Taco Seasoning

So I haven't posted in awhile, but had to share this awesome recipe for homemade taco seasoning.  WAY better than store bought packets.  I cooked up a big batch of taco meat this afternoon, some for the freezer and some for dinner tonight.  We had walking tacos before we went out trick or treating.  The kids love them, as do I!  You can easily customize this seasoning to your taste:  if you prefer a spicier seasoning, use hot chili powder or add more red pepper flakes.

Taco Seasoning

1/4 c. chili powder
1/4 c. dried minced onion
3 tbsp. salt
4 tsp. cornstarch
1 tbsp. dried minced garlic
1 tbsp. cumin
1 tbsp. red pepper flakes
2 tsp. beef granules
1 1/2 tsp. oregano

Store in an airtight container.  Yields enough seasoning for approx. 6-7# meat.

Use 2 tbsp. seasoning mix to 1# ground beef or chicken.  Add 1/3 - 1/2 c. water and simmer.

Baking Projects

Okay, so I know that this isn't related to freezer cooking, but it is another passion of mine and it, of course, involves food! :)  I love to decorate cakes and make fun treats for the kids' birthdays, school parties, teachers, etc.  I perhaps was influenced at an early age by the cake my mom made for me for my 5th birthday.  Wonder Woman!  I remember that cake to this day, and I would hope that my kids' will remember the special cakes that I lovingly create for them.  If I can find the picture, I'll post it here in the future.  Below are some of my recent projects...

AJ's Pirate Cake (7th birthday)

AJ's birthday school treats

Inspiration for these was from Bakerella.com

Torie's Hula Party

Torie's birthday school treats

Again, inspired by Bakerella

and not so recent....



AJ's 1st birthday cake (Cookie Monster)



Dion's Spiderman cake

Torie's 2nd Birthday

I can't get this picture to rotate for some reason :(

Dion's 2nd birthday



In going through old pics for this post, I am slightly saddened as I find pictures of birthdays with store bought cakes.  While there is absolutely nothing wrong with a store bought cake, I found that I did not remember as many specifics about the birthday.  There's just something more personal and meaningful when I have taken the time to give that gift to my child, even though they might not remember it or realize the effort that I made, I can only hope that someday they will appreciate it, and have a special memory, such as the one I have of my Wonder Woman cake from my 5th birthday!!  (Now I HAVE to find that picture!)



Pork Egg Rolls

So I was very excited about this recipe!  Store bought egg rolls are expensive, and we enjoy Chinese "take-out" style recipes, but ya gotta have egg rolls with them, right?  I have been wanting to make egg rolls for some time now, but was leery of finding the "right" recipe.  So then how do you know if it's the right recipe until you try it?  Well, I can say that this is a fantastic recipe, and one I will definitely make again.  I doubled the recipe, and have a few dozen egg rolls in the freezer that will go great with chicken lo mein, orange chicken, honey garlic chicken...

http://www.marthastewart.com/337150/pork-egg-rolls

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon light-brown sugar
• 6 cups (48 ounces) vegetable oil
• 1 napa cabbage (about 2 1/2 pounds), thinly sliced
• 4 medium carrots, coarsely grated
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
• coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 pound ground pork
• 6 scallions, thinly sliced
• 16 egg-roll wrappers (6 to 7 inches square)
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• bottled sweet-and-sour sauce and spicy mustard, for serving

Directions

1. In a small bowl, combine soy sauce, vinegar, and sugar. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-high. Add cabbage, carrots, garlic, and ginger; season with salt and pepper. Cook, tossing, until vegetables are tender, 3 to 5 minutes.
2. Raise heat to high; add pork and soy mixture. Cook, tossing, until pork is no longer pink and liquid has evaporated, 5 to 7 minutes; mix in scallions. Transfer mixture to a plate to cool. Lay wrappers flat on a work surface, and assemble egg rolls.
3. In a 5-quart pot, heat remaining oil until a deep-fry thermometer registers 350 degrees. Working in batches of 4, and returning oil to 350 degrees for each batch, fry egg rolls until golden, turning occasionally, about 2 minutes; drain on paper towels. Serve with sweet-and-sour sauce and spicy mustard.
4. To Bake, Not Fry: If you prefer, these egg rolls can be baked. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly oil a rimmed baking sheet; place egg rolls on sheet and brush with cup oil*. Bake until golden, about 10 minutes. Serve with sweet-and-sour sauce and spicy mustard. If baking from frozen, bake about 15 minutes.

Cook's Note

HOW TO ROLL AN EGG ROLL
1. Filling It Up: Lay 3 or 4 egg-roll wrappers flat on counter. (Keep other wrappers covered with a damp paper towel.) Place 1/3 cup pork mixture in center of each.
2. Folding It Up: Using a pastry brush, wet border with egg. Fold point of wrapper that's closest to you over the pork mixture, and tuck under the filling.
3. Folding It In: Fold both side corners toward center of wrapper (they won't meet in the center). It should look like an open envelope.
4. Finishing It Up: Tightly roll up filled pocket to close wrapper, then gently press down to seal the edges**

*To save on fat and calories, I skipped the oil, and sprayed the tops of the egg rolls with pan spray.  They turned out beautifully!

**I mix a little flour and water and use it as a "glue" to seal the wrapper.  (a little trick I learned from my friend, Quan, in the HyVee Chinese Express!!)

Taco Soup

2 lbs. ground beef
1 medium onion, diced
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 pkg ranch dressing mix
1 15 oz. can whole kernel corn
1 15 oz can diced tomatoes
1 15 oz can RoTel tomatoes
3 cans Ranch style Texas beans (or pinto beans will work, too)
2 cups water

Brown ground beef and onion.  Drain.  (At this point, if you're doing an "ingredient dump" for the freezer, put all ingredients in a freezer bag and put in the freezer  Add meat and remaining ingredients to crockpot.  Cook on low for 4 hours. 

Ingredient Dump Recipes

Time to post a few recipes while my hubby is out picking up my new (used) upright freezer!  So I thought I'd try a somewhat different approach to this month's cooking session...ingredient dumps!  At least that's what I call it...simply adding all of your ingredients to a freezer bag and freezing it prior to cooking, to be taken out of the freezer at a later date and cooked in a slow cooker, for a convenient, fresh, simple meal.  I've noticed that in my recipe planning, I tend to end up with a lot of similar recipes, i.e. last month was pasta heavy, this month was a spicier month.  So here's a simple recipe for white chicken and corn chili from the Hamilton Beach website:

http://www.hamiltonbeach.com/products/recipes/white-chicken-andamp-corn-chili.html

White Chicken & Corn Chili

• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
• Two 15 oz. cans diced tomatoes
• Two 15 oz. cans cannellini beans (white kidney beans), drained and rinsed
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 jalapeno peppers, seeds removed, minced
• 1 14 oz. can yellow corn, drained
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese for garnish

1. Mash 1/2 cup of cannellini beans with fork.
2. Place all ingredients (except cheese) including mashed beans in slow cooker and stir to combine.
3. Cover and cook on HIGH for 3 hours or LOW for 6 hours.
4. Top with shredded cheddar cheese before serving.

I did not mash the beans, I simply put all of the ingredients in a freezer bag, put it in my freezer, and when I'm ready for it, pull it out of the freezer, dump in my slow cooker, turn it on low and forget about it!  I also used chicken that I had previously cooked and de-boned (cheaper than boneless, skinless breasts).

Ready for the freezer!

Pepperoni Pizza Puffs

My kids always seem to be STARVING when they get home from school in the afternoon, and my question to them is always, "Did you eat lunch today?"  And they reply, "Yes!"  Okay, so, guess I better come up with some filling snack recipes, huh?  This recipe would also double well as a cold lunch option.  I found this recipe on the Rachael Ray Magazine website.  They were so simple to throw together, and they freeze great.  My husband even said they were "really good", and coming from him, that's got to mean they're good.  I usually have to ask him what he thought of a recipe, and he offered up his opinion voluntarily as he was popping the fourth or fifth one of these!

http://www.rachaelraymag.com/Recipes/rachael-ray-magazine-recipe-search/budget-recipes/pepperoni-pizza-puffs

Right outta the oven!

A little dippin' sauce on the side..

Pepperoni Pizza Puffs

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 4 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 1 cup)
• 4 ounces pepperoni, cut into small cubes (about 1 cup)
• 1/2 cup store-bought pizza sauce
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced

Frozen Assets
Freeze the baked puffs in a single layer on a baking sheet, then transfer to a freezer bag. To reheat, bake the frozen puffs on a baking sheet in a 350° oven for 8 to 10 minutes.

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375°. Grease a 24-cup mini-muffin pan. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder; whisk in the milk and egg. Stir in the mozzarella and pepperoni; let stand for 10 minutes.
2. Stir the batter and divide among the mini-muffin cups. Bake until puffed and golden, 20 to 25 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, microwave the pizza sauce until warmed through, then stir in 1 tablespoon basil. Sprinkle the puffs with the remaining 1 tablespoon basil. Serve the puffs and red pepper slices with the pizza sauce for dipping.

Chicken Lo Mein

I'm a big fan of the recipes that offer restaurant flavor, only healthier and cheaper.  This one fits the bill.  And yes, the theme tonight is apparently chicken recipes.

Chicken Lo Mein

8 oz. lo mein noodles or thin spaghetti
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
2 lg cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c. chicken broth
3 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp sesame or olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 large red bell pepper, diced
1 c. snow peas
3 tbsp rice wine vinegar
1 tbsp freshly grated ginger

1.  Prepare noodles according to package directions.
2.  Meanwhile, heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the chicken and cook, stirring occasionally, for 6 minutes, or until browned and no longer pink.  Remove to a plate and keep warm.
3.  Heat the remaining 1 tbsp oil in the same skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the onion, pepper, garlic and snow peas and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8 minutes, or until tender-crisp.  Stir in the chicken broth, vinegar, soy sauce, and ginger and cook for 2 minutes.  Add the chicken and noodles and heat through.