Make-ahead Monday #4

Hi, readers, and welcome to another week and another week of recipes! I'm already reaping the benefits of a well stocked freezer, and I find that I'm spending less of my time rushing to have meals ready on a busy evening (or morning) because I have prepared ahead of time. I'm also cooking extra with leftovers in mind more often. This is definitely a great habit for me! We haven't eaten out for dinner in a couple of weeks!

I've decided to start cooking a few recipes from our link-up each week, which turned out to be a lot of fun. Today, I'm working on Three bean chili from Pain Free Pregnancy and pumpkin pie baked oatmeal from The Willing Cook.

I doubled the chili to take some to a friend who just had a baby. Also, I added meat, because we like meat. :) It was delicious!

I doubled the baked oatmeal to share, too. I combined this recipe with the one I usually use for baked oatmeal because we're not dairy and egg free at our house.
*I have to make a confession here, the baked oatmeal did not make it to the freezer. In fact, a large amount was eaten straight from the pan by a certain pregnant blogger who shall remain nameless. I did save enough to share, though. :)

Yummy!

What recipes do you have to share this week?

The link-up

Please share some posts from your blog of favorite meals and dishes that can be prepared ahead of time!  I'm stocking my freezer for the arrival of our new baby, and could use all the ideas I can get!

Posting etiquette: If you do link-up, please leave a comment in the comments sections and link back to this page from your original blog post.

If you do not have a blog post to share, please share your favorite recipes or links in the comments section!


This post was shared at Traditional Tuesdays, Fight Back Fridays and Simple Lives Thursdays.

Make-ahead Monday #3

Welcome to a new week, everyone! Thanks for sharing your recipes last week. I tried out one of them over the weekend, and it's definitely on its way to becoming a family favorite!

My family came to visit over the weekend, so I did make-ahead monday a little differently. I made extra large batches of things, and simply froze the leftovers, which ended up being enough for one or two meals for Hubby, Izzy and me. I didn't really plan it that way, but you know how it is when you have company, you never want to run out and you end up making too much.

Works great for freezer cooking!

Here's what's new in my freezer this week:

1 whole batch of baked oatmeal (recipe is coming soon!)
A few smoothies (frozen in ice cube trays)
a big container of beef veggie stew

I also made a great, super easy roast, but didn't have enough left over to freeze. Maybe next week I'll do it again. We have tons of beef in our deep freezer, as we recently bought a whole half of a cow from one of our local farmers. We are excited to have such great quality meat, that doesn't contain any added hormones or antibiotics, and we saved a lot of money. I also feel good knowing where this cow came from and that it was treated ethically. I know we have an odd sense of humor, but we call the cow as "Collin", in reference to an episode of the show "Portlandia". Don't know if you've heard of it.

Anyways, I had great time visiting my family, and I've got some fun posts coming up from our activities over the week. Can't wait to share! I learned to make cheese!

The link-up


Please share some posts from your blog of favorite meals and dishes that can be prepared ahead of time!  I'm stocking my freezer for the arrival of our new baby, and could use all the ideas I can get!

Posting etiquette: If you do link-up, please leave a comment in the comments sections and link back to this page from your original blog post.

If you do not have a blog post to share, please share your favorite recipes or links in the comments section!

Have a great week and happy MLK day!

Make-ahead Monday and January's Challenge

Happy New Year to all! I hope that you had a great Christmas and New Year, and that you are ready to get back into the swing of things. We've had, for the most part, a relaxing holiday. I've been off of work, and Dennis has had a few days off, too. The best part is, he's been out of school, so he hasn't been driving back and forth to New Orleans or having to fool with much homework. He'll go back a week from today, so Izzy and I are enjoying these last few days of more Daddy around to hang out and help out.

I did get pretty awful sick for about a week and a half, but Izzy and Dennis managed to escape it, and I'm feeling all better now.



Make Ahead Mondays

As I promised all the way back in 2011 (really, only about 2 weeks ago), I'm trading in "Meal Plan Mondays" for "Make Ahead Mondays". It's much easier to eat healthy when there are plenty of meals and snacks waiting in the freezer to be whipped out and heated up/baked/thrown in the crock pot on a busy day.

My plan is to share recipes, and get you to (pretty please) share some recipes, too, so we can have our freezers ready for what may come. For me, I've got a baby coming in May, so I want to be good and ready for those first few crazy months.

I also learned over the past few weeks how invaluable cooking ahead can be in case Mama gets sick. My husband is a very helpful and thoughtful man, but he doesn't know a thing about making dinner. He can, though, thaw out a casserole or throw a bag of prechopped veggies and meat into a slow cooker.

Today, I've had my bread machine and my oven going making up some pizza crusts. Pizza from the freezer section at the grocery store is usually pricey, unhealthy, and/or not so tasty. It's easy to take a crust from the freezer and spread some toppings on it. Ten minutes later, you've got a tasty, healthy dinner!

Here's What You Do:
Make up a batch of sourdough sandwich dough (I used 100% wheat flour this time)
Divide into 6 or so equal parts
Roll out to desired thickness
Bake at 375 for 5-8 minutes, or until just starting to brown

This makes 6 individual sized pizzas. Divide the dough however you like.

I let them cool, stick them in a plastic bag, and pop them into the freezer until I'm ready to use them.

Here they are, being rolled out, and the finished product. I know they don't look all that round...I call it "artisan baking" whenever what I'm making doesn't turn out "picture perfect". I promise they still taste good!

Here are some topping suggestions:
-leftover veggies
-leftover taco meat
-refried beans and mozzarella cheese



One of my favorite, simple ways to top a pizza is with tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, and generous dose of italian seasoning. It tastes gourmet, and is super easy.

This is a great way to use up leftovers. Invent your own kind of pizza, or get the kids involved and let them each make their own!

January's Challenge


I know we're already a couple of days in, but I want to let you guys in on a personal little goal-setting routine I fell into last year. I don't make resolutions for a long or indefinite period of time. That is too daunting, and I have found that I'm easily overwhelmed. I can easily commit to making a change or continuing a habit for a month, though. Each month, I pick one thing to work on, and try not to compromise for that first month. By the end of the month, it's usually worked into my routine and I can easily keep it up.

Are you ready for this month's challenge?

Read your food ingredient labels.


That's it. We're not giving anything up or adding anything complicated into our daily routines. When you start reading what's in your food, you just may end up being a little more careful what goes in your mouth.

I've kept you long enough for one day, so I'll elaborate more on this point on Wednesday.

Until then, work on getting into the habit or reading the ingredient labels on all of the foods you eat.

See you then!

*update: I've just added a link-up, so you can link up directly to your blog, where you've shared a great make-ahead recipe!

Cooking and freezing dried beans

Not too long ago, I shared with you a yummy recipe for black bean burgers that contains 2 cans of drained black beans.

Now, I have to be honest, I almost never buy canned beans. They usually contain added salt and 2 cans of beans cost the same amount as a whole pot of beans cooked the old fashioned way.

Now, beans are cheap either way, but if you're looking to cut your grocery bill (and aren't we all?), you might want to consider soaking, cooking and freezing dried beans for yourself.

It's really easy, but I have had several people tell me they didn't know how to cook beans, and I only recently learned that they freeze well. (The texture isn't quite the same as canned, but it's really close, especially if you don't overcook them and you reheat them slowly.)

Here's what you need:

1 big bowl or pot (it needs to hold at least twice the volume of your dried beans, they're going to swell as they soak)
1 pound of dried beans of choice
Water

Note: It's best not to salt your beans until after they're cooked, it makes for a better texture. Also, I save seasoning for later when I know for sure what recipe I'll be using my beans for.

Here's what you do:

1. Put your beans in your  bowl or pot
2. Fill with water 3-4 inches deeper than your beans
3. Let sit 8 hours or overnight (this is not an exact science, you can go shorter or longer if needed)

"Why am I soaking my beans?" you ask. Well, you see, beans contain phytates, and phytates make for upset tummies and um...smelly problems. By soaking your beans, you're helping break down the phytates. The longer the soak, the fewer phytates you're tummy will have to deal with. Soaking also helps the beans cook faster and more evenly.

Ok, now that your bean are soaked, you're ready to cook them!

     4. Drain and rinse the soaked beans, put them in a pot (Slow cookers are good for this)

     5. Fill with water 2-3 inches deeper than the beans

     6. Cook on low for about 7 hours or until tender

Now, you could have read that on your bean bag (not the kind you toss at carnivals, but the actual bag your beans come in). I just wanted you to see how easy it is. Soak. Drain. Rinse. Cook. If you have a slow cooker, you can soak your beans in it while you sleep, cook them while you're at work, and have dinner ready when you get home. 

Or, you can let them cool during the evening and freeze them for later.

That's what I really wanted to tell you. You can freeze your beans. It's also easy. Just put them in a container and stick 'em in the freezer. I let mine thaw on the counter over the afternoon so they're ready for me at dinner time. You do want to reheat them slowly, so they don't turn all mushy on you.

Sandwich size ziptop bags will hold about the same amount as your standard 16 oz can. Also, you can let the air out and lie them flat to freeze so they will take up almost no space in your freezer.

Now, the hard part is deciding what recipe to use your beans for...

Beans, beans, they're good for your heart...

Sorry for that last line, couldn't resist!

Yummy black bean burgers

Here's a great recipe to use with your homemade sourdough hamburger buns!

I tried this recipe on a whim last year, and it has turned out to be a favorite at our house. I know, "black bean burger" doesn't sound delicious, but we love them at our house! Also, it's super easy to make a big batch and freeze the leftover patties for a quick dinner later!

Here's what you need:

• Hamburger buns (try my homemade sourdough ones)
• 2 15 oz. cans of black beans
• 1 1/2 cups frozen "seasoning blend" (mixture of celery, onion, and pepper) you could also use one chopped onion and one chopped pepper instead
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 3 eggs
• 2 Tablespoons chili powder
• 1 Tablespoon thai chili sauce (if you don't have some of this lying around, you want to get some, trust me - good stuff!)
• 1 cup italian seasoned bread crumbs (or regular bread crumbs, whatever you have on hand)
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 2 Tablespoons chipotle sauce
• 1 ripe avocado

Here's what you do:

• Preheat your oven to 425 degrees
• In a large bowl, mash black beans with a fork until almost smooth, but still chunky (we like to use our immersion blender for this)
• Add garlic and seasoning blend
• In a small bowl, stir together the egg, chili powder, and thai chili sauce
• Stir the egg mixture into the black beans
• Stir the bread crumbs into the bean mixture
• Form into eight patties
• Bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes on each side

What really makes these burgers is the chipotle mayo and sliced avocado on top. You can prepare it while the burgers are baking.

The chipotle mayo is easy, just mix about 2 tablespoons (more or less, depending on how spicy you like it) of chipotle sauce with 1 cup mayonnaise.

This recipe makes 8 burgers, and like I said, they freeze really well for a quick lunch or dinner down the road. 

Very healthy and economical!

Enjoy!

Have you ever tried a black bean burger? If not, you're missing out!

We like to do a vegetarian dinner every Tuesday night. It can be healthier, it's cheaper, and our animal friends thank us for the break!

Next week, I'll share an easy tip for making recipes like this one even easier on the pocketbook.

Homemade hamburger buns with your sourdough starter

I'm still exploring what all I can do with my sourdough starter, and here's a quick, easy recipe you can do with the sourdough sandwich bread recipe I shared recently.

• Make a batch of sourdough sandwich bread dough.
• Instead of putting the dough into a breadpan, divide into eight equal sized balls and flatten slightly.
• Take a knife and slice an "X" on each bun.
• Allow to rise in the oven (turned OFF) until doubled in size (about 35-40 minutes)
• it helps to have the dough close together so the buns will bump into each other and rise up instead of flatten out.

Turn the oven onto 375 and bake for 25-30 minutes, until baked through

These hamburger buns are delicious, and they freeze really well so you can make them any day you have some free time. Just thaw them in the fridge the day before you plan to use them (or stick them in the oven to thaw right away if you forget!)

Super easy, cheap, and way healthier than the buns at the store. Have you ever tried to buy hamburger buns without high fructose corn syrup? I couldn't find any at Winn-Dixie the last time I looked.

Enjoy your healthy buns! :)

Have you tried making a sourdough starter yet?