Tuesday, September 18, 2012
A Time to Freeze
It's time to freeze some meals! A new baby, no matter how seasoned you are in welcoming them into your home, adds it's own busy-ness to life and there's always an adjustment period. This is when I appreciate having some meals frozen in my freezer, on those days that seem insanely hectic or I'm just too exhausted to cook. I will say that our friends and church family are amazing at providing us meals when we have a baby. They are so generous and a real blessing to us. But once the meals stop coming and real life sets in, I am always thankful that I took the time to be prepared.
I just tried a new recipe from a recipe book I didn't have during other pregnancies. It's called Fix, Freeze, Take & Bake and it has so many really great recipes, perfect for making ahead and freezing. One that I just tried, and what we are having for supper tonight is so incredibly good that I had to share. No fancy pictures, or step by step instructions. Just a really great recipe. Don't forget to double it so you can get dinner and a meal to freeze! Actually if you are a small family you can easily get dinner and a meal to freeze with one recipe.
Chicken Tortellini Casserole
2 1/2 C. small frozen cheese tortellini pasta
1 1/2 C. frozen broccoli
2 C. cooked, diced chicken, fresh or canned (I used fresh)
1/2 C. grated Parmesan cheese
1 C. shredded mozzarella cheese
1 1/2 C. white sauce (see recipe below)
2-2 T. butter, melted
2/3 C. bread crumbs
1/2 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried parsley
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
In a medium pot, cook tortellini according to package directions. Add broccoli for final mine of cooking time to allow it to thaw and warm. Drain and rinse in cold water. In a medium bowl, toss together tortellini, broccoli, cooked chicken, Parmesan and mozzarella cheese. Transfer to a greased 2-qt casserole dish (I used a disposable aluminum pan for freezing). Pour white sauce over all and stir to combine. In a small bowl, combine melted butter, bread crumbs, basil, parsley and oregano. Sprinkle mixture over top of casserole. Cover and freeze.
To Prepare: Preheat oven to 375. Lightly cover and bake frozen casserole for 30 mins. Remove cover and bake an additional 20-25 minutes.
White Sauce
2 T. cornstarch
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 C. milk
2 T. butter or margarine
** I added granulated garlic**
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I love having extra meals in the freezer for the days I work, or the days when life is just too busy. It helps save money to have a back up healthy meal at home instead of getting pizza or takeout. This one sounds great! Do you just mix the ingredients for the while sauce in a bowl, or do you need to heat together in a pan first? thanks for the recipe!
ReplyDeleteHaha, yes, I did forget to tell everyone what to do with the sauce didn't I! You mix it all together on the stovetop, whisking constantly until it starts to boil. Let it boil for 1 min. then take it off the heat. 1 recipe of the sauce is what is needed for the tortellini so I had to double it to make two recipes. You can also freeze this sauce for up to 6 months.
ReplyDeletesounds great, thank you!
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