Can Chicken Tortilla Soup

I LOVE this quick, easy, delicious soup! I try to always buy the ingredients when they are on sale so I can whip this together whenever I like. It also freezes well. INGREDIENTS: 1 can whole kernel corn, drained 1 can chicken broth 1 can chunk chicken 1 can black beans 1 can diced tomatoes with green chile peppers, drained 1 can cream of chicken soup shredded cheddar cheese tortilla chips DIRECTIONS: Drain and rinse black beans. Pour everything into a large saucepan or stock pot. Simmer over medium heat until chicken is heated through. For OAMC: Pour everything into a gallon ziplock bag and freeze. Thaw and heat in microwave or over stove. Serve topped with shredded cheddar cheese and crumbed tortilla chips. Serves: 6

OAMC is cheaper!

This morning my friends and I cooked a bunch of OAMC recipes for Julie, whose newborn baby is in the NICU. I added up the cost for the ingredients so we could all split it up, and was again amazed by how affordable this type of cooking is. When you catch a good sale on meat, stock up and freeze. It pays!

Here's what we made:
1 Caribbean Pork over Rice
1 Penne with Rosemary Chicken
2 Charleston’s Baked Potato Soup
20 Make-Ahead Twice Baked Potatoes (5 lbs potatoes)
1 Chicken Tortilla Soup
18 Bagel Pizzas

Total cost: $48.77

That's a good week's worth of meals (lunch and dinner) and then some, for under $50.

Banana-Chip Oat Muffins

A really yummy recipe from allrecipes.com. Healthy, too!

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup quick-cooking oats
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
3 medium ripe bananas, mashed
1 egg
2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:
In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients. In a small mixing bowl, beat butter and brown sugar until crumbly. Beat in the bananas, egg, applesauce and vanilla. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in chocolate chips.

Coat muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray or line with paper liners; fill three-fourths full. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack. Serve warm.

Yield: 12 - 16 muffins

Crockpot Jambalaya

It's been a while since I've added a new OAMC recipe, but this is a keeper. It's adapted from the Dream Dinners cookbook. We ate it over steamed white rice, and Doug LOVED it! It has lot of flavor and is super easy to make.

Ingredients:
6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into thirds
1/2 lb. kielbasa, sliced on the diagonal into 2-inch pieces (we will double this next time)
1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes, with juice
1 c. green or red bell pepper, diced into 1-inch pieces
1 c. yellow onion, diced into 1-inch pieces
1/2 c. chicken broth
1 tbsp. cayenne pepper
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. Cajun seasoning
1 tsp. minced garlic

Directions:
Combine ingredients in a gallon-sized freezer bag. Close and squish bag to get seasonings moistened and evenly covering the meat. Freeze.

To cook:
Thaw completely and dump contents into the crock pot. Cook on low for 6-8 hours and serve over rice.

Spice Cookies with Pumpkin Dip

It's fall! Now's the time to make these fabulous cookies. I can't be held responsible for what they will do to your waistline, however. You can't eat just one...

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups butter or margarine, softened
2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup molasses
4 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger and cloves
1 teaspoon salt
PUMPKIN DIP:
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 cup pumpkin pie filling
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add molasses; mix well. Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and salt; add to creamed mixture and mix well. Chill overnight. (* Or for a few hours. Dough won't roll well when warm.)

2. Shape into 1/2-in. balls; roll in sugar. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 375° for 6 minutes or until edges begin to brown. Cool for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack.

3. For dip, beat cream cheese in a mixing bowl until smooth. Add pumpkin pie mix; beat well. Add sugar, cinnamon and ginger; beat until smooth. Serve with cookies. Store leftover dip in the refrigerator.

Yield: about 20 dozen

Old Fashioned Macaroni and Cheese

This is Aunt Linda's recipe. I have many fond memories of her making this for my visits and serving it along with some homemade applesauce, still slightly frosty from the freezer. Yum!

INGREDIENTS:
6-7 oz. elbow macaroni (2 cups)
2 tbsp grated onion
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper (* I go lighter on the pepper, personally)
3 c. shredded process sharp American cheese (3/4 lb) (* I use Velvetta cut into squares)
1 tbsp butter
THIN WHITE SAUCE INGREDIENTS:
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper (*I go lighter on this)
2 c. milk

DIRECTIONS:

Heat oven to 375 degrees.
Cook macaroni in (1 tbsp) salted water.
Place 1/2 macaroni in ungreased 2 quart casserole. Sprinkle with 1/2 onion, salt pepper and cheese; repeat.
Pour white sauce over casserole.
Dot w/butter.
Cover, Bake 30 min.
Uncover, bake 15 min. longer.

THIN WHITE SAUCE DIRECTIONS:
Melt butter in saucepan over low heat. Blend in flour, salt and pepper. Cook over low heat, stirring until mixture in smooth and bubbly. Remove from heat. Stir in milk. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute.

Serves: 6 for main dish, 8-10 for side dish

Crock Pot Apple Butter

I have been wanting to try this recipe for awhile, and finally got the chance. It took about 13 hours, but was easy and made the whole kitchen smell great! It tastes just like the Amish stuff I remember.


INGREDIENTS:
5 1/2 lbs apples, peeled and finely chopped (I use 3-4 different types of apples)
4 cups sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (2 to 3)
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS:
1. Place apples in a large bowl.

2. Combine sugar, cinnamon, cloves and salt.

3. Pour over apples and mix well.

4. Place in crock pot, cover and cook on high for 1 hour.

5. Decrease heat to low; cover and cook on low for 9-11 hours or until thickened and dark brown.

6. Stir occasionally.

7. Uncover and cook on low for 1 hour longer.

8. If desired, whisk until smooth.

9. Spoon into freezer containers, leaving 1/2-inch head space.

10. Cover and freeze.

Makes 4 pints

Chocolate Cherry Bites (cookies)

1 cup chopped pecans (optional)
1 cup unsalted butter (softened)
1 1/4 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 Tbl instant expresso powder dissolved in 1 Tbl boiling water (optional)
1 Tbl vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup cocoa
1 teas. baking powder
1/4 teas salt
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cup dried cherries

Grease or use parmchment paper on cookie sheets

Beat butter and sugar for 1 minute, add eggs and beat 1 minute
Add expresso. Add vanilla, Add dry ingreiants that have already been mixed

Drop by rounded Tbl on baking sheet.
Bake 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees
Cool on sheets 10 minutes before removing

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

I found these on allrecipes (where else?), but found they make great jumbo muffins! They are SO good, one regular sized-muffin just wasn't enough.


INGREDIENTS
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup plain yogurt (*OR 3/4 cup sour cream)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (*at least one cup)
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, combine the egg, oil, yogurt/sour cream and vanilla. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened.

Fold in bananas and chocolate chips. (* I lightly floured the chocolate chips to help keep them from sinking during baking)

Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 22-25 minutes (for regular muffins, 27 minutes for jumbo) or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

SERVINGS: 16 regular or 8 jumbo muffins

Absolute Best Ever Lasagna

This was the first time I made this recipe, so we'll see if it's really the "best ever." Stay posted!

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 lbs lean ground beef
1/2 lb Italian sausage
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried basil
2 cans whole tomatoes (14 1/2 ounce) undrained and chopped (*I used petite diced)
2 cans tomato paste (6 ounce)
24 ounces cottage cheese or ricotta cheese (* I used ricotta)
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons parsley
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 lb mozzarella cheese, divided
12 lasagna noodles (12 to 15)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Brown ground beef, Italian sausage, onion and garlic. *Directions don't call for it specifically, but I strained the grease out at this point.*

2. Add salt and next 5 ingredients; stirring until well mixed.

3. Simmer 1 hour.

4. Cook lasagna noodles according to package directions; drain and set aside.

5. Combine cottage cheese, eggs, pepper, 2 tablespoons parsley, Parmesan cheese and 1/2 of mozzarella cheese; In a lasagna pan, layer noodles, meat sauce, and cheese mixture; repeat.

6. Top off with layer of noodles; sprinkle evenly with remaining mozzarella cheese.

FOR OAMC:
6a. Freeze unbaked.

7. Bake at 375 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes, or until cheese mixture is thoroughly melted.

SERVINGS: 10

Jamie's Minestrone

This has been a "keeper" recipe ever since I found it on allrecipes.com. My notes are within the recipe, which is pretty much the same as posted.


INGREDIENTS:
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 onions, chopped
2 cups celery, sliced
5 carrots, sliced
2 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
4 cups tomato sauce
1/2 cup red wine (optional)
1 cup canned kidney beans, drained
1 can green beans, 15 oz
2 cups baby spinach
3 zucchinis, quartered and sliced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano (or 1 tsp dried oregano)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil (or 2 tsp dried basil)
salt and pepper to taste

WHEN READY TO EAT:
1/2 cup seashell pasta (we like to double this at least)
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese for topping, grated

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a large stock pot, over medium-low heat, heat olive oil and saute garlic for 2 to 3 minutes. Add onion and saute for 4 to 5 minutes. Add celery and carrots, saute for 1 to 2 minutes.

2. Add chicken broth, water and tomato sauce, bring to boil, stirring frequently. If desired add red wine at this point. Reduce heat to low and add kidney beans, green beans, spinach leaves, zucchini, oregano, basil, salt and pepper. Simmer for 30 to 40 minutes, the longer the better. (I do it for one hour.)

FOR OAMC: 2a. Cool soup and freeze. A double batch fills 3 ziplock gallon sized bags. FYI: This makes A LOT, so I use a pretty huge pot when I double it.

3. Fill a medium saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Add pasta and cook until tender. Drain water and set aside.

4. Once pasta is cooked and soup is heated through, place portions of cooked pasta into individual serving bowls. Ladle soup on top of pasta and sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top.

Servings: 8

A Mini-OAMC Plan

I did a "mini-OAMC" today, since our weekends are tending to fill up quickly, and it's difficult to make a ton of meals at once.

* Three-Way Chili
* Jamie's Minestrone
* Absolute Best Ever Lasagne *NEW*
* Quick Chicken Curry

Zucchini Brownies

These are AWESOME. My new favorite way to use zucchini, found at allrecipes. But they really are more of a cake than a brownie. It's a good feeling to watch the girls unknowingly gobble up all that zucchini!

BROWNIE INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups shredded zucchini
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

FROSTING INGREDIENTS:
6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup margarine (I used butter)
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9x13 inch baking pan.

In a large bowl, mix together the oil, sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla until well blended. Combine the flour, 1/2 cup cocoa, baking soda and salt; stir into the sugar mixture. Fold in the zucchini and walnuts. ***NOTE: if the mixture is very dry and crumbly at this point, add in water a couple tablespoons at a time until the batter is moist and will pour into the pan. When I use thawed zucchini shreds, the water in the bag is enough to moisten the batter.***

Spread evenly into the prepared pan.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until brownies spring back when gently touched.

To make the frosting, melt together the 6 tablespoons of cocoa and margarine; set aside to cool. In a medium bowl, blend together the confectioners' sugar, milk and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Stir in the cocoa mixture. Spread over cooled brownies before cutting into squares.

Chocolate Zucchini Bread

I LOVE this bread! I discovered the recipe last year and have made it countless times since. We've tried several ways to do the chips to keep them from sinking. When I sprinkle them on top, half sunk and half stayed on top. When I mix in the batter, they all sink. Who cares - they still taste great no matter where they land!

2 squares unsweetened chocolate (1 ounce)
3 eggs
2 cups white sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups grated zucchini
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease AND flour two 9x5 inch loaf pans. In a microwave-safe bowl, microwave chocolate until melted. Stir occasionally until chocolate is smooth.

2. In a large bowl, combine eggs, sugar, oil, grated zucchini, vanilla and chocolate; beat well. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and chocolate chips. Add to wet mixture. Pour batter into prepared loaf pans.

3. Bake in preheated oven for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a loaf comes out clean.

Original recipe yield:
2 9x5 inch loaf pans

Fresh Zucchini Pasta

This is badly named Angel's Pasta on allrecipes. Not that my title is much better, but it's a delicious use for all the basil and zucchini I've been growing!

INGREDIENTS:
8 ounces angel hair pasta
1 tablespoon crushed garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 zucchini, sliced
salt and pepper to taste
3 tomatoes, chopped (or 1 [14.5 oz] can diced tomatoes, drained)
12 leaves fresh basil
4 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded

DIRECTIONS:
1. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until al dente; drain.

2. Meanwhile, heat a medium skillet over medium heat. Pour in oil and saute garlic until golden. Stir in zucchini, salt and pepper. Saute 2 minutes, then mix in tomato and cook a few minutes more. Chop basil and add to vegetables right before mixing with pasta.

3. Combine pasta and vegetables. Serve topped with mozzarella.

Servings: 4

Garden Fresh...Year Round

Sometime last year, I learned that you can freeze fresh herbs and use them at a later time. This has worked out very well for me! I used to buy expensive herbs and use only a small portion of them. The rest would spoil before I found another need for it.

Now, I use what I need, vacuum seal and freeze the rest. Freeze it UNCUT, (lesson learned the hard way) and chop it up as soon as it's out of the bag. The herbs will still lend a lot of flavor to your recipe.

Here's some from our garden:

Chicken Cornbread Pot Pie

From: Campbell's Kitchen
Prep: 10 minutes
Bake: 30 minutes

Serves: 4

Ingredients:
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup
1 can (about 8 ounces) whole kernel corn, drained
2 cups cubed cooked chicken OR 1/2 grocery store rotisserie chicken
1 pkg. (8 1/2 ounces) corn muffin mix
3/4 cup milk
1 egg
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese


Directions:

For Freezing: We use a Sam's Club Rotisserie chicken, put all the shredded pieces from a chicken split into two freezer bags. Once we're ready to make the meal we take out one of the chicken bags (makes two recipes total) and finish the recipe by following the directions below since it only take 10 minutes of prep time.

Heat the oven to 400°F. Stir the soup, corn and chicken in a 9-inch pie plate.

Stir the muffin mix, milk and egg with a fork in a small bowl until the ingredients are mixed. Spoon over the chicken mixture.

Bake for 30 minutes or until the cornbread is golden. Sprinkle with the cheese.