- Five Cheese Veggie Lasagna
- Pot Roast
- Hearty Beef Stew
- Easy Chili Recipe
- Broccoli Cheddar Chicken Pasta Bake
- Cheesy Garlic Chicken
- Pulled Pork
- Garlic Ranch Chicken
- Parmesan Chicken
- Fajitas
- Crock Pot Loaded Potato Soup
- Cauliflower Tots
- Twice Baked Potatoes & Potato Skins
Five Cheese Veggie Lasagna (Stouffers knock-off)
INGREDIENTS:
1 lb. lasagna noodles
5-6 carrots, very finely chopped
2 C spinach, chopped
1 head broccoli, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
6+ Tablespoons butter, divided
4 heaping Tablespoons flour
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon onion powder
3/4 C vegetable broth
1/2 C Milk
1 1/2 C Heavy Cream
½ C Ricotta cheese
½ C Parmesan cheese, shredded
½ C Romano cheese, shredded
½ C Asiago cheese, shredded
½ C Mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 C crushed Ritz crackers
2 teaspoons TexJoy Steak seasoning (or steak seasoning of your choice)
2 teaspoons Parsley flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS:
1) Preheat oven 375°F.
2) Bring a large pot water to boil. Add a little bit of olive oil to keep noodles from sticking together.
Add lasagna noodles and cook until al dente as package instructs. (About 9 minutes) Drain and set aside.
3) Meanwhile, prepare the vegetables.
4) Melt 2-3 Tablespoons butter on low heat in a large saucepan. Add onion and sauté until translucent. 5) Add flour and stir constantly for about 3 minutes, or until dissolved, then add garlic and onion powder.
6) Add vegetable stock, milk, and cream. Increase heat to medium high, stirring until thickened.
7) Reduce heat to low, stirring constantly until desired thickness.
8) Remove from heat and stir in vegetables. Season with salt and pepper then stir in ricotta. Set aside. 9) Grate cheeses and mix all but ricotta together in a bowl. Set aside.
10) Melt 3-4 Tablespoons of butter in a small bowl and mix in crushed crackers, parsley, steak seasoning, and ¼ C of cheese mixture. Set aside.
11) Grease a 9×13 casserole dish with butter. Place a layer of noodles on the bottom, being careful not to leave any open spaces.
12) Add a thin layer of the vegetable mixture (about 1/3) then sprinkle half of the cheese over this.
13) Continue layering noodles, veggie mix, and cheese, ending with veggie mixture.
14) Top with the cracker mixture.
15) Bake uncovered 25-30 minutes until top is brown and bubbly.
Pot Roast (makes 2):
Ingredients:
3 T olive oil
2 lb beef roast (any kind, cut into large cubes)
3 Cups beef broth
5 potatoes, cubed
3-4 carrots, sliced
Sprinkle of rosemary, oregano, thyme (whatever seasoning you like...make this recipe your own)
Split all ingredients in half and place in bags. Freeze. Day of cooking grab from freezer, pour all contents into crock pot and cook on high 3-4 hours or low 6-8 hours. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Hearty Beef StewIngredients:
1 lb stewing beef
2 T olive oil
4 c beef stock
1 c chopped onion
1 c chopped celery
3 peeled and chopped carrots
2 white potatoes
1 28oz can diced tomatoes
½ t rosemary
½ t thyme
Instructions:
Brown the beef and vegetables in a pot with some olive oil before tossing into the slow cooker
Add the rest of the ingredients and cook on low for 6 hours or until meat is tender
Season to taste and serve
Easy Chili Recipe
(makes 2-3 freezer meals)
Ingredients:
2 pounds of ground beef
1 onion, diced
3 cans of chili beans
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 can of diced tomatoes (14 oz can)
2 packs of chili seasoning
1/2 table spoon salt
2 cups water
Put browned ground beef into a pan with onions and cook until onions are soft. Add in all the other ingredients (including the juice of the tomatoes) and cook for 30 minutes or so until flavors have combined.
It’s hard to measure, but I used two gallon bags to put in 1/3 of the mixture into each, and then split the rest up into a couple smaller quart bags for chili dogs or chili chips and cheese (things where chili is not the main meal.)
Broccoli Cheddar Chicken Pasta Bake Recipe
(makes 3 freezer meals)
Ingredients:
3 cooked, shredded chicken breasts
2 boxes of pasta (I used penne), cooked and draine
2 cans of Campbell’s cheddar soup
2 cups of chicken broth (I used the broth from cooking the chicken)
2 bags of frozen broccoli
1 Tablespoon Salt
3 cups of shredded cheddar
Combine all ingredients except shredded cheddar into a bowl, divide out into three pans, the top with cheddar cheese. When ready to cook, bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes, until warm and bubbly.
Cheesy Garlic Chicken (makes 2)
Ingredients:
2 large chicken breasts
2 Cans cream of chicken soup
1 Can cheddar cheese soup
1-2 tsp garlic powder
2 T butter
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
Split all ingredients in half and place in bags. Freeze. Day of cooking grab from freezer, pour all contents into crock pot and cook on high 3-4 hours or low 6-8 hours. We serve with angel hair pasta or mashed potatoes.
Pulled Pork (makes 2)
Ingredients:
2 lbs pork shoulder, butt or tenderloin
1 Can (12 oz) root beer
1 bottle of your favorite barbeque sauce (used on day of cooking)
Split ingredients in half (except barbeque) and place in bags. Freeze. Day of cooking grab from freezer, pour contents into crock pot and cook on low 6-8 hours.
Remove and shred. Throw out sauce in pot and return meat. Add your favorite bottle of barbecue sauce to pot and stir. Serve. We serve on sesame seed buns with macaroni and cheese.
Garlic Ranch Chicken
(4 servings)
Ingredients:
4 Breasts of chicken
1 package of Hidden Valley Ranch dressing packets
1 c. milk
1 c. mayonnaise
2 Tbsp dried minced garlic
Instructions:
To simplify this recipe and make it more frugal simply use one bottle your favorite FREE Ranch Dressing from your stockpile and add 2 T of minced garlic.
TO PREPARE AFTER FREEZING:
1. Thaw chicken. Cook as desired (Grill or Bake at 350 for 30-40 min)
Parmesan Chicken
(4 servings)
Ingredients:
4 chicken breasts
1/2 c. melted butter
2 c. seasoned bread crumbs
1 1/2 c. mozzarella cheese
1 15 oz. can stewed tomatoes or bottle of spaghetti sauce
1 c. Parmesan cheese
Instructions
1. To prepare to freeze this meal, mix together Parmesan cheese and crumbs in a bowl. In a separate bowl, melt butter. Dip each chicken breast in butter then roll in bread crumb mixture until completely covered in crumbs. Repeat with each breast. Open can of stewed tomatoes (or spaghetti sauce) and spread on the bottom of the foil pan, place breaded chicken on top and sprinkle mozzarella cheese over the chicken. Cover with foil and freeze.
To Cook
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. You can defrost the chicken and cook it covered for 40 minutes or until the chicken is no longer pink in the middle. To cook frozen, place it in the oven at 350 degrees and cook covered with foil an hour or 65 minutes until no longer pink in the middle of the chicken.
Steak Fajitas
Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds boneless top sirloin steaks, or other steak
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons minced garlic (about 6 cloves)
1 onion, cut into strips
1 green bell pepper, cut into strips
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
10 flour tortillas
Instructions
Preparing Entrees For the Freezer:
1. You will want several resealable bags: 4 two-gallon bags (labeled), 4 one-gallon bags for beef, 4 one-quart bags for veggies, 4 sandwich or one-quart bags for cheese, and 4 one-quart or gallon bags for tortillas.
2. Rinse and trim steaks. Cutting across the grain, slice each steak into thin strips. Divide beef evenly among four 1-gallon bags.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together lime juice, soy sauce, oil, cumin, oregano, chili powder, and pepper. Divide the marinade evenly over the beef. Measure two teaspoons of minced garlic into each bag. Seal the bags.
4. Divide onion and green pepper strips evenly among four 1-quart bags. Seal. Measure 1 cup cheese into sandwich or quart bags. Seal. Place 10 tortillas into quart or gallon bags, depending on the size of tortilla you choose. Seal.
5. In each of the 2-gallon bags, place a bag of beef, onions and peppers, cheese, and tortillas. Seal and freeze flat.
Prepare after Freezing:
6. Completely thaw one entree in the refrigerator.
7. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and peppers and stir-fry until soft, about 3 minutes. Remove veggies from skillet and add beef. Stir-fry until browned, about 10 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and return veggies, stirring to combine.
8. Serve with tortillas, cheese, and any other fajita toppings.
Hearty Beef Stew
Ingredients:
1 pound beef stew cubes
4 carrots, sliced
4 potatoes, cut into large cubes
1 package dry onion soup mix (or 1 diced onion)
2 cans 98% fat-free cream of mushroom soup
Directions:
Place all ingredients in a resealable gallon-sized freezer bag. Mix together and zip bag closed. When ready to eat, remove from freezer and thaw in fridge for 24 hours. Cook on LOW for 7-10 hours (or HIGH for 5-6 hours).
Crock Pot Loaded Potato Soup
Ingredients:
4 pounds potatoes, peeled, and chunked
1 small onion, chopped
2 (14 oz) can chicken broth or 1 carton
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk {do not add to the kit} save for the last cooking hour
1 cup sharp shredded cheese, optional
Instructions
1. Dump all the ingredients except the milk in a gallon freezer bag labeled:
2. Crock frozen for 6-8 hours on low.
3. Mash potatoes with a potato masher or back of a spoon during the last cooking hour.
4. Stir in milk and 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese if desired.
5. Top with additional cheese, cooked bacon, sliced green onions or chives if desired.
Cauliflower Tots
Ingredients:
1 lb fresh cauliflower florets
1 cup shredded cheddar
2 cloves garlic minced
1/2 cup whole wheat panko crumbs
2 large eggs lightly beaten
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
Preheat oven to 400. Cook cauliflower in a steamer basket over simmering water 5 min or until tender. Finely chop and press with paper towels to remove excess liquid.
Transfer to medium bowl. Combine all ingredients and stir. Divide mixture evenly among 24 greased mini muffin pan cups. Make sure you press mixture into muffin tin so they don't fall apart. Bake 20 minutes or until golden and firm.
Twice Baked Potatoes & Potato Skins
Ingredients:
10-12 medium potatoes
Cheddar Cheese
Bacon Crumbles
Wash and bake all the potatoes. Poke holes in them so they won’t explode, and bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for about 40-60 minutes depending on how big the potatoes are. Cool.
Cut each in half and scoop out the innards into a pot, using a soup spoon and being careful not to break the skin.
Dump some things into the potato guts to make them taste amazing (and to make them have more worthwhile ingredients/foods in them) – chicken stock, butter, cheddar cheese, onion powder, garlic salt. Basically you can add whatever you feel like. Stir it really well!
Then, I filled the bigger potato skins with the potato mixture (overfilling them) and topped with crumbled bacon, gently pressing the bacon into the top a little so it wouldn’t fall off.
With the smaller skins, put some cheddar cheese in each one, and top with bacon. So that the bacon wouldn’t fall off when I froze them, I broiled these for a couple minutes just to melt the cheese.
To reheat – just warm up your oven (350ish is good), pop these suckers on a foil-lined cookie sheet (unwrapped of course, no plastic) and heat through. The twice baked potatoes take about 30-40 minutes from a frozen state, and the skins only take 15-20 minutes.
Shopping List for all above meals
(NOTE: this is not all inclusive - assumes kitchen has spices required for recipes)
(NOTE: this is not all inclusive - assumes kitchen has spices required for recipes)
Meat
2 lb beef roast
4 lb ground beef
2 lb boneless steak
1 lb stewing beef
14 chicken breasts
2lb pork loin
Produce
10 carrots
4 onions
10 lb potatoes
1 bell pepper
Sm bunch celery
1 lb cauliflower
8 cloves garlic
lime juice
Frozen
Family size veggie lasagna
2 bags broccoli
Dairy
2c mozzarella
6c cheddar
4c 3-cheese
Sour cream
Canned
56oz beef broth
24oz chicken broth
3 cans cheddar soup
2 cans cream of chicken soup
3 cans chili beans
2 cans rotel tomatoes
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can evaporated milk
Pasta/Spices/Dressing
2 packs chili seasoning
1 pkg ranch mix
1 pkg taco season
3c bread crumbs (panko)
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