Blogging Drought

Hey friends! Its been quite a while (almost six months!) since I blogged.

Mark is in his third quarter at Louisiana Tech and he's doing great. He is a 4.0 student so far!

Callen and Jack are adjusting to life with a new baby brother. I'll try to post pics of Bennett Shepherd soon.

But the whole reason I'm even on the blog again . . .to post some recipes.  This week I finally had the opportunity to try making some freezer meals. And I made SIX meals in one hour. It really was easy. We've tried two of them so far and they are very yummy.

So, here you go friends . . . happy cooking!
These are the ones I did this week.

Cilantro Lime Chicken:
6-8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, 4 tbsp olive oil, 2 limes juiced, 2 cups fresh or 4 tsps dry cilantro, 4 cloves minced garlic, onion powder, 2 cans black beans drained and rinsed, 2 tsp cumin, salt and pepper
Put 3-4 chicken breasts into labeled ziplocs, add remaining ingredients, mix by shaking, label and freeze flat.
Cook in a crock pot on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours.
Serve on tortillas. Garnish with your favorite sides - sour cream, lettuce, salsa, cheese.

Hawaiian Chicken:
2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, 1/2 cup white sugar, 1/2 cup vinegar, 3 garlic cloves minced, 2 tbs soy sauce, 1/2 cup of pineapple juice (from can), 1/2 can large pineapple chunks
Label your freezer bag, including cooking instructions.
Add all ingredients to a freezer bag.
Lay flat and freeze.
To cook: dump all ingredients in crock pot and cook 4-5 hours on high or 6-7 hours on low.
Serve over rice and enjoy.

Garlic Honey Chicken:
1 1/2 to 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, 3 garlic cloves, minced, 1/3 cup soy sauce, 2/3 cup ketchup, 1/4 cup honey
Label the freezer bag, including cooking instructions.
Add all ingredients to a freezer bag.
Lay flat and freeze.
To cook: pour ingredients into crock pot and cook 3-4 hours on high or 5-6 hours on low.

Teriyaki Pork Chops:
4 pork chops, salt and pepper to taste, 2 cloves garlic (minced), 2 Tbs brown sugar, 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1/3 cup chicken broth
Label freezer bag.
Add ingredients to bag.
To cook: dump all ingredients into crock pot and cook on high for 4-5 hours or low for 6-7 hours.

Chicken Fajitas:
2 peppers, 1 onion, 1 1/2 pound chicken breast, 1/2 cup chicken broth, taco seasoning packet, 1 tsp. chili powder, 1/2 tsp paprika, 1 tsp salt
Label freezer bag. Put in all ingredients.
Dump all in crock pot and cook on high for 3-4 hours, low for 5-6 hours.
After cooking, shred the meat and add it back to the pepper mixture and serve on warm tortillas with your favorite toppings.

Haven't tried these, but plan to do them next . . .

Sloppy Joes:
3-4 pounds ground meat, 2 tbsp Montreal steak seasoning, 2 tbsp chili powder, 6 tbsp dark brown sugar, 6 tbsp Worcestershire sauce, 1 can tomato paste, 2 (14.5 oz) cans tomato sauce.
Brown meat, drain, let cool a little.
Divide all ingredients into 2 ziplocs, shake to combine ingredients.
Seal, label and freeze flat.
To cook: allow to thaw almost completely. Cook on med-high heat in saucepan or skillet until it starts to boil and allow to simmer for 10 mins.

Beef Burritos:
1 London Broil or top round roast, about 2 lbs
1 diced onion, 4 garlic cloves (minced), 2 tbs whole peppercorns, 2 tbs apple cider vinegar, 2 (8 oz) cans tomato sauce, 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (found in a can, use just ONE pepper), 1 1/2 tsp chili powder
Label freezer bag.
Add all ingredients to bag.
To cook: Pour ingredients into crock pot and cook on high 4-5 hours, low 6-7 hours. When the meat is cooked, strain and save juice. Add juice back to slow cooker. Shred meat and add it back to crock pot. Cook for another 30 minutes.

I have one more for Creamy Beef Enchiladas . . . but the baby just woke up. That's all you get for now.