One night last week, I was wandering my kitchen cursing myself for not pulling something out of the freezer. "Oh I could make....nope, missing things. What about....nope...missing stuff again." Finally I decided on breakfast for dinner, BRINNER! French toast and bacon to be exact. I cooked up all of the bacon and 6 pieces of eggy spiced up yummies. SO. MUCH. BACON. What do you do with leftover bacon??
I'll tell you what to do with it, make BLT's! Oh, wait, I'm out of bread now...not to mention I also don't have the L or the T!
Casserole? What else do I have? Pre-cooked chicken, frozen veggies, pasta... Ok, this can work! Here is what I used:
Chicken Bacon Casserole
1 frozen cooked chicken breast (boneless/skinless)
2 small frozen cooked chicken thighs (boneless/skinless)
leftover bacon (I had thick cut about 6 slices)
rendered bacon grease
frozen peas/carrots (eh, a cup-ish?)
penne (hmm, 1/2 a box?)
cream of "flavor here" soup (I used broccoli cheese)
milk (depends on how goopy or runny you want it)
season to taste
Here is what I did:
Thaw and heat that frozen chicken in the bacon grease (YUM). Chop up the bacon, 2/3 big, 1/3 small. Cube up the heated chicken. Mix together veggies, big bacon pieces, soup, milk, seasonings. Add chicken, then add penne. I also added some extra shredded cheese. I topped it with bread crumbs and ground flax, the small chopped bacon, and a little more cheese (we are cheese people).
Pop that bad boy in the oven at 375* for around 30 mins or until bubbly and browning.
I also rocked out this easy recipe off of Allrecipes.com for quick yeast rolls. GREAT rolls!
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Quick-Yeast-Rolls/Detail.aspx?event8=1&prop24=SR_Thumb&e11=quick%20yeast%20rolls&e8=Quick%20Search&event10=1&e7=Home%20Page
I wish I could remember to take pictures of these meals...
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Monday, August 12, 2013
So I stumbled upon a pin on Pinterest. GASP! It motivated me to go out to the store and SHOP! I picked up some deals on some boneless skinless chicken thighs and breasts, a giant pork tenderloin, and a beef pot roast. I also had picked up a couple bottles of salad dressing/marinade. One bottle of Italian cheese, and one bottle of Caesar dressing. I got home, and started losing interest. IN A HURRY! I did manage to muster up some energy to prep this meat, but didn't prep veggies or whole meals to dump in the crock pot. I'll still have to make sure I go to the store to finish off these meals someday, but at least I have a small head start!
Shout out to the blog that motivated me to do my teeny tiny bit of planning ahead:
http://www.aturtleslifeforme.com/2011/06/freezer-meals-on-cheap.html
Word! She has a great blog! She also has links to some cookbooks that I may get someday!
I had gotten the chicken breasts and thighs before the beef and pork. I had prepped them about a week before. I had cooked up half of each and put them in a gallon sized freezer bag and laid it out in the freezer so they would be "individually frozen". The others I split up, into half and half in quart sized freezer vacuum bags, and also froze them, no seasoning, so they will be good for anything.
I took the pot roast (2.5 lbs.) forked it full of holes, plopped it into a gallon freezer bag and dumped in the Italian dressing. I squished it around, and sealed it up while squeezing out the air. That bad boy pork loin was calling my name next. I quickly decided that I was going to hack it in half, and dump the Caesar dressing on it the same as the Italian and pot roast! All three hunks of meat are now happy in the freezer.
I've use the pre-cooked chicken in a couple of meals (one of which we will try tomorrow...I'll try to keep you posted!). I took a breast and two small thighs and simmered it on the stove (straight from the freezer) in 3 cups chicken stock, and a can of diced tomatoes for approximately 2 hours. I then shredded it, seasoned it with chili powder, Italian herb blend, and salt and pepper. I added a cup of frozen corn, a boil in bag white rice, and a can of white beans. It was a yummy lunch, and many yummy lunches to follow, as I split up into 4 more servings, and froze them for lunches at work!
I wish I had taken super yummy pictures to keep you interested. I'll try to do better!
Share with your friends, and you can also visit and "like" my cake decorating Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/sarasgetcaked
If you are local, feel free to contact me for your special occasions!
Shout out to the blog that motivated me to do my teeny tiny bit of planning ahead:
http://www.aturtleslifeforme.com/2011/06/freezer-meals-on-cheap.html
Word! She has a great blog! She also has links to some cookbooks that I may get someday!
I had gotten the chicken breasts and thighs before the beef and pork. I had prepped them about a week before. I had cooked up half of each and put them in a gallon sized freezer bag and laid it out in the freezer so they would be "individually frozen". The others I split up, into half and half in quart sized freezer vacuum bags, and also froze them, no seasoning, so they will be good for anything.
I took the pot roast (2.5 lbs.) forked it full of holes, plopped it into a gallon freezer bag and dumped in the Italian dressing. I squished it around, and sealed it up while squeezing out the air. That bad boy pork loin was calling my name next. I quickly decided that I was going to hack it in half, and dump the Caesar dressing on it the same as the Italian and pot roast! All three hunks of meat are now happy in the freezer.
I've use the pre-cooked chicken in a couple of meals (one of which we will try tomorrow...I'll try to keep you posted!). I took a breast and two small thighs and simmered it on the stove (straight from the freezer) in 3 cups chicken stock, and a can of diced tomatoes for approximately 2 hours. I then shredded it, seasoned it with chili powder, Italian herb blend, and salt and pepper. I added a cup of frozen corn, a boil in bag white rice, and a can of white beans. It was a yummy lunch, and many yummy lunches to follow, as I split up into 4 more servings, and froze them for lunches at work!
I wish I had taken super yummy pictures to keep you interested. I'll try to do better!
Share with your friends, and you can also visit and "like" my cake decorating Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/sarasgetcaked
If you are local, feel free to contact me for your special occasions!
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Birthday Party Minion Cupcakes
My children both have their birthday in October. This year, my ex husband and I are on much better terms, and decided to have a party with the boys, their friends, and both our families. We didn't have a theme, or rather the theme was everything! Transformers, Power Rangers, How to Train Your Dragon, and more. As a former grocery store cake decorator, I fancy myself talented to a degree in this department. While on Pinterest (LOVE) I happened upon the MINION CUPCAKES. This was a great way to round out the everything theme! After browsing a few sites that I found via GOOGLE. I ultimately decided to make these yummy treats after seeing the great close up pictures. I'll give a little explanation, and make my best attempt at loading pictures to so you can see how this went down. I did different hair on each minion, and let my boys pick the eye colors, and weather it had one eye or two.
What you need:
Cupcakes, frosted
Chocolate frosting or black decorators gel
Twinkies
Smarties Candies
Sandwich or cake decorating bag (if you are using frosting)
I made one dozen cupcakes and a single layer cake. I do suggest only making the minions just before the party! I made mine the night before and they did get a little stale (as stale as a twinkie can get anyway!)
Start by cutting the twinkies in half for as many cupcakes as you need. Lay them out on parchment paper. If you are using frosting, you will then need to put some of the chocolate frosting in the baggie or decorators bag and cut the tip pretty small! Next, make a blob to stick your eye/eyes on. Place the smarties on the blob, and outline making it look like glasses or goggles. You can then use the gel or frosting to draw a mouth, and hair sprouts.
Great! Now, you want to make sure you don't have too much frosting on the cupcakes, or too little! just under 1/4 inch of frosting is about what I had on mine. enough to make them stick, but not so much it buried the minions!
I didn't have an extra cake carrier for these bad boys. I had made the plain decorated single layer cake in my dome! I just had to be extra careful not to tip them over!
This is a very fun project! It was a HUGE hit at the party!
You can find lots of examples of this on the web too! Enjoy!
What you need:
Cupcakes, frosted
Chocolate frosting or black decorators gel
Twinkies
Smarties Candies
Sandwich or cake decorating bag (if you are using frosting)
I made one dozen cupcakes and a single layer cake. I do suggest only making the minions just before the party! I made mine the night before and they did get a little stale (as stale as a twinkie can get anyway!)
Start by cutting the twinkies in half for as many cupcakes as you need. Lay them out on parchment paper. If you are using frosting, you will then need to put some of the chocolate frosting in the baggie or decorators bag and cut the tip pretty small! Next, make a blob to stick your eye/eyes on. Place the smarties on the blob, and outline making it look like glasses or goggles. You can then use the gel or frosting to draw a mouth, and hair sprouts.
Great! Now, you want to make sure you don't have too much frosting on the cupcakes, or too little! just under 1/4 inch of frosting is about what I had on mine. enough to make them stick, but not so much it buried the minions!
I didn't have an extra cake carrier for these bad boys. I had made the plain decorated single layer cake in my dome! I just had to be extra careful not to tip them over!
This is a very fun project! It was a HUGE hit at the party!
You can find lots of examples of this on the web too! Enjoy!
Monday, November 5, 2012
There's a first time for everything!!
As many mothers do, I struggle with what to make for the kids, that is healthy (or healthy-ish) and still a crowd pleaser. When I make something yummy and amazing, I take a picture and post it on Facebook. This always generates lots of "When should I be over for dinner?" or "Where's mine?". So rather than continuing to blow up my own page with pictures of food, I have decided to start a blog.
So Friday night, I decided to make fish for dinner. I decided to NOT reach for the yellow or blue box full of fish tenders. Instead I walked up to the fresh seafood counter, and asked the boys to help me choose some fish for dinner. The winner? SALMON! Now, how do I cook fresh fish!?!
Knowing they wouldn't want to eat plain broiled fish like me. I decided to try my hand at fish nuggets. I mixed up some egg and milk in one bowl, and bread crumbs, corn meal, garlic powder, salt and pepper in another. I dredged and crusted up those tasty little bites and pan fried them in a little olive oil. Served these tasty bites up with some asparagus and scratch tarter sauce (dill relish and salad dressing). The broiled portion of the meal also turned out perfect! I rubbed down the remaining 1.5 pound salmon fillet with lemon, a sprinkle of salt, and some thyme, and tossed it under the broiler for just a couple minutes! Slightly browned, flaky and juicy! My only regret is that I didn't snap any pictures of this meal.
I can't wait to share MORE wins with you! I promise as I get better at this whole blog thing, I'll get more pictures and TRY to get some actual recipes on here (instead of "a little of this and a little of that").
Here goes nothing. Publishing my first blog....
So Friday night, I decided to make fish for dinner. I decided to NOT reach for the yellow or blue box full of fish tenders. Instead I walked up to the fresh seafood counter, and asked the boys to help me choose some fish for dinner. The winner? SALMON! Now, how do I cook fresh fish!?!
Knowing they wouldn't want to eat plain broiled fish like me. I decided to try my hand at fish nuggets. I mixed up some egg and milk in one bowl, and bread crumbs, corn meal, garlic powder, salt and pepper in another. I dredged and crusted up those tasty little bites and pan fried them in a little olive oil. Served these tasty bites up with some asparagus and scratch tarter sauce (dill relish and salad dressing). The broiled portion of the meal also turned out perfect! I rubbed down the remaining 1.5 pound salmon fillet with lemon, a sprinkle of salt, and some thyme, and tossed it under the broiler for just a couple minutes! Slightly browned, flaky and juicy! My only regret is that I didn't snap any pictures of this meal.
I can't wait to share MORE wins with you! I promise as I get better at this whole blog thing, I'll get more pictures and TRY to get some actual recipes on here (instead of "a little of this and a little of that").
Here goes nothing. Publishing my first blog....
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