Ham It Up

My Christmas is officially complete.  We celebrated Christmas with Adam's family the weekend before Christmas, dined at our favorite Japanese Grill on Christmas Eve after Christmas service, spent the whole day in our jammies on Christmas Day, and celebrated this past weekend with my family.  Plus, I got to enjoy breakfast this week with two of my favorite people in the whole world, Jen from JoMo and my former freezer cooking sous chef, Katie (I really missed her when I was having to wash my own dishes after making these meals).

Anywho, it's all over and, people, I've got to tell you, I am swimming in ham.  Adam gets a ham from work for Christmas every year and we have the fortune, I mean misfortune (in case any family is reading this) of staying home by ourselves on Christmas.  I have ham coming out of my ears.  It is out  of control so instead of throwing it out or feeding it to my geezer dog, I decided to make some freezer meals.  I thought some of you might be swimming in ham also so I will share what I made.

Ham and Black Bean Soup:

I have not made a soup of Jamie's that I didn't like, this one included.  And I love, love, love black beans.  I would eat them straight out of the can.

Label a gallon freezer bag and put in the ham, rinsed beans, chicken broth and seasonings.  Follow the directions to sauté the onion, garlic, and pepper (I used red pepper because I like it and because the people in my family are green pepper haters).  Let those cool slightly and then add to the freezer bag.

When ready to serve, defrost in fridge overnight.  Place in crockpot and add the 2 cups of hot water.  Cook on low 6-8 hours.
http://jamiecooksitup.net/2013/01/black-bean-and-ham-soup-crock-pot/

Ham and Scalloped Potato Casserole:

This is a Pioneer Woman recipe and is not the most calorie friendly, but portion size, people, and put a salad next to it if it makes ya feel better.  You could lighten it up by just using whole milk but I don't think that will freeze as well.

Assemble casserole (do not cook) and freeze.  Thaw in fridge and bake accordingly.
http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2012/04/scalloped-potatoes-and-ham/

Buffet Quality Mac'N'Cheese with Ham:

You've seen me share this before.  It is by far my oldest freezer recipe and my family's favorite.  They could eat it every week for the rest of their lives.

2 T cornstarch 

1 t salt
1/4 t pepper
2 c milk
2 T butter or margarine 
1/2 t dry mustard

6 oz cheddar cheese, shredded 
8 oz elbow macaroni
1 1/2 cups cubed ham

In a medium saucepan, combine cornstarch, salt and pepper; using a wire whisk, stir in milk until smooth.  Add butter.  Stirring constantly with rubber spatula, bring to a boil over medium high heat and boil 1 minute.  Remove from heat.  Stir dry mustard into white sauce; add 1 3/4 cup grated cheese and stir until melted (reserve 1/4 cup cheese for topping).

Cook elbow macaroni for six minutes; drain. Add cheese sauce to macaroni; stir. Turn into a greased, 2-quart casserole dish; stir in ham cubes. Top with reserved grated cheese.

To freeze: cover casserole with aluminum foil; seal dish in jumbo freezer bag. Freeze.

To prepare: place frozen casserole (covered with aluminum foil) in preheated 375-degree oven. Bake for 25 minutes; remove aluminum foil. Bake 25 minutes more, or until hot and bubbly. 

Buffet Quality Mac'n'Cheese

This post is dedicated to my good friend's daughter, H, who loves herself some macaroni and cheese.  She is a lover of all things sweet and salty and is a unique and wonderful child who intrigues her mother daily and without her I would not hear so many funny stories and I would question the normalcy of the experiences I have with Charlie.  A few years ago, another friend and I were visiting H's mom and we brought them one of our first freezer recipes that has stood the test of time and children.  H gave us the best compliment any child of her age could think of, "Mom, I think Sarah and Katie should move here and open a buffet with this mac'n'cheese."

I used to be able to double this recipe and serve one for dinner that night and freeze the other, but now I feed large Schmidt giants so I double the recipe and we eat all of it with little to no leftovers.  My favorite thing about this recipe is that I can cook it from frozen.  No need to remember to defrost something.

Buffet Quality Mac'n'Cheese with Ham

2 T cornstarch 

1 t salt
1/4 t pepper
2 c milk
2 T butter or margarine 
1/2 t dry mustard

6 oz cheddar cheese, shredded 
8 oz elbow macaroni
1 1/2 cups cubed ham

In a medium saucepan, combine cornstarch, salt and pepper; using a wire whisk, stir in milk until smooth.  Add butter.  Stirring constantly with rubber spatula, bring to a boil over medium high heat and boil 1 minute.  Remove from heat.  Stir dry mustard into white sauce; add 1 3/4 cup grated cheese and stir until melted (reserve 1/4 cup cheese for topping).

Cook elbow macaroni for six minutes; drain. Add cheese sauce to macaroni; stir. Turn into a greased, 2-quart casserole dish; stir in ham cubes. Top with reserved grated cheese.

To freeze: cover casserole with aluminum foil; seal dish in jumbo freezer bag. Freeze.

To prepare: place frozen casserole (covered with aluminum foil) in preheated 375-degree oven. Bake for 25 minutes; remove aluminum foil. Bake 25 minutes more, or until hot and bubbly. 

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: Crockpot Dumps

I have a love/hate relationship with my crockpot.  I am a self-proclaimed crockpot killer.  I'm on my third or fourth or fifth.  Who can keep track?  The best crockpot I have is one from circa 1970-something.  It's only downfall is that it was created before the removable crock was invented so it's a real pain to wash.  I absolutely love crockpot dumps for freezer cooking.  Dump it in before you go to work and, Voila!, dinner is practically ready when you get home.  I have made so many dumps I've found on websites, pinterest, etc and have found only five, so far, that have made it into our regular rotation.  Kind of sad considering how many recipes are out there, right?  You should be able to put these five in your freezer in less than an hour.  Please feel free to list any dumps you've made in the comments section to add to my list.  I almost forgot to mention that all of the recipes below are Charlie-approved which translates into 99% of children will eat these.  He is by far the pickiest of all my eaters so if he likes something, we eat a lot of it.  Maybe someday I will have a Charlie-approved post.

1.  Ranch Chicken Tacos

• Ingredients:

• 2 lbs raw chicken breasts
• 1 packet of taco seasoning
• 1 packet of ranch dressing seasoning
• 1 can of reduced sodium chicken broth

Place all ingredients in a zippered gallon freezer bag and place in freezer.  When ready to cook, defrost in refrigerator for 24 hours.  Place in crockpot and cook on low for 3 hours.  Remove chicken, shred and put back in crockpot on low for another 30 minutes.  Serve with all your favorite taco toppings.  Ours are lettuce, shredded cheese, tomatoes, and avocados.  

I buy the value pack of chicken and can usually make 3 freezer bags from it.  Below is the link for the original recipe, but it calls for cutting up the chicken.  Ain't nobody got time for that.

• http://pedersenfood.blogspot.com/2011/05/chicken-ranch-tacos.html

2.  Italian Beef Sandwiches (recipe courtesy of SixSistersStuff)

• Ingredients:

• 2-3 lb. chuck roast
• 2 packets Italian dressing seasoning
• 1 16 oz jar of sliced pepperocini's peppers
• 1 cup of water

Place all ingredients in a zippered gallon freezer bag, label, and place in freezer.  When ready to cook, defrost in fridge for 24 hours.  Place freezer bag contents in crockpot and cook on low for 10-12 hours.  Shred meat and serve on hoagie buns.  

3.  French Dip Sandwiches (recipe courtesy of SixSistersStuff)

• Ingredients:

• 2-3 lb. chuck roast
• 2 cans of beef consommé (not beef broth.  Trust me, you will be disappointed.)

Place all ingredients in zippered gallon freezer bag, label, and place in freezer.  When ready to cook, defrost bag in fridge for 24 hours.  Place freezer bag contents in crockpot and cook on low 10-12 hours.  Shred meat and serve on hoagie buns.  We like to add provolone cheese to ours.

4. Meatball Marinara

• Ingredients:

• 3 (14.5 ounce) cans italian stewed tomatoes
• 1 (8 ounce) tomato sauce
• 4 T tomato paste (I use the basil, garlic, oregano seasoned paste)
• 1/2 t granulated garlic
• 1/2 t italian seasoning
• 1/2 t thyme
• 1/2 t oregano
• 1/4 t sugar
• 1/2 t lemon juice (bottled is fine)
• 2 pounds precooked frozen meatballs (I use Market Pantry brand Italian Meatballs)

Blend all ingredients except the meatballs in a blender.  Label zippered freezer bag and pour sauce into bag, seal, and place in freezer.  I like to double bag it just to be safe.  When ready to eat, defrost sauce in fridge.  Combine sauce and meatballs in crockpot and cook on low for 7-8 hours or on high for 4 hours.  Serve over cooked spaghetti noodles and serve with a salad and garlic bread.

Here's the link.

http://jamiecooksitup.net/2012/09/meatball-marinara-crock-pot/

5.  Taco Soup (courtesy of SixSistersStuff)

• Ingredients:

• 1 lb lean ground beef 
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 package mild taco seasoning mix
• 1 (16 oz) bag frozen corn
• 1 (16 oz) can black beans drained and rinsed (you could use kidney beans or pinto beans)
• 2 (14 oz) cans mexican stewed tomatoes
• 1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
• 1 (4 oz) can diced green chilis

Brown ground beef and onion in a medium skillet.  Set aside to cool.  Place taco seasoning, corn, black beans, tomatoes, tomato sauce, and chills in a labeled zippered freezer bag.  Add cooled ground beef mixture.  Seal and squish it around to get it all mixed up.  I like to double bag this one also.  Place in freezer.  When ready to eat, defrost in refrigerator for 24 hours.  Place in crockpot and cook on low for 2 1/2-3 hours or on high for 1-2 hours.  Serve with your favorite taco toppings and tortilla chips.