Caribbean Pork over Rice

Caribbean Pork over Rice

This recipe comes from on my my favorite freezer meal recipe books, Dream Dinners. I haven't actually worked up to an all day cooking for the entire month session, however every weekend I try to make something I can triple, or more. This way I am gradually building of my freezer supply. A couple of weeks this has come in handy when the budget does not allow for a large shopping trip. I just check the freezer and supplement a couple of that week's meals with freezer meals. This meal is tasty, and VERY easy to make! I've got some in the freezer that I can't wait to get out and heat up!

Start off by placing a lean pork loin in a crockpot, cover it with canned low-sodium chicken broth, and simmer for eight hours on low. The pork will shred easily when you pull the meat apart with two forks.

Ingredients:

For One Dinner that feeds 6

4 cups (1½ pounds) shredded cooked pork
2 cups canned chicken broth
½ cup light unsweetened coconut milk
2 teaspoons jerk seasoning(couldn't find, I substituted a creole seasoning)
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1 cup uncooked white rice for serving
½ cup (4 ounces) sliced almonds for garnish

For Three Meals (freeze two)

12 cups (4½ pounds) shredded cooked pork
6 cups canned chicken broth
1½ cups light unsweetened coconut milk
2 tablespoons jerk seasoning
1 tablespoon grated orange zest
3 cups uncooked white rice for serving
1½ cups (12 ounces) sliced almonds for garnish

Instructions:

Putting the dinner together

Prepare the rice according to the package directions. In a large bowl, combine the pork, chicken broth, coconut milk, jerk seasoning, and orange zest and stir until incorporated. If you are preparing a triple batch, divide the mixture into three equal portions. Set aside one portion for tonight and divide the other two portions equally between two 1-gallon resealable freezer bags.

For dinner tonight

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the meat mixture and bring to a boil. The pork should be heated through. Serve over the rice and garnish with the sliced almonds.

To freeze

Place ½ cup of the remaining sliced almonds into each of two 1-quart resealable freezer bags. Place 3 cups cooked and cooled rice in a 1-gallon resealable freezer bag. Place the bags of almonds, rice, and pork into a 1-gallon resealable freezer bag. Repeat with the remaining almonds, rice, and pork. Label, date, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before cooking as directed above. To reheat the rice, put the rice and ½ cup broth or water in a dish. Cover and cook in the microwave for 1-minute intervals until the broth is absorbed.

Mexican meatball soup

Meatballs:

2lbs lean ground beef
1 small can diced green chilies
1/2 bunch green onions - chopped
2 cloves garlic - minced or pressed
1/2 bunch cilantro - chopped
1/4 cup rice
1 egg
salt/pepper/hot sauce to taste
Preheat oven to 400˚. Combine all ingredients by hand and roll into 1″ meatballs, bake on a cookie sheet for 10 - 12 minutes. Place on a papertowel to absorb grease. Set aside

Broth:
2qts water
2 - 3 tablespoons beef base (or use two cans beef broth and reduce water by 1 qt)
1 clove garlic minced
1 small can diced green chilies
2 cans diced tomatoes (feel free to use fresh, in season)
1/2 bunch green onions -chopped
1/2 bunch cilantro - chopped
1/4 cup rice
salt/pepper/hot sauce to taste
Bring water, beef base, garlic, chilies, and tomatoes to a roiling boil. Add meatballs and rice. Reduce the heat and simmer until the rice is soft. Add cilantro, green onions, and season to taste, simmering for an additional 10 minutes to allow the flavors to combine.
Serve hot with fresh, warm flour tortillas.

Easy Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup

I never saw the appeal of chicken tortilla soup. Tried it for the first time today, YUMMY! Very good. I am going to make a double batch next time and freeze some to see how that works out. I am very into freezer cooking right now.

Easy Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup

1 packet enchilada sauce or taco meat seasoning mix
1 1/2 C water
1 can tomato sauce
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 C milk
3-4 boneless chicken breasts (again, to be cheap, I used boneless thighs, turned out great)
1 can black beans, drained
1 can corn, drained
1 can diced tomatoes (southwest style)

In crock pot, mix the enchilada/taco packet together with the water and tomato sauce. Add cream of chicken soup and milk and whisk together until smooth. Add chicken. Pour drained black beans, drained corn and diced tomatoes on top of that. Cook on low 6-8 hours.Before serving, take out chicken and shred or dice, then put back and stir it all together. Serve with sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, avocado, or tortilla chips, or strips of tortilla for dipping.

Festive Coconut Bread

This recipe comes from the kitchen of my friend Beth Stimpson! She brought some over to us at Christmastime and it was gone in a flash. I begged for the recipe and she was so kind as to share with me. I have made it many times since, this bread freezes great! My recipe card is getting a little gunky, so at the risk of losing the recipe forever, I am posting it here! Thanks Beth for sharing your holiday family favorite with us!

Festive Coconut Bread

Mix
4 Eggs
2 C Sugar
1 C oil
2 tsp Coconut extract

Add & Mix
3 C flour
1/2 tsp soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Add
1 c buttermilk
1 c coconut
1 c chopped walnuts(optional) havent tried this yet

Pour in greased pans and Bake at 325.
Small loaves take about 40 minutes
Large loaves take closer to an hour

Make glaze shortly before you pull the bread out of the oven, I usually do this when the timer says 15 minutes.

1 c sugar
1/2 c water
2 T butter
Boil 5 minutes, stir in 1 tsp coconut extract

Pour over loaves when taken from oven, wait 5 minutes or so then remove bread from pan to cool.

It might look like an intimidating recipe, but its really pretty easy. The results are fabulous. I like to make all mini loaves and then freeze some for easy gift giving later!

Hawaiin Haystacks...or are they Utahn Haystacks...

Hey we had something really fun for dinner tonight! I don't live in Utah, therefore I had to be introduced to Hawaiian Haystacks by someone who grew up there. These are a fun treat for the whole family because you can pick and choose what you want on them. You start with a base of white rice and add a yummy creamy chicken in sauce. Then you pile on whatever else sounds good(see list below) and it looks like a giant haystack by the time you are done. Here is the EASY recipe for the chicken:

Hawaiian Haystacks

2 cans cream of chicken soup

2 frozen chicken breasts(I used thighs, cheaper and they were still really good)

milk (I did not end up adding any since it was already a good consistency)

Put chicken in the crock pot and then cover with soup. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Remove chicken from the crock pot and shred or dice the chicken and return to the crock pot. Add enough milk to make the consistency of gravy.

Serve the sauce over cooked rice. Then top with any of the following toppings. If you don't have some of these don't worry, they will still be great. I thought coconut and pineapple sounded a bit odd, but I tried it and loved it!

shredded cheddar cheese
diced tomatos

pineapple tidbits
peas

sliced olives

diced green onion

chopped celery

shredded coconut

slice almonds

diced fresh mushroom

Chow mien noodles

mandarin oranges

diced green pepper

water chestnuts

cashews

Italian Sausage Sandwiches

My family loves these sandwiches, they are not the healthiest(you could probably substitute ground turkey sausage), but are great for a quick and easy meal. Oh, as a variation to the recipe, we like to somewhat hollow out the top part of the hoagie roll before adding the filling so it closes when filled up.

Prep Time: 5 minutes Cook Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 pound Italian sausage
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1 can black olives sliced
  
• 1 can tomato sauce
  
• 1/2 teaspoon dried leaf oregano, crumbled
• 4 French or hoagie rolls, split
  
• 4 slices Mozzarella cheese

Preparation:

Italian Sausage Sandwich Directions
Crumble the Italian sausage into a skillet (if not bulk sausage, remove casings). Add chopped onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, over medium heat until sausage is thoroughly cooked; pour off excess fat. Stir in tomato sauce and oregano. Simmer for 4 to 5 minutes, until hot and bubbly. Place roll bottoms on a paper towel-lined plates. Spoon some sausage mixture into hollowed out top. Top each with a slice of cheese and the bottom of the roll. Microwave, uncovered, on 100% power for 45 seconds to 1 minute, or until cheese is just melted. Or, place foil-wrapped Italian sausage sandwiches on baking sheet and bake in at 350° for about 15 to 20 minutes. Italian sausage sandwich serves 4.

We prefer these made in the oven, but I left the microwave for those of you who prefer that method of cooking.

"Absent Cook" Stew (Crock Pot Recipe)

"Absent Cook" Stew (Crock Pot Recipe) - from Fix it and Forget it

• 2 lbs stewing beef, cubed
• 2-3 carrots, sliced
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 large potatoes, cubed
• 3 ribs celery, sliced
• 10 3/4-oz can tomato soup
• 1 soup can water
• 1 tsp salt
• dash of pepper
• 2 TBSP vinegar

1. Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker
2. Cover. Cook on low 10-12 hours

This is our family favorite-- well, one of my two children like it. Of course Jer likes it. I put in extra water and maybe only use one pound of meat. I love crock pot cooking- its so easy and the wonderful smells meet you at the door. Please share your slow cooking recipes.