Tomato-Basil Meat Loaves

Welcome to Freezer Food Friday!

A little late putting this up… got lost in THE wedding! LOL!

Here is a recipe for 4 small meat loaves (  2 servings each ), but I think I will make 2 family size meat loaves out of it. One for dinner and the other for the freezer.

Please share a recipe and link it below. Comments are always welcome!

Tomato-Basil Meat Loaves

3 eggs
2 lb lean (at least 80%) ground beef
½ cup Progresso® Italian style bread crumbs
1 cup chopped Italian plum tomatoes (3 medium)
½ cup finely chopped onion (1 medium)
½ cup ketchup
2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, beat eggs. Stir in all remaining ingredients until well blended. On large sheet of waxed paper, shape mixture into 4 (6 1/2×3-inch) loaves. Wrap 3 meat loaves tightly in heavy-duty foil; freeze up to 2 months.

2. Place 1 loaf in ungreased shallow baking pan; bake 40 to 50 minutes or until thoroughly cooked in center and meat thermometer reads 160°F. Let meat loaf stand 5 minutes before serving.

3. To thaw frozen meat loaf, place in refrigerator for 24 hours, or unwrap and place on microwavable plate; microwave on Defrost about 10 minutes or until thawed. Bake meat loaf as directed above.

Makes 8 servings (1/2 meat loaf each)

Hearty Beef Soup

Welcome to Freezer Food Friday.

Today I have a simple soup that can be made for dinner and the leftovers frozen OR freeze individual servings for later use.

Share your recipe and link it below.

 

Hearty Beef Soup

1 can Rotel tomatoes
2 cans Ranch beans
3 cans minestrone soup
3 cans water (use minestrone soup can)
1 pound ground beef or ground turkey
1 medium onion

Sauté onion and ground beef in large pot. Add Rotel tomatoes, Ranch beans, minestrone soup and water. Simmer for about 30 minutes or until hot on medium heat.

Makes enough for eight. You can also freeze the soup in individual containers to reheat later.

Freezer Food Friday: Make-Ahead Mexican Meat Mixture

Howdy, Welcome to Freezer Food Friday. 

 

Please post a recipe that can be made ahead and frozen for later use. Link it below using Mister Linky and make sure to visit each blog who shares. I am on Twitter if you want to follow me and have started collecting Swagbucks. Swagbucks is a search engine where you can win bucks for searching ( I just use it in place of Google ). Check it out and see if it works for you!

Make-Ahead Mexican Meat Mixture

1 egg
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 to 5 teaspoons chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 pounds fresh, ground, raw chicken, turkey or lean ground beef (or a combination)

In a large bowl, slightly beat the egg. Add the onion and stir in the chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Add the meat and mix well.

Form meat mixture into four 1/2-inch-thick rectangles. Then wrap, seal and freeze each piece. Meat mixture may be frozen up to 3 months.

To thaw in refrigerator, place wrapped, frozen meat block in a baking dish in refrigerator the night before cooking.

To thaw in hot water, fill a pan with hot water. Place frozen block of meat in a zip-close bag and submerge in water (I place another pot on top of meat and fill it with water to keep meat submerged.)

To thaw in microwave oven, place one frozen, unwrapped meat block in a baking dish. Microwave on 30 percent power (medium-low) for 2 1/2 minutes. Rotate dish a quarter turn. Cook, covered, on medium-low about 2 1/2 minutes more or until thawed but not cooked.

Once thawed, cook mixture to use as a filling in taco, tortillas or in a simple skillet dinner as directed in the accompanying recipe.

Makes 4 loaves; each loaf makes 4 servings.

Chicken Basil Meatloaf Freezer Recipe

Welcome to Freezer Food Friday.

 Today I have a recipe for Chicken Meatloaf to share. I am looking forward to seeing what you have. Post your recipe on your blog ( or leave it in the comments here if you do not have a blog) and link it below with Mr. Linky.

 

  

Chicken Basil Meatloaf Freezer Recipe

 

1 1/2 lbs ground chicken

1 tbsp oil

1 medium onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp fresh basil or 2 tsp dried basil

2 tbsp fresh parsley or 2 tsp dried parsley

salt & pepper to taste

1 egg

1/4 cup ketchup

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup dried bread crumbs

 

In a large skillet, heat oil then stirfry onion, garlic, basil, salt and pepper for about 2-3 minutes or the onions are translucent but not turning brown. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, beat the egg. Then add onion stirfry mixture, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, and parsley. Stir. Add ground chicken and bread crumbs, kneading with your hands until completely combined. Place chicken mixture into a loaf pan. Preheat oven to 350F. Bake for 1 hour or until a meat thermometer inserted into the center registers 170F. Remove from oven and allow to stand for 5-6 minutes. Remove from loaf pan and allow to cool. Freeze in freezer container or in ziploc bag.

 

On cooking day:

 

Allow to thaw overnight in fridge. Cut into serving size pieces and reheat in skillet until heated through (can add about 1/2 cup water or chicken stock to skillet to prevent it from getting too dried out, if needed). Serve.

 

 

Slow Cooker Salisbury Steak

Slow Cooker Salisbury Steak

2 pounds lean ground beef
1 (1 ounce) envelope dry onion soup mix
1/2 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup all-purpose flour 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed cream of
chicken soup
1 (1 ounce) packet dry au jus mix
3/4 cup water

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, mix together the ground beef, onion soup mix, bread crumbs, and milk using your hands. Shape into 8 patties.

2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Dredge the patties in flour just to coat, and quickly brown on both sides in the hot skillet. Place browned patties into the slow cooker stacking alternately like a pyramid. In a medium bowl, mix together the cream of chicken soup, au jus mix, and water. Pour over the meat. Cook on the Low setting for 4 or 5 hours, until ground beef is well done.

ITALIAN TOMATO PASTA SKILLET

ITALIAN TOMATO PASTA SKILLET

 

( from Del Monte Recipes )

1 lb. ground beef

1  can (14-1/2 oz.) DEL MONTE® Diced Tomatoes with Green Pepper & Onion

1  cup water

1  can (10-3/4 oz.) condensed cream of mushroom soup

6  oz. penne pasta

1  cup shredded mozzarella cheese

 

 

1.     Brown meat; drain.

2.     Stir in undrained tomatoes, water, soup and uncooked pasta. Bring to boil.

3.     Reduce heat; cover and simmer 15 minutes.

4.     Sprinkle cheese on top. Cover and let stand 2 minutes until cheese is melted.

Meatballs and Tomato Gravy

 Welcome to Freezer Food Friday. I apologize for having the post up so late… Today was nuts I made chili and banana bread for my hubby to take to his office Christmas party, then had four additional kids come so their mom could do some Christmas shopping. I just realized it is Friday!  So here is the Freezer Food Friday post. Post your recipe and link it below. I will come visit!

 

 

Meatballs and Tomato Gravy

Serves 4

For tomato gravy:
1 (24-ounce) jar marinara sauce
1/2 cup red wine
1/2 cup reduced-sodium beef broth
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 teaspoons crushed garlic

For meatballs:
1/2 cup Italian bread crumbs
1/3 cup evaporated milk
1 pound ground beef
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Hot cooked pasta
Grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Preparation and freezing directions:
1. For tomato gravy, in a large straight-side skillet, combine marinara, wine, broth, oregano and garlic. Simmer, uncovered, on low to medium heat while you prepare meatballs.

2. For meatballs, in a large bowl, combine bread crumbs and milk and soak for 5 minutes. Add ground beef, Parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper, mixing well. Wet your hands to keep mixture from sticking to them and roll into 1-1/2-inch meatballs (you should have about 30).

3. Raise heat under sauce to medium. When sauce is almost boiling, carefully drop meatballs into sauce. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Remove lid. Simmer for 5 minutes more.

4. Serve over hot cooked pasta or prepare to freeze. If freezing, cool for 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to freezer container and cover loosely with aluminum foil. Cool completely in refrigerator. Once cool, remove foil and cover tightly with lid. Label and freeze.

Thawing and reheating instructions:
Thaw meatballs completely in refrigerator. Transfer to a large skillet and bring to a boil. If necessary, thin sauce with beef broth. Serve with hot cooked pasta. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese, if using.

  

Minestrone Ground Beef Soup

Today is Slow Cooking Thursday, hosted by the lovely Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom . Share a recipe on your blog and go link it at her blog.

Please come back and Join me for Freezer Food Friday and a pot pie recipe for your freezer:

 

 

It is fast becoming soup weather, here is one I am anxious to try!

 

Minestrone Ground Beef Soup

 

1 pound ground beef

1 large onion (chopped)

2 potatoes (peeled and cubed)

2 carrots (peeled and chopped)

2 stalks celery (diced)

1 cup shredded cabbage

1 (28-ounce) can tomatoes and its juice

1 bay leaf

1/4 teaspoon thyme

1/4 teaspoon basil

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper.

 

Brown the ground beef and pour off any grease. Put everything in a large kettle or crockpot. Cook for 8 to 12 hours. (I brown the beef in the soup kettle.) I use diced tomatoes for this soup. If you use whole tomatoes, mash them up a bit. Also, remove the bay leaf before serving the soup.

Meat Loaf Florentine

 

Today is Slow Cooking Thursday, hosted by the lovely Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom . Share a recipe on your blog and go link it at her blog.

 

Please come back and Join me for Freezer Food Friday:

 

 

 

 

 

Meat Loaf Florentine

From “Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook” (1976 edition)

Serves 6 to 8.

2 slightly beaten eggs
1/2 cup milk
1-1/2 cups soft bread crumbs
1 (10-oz.) pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
2 tbls. soy sauce
1-1/4 tsps. salt
1/4 tsp. bottled hot pepper sauce
2 lbs. ground beef
Mushroom Sauce (recipe follows)

1. Combine eggs, milk, bread crumbs, spinach, soy sauce, salt and hot pepper sauce. Add ground beef; mix well.

2. Lightly grease bottom and sides of slow-cooker insert.

3. Shape meat mixture in round loaf to fit bottom of cooker; place inside cooker.

4. Cover and cook on High setting for 4 hours. Using two spatulas, remove meatloaf; drain off excess fat.

5. Serve with Mushroom Sauce.

Mushroom Sauce
1 (3-oz.) can sliced mushrooms, undrained
2 tbls. all-purpose flour
1 cup sour cream
2 tbls. snipped chives

1. In saucepan over low heat, blend undrained mushrooms into all-purpose flour.

2. Add sour cream and snipped chives. Cook, stirring constantly until mushroom mixture thickens. Do not boil.

 

 

Gail’s Stuffed Green Pepper Soup

Gail’s Stuffed Green Pepper Soup

 

Serves 4

1 lb. ground beef, browned and drained

2 cans tomato soup

2 (8 oz.) cans diced tomatoes

2 green peppers, chopped
1 onion, chopped

1 tbls. Italian seasoning

5.6 oz. pkg Spanish rice mix, uncooked

grated parmesan cheese for garnish

 

Combine all ingredients except rice mix and Parmesan cheese in a slow cooker. Cover and cook on low setting for 3-4 hrs. until peppers and onion are soft. Prepare rice mix as pkg. directs; stir into soup. Cover and cook on low for an additional hr. Serve with parmesan cheese sprinkled on top.

 

From Gooseberry Patch