Freezer Cooking Day--Results of Day 1

Whew!!  I made it.  The last of the dishes have been done and I'm ready to put my feet up!!!  The afternoon didn't go quite as smoothly as the morning did, but, that's OK.  Ava and Anna are the two sickies in the family.  We thought Ava might have the Swine Flu, but, we are pretty convinced, now, that it's Croup;  I affectionately refer to her as my "Barking Seal!"  Ava cried out during her nap several times (which is VERY unlike her) and needed to be consoled, but she ended up napping for 3 hours straight!  But, sweet Anna just didn't want to nap for long!!  (At 3 months old, I think she's teething!!)  She sure was happy, though, to be with me in the kitchen:



I did get a few more things made this afternoon, though:

• 2 batches of Tuna Casserole--Check!

• World's Easiest Christmas Candy--Check!

Half the battle, and what took some time, too, was the slicing, chopping, packaging, etc.  It's a little time consuming!!

So, here's a recap of what I accomplished today and what is pictured above:

4---2 cup bags of Shredded Pork

2---loaves of Banana Bread  (I slice mine and lay the slices in the bag flat.  That way, we can grab a few slices when we want them and not have to grab the whole loaf.)

2--Tuna Noodle Casseroles

4 pounds---Taco Meat

1 batch--World's Easiest Christmas Candy

2 batches--Chili  (I save Spaghetti Sauce jars, Peanut Butter jars, etc, and put the Chili in there.)

Also, not pictured, is 10 pounds of Bananas the kids helped me chop and are being flash frozen in the freezer!

Here's how I store the Candy:

I save my coffee cans:

I put a piece of waxed paper at the bottom:

Load the candy in:

Top the Candy off with onn more piece of waxed paper, and put the lid on!

Store in the FREEZER.  It will last a lonnnnnng time this way!

Alright, so here's what I hope to get accomplished tomorrow:

• 2---Meatloaves

• 1---Batch Homemade Bisquick

• 1---Batch Moist Pumpkin Spice Muffins

• 2---More batches of World's Easiest Christmas Candy

This list doesn't seem too daunting, so we'll see how it goes!!

Thanks for joining me today!!!  See you tomorrow!

Freezer Cooking Day--Update

Since I just got all 3 kids nestled all snug in their beds for their (hopefully!) long winter's naps, I decided I'd give you all a little update!

Here's what I've accomplished, so far:

• 2 Loaves of Banana Bread---CHECK!

• Double batch of Chili done and simmering away---CHECK!

• 4 pounds of Taco Meat done and cooling---CHECK!

• Pork in the Crockpot doing its thing---CHECK!

• Bananas chopped and in the freezer---CHECK!

(Disclaimer:  those are PLASTIC knives!!)

And, even though I got MULTIPLE projects out for Ava and Luke to work on while I was cooking, they had fun ransacking the living room and playing with their wee sister, Anna!  When I put Anna on the floor for a little "tummy-time" (supervised, of course!), both Ava and Luke got on the floor with her and begged me to take a picture:

Now it's time for me to do a little clean-up, throw in a load of laundry, grab a quick bite to eat, and then I'm off and running, again!!

Freezer Cooking Day!

I have been inspired by Money Saving Mom and Life as Mom, and I'm joining in!!!  Today I'm going to start a 2-Day Freezer Cooking Day!  I may be getting WAY in over my head on this one, since I have 2 out of 3 sick kiddos, but since I know we won't be venturing out for much these next few days, why not get some freezer meals done?!!

So, here's my plan for the next 2 days:

• Shredded Pork (already prepared and in the Crockpot!)


• 2 Loaves Banana Bread


• Chop up rest of Bananas and freeze for Smoothies


• 2 pans of Meatloaf


• 2 Tuna Noodle Casseroles


• Homemade Bisquick


• 3 batches Taco Meat


• 1 batch of Chili


• World's Easiest Christmas Candy


• Moist Pumpkin Spice Muffins

I think I'll stop there and see how all this pans out!!  This might be WAY too much, or I might be able to add more.  We'll see!  I'll be back later to give a progress report!!

Join me!!!

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Tip Tuesday

Here are some tips for you, on what to do with your leftovers from Thanksgiving/Christmas!!!  Part of being frugal is using your leftovers to their FULL capacity!!  There are oodles of things you can do, but, here are a few ideas for you:

1.  Open-faced Hot Turkey Sandwiches----My mom used to make these for us after Thanksgiving--so simple and so good!  It's simply a slice of buttered bread, cut in half.  Scoop on some mashed potatoes and smother it with Gravy,  (Put pieces of chopped up Turkey in the gravy),  and enjoy!

2.  Shepherd's Pie----My mom has made this one, too!  There are many versions of this, so you can really do it with whatever you have on hand after you big Holiday meal, but here's the idea:  Layer one on top of the other:  Chopped up pieces of Turkey, stuffing, gravy, Cranberry Sauce, Green Bean Casserole and finish it up with Mashed potatoes on top.  Bake until it's bubbly!

3.  Turkey Pot Pie----Use pie crust on the bottom, turkey chunks, Cream of Chicken Soup, and mixed veggies pressed in.  Use a pie crust or mashed potatoes on top!  (Thanks, Amy S.W.!)

4.  Turkey Enchiladas----You can do it casserole-style, layered instead of individually rolled.  (Thanks, Amy S.W.!)  I also came across this recipe for Chicken Enchiladas that sounds YUMMY!  Just replace chicken with Turkey! HERE

5.  It's always a great idea to make your own Broth, or Turkey Soup!  There are numerous recipes out there if you don't have one of your own.

6.  Turkey Tetrazzini---There are many, many versions of this dish.  Just Google it and find one that suits your tastes!

7.  Turkey Lasagna---Whip up your favorite Lasagna recipe and add cubed Turkey.

8.  Potato Cakes---Shape your leftover Mashed Potatoes into patties and fry them up for Breakfast.

9.  Turkey Mac and Cheese---If your kids are like mine, they LOVE a good 'ol helping of boxed Mac and Cheese!  Have you ever added Tuna or Chili to it?  How about adding a little leftover Turkey!

10.  Freeze it!---Many, if not all, these meals above will freeze beautifully!  Or, if you're not in the mood to make a meal, simply dice up your Turkey and freeze it by the 2 cupfuls in zip top bags.  It'll be ready to use when you need it!