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evan

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I have finally realized that a day only have 24 hours, and to get off the take-out-wagon, I have decided to start making pre mader dinners. I'm starting today, that is.

I am so new to this I have no idea what I'm doing, but I did go out yesterday and bought pyrex glass containers to keep the food in.

I'm planning on making one portion per pyrex form, because the work schedule in this house those days is crazy and some days we eat at different times, so it's the easiest solution for now.

So, any ideas on what to fill those forms with?

I have some chicken in the freezer but I'd also love to make some fish.

And a last question: Do I have to pre cook the dinners?

TIA smileys/smile.gif

 
Are you going to freeze the food? Or are you planning to make several from

one central protein (like chicken). And how many servings do you want per meal?
For example you could get a rotisserie chicken (OR roast a chicken). I think it is the main dish that is the big thing to do because you can always fill in the veggies in 5 minutes, using fozen veggis and a salad (another idea on that in a minute).
SO if you are not freezing you could do a 3 day prep I think (not a whole lot longer).
Roast a 5# chicken. One meal is having the thighs and drumsticks for dintter.
Another meal to prep would be taking the white meat and making chicken pot pie. Use biscuits for the topping and don't have a bottom crust.
For you make ahead salads, look up the mason jar salad recipes--you layer salad ingredients in a pint mason jar and refrigerate.
Other ideas for pre-made meals would be to have taco fillings ready. Spagettie sauce. I think rather that a "pre-made meal" I would freeze things to thaw quickly and put together.

But since your idea is to get off takeouts, there are really good 30 minute meals. The Pioneer Woman has a section on them.

 
I can both freeze and keep it in the fridge. I am planning on making

2 portions a day, for four days.

Protein can be anything, really, but I thought it would be best to start with something easy, so I went for chicken.

I have made Evelyns briami and baked chicken breasts today. I also made a batch of soup (veggie beef soup). But if this is going to be my new *thing*, I need a broader reportoaire.smileys/bigsmile.gif

 
Hi Marilyn, I keep dropping back in here now and then when I look for recipes, but I don't always

have time to post.

That is, I couldn't find you this time and thought "OH HORROR" but thankfully, Eirin put me back on track. Phew. I have no idea what I would cook if this forum disappeared.

 
Eva I have never purchased takeout food and I work full time. I cook every day and have a tip or two

So good to see you here! I hope my ramblings give you some ideas:

I guess the only pre-cooked thing I ever buy is the occasional Costco rotisserie chicken- maybe once every few months. I change out dinners all the time but here is a sample week- I also use leftovers to take to work for lunches. I never throw food away- am always able to use to make other things. I'm not special- I have just learned over the years how to do it. I am convinced it is better to cook everything my DH and I eat instead of bringing takeout home. I always know what is in what we are eating.

On a weekend when I am home I will maybe roast an organic chicken (pouring a quart box of chicken broth in the bottom of the pan) that we have for dinner with easy sides- baked potato done in the microwave, steamed or sautéed veg or a salad. Then the second day I make something like chicken tacos or a BLT with chicken for dinner. I take the rest of the meat off the chicken carcass and either put the carcass and juices in the freezer in my "bones bag" to make into savory broth later or take the carcass, add an onion and carrot and simmer using boxed chicken broth and herbs, degrease it and put in the fridge for a couple days. On the "off chicken" days I will defrost pork chops or make burgers, spaghetti with homemade sauce (to use another day for pizza or whatever) or homemade pizza, all are easy. When I am ready to use the broth, I sauté veg in olive oil- potato, carrot, celery, onion, mushroom, whatever- pour in the broth I made, add herbs, hunks of the leftover chicken and simmer. Soup for dinner with quick bread (pepper/cheese) I made previously and put in the freezer. Other days I might pull out little meatloaves from the freezer or thaw salmon to put on the grill with veg (zucchini, yellow squash, onions, mushrooms, green beans or whatever) tossed in olive oil (grilled seperately from the salmon). I make a lot of the veg and use another night on top of good greens then make salad dressing. Another quick idea is to make Shrimp Scampi- so quick and easy. Thaw the shrimp- chop garlic and simmer for a couple minutes in melted butter, pour over shrimp and broil just for 3-4 minutes depending on the size of the shrimp. Serve with Fettucini Alfredo, Rice pilaf or whatever veggies you like. Great with Briami.

Here is a wonderful pot pie recipe I either got off the board or found somewhere else- I can't remember. I freeze in small aluminum loaf pans and make the crust dough fresh each time- I have successfully frozen individual balls of the dough too but fresh works out the best and is easy and quick to make:

CHICKEN AND SAUSAGE POT PIE
Savory Pastry:
1 C flour
1 tsp celery seed
½ tsp salt
½ tsp paprika
1/3 C shortening
Few Tbsp ice cold water
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Combine first four ingredients and cut in shortening with a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal. Sprinkle cold water evenly over surface a little at a time until dry ingredients are moistened. Shape into a ball and refrigerate.

Filling:
8 oz bulk pork sausage (I used Jimmy Dean hot)
About 2-1/2 C cooked chicken or turkey
Veg of choice cubed and sautéed until half done. (potato, carrot, onion, garlic, beans, peas, mush)
Garlic powder, pepper, thyme or Herbs de Provence
About 1 tsp curry powder (I use much more)
White sauce with pepper jack cheese- use cream and chicken broth

Method: Brown the sausage and set aside. Drain fat. Saute veg and set aside. Make cream sauce with cheese, add veg, turkey/chicken and sausage. Adjust seasonings. Roll out pastry and seal top. Make slits to let steam escape. Bake for about 30 min or until edges are brown.

And this slow cooker recipe that I have been making for years is great- put everything together the night before, refrigerate and slow cook during the day. Freeze the leftovers or all of it in containers to thaw another day:

SLOW-COOKER CASSOULET
chicken fryer, cut up about 4 lbs
flour to dredge chicken in
½ lb bacon, cut in pieces
1 large onion, peeled and chopped, 4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
3 heaping Tbsp parsley, chopped, 2 small bay leaves
1 tsp dry thyme, 1/2 tsp pepper
2-15 oz cans Cannellini beans (white kidney beans), drained
10 oz package frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1 lb Polish sausage or smoked sausage, sliced 1/2" thick
1/4 c dry white wine (I use dry Vermouth)

Cook bacon in a pan on the stove. Remove and set aside. Dredge chicken and brown in the bacon drippings with onions and garlic. Drain. Place chicken, onions, garlic and bacon in the slow cooker and sprinkle evenly with parsley, bay leaves, and pepper. Add spinach. Spoon beans and sausage on top. Pour on the wine, cover and cook on LOW 6 hours. Serve with small new potatoes or mashed potatoes. Note: can cook in big pot on top of stove- simmer for two hours covered OR bake at 350 degrees for 1-1/2 hours covered in the oven.

 
A few ideas for you...

First off, my style of cooking is verrry similar to what CathyZ does at her house, though I confess to grabbing a Costco rotisserie chicken more of then than she does and just LOVE how many meals I can get from that one $4.99 chicken including making a lovely stock from the bones and the stock gets used to make yummy soups, stews, etc.

We cherish leftovers for lunch the next day and often find the flavor has improved too.

Some thoughts that come to mind....you can get a lot of mileage from casseroles, soups, stews, chili, pasta dishes, meatloaves, and eggplant dishes like ratatouille, caponata, eggplant parmesan, or my new fave: Lebanese Baked Eggplant. Most of these items can make quite a few servings -- a meal for Day 1, then leftover for Day 2 and a bit to freeze in individual portions for future meals. Worth the amount of time you put into a dish to save you time and effort down the road with little sacrifice in flavor/texture for many of the dishes mentioned. Quiche and frittata also yield a good number of portions. And lasagna will yield quite a few portions -- as I recall, your DH loves your lasagna. Filled pastas like manicotti, cannelloni and stuffed shells would also be lovely. Enchiladas filled with cheese or beef or chicken or pork chile verde. Make a batch of spaghetti sauce, divide and freeze into portions you can just pull out and reheat then toss with fresh cooked pasta (and homemade meatballs that you can also freeze ahead), then pair with a salad and wallah, a quick-ish meal on a busy worknight.

Let us know if you would like any particular recipes....happy to post some.

 
CathyZ's Caponata is lovely and can be used in so many ways

as others said (notes following the recipe) a batch of caponata will last quite a while and can be used on fish, chicken, sandwiches, pizza, or in pasta or to fill omelettes.
Good mileage for the busy girl who enjoys cooking and eating well. smileys/smile.gif

Caponata
makes 3 cups

1/4 cup olive oil
1 eggplant, cut into 1" cubes
1 chopped onion
1 lb tomatoes, peeled, seeded and diced
3/4 cup sliced celery
1 thinly sliced carrot
1 medium diced zucchini
1 pepper, cut into 1" squares (green, yellow, orange or red)
1/3 cup sliced stuffed green olives
1/4 cup minced parsley
3 tbsp red wine
2 tbsp minced basil
2 tbsp capers
1-1/2 tbsp tomato paste
1 crushed garlic clove
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 cup lightly browned pine nuts

In a large pan, heat the oil and sauté the eggplant and onion until golden. Add the tomatoes, celery, carrots, zucchini, peppers, olives, parsley, red wine, basil, capers, tomato paste, garlic, salt, sugar and pepper. Cook, stirring, until it reaches a simmer. Cover and simmer 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the cover and cook until thickened. Sprinkle with pine nuts and serve at room temperature. Keeps 3 weeks, refrigerated. Serve with crackers, toasted bread rounds or toss with pasta or use on pizza crust for a main course.

Source: CathyZ

MoNJ: Try it over fish, chicken, in sandwiches, omelettes. It's so handy to have on hand. It truly does last 3 weeks too!!

1995 CathyZ: Here is my favorite recipe- I make this quite often as it is SO good. Try spreading some on pizza dough instead of normal pizza sauce- it is the best! It has many ingredients but don't be put off by it- charge right in because it is well worth it.

CathyZ said: This can be tossed with spaghetti squash too, if you want to avoid using pasta.

CZ’s notes: This is from Terence Janericco's TERRIFIC book 'The Book of Great Hors d'Oeuvre'. I double the recipe and freeze some- we also love it tossed with pasta and also on pizza- it is one of the very few recipes I found in a book that I have never "messed" with- I make it verbatim and it is...well, just try it and see. Don't be put off by the large number of ingredients!

Mark in Houston (2003): Make omelets filled with Cathy Z's Caponata. This is about the best thing to ever meet up with fresh eggs!

 
I love your ideas, Cathy. And thanks for sharing the recipes - I haven't

thought of pot pies and cassoulets, but they are perfect!

I really want to try to use as much vegetables as possible (beside the protein, obviously), because I like the idea of eating a varied diet.

I'm printing out your recipes for next week (I do my shopping on Thursdays) so I'll see what I have in my cabinets already and put the rest on my list.

 
a fish idea for you... Sandra's Red Snapper Veracruzana

I confess to not being a big fan of reheated fish because it tends to be too dry for my taste (and a bit more 'fishy' than I personally like) but have had good success gently reheating leftovers from this recipe.

Red Snapper Veracruzana

1 pound snapper or other white firm fish
3 whole limes, juiced
6 oz water
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 whole onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, mashed
1 dash cumin
1 dash pepper
3 tablespoons capers with juice
1/3 cup spanish olives with juice, chopped
1 whole bay leaf
3 whole tomatoes, chopped
jalapenos or serranos to taste, chopped big
1 cup dry white wine

Marinate fish in lime juice water and salt for 1/2 hour. Drain and place fish in a lightly oiled baking dish.
Preheat oven to 350F.
In a large pan, saute all ingredients for sauce. Pour the sauce over the fish. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until fish is opaque.
Serve with boiled potatoes. Can also be made with shrimp.
Source: Sandra in London (now NYC)

Pat’s notes: Easy and tasty. The second time I made it was even better. Sauteed the sauce ingredients (cutting back on the wine to about 1/2 cup and omitted cumin) then placed fish fillets (used perch) and shrimp on top and nestled down into the sauce a little. Allowed them to cook in the sauce, turning once -- no oven needed -- just cooked stovetop. Was delicious. Served with jasmine rice and steamed zucchini.

 
I really agree about reheating fish dishes. This recipe looks delicious but fish

cooks SO quickly I would just make the sauce and cook it fresh when serving it for dinner.
And thanks for that recipe--I will make it when we go to the beach next month.

 
In regular rotation here is Stuffed Zucchini and Red Bell Peppers but I use only colorful bell

peppers most of the time and no zucchini (the zucchini is good but I like the colorful bells better). I especially like these stuffed peppers Day 2 (gently reheated in microwave for lunch) and find the flavors to be even better than Day 1. When I was low-carbing I omitted the bread crumbs and didn't miss them.

Stuffed Zucchini and Red Bell Peppers

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, grated
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
1 large egg
3 tablespoons ketchup
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup grated Pecorino Romano (P’s note: I usually use Parmesan)
1/4 cup dried plain bread crumbs
1 pound ground turkey, preferably dark meat
2 zucchini, ends removed, halved lengthwise and crosswise
1 short orange bell pepper, halved and seeded
1 short red bell pepper, halved and seeded
1 short yellow bell pepper, halved and seeded
1-1/2 cups marinara sauce

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Lightly drizzle the olive oil into a 13 by 9 by 2-inch baking dish. Whisk the onion, parsley, egg, ketchup, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large bowl to blend. Stir in the cheese and bread crumbs. Mix in the turkey. Cover and refrigerate the turkey mixture.

Using a melon baller or spoon, carefully scrape out the seeds and inner flesh from the zucchini, leaving 1/8-inch-thick shells. Be careful not to pierce through the skin. Fill the zucchini and pepper halves with the turkey mixture, dividing equally and mounding slightly. Arrange the stuffed vegetables in the baking dish. Pour the marinara sauce over the stuffed vegetables.

Bake uncovered until the vegetables are tender and beginning to brown and a thermometer inserted into the filling registers 165 degrees F, about 45 minutes. Transfer the stuffed vegetables to a platter and serve.

Source: Giada https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/stuffed-zucchini-and-red-bell-peppers-recipe-1916276

Pat’s notes: Delicious -- lots of flavor. Sometimes I use all bell peppers (not green ones), no zucchini. Don’t skimp on the marinara sauce. Terrific with Sesame Rice (recipe below), and spinach sautéed with garlic and olive oil or a salad.

Sesame Rice
Serves 4

2 cups water
1 tsp Kosher salt
1 tbsp butter
1 cup rice (Pat’s note: I always use Trader Joe’s jasmine rice)
dash white pepper
1/2 tsp salt, optional
1-2 tbsp dark sesame oil
1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds (Pat’s note: used some black sesame seeds too...nice color contrast)
1/4 cup green onions sliced, include green tops

Boil water in a medium saucepan and add salt and butter. Bring to a boil and add rice. Boil for 2 minutes, then cover and simmer for 18 minutes. Fluff rice with a fork and cover with a paper towel and replace lid. Let sit for about 10 minutes. Fluff again and add 1 or 2 tablespoons sesame oil, white pepper, salt, sesame seeds and green onions.

Source: Michelle/CA through Lisa/LA

Pat’s notes: Very tasty. Great accompaniment to Stuffed Zucchini and Bell Peppers, Spicy Hoisin Chicken and snow peas; Korean-style Grilled Beef Short Ribs and Scallions.

Michelle’s notes: I make this rice all the time. My husband and kids love it and it goes with just about anything. Easy to make too!

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/stuffed-zucchini-and-red-bell-peppers-recipe-1916276

 
I tend to agree with you. The only fish I've had success reheating is bacalao, which

uses dry cod. It's a little more "sturdy", I think.

Salmon, on the other hand, gets dry in the blink of an eye.

 
LOL I was going to post stuffed zucchini and also a stuffed peppers recipe, Pat

 
Oooh, please do. Would love to see 'em, especially the stuffed zucchini. My current favorite

is soo good as a leftover. Will do a search and see if I've posted it. Please post your recipes, Cathy. smileys/smile.gif

 
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