So it's Sunday morning and I'm headed off to church but had time to add this post. Yesterday we had 32 people at the church making freezer meals for February. We made about 280 meals in 3 hours! What a blast! This is the fourth session and as usually we had some slight recipe "differences". I was really wondering why the Addie's Chalupa sauce was so low and we felt we were running out for the meals...turns out we missed a LOT of beef in the frig to add to the sauce....there was some in it, but we missed a lot. Everyone was very good hearted about it but I think maybe we will make this one again so folks can taste the true fully beefed up version! This chalupa recipe is adapted from one my mom always made at home. The original was from a home town cookbook where my parents grew up. It was very small (7 kids per class) and they have festivals like large class reunions pretty frequently. Now and then they've created a cookbook.
Here's the recipe for Addie's Chalupa for folks to enjoy. The original recipe skipped the enchilada sauce, used flour instead of corn tortillas and just regular cheese. I like the extra spice and corn tortillas instead.
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Addie's Chalupa
Serves: 8
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1/2 large onion, chopped
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons chili seasoning mix, I use Williams
1 can tomato soup, condensed
1 can enchilada sauce, I use El Pato sauce in a 7 ounce can
3/4 cups milk
12 corn tortillas
8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, grated
vegetable oil
Brown the ground beef with onion until thoroughly cooked. Add the flour and chili seasoning mix. Let simmer slightly for a few minutes. Add the can of tomato soup, enchilada sauce, and milk. Mix and simmer about 5 minutes.
Soften the corn tortillas in a skillet with a littl bit of cooking oil. Start with 4 tortillas, cut into pieces and layer in the bottom of a greased 8x12" pyrex pan. Add 1/3 of the meat mixture. Repeat tortillas and meat mixture 3 times total. Top with sharp cheddar cheese.
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For those that would like to know, here's our menu that we prepared yesterday:
Chicken Spaghetti - Check out the Pioneer Woman's web site
Addie's Chalupa
Beef Fajitas - From "Fix, Freeze, Feast"
Lentil, Ham and Barley Soup - This was on the Internet, but I a dead link now.
Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits - Todd Wilbur's version
Farmer's Casserole - From "Don't Panic Dinner's in the Freezer"
Orange Cookies - Cooking Club Magazine - April/May 2010
So now I will start testing recipes for the next meals...Watch for some test results here!
Addie
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Freezer Meals or Addie's Kitchen
About 10 years ago, one of my church friends came home and told me she had found the perfect job for me. I had been worried off and on about my job as there were always layoffs. She was visiting her daughter who would go to this new place where you could get meals for the freezer. These were more like home made meals and you would go there and prep and package your meals. Well, I didn't lose my job and still am working at my job...but it got me thinking. Instead of doing the freezer meal thing as a job, why not make it a church project.
It's taken me 10 years, but in October I finally started this project. I call it Freezer Meals, the church staff calls it Addie's Kitchen. I prep and plan for 4-6 main dishes or side dishes. I collect the orders and then my husband helps me buy all the groceries. Then several of us meet at church to cook and prep all the dishes. The first month (October) we had 24 people attend, then in November it was 27 people, and the last time in January we had 36 adults and 7 children. Some of the children were too small to help, but a few of the older ones worked with us. We made over 350 meals. It is so much fun! When I price the meals, I include a bit extra so that we have extra dollars to spend on meals for the church freezer. These go to families with a member in the hospital, homebound members, or anyone who could use a meal now and then. Anyone from the church can pick up a meal and deliver it to someone who would enjoy it. It has grown every time. Folks who first visit the church have attended. You really get to know someone when you are standing next to them crying and chopping onions!
I've had a request to post some recipes. Here's one of my recipes from the Freezer Meal in November. I created this recipe for my kids because they just loved twiced baked potatoes, but sometimes they took longer to bake than I wanted (they never taste as good baked in the microwave):
Addie's Baked Potato Casserole
Recipe By :Addie Sale
Serving Size : 10 Preparation Time :0:45
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method 40 ounces bagged Hash Browns -- Not frozen
1/2 cup butter -- melted
16 ounces sour cream
16 ounces shredded Colby-Jack cheese
1/2 cup bacon bits
1 teaspoon salt -- to taste
1 teaspoon pepper -- to taste
1/2 cup milk -- or more as needed
1 teaspoon onion salt
Mix all ingredients and poor into a greased 9in x 12in pan. Bake at 425 degrees for 25-35 minutes until potatoes are tender.
Of course, you can freeze this recipe!
Enjoy!
It's taken me 10 years, but in October I finally started this project. I call it Freezer Meals, the church staff calls it Addie's Kitchen. I prep and plan for 4-6 main dishes or side dishes. I collect the orders and then my husband helps me buy all the groceries. Then several of us meet at church to cook and prep all the dishes. The first month (October) we had 24 people attend, then in November it was 27 people, and the last time in January we had 36 adults and 7 children. Some of the children were too small to help, but a few of the older ones worked with us. We made over 350 meals. It is so much fun! When I price the meals, I include a bit extra so that we have extra dollars to spend on meals for the church freezer. These go to families with a member in the hospital, homebound members, or anyone who could use a meal now and then. Anyone from the church can pick up a meal and deliver it to someone who would enjoy it. It has grown every time. Folks who first visit the church have attended. You really get to know someone when you are standing next to them crying and chopping onions!
I've had a request to post some recipes. Here's one of my recipes from the Freezer Meal in November. I created this recipe for my kids because they just loved twiced baked potatoes, but sometimes they took longer to bake than I wanted (they never taste as good baked in the microwave):
Addie's Baked Potato Casserole
Recipe By :Addie Sale
Serving Size : 10 Preparation Time :0:45
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method 40 ounces bagged Hash Browns -- Not frozen
1/2 cup butter -- melted
16 ounces sour cream
16 ounces shredded Colby-Jack cheese
1/2 cup bacon bits
1 teaspoon salt -- to taste
1 teaspoon pepper -- to taste
1/2 cup milk -- or more as needed
1 teaspoon onion salt
Mix all ingredients and poor into a greased 9in x 12in pan. Bake at 425 degrees for 25-35 minutes until potatoes are tender.
Of course, you can freeze this recipe!
Enjoy!
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Wow, I'm Blogging
That title pretty much says it. I've finally made the move to blogging and decided that my experience in my kitchen is the topic.
Cooking is fun! I cook to relax, I cook to wind down, I cook to make others happy, I cook as a gift to friends and family, I cook because I love it! I don't have a fancy kitchen and I've not had any formal training. I've just been in the kitchen since I was about 9 years old. I would say I learned the "down home" way. My parents were both raised on farms and the type of cooking they taught me was definitely comfort food. Steak, mashed potatoes and gravy were a family staple. I now like to try recipes just for fun. My family never knows what they will get next. The family definitely loves the experimentation and will provide me with a yes or no (does it go in the family cookbook or not).
My next post will be about how I named this blog Addie's Kitchen and my latest kitchen project!
Cooking is fun! I cook to relax, I cook to wind down, I cook to make others happy, I cook as a gift to friends and family, I cook because I love it! I don't have a fancy kitchen and I've not had any formal training. I've just been in the kitchen since I was about 9 years old. I would say I learned the "down home" way. My parents were both raised on farms and the type of cooking they taught me was definitely comfort food. Steak, mashed potatoes and gravy were a family staple. I now like to try recipes just for fun. My family never knows what they will get next. The family definitely loves the experimentation and will provide me with a yes or no (does it go in the family cookbook or not).
My next post will be about how I named this blog Addie's Kitchen and my latest kitchen project!
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