Nesting hit me this weekend. One day it was in the form of cleaning and the next it took the form of cooking. Here are the recipes I used to make several casseroles and breakfasts to freeze for later. And, I have to tell you, having food and meals already taken care of, takes such a huge weight off our shoulders!
First things first, I have one complaint for the grocery stores. Can all the products and brands get together and decide on the same quantities to offer their products in? I wanted to make 12 muffins. Well, the muffins come in packs of 6, the sausage in packs of 8, the cheese in packs of 11 or 20, and the eggs in packs of 12. So I ended up making 8 muffins with sausage, egg, and cheese and 2 muffins with just egg and cheese. The same thing happens with hot dogs and hamburgers. Grrr, anyways…
One extra step I took for all of this was buying disposable casserole and meat loaf pans. This will allow for easy clean up when the time comes to actually eat these dishes which will be another huge time saver once the baby is here. It also allows me to still have the use of my glass casserole dishes, in case I actually have time to do some cooking.
The List
Turkey Sausage, Egg, and Cheese English Muffins
Turkey Meatloaf
Chicken Parmesan Meatloaf
Pioneer Woman’s Baked Ziti
Chicken Manicotti
Chicken Baked Spaghetti – didn’t have time to get to this one. Will post if I get to it!
Turkey Sausage, Egg, and Cheese English Muffins
Ingredients
12 english muffins (I bought the whole grain for an extra hearty muffin)
12 turkey sausage patties
12 eggs
12 slices of cheddar cheese
pepper
Directions
-preheat oven to 350 degrees
–Spray a muffin tin with non-stick spray
-Crack 1 egg into each muffin hole
-Use a fork or whisk to pop the yolk and sprinkle a bit of pepper onto each egg
-Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes until the egg is cooked through. (The eggs will be well done. I know we all prefer our eggs cooked differently, but because these are going to be frozen, it’s better just to bake them completely)
-Remove eggs from oven, run a knife around each edge, and the eggs will pop out easily.
–Open and layout all 12 english muffins
-Add 1 turkey sausage patty to each english muffin
-Add 1 slice of cheese to each english muffin
-Add 1 egg to each english muffin
-Add the top of the english muffin to finish
-Wrap each in foil and label for later
-Optional- add the reheating directions and date to a large freezer ziplock and add all of the muffins wrapped in foil to that freezer bag. This helps me keep the freezer organized.
Ready to Eat Directions
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees
If muffins are thawed, bake in the foil for 15-20 minutes
If muffins are frozen, bake in the foil for 30-40 minutes
*You could also microwave these, but you must remove the foil first. Also, the upside to baking in the oven, the muffins will toast up!
Turkey Meatloaf
Ingredients
1 egg
3/4 cup of milk
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1/3 cup quick cooking oats
1/3 cup italian bread crumbs
1/2 cup onions, chopped
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1 pound lean, 99% fat-free ground turkey
Sauce
2/3 cup ketchup
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon yellow mustard
Directions
-Spray 2 mini meatloaf pans with non-stick spray
-In a large bowl, whisk the egg and milk together. Then add the cheese, oats, breadcrumbs, onion, and seasoned salt…stir to combine. Add the ground meat and mix with your hands. (Don’t over mix, or the meatloaf will be tough)
-Split the meat mixture into 2 portions and set in the greased baking pans.
-In a small bowl, stir the ketchup, brown sugar, and mustard together. Spoon over each of the loaves.
-Cover with foil and label with date and reheating directions
Ready to Eat Directions
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees
-Bake uncovered…
-If defrosted, bake for 40-45 minutes, until meat is cooked through and juices run clear
-If frozen, bake for 55-60 minutes, until meat is cooked through and juices run clear
*You could easily make this into 1 whole meat loaf. But I decided it would be better to split these into 2 different meal portions.
*I‘ve made these into mini-meatloaves also, check out that recipe here.
Chicken Parmesan Meatloaf
Source: What’s Cookin, Chicago?
Ingredients
1 lb ground chicken or turkey
1 egg
1/4 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1-2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 small onion, grated
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup pasta sauce (homemade or store bought)
1/2 cup shredded Italian cheese blend
Directions
-Spray 2 mini meatloaf pans with non-stick spray
-In a large bowl, combine the ground chicken, egg, breadcrumbs, thyme, oregano, basil, garlic, onion, salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese. (Don’t over mix, or the meatloaf will be tough)
-Split the meat mixture into 2 portions and set in the greased baking pans.
-Top the meatloaf with pasta sauce.
-Cover with foil and label with date and reheating directions
Ready to Eat Directions
-Preheat oven to 350 degrees
-Bake uncovered…
-If defrosted, bake for 40-45 minutes, until meat is cooked through and juices run clear
-If frozen, bake for 55-60 minutes, until meat is cooked through and juices run clear
-Top with shredded mozzarella and place back in the oven for 10 minutes, until cheese is melted.
-Allow meatloaf to rest for 5-10 minutes before serving
Chicken Manicotti
With this one, I already had extra filling from the last time I made this in the freezer. So I thawed it out, cooked some manicotti noodles, stuffed them, placed in a casserole dish, covered with sauce, sprinkled some cheese, covered with foil (labelled with date), and place it in the freezer.
Here is the entire recipe again, but the original post can be found here.
1 8 oz containers chive-and-onion cream cheese
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
1 cup / 8 oz shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
3/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon seasoned pepper
1-2 24 oz jars of favorite marinara sauce
Top with Parmesan cheese and a sprinkle of dried oregano
In a large bowl, add chicken, cream cheeses, spinach, mozzarella cheese, breadcrumbs, garlic salt, and pepper. The original recipe says to stir…I say, get your clean hands dirty and mix it yourself. Like you would a meatloaf.
Slice the pasta lengthwise on one side, through the other side (you should be able to lay the noodle flat) Spoon about 1/2 cup chicken mixture into each shell, gently roll up the manicotti / pressing cut sides together. Place, cut sides down, in 2 lightly greased 9 x 13 baking dish.
Cover with foil and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until heated.
**FYI** So I bought a different brand of manicotti for the 3rd batch and the cooking directions said to boil for 9 minutes (the other brand said 7). And after 9 minutes, those things were falling apart!!! I still assembled the dish, but it was not as pretty as the other 2. Sometimes you can’t trust the box directions!
Pioneer Woman’s Baked Ziti
Source: The Pioneer Woman
When I first read over this recipe, it sounded like it would take forever and a lot of work to make my own sauce. But, I was pleasantly surprised. The sauce was simple to throw together and let simmer for 30 minutes. And of course I had the added plus of my house smelling like spaghetti. You could easily brown meat and add your favorite jarred marinara sauce to cut down on time.
Ingredients
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
3 cloves Garlic, Minced
1 whole Large Onion, Diced
1 pound Italian Sausage (I forgot this!)
1 pound Ground Beef
1 can (28 Ounce Can) Whole Tomatoes, With Juice
1 jar (28 or 32 Ounce) Marinara Sauce
2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
1/2 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
Salt And Pepper, to taste
16 ounces Ziti Cooked Until Not Quite Al Dente
1 tub (15 Ounce) Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese
1 1/2 pound Mozzarella Cheese, Grated
1/2 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
1 whole Egg
DirectionsFor the sauce:
-Heat olive oil in a pot over medium heat.
-Add onions and garlic and saute for several minutes, or until starting to soften.
-Add Italian sausage and ground beef and cook until browned.
-Drain off fat, leaving a bit behind for flavor and moisture.
-Add tomatoes, tomato juice, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes.
-Stir and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes.
-Cut off the heat and let the sauce cool down, but remove 3 to 4 cups of the sauce to a different bowl to cool down.
-In a separate large bowl, mix together the ricotta cheese, 2 cups of the grated mozzarella, Parmesan, egg, and salt and pepper. Stir together just a couple of times (do not mix completely).
-Drain the pasta and rinse under cool water to stop the cooking and cool it down.
-Pour the pasta into the bowl with the cheese mixture and toss to slightly combine (there should still be large lumps.)
-Add the cooled meat sauce from the pot and toss to combine.
Assembly:
-Add half the coated pasta to a large casserole dish or lasagna dish.
-Spoon half of the remaining sauce over the top, then top with half the remaining mozzarella cheese.
-Repeat with another layer of the coated pasta, the sauce, and the mozzarella.
-Cover with foil, label with date and reheat directions
Reardy to Eat Directions
-Thaw out the casserole
-Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
-Bake uncovered for 20 minutes, or until bubbling.
-Remove from oven and let stand 5 minutes before serving.
This Carolina Girl 