World's Best Rice Pudding

THIS IS HOW GOD INTENDED US TO EAT RICE!! 

 Forget the soy sauce, the gravy, etc.  It's all about this amazing recipe.  Plus it's gluten free!  And isn't eating gluten free a healthy way to eat?  Actually this recipe is pretty healthy given the alternatives.

So here is the recipe for the World's Best Rice Pudding

8 C milk - I used fat free and it turned out great!

1 C sugar - you could use Splenda too

1 C long grain rice


Combine these 3 ingredients in a large pot.  Bring to a boil over medium heat. Then simmer on low heat for 1 hour, covered (don't start the timer until it's come to a boil).  Stir every 10 minutes or so.


In a bowl mix up...
3 eggs
1/4 C milk
1/4 t salt - I always use Kosher
2 t vanilla - please make sure you use GOOD vanilla!  I love the Mexican vanilla and you can now buy it at the grocery store.
1 t cinnamon. 


I mix these up just as the rice is starting to simmer so that by the time I add them to the rice mixture it's at room temperature.


When rice is finished simmering slowly pour in the egg mixture.  Make sure you stir as you pour or the eggs will scramble.  Stir over the heat for 2 minutes, constantly stirring.  Don't stop stirring unless you want scrambled egg rice pudding.


After 2 minutes pour mixture into a 9x13 pan.  Cover with plastic wrap.  Vent the corners so the steam can escape.  Let it cool to room temperature.  Remove plastic wrap and sprinkle with cinnamon.  Re-cover with clean plastic wrap and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.


Enjoy!!

Chicken & Sausage Manicotti

I made this last night for the fam and WOW was it good!

Chicken & and Sausage Manicotti - Makes 2 casseroles (7 servings each)

1 pound sliced fresh mushrooms

2 med green bell peppers, chopped

2 med onions, chopped

1 T olive oil

4 garlic cloves minced

3 (26 oz each) jars spaghetti sauce

1 1/4 C water

1 1/2 pounds chicken tenderloins (I didn't have tenderloins so I just used chicken breasts)

4 t dried basil

2 t chicken seasoning (I used poultry seasoning)

2 packages (8 oz each) uncooked manicotti shells

1 pound fully cooked andouille or Italian sausage links, halved lengthwise and sliced (I only had ground Italian sausage in my freezer so I used that and it was perfect. I will only make it with the ground sausage but to each his own, right?)

2 C shredded mozzarella cheese

2 C shredded cheddar cheese (again, I used what I had. I only had a tiny bit of cheddar cheese left so I sprinkled what I had left and then sprinkled the mozzarella cheese then I topped that off with some shredded parmesean cheese)

In a large pot saute mushrooms, peppers and onions in olive oil until tender, add the garlic, cook 1 minuted longer. Stir in the spaghetti sauce and water.

Cut the chicken in strips. You'll want one strip for every manicotti shell. Sprinkle the chicken strips with the basil and chicken seasoning. Stuff the raw chicken into uncooked manicotti shells (my strips were really thin and didn't "stuff" the shells and it turned out perfect).

Spread 1 C sauce mixture in each of two greased 9x13 pans. Arrange manicotti over sauce, sprinkle with sausage. Pour remaining sauce over top, sprinkle with cheeses.

Cover and freeze one casserole for up to 3 months (make sure to label with the recipe name, the date made and the cooking instructions). Cover and bake the remaining casserole at 375 degrees for 55-65 minutes or until bubbly and pasta is tender. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

To use the frozen casserole: Thaw in refrigerator overnight. Remove from the refrigerator 30 min before baking. Leave cover on and bake at 375 degrees for 55-65 minutes or until done. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

This is seriously SO good! And all 3 of my kids devoured it. In fact my daughter wanted the leftovers for breakfast this morning!

Make Your Freezer Meal Life Easier...and a recipe

Here are a few tips to make Once A Month Cooking or just freezing meals in general a lot easier...at least to me.

You'll want: 2 sets of measuring cups. One for wet ingredients and one for dry.

2 sets of measuring spoons, REALLY large mixing bowls (3 or 4), large mixing spoons, large pots (you can use your canner if you have one), disposable foil baking pans, extra heavy duty foil (so important. You don't want freezer burn), Freezer zip top bags, disposable plastic containers, permanant marker, 2 timers, food processor, slow cooker, and a large garbage can.

More tips coming soon. There's a TON of info I want to share with you. Until then..here's another recipe (tried and GOOD)

Cream Cheese Chicken - Makes 6 servings

1 (.7) envelope Italian dressing mix

1/2 C butter

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 (8 oz) package cream cheese

Turn slow cooker on high. Melt butter in bottom of slow cooker. Stir in Italian dressing Mix. Cut chicken breasts into 1 inch strips. Place in slow cooker and stir to coat with the butter mixture. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours. Remove chicken to a plate to cool. Add cream of chicken soup and cream cheese to the liquid in slow cooker. Stir to melt and mix until smooth and creamy. Remove sauce from slow cooker and allow to cool. Place chicken and sauce into freezer bag. Label and freeze.

To serve: Thaw. Heat and stir until smooth, hot and bubbly. Serve over mashed potatoes, rice or hot buttered noodles.

This is soooo delicious! It can easily be doubled so you can enjoy for dinner and then freeze the rest.

Freezer Meals 101

I really do love cooking as little as possible! So I am a HUGE fan of freezer meals. When I first started the cooking a once a month system I was overwhelmed. I had no idea how long I could freeze certain foods. I didn't know what froze well and how to store it in the freezer. I'm here to help!

First here's what doesn't freeze well: Mayonnaise, sour cream, gravies and cream based sauces. The foods made with these will separate when thawed and have a watery or curdled look. Raw produce like cabbage, lettuce, leafy greens, cucumbers watermelon, radishes, tomatoes and citrus fruits become limp and nasty when frozen. Onions and peppers are the exception here. Cooked potatoes are also a no-no. Well when they are used in soups and other dishes. Mashed potatoes and twice baked potatoes are fine to freeze and freeze well. Dairy items will separate while defrosting so don't freeze those. And be VERY careful with cooked pasta. I'll give you more hints about pasta later. 

I should mention that all recipes that I post have been tried by little ole me and I have found them to be delicious and to hold up to freezing.  So if you see sour cream and things like that just know that this recipe makes it work.  

I like to use foil baking dishes and zip top bags to store my food in. If a recipe calls for a 9x13 pan I use a disposable, foil one. If it's soup or a sauce or something to re-heat in a pot I use a zip top bag. And I always double up on the bags just in case one gets a tear in it or something like that.

Is anyone interested in learning how to cook for a month in one day or are you just interested in how to double up your recipes and freeze those? I can teach you all both if you want. Just let me know. So for now I'll just share some of my favorite, tried and trusted recipes that freeze well!

Beefy Macaroni - Makes 2 casseroles (8 servings each)

4 C uncooked elbow macaroni

2 pounds lean ground beef

2 C chopped onion

4 8 oz cans tomato sauce

2 t celery salt

1/2 t pepper

1 C beef broth

2 8 oz packages softened cream cheese

2 C cottage cheese

1 C sour cream

Cook macaroni in boiling, salted water for 2 minutes less than the shortest time recommended on package* Brown the ground beef with the onion. Remove from heat. Add macaroni, tomato sauce, celery salt, pepper and broth. In a separate bowl, beat together cream cheese, cottage cheese and sour cream. In a greased 9x13 foil baking pan, make 2 layers each of beef and pasta mixture then cheese mixture. Cover with extra heavy foil. Label and freeze**

To serve: Thaw. Bake covered for 1 hour at 350 degrees. Or you can bake one now and freeze the other one!

*DO NOT OVERCOOK THE PASTA. As it sits in the freezer and defrosts the pasta will continue to soak up the moisture. If you under cook it like this you will end up with perfect pasta. If you cook it for the recommended time you will have a nasty mushy meal.

**Label with a permanent black marker with the name of the dish, the date made, and the baking/re-heating directions.

I will take pictures of tonight's meal and post later! We are having Spaghetti Beef Casserole! Yum!

Feeding Your Family The CHEAP Way

I really do love to cook.  But there are some things that drive me crazy about cooking at home.  I hate grocery shopping.  I know there are some that love it.  Maybe I should give them my list and have them go shopping for me. 

I hate cleaning up the mess that I make after cooking dinner.  Where are the guys behind every cooking show cleaning up after them?  Why can't I have those?  I really want them.  I also want them to do all the prep work so I just have to show up for the fun.

I also hate the cost.  It's expensive to feed a family of 5 these days. 

I think I've found a solution to all my problems!  Guess what I've been doing lately?  I'm doubling up on my recipes cooking one then and freezing the other one.

I just finished up the grocery shopping for the next 2 weeks.  That includes breakfast, lunch and dinners.  Guess how much I spent?  $105!!  That is without coupons folks.  I used to be a huge coupon clipper but I really don't have the time for that right now.  That doesn't include toiletries and other items like that.  We are eating well too!

Here's the menu:

Chili

Spaghetti Beef Casserole

Quick Pizza Rolls

Chicken & Sausage Manicotti

Creamy Chicken Casserole 

Spaghetti

Chicken, Salad and Bread

Guess what?  I won't have to cook next week!  Sure we'll have to rotate the same menu until I have more meals stocked up but who cares?  I've tried the whole "once a month cooking" thing.  It's great but it's a TON of work.  I've found that doubling up a recipe is really not any more work or mess than cooking one meal at a time.  So what do you think?  Want to try it too?  Want the recipes?