Freezer Cooking - Act 2

Last time Sara and I did freezer meals together I was pregnant with Monte.  We took lots of food prep pictures and enjoyed a calm and peaceful afternoon shopping and cooking together.  This time, two kids later, we took maybe two food prep pictures, twenty kids pictures, and enjoyed an afternoon and evening of trying to cook while child wrangling!!

When I went shopping with these two a few days ago they pretty much ignored each other the whole time, NOT this time!  They grabbed and hugged and laughed and touched and petted and were generally cute and loving!!

It's a good thing that Jax is pretty calm because Monte sure loves finding his ears. mouth, and eyes.  He's not always the gentlest!  Jax was interested in grabbing Monte's cheeks! 

We have kitties at our house right now and Monte loves hugging them up under his chin.  Apparently it's his method of demonstrating love because it is also what he wanted to do to Jax.  He was trying to be gentle but there were a few eye poking moments!  Thankfully Jax didn't seem to mind. 

One lady walked by and said, "ahhhhh they look just alike!"  Sara and I decided she needed to have her eyes checked!  haha

We almost made it through when major drama ensued.  Jax grabbed Monte's hair and then Sara took a raisin bag away from Jax and they were about done!  haha Both napped on the way to Sara's and got a full tummy and were in much better moods after that!

Canned goods much?!

So the second of the only two food prep pictures we took.  That's a lot of meat and onions!  Yum!

Thank goodness for Mom!!  She came by and played with the babies so we could cook!  Jax is SOOO close to crawling!  He ooches and scoots and reaches but won't quite crawl. 

Quite an impressive plank though!

Two out of three looking is considered pretty successful these days!

Gunnar came by after work and helped wrangle kids too.  He also helped us clean up.  I was SOO grateful that he stopped by.  I was so tired but just kept saying "It'll be worth it, it'll be worth it."  I cooked 12 crock pot meals plus two lasagnas!  That should feed us for a while! 

I thought I'd include the recipes I used in case anyone wants a great crock pot recipe.  I should also add that I added leeks and finely chopped celery to several of the recipes.  I like to pack in a variety of nutrition as much as I can. Leeks have a mild onion flavor so they add great flavor and if you dice the celery fine enough and don't add a ton you can't even taste it.  Another great item to add is finely diced broccoli stocks.  When they cook, they soften and you can't even taste them.  Especially if you buy organic broccoli, the darn stuff is so expensive you want to use as much of it as you can. 

• Chili

1-2 lbs. ground meat - browned with garlic salt, onion powder, salt, and pepper

2 cans diced tomatoes

2 cans pinto beans (sometimes I use ranch style beans instead)

1 onion - chopped and sautéed with garlic salt, onion pepper, salt, and pepper

1 green bell pepper - chopped and sautéed with garlic salt, onion powder, salt, and pepper

1-2 cloves of garlic - smashed

1-2 tablespoons chili powder 

Cook on low 3-8 hours. May need to add water and/or chili powder.  This chili is very simple and that's why I like it.  No nonsense, easy to throw together, and great on the taste buds! (I never put in enough chili powder and have to add more at the end. I always think "THIS time I'll put enough!" Then it looks like I put way too much so I stop then have to add more at the end because actually it wasn't enough haha)

• Taco Stew

1-2 lbs. ground meat - browned with garlic salt, onion powder, salt, and pepper

1 small onion - chopped and sautéed with garlic salt, onion powder, salt, and pepper

1 green bell pepper - chopped and sautéed with garlic salt, onion powder, salt, and pepper

1 can black beans - drained and rinsed

1 can corn - drained

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can chicken broth

1 packet taco seasoning (I make my own)

Cook on low 3-8 hours.  Sautéing the veggies is not necessary but I think it adds more flavor and makes the whole dish tastier. 

• Cream Cheese Chicken Chili (say that 5 times fast!) 

2 chicken breasts - still frozen

1 can rotel tomatoes 

1 can corn kernels - do not drain 

1 can black beans - drained and rinsed 

1 tablespoon cumin 

1 teaspoon chili powder 

1 teaspoon onion powder 

1 8-oz pkg. cream cheese

1 onion - sauteed or thrown in raw

1 red pepper - sauteed or thrown in raw

1 green pepper  - sauteed or thrown in raw

Cook on low 6-8 hours until chicken is done.  Shred chicken before serving.  Can add water or chicken broth if you need more liquid.  Serve with cilantro, avocado, chips and salsa or whatever else suits your fancy ;) 

I also made two zucchini lasagnas with zucchini from my garden I had in the freezer!  If you want a good lasagna recipe ask Sara because I just did what she told me to!