Posted in Tips and Tricks

Tips and Tricks Tuesdays: Saving Your Dollars – Potato Chips, Crackers and Pretzels

Posted on by Northerly Nosh

Potato Chips, Crackers and Pretzels

20121209-154853.jpg

Stock up on chips, crackers and pretzels when they are on sale and throw them in the freezer. Frozen chips actually taste better. Eat them straight from the freezer, they are crisper and the flavors pop.

Nacho Dip

20121209-162636.jpg

1 1/2 lb. hamburger, fried 1pkg. taco seasoning
1 can refried beans Nacho cheese
1 jar Picante sauce, mild

Prep Day: Fry hamburger, drain grease. Add taco seasoning and Picante sauce. Freeze in a ziploc.

Serving Day: Allow meat to thaw in the refrigerator. Layer refried beans on bottom of baking dish. Then spread hamburger mixture over beans. Then sprinkle cheese over hamburger. Heat in a 350 degree oven until warm through. Use as dip for Nacho chips.

Posted in Meal Planning

Meal Planning Mondays: Recipes to Try the Week of 2/11-2/17/13

Posted on by Northerly Nosh

20130204-115523.jpg

Meal Planning Mondays are an experiment to see what works for my family. I like trying new recipes. I have too many pins on Pinterest that are not being utilized. This week I committ to making these recipes…a Taco Bake and Chicken Caesar Sandwiches. These recipes will continue to be made ahead time and frozen.

Taco Bake

20130204-103626.jpg

1 pound ground beef
2 Tablespoons taco seasoning
1/4 cup flour
2 cups chicken broth
3 to 4 cups tortilla chips
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack or cheddar cheese
lettuce
olives
salsa
sour cream

Prep Day: Brown beef in a saute pan over medium-high heat. Cook until it is no longer pink. Drain any fat. Add taco seasoning and flour. Cook for a minute. Add chicken broth. Simmer until thick, about 15 minutes.

Put the chips in a bag and crush them up a little bit. Spray a 9×13 pan with cooking spray. Layer chips, taco meat, and cheese. Add another layer. At this point, cover and chill before freezing. Once cooled freeze.

Serve Day: If frozen, thaw in the fridge. Bake in a preheated 325 degree oven for 20 to 30 minutes.

Chicken Caesar Sandwiches

20130204-110021.jpg

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
1/2 to 1 cup of Asiago or regular Caesar dressing
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley or use around 2 teaspoons of dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
2 cups shredded romaine lettuce
12 slider buns or 4-6 regular sized hamburger buns

Prep Day: Place chicken in a 3-4 quart slow cooker with 1-2 cups of water, cover and cook on low heat for 4-6 hours. Remove chicken from cooker using a slotted spoon and drain the water from the slow cooker. Place chicken on a cutting board and pull chicken into shreds, discarding any fat. Cool. Package for freezing with wrapped bun. Freeze

Serve Day: Thaw buns and Chicken. Once thawed, Place chicken back in the cooker and pour dressing, Parmesan cheese, parsley, and pepper over the top. Stir until mixed evenly. Cover and cook on high heat for 30 minutes or until mixture is hot. Spoon 1/4 cup mixture onto each slider bun if you are making sliders or more for regular sized buns. Top with extra shredded Parmesan cheese and lettuce to serve.

The rest of my meals for this week come from my meal swap stockpile and my quick on the go meals. We have 3 nights of the week that we don’t have real long time for dinner cause of activities.

Posted in Breakfast

Sunday Brunch: Carrot Cake Waffles

Posted on by Northerly Nosh

Carrot Cake Waffles

20130130-203917.jpg

Adapted from willowbirdbaking.com

Yields: about 7 waffles (using 1/2 cup batter for each)

Waffle:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon allspice
1 3/4 cups buttermilk* or 1 1/2 cups sour cream or plain yogurt thinned with 1/4 cup milk
2 eggs, separated
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup raisins
1 cup walnuts, chopped
1 1/2 cup finely grated carrots
Cooking spray for waffle iron

Maple Nut Cream Cheese Spread:
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
3-4 tablespoons maple syrup
1/8 cup chopped walnuts

Prep Day: Bloom the spices in butter: Heat 4 tablespoons butter in skillet over medium heat until melted, 1 to 2 minutes. Continue to cook, swirling pan constantly, until butter is light brown and has faint nutty aroma, 2 to 4 minutes. Add spices and continue to cook, stirring constantly, 15 seconds. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.

Combine the flour, salt, sugar, baking soda.

Mix together the buttermilk (or buttermilk substitute) and the egg yolks. Stir in the spiced butter and vanilla. Spray the waffle iron well and preheat it. Stir the wet into the dry ingredients.

Beat the egg whites in a separate bowl with a whisk or electric mixer (make sure bowl and mixer are spotlessly clean) until they hold soft peaks. Stir them gently into the batter. Add carrots, walnuts, and raisins. Stir gently to combine.

Spread a ladleful or so of batter onto the waffle iron and bake until the waffle is done, usually 3 to 5 minutes, depending on your iron. Spray iron with cooking spray between waffles as needed.

To Freeze: You can make a big batch, allow them to cool, and freeze them for a homemade alternative to preservative-laden commercial frozen waffles.

Serve Day:

To make Maple Cream Cheese spread, simply combine nuts, syrup, and cream cheese and mix well.

Rewarm in toaster or toaster oven.

Serve waffles immediately with a schmear of Maple Cream Cheese spread (which will get lovely and melty), or keep the waffles warm for a few minutes in a low oven.***

Notes:

* The buttermilk can be substituted with 1 1/4 cups of milk at room temperature, mixed with two tablespoons white vinegar, left to clabber for 10 minutes.