The Freezer Project

Day 43

2009-07-20T21:11:00.000-07:00

Oooohhh...lookie what I found in the depths of the freezer.........FLANK STEAK!!!

I marinated it in some lime juice/zest, garlic, olive oil, soy sauce, brown sugar, salt, and red pepper flakes overnight.

Threw it on the grill and cooked up ANOTHER bag of frozen pepper/onion strips

and we had FAJITAS!!!!!!!!!

Here are the "fixins"

and is THIS not GORGEOUS!?????

Mmmm...I'm going to have dreams about that flank steak tonight!!!! It was SO yummy!

***NOTE*** The freezer project is going to take a 3 day hiatus while I go to Michigan to visit my grandpa and mom. Kevin will likely be surviving here on deli fried chicken and possibly Taco Bell (one JUST opened up down the street from us!)

Day 42

2009-07-19T21:08:00.001-07:00

I was watching Cook's Country (on PBS) and my mouth was literally watering watching them make meatballs in marinara....so I made it too.

I cleared out a pound of frozen ground sirloin, a little quarter pound pack of ground pork. Here is the start of the meatball mixture (garlic, onions, parm, bread soaked in milk, salt, pepper, oregano and eggs)

The sauce was garlic and onion, tomato paste and a can of crushed San Marzano tomatoes and also a can of diced San Marzanos (which, I discovered, are TOTALLY worth every extra penny they cost!!!!)

I like peppers in my sauce...so I added in THIS (another bag gone from the freezer!)

Here's Kevin's finished bowl...two big honkin' meatballs on some angel hair with the sauce, torn basil and some shaved fresh parm up on top. YUM!

And here's my bowl...one meatball and some sauce (pasta and I are not friends!)

MANGIA!!!!

Day 41

2009-07-18T20:21:00.001-07:00

Crap...I forgot to get a pic of dinner tonight!
We had RIBS (again) because I thought I was pulling pork chops out of the freezer. NOPE...they were ribs.

I'm using an old pic because I did them the same way.......

I served them with frozen french fries (crinkle cuts) and some steamed broccoli with a quick mornay (cheese) sauce.

ME...I had my usual salad and a little bit of a rib with mustard BBQ sauce. Yum!

Sorry...I'll try to remember a pic tomorrow!!!!

Day 40

2009-07-17T19:23:00.000-07:00

TGIF! Today's dinner was CHICKEN ENCHILADAS!

I'm a huge fan of those store rotisserie chickens and will sometimes buy 2 at a time, peel the nasty skin and just take it off the bones and keep it in the fridge for salad or whatever. Apparently, I got a little chicken happy a few months back because I found a huge tub of pre made chicken enchilada filling (chicken, peppers, onions, cream of chicken soup, cumin, cilantro, salt, garlic and a bit of cayenne.

I rolled the filling in tortillas, topped with sauce and cheese and then made a side that is always popular in our house. Kind of like a "salad/salsa". I throw in diced tomatoes, can of rinsed black beans, corn (from the freezer), red onion, cilantro, garlic and the juice of one lime.

I forgot to take the picture until it was almost all gone...these are the leftovers!

Day 39

2009-07-17T12:55:00.000-07:00

Thursday...I found a batch of frozen stew meat cubes and decided......

Guinness stew!!!!!!!

Ok...it's just basic beef stew but I add a bottle of Guinness at the beginning after the meat is seared. Adds GREAT flavor!

So we have onions, beef (from the FREEZER), flour, salt, Guinness, carrots, potatoes (I had TWO small ones!),peas (fron the FREEZER), beef stock, tomato paste and some thyme. Simmer a few hours on medium until it's reduced and thick and then chow down.

(this freezes great too....but I'm not even going there!)

Day 38

2009-07-15T18:29:00.000-07:00

Wednesday...just ME for dinner! Here's what I came up with...

NACHOS!
Started with a few BAKED blue corn chips (Trader Joes) then topped with some lowfat cheese and a black bean Morningstar farms patty. Add some salsa and some fresh cilantro from the herb garden and I've got another EMPTY BOX! WHOOHOO!

Day 37

2009-07-15T18:26:00.000-07:00

Today was kind of a "throw it together" night...I grilled some boneless skinless chicken breasts and topped them off with PESTO (YUM). I put mine on top of a salad and heated up the leftover Greek style green beans and made some quickie rice for Kevin.

Holden is visiting his grandparents...so Kevin and I are kind of just picking at leftovers and not doing much cooking!

Day 36

2009-07-13T18:13:00.000-07:00

Monday. I made Greek style green beans (green beans steamed and then sauteed with some onion, diced tomato and some Cavenders Greek Seasoning (BEST storebought seasoning blend EVER!)
Paired up with some Boca "chicken" (not really chicken) patties.

Not exciting, but those BEANS are SOOOOOOOO good...you almost don't need anything else with them!

Day 35

2009-07-13T18:10:00.000-07:00

Sunday...Holden was in the mood for lasagna. VOILA!

Whenever I make lasagna...I usually make about fifty of them (well, ok...THREE) and then freeze them to either give to people (say like when a neighbor is sick or needs kitchen help) or just keep for when someone wants lasagna for dinner.

This time, I made them in smallish sized loaf pans...kind of perfect for two big portions, or 4 smaller ones.

Here it is after it was baked and looks a bit more appetizing than the frozen pic!

Day 34

2009-07-12T12:47:00.000-07:00

Saturday...I decided to turn this post into a BREAKFAST use of the freezer. We had lunch/dinner at The Pug Posse's house yesterday so we didn't make anything later...but I made FRENCH TOAST for breakfast for the boys using THIS...

Frozen Salt Rising Bread from Concannon's Bakery in Muncie, IN. Kevin LOVES the stuff and we always have a few loaves on hand for him to make toast. I turned it into some cinnamon, vanilla french toast paired up with some bacon (also from the freezer) that I had used (no pic) to make the baked beans that I took over to the Posse's house!

Just ignore the Colts cheerleader poster in the background on the table! Holden and his buddy were deciding which girl had real boobs vs. implants. Great activity to keep two 10 year old boys busy for at least half an hour on a hot summer day!

Day 33

2009-07-10T20:00:00.000-07:00

Friday...FISH TACOS! (I made these for the boys...personally, I don't eat most things that swim...I'm missing that taste gene or something because it ALL tastes like rotten garbage to me).

That being said.....the boys love fish tacos after having the real deal from a little cafe in Mexico a few years ago. I took a tiny gaggy taste just to be able to know what to do to recreate it at home.

Here's how it went down....

Started with some frozen Tilapia filets

I cut into strips, doused them with fresh lime juice and then did a quick toss in some beaten egg and then rolled them in panko (bread crumbs) and then blasted them in a HOT (400) oven with a shot of cooking spray on top (for browning) for about 10 minutes. Here's what they look like when they're done...

Salinger got those extra little creamated parts of extra bread crumbs!

Shredded up some Napa cabbage and blended up some sour cream with lime juice, cilantro and a little salt (for sauce) and then they ate them on tortillas.

Finished plate with a Spanish rice/pilaf-y thing I tossed together, some cheesy refried beans and a VIRGIN strawberry sugar free (mix) Margarita (that really tasted like cough syrup...it wasn't good)

The rice thing had frozen pepper/onion strips from the freezer AND some of the cilantro lime corn on the cob that I had cut off the cob and frozen a while back...so technically it was a player in the freezer game too!

OLE!

Day 32

2009-07-09T19:27:00.000-07:00

SPAGHETTI!

I actually had a THREE-FER tonight! I got rid of a pound of ground sirloin and a bag of pepper/onion blend for the sauce...AND dessert!

Here is the finished sauce (full of diced tomatoes, red wine, garlic and about two big fistfuls of basil!)

Holden inhaled his

Holden has a buddy staying night with us tonight, so I told them they could have dessert (usually this is a treat reserved for the rare occasion that we have company or I make something for someone else). I found some mini frozen PECAN PIES that I had made at the end of November and used my vacuum sealer on!

I shipped a bunch of these beauties to my dad for his birthday...pecan pie is his fave and this was the best way to ship them....vacuum sealed and made minified in the disposable muffin tins! They arrived intact...but I did keep three here for "emergencies"!

Day 31

2009-07-08T18:17:00.000-07:00

It was just Holden and I here tonight for dinner. I told Holden to go shopping in the freezer and pick whatever he wanted and he found THIS gem!

He paired it with some canned peas (ugh...vile!)

He ate it...but when I asked him how it was he said "Eh. Chicken is kind of falling apart, but the sauce is ok".

I had yogurt. My tummy didn't feel good tonight. :-(

Progress Report!

2009-07-08T18:11:00.000-07:00

Ok...thirty days have come and gone, but we've had a Family Meeting and decided we need to keep this going! Here are pics of our freezers NOW (today 7/8/09) and they honestly are still RIDONKULOUSLY full!

Stuff isn't falling out with the force that it used to...but I still am finding stuff in there I had no idea that we had that is still considered "edible".

We have purchased NOTHING NEW that requires freezing (HONEST!) and the only thing I've added to the big freezer is the orange container which holds the rest of the batch of Brunswick Stew I made a few weeks ago.

SO...stay tuned and we'll see how far we can ride this thing out! Findings may become more interesting!

***Note to Vikki and any other interested party...you will notice that the Jim Beam is now gone...our friend Rob (that drinks it) was here last Saturday and finished it off. I should have gotten a pic of the hilarity that ensued when we all did Wii Hula Hoop!

Day 30

2009-07-08T17:59:00.000-07:00

Tuesday was kind of crazy around here...we were out and about until about 5 and then Kevin had to run to a coach's meeting for Holden's football league, so I slapped THIS together for dinner...

Buffalo burgers (from Trader Joe's), frozen fries (only got rid of half the bag) and some fresh broccoliflower (broccoli/cauliflower hybrid). Holden made a quick Mornay sauce for the veg and dinner was on the table in about 20 minutes and Kevin made it to his meeting on time!

Day 29

2009-07-07T10:13:00.000-07:00

Monday...I have an exercise class, so I kind of do my own thing for dinner after class, so I left the boys in charge with tonight's freezer items....

CUBESTEAKS! Here are four of them breaded with some seasoned flour along with a bag of stir fry veg (I helped with this step and then had to scoot to class).

I understand that Holden browned them in a touch of olive oil and then I instructed him to deglaze the pan with a slosh of Madiera wine (under the supervision of Kevin of course!) and finish that with a spoonful of capers. I don't think Holden was a fan of the sauce...his cubesteak looks like it was kind of nekkid.

I'll bet he and Kevin plopped them on the buns and ate them like burgers!

Day 28

2009-07-06T05:26:00.000-07:00

Another Holden specialty...MEATLOAF! We "shopped" in the feezer and found a package of meatloaf mix (beef, pork, veal) so I gave Holden my "meatloaf secret" (whiz peppers, onions, carrots, garlic in the food processer then blend in with egg, cracker crumbs and chili powder). He decided to try "mini meatloaves" (ohhh...kind of like EMMITT makes!) in my mini bundt baking pan...

Mashed potatoes, salad and the rest of the carrots from last night rounded out the meal...

Sorry it's blurry...we're using an old camera because Kevin had the "good" camera!

Day 27

2009-07-04T19:56:00.001-07:00

It was just Holden and I again tonight (Saturday) so here is tonight's entry...

UGH...blurry pic, but they're garlic chicken sausages from Trader Joe's!

Holden wanted mac and cheese (he made himself some Easy Mac) and some carrots rounded out his plate...

He's looking forward to the leftover sausages tomorrow for breakfast!

Day 26

2009-07-04T19:52:00.000-07:00

It was just Holden and I tonight, and he felt like making his own dinner...so I just supervised the production (and grilled some chicken for myself).

Here are tonight's winners...

I grilled up the chicken tenders and Holden made himself a bechamel sauce (flour, butter, milk...thickened up) then added the frozen veg, a little bit of whole wheat rotini pasta and made sort of a creamy pasta thingy...

Must have been good...he ate it all!

Day 25

2009-07-03T08:41:00.001-07:00

For day 25 (Thursday) I decided that it was Mardi Gras in July, so I made RED BEANS AND RICE!

Here are the winners of today's Freezer Game...

A nice half package of Andouille sausage and a frozen ham hock/pork shank.

I added red beans, onion, peppers, celery, garlic, bay leaf, water, cayenne and the above meat items and cooked it low and slow for hours until THIS resulted....

(the rice is hiding on the bottom of this bowl....I just skipped it for mine)

Luckily no one lost an eye with all the bead throwing that ensued!

I also made Beignets for dessert (with the Cafe Du Monde mix that Heather and Harry sent us!). Be sure to check out Salingers blog for details!

Laissez les bon temps roulez!

Day 24

2009-07-01T18:49:00.001-07:00

Tonight (Wednesday) was just Holden and I for dinner. We had "sort of grilled" pizza!!!

I make whole wheat pizza crusts on the grill and then freeze them for a quickie dinner. We dove into my stockpile to clear out another ziploc bag from the freezer!

Topped with yummy chunky spicy pizza sauce (cleared another container out of the fridge! YAY!), peppers (from the freezer!), sliced tomato, fresh mozzarella, a tiny bit of lowfat ricotta, shreds of ham, crumbles of leftover bacon from last night and basil...

Here is my sous chef Holden doing a perfect chiffonade with the basil!

About 10 minutes in the oven and VOILA!

Pizza's ready...and the freezer is getting empty!!!

Day 23

2009-07-01T04:55:00.000-07:00

Ok...I'm not terribly proud of this entry....but we ARE cleaning out the freezer. There are some nights that just scream out "BREAKFAST FOR DINNER!"

This is Kevin's plate...
Bacon and whole grain english muffins are the freezer items.
He and Holden couldn't decide between sunny side up (runny) eggs or scrambled...so I made both. I grated up some redskin potatoes and made some quick potato pancakes. Holden made a GORGEOUS fruit salad (that got eaten before I could get a pic!) out of blueberries, blackberries (picked fresh yesterday), strawberries, peach, apple and he made a dressing of nonfat greek yogurt, honey substitute, nutmeg and lemon juice. Perfect balance to this breakfast/dinner (and I got a "two-fer" out of the freezer game and got rid of bacon AND a partial package of English muffins!)

Days 21 and 22

2009-06-30T07:57:00.000-07:00

Turns out I DID get a picture of Day 20 (hamburgers...we had a cookout with friends).

Notice Salinger salivating over the idea of a nice juicy burger accidentally being dropped!

I'm using the same pic for days 21 and 22 because Holden and I took off for a little roadtrip (Marengo Cave and Holiday World) and we left Kevin home with these leftovers!!!

I hear they were delicious!

Day 20

2009-06-27T22:29:00.000-07:00

I didn't get any pics of tonight's dinner...but I used about 2 pounds of ground sirloin that was frozen to make burgers for our dinner with friends Rob and Camie.

WHOOHOO! Things aren't falling out with as much force anymore!

Day 19

2009-06-27T11:25:00.000-07:00

Day 19 (Friday) was a nice surprise for Kevin...PASTIES (pronounced PASS-tees) a classic Michigan dish!!! I made some a few months ago and froze them and forgot all about them.

You can read all about pasties by CLICKING HERE

I made mine the traditional way that my grandma used to...beef (leftover roast), onions, potatoes, carrots and rutabega all kind of chopped up into a stew and then baked inside a pie crust like dough. SO good!

I would have loved to have eaten one...but knew I'd pay with ucky consequences...so I stuck to a Laura Staple...a bruchetta Boca patty topped with peppers, onion, cheese and some pizza sauce. Not quite a pasty, but still pretty good (AND I got rid of the Boca box!)!

Day 18

2009-06-26T13:23:00.000-07:00

Thursday

This is a family favorite...I call it "The Chicken". My best friend Susan gave me this recipe years ago and I've made it for parties and always make it when mom and dad come to visit. It's STUPID easy, but everyone loves it....and it was a great way to use up the rest of those chicken breasts I pulled out the other day for the Wellingtons!

Remember these?

I dunked them in beaten egg and then gave them a quick toss in some bread crumbs and then thew them into a hot skillet sprayed with cooking spray (NO oil)

Brown them up just on the outside then throw into the oven with enough BEEF (yes, BEEF) broth to cover the bottom of the pan. Bake about 1/2 hour or so, then flip and add more broth if you need it. Throw some fresh sliced mushrooms on top and then sprinkle with a nice layer of mozzarella cheese and stick back in the oven for another 15 minutes or so.

The result of this is on the right...voila! THE CHICKEN!

I kept a piece out for me away from the toppings and just sliced it on salad. Kevin's chicken was paired with parmesean mashed potatoes and some steamed carrots.

Yum!

Day 17

2009-06-26T13:18:00.000-07:00

Wednesday LAME-O ALERT!!!

Wednesdays, Kevin usually has dinner with Will and Lizz so it was just me again. Here was the freezer offering tonight...

Ok...it's been YEARS since I've eaten one of these things and now I remember why....OMG...IT WAS VILE!!!!

I ate the Salisbury steak (which was ok with a gallon of ketchup on it) and picked out the green beans, but that apple dessert thing was really starchy tasting like baby food with chewy oatmeal on top of it. I didn't even try the potatoes, so they might have been good, but I'll never know.

At least another box is history!

Day 16

2009-06-23T17:27:00.000-07:00

Today sounds really fancy schmancy...but couldn't be easier...
CHICKEN WELLINGTON (yes...Beef Wellington's low budget cousin!)

I found some boneless, skinless chicken breasts in the freezer...

Found a package of Puff Pastry dough (jeez...no CLUE how old it was...I don't remember buying it!)

I made a quickie duxelles by chopping up some mushrooms and onion and sauteed with a tiny bit of butter, salt, pepper and white wine (Chardonnay)

Piled the shrooms and onion on the dough, topped with a chicken breast and then wrapped it up...egg washed it and threw it in the oven.

Here's the result about 40 minutes later!

Dinner is served! Kevin's on the left (Wellington with our staple Caesar salad) and I made myself a ham and cheese salad with radicchio on the right.

Day 15

2009-06-23T12:12:00.000-07:00

Monday...back to the freezer cleanout after a break from yesterday!

Today...RIBS! I had a pack of 3 country style ribs in the freezer. I defrosted them and rubbed them with a dry rub (made of everything but the kitchen sink...just dumped in everything from the spice cabinet!) and put them on an upside down steamer basket in the crock pot. This steamer trick is great because all the fat drips away and leaves you with yummy, crispy coated ribs!

I tossed a partial bag of frozen hash browns that I found with some chopped onion for Kevin and then steamed up some green beans on the side for both of us.

Served with my FAVORITE...Bessengers BBQ sauce from Columbia, SC (traditional Carolina mustard based sauce...so good, even this Yankee girl was moved by it!)

Day 14

2009-06-23T11:59:00.000-07:00

We're on hiatus today.

It was Father's Day and took Kevin out for Mexican.

I DID eat a sugar free FlaVorIce pop though!

Day 13

2009-06-20T06:38:00.001-07:00

I'm posting Day 13 now (in the morning) because I made dinner for Day 13 last night. It's another "Mom recipe" and kid favorite...TACO PIE!

Here's the pile of Mise En Place...freezer items are the rest of the giant tub o' ground beef from day 12, bag of frozen pepper/onion strips.

There really is no precise "recipe" for this...it's more of a method type dish. Warning...it's NOT particularly healthy, so don't expect your scale to love you for this one!

Start with your peppers/onions, ground beef, taco seasoning and refried beans. Cook it up in a big skillet until the meat is browned.

Spread out crescent roll dough in a sprayed pan and then layer up with your meat/veg/bean mixture like this...

Top with a container of sour cream (you can use light), sprinkle on a few handfuls of crushed Doritoes and a bag of shredded cheddar. Top with drained diced tomatoes, Mexicorn or whatever other types of things sound good. I added cilantro from the herb garden.

I always make it in a glass pan because it's pretty to see all the layers (and I'm really easily amused with stuff like that)

It's ALWAYS better the next day, so I baked it last night and Kevin can reheat it for the kids in the microwave.

Stay tuned for a GREAT day 14 salad (which is what I'LL be having tonight!)

Day 12

2009-06-20T06:30:00.000-07:00

As promised...Day 12 is a good one. My mom used to make this when it was HOT outside because it doesn't involve heating up the oven. I think she used to make this in an electric skillet and I remember we used to eat it in the basement at the card table where it was cool (this was before central A/C was commonplace!) I think the official name is "Yankee Beef and Vegetables" but I call it "That ground beef veggie thing you eat when it's hot outside"

Takes about a pound of ground beef (normally I buy the lean stuff...but I goofed and got the 80/20 as you can see here...ugh). Throw in a box or two of Birds Eye New England Style veggies...the kind with the little shell pasta mixed in them. Brown it all up together and then add a slurry of about 1/2 cup milk, a teaspoon of flour and a few glugs of Worcestershire sauce. It will thicken up like a gravy and look like this...

Ok...the pics look like something you'd find on the pavement of a carnival, but I PROMISE you that it's good.

Just ask Kevin...

I had a salad, but won't bore you with those pics...especially since it contained NOTHING freezer related.

Day 11

2009-06-19T11:13:00.000-07:00

Ok...don't laugh, but day 11 was even MORE LAME than day 10!

I (Laura) had some very minor surgery yesterday (nothing major, but I was still kind of dopey feeling and not hungry at all).

SO...here is Kevin's dinner...

Aw yeah!!! Meijer brand Lean Cuisine.

Here was MY dinner...

Some GENIUS over at the FlaVorIce company got the brilliant idea to make them SUGAR FREE (and only 5 calories each!). BEST. INVENTION. EVER!!!!!

I started with a lemon lime (above) and then followed it up with a strawberry and then had a blue raspberry flavor for dessert.

I PROMISE day 12 will be better!!!

Day 10

2009-06-17T17:42:00.000-07:00

WARNING: LAMEST. DINNER. EVER!!!

Kevin was out with Will and Lizz and I didn't feel like cooking/eating much of anything...BUT...I kept my promise, and I really hate skipping eating because it screws with my metabolism....

I DID get rid of the last Asian Veggie Patty (which tastes just like the inside of an eggroll!)

YAY...another box GONE

Ok...here's the rest of dinner...a few spoonfuls of cottage cheese and a few chunks of honeydew melon.

See? LAAAAAAME!

Day 9

2009-06-16T20:35:00.001-07:00

Ok...I'm really excited that I was able to rid the freezer of FOUR items tonight!!!
Non-fried homemade chicken tenders...totally easy...boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into strips, dipped in some buttermilk and then rolled in a light coating of seasoned Panko breadcrumbs then FREEZE them like that on a cookie sheet until they're hard as rocks and then stick em in a bag and keep them in there until you decide to start a project like this! I found a partial bag of Trader Joe's fries (also baked) and decided to make this weird veggie side dish recipe similar to something I once saw Nigella Lawson make....

Start with frozen peas

(I had two partial bags)

onion, bacon (or in my case, a piece of lunchmeat ham, and a romaine heart). Chop it all into little bits. Saute the onion and bacon/ham in a tiny drizzle of olive oil until the bacon/ham is crispy and the onion is soft. Add FROZEN PEAS to this and heat through and then throw in your romaine at the end to wilt a bit. Add some salt and voila...veggie.

Here is Kevin's plate...

Here's mine...

I opted for a chicken tender on top of a big ol' salad.

Tomorrow will just be me (like most Wednesdays), so who knows what might happen!

Day 8

2009-06-15T21:39:00.001-07:00

Ok...tonight's lucky winner of the Freezer Game was a container of homemade, healthy-ish broccoli cheese soup. I realize it looks like baby vomit in this picture, but I promise you...it's actually really good!

Holden and I made it a few weeks ago and were surprised at what a HUGE batch we wound up with...so it was sent to the freezer.

Kevin's is on the right paired up with the big ol' roast beef sammich. Mine is on the left...a salad with some chopped roast beef (we got a big tub of it at Sam's Club yesterday because it looked really good!)

Please note the classic garnish for almost any soup...cheddar Goldfish crackers!

Day 7

2009-06-15T04:09:00.001-07:00

Sunday dinner was a VERY nice surprise!

FILET MIGNON!!!

I think I picked these up right after Christmas in the "Manager's Sale" bin.

I threw them in the grill pan for about 3 minutes per side, made a quickie batch of Greek style green beans, some sauteed 'shrooms and voila...PERFECTION!

This is Kevin's plate...he wanted mashed potatoes...they're instant, but don't tell anyone okay?

This is my plate...I made a quickie warm potato salad along with a horseradish chive sour cream sauce for the steak (similar to something I saw Anne Burell make on the Food Network). Potatoes and I really are not friends...but I couldn't resist a tiny taste.

This is Salinger's plate. He was one happy Pug!

Day 6

2009-06-13T18:19:00.001-07:00

We spent most of today running around, so it was a quick and easy dinner....

A smashed up box of Trader Joe's Shepherd's Pie for Kevin....

A nice Boca burger patty for Laura, topped with cheese and some red onion with a big ol dill pickle on the side! I swear, I could eat these things every day and never get sick of them!

The plate in the back behind our respective dinners is a yummy Caprese salad I threw together. Caprese is a summer staple in our house...sliced tomatoes topped with fresh mozzarella (NOT the hard bricky kind like you'd use for pizza) a chiffionade of fresh basil (from the herb garden outside) and drizzled with some balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, salt and fresh cracked pepper. MMMMM.

Day 5

2009-06-12T16:35:00.001-07:00

I was sick of grilling whatever I found, so I decided to change gears and make BRUNSWICK STEW today!

I'd never heard of this stuff until Kevin took me "home" to South Carolina and they served this as a side dish practically EVERYWHERE you went! It's a nice comforting stew traditionally made with rabbit (ummm...it wouldn't have surprised me, but I didn't see any bunny in either freezer, so we used chicken), tomatoes, lima beans and corn. It's seasoned up with bay leaf, garlic and a touch of cayenne pepper.

Here is the lineup...

Frozen brick o'chicken

frozen lima beans and "Cajun" mirepoix mix (celery, onion, green pepper)...aka "The Trinity"
I used frozen corn too...but forgot to add it in the pic...you get the idea.

Here it is all simmery and yummy!

...and here is one happy "Southern Boy" with a yummy taste of home!

Day 4

2009-06-11T19:13:00.001-07:00

Yep...pork chops and applesauuuuce (say that like Peter Brady)!

I found a frozen clump of pork chops in the back of the freezer and decided to try the Alton Brown molasses/coffe marinade (which was AMAZING, even though I only used about half of the molasses it called for).

I had some Granny Smith apples that weren't being eaten, so I peeled and chunked a few up and glugged in some Diet Vernors and left it to simmer on low for about an hour until it made applesauce.

I made a quickie batch of spaetzle (noodles) for Kevin, plated up a couple o'salads and it was chowtime!

Day 3

2009-06-10T15:13:00.000-07:00

Ok, today's post is kind of on the lame side because it's just me (Laura) here tonight. Kevin has a standing Wednesday dinner date with his kids, so I didn't really plan anything special for me.

Tonight's freezer ingredient is BRUSCHETTA BOCA PATTIES! (there's still 2 left in the box).

First off...I LOVE all varieties of these things because A. They're actually YUMMY and B. They're a perfect portion size (right at 2.5 ounces) of lean protein which is perfect for me and my Post Gastric Bypass way of eating. C. They're FAST and you just zap them in the microwave

The Bruschetta flavor tastes a lot like pizza, so I did some of the pizza topping leftovers from the weekend...homemade pizza sauce with those mushroom/onions/peppers from the steaks last night, a bit of fresh mozzarella and a little torn basil up on top.

SO easy, but so good!

Ugh...I'm FULL!

Day 2

2009-06-09T16:08:00.000-07:00

Tuesday
(Day 2)

Found some yummy New York strip steaks! MMMMM
Threw them on the grill for 3 minutes per side (could have been ok with 2). Grilled up some thinly sliced redskin potatoes with onions and chives in a foil pouch for Kevin (potatoes and I are NOT friends!) and sauteed up some leftover mushrooms, onions and peppers with a little red wine to top the steaks.
Caesar salad (homemade dressing...MUCH healthier than the bottled crap) with shaved parm and homemade croutons.

I should mention that I'm happy to share recipes if anyone is interested in anything!

Day 1

2009-06-09T08:57:00.000-07:00

OK...TECHNICALLY, we went out for Day 1 (Sunday) so we're calling Day 1 MONDAY.

First up from the depths of the freezer...SALMON

Personally...I can't stand the stuff, so I had my Qdoba leftovers from Sunday and made THIS for Kevin...

Grilled salmon with a simple sauce of grainy Dijon mustard and some lite sour cream, leftover grits from "breakfast for dinner" the other night brought together with a little milk and some grated parm and topped with a few shards of shaved parmasean and some simple steamed baby carrots on the side.

Bon Appetit!

The big idea!

2009-06-07T08:28:00.000-07:00

Salinger The Pug has agreed to share his blog time and space with his humans so we can document our "Freezer Project" that we just cooked up for the summer!

It's come to our attention that I (Laura) am a "Freezer Hoarder" and have grown very tired of hardened blocks falling on my feet every time I open one of the freezers!

My parents taught me well...I feel that I am very thrifty and ALWAYS plan meals ahead of time, ALWAYS shop sales, sometimes buy in bulk and frequently will make double batches of whatever is for dinner to freeze for "another day". WELL....those "OTHER DAYS" are here because Kevin and I have declared BOTH freezers to be "comepletely ridiculous".

Here are the BEFORE pics of our ridiculousness...

Here is the freezer in the kitchen (with the fridge, which is a WHOLE other story)

This is the "storage" freezer that holds the overflow of the kitchen freezer.

We have decided that starting TODAY...and for at least one month, we are going to have our own personal "Freezer Project". Here are the rules....

1. NO purchasing any type of new meat or frozen food...(we can buy dairy, produce and staples ONLY)

2. Meals will be planned in advance and based on what is "available" in the freezer.

3. After 1 month...we will reorganize and see what remains and decide if the project will need to continue.

4. All meals will be documented here for the next month...so follow along and join the fun!

I can't guarantee things will be pretty...but we'll see what happens!

Come back later for installment #1!