Freezer Meals

Ground Beef Kebabs (Grill or Oven)

0 · Aug 17, 2018 · Leave a Comment

These Ground Beef Kebabs are SUPER easy to make, whether you’re grilling for a summer bbq or baking them in the oven year-round. They use a few cheap ingredients you probably already have, but they’ll be the hit of your next potluck or dinner!

* FOLLOW DELICIOUS ON A DIME ON PINTEREST FOR MORE GREAT TIPS, IDEAS AND RECIPES! *

A few weeks ago we got an email from a reader asking if we had any good recipes for the barbecue. She said she loves how clean her kitchen stays when most of the dinner prep happens outside on the grill. I completely agree! I haven’t posted many grilling recipes, but I’ll certainly have to get on that, because they’re one of the highlights of summer for me!

Related: Do you have any recipe suggestions or ideas? Let us know!!! We’d LOVE to hear from you!

I started making these ground beef kebabs for a couple of reasons – sometimes I get tired of barbecuing the same old things – pork chops, hamburgers, sausages, etc, and I want to throw something a little different into the mix. I’ve also been lucky enough to spend a bit of time in the Middle East and Mediterranean and enjoy the AMAZING kebabs/skewers they eat there ALL THE TIME.

I kept this recipe pretty simple so it will hopefully just use things you already have on-hand. That way it will stay reasonably cheap! I’ve also made it with different kinds of ground meat, like pork, and it was delicious.

Tip: I would not recommend using only lean ground beef for this recipe, because it will be too dry. Either use medium ground beef, or use a mix of lean and medium, or mix the ground beef with ground pork to change things up a bit!

Also, I made these kebabs on skewers, just because I find skewers are fun, but you really don’t have to. You can just shape them into long patties and that will work out great too.

And if you don’t have a bbq or it’s winter where you live, you can do these in the oven too! Instructions are below.

Ground Beef Kebab Recipe – Step-by-Step Instructions (Grill or Oven)

Ingredients for these Ground Beef Kebabs.

Tip: If you’re using skewers, start by soaking them in a pan of water for about half an hour so they don’t burn.

Preheat grill or oven to 350 degrees F.

Use clean hands to gently mix together ground beef (or a mix of beef and pork, as shown above), egg, dried parsley, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper. Make sure everything is evenly distributed, but don’t overmix!

Gently form mixture into oblong patties around the skewers (if you’re using skewers – see next photo if you’re not).

For these photos I cooked half of the beef kebabs in the oven and half on the grill. The ones on the right I made without skewers, to show that it’s an option too.

Tip: Line a cookie sheet with foil to make clean up easy after baking (you can also spray it with cooking spray if you want), or lightly oil your grill.

For oven baking the skewers, bake for about 20 minutes, turning once in the middle, until an instant read thermometer (possibly my favourite kitchen tool!) inserted into the centre of the meat reads at least 165 degrees F. Try not to overcook. Then broil for a minute or two to brown the meat. Let them rest on a clean plate for a few minutes before serving so that the juices can redistribute throughout the meat (tent them with foil if you want).

If you’re grilling the kebabs, they take about the same length of time. Let them sit undisturbed until the form a nice sear on the bottom, then gently pick them up with skewers and turn to the other side.

Cook to the same internal temperature (160 degrees F). Let them rest off the heat (tented with foil, if you want) for a few minutes before eating so the juices can redistribute.

You can serve these on their own, with traditional barbecue side dishes (potato salad, pasta salad, garden salad, etc), with rice, with soft pita, hummus or tzatziki and fresh vegetables, or however you like.

Enjoy! 🙂

Ground Beef Kebab Recipe – Common Questions/Answers:

What if I don’t have skewers?

You can definitely make this recipe without skewers – just gently form the meat mixture into oblong patties.

Can I make these ahead of time?

Yes, I think these would be great made ahead of time. You could form the kebabs a day ahead and keep them in a tightly wrapped dish. Then bring them up to room temperature before baking or grilling. If you do this and use wooden skewers, definitely keep an eye on the skewers to make sure they don’t burn, or leave them out altogether.

Can I freeze these kebabs?

Yes, these beef kebabs should freeze really well. Just make sure they’ve cooled off and store them in an airtight container. The quality will be better if you thaw them naturally (in the fridge or on the counter if you’re watching the time – don’t leave them out too long) rather than in the microwave.

Did you make these Ground Beef Kebabs? Leave us a star rating below!

5 from 1 vote

Ground Beef Kebabs (Grill or Oven)

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

20 mins

Pre-soaking skewers

30 mins

Total Time

30 mins

These Ground Beef Kebabs are SUPER easy to make, whether you're grilling for a summer bbq or baking them in the oven year-round. This recipe uses a few cheap ingredients you probably already have, but they'll be the hit of your next potluck or dinner!

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Keyword: bbq recipes, kebab recipes

Servings: 12 kebabs

Calories: 201 kcal

Author: Myra

Ingredients

15 wooden skewers (optional)
2 lbs ground beef* (or a mix of beef and pork)
1 egg
1/4 cup dried parsley (or 1/2 cup fresh parsley, minced)
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder (or a few cloves of fresh garlic, minced)
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp pepper

Instructions

Pre-soak wooden skewers for at least 30 minutes if using.
Preheat grill, or preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl using clean hands until well combined (don't overmix).
Gently form meat into oblong patties, either on the pre-soaked wooden skewers or on their own.
Grill for about 20 minutes, carefully turning the kebab with tongs half way. Cook until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F using a meat thermometer.**
OR Bake in preheated oven for about 20 minutes, until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F using a meat thermometer.*** Then broil for a minute or two to brown the meat.
Let kebabs rest (tented with foil, if you want) for a few minutes before eating so that juices redistribute throughout the meat.
Serve with bbq side dishes, rice, garden salad, soft pita bread, veggies and hummus or tzatziki.
Enjoy! 🙂

Recipe Notes

* Don't use all lean ground beef for this recipe - it will be way too dry. Either use medium ground beef, a mix of medium and lean, or a mix of ground beef and ground pork.

** If you're making grilled kebabs, lightly oil your grill. If you're baking the kebabs in the oven, use a foil lined pan for easy clean up, and give it a light spray with cooking oil if you like.

*** My instant read thermometer is one of my FAVOURITE kitchen tools. Read about why: The $10 Kitchen Tool That Revolutionized the Way I Cook

Nutrition Facts

Ground Beef Kebabs (Grill or Oven)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 201 Calories from Fat 135

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 15g 23%

Saturated Fat 5g 25%

Cholesterol 67mg 22%

Sodium 252mg 11%

Potassium 230mg 7%

Protein 13g 26%

Vitamin A 2.5%

Vitamin C 0.8%

Calcium 2.2%

Iron 9.7%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

You might also like:

White square plate with hummus, tomatoes, parsley, feta and olives on it, with a white bowl of tortilla chips in the background. — Quick & Healthy Mediterranean Dip

Serving bowl full of bacon, lettuce, tomato pasta salad with creamy sauce — BLT Ranch Pasta Salad

Peach Ice Cream (No Churn!)

0 · Jun 29, 2018 · 4 Comments

This sweet, creamy HOMEMADE peach ice cream can be in your bowl in just a few hours! No ice cream maker. No eggs. No cooking. Just 5 ingredients, and it’s so fast and easy – you’ll be obsessed with it all summer long!

Guys, if you’re on Pinterest, you’ve probably seen recipes for “2 ingredient no-churn ice cream!”. Me too. I saw tons of them, but to be honest, it sounded too good to be true.

But now, the weather is warming up and ice cream is getting more appealing by the day! The other day I found myself eyeing up a pile of peaches my kids weren’t eating fast enough, and debating what to make with them.

BAM! I realized I should try no churn homemade peach ice cream! I figured I’d do the experimenting, so you don’t have to… find out if these claims were really as good as they sound. You can thank me later. 🙂

We actually do own an ice cream maker, by the way. We bought it at least five years ago, and in that time, we’ve made ice cream exactly twice. Don’t ask me why. When we bought it I was so excited – dreaming about creative flavours we could mix up. But in real life, we just never got around to it. It was just such a process.

This no churn peach ice cream is NOT a process. It’s super-duper easy and takes less than 10 minutes of active time. Ten minutes, people. The freezer does the rest. It’s awesome.

Here’s how to do it:

Peach Ice Cream – Step-by-Step Instructions

Ingredients for Peach Ice Cream (No Churn!)

Wash five peaches, cut out the pits and throw them in the bowl of your food processor. Puree until fairly smooth. (I did not peel the peaches.)

In a large bowl, whip 2 cups of heavy whipping cream, 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and a pinch of salt until stiff peaks form. Add one can of sweetened condensed milk and mix until well combined.

Tip: Make sure your liquids are well-chilled before starting. The finished product will freeze faster.

Add the puree to the whipped cream mixture (it will sink straight to the bottom!) and mix well to combine.

Spoon the ice cream mixture into a chilled, freezer safe pan. Freeze 3-5 hours (time will vary depending on size of pan and depth of the ice cream in it, and how hard you want the ice cream to be).

Tip: If you have a metal loaf pan it conducts the cold really well!

Tip: If you want to freeze the peach ice cream in a hurry, use a large, shallow pan.

After a few hours it will have a soft consistency. If it freezes harder than you like, just let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes to soften up.

Enjoy! 🙂

Common Questions & Answers:

How does ‘no churn’ ice cream work?

When you make traditional ice cream you create a custard by cooking egg yolks, cream, sugar and flavourings, then churn it in an ice cream maker.

This recipe (and most no churn ice cream recipes I’ve seen) replace the custard with a mixture of sweetened condensed milk and whipping cream. No raw eggs mean you don’t have to cook it and the creaminess comes from the condensed milk, instead of egg yolks.

Condensed milk is has had the water removed from it. Water is what would cause unpleasant ice crystals to form in your ice cream. Because there’s no water, you’re left with nice, creamy ice cream!

What is sweetened condensed milk?

Sweetened condensed milk is milk that has had the water removed from it, and sugar added to it. Then it’s canned to be shelf stable.

Can I substitute evaporated milk for the condensed milk?

Nope. Evaporated milk is a whole different ingredient – it’s much thinner and unsweetened.

Can I use chunks of peaches?

I tried this and wasn’t happy with the result – I found the chunks of peach got too icy and cold for my teeth! If you’re not bothered by that kind of thing you could definitely give it a try.

Can I use other flavourings?

Yes! I’m so excited to experiment with other flavours of no churn ice cream! Almost any kind of fruit puree would be delicious, and I think you could definitely get creative with ingredients like nuts, chocolate, coconut, caramel and others! If you try any other flavours, please let me know how they turn out for you!

Did you make this Peach Ice Cream? Leave us a star rating below!

5 from 1 vote

Peach Ice Cream (No Churn!)

Prep Time

10 mins

Freezing Time

3 hrs

Total Time

3 hrs 10 mins

This sweet, creamy HOMEMADE peach ice cream can be in your bowl in just a few hours! No ice cream maker. No eggs. No cooking. Just 5 ingredients, and it's so fast and easy - you'll be obsessed with it all summer long!

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: No Churn Ice Cream, Peach Desserts

Servings: 12 (1/2 cup) servings

Calories: 269 kcal

Author: Myra

Ingredients

5 Peaches (the riper the better!)
2 cups whipping cream (heavy cream) (chilled)
2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch salt
1 can sweetened condensed milk (chilled)

Instructions

Wash peaches, quarter them and remove pits, and puree in a food processor until fairly smooth. Set aside.
Whip chilled whipping cream, vanilla and salt until stiff peaks form. Add sweetened condensed milk and mix well to combine.
Add peach puree and mix well to combine. Pour into a chilled freezer safe container (see Recipe Notes for suggestions) and freeze 3-6 hours - until desired level of firmness is reached.
Enjoy! 🙂

Recipe Notes

This recipe will work best if the liquids (whipping cream and condensed milk) and the freezer safe container are chilled before you start. Just pop them in the fridge or freezer for half an hour before you start.
The peach ice cream will take between 3 and 6 hours to completely freeze. If you want to speed up the freezing time, use a large, shallow dish. If you're not in a rush you can use whatever kind of dish you like. I used a metal loaf pan that I chilled ahead of time (the metal gets nice and cold).
After a few hours the consistency will be like soft ice cream. If you freeze it longer and find it too hard, just let it sit on the counter for a few minutes and it will soften up.

Nutrition Facts

Peach Ice Cream (No Churn!)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 269 Calories from Fat 153

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 17g 26%

Saturated Fat 10g 50%

Cholesterol 65mg 22%

Sodium 57mg 2%

Potassium 270mg 8%

Total Carbohydrates 25g 8%

Sugars 23g

Protein 3g 6%

Vitamin A 17.5%

Vitamin C 6.3%

Calcium 12.3%

Iron 1.2%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

How to Make Homemade Freezer Pizzas – Easy Freezer Meals!

0 · Mar 9, 2018 · 3 Comments

Homemade freezer pizzas are easy, healthy and budget-friendly. Switch things up to suit your family’s tastes or what your kids will eat, or even which ingredients you have on hand! They make the perfect SUPER fast weeknight dinners, easy lunches or fun snacks. If you’ve ever wanted to make healthy freezer meals or easy meals to freeze and reheat, this post is for you!

Every winter I start work at my seasonal day job as a tax preparer, which takes me away from home for about 60 hours a week. It’s a short but intense period of work, and we always try to make lots of easy freezer meals to have on hand before I start.

What we make varies from year to year, based on what we feel like eating and how much prep time we have, but one thing is constant: pizza.

In my mind, homemade pizza makes pretty much the perfect freezer food. First, everyone loves it, so I don’t have to worry about food going to waste. Pizza is a very easy freezer meal to make because it’s mostly just assembly. There might be a bit of chopping, but it’s the kind of thing you can get your family involved in – put those kids to work! 🙂

Homemade pizza is usually cheap to make, freezes perfectly, and thaws and reheats super well. You can make healthy pizza, or less healthy pizza, or a combination – whatever you want!

Personally, we cut our pizza up and freeze it in individual portions, for the flexibility it gives us. If one of us wants pizza for lunch, we can take out a piece or two. If we want pizza for dinner, we can mix up and take out a few different kinds.

The only problem with pizza is that, no matter how much we make, we always run out!

This year Laurier and I made four large sheet pan pizzas: a vegetarian pizza, a works pizza, a Thai Barbecue Chicken pizza, and a Bacon Cheeseburger pizza.

We sent the kids to their grandparents’ house, cranked up the music, and got cooking. And dancing (you can catch a quick peek here )

We documented some of that day on our Facebook page, including some of our impromptu dance parties 🙂

What you need to know is that it’s super easy to have a freezer pizza cooking day, and we’ll show you how to plan it!

Homemade Freezer Pizza – Easy Freezer Meals in a Day

First, you’ll have to decide what kinds of pizza you want to make. Then, get out all your pizza ingredients so you can see what you’re working with.

Start by cooking the meat, since that process takes time. Here, Laurier is browning ground beef and sauteing chicken pieces.

And popping a sheet pan of bacon into the oven (an easy, hands-off way to cook bacon).

Starting the chopping! Get one (or a few people) to chop veggies while the meats are cooking. You’ll also want to mix/make any sauces and shred cheese.

Once all your toppings are ready to go, mix up your dough. I like to wait to make the dough, because even though it will have to rise, there will still be time and I don’t want it to over-rise.

Once your toppings are ready, preheat your oven to 450 degrees F and make sure your racks are centered in your oven.

Mix up your dough. You can do this in four individual bowls if you want, but I hate washing dishes, so I used one big bowl and divided the dough in four to spread into the pans. We have two great dough recipes on our site and you could multiply either one of them by 4. Thin Crust Pizza Dough (No Rise!) and Simple Pizza Dough (thick crust).

Oil your sheet pans with butter, oil or non-stick spray. Then spread out your dough on the pans.

Spread sauces onto the pizzas. On the works pizza we used regular pizza sauce. For the cheeseburger and veggie pizzas we used the creamy garlic sauce from our Cheeseburger Pizza recipe and doubled it (OMG it’s so good) and for the Thai pizza we used a combination of barbecue sauce and sweet chili sauce (as in the recipe).

Sprinkle cheese over sauce. Laurier is a firm believer in cheese under the toppings, and I’m not too picky either way, so that’s what we do. 🙂 On this day we used cheddar cheese for the cheeseburger pizza, but you can use either cheddar or mozzarella. I find around 2 cups of cheese (1/2 a large block) per sheet pan pizza works well.

Add your toppings. You can’t see them in this picture, but we put little sticky notes on the wall above each pan so we’d know which toppings went on which pizza.

Bake pizzas, two at a time, for 14-16 minutes, or until the crust is lightly browned underneath (just use a butter knife to pry it up and have a peek). Rotate the pizzas between the racks half way through the baking time so that each has some time on the bottom rack and on the top rack.

The baking time could vary slightly depending on how thick or thin your dough is.

Use tongs to slide the cooked pizzas onto cooling racks (so they don’t get mushy) and let them cool completely. Then cut them into pieces and wrap them individually in either tin foil, parchment paper, stretch wrap, or whatever you like.

Store in large freezer bags and label each bag so you know what’s in it. I’ll put some thawing and reheating suggestions below.

Enjoy! 🙂

Common Questions About Freezer Pizza:

How do I freeze an already cooked pizza?

The most important thing when freezing an already cooked pizza is to let it cool completely before you wrap it up. Then cut it into pieces and wrap each piece well. Store a number of pieces in large freezer bags. These steps will avoid ice crystals forming on the pizza.

How long can you freeze leftover pizza (or freshly made pizza)?

Our pizza honestly doesn’t last long enough to worry about it. I will say, though, that I’ve found a stray piece of pizza in the freezer a year after the fact and it was perfectly fine to eat. So I’d say you could freeze it for up to a year.

How can I freeze pizza dough?

If you just want to freeze your pizza dough, instead of fully made and cooked pizzas, you can do that too. Make your pizza dough, form it into a ball and wrap it in stretch wrap. Then put your dough balls into large freezer bags.

When you want to use the dough, take out a ball and thaw it on the counter for about an hour (maybe less, depending on the dough). Then use it as you normally would. You could also thaw it in the fridge for the day.

How should I reheat freezer pizzas?

You have a few options for reheating freezer pizzas, depending on whether you’re in a rush, and how picky you are.

You can defrost slices in the microwave if you’re in a hurry and warm them in the microwave once they’re thawed. This will result in a softer crust.

You can let the pizza thaw naturally at room temperature (probably within a couple of hours) or in the fridge (8 hours) and then heat it in the microwave or on a pan or tin foil in the oven (for a crispier crust).

If you have any other questions, please let me know in the comment section below! 🙂

Homemade Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza

0 · Mar 2, 2018 · Leave a Comment

This Homemade Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza combines two foods most people LOVE – pizza and cheeseburgers. Seasoned ground beef, delicious sauce and tangy pickles on a thick or thin crust. Make it for dinner tonight, for parties or potlucks, or to stock in your freezer. It’s a crowd-pleaser! Everyone loves it!

Isn’t pizza pretty much the most universally loved food? Anytime we’re stuck for what to make for dinner, especially if it’s on a weekend and we feel like having a treat, we mention pizza. We love it, the kids love it, the leftovers ALWAYS get eaten (has anyone ever thrown out leftover pizza? I doubt it), and it freezes super well.

Pizza always comes to the rescue when I need to make a tasty appetizer or dinner to bring to a party or potluck, we’re getting together with friends, or I just want to make some quick favourites to stock our freezer.

Lately I’ve been having fun experimenting with mashups of favourite foods. For example, we LOVE bacon cheeseburgers. And we LOVE pizza. So, today, I bring you BACON CHEESEBURGER PIZZA. Yum.

“Hmmmmm….” You might be wondering. “Just what is IN a cheeseburger pizza, anyway?”

Well, in our cheeseburger pizza I use toppings we love on our actual cheesebugers: seasoned ground beef, cheese, onion, tomato, and dill pickles. Plus a delicious garlicky, creamy sauce. Everything is pretty cheap, and while I used 1 lb of ground beef you could definitely use less. Or do something else with the leftovers.

I love this pizza. The sauce is really delicious, I think ground beef is always super tasty on pizza, and I really love the tangy pickles on top. Just like a cheeseburger!

Don’t miss the step-by-step photo instructions below the recipe!

5 from 1 vote

Homemade Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza

Prep Time

25 mins

Cook Time

16 mins

Total Time

41 mins

This Homemade Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza combines two foods most people LOVE - pizza and cheeseburgers. Seasoned ground beef, delicious sauce and tangy pickles on a thick or thin crust. Make it for dinner tonight, for parties or potlucks, or to stock in your freezer. It's a crowd-pleaser! Everyone loves it!

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: 2 12 inch pizzas

Calories: 276 kcal

Author: Myra

Ingredients

For the Sauce

4 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup milk
3 cloves garlic (peeled and minced)
1/2 tsp dried parsley
1/4 tsp salt
pinch pepper

For the Pizza

1 batch homemade pizza dough* (you can also use store-bought dough)
non-stick spray, oil or butter for oiling pans
1 lb ground beef (mine was extra lean, but you could use something fattier and drain it)
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1-2 tomatoes (use a plum variety that doesn't have a lot of juicy pulp)
1/2 pkg bacon - cooked (mine was a 375 g package and I like to cook it in the microwave)
1/2 an onion
2 large dill pickles
225 grams shredded mozzarella cheese (around half a large package)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Arrange racks as close to the center of the oven as possible.

For the Sauce

Combine all the sauce ingredients in a pan or pot and heat over medium heat. Warm until cream cheese melts and whisk together to combine well. Set aside.

For the Pizza

Meanwhile, cook ground beef, salt and pepper in a large pan over medium-high heat until completely cooked. Set aside.
Cut top off tomatoes and use a sharp knife to scoop out seeds and pulp from the inside, squeezing the juice out (discard). Chop tomatoes into small pieces.
Shred cheese, crumble cooked bacon, mince onion and dice dill pickle into small pieces.
Oil 2 pizza pans or 1 sheet pan. Stretch dough over pans and press it into edges. If you use one of our dough recipes it will make 2 round pizza pans (12 inch) or one sheet pan.
Top with sauce. Sprinkle with cheese and top with remaining pizza toppings (ground beef, tomato, onion, dill pickles).
Bake in preheated oven. If baking two pizzas, bake for 8 minutes, rotate between racks and bake 8 more minutes. Check bottom to make sure it's lightly browned (baking time will vary slightly depending on how thick your dough is). For one pizza start checking after 14 minutes.
Enjoy! 🙂

Recipe Notes

*We have two awesome pizza dough recipes on our site:

Simple Pizza Dough - a thick, fluffy dough

Thin Crust Pizza Dough No Rise!

Nutrition Facts

Homemade Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza

Amount Per Serving

Calories 276

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Homemade Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza – Step-by-Step Instructions

Ingredients for Homemade Bacon Cheeseburger Pizza

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

In a saucepan, combine 4 oz (half a block) of cream cheese, 1/2 cup of milk, 3 cloves of minced garlic, 1/2 teaspoon of dried parsley, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and a pinch of pepper.

Whisk over low heat until it melts into a creamy, delicious sauce. Set aside.

Meanwhile (at the same time, if you’re a multi-tasker), fry 1 pound of ground beef over medium heat. Add 1/4 teaspoon of salt and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper to the mix. Drain off extra fat if necessary. Set aside once it’s cooked.

Slice the end off a paste tomato (like a plum tomato or Roma). Use a narrow knife to scoop out the seeds and pulp and squeeze it out of the tomato. Then chop the meaty part of the tomato. You could also slice the tomato and take the pulp out of every slice, but I’m a little lazy 🙂

Prep your other ingredients. I like to cook our bacon in the microwave because it’s very hands-off. I used 1/2 package (it was a 375 gram package – not a full pound). Dice 1/2 an onion, 1-2 tomatoes (see notes above), 2 large dill pickles (or more or less, to taste) and grate 225 grams (1/2 a large package) of mozzarella cheese.

We have two awesome and easy dough recipes on our blog: Thin Crust Pizza Dough (No rise!) and Simple Pizza Dough (which is a thick, fluffy crust). They each make 2 – 12 inch crusts or 1 – sheet pan crust. If you’d rather buy dough you should get enough for 2 – 12 inch pizzas. Spread dough into oiled pans.

Spread sauce over dough.

Sprinkle with cheese, cooked ground beef, cooked bacon, tomato, onion and dill pickles.

Bake in preheated oven. If you’re making two pizzas, center your racks in the oven. Bake for 8 minutes, rotate pizzas from top to bottom and bake for 8 more minutes. Check to make sure the underneath of the dough is lightly browned.

If you’re using one large cookie sheet, bake for 14-16 minutes. Check the underneath of the dough to make sure it’s lightly browned.

Enjoy! 🙂

You might also like:

This Homemade BLT Pizza (with white sauce) recipe is a refreshing new spin on everyone's beloved classic BLT. Smoky bacon, fresh tomatoes, crunchy lettuce and a creamy white sauce will make this homemade pizza your new favourite way to enjoy a BLT. — Homemade BLT Pizza

Asparagus Bacon Goat Cheese Pizza - easy to make, and perfect for spring. Fresh asparagus, smoky bacon, salty goat cheese and a garlic sauce make every bite of this pizza fantastic. — Asparagus Bacon Goat Cheese Pizza

Homemade Garlic Fingers and Donair Sauce

0 · Feb 23, 2018 · 4 Comments

East Coasters, these Homemade Garlic Fingers and Donair Sauce are for you! And for any friends you want to convert to lovers of the most delicious appetizer around. Whether you need party food for adults, OR kids, easy snacks for tailgating or Super Bowl, or cheap recipes for entertaining, THIS is your recipe. Enjoy! 🙂

Okay, if you’re from the east coast, or have spent any real time here, maybe you’re excited right now. If not, you’re probably wondering what the heck I’m talking about. Stay with me, though.

Garlic fingers…. are amazing. They just are.

They aren’t the same thing as cheesy bread, or bread sticks, or garlic bread or any of the other things that people try to pass off as being “just the same” as garlic fingers.

Nope. Ask anyone.

Garlic fingers are swoon-worthy. They are the perfect easy party food and the biggest crowd pleaser of all.

I love pizza so much, but I have to be honest: If someone puts down a pizza and a pan of garlic fingers, I’m all over the garlic fingers. And I bet you most people would agree.

You might have left over pizza after a party, but I doubt you’ll have many left over garlic fingers.

Okay. That’s my ode to garlic fingers in a nutshell, at least when we’re talking taste.

Let’s talk cost for a minute.

Garlic fingers are cheap to make. I love a budget-friendly snack, especially if I’m making something for a crowd. To make garlic fingers you need pizza dough (super cheap, especially if it’s homemade), a little butter, a whole lotta garlic, some cheese, and a small amount of bacon (although you can make them vegetarian too!).

How to Stock up on Bacon | Save Money on Groceries

How to Freeze Cheese – an Easy Way to Save Money on Groceries

Whether you’re cooking for a potluck, entertaining for a foot ball game (or Super Bowl), trying to please both adults and kids, or just looking for easy, cheap snacks and appetizers you can make ahead of a party, this is the answer.

Yes, you could make these ahead and keep them in the fridge so your dough doesn’t over-rise. Then bake them when you’re ready to eat them. I probably wouldn’t make them days ahead or anything, but a few hours should be fine.

On the topic of donair sauce: this sauce is a litttttle different that what you might expect. Mainly because it’s kind of sweet. But it is brilliant with the garlic fingers, so give it a go. Some people, like Laurier, don’t love it. He eats his garlic fingers with sriracha. I alternate between donair sauce and sriracha. Some people don’t do any sauce at all.

However you top ’em, these are delicious.

Homemade Garlic Fingers and Donair Sauce – Step-by-Step Instructions

Ingredients for Homemade Garlic Fingers and Donair Sauce

You’ll need some pizza dough. We have two awesome recipes for pizza dough on our site – one for thick and fluffy crust and one for a thin, no-rise crust. Try one of them or pick up some pizza dough at your grocery store (but just so you know, making it at home is almost as easy!).

Start by preheating your oven to 450 degrees F.

Then cook up 1/2 package of bacon, however you like. I pretty much always use the microwave for this step, because it’s so easy, hands-off and doesn’t make any mess. Once it’s cooked, drain it on some paper towel and then chop it into bite-sized pieces.

If you want to make vegetarian garlic fingers you can skip the bacon, but I think you should add about 1/4 teaspoon of salt to the melted butter (in a few steps).

Shred some mozzarella cheese. This is 1/2 of a full-sized (450g) block – so around 225g or 8oz).

Crush or chop some garlic. I used 5 cloves but you could always use more. I don’t think you can go overboard with garlic in this recipe. The heat from the oven really mellows it out. Then melt 1/4 cup of butter and stir the garlic into it (not shown). (If you’re making vegetarian garlic fingers you can add 1/4 teaspoon of salt to the butter too.)

Oil your pizza pans and then spread your dough out on them. If you’re using one of our recipes, they both make enough for two pizza pans or one large cookie sheet.

Spoon or brush garlic butter onto the dough and spread it around so there are no uncovered spots.

Sprinkle with chopped bacon and shredded cheese. Pop the pans in your preheated oven.

If you’re doing two pizza pans, I would try about 12-14 minutes, and rotate them from top to bottom half way through (the time will vary a bit depending on the thickness of your dough). Start checking the crust a little early so it doesn’t burn.

If you’re doing a cookie sheet I would put it in the centre of the oven and start checking it after 12 minutes (thinner crust) to 14 minutes (thicker crust).

To check it just use a knife or a pair of tongs to pick up the crust and look underneath. It should be lightly browned when it’s ready.

While the garlic fingers are cooking, use a hand mixer to whip a very cold can of evaporated milk until it’s fluffy.

As you’re whipping the milk, gradually add 1.5 cup of sugar.

Add 6 teaspoons of vinegar and 1.5 teaspoons of garlic powder.

Whip it until the sugar is dissolved (it doesn’t feel grainy between your fingers) and it’s nice and fluffy. This makes a really large batch, so you can either half the recipe (or quarter it), or you can freeze the leftovers in small ziptop baggies for next time you make garlic fingers (this is what I do). 🙂

Enjoy! 🙂

5 from 4 votes

Homemade Garlic Fingers and Donair Sauce

Prep Time

15 mins

Cook Time

15 mins

Total Time

30 mins

East Coasters, these Homemade Garlic Fingers and Donair Sauce are for you! And for any friends you want to convert to lovers of the most delicious appetizer around. Whether you need party food for adults, OR kids, easy snacks for tailgating or Super Bowl, or cheap recipes for entertaining, THIS is your recipe. Enjoy! 🙂

Course: Snack

Cuisine: Canadian

Keyword: party food

Servings: 8 people

Calories: 712 kcal

Author: Myra

Ingredients

For Garlic Fingers

pizza dough*
1/2 pkg bacon (it's rarely a one pound package any more, but even a little smaller is fine)
8 oz mozzarella cheese (225 grams, or half a large package)
5 cloves garlic
1/4 cup butter (melted)

For Donair Sauce

1 can evaporated milk VERY cold
1.5 cups sugar
6 tsp vinegar
1.5 tsp garlic powder

Instructions

For Garlic Fingers

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. If you're using a single sheet pan make sure your rack is in the centre of the oven. If you're using two pizza pans, make sure there isn't a rack too close to the bottom of the oven - that both racks are in the middle.
Cook bacon using whatever method you prefer. I like to use the microwave because it's very hands-off and not messy, and I can do the other steps while it's cooking. Once it's cooked, drain on paper towel and chop into bite-sized pieces.
Shred mozzarella cheese.
Mince garlic and mix into melted butter.
Spread pizza dough onto 2 oiled pizza pans or one oiled sheet pan. Brush with garlic butter. Sprinkle with chopped bacon. Cover with shredded cheese.
Bake in preheated oven, until bottom of dough is lightly browned. For a single pan this will probably take 12-14 minutes depending on the thickness of your crust. For two pizza pans, rotate them half way through so each spends some time on the bottom, and bake for 12-14 minutes (again, depending on thickness of crust).

For Donair Sauce**

While garlic fingers are cooking, make the donair sauce. Use a hand mixer to whip evaporated milk until it's light and fluffy.
While whipping the milk, gradually add sugar, vinegar and garlic powder. Mix until all ingredients are incorporated and the sauce isn't grainy - probably 2-3 minutes in total.

When garlic fingers are cooked, cut them into long fingers, and serve hot with donair sauce. Enjoy! 🙂

Recipe Notes

* You can use one of our pizza dough recipes (recommended) and each recipe makes two 12-inch pizza, or one sheet pan pizza. If you use your own dough or store bought dough, either buy enough dough for two pizzas or cut the rest of the recipe in half.

**This recipe make a LOT of sauce, so you could either cut the recipe in half, or freeze the leftover sauce in little ziptop bags for next time!

Nutrition Facts

Homemade Garlic Fingers and Donair Sauce

Amount Per Serving

Calories 712

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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Healthy Buffalo Chicken Chili (with white beans)

0 · Feb 21, 2018 · 3 Comments

This Healthy Buffalo Chicken Chili (with creamy white beans!) is easy and healthy – and a fun twist on traditional chili. It’s comfort food that’s quick enough for a weeknight dinner, and it’s freezer-friendly too!

When I was a kid I wasn’t a huge fan of chili for some reason, but as an adult I’ve grown to love it. I love all the different flavour combinations you can apply to it, I love the hearty combination of beans and meat (or other protein), and I love that it’s cheap, easy to make and freezes well. Really, chili ticks all the boxes of what I love in a meal.

Not long ago, I realized that I’ve created three chili recipes for this blog so far, but none of them are actually posted on the blog itself. They are all part of our $5 Meals series and just in case you missed them, I’ll share them with you again:

Maple Pork Chili - From our $5 Meals e-book. These $5 Meals are the answer to your wish for groceries on a budget! Easy recipes and simple tips mean that frugal meals can still be amazing! Check out these recipes if you've ever wanted to save money on groceries! — Maple Pork Chili

Easy Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili. These five $5 meals for fall are perfect for anyone who wants to save money on groceries! Whip up these cozy, hearty meals and warm up your fall, without spending your whole grocery budget! — Easy Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili

Anyway, it seemed like high time to share a chili recipe on the actual blog and I started thinking about fun flavour combinations. Buffalo chicken chili came to mind right away. There’s something so tasty about food that combines spicy hot sauce and cooling ranch (or blue cheese – but in this recipe I used ranch).

This is a really easy chili to make – as are all my chilis. I just don’t like to over complicate things. It uses just two chicken breasts, 2 cans of beans and a bunch of spices, sauces and aromatics. Half the beans get mashed up to thicken the chili. Don’t forget the add-ons at the end – I really like the flavour pop the lime juice adds, and if you like spice, a final little splash of hot sauce is always a good idea.

This is a nice quick chili and an easy weekday dinner. If you have leftovers, you can freeze them for lunches or an even faster dinner later! It’s win-win!

4.5 from 2 votes

Healthy Buffalo Chicken Chili

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

30 mins

Total Time

40 mins

This Healthy Buffalo Chicken Chili (with creamy white beans!) is easy and healthy - and a fun twist on traditional chili. It's comfort food that's quick enough for a weeknight dinner, and it's freezer-friendly too!

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: 5 servings

Calories: 279 kcal

Author: Myra

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil (or whatever oil you like to use)
1 onion
3 stalks celery
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp salt
4 cups chicken broth (I really love Better Than Bouillon)
1/2 cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce
2 chicken breasts
2 cans white kidney beans (cannellini beans) (or you can use navy beans)
1/2 cup ranch dressing*
1 lime
1 tbsp Frank's Red Hot Sauce (extra)

Instructions

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Chop onion and add it to the pot. Saute for a few minutes until it starts to soften.
While onion is cooking, chop celery and mince garlic. Add to onion and cook for a few more minutes. Add chili powder.
Slowly start to add chicken broth (a few tablespoons at a time) and use a wooden spoon to scrape the browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Once you've scraped off all the browned bits, add the rest of the broth, the salt, the 1/2 cup of Frank's Red Hot Sauce and nestle the chicken breasts into the liquid. Cover, increase heat and bring to a boil. When it reaches a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes the chicken should be cooked (confirm with a meat thermometer - it should read 165 degrees F in the thickest part). Put chicken on a large plate and use two forks to shred it. Return to pot.
Drain and rinse one can of beans and add to the pot. Drain and rinse the other can of beans and spread them out on the plate you just shredded the chicken on. Use a fork to mash the beans into a paste. Add to pot.
Add ranch dressing and final tablespoon of Frank's.
Serve hot, with a generous squeeze of lime juice in each bowl. You can also top with traditional chili toppings if you want to (cilantro, green onions, tortilla chips, cheese, etc).
Enjoy! 🙂

Recipe Notes

*Try our homemade ranch dressing mix to make your ranch if you want an option that's a bit healthier.

Nutrition Facts

Healthy Buffalo Chicken Chili

Amount Per Serving

Calories 279

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Healthy Buffalo Chicken Chili – Step-by-Step Instructions

Ingredients for Healthy Buffalo Chicken Chili

Heat a large pot over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the pot. Peel and dice one onion into small pieces, add onion to the oil and saute for a few minutes, until it starts to soften. Chop 3 stalks of celery and mince 5 cloves of garlic. Add to pot and saute until celery softens slightly. Add 1 teaspoon of chili powder and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and stir well to combine.

Slowly add 4 cups of chicken broth (I love Better Than Bouillon), scraping the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to scrape up all the browned bits.

Add 1/4 cup of Frank’s Red Hot Original Sauce and stir to combine. Nestle chicken breasts into the liquid so they’re covered as much as possible. Put the lid on the pot, increase heat and bring to a boil. Then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes, or until chicken internal temperature reads 165 degrees F on a meat thermometer.

Take chicken out of pot and use two forks to shred it. Return it to the pot.

Rinse and add 1 can of white kidney beans (or navy beans) to the pot.

Rinse the other can of beans and put them on a plate. Use a fork to mash them up, then add them to the pot.

Add 1/2 cup of ranch dressing (you can use our homemade ranch dressing mix to make your ranch so it’s healthier), one more tablespoon of Frank’s Red Hot Sauce. Let it simmer for 5 minutes so flavours can meld. Taste for seasoning and add more salt if the flavours aren’t popping.

Serve with a big squeeze of lime juice (not optional) and chopped green onions or even cilantro (optional).

Enjoy! 🙂

Thin Crust Pizza Dough (No Rise!)

1 · Feb 16, 2018 · 4 Comments

This Thin Crust Pizza Dough is super quick – we’re talking 5 minutes. It’s a no-rise dough, so you don’t have to wait around for the dough to do its thing – which is perfect for a fast and easy weeknight dinner. You don’t need a food processor, stand mixer, bread machine or any other fancy equipment either – just a bowl and a spoon. If you love thin crust pizza, you’ll love this recipe!

You know those nights when you’re tired, you’re hungry, you really just want to stop for pizza on the way home but you’re trying to save money/eat better/ whatever the case may be?

This thin crust pizza dough is the answer to your problems.

Go home, get a few ingredients and dump them in a bowl. Stir them up. Then press them onto a pizza pan. Add a few toppings (sometimes less is more!) and voila! Dinner is served. After you bake it, of course. 🙂

We have a great pizza dough recipe on this blog already – Simple Pizza Dough – Two ways: Easy and Easier! – and it is very easy to make. BUT. It’s a thick fluffy pizza dough (my fave) and in order to achieve that fluffy dough, you have to let it rise.

Some nights that just ain’t happenin.

So for nights like those, how do you make a simple pizza dough? A 5-minute pizza dough?

You make it like this:

4 from 5 votes

Thin Crust Pizza Dough (No Rise!)

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

15 mins

Total Time

25 mins

This Thin Crust Pizza Dough is super quick - we're talking 5 minutes. It's a no rise dough, so you don't have to wait around for the dough to do its thing - which is perfect for a fast and easy weeknight dinner. You don't need a food processor, stand mixer, bread machine or any other fancy equipment either - just a bowl and a spoon. If you love thin crust pizza, you'll love this recipe!

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: 2 (12 inch) pizzas

Calories: 60 kcal

Author: Myra

Ingredients

2 cups flour
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp INSTANT yeast (It HAS to be instant to do it this way!)
1 tsp olive oil (or whatever oil you have on hand)
1 and 1/4 cups WARM water

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Stir together flour, salt, sugar and instant yeast in a large bowl.
Put olive oil in a measuring up, then fill the cup with WARM water to the 1 and 1/4 cup line. Give it a stir, then dump it into the dry ingredients.
Stir to combine. You might need a little more water. Add a spoonful at a time until dough comes together into a moist, shaggy ball. (Not super wet and sticky though - if you add too much water, add a bit of flour to counteract it.)
Sprinkle a bit of flour over the surface of the dough and your hands, then rub your palms together so they're coated. Pick up the dough and form it into a ball, by tucking the ends underneath.
Spread it out on a large oiled cookie sheet, or divide it in two and spread it on two oiled pizza pans. I like to put the ball of dough in the centre of the pan and use my hands to spread it to the edges.
Add whatever toppings you like, then bake in a preheated oven. We like high temperatures for cooking pizza. If you use a cookie sheet make sure it's in the centre of the oven and it will probably take around 14 minutes (depending on how heavy your toppings are) - check it to make sure it doesn't burn. For two pizza pans it might take 15 or 16 minutes, but swap the pans half way so that each one has some time closer to the bottom of the oven.
Enjoy! 🙂

Nutrition Facts

Thin Crust Pizza Dough (No Rise!)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 60

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Thin Crust Pizza Dough (No Rise!) – Step-by-Step Instructions

Ingredients for Thin Crust Pizza Dough (No Rise!). Pretty simple, right?

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

In a big bowl, stir together 2 cups of flour, 3/4 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of INSTANT yeast.

Put 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a measuring cup (you can use a different oil if you don’t have olive oil). Fill the cup with WARM water to the 1 and 1/4 cup line. Stir oil and water together. Add liquids to flour mixture and stir to combine.

Depending on a lot of different factors (time of year, humidity, where you live, etc), you might need a little more water. Add a spooonful at a time until the dough comes together into a shaggy, moist ball. If you add too much and it’s really sticky, you can add a little more flour to absorb the excess water.

Sprinkle a little flour lightly over the surface of the dough and onto your hands, then rub your palms together to coat them. Pick up the ball of dough and gently round it out into a ball by stretching the top a bit and tucking the ends under the bottom. It’s ready to use!

Spread it on an oiled cookie sheet or divide it in two and spread over two pizza pans using your hands, pushing the dough from the centre of the pan outward until the pan is covered.

We like to cook our pizza in a really hot oven – like between 450 and 500 degrees F and just keep an eye on it so it doesn’t burn. If we make two pizza pans (as opposed to a cookie sheet), we swap the pizzas half way through the cooking to make sure the bottom one doesn’t get too much heat and they cook evenly.

Depending on what toppings you use (and how heavy they are) it takes anywhere from 12-16 minutes to cook.

Enjoy! 🙂

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Healthy Mini Meatloaves – Comfort Food For Your Freezer

0 · Jan 12, 2018 · 2 Comments

These Healthy Mini Meatloaves are delicious comfort food that’s freezer friendly! Make them as an easy dinner and then freeze the rest for another simple meal! Or just make a whole batch while you’re freezer cooking, for quick dinners anytime!

Every January I start the year by doing a ton of freezer cooking. My day job is seasonal, and at the end of January I’m headed back to work. Knowing that my freezer is full of delicious, easy to serve, healthy meals is seriously the best feeling!

Every single year, I make these healthy mini meatloaves. They are just so good. I like traditional meatloaf and everything, but I find it can be a little… one dimensional. These mini meatloaves are anything but one dimensional.

They’re packed with flavour – from the beef (and pork, if you use a mix), parsley, dijon mustard and the sweet and tangy brown sugar glaze on top. I love making mini meatloaves instead of fullsize ones because:

1) If just one or two people are eating dinner on any given night we can just thaw the number we need

2) They make a great lunch – either with leftover salad, leftover vegetables or in a sandwich.

3) If you worry about portion control or red meat consumption you can portion them out to take that into account.

4) You have more surface area to glaze. I don’t know about you, but the glaze is one of my favourite things about meatloaf.

Healthy Mini Meatloaves

I’m not going to say that meatloaf is healthy like salad. Obviously, it’s not. But you can use lean meat for these meatloaves if you want (although regular or a mix will be more juicy and flavourful), cook them on a rack so they’re not sitting in their fat (which is the biggest issue I see with the muffin tin or loaf pan methods) and the portion control allows you to not eat more red meat than is recommended (if that’s a concern for you). Anytime comfort food can also be reasonably healthy, I’m all for it!

You could definitely try making them with ground turkey, but I’ve never done it so I can’t say for sure how it would be. I think you’d need a little more moisture, so maybe add some extra milk and egg. If you try this variation please let me know how it works out!

Other awesome points about these healthy mini meatloaves:

You can stock up on the ground meat when it’s on sale, stash it in your freezer, then thaw it and use it for this recipe (since you’ll cook them before you freeze again).

The rest of the ingredients are pantry staples and fridge staples, like eggs, garlic, onion, milk and condiments. I pretty much ALWAYS have these on hand, and I stock up on most of them, especially the pantry staples, when they’re on sale.

This is a super versatile dish. You can serve these healthy mini meatloaves with fluffy creamed potatoes (my fave), a simple salad, our Root Vegetable Casserole (also freezer friendly!) french fries, frozen veggies, or in a sandwich or wrap!

Step-by-step instructions are below the recipe.

5 from 2 votes

Healthy Mini Meatloaves - Comfort Food For Your Freezer -

Prep Time

30 mins

Cook Time

40 mins

Total Time

1 hr 10 mins

These Healthy Mini Meatloaves are delicious comfort food that's freezer friendly! Make them as an easy dinner and then freeze the rest for another simple meal! Or just make a whole batch while you're freezer cooking, for quick dinners anytime!

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: 14 mini meatloaves

Calories: 213 kcal

Author: Myra

Ingredients

For Mini Meatloaves

2 pounds ground meat (either all beef or half beef, half pork)
2 tbsp olive oil
2 onions
5 cloves garlic
1.5 cups breadcrumbs or panko
2/3 cup chopped fresh parsley (or 1/3 cup dried parsley - but fresh is better!)
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tsp salt
1 tsp Tabasco or your favourite hot sauce

For Glaze

1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
1.5 tbsp apple cider vinegar

Instructions

Line a sheet pan with foil, then set an oven-safe cooling rack on it. Spray the cooling rack with non-stick cooking spray.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Peel and dice onions, then cook in olive oil over medium heat, until soft (about 5 minutes). Mince garlic and add to onions. Cook for another minute. Scrape onion mixture into a very large bowl.
Add breadcrumbs, parsley, milk, eggs, Dijon mustard, salt and hot sauce to bowl with onions. Stir well to combine.
Add ground meat to bowl and use your hands to combine it well (but don't overmix or squeeze it). Gently form the meat mixture into whatever shape you like (I like a mini-loaf shape). Place loaves on rack.
In a small bowl, combine glaze ingredients. Divide into two other bowls (so you have three total). Use a brush or spoon to spread 1/3 of the glaze over the meatloaves. I like to coat the sides too.
Bake for 40 minutes, glazing two more times with a clean spoon or brush throughout the baking time. They are ready when a meat thermometer inserted in the largest one tests at 160 degrees F.
Serve hot, or cool completely, wrap in foil or plastic wrap and put in a freezer bag to freeze.
Enjoy! 🙂

Nutrition Facts

Healthy Mini Meatloaves - Comfort Food For Your Freezer -

Amount Per Serving

Calories 213

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Healthy Mini Meatloaves – Comfort Food For Your Freezer – Step-by-Step Instructions

I seem to have misplace by ingredient photo! I’ll find that for you guys ASAP! 🙂

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Peel and dice 2 medium size onions, and then saute them in 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Mince 5 cloves of garlic. Once onions are softened (about 5 minutes), add the garlic and cook for another minute or so, until fragrant.

Remove onions and garlic and add to a large bowl. Add 1.5 cups breadcrumbs or panko, 1/3 cup dried or 2/3 cup fresh parsley (fresh is always better, but if all you have is dried, go for it), 2 eggs, 2 teaspoons of salt, 1 teaspoon of your favourite Tobasco or your favourite hot sauce, 1 tablespoon of Dijon mustard and 1/2 cup of milk.

Stir well to combine, then add ground meat and mix until just combined (either 2 pounds of ground beef, or 1 pound of ground beef and 1 pound of ground pork – very flavourful).

Line a sheet pan with foil, put a rack on it and spray the rack with cooking spray.

Use your hands to form the mixture into patties. For some reason I like to make them into little loaf shapes, so that’s what I do. Place them gently on the rack.

In a small bowl combine 1/2 cup ketchup, 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1.5 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar to make glaze. Stir well. Divide into 3 small bowls (or 2 bowls + the one you mixed it in).

Use a brush or spoon to spread glaze onto the mini meatloaves. I like to cover the sides with it too, for more glazey goodness. Glaze two more times with a clean spoon or brush while meatloaves are baking. Bake for 40 minutes, then test the biggest one with a meat thermometer (one of my favourite kitchen tools). You’re looking for an internal temperature of 160 degrees F.

Serve hot, or cool completely, wrap is plastic wrap or foil and freeze in a large freezer bag.

Enjoy! 🙂

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This Sausage and Cajun Sweet Potato Sheet Pan Dinner recipe is on the table in 25 minutes and is easy easy easy! Make it as a quick weeknight supper, or do your lunch prep for the entire week! You can customize the cajun spice to make it spicy or completely mild. It's delicious! — **Sausage and Cajun Sweet Potato Sheet Pan Dinner**

7 Easy, Healthy Leftover Turkey Recipes

0 · Dec 27, 2017 · Leave a Comment

These easy, healthy leftover turkey recipes are the best! Whether you’re looking for ways to use up Christmas or Thanksgiving leftovers, or just a rotisserie chicken, these quick recipes are perfect for dinner tonight, lunch tomorrow, or for the freezer!

It’s the day after Christmas (or Easter, or Thanksgiving, depending on when you’re reading this). You’re tired. You’re still stuffed from yesterday’s amazing turkey dinner. Your fridge is exploding with leftovers, but you’re not sure you want leftovers of the entire turkey dinner just yet.

Never fear! Here are 7 easy, healthy leftover turkey recipes (or rotisserie chicken, or some poached chicken breasts… we’re pretty easy to get along with) From an easy casserole, to an addictive soup, to convenient freezer meals and healthy salads and sandwiches, we’ve got all your bases covered!

Enjoy! 🙂

7 Easy, Healthy Leftover Turkey Recipes

Leftover Turkey Shepherd’s Pie – a freezer meal

What I love about this recipe (other than the fact that it’s delicious!) is that it’s perfect for when you’ve really, truly had enough of turkey dinner. You take all the parts of your dinner, layer them into a shepherd’s pie, and freeze it. Then, in a month or so, when you’re ready for turkey again, you thaw it and enjoy a SUPER easy and tasty meal! It’s like doing a favour for your future self!

Easy Winter Salad

Sometimes, after a long stretch of eating heavy, rich food, I NEED salad. This is a perfect salad for when that feeling hits in the depths of winter. You can really easy change it up to suit what you have on hand too! It’s the perfect antidote to the heavy food of the holiday season.

Creamy Chicken (or Turkey) Soup

Pretty much everyone makes soup with leftover turkey. But if you make this soup, friends, I promise you’ll never look for another recipe for as long as you live. It’s that good. The chicken (or turkey) soup of my dreams.

Freezer Steak, Chicken or Turkey Quesadillas

When you have more turkey than you know what to do with, mix it with a quick spice mixture, press it into a tortilla with a few veggies, and make freezer quesadillas! You’ll be happy when you have meals already made and times are busy!

Dan-Dan (-ish) Noodles

I’m not saying it’s authentic to add turkey to these noodles, but I always aim for deliciousness above authenticity. I do think it would be super yummy to add turkey to these noodles, so I say, go for it! Plus, these noodles are a great way to get some extra servings of veggies on your plate after a lot of rich holiday meals.

Grilled Turkey, Cranberry, Cream Cheese Sandwich

If you’re tired and looking for an easy lunch or supper (dinner?) you can’t do much better than these grilled turkey, cranberry and cream cheese sandwiches, which also makes use of leftover cranberries, and even stuffing!

Creamed Ham or Turkey

When I was a kid I would beg my mother to make creamed turkey or creamed ham after the holidays. It’s SO good. Now I make it for our family. Easy comfort food at its best. 🙂

What’s your favourite leftover turkey recipe? Let us know in the comment section below!

Soft Eggnog Cookies – (Slice and bake)

0 · Dec 15, 2017 · 1 Comment

These Soft Eggnog Cookies (slice and bake!) are the perfect fun treat to add to your family’s Christmas baking! These cookies are soft, chewy, and topped with rich eggnog frosting. Enjoy them over the holidays, while eggnog is available!

Isn’t it funny how foods you don’t like as a kid can be so incredibly delicious once you’re an adult?

I wasn’t a very picky kid, but I was NOT a fan of eggnog – no matter how many times I tried it. My brother, on the other hand, could drink it by the gallon. Not sure where my sister fell in the mix.

As an adult, I think eggnog is DELICIOUS. I’m not sure when the switch happened. I just opened a carton last week and OMG it is just so good (of course you probably know all about my love of rich food).

I’ve been wanting to make eggnog cookies for over a year now. I could somehow imagine a big plate of soft but slightly chewy eggnog cookies with creamy icing, a big cup of black coffee, and jazzy Christmas music playing softly in the background… snow swirling outside and the fireplace warming the living room…. haha okay. Getting carried away. 🙂

Anyway, I’m happy to report that I HAVE THE COOKIES! It took a lot of sifting through lots of recipe and adjusting for personal taste and what I was aiming for. Laurier grew up in a sugar cookie house (not a literal sugar cookie house, sadly), but my family were more shortbread lovers, so it took some experimentation on my part.

These eggnog cookies are formed into a log and frozen for 30 minutes, before you can slice and bake them. They are actually pretty fast to mix up, and they cook in just 8 minutes! I had fun making them and I LOVE that they just call for pantry staples and eggnog.

I also tested them after leaving half the log of dough in the freezer overnight. If you let the log thaw for about 15 minutes you can slice them and bake them as usual – but you might need to add a minute to the baking time. Still, pretty convenient. You could also pre-slice them and completely freeze them that way, and just add a few minutes to the time when you pop them in the oven.

I experimented with a couple of different types of frosting, but I found they didn’t really taste enough like eggnog. Finally I decided to try just thickening actual eggnog. Maybe that’s unusual, but it worked, and it tastes very eggnoggy, which I like.

Step-by-step photo instructions are below the recipe!

5 from 1 vote

Soft Eggnog Cookies - (Slice and Bake!)

Prep Time

20 mins

Cook Time

8 mins

Total Time

28 mins

These Soft Eggnog Cookies (slice and bake!) are the perfect fun treat to add to your family's Christmas baking! These cookies are soft, chewy, and topped with rich eggnog frosting. Enjoy them over the holidays, while eggnog is available!

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: 32 cookies

Author: Myra

Ingredients

For the Cookies

2 and 3/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 cup butter (softened)
1 and 1/2 cup sugar
1 egg (at room temperature*)
1 tbsp vanilla extract**

For the "Frosting"

1 cup eggnog
2 tbsp cornstarch

Instructions

Whisk together flour, baking powder and nutmeg in a medium sized bowl.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar with a hand mixer for several minutes, until it's light and fluffy.
Add egg and vanilla and mix well. Scrape down sides of the bowl and make sure it's all mixed in.
Add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix until just combined. Add another 1/3 and mix. Add remaining flour and mix just until it's combined. Don't overmix!
Roll out a large piece of parchment paper, dump dough on it, and form it into a large log near the long side of the paper.
Roll up the log, using pressure from your hands to form it into a tight cylinder with no air pockets. Try to make it the same thickness across the entire length of the log. Freeze for 30 minutes (you can also freeze for longer, but then let it thaw for 15 minutes before slicing).
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Take out log and use a sharp knife to slice it into 1/4 - 1/2 inch slices. You can use your fingers to reshape the circles if they get a little squished. Bake on parchment paper lined pan for 8 minutes. If you froze the dough for longer than 30 minutes, add an extra minute or two to the baking time. You don't even want to edges to brown - just for the cookies to look "set". If you overbake the cookies they'll be crumbly, instead of soft and chewy.
Whenever you want to frost them, mix eggnog and cornstarch in a small pot and heat over medium-low heat, whisking, until it thickens. If you frost the cookies right away, store them in the fridge or freezer. Or you can refrigerate the frosting until you're ready to eat the cookies. If it gets too thick just thin it with a little more eggnog.
Enjoy! 🙂

Recipe Notes

* If you want to quickly bring an egg to room temperature, submerge it in a bowl of quite warm water for a few minutes

** Find out how to make your own vanilla extract (it's easy!)

Soft Eggnog Cookies – (Slice and Bake!) – Step-by-Step Instructions

Soft Eggnog Cookies – (Slice and Bake!) – Ingredients

Whisk together 2 and 3/4 cups of flour, 1 teaspoon of baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg. Set aside.

In a large bowl, use a hand mixer to cream together 1 cup of softened butter and 1 and 1/2 cups of sugar until light and fluffy – probably 2-3 minutes. Add 1 egg and 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract and mix well.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add 1/3 of the flour mixture.

Mix until just combined. Add another 1/3 of the flour. Mix slightly. Add remaining flour and finish mixing. Don’t overmix!!! That will give you tough cookies.

Roll out a big piece of parchment paper. Dump cookie dough on it and form into a rough log near one of the long edges.

Roll dough up, squeezing it into a solid cylinder so there are no air pockets. Try to make sure it’s the same size across the entire length. Freeze for 30 minutes. You can also freeze longer, but then let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before slicing. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Slice cookies around 1/4 – 1/2 inch thick. I have some smaller ones because the ends of my cylinder tapered. That’s why you want to make sure it’s the same size all across. You can use your fingers to reshape them into circles if they get a little misshapen. Bake for 8 minutes if you just froze the dough for 30 minutes. If they were frozen longer you’ll have to add a minute or two to the bake time. Just don’t overbake them or they’ll be crumbly. You don’t even want to look for browned edges – just a general “set” look. Let them sit on the pan to cool completely.

When you want to “frost” them, mix 1 cup of eggnog and 2 tablespoons of cornstarch in a small pot over medium-low heat. Heat gently until it thickens.

Because the “frosting” is basically just eggnog, you’ll have to refrigerate it (if it thickens too much you can loosen it up with a little extra eggnog). I would just quickly frost the cookies before you eat them to keep them looking the best, or you could do it before and just store the cookies in the fridge or freezer. The frosting won’t look as good, so I guess it depends on who you plan to serve them to!

Enjoy! 🙂

Strawberry Sweet Rolls with Vanilla Cream Cheese Icing – Make Ahead Breakfast for a Crowd (Freezer Friendly!)

0 · Dec 12, 2017 · 2 Comments

These Strawberry Sweet Rolls with Vanilla Cream Cheese Icing are the perfect make ahead breakfast or brunch recipe, especially for a crowd. You can make them way ahead to freeze, or just refrigerate overnight. Light and fluffy dough, warm strawberry jam and creamy vanilla icing make them a delicious treat!

Is it weird to crave something you’ve never eaten before? Has that ever happened to you?

For some reason I’ve been craving “sweet rolls”. Like cinnamon rolls, almost, but with a really soft, fluffy dough, and more of a fruity filliing. I really love pastries, soft breads, and really anything that goes well with a cup of black coffee.

I’ve been doing a bit of baking lately and I played around until I had a fluffy, soft dough that I liked. First I tried a marmalade and cream cheese filling, and while it was okay, it wasn’t really what I was going for.

Then I tried strawberry jam and it was lovely. I should have known, since I have SUCH a weakness for jam-filled cookies. So strawberry sweet rolls it is! With a little dollop of delicious cream cheese icing!

So, here’s the thing about baking. I like to bake, but I’m not some sort of amazing professional baker. If any of my professional baker friends read this post, I really hope they’ll suspend their judgement of me. I don’t know if I’m following conventional baking rules. I hope we can still be friends!

Really, I’m much more of a cook, and in cooking you can be lazy and cut corners and do things your own way, and still have it turn out amazing. Baking is much more structured, and when you fly by the seat of your pants sometimes it works out and sometimes… not so much.

Anyway, all I can tell you is that this recipe works and it’s delicious! It’s pretty easy to make and I love that you can MAKE IT AHEAD OF TIME. You can:

1. Make it and bake it the same day

2. Make the rolls, refrigerate them, then rise and bake the next day.

3. Make the rolls, FREEZE them, then thaw, rise and bake them another day!

That’s a lot of flexibility, friends, which I think is perfect for this crazy busy life we all seem to live! Personally, I’m going to make a batch (they are BIG batches – 24 rolls) and stash them in my freezer in smaller portions. I’ll pull one out on Christmas eve and bake it Christmas morning for an easy and delicious breakfast!

Almost as big a deal – this recipe is make entirely with pantry staples and a few fridge staples! Yay for using what you already have and saving money on groceries!

PS – As I’m writing this on a dark December morning, I just got a leftover strawberry sweet roll out of the fridge, mircrowaved it for 30 seconds and munched on it with a coffee. Yup! Still delicious! 🙂

Step-by-step photo instructions below the recipe!

4 from 1 vote

Strawberry Sweet Rolls with Vanilla Cream Cheese Icing ready to enjoy!

Strawberry Sweet Rolls with Vanilla Cream Cheese Icing - Make Ahead Breakfast for a Crowd (Freezer Friendly!)

Prep Time

30 mins

Cook Time

25 mins

Total Time

2 hrs 5 mins

These Strawberry Sweet Rolls with Vanilla Cream Cheese Icing are the perfect make ahead breakfast or brunch recipe, especially for a crowd. You can make them way ahead to freeze, or just refrigerate overnight. Light and fluffy dough, warm strawberry jam and creamy vanilla icing make them a delicious treat!

Servings: 24 rolls

Author: Myra

Ingredients

For the rolls

5 cups flour
2 tbsp INSTANT yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp white vinegar
1 cup milk (just under 1 cup)
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1.5 cups strawberry jam
1 cup WARM water

For the icing

4 oz cream cheese softened
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup icing sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Set aside.
Put vinegar in a measuring cup. Add milk until it reaches the 1 cup mark. Set aside to let milk curdle.
Melt butter in a bowl in the microwave. Add sugar and mix well. Then microwave milk mixture for 1 minute and stir well. Add it to butter. Add two eggs and whisk well to combine. Test to make sure it's not too hot or too cold (you're just looking for warm). Then dump into the dry mixture.
Mix lightly, then fill your measuring cup with 1 cup of WARM water. Slowly add it to the dough, stirring lightly until the dough comes together into a sticky ball. This too almost 1 cup for me but it can vary. Don't overmix.
Cover dough and set it in a warm place to rise for 45 minutes. I like to put the light on inside the oven and put it in there.
After the rise time, sprinkle some flour on the counter and pull out the dough. Sprinkle with a bit more flour and pat out into a large rectangle. Then use a rolling pin to make the rectangle larger and the dough thinner.
Spread dough with strawberry jam. More jam tastes better, but make sure you can roll the dough without it oozing too much. Roll dough up. Use a sharp serrated knife or unflavoured dental floss to slice it into rolls.
Grease a baking dish or freezer pan. Put rolls into the dish. If you're baking right away, preheat oven to 350 degrees F and set dish in a warm place to rise for another 25 minutes. If you want to freeze, wrap it tightly, freeze and thaw on the counter for a few hours before baking. You can also wrap the rolls and refrigerate them overnight, then let warm up/rise on the counter before baking. Whenever you're ready, bake in a preheated oven for 25 minutes.
While rolls are baking, use a mixer to combine the icing ingredients until smooth. Spoon onto warm rolls.
Enjoy! 🙂

Strawberry Sweet Rolls with Vanilla Cream Cheese Icing -Step-by-Step Instructions

Ingredients for Strawberry Sweet Rolls with Vanilla Cream Cheese Icing

In a large bowl, combine 5 cups of flour, 2 tablespoons of INSTANT yeast and 1 teaspoon of salt. Stir together and set aside.

In a small measuring cup, put 1 tablespoon of white vinegar. Add enough milk to reach 1 cup. Set aside to let milk curdle (it’s like using buttermilk, except you don’t have to wonder what you’ll do with the rest of the carton).

Melt 1/2 cup of butter in the microwave. Mix 1/2 cup of sugar into it. Microwave milk mixture from above and then add it to the butter/sugar and whisk well. Crack two eggs into the mixture and whisk again.

Make sure wet mix is lukewarm (yeast likes warm liquid – not hot or cold) and dump it into the dry bowl. Stir just enough to combine it. Then fill a small cup with WARM water and slowly add enough to the bowl to make the dough nice and sticky and well combined (but not overly wet). I used just under 1 cup (but this can vary with time of year, humidity and your flour).

Cover dough and set it in a warm place to rise for 45 minutes. I like to cover the bowl with stretch wrap and put it in my oven with just the light on (the oven is not on – just the light).

After the rise time, sprinkle some flour on your counter and put the dough on it. Add a little flour to stop it from sticking and using your hands, gently shape it out into a large rectangle. Then use a rolling pin to thin out the dough and make the rectangle bigger. The thicker the dough is, the more doughy the end result will be.

Spread 1-1.5 cups of strawberry jam on the dough. In this batch I used 1 cup and wished I had used a little more.

Gently roll up the log of dough. Use flour to help stop the sticking. Then use a very sharp, serrated knife (or unflavoured dental floss) to slice the rolls. I like to flour my knife between slices too (and wipe off the jam).

Grease a baking dish or freezer pan. Line up rolls in a the pan. If you’re baking them right away, put them back in a warm place for another 25 minutes while you preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Then bake for 25 minutes while you make the icing.

If you want to FREEZE the rolls, now’s the time. Wrap them up well and freeze until a few hours before you want to eat them – then take them out to thaw at room temperature and bake as described above.

If you want to refrigerate the rolls overnight you can do that too. Just wrap them up at pop them in the fridge, then take them out to warm up and rise before baking.

Cream 4 oz (half a block) of cream cheese. Add 1/4 cup icing sugar, 1/4 cup milk and 1 teaspoons of vanilla extract.

Use a mixer to combine until it’s nice and creamy.

If you want a really bright red jam you can add a little extra to the top of the rolls when they’re done baking. Dollop a teaspoonful of icing onto each strawberry sweet roll.

Enjoy! 🙂

Mint Chocolate Bark – Yes, you CAN use chocolate chips – but here’s how!

0 · Dec 6, 2017 · 2 Comments

This Mint Chocolate Bark is so simple your kids could make it! No stove, and no expensive chocolate necessary! It’s the perfect Christmas candy or holiday treat, and you can make it with inexpensive pantry staples!

This post contains affiliate links.

Looking for a delicious, easy holiday treat or Christmas candy recipe? You’ve probably thought about making bark. Maybe you’ve even checked out some recipes.

If you did, there’s a pretty good chance you read that you should ‘only use bar chocolate,’ and not even regular bar chocolate, but that you should ‘always spring for the best chocolate for making bark’.

Well. What if you don’t have any fancy high end bar chocolate or can’t afford any, or it’s not even sold within a half hour drive of your house? Should you give up?

Most of the recipes say that you can’t use chocolate chips because they contain stabilizers and don’t really make the best bark.

But what does that really even mean? I decided to do a little experiment and try (gasp!) to make mint chocolate bark using chocolate chips. And not even just regular chocolate chips – both chocolate and white chocolate chips.

Guess what?

It works.

It’s fine. The bark is delicious. Unless you’re making a hostess gift for Queen Elizabeth, you can probably just go ahead and use the chocolate chips you have in your pantry, instead of springing for the fancy Ghiradelli chocolate bars. I mean, I’m sure they’re delicious, but come on. I’d have to drive more than half an hour to buy some (maybe more – I’m not even sure) and probably remortgage our house to pay for them. Haha. I don’t really know how much they cost around here, but I’m sure they’re not cheap!

Um, but if you are somehow making a hostess gift for Queen Elizabeth, you should probably get the Ghiradelli.

One small, but important point: The process using chocolate chips, especially the white chocolate, is a little different – but still easy!

Read on for the details.

Step-by-step photo instructions are below the recipe.

5 from 1 vote

Mint Chocolate Bark - with chocolate chips is easy, cheap and delicious!

Mint Chocolate Bark - Yes, you CAN use chocolate chips - but here's how!

Prep Time

5 mins

Cook Time

5 mins

Total Time

2 hrs 10 mins

Servings: 3 pound

Author: Myra

Ingredients

For the chocolate layer

1 cup chocolate chips I used semi-sweet
1/4 tsp butter

For the mint chocolate layer

1 cup white chocolate chips
1 tsp butter
1 tsp peppermint extract
5 drops green food colouring (I used inexpensive food colouring from the grocery store - if you're using expensive paste you'll probably just need one drop)

Instructions

Mix chocolate chips and 1/4 tsp butter in a small bowl. Microwave for 30 second intervals, stirring well in between, until completely melted (this will probably take 1.5 - 2 minutes). Don't let it scorch. Set aside.
In a second bowl, combine the white chocolate chips, 1 tsp butter, peppermint extract and food colouring. Microwave for 30 seconds, stir, then microwave in 15 second intervals, until the chips break down into a paste and you can mix it. They will NOT melt - just become pasty. Don't let them burn.
Spread green paste out on parchment paper. Top with melted chocolate. Refrigerate until solid - probably 1-2 hours.
Break into pieces and enjoy! 🙂 Store in refrigerator for best texture.

Mint Chocolate Bark – with chocolate chips! – Step-by-Step Instructions

Mint Chocolate Bark – with chocolate chips! – Ingredients

In a small bowl, combine 1 cup of chocolate chips and 1/4 teaspoon of butter. Microwave for 30 seconds. Stir well. Microwave for 30 more seconds. Stir. Continue until melted but not scorched (probably one more time). Set aside.

In another small bowl, combine 1 cup of white chocolate chips, 1 teaspoon of butter, 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract and green food colouring. I used cheap food colouring, so I used 5 drops. If you’re using more expensive food colouring, you probably only need 1 drop.

Microwave for 30 seconds, stir well. Then microwave in 15 second intervals, stirring in between, until chips are broken down into a paste and well-combined. Do not scorch. They won’t melt, just break down into a paste.

Use a spatula to spread the white (now green) chocolate paste in a thin layer on a piece of parchment paper.

Spread melted chocolate on top of the green (white) chocolate paste and smooth it out.

Chill until firm.

Break into pieces and enjoy! Store in fridge to maintain best texture.

Root Vegetable Casserole – Freezer-Friendly Comfort Food

0 · Nov 21, 2017 · 3 Comments

This Root Vegetable Casserole is a superstar side dish – it’s delicious, easy, cheap, healthy, versatile and can be made ahead of time. This is freezer-friendly comfort food at its best!

Whether you’re hosting Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner this year, or just looking for a delicious fall side dish for a potluck or for supper, I’ve got a treat for you.

And it’s awesome in every way.

First, it’s super delicious. I love the subtle sweetness that the blend of root vegetables gives this dish, the creamy texture, and the satisfying crunch of the panko or breadcrumbs on top.

Second, it’s inexpensive! Root vegetables are some of the cheapest vegetables around, especially in the fall and winter, and if you watch for them on sale, they last practically forever and cost even less. Stock your pantry and stock your fridge, friends!

Third, it can be made ahead of time and just reheated the day you want to eat it. YES to make ahead dishes for busy meals!

Fourth, it’s freezer friendly (without the breadcrumb topping), so what you could do (and what I actuallly plan to do, sometime soon) is make a huge batch of this, portion it out into smaller amounts that we would eat with a meal, and freeze them. Then we can pull them out and have delicious root vegetable casserole as a side dish with a quick meal through the fall and winter.

Fifth (yes, the list goes on), it’s super versatile. You can use whatever root vegetables you have on hand, in whatever quantities you want! Tailor it to suit the root vegetables your family enjoys, or just what you have to use up before you lose them. Personally, I’m a big fan of the combination I use for the root vegetable casserole here, but you can definitely also use squash in the mix, or leave some of these veggies out if you want to! It will still be delicious!

Finally it’s even healthy (in my opinion). Yes, there is a little bit of cream cheese and butter. But compared to the amount of super healthy root vegetables in this dish, they are pretty minuscule.

I just want to say thank you to my mom’s (and my ❤️) dear friend Cecile (yes, she has the same first name as my mom – for those of you who remember Mama Cecile’s Healthy Yogurt Pancakes – From Scratch). Cecile is an amazing chef and I am always so inspired by her cooking. It was her who first introduced this dish to us, and it makes such a lovely addition to any meal. I’m so grateful that she didn’t mind me sharing it with you!

This is a pretty simple recipe and I’ve kept pretty much to the instructions my mom gave me (which I assume she got from Cecile), except that I cooked all the veggies together instead of separately. Because ain’t nobody got time for that. 🙂 Especially if they have little kids and a crazy life and don’t want more pots to clean at the end of the day.

Don’t miss the step-by-step photo instructions below the recipe.

0 from 0 votes

Root Vegetable Casserole - Freezer Friendly Comfort Food

Prep Time

20 mins

Cook Time

45 mins

Total Time

1 hr 5 mins

This Root Vegetable Casserole is a superstar side dish - it's delicious, easy, cheap, healthy, versatile and can be made ahead of time. This is freezer-friendly comfort food at its best!

Servings: 10 servings

Author: Myra

Ingredients

1/2 turnip (you can adjust to suit what you want to use)
3 carrots (you can adjust to suit what you want to use)
2 parsnips (you can adjust to suit what you want to use)
2 sweet potatoes I used one gigantic one
1 and 1/2 tsp salt divided
1/4 cup butter
1/2 pkg cream cheese (4 oz)
1/2 cup panko or breadcrumbs

Instructions

Peel turnip, carrots, parsnips and sweet potato and cut them into chunks. I chopped the turnip smallest because it takes the longest to cook, and the sweet potato larger because it cooks faster. The carrots and parsnips are somewhere in the middle (see photo below for an example).
Put them in a large pot with 1 teaspoon of salt, cover with water and bring to a boil. Cook until vegetables are soft enough to be pierced with a fork or sharp knife (make sure that each kind of vegetable is soft).
Drain. I put a strainer over a large bowl so I could save the vegetable broth and make a soup. Put vegetables back in the pot.
Use a potato masher to mash them up. Then use a hand mixer to cream them together. Add butter, cream cheese and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and mix well to combine and make them creamy.
Spoon them into a large casserole dish. You can refrigerate, or even freeze the casserole until you're ready to eat it. When you're ready, bring the dish to room temperature and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Sprinkle with panko. Bake until heated through (around 30 minutes) and top is browned (you might need to broil it for a couple of minutes).
Serve hot and enjoy! 🙂

Root Vegetable Casserole – Freezer-Friendly Comfort Food – Step-by-Step Instructions

Root Vegetable Casserole – Freezer Friendly Comfort Food – Ingredients (although, as I mentioned above, you can swap which root vegetables and the amounts!)

I used half a turnip. Cut it in half and peel it carefully.

Then chop it into pretty small squares. Turnip is the hardest of all these veggies and will take the longest to cook, so I cut it the smallest. As a side note, I’ve really noticed lately that I absolutely LOVE turnips. I’m definitely going to have to cook more of them this winter!

Peel and chop carrots. I used 3 medium sized ones. You can use however many you want! I also cut the carrots fairly small because they take quite a while to cook too.

Peel and chop parsnip. I used two. You can cut them into chunks just a little bigger than the carrots.

Finally, I used one GIGANTIC sweet potato, but you could easily use two regular sized ones. I peeled it and cut it into bigger chunks, because sweet potato is softer and cooks more quickly than the other root vegetables I’m using. I really like the sweet potato in this dish for the subtle sweetness it brings.

Put them all in a big pot (aren’t they pretty?!), add 1 teaspoon of salt. Cover with water by at least a couple of inches, put the lid on and bring to a boil. Once it’s boiling you can take the lid off. If it’s boiling over you can reduce the heat a bit. Cook until each type of vegetable can be easily pierced with a fork or sharp knife (about 15 minutes). Drain the veggies (I used a strainer set over a bowl, and I saved all the lovely vegetable broth and made a soup with it) and put the vegetables back into the pot.

Use a potato masher to squash them.

Then get out a hand mixer and use it to blend the veggies until they’re nice and creamy. Add 1/4 cup butter, 1/2 package of cream cheese (4oz) and 1/2 teaspoon of salt and mix well.

Spoon the mixture into a casserole dish. At this point you can refrigerate it or even freeze it until you’re ready to eat the root vegetable casserole. Whenever you’re ready, just bring the dish back to room temperature and preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Sprinkle about 1/2 cup of panko or breadcrumbs on top (or more if you want… or none, if you want – it’s still delicious!) and bake it until it’s heated through and the crumbs are browned – about 30 minutes (you might need to broil for a few minutes at the end).

Serve hot and enjoy! 🙂

Warm Gingerbread Cake with Salted Caramel Sauce

0 · Nov 17, 2017 · 4 Comments

This Warm Gingerbread Cake with Salted Caramel Sauce is the most cozy fall dessert imaginable! Easy to make with pantry staples, it’s light on the pocketbook too! Make it as a 9×9 cake or a bundt to step it up!

Sounds pretty fancy, eh?

Actually, it’s SUPER easy to make, and pretty inexpensive too.

We’ve often made this for family gatherings, but we don’t make it just because it’s easy or because it’s cheap. We make it because it’s SO GOOD. And because it tastes like delicious, spicy, warm fall food.

When I was younger I would not have been tempted by gingerbread cake. I was never an overly big fan of gingerbread cookies or maybe even just gingerbread period.

Then, almost ten years ago (TEN YEARS!), I won a gift certificate to a restaurant out in Peggy’s Cove (the Sou’Wester, for those of you from Nova Scotia). I didn’t have a car at the time and wouldn’t have made such a trek very often, even to spectacular Peggy’s Cove.

Finally, three friends and I went out for a gorgeous fall afternoon. We played on the rocks at Peggy’s Cove and enjoyed the incredible vistas. Then, refreshed and with rosy cheeks, we went to eat at the restaurant.

I have no memory of what we ate for the meal, but ten years later, I still think about the dessert. It was a warm gingerbread cake with ice cream and caramel sauce. On this crisp fall day, with the sun blazing outside and the wind blowing the ocean around out the window, that warm cake was heaven.

So, of course I had to recreate it.

This gingerbread cake is moist, spicy and cozy tasting. I absolutely love it served warm. The salted caramel recipe isn’t mine – it’s from Sally’s Baking Addiction and it’s our go-to salted caramel recipe. It’s super easy (about 10 minutes), doesn’t require any special equipment and is amazing. So make the cake, serve it warm with the salted caramel, and I highly recommend whipping the rest of the cream and serving whipped cream with it as well. You won’t regret it.

Price-wise, this recipe is fantastic. It basically just uses a few pantry staples. The whipping cream for the salted caramel is the only thing that’s even slightly expensive, and if you whip the leftover cream and serve it with the cake it’s perfect.

Sigh. Can I call this acceptable breakfast food? Give me a big cup of strong coffee and a slice of warm gingerbread cake with salted caramel sauce and whipped cream any time of day! YUM.

BONUS: You can totally make this ahead of time! Just bake your cake, let it cool, chill it and wrap it up really well in cling wrap, then in foil and you can freeze it! Just make sure you let it thaw completely while it’s still wrapped up. The salted caramel can be made two weeks ahead of time and kept in the fridge! I would just make the whipped cream the day you plan to serve it. What a perfect dessert for a busy holiday season!

Dress It Up: Definitely whip up the rest of the whipping cream with a little bit of sugar, and maybe even some vanilla. Or serve the gingerbread cake with the salted caramel sauce AND a nice vanilla ice cream!

Pare It Down: You could leave out the salted caramel sauce and just dust it with powdered icing sugar through a small sieve. It’s a pretty moist cake and would still be delicious if you don’t want the sauce!

Warm Gingerbread Cake with Salted Caramel Sauce – Step-by-Step Instructions

Ingredients for Warm Gingerbread Cake with Salted Caramel Sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium sized bowl, combine 1 and 3/4 cups flour, 1 tablespoon of cinnamon, 4 teaspoons of ground ginger, 1 teaspoon of baking soda, 1/4 teaspoon of ground cloves and a large pinch of salt (if you’re using salted butter like I do – if you’re using unsalted butter use 1/4 teaspoon of salt here). Stir well with a whisk to break up and lumps and combine. Set aside.

Before you start this step, boil a kettle. Then, in a large bowl, cream 1/2 cup of softened butter with a hand mixer until it’s creamy and smooth. Then add 1/2 cup (packed) brown sugar and 1 room temperature egg (if you want to quickly bring an egg up to room temperature, you can submerge it in a bowl of warm/hot water). Mix for a couple of minutes until it’s light and fluffy.

Add 1 cup of molasses and mix well.

Add your dry ingredients and switch to a whisk. Mix until it’s JUST combined. You don’t want to overmix now because it will make your cake too dense. Once your dry ingredients are mixed in, add 1/2 cup of boiling water (my water isn’t actually brown – I just reused my cup with the molasses in it).

You can bake this in a 9×9 pan or a bundt pan. Spray it with non-stick cooking spray, especially well if you’re using the bundt pan – you want to be able to get the cake out without ripping it. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 35-40 minutes in preheated oven. My cake took around 36 minutes, but it will depend on your oven and the type of pan you use. When you insert a toothpick into the cake and it comes out clean it’s done.

If you plan to take your cake out of the pan, let it sit on a cooling rack in the pan for 10 minutes first, then carefully unmold. I ran a thin spatula gently between the cake and the pan and then shook it gently into my hand over a cooling rack.

For the salted caramel sauce you’ll want to check out Sally’s Baking Addiction for the full recipe, but here are the highlights so you can see how easy it is:

Melt sugar in a medium-large pot.

Add butter to melted sugar.

Add whipping cream.

Stir in salt. Set it aside to cool and RESIST THE URGE TO TASTE IT BECAUSE IT’S THE HOTTEST THING IN THE WORLD. You will burn yourself. Taste it once it’s cool. Please.

I would DEFINITELY whip the leftover whipping cream to go with your warm gingerbread cake with salted caramel sauce. I like the cake warmed up and the caramel loose (you can warm it for 30 seconds in the microwave to make it pourable).

Enjoy!! 🙂

5 from 2 votes

Warm Gingerbread Cake with Salted Caramel Sauce

Prep Time

30 mins

Cook Time

35 mins

Total Time

1 hr 5 mins

This Warm Gingerbread Cake with Salted Caramel Sauce is the most cozy fall dessert imaginable! Easy to make with pantry staples, it's light on the pocketbook too! Make it as a 9x9 cake or a bundt to step it up!

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: fall desserts, gingerbread cake

Servings: 9 servings

Calories: 402 kcal

Author: Myra

Ingredients

For the Gingerbread Cake

1 and 3/4 cups flour
4 tsp ground ginger
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp cloves
pinch salt if using salted butter (otherwise 1/4 tsp)
1/2 cup butter softened
1/2 cup brown sugar packed
1 egg at room temperature*
1 cup molasses
1/2 cup boiling water

For the Salted Caramel Sauce**

sugar
butter
whipping cream
salt

Instructions

Boil kettle and preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a medium sized bowl whisk together flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, cloves and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, whip butter until it's smooth and creamy. Add brown sugar and egg and mix until it's light and fluffy. Add molasses and mix well.
Switch to a whisk. Add dry ingredients and gently combine with the whisk. Don't overmix or the cake will be more dense and tough.
Add boiling water and stir to combine.
Spray a 9x9 inch square pan or a bundt pan with cooking spray (if you're using the bundt, spray it particularly well - helps with unmolding). Pour batter in. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Mine took about 36 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then on a rack until completely cool. (You can run a thin spatula between the cake and the pan to help it release.) You can freeze it at this stage if you want to.***
While the cake is baking you can make the salted caramel sauce following the recipe below from Sally's Baking Addiction. You can make this up to 2 weeks ahead of time.***
When you're ready to serve, I like to warm the gingerbread cake up and microwave the salted caramel sauce for 30 seconds so it's pourable.
Serve warm gingerbread cake with salted caramel sauce, and sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. ENJOY! 🙂

Recipe Notes

*To quickly bring an egg to room temperature put it in a bowl and run warm-hot water over it. Let it sit in the water for a few minutes.

**Get the complete recipe for this amazing and easy Salted Caramel Sauce over at Sally's Baking Addiction. It's worth it, trust me!

***If you want to make the cake ahead of time and freeze it, let it cool completely, then chill it in the fridge. Wrap it well in cling wrap and then in foil. When you thaw it, let it thaw completely while it's still wrapped up.

You can make the salted caramel up to 2 weeks ahead of time and store it in a container in the fridge.

Nutrition Facts

Warm Gingerbread Cake with Salted Caramel Sauce

Amount Per Serving

Calories 402 Calories from Fat 153

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 17g 26%

Saturated Fat 10g 50%

Cholesterol 64mg 21%

Sodium 420mg 18%

Potassium 612mg 17%

Total Carbohydrates 60g 20%

Dietary Fiber 1g 4%

Sugars 40g

Protein 3g 6%

Vitamin A 11.1%

Calcium 11%

Iron 18.3%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Leftover Turkey Shepherd’s Pie (freezer meal!)

0 · Nov 14, 2017 · 12 Comments

This Leftover Turkey Shepherd’s Pie is so easy to make and freezes like a dream! If you’ve had enough turkey for a few days, pop a few of these in the freezer and thaw them out when you’re short on time and looking for some quick and delicious comfort food!

Next time you have leftover turkey and trimmings (and really, who doesn’t at times in the fall and winter?) I can’t think of anything easier or tastier to make than this Leftover Turkey Shepherd’s Pie.

We actually cooked a turkey this week (between holidays haha!!!). It was a great way to free up some space in our freezer and use a bunch of lovely fall root vegetables. After we’d eaten our fill, we decided to make these Leftover Turkey Shepherd Pies that Laurier invented last Christmas. We used what we had on hand, but you could use any combination of turkey dinner leftovers and this would still be great!

Layer your shepherd’s pies up in individual ramekins or a larger casserole dish. Stick ’em in the freezer if you’ve had enough turkey for now. Then, when it’s a cold winter’s night and you’re looking for something easy and cozy for supper, thaw them out, heat them up, and enjoy all the comfort and deliciousness of Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner, all over again (without the mess!).

Or just heat and eat! Either way, you can’t go wrong.

Step-by-step instructions are below the recipe.

Step-by-Step Instructions – Leftover Turkey Shepherd’s Pie (Freezer Meal!)

Ingredients for Leftover Turkey Shepherd’s Pie.

Mix turkey and gravy together and spread in bottom layer of a larger casserole dish or ramekins (for individual pies). The gravy helps make sure it won’t be dry.

Cover with a layer of stuffing.

Continue with a layer of cranberry sauce.

Top with a layer of mashed (or even better, whipped) potatoes.

If you want, cover tightly and freeze. When ready to eat, just thaw and heat in microwave or oven.

Enjoy! 🙂

PIN IT for later!

5 from 1 vote

Easy Turkey Dinner Shepherd's Pie (freezer meal!)

Prep Time

5 mins

Cook Time

2 mins

Total Time

7 mins

This Leftover Turkey Shepherd’s Pie is so easy to make and freezes like a dream! If you’ve had enough turkey for a few days, pop a few of these in the freezer and thaw them out when you’re short on time and looking for some quick and delicious comfort food!

Servings: 1

Author: Myra

Ingredients

Turkey
Gravy
Stuffing
Cranberry
potatoes
Any other leftovers or vegetables from a turkey dinner

Instructions

Mix turkey and gravy together and spread in bottom layer of a larger casserole dish or ramekins (for individual pies). The gravy helps make sure it won't be dry.
Cover with a layer of stuffing*.
Continue with a layer of cranberry sauce**.
Top with a layer of mashed (or even better, whipped) potatoes.
If desired, cover tightly and freeze. When ready to eat, just thaw and heat in microwave or oven.

Recipe Notes

* If you're looking for recipes for stuffing, check out our Light and Fluffy Stuffing recipe.

** If you're looking for a recipe for cranberry sauce, have a look at our Easy Cranberry Sauce recipe!

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Chile Con Queso Pasta Bake

1 · Nov 3, 2017 · Leave a Comment

This Chile Con Queso Pasta Bake is for everyone who has to pry themselves away from the con queso dip (like I do!). Healthy, cheap and easy to make, it’ll help you get your queso fix in delicious cheesy, creamy pasta form. YUM!

I don’t know about you, but I have a bit of a thing for con queso dip. Yes, the internet tells me that it’s chile con queso, otherwise known as ‘queso’, but for some reason where I live people call it con queso, so that works for me. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, the store-bought version (which I could eat by the jar) looks like this.

Actually, I don’t believe I’ve ever had a homemade version of the dip, and that, my friends, is something I obviously need to remedy IMMEDIATELY. As in, maybe this weekend. Hey, it’s 6 am.

ANYWAY. A little while back I was having a craving for some con queso. But I was also craving supper. Specifically, some type of pasta. With a southwest influence. And while I’m certainly not making any claims about authenticity or the origin of any of these flavours, we had something that I’ll call Chile Con Queso Pasta Bake. And I loved it.

I would say it’s even pretty healthy! Instead of just dumping a jar of the dip into my pasta (which I considered, but…. er, no), I made a homemade sauce out of milk, cheese, canned chilies and plain yogurt (my secret ingredient in so many things!). I will say, if our kids aren’t going to be eating with us I would use two jars of chilies, for the extra con queso flavour. But otherwise, delish! Creamy, tangy, cheesy and hearty. It calls for a bunch of pantry staples, and stretches just 1 lb of ground beef (which you could leave out to make it vegetarian, or cut costs). The perfect fall casserole!

Chile Con Queso Pasta Bake – Step-by-Step Instructions

Chile Con Queso Pasta Bake – Ingredients

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F if you plan to eat this right away. Put a large pot of salted water on to boil and cook 1 pound of pasta according to package directions until it’s al dente (probably around 10 minutes, depending on the type of pasta). Drain and set aside.

Brown 1 pound of ground beef (this is optional – you can totally leave it out and make it vegetarian). Once it’s cooked, remove it to a plate. If you have a lot of grease left in the pot you’ll probably want to drain it off.

While the beef is cooking you can be chopping! Peel and chop 1 onion and 6 cloves of garlic.

After you drain the fat from the ground beef, put your pot back on medium heat, add 2 tablespoons of butter (you can use olive oil or some other option if you’d rather) and chopped onion. Fry until onion starts to soften, which should take about five minutes.

If you have time while the onions are cooking, you can chop 1 red pepper and rinse 1 can of black beans. Also, shred about 2 cups of cheese. I used cheddar but you can use whatever you have. Monterey Jack would be delicious, but I wouldn’t go out and buy it if you already have cheddar!

Then add chopped garlic, 1 teaspoon of paprika and 1 teaspoon of salt.

Add 1/4 cup of flour and stir well to combine with the other ingredients. Cook, stirring, for about one minute.

Sloooowly start adding milk. You’ll add 2 cups in total, but start with just a tablespoon or two, and use the milk to loosen everything that’s stuck to the bottom of the pot. Then add just a few tablespoons of milk at a time and mix really well each time, to make sure there are no clumps. It will get really thick and seize up, but just keep going and it will start to loosen and thin out. This part is a little slow, but once your sauce has become fairly liquid you can add the rest of the milk all at once.

Add one cup of plain yogurt, 1-2 cans of chopped chilies (depending on how spicy and tangy you want it to be – but just 1 can will be very mild – these are 127ml or 4oz cans), and most of the 2 cups of cheese you grated while frying the onions (save a bit for the top of the pasta bake). Stir well to combine and take off heat.

Combine drained pasta, chopped red pepper and black beans in a really big bowl. Corn would also be super tasty here. Add sauce to pasta mix and stir well to combine.

Pour into a 9×13 baking dish. Sprinkle with leftover cheese. Bake for 15 minutes to heat through. Garnish with cilantro (optional). Serve hot.

Enjoy! 🙂

5 from 1 vote

Chile Con Queso Pasta Bake

Prep Time

25 mins

Cook Time

15 mins

Total Time

40 mins

This Chile Con Queso Pasta Bake is for everyone who has to pry themselves away from the con queso dip (like I do!). Healthy, cheap and easy to make, it'll help you get your queso fix in delicious cheesy, creamy pasta form. YUM!

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: comfort food, pasta bake

Servings: 8 servings

Calories: 613 kcal

Author: Myra

Ingredients

1 lb pasta
1 lb ground beef optional - you can leave it out to make this vegetarian
6 cloves garlic
2 tbsp butter you can use olive oil or another oil if you want
2 cups cheese shredded
1 red pepper
1 can black beans
1 tsp paprika I would use regular, not smoked
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup flour
2 cups milk
1 cup plain yogurt
1-2 cans chopped green chilies 1 for very mild, 2 for a tiny bit spicy and more tangy [These are 4oz/127ml cans]
cilantro optional - for garnish

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling, salted water, until al dente according to package directions (probably about 10 minutes).
Brown ground beef in a medium - large pot.
While ground beef is cooking, peel and chop onion and garlic for the next step. If you have extra time, shred cheese, chop red pepper and drain and rinse beans. Otherwise, you can do these things while the onion is cooking.
Once ground beef is browned, remove it to a plate and drain off grease. Add butter and onion to pot and cook over medium heat until onion starts to soften, about 5 minutes.
Add garlic, paprika and salt. Add flour and stir for about 1 minute.
Very slowly start to add milk. Add the first couple of tablespoons and use a wooden spoon to start to work up what is stuck to the bottom of the pot. Then add more milk a bit at a time, stirring well each time. It will get thicker and seize up at first, but then start to become more liquid. Once the mixture is fairly liquid add the rest of the milk.
Add most of the grated cheese, yogurt and cans of chopped green chilies. Stir well and remove.
In a large bowl, stir together pasta, red pepper, black beans and sauce. Mix well to make sure there are no dry spots. Pour into a 9x13 baking dish. Top with leftover shredded cheese and bake for 15 minutes (until heated through). Garnish with cilantro (optional). Serve hot.
Enjoy! 🙂

Nutrition Facts

Chile Con Queso Pasta Bake

Amount Per Serving

Calories 613 Calories from Fat 243

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 27g 42%

Saturated Fat 14g 70%

Cholesterol 87mg 29%

Sodium 574mg 24%

Potassium 593mg 17%

Total Carbohydrates 59g 20%

Dietary Fiber 5g 20%

Sugars 6g

Protein 30g 60%

Vitamin A 22.2%

Vitamin C 24.1%

Calcium 34.4%

Iron 16.8%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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Sausage and Egg Breakfast Muffins

0 · Oct 20, 2017 · 4 Comments

These Sausage and Egg Breakfast Muffins are delicious, filling, easy to make ahead and freezer friendly. What more could you want in a breakfast food?

Are mornings a rush in your house? Is there a house where mornings aren’t a rush? Showers, clothes, breakfast, tooth brushing, trying to get out the door to work, school, daycare, wherever.

One thing that I find helps is having a go-to breakfast ready ahead of time. Sometimes we make big batches of our favourite pancakes and freeze them. Sometimes it’s just knowing that we have bread for toast. But sometimes, we make a big batch of something awesome like these Sausage and Egg Breakfast Muffins and bam – there’s a tasty, filling breakfast that you can even eat on the go if you want to.

Things I love about these: they’re delicious. Hello, breakfast sausage, YUM. They’re quite cheap. You can buy sausages when they’re on sale for just a few dollars and freeze them until you’re ready to make these (since you’re cooking the sausage before refreezing, that’s fine). Other than that it’s just eggs (very cheap), cheese (which you should be buying on sale anyway!) and a few herbs and spices. Super easy, super cheap.

Bonus: You can freeze these! The egg won’t be quite as fresh and fluffy, but it’s darn convenient, so I say “Yes!”.

These Sausage and Egg Breakfast Muffins also make a great addition to a potluck brunch!

If you want this to be gluten free, you have to make sure you use a gluten free breakfast sausage.

5 from 1 vote

Sausage and Egg Breakfast Muffins

Prep Time

10 mins

Cook Time

17 mins

Total Time

27 mins

These Sausage and Egg Breakfast Muffins are delicious, filling, easy to make ahead and freezer friendly. What more could you want in a breakfast food?

Servings: 12 muffins

Author: Myra

Ingredients

1 pkg breakfast sausage
9 eggs I only buy extra large eggs - I think they're better value
1 cup cheese I used cheddar
1 tbsp green onions chopped
1 tbsp dried parsley

Instructions

Take breakfast sausage out of casings and add the sausage to a preheated frying pan. Fry until well cooked. Use a slotted spoon to scoop sausage out and leave most of the fat behind. Drain sausage on paper towel.
Grease a muffin tin (I know it seems weird, with all the sausage, but you don't want your eggs to stick) and divide the cooked sausage between all the cups. Grate cheese and divide it between the muffin cups.
In a large bowl, use a fork to whip up eggs. Add chopped green onions dried parsley. Divide the egg mixture between the muffin cups.
Bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for about 17 minutes - or until eggs are set. Enjoy! 🙂

Sausage and Egg Breakfast Muffins – Step-by-Step Instructions

Sausage and Egg Breakfast Muffins – Ingredients

Take breakfast sausage out of casings and add the sausage to a preheated frying pan.

Fry until well cooked.

Use a slotted spoon to scoop sausage out and leave most of the fat behind. Drain sausage on paper towel.

Grease a muffin tin (I know it seems weird, with all the sausage, but you don’t want your eggs to stick) and divide the cooked sausage between all the cups. Grate 1 cup of cheese (I used cheddar) and divide it between the muffin cups.

In a large bowl, use a fork to whip up 9 eggs. I like to use extra large eggs because I think they’re the best value. Add 1 tablespoon of chopped green onions and 1 tablespoon of dried parsley.

Divide the egg mixture between the muffin cups.

Bake in a preheated 350 degree F oven for about 17 minutes – or until eggs are set.

Enjoy! 🙂

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Thai Barbecue Chicken Pizza

0 · Oct 17, 2017 · 2 Comments

This Thai Barbecue Chicken Pizza is sweet and smoky, fresh and satisfying. It’s the perfect blend of just a few distinct flavours and it’s both easy and cheap to make. If you’re ready to change up your pizza game, give this one a try. It’ll be your new favourite pizza!

I first started making this Barbecue Thai Chicken Pizza quite a few years ago, when I was experimenting with different pizza flavours. It was an instant hit. I love pizza as much as the next person, (and who doesn’t love pizza?) and I love mixing it up and making different types of pizza to suit different seasons, moods and occasions.

This Barbecue Thai Chicken Pizza is delicious ANYTIME. The sauce is a sweet and smoky blend of sweet chili sauce and your favourite barbecue sauce, there’s a bit of chicken for texture and meatiness, red peppers for crunch and cilantro for a fresh burst at the end. I like to toast a few sesame seeds to add an underlying nutty flavour. You use just ONE chicken breast for two pizzas and this ends up being a pretty cheap meal!

Bonus: If you use our pizza dough recipe (linked below) this makes two 12-inch pizzas, and this pizza freezes super well (the texture of the cilantro isn’t 100% after being frozen, but I find I don’t mind). Yay for freezer friendly meals!

Whether you love pizza and are looking for a change, or love Thai flavours and are looking for some interesting (and obviously not authentic) variations, this one is a big crowd favourite! Give it a try!

In case you missed it:

Make sure you grab our $5 Meals for Fall e-book – so you can eat even more delicious food, even on a tiny budget!

5 from 1 vote

Thai Barbecue Chicken Pizza

Prep Time

15 mins

Cook Time

15 mins

Total Time

30 mins

This Thai Barbecue Chicken Pizza is sweet and smoky, fresh and satisfying. It's the perfect blend of just a few distinct flavours and it's both easy and cheap to make. If you're ready to change up your pizza game, give this one a try. It'll be your new favourite pizza!

Servings: 2 12 inch pizzas

Author: Myra

Ingredients

prepared pizza dough* Enough to make two 12-inch pizzas. Our recipe (linked below in the notes) will be big enough if you want to make your own
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
1/2 cup sweet chili sauce
1 chicken breast
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cups mozzarella cheese shredded
1 red pepper
3 green onions
3 tbsp cilantro
1 tbsp sesame seeds

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F and make sure your racks are centered in the oven.
Chop one chicken breast into bite-sized pieces. I like to use a fork to hold the chicken and avoid as much raw chicken on my hands as possible. Heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat and start to cook the chicken.
In a small bowl, combine barbecue sauce and sweet chili sauce.
Slice red pepper and green onions, and shred cheese. You can also rinse and pat dry cilantro and chop it for later.
Once the chicken is nicely browned, add a few tablespoons of sauce to coat the pieces and take it off the heat.
Stretch prepared dough (we recommend our Easy Homemade Pizza Dough recipe* - which makes enough for two 12-inch pizzas) over greased pizza pans. Top with the sauce, cheese, chicken pieces, red peppers and green onions.
Bake in preheated 450 degree F oven for about for one pizza, or 16-17 minutes for two pizzas, rotating them from top to bottom rack halfway through. Check the bottom of the crust to make sure it's browned and cooked through.
While pizza is baking, toast 1 tablespoon of sesame seeds in a dry frying pan over low heat until they are lightly browned.
When pizza is ready, sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and chopped cilantro.
Enjoy! 🙂

Recipe Notes

*We recommend our Easy Homemade Pizza Dough recipe

Thai Barbecue Chicken Pizza – Step-by-Step Instructions

Thai Barbecue Chicken Pizza – Ingredients

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F and make sure your racks are centered in the oven.

Chop one chicken breast into bite-sized pieces. I like to use a fork to hold the chicken and avoid as much raw chicken on my hands as possible. Heat a tablespoon of oil in a frying pan over medium heat and cook the chicken.

In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup of your favourite barbecue sauce with 1/2 cup of sweet chili sauce.

Once the chicken is nicely browned, add a few tablespoons of sauce to coat the pieces and take it off the heat.

Slice a red pepper and a few green onions, and shred about 2 cups of cheese. You can also rinse and pat dry a small bunch of cilantro and chop it for later.

Stretch prepared dough (we recommend our Easy Homemade Pizza Dough recipe – which makes enough for two 12-inch pizzas) over greased pizza pans. Top with the sauce, cheese, chicken pieces, red peppers and green onions.

Bake in preheated 450 degree F oven for about for one pizza, or 16-17 minutes for two pizzas, rotating them from top to bottom rack halfway through. Check the bottom of the crust to make sure it’s browned and cooked through.

While pizza is baking, toast 1 tablespoon of sesame seeds in a dry frying pan over low heat until they are lightly browned.

When pizza is ready, sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and chopped cilantro.

Enjoy! 🙂

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Easy Greek Meatballs (Baked!)

0 · Sep 29, 2017 · 2 Comments

This Easy Greek Meatballs recipe packs a TON of flavour into little tiny meatball packages! They’re easy to make, bake quickly in the oven, and freeze super well. This recipe uses just a few pantry staples for a delicious, garlicky, meal, infused with delicious herbs. Who doesn’t need an easy and delicious freezer meal at this (or any!) time of year?

This post contains affiliate links.

I’ve been meaning to make meatballs for a long time now. I feel like they’re a great freezer friendly meal, and awesome if you have little kids who like picking up small pieces of food and dunking them in yummy sauce. I love the fact that you can make a pretty big batch of these in not much time, bake them quickly and then have an easy supper or lunch to heat up or stash in the freezer.

A surprise bonus of these Greek Meatballs: my one year old, who has a list of about 10 things she will actually eat (so incredibly frustrating!) LOVES them. She’s not much of a meat eater AT ALL, and I honestly didn’t expect her to touch them. Then she shocked us by devouring a bunch of them. So I think we’ll be seeing a lot more Greek meatballs in our future!

Lucky for the rest of us, we love them too. They’re really easy to make, use just a few pantry staples, and can freeze and thaw quickly! Yes please!

These are delicious with our Homemade Tzatziki (Greek Cucumber Yogurt Sauce and Dip). You can wrap them up in a pita, or eat them with rice or roasted potatoes. YUM!

Don’t miss the step-by-step photo instructions below the recipe!

5 from 1 vote

Easy Greek Meatballs (Baked!)

Prep Time

15 mins

Cook Time

20 mins

Total Time

35 mins

This Easy Greek Meatballs recipe packs a TON of flavour into little tiny meatball packages! They're easy to make, bake quickly in the oven, and freeze super well. This recipe uses just a few pantry staples for a delicious, garlicky, meal, infused with delicious herbs. Who doesn't need an easy and delicious freezer meal at this (or any!) time of year?

Servings: 8 servings

Author: Myra

Ingredients

2 lbs ground beef I used lean
1 red onion a small one
4 cloves garlic
3/4 cup panko or breadcrumbs
1 egg
1/4 cup dried parsley
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp salt

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a sheet pan with foil.
Finely chop red onion, and peel and mince garlic.
In a large bowl combine ALL the ingredients and use your hands (wash them well before and after) to combine the mixture. Roll the meatball mixture into small balls (mine were around golf ball size) and line them up on the sheet pan.
Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. You could start checking after 15 minutes - depending on how hot your oven runs they might be done. I ALWAYS test my meat with a meat thermometer to take the guesswork out of it.*
Serve with our Homemade Tzatziki, pita bread and fresh veggies, or with rice, or roasted potatoes. Enjoy! 🙂

Recipe Notes

*One of my favourite meat thermometers is this one - it's cheap and works great!

Easy Greek Meatballs (Baked!) – Step-by-Step Instructions

Easy Greek Meatballs – Ingredients

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a sheet pan with foil. Chop 1 small red onion, and peel and mince 4 cloves of garlic.

In a large bowl, combine 2 pounds of ground beef (lean, if possible), onion, garlic, 1 egg, 3/4 cup of panko or breadcrumbs, 1/4 cup of dried parsley 1 teaspoon of oregano and 1 teaspoon of salt.

Mix it well to combine the meatball mixture. I actually hate sticking my hands in raw hamburger, but I can’t really find any way around it. Once my hands are in there it’s not so bad. Make sure you wash your hands really well before and after.

Form mixture into meatballs and line them up on your foil lined pan. Mine were around the size of golf balls.

Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. You could start checking after 15 minutes – depending on how hot your oven runs they might be done. I ALWAYS test my meat with a meat thermometer to take the guesswork out of it.

Serve with our Homemade Tzatziki, pita bread and fresh veggies, or with rice, or roasted potatoes. Enjoy! 🙂

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Super Easy Cilantro Pesto

0 · Sep 1, 2017 · 2 Comments

This Super Easy Cilantro Pesto recipe is a simple, healthy condiment you can make in 5 minutes. Enjoy it on crackers, as a chicken marinade, tossed with pasta, brushed on grilled shrimp, or mixed into a creamy or olive oil salad dressing. So many delicious cilantro possibilities! We LOVE it!

This post contains affiliate links.

Does anyone else have cilantro that’s about to bolt from their garden? We grow quite a bit of cilantro (ahem… my dad, who lives next door and gardens like a pro, grows quite a bit of cilantro) and there’s always a mad dash to use it before it goes to seed and is done for the summer. Cilantro is a delicate herb and it doesn’t take well to being dried or frozen. I’ve tried both, with sad, sad results. 🙁

Enter this Super Easy Cilantro Pesto. The other day I went to the garden and chopped down a big handful of cilantro, half of which was going to seed already. Then I stripped the leaves and fronds off the tougher stems, and about five minutes later was munching on this delicious spread.

It really is THAT easy.

Sounds like a great way to preserve cilantro to me! I’m sticking a small jar in the freezer to make sure, but I fully expect it to hold up well if I drizzle a thin layer of oil over the top of the cilantro pesto before I put the lid on.

“BUT WAIT!” you’re thinking. “I don’t have a garden!” Fear not, my friend, this recipe is still totally within reach. At the larger grocery stores near where I live (which is a pretty expensive place, grocery-wise), a huge bunch of cilantro can be yours for just $2.49. Enough to make this recipe.

What that means is that for just a few dollars of ingredients, you can enjoy this delicious, dare I say rather decadent, spread at home. This is something that isn’t usually sold at grocery stores, which makes it a bit special. And if you’re a cilantro-lover (and I know, not everyone is!), it’s definitely worth a try!

PS – If you’re not sure where to get pumpkin seeds, I find they’re a decent price at Walmart (Joe’s Tasty Travels Brand).

PPS – If you make this and then wonder what to do with it, here are a few ideas! We’ve already eaten it on crackers as part of an appetizer tray, and mixed it with yogurt for a chicken marinade (both delicious!). I also have big plans to toss it with hot pasta and cheese, brush it on grilled shrimp, spread it on a sandwich, and mix it with a bit of mayo and yogurt for salad dressing (or even just olive oil). Lots of possibilities.

Guess I’d better go find some more cilantro. 🙂

Don’t miss the step-by-step photo instructions below the recipe!

5 from 1 vote

Super Easy Cilantro Pesto

Prep Time

5 mins

Total Time

5 mins

Servings: 1 cups

Author: Myra

Ingredients

2 cups cilantro packed
4 cloves garlic can use less if you want
1/2 cup unsalted pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
1/4 cup lime juice freshly squeezed**
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 cup healthy oil olive oil or avocado oil

Instructions

Peel garlic. Turn food processor* on and drop whole garlic cloves through feed tube. Watch it mince perfectly in the bowl of the food processor.
Stuff cilantro into the bowl of the food processor and add unsalted pumpkin seeds (pepitas), fresh-squeezed lime juice**, salt and pepper. Put the lid on and pulse until the cilantro starts to break down and form a paste.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, put the lid back on, turn the machine on, and with it running, add oil through the feed tube.
Empty it into a bowl and enjoy! 🙂

Recipe Notes

*I'm lucky enough to own this food processor and I LOVE IT.

**I love this type of juicer - it's so easy and fast!

Super Easy Cilantro Pesto – Step-by-Step Instructions

Super Easy Cilantro Pesto – Ingredients

Want to know a great way to mince a lot of garlic quickly? You’ll need a food processor (I’m lucky enough to have this one and I LOVE IT). Peel it and then turn your empty food processor on. Drop the garlic through the feed tube at the top of the processor and watch it bounce around and get perfectly minced inside. Then continue with your recipe.

For this recipe I used 4 large cloves of garlic. It was pretty intensely garlicky (which is great because we love garlic) when it was first made (it had a bit of a garlic ‘burn’) but it mellowed after a day in the fridge. You can also just use less garlic if you want, but I wouldn’t leave it out completely!

Once the garlic is minced, stuff 2 packed cups of cilantro into the bowl of the food processor and add 1/2 cup of unsalted pumpkin seeds (pepitas), 1/4 cup fresh-squeezed lime juice (I love this type of juicer – it’s so easy), 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper. Put the lid on and pulse until the cilantro starts to break down and form a paste.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, put the lid back on, turn the machine on, and with it running, add 1/4 cup oil through the feed tube. You can use olive oil if you want. I used avocado oil. Either way is fine.

That’s it folks! Scrape it into a bowl and enjoy! 🙂

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Freezer Steak or Chicken Quesadillas

0 · Mar 22, 2017 · 4 Comments

Freezer Steak or Chicken Quesadillas are a great way to spend a little time cooking a big batch of food for easy lunches and suppers. You can completely customize these quesadillas to suit your taste. They freeze well and reheat in no time!

A few times a year I do a bunch of extra cooking to stash easy meals in our freezer. I find it super helpful to have healthy meals we can pull out for lunches or suppers, and it keeps us from wasting money on unhealthy junk just because it’s easy and we’re tired.

This year I made a batch of a dozen steak quesadillas and a dozen chicken quesadillas and I’ve really enjoyed grabbing a couple for a quick lunch. Next time I’ll make even more of them.

I cooked a turkey (so I guess they’re technically turkey quesadillas!) and took all the meat off it to use for a bunch of different recipes, which is a great thing to consider if you’re planning to do a lot of freezer cooking over a couple of days. Around holidays like Christmas and Easter you can often pick up a turkey for .99 cents/pound and store it in your freezer until you’re ready to do your cooking.

Steak probably doesn’t sound like a budget ingredient, but I actually used deer steak to make these quesadillas, and it was given to us for free. It doesn’t get much more budget than that! I enjoy deer meat, and am happy to eat it as a healthy, cheap, clean meat source.

But if you’re not crazy about the taste and are wondering what to do with that package of deer steak you have in the back of you freezer, these quesadillas are a great option because the fajita seasoning is pretty dominant. You can also pick up small cheap steaks that aren’t the best cut for eating as a whole steak but work fine for dishes like this when you cut them thinly against the grain.

One note: this is not a recipe as much as it is a guide. This type of cooking is very flexible. Many people would only use peppers and onions as vegetables, but I had a package of mushrooms I wanted to use up, so I threw them in.

You can add more or less vegetables to suit your own personal taste and stuff your quesadillas more or less full to suit what you think you’ll be looking for at meal times. I find this is a great way to stretch a little bit of meat with a lot of veggies. Make up a big batch of whatever filling you want to use. You can pretty much customize them however you like!

Freezer Steak or Chicken Quesadillas – Step-by-Step Instructions

Freezer Steak or Chicken Quesadillas – Ingredients

For the steak quesadilla filling, I fried up thinly sliced deer meat (sliced against the grain), lots of peppers, onions and mushrooms. Add 1/4 cup of water and 2 tablespoons of fajita seasoning mix. If you’re making a large batch, double this. Stir and cook to combine and taste to see if you would like more seasoning. Cook until most of the moisture has evaporated.

For the chicken quesadillas (actually they were turkey), I decided to keep things fairly simple in case anyone was not a fan of peppers and onions. I just used turkey and cheese, but I found them a little boring. Next time I would definitely use at least peppers and cheese. Any excuse to get extra vegetables into our meals!

Cook shredded or sliced chicken or turkey with 1/4 cup of water and 2 tablespoons of fajita seasoning. Taste and double water and spices if it seems not flavourful enough. Cook until most of the moisture has evaporated.

If you’re making a big batch for the freezer, assemble them all before you start cooking them. I find it easiest to make them on one tortilla that you fold in half.

Stuff them with your chosen filling and shredded cheese. I used a mix of cheddar and mozzarella cheese.

Line them up to await their fate. I made a dozen of each this time but I would do even more next time.

I find that the easiest and fastest way, by far, to cook quesadillas is on a panini press. I got one as a gift many years ago and we use still use it all the time. If you don’t own one, you can fry your quesadillas in a dry frying pan (if you like them soft) or an oiled frying pan (if you like them crispy) over low heat, flipping carefully half way though. I’ve read that you can also cook them in the oven, but to be honest I’ve never tried it!

If you’re planning to freeze them, let them cool completely and then wrap them individually in plastic wrap like saran wrap and store in a large zip-top bag. You can thaw them in the microwave, oven or at room temperature. Then warm them and serve with salsa, sour cream (or plain yogurt, in our case!), and mashed avocado/guacamole.

Enjoy! 🙂

5 from 2 votes

Freezer Steak or Chicken Quesadillas

Prep Time

30 mins

Cook Time

30 mins

Total Time

1 hr

Freezer Steak or Chicken Quesadillas are a great way to spend a little time cooking a big batch of food for easy lunches and suppers. You can completely customize these quesadillas to suit your taste. They freeze well and reheat in no time!

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Tex Mex

Keyword: freezer meals, quesadillas

Servings: 12 servings

Calories: 241 kcal

Author: Myra

Ingredients

2 cups chicken or turkey cooked and shredded or sliced - can also use chicken breasts and just fry for longer
1 cup steak or deer steak thinly sliced against the grain
2 cups shredded cheese any kind of cheese should work here
1 bell pepper sliced
1 small onion sliced
fajita seasoning mix*
1-2 packages soft flour tortillas I used "large" ones from the Mexican section of the grocery store, but I would say they are more like medium sized

Instructions

Steak Filling

I fried up thinly sliced deer meat (sliced against the grain), lots of peppers, onions and mushrooms.
Add 1/4 cup of water and 2 tablespoons of fajita seasoning mix*. If you're making a large batch, double this. Stir and cook to combine and taste to see if you would like more seasoning. Cook until most of the moisture has evaporated.

Chicken Filling

Fry chicken with vegetables of your choice (peppers, onions, etc) or none at all, if you'd prefer.Add 1/4 cup of water and 2 tablespoons of fajita seasoning*. Taste and double water and spices if it seems not flavourful enough. Cook until most of the moisture has evaporated.

Assembly

If you're making a big batch for the freezer, assemble them all before you start cooking them. I find it easiest to make them on one tortilla that you fold in half (see photo below for an example). Stuff them with your chosen filling and shredded cheese.
I find that the easiest and fastest way, by far, to cook quesadillas is on a panini press. If you don't own one, you can fry your quesadillas in a dry frying pan (if you like them soft) or an oiled frying pan (if you like them crispy) over low heat, flipping carefully half way though. I've read that you can also cook them in the oven, but to be honest I've never tried it!
If you're planning to freeze them, let them cool completely and then wrap them individually in plastic wrap like saran wrap and store in a large zip-top bag. You can thaw them in the microwave, oven or at room temperature. Then warm them and serve with salsa, sour cream (or plain yogurt, in our case!), and mashed avocado/guacamole. Enjoy! 🙂

Recipe Notes

* You can easily make homemade fajita seasoning, or you can use a store-bought packet.

Nutrition Facts

Freezer Steak or Chicken Quesadillas

Amount Per Serving

Calories 241

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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Vegetarian Ranch Shepherd’s Pie (With Lentils!)

0 · Feb 24, 2017 · 4 Comments

This Vegetarian Ranch Shepherd’s Pie (With Lentils!) is so delicious you won’t even miss the meat! Check out the step-by-step photo instructions below the main recipe.

We try to eat vegetarian meals a few times a week, for our budget, our health and the planet. At first this was a bit more of a struggle – we had to make it a point to schedule and think up a meal for “Vegetarian Thursday”. Now it’s second nature – our weeks naturally just have one, two or even three meals that are vegetarian.

I really love meat (hello… I really love FOOD). I honestly don’t think I could ever give it up all together. But I like the challenge of eating meatless meals on a semi-regular basis, and I like knowing that this healthy habit often benefits our budget too.

Lately I’ve really been wanting to experiment with lentils. They’re super cheap, easy to keep in your pantry, and extremely healthy. For some reason a vegetarian ranch shepherd’s pie using lentils instead of the traditional ground beef seemed like the best idea ever. And guess what? It was DELICIOUS. It was so good we ate double helpings of it. And I honestly don’t think we missed the meat at all!

In my mind, that’s a vegetarian meal success 🙂

Step-by-step photo instructions after the recipe.

5 from 1 vote

Vegetarian Ranch Shepherd's Pie (With Lentils!)

Prep Time

1 hr

Cook Time

30 mins

Total Time

1 hr 30 mins

Servings: 6 servings

Author: Myra

Ingredients

Bottom layer

2 cups green lentils pre-soaked according to package directions
2 cups vegetable or chicken broth use vegetable broth to make this dish vegetarian
2 tbsp butter
2 onions chopped
5 cloves garlic minced
1 tsp seasoned salt
1 tbsp tomato paste

Middle layer

2 cups frozen peas and carrots

Top layer

2 lbs potatoes (approximately 4 large or 6 medium)
3/4 tsp salt divided
1/4 cup plain yogurt or sour cream
1/4 cup milk
2 tbsp ranch seasoning mix* recipe in notes below (or ranch dressing, to taste)

Instructions

Bottom layer

Place pre-soaked lentils in a large pot with broth. Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer and cook 20 minutes. When lentils are cooked, drain them over a bowl in order to save the broth for later in the recipe.
Meanwhile, peel potatoes and cut them into chunks. In a large pot, cover them with water, add 1/2 teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil. Simmer until potatoes are cooked (you can easily poke them with a fork), about 15 minutes.
While potatoes (and/or lentils) are cooking, chop onions and fry in a large skillet, pot or wok, with 2 tablespoons of butter. After onions start to soften add minced cloves of garlic.
Add drained lentils, tomato paste, seasoned salt and stir well to combine. Add broth that was drained out of lentils and allow mixture to simmer until it thickens slightly. Pour into the bottom of a medium sized (2.5 - 3 quart) casserole dish.
Cover with peas and carrots.

Top layer

When potatoes are cooked, drain them well and roughly mash them. Add milk, plain yogurt or sour cream, 2 tablespoons of butter, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and 2 tablespoons of dry ranch seasoning*. Use a hand mixer to cream the potatoes until they are light and creamy.
Spread potatoes on top of vegetable layer. Bake in 350 degree F oven for 30 minutes or until heated through. Don't overbake.Enjoy! 🙂

Recipe Notes

* Our Homemade Ranch Dressing Mix is cheap and super fast to make. Take two minutes to mix up a batch just for this recipe!

Vegetarian Ranch Shepherd’s Pie (With Lentils!) – Step-by-Step Instructions

Vegetarian Ranch Shepherd’s Pie (With Lentils!) Ingredients

Put 2 cups of pre-soaked lentils in a large pot with 2 cups of vegetable or chicken broth. I used chicken broth, since I’m mainly trying to eat some meatless meals – I’m not a vegetarian. Vegetable broth would be great too. Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer and cook 20 minutes.

When lentils are cooked, drain them over a bowl in order to save the broth for later in the recipe.

Meanwhile, peel around 2 lbs of potatoes and cut them into chunks. I would say this is about 4 large potatoes or 6 medium potatoes. Cover them with water, add 1/2 teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil. Simmer until potatoes are cooked (you can easily poke them with a fork), about 15 minutes.

While potatoes (and/or lentils) are cooking, chop 2 onions and fry in a large skillet, pot or wok, with 2 tablespoons of butter. After onions start to soften add 5 minced cloves of garlic.

Add drained lentils, 1 tablespoon of tomato paste, 1 teaspoon of seasoned salt and stir well to combine. Add broth that was drained out of lentils and allow mixture to simmer until it thickens slightly.

Pour into the bottom of a medium sized (2.5 – 3 quart) casserole dish.

Cover with a layer of frozen peas and carrots. You could also peel and chop your own vegetables for this step but you would have to cook the carrots slightly or chop them quite small. I opted to save time with an affordable frozen substitute.

When potatoes are cooked, drain them well and roughly mash them. Add1/4 cup of milk, 1/4 cup of plain yogurt or sour cream, 2 tablespoons of butter 1/4 teaspoon of salt and 2 tablespoons of dry ranch seasoning. If you don’t have ranch seasoning you can easily make some using this recipe. If you’d rather use ranch dressing, substitute it to taste. Use a hand mixer to cream the potatoes until they are light and creamy.

Spread potatoes on top of vegetable layer. Bake in 350 degree F oven for 30 minutes or until heated through. Don’t overbake.

Enjoy! 🙂

Do you ever try to eat meatless meals? Let me know in the comment section below!

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Easy Homemade Pizza Pockets

0 · Jan 30, 2017 · Leave a Comment

These Easy Homemade Pizza Pockets are warm, cheesy and simple to make. Customize them to suit your own personal tastes! They freeze well and are delicious reheated, even in the microwave. Throw together a double batch this weekend and enjoy them for weekday lunches, party snacks or game day munchies.

Be sure to check out the step-by-step photo instructions below the main recipe.

So, I hear there’s a big game coming up this weekend…. I know some people are interested in football, but in my mind it’s all about the FOOD. And what a great excuse Superbowl is to eat a bunch of delicious, maybe not super healthy treats. That’s the thing about these Homemade Pizza Pockets, though. There’s nothing unhealthy about them. They’re really just delicious homemade pizza turned into finger food.

These pizza pockets are really easy to customize to suit any taste. I’ve made simple pepperoni and cheese a few times in the past for my niece’s school lunches. But you could also dress them up with peppers, mushrooms, or any other pizza toppings you like. I’ve made them with chicken, pesto and mozzarella and those were delicious too. You could easily make these vegetarian by leaving out any meat and filling them with veggies and cheese. Really, almost any combination of flavours you like could be stuffed inside pizza dough and enjoyed this way.

These freeze super well. I made some this month for our two year old’s birthday party. Since I didn’t want to have a million things to do at the last minute, I made them a week or two ahead of time. They thaw perfectly and I think heat up even better in the microwave than any other way (they stay nice and soft this way).

If you’re looking for a recipe for homemade pizza dough, check out ours: Simple Pizza Dough – Two Ways: Easy and Easier!

PS – you might also find it helpful to check out our posts on Stocking Your Pantry on a Dime and Stocking Your Freezer on a Dime. Watch for our Stocking your Fridge on a Dime post – coming soon.)

Step-by-step instructions and photos are below the recipe.

5 from 1 vote

Easy Homemade Pizza Pockets

Prep Time

20 mins

Cook Time

15 mins

Total Time

35 mins

Servings: 24 Homemade Pizza Pockets

Author: Myra

Ingredients

1 ball pizza dough* See notes for link to our recipe
12 slices pepperoni cut into quarters
1-2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
pizza sauce
olive oil
garlic powder
Italian seasoning

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Roll out the dough into a fairly thin but large square or rectangle and use a sharp knife to cut it into squares. I was able to make 24 squares with one batch of our dough.
Put your filling in the centre of a square. Don't overstuff it because you need a fair amount of dough around it to fold together.Your filling could easily be vegetarian, include different pizza toppings, or you could try another combination all together - chicken, pesto and cheese is delicious!
Fold two opposite corners up and pinch them together. (See photos for demonstration.)
Fold the other two corners up so you are holding all the corners bunched in your fingers and the pizza pocket forms a ball.
Use your fingers to press all the seams together so the dough is sealed.
Lay them seam-side down on a greased cookie sheet. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic powder and Italian seasoning.
Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 15 minutes, or until dough is firm and bottoms are slightly browned. Broil for 1-2 minutes if you'd like to brown the tops slightly. Some of them might leak a bit of filling but there should still be plenty inside. Enoy! 🙂

Recipe Notes

*If you want to make homemade dough, check out our recipe: Simple Pizza Dough - Two Ways: Easy and Easier!

Easy Homemade Pizza Pockets – Step-by-Step Instructions

Easy Homemade Pizza Pockets – Ingredients

If want to make homemade dough, check out our recipe: Simple Pizza Dough – Two Ways: Easy and Easier!

Roll out the dough into a fairly thin, but large square or rectangle and use a sharp knife to cut it into squares. I was able to make 24 squares with one batch of our dough. Yes, some of them are more like wonky rectangles. I’m fine with that. 😛

Put your filling in the centre of a square. Don’t over stuff it because you need a fair amount of dough around it to fold together. For this batch I used pizza sauce, pepperoni and shredded cheese. You can cut your pepperoni into quarters and use 2 per pocket.

Your filling could easily be vegetarian, include different pizza toppings, or you could try another combination all together – chicken, pesto and cheese is delicious!

Fold two opposite corners up and pinch them together.

Fold the other two corners up so you are holding all the corners bunched in your fingers and the pizza pocket forms a ball.

Use your fingers to press all the seams together so the dough is sealed.

Lay them seam-side down on a greased cookie sheet. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic powder and Italian seasoning.

Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 15 – 20 minutes, or until dough is firm and bottoms are slightly browned. Broil for 1-2 minutes if you’d like to brown the tops slightly. Some of them might leak a bit of filling but there should still be plenty inside.

Enoy! 🙂

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Simple Pizza Dough – Two ways: Easy and Easier!

0 · Jan 26, 2017 · 2 Comments

Simple Pizza Dough – learn to make it the easy way or the easier way! Homemade pizza dough is totally simple for you to do. Give it a try – I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. Be sure to check out the step-by-step photo instructions below the main recipe.

Not long ago I read in a magazine that the vast majority of Americans have never made homemade pizza dough. This absolutely amazed me. In my mind, pizza dough is simple to make! I think the thought of it is much scarier than the actual doing.

The key to making really simple pizza dough is to use instant yeast. In fact, I use instant yeast for almost everything I bake (that calls for yeast, obviously).

I decided to share two ways of making homemade pizza dough – the easy way and the easier way. The easy way is in a bowl, using your muscles to do the mixing (you could be pretty wimpy and still pull this off, though).

The even easier way is using a food processor. This takes just a minute or two to do, but then you have to clean your food processor. I usually only bother with this when I’m making a few batches of dough at a time (which is a great option if you want to Stock Your Freezer on a Dime). This recipe makes thick, fluffy pizza dough, which I just LOVE. Laurier is more of a thin crust kinda guy. We alternate.

(PS – you might also find it helpful to check out our post on Stocking Your Pantry on a Dime and watch for our Stocking your Fridge on a Dime post – coming soon.)

Step-by-step instructions and photos are below the recipe.

This post may contain affiliate links, which means that if you make a purchase upon my recommendation we will receive a small commission from the seller at no additional cost to you. We will only ever recommend products we truly think are great!

5 from 2 votes

Simple Pizza Dough - Two ways: Easy and Easier!

Prep Time

5 mins

Total Time

25 mins

Servings: 1 large pizza

Author: Myra

Ingredients

2 and 1/2 cups flour
2 and 1/4 tsp INSTANT yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
2 tbsp oil I use olive oil
1 cup WARM water + more if needed

Instructions

In a large bowl or the bowl of a food processor, mix together flour, instant yeast, salt, sugar and baking powder. Stir or pulse to combine.
Pour oil into the bottom of a measuring cup. I use olive oil, but you can use whatever you like.Fill the rest of the cup with warm water (not hot because you'll kill the yeast, and not cold because it won't rise).Start with around a cup of warm water, but you may need more depending on a number of factors like humidity and your flour.Stir it into your dry mixture, OR if using a food processor, with the motor running, pour the oil/water mixture in a stream through the feed tube at the top.
After a few seconds, the dough will start to clump together. You may need more water. Keep adding until it combines into a doughy, shaggy ball. Don't overmix.
If making it in a bowl, cover it with a cloth or plastic wrap. If using a food processor, transfer it to a bowl (some people like to grease this bowl but it's up to you) and cover it with a cloth or plastic wrap. Set it in a warm place to rise for 20 minutes or so.
When it's done rising you'll need to sprinkle a little more flour over it and your hands in order to be able to handle it. You should be able to stretch it onto a pan now (using more flour as needed) or shape it into whatever shape you'd like, for whatever you're making).

Step-by-Step Instructions – Simple Pizza Dough – Two Ways: Easy and Easier

Ingredients for Simple Pizza Dough

The Easy Way – In a Bowl

In a large bowl, stir together 2.5 cups of flour, 2 and 1/4 teaspoons of instant yeast, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of sugar and 1 tablespoon of baking powder.

Pour 2 tablespoons of oil into the bottom of a measuring cup. I use olive oil, but you can use whatever you like. Fill the rest of the cup with warm water (not hot because you’ll kill the yeast, and not cold because it won’t rise). Start with around a cup of warm water, but you may need more depending on a number of factors like humidity and your flour.

Pour it into your dry mixture and start stirring. If it becomes clear that you need more water (like mine above), fill your measuring cup again with warm water and start adding more, a little splash at a time.

Soon you’ll end up with a moist, shaggy mixture like this one. For me, that’s fine. Don’t overmix it. Cover it with a cloth or plastic wrap and set it in a warm place to rise for 20 minutes or so. When it’s done rising you’ll need to sprinkle a little more flour over it and your hands in order to be able to handle it. You should be able to stretch it onto a pan now (using more flour as needed) or shape it into whatever shape you’d like, for whatever you’re making).

The Easier Way – In a Food Processor

In the bowl of your food processor, pour 2.5 cups of flour, 2 and 1/4 teaspoons of instant yeast, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of sugar and 1 tablespoon of baking powder. Pulse a few times to combine.

Pour 2 tablespoons of oil into the bottom of a measuring cup. I use olive oil, but you can use whatever you like. Fill the rest of the cup with warm water (not hot because you’ll kill the yeast, and not cold because it won’t rise). Start with around a cup of warm water, but you may need more depending on a number of factors like humidity and your flour. With the food processor running, pour the oil/water mixture in a stream through the feed tube at the top.

After a few seconds, the dough will start to clump together. You may need more water. When it looks like this you’re done. Don’t overmix it. Put it in a bowl (some people like to grease this bowl but it’s up to you) and cover it with a cloth or plastic wrap. Set it in a warm place to rise for 20 minutes or so. When it’s done rising you’ll need to sprinkle a little more flour over it and your hands in order to be able to handle it. You should be able to stretch it onto a pan now (using more flour as needed) or shape it into whatever shape you’d like, for whatever you’re making).

And you’re done! With less than five minutes of actual work, you have homemade pizza dough to use in your favourite pizza recipe! Enjoy! 🙂

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Freezer Meals

These Ground Beef Kebabs are SUPER easy to make, whether you’re grilling for a summer bbq or baking them in the oven year-round. They use a few cheap ingredients you probably already have, but they’ll be the hit of your next potluck or dinner!

*** FOLLOW DELICIOUS ON A DIME ON PINTEREST FOR MORE GREAT TIPS, IDEAS AND RECIPES! ***

Related: Do you have any recipe suggestions or ideas? Let us know!!! We’d LOVE to hear from you!

I kept this recipe pretty simple so it will hopefully just use things you already have on-hand. That way it will stay reasonably cheap! I’ve also made it with different kinds of ground meat, like pork, and it was delicious.

Tip: I would not recommend using only lean ground beef for this recipe, because it will be too dry. Either use medium ground beef, or use a mix of lean and medium, or mix the ground beef with ground pork to change things up a bit!

Also, I made these kebabs on skewers, just because I find skewers are fun, but you really don’t have to. You can just shape them into long patties and that will work out great too.

And if you don’t have a bbq or it’s winter where you live, you can do these in the oven too! Instructions are below.

Ground Beef Kebab Recipe – Step-by-Step Instructions (Grill or Oven)

Ingredients for these Ground Beef Kebabs.

Tip: If you’re using skewers, start by soaking them in a pan of water for about half an hour so they don’t burn.

Preheat grill or oven to 350 degrees F.

Use clean hands to gently mix together ground beef (or a mix of beef and pork, as shown above), egg, dried parsley, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, cumin, salt and pepper. Make sure everything is evenly distributed, but don’t overmix!

Gently form mixture into oblong patties around the skewers (if you’re using skewers – see next photo if you’re not).

For these photos I cooked half of the beef kebabs in the oven and half on the grill. The ones on the right I made without skewers, to show that it’s an option too.

Tip: Line a cookie sheet with foil to make clean up easy after baking (you can also spray it with cooking spray if you want), or lightly oil your grill.

If you’re grilling the kebabs, they take about the same length of time. Let them sit undisturbed until the form a nice sear on the bottom, then gently pick them up with skewers and turn to the other side.

Cook to the same internal temperature (160 degrees F). Let them rest off the heat (tented with foil, if you want) for a few minutes before eating so the juices can redistribute.

You can serve these on their own, with traditional barbecue side dishes (potato salad, pasta salad, garden salad, etc), with rice, with soft pita, hummus or tzatziki and fresh vegetables, or however you like.

Enjoy! 🙂

Ground Beef Kebab Recipe – Common Questions/Answers:

What if I don’t have skewers?

You can definitely make this recipe without skewers – just gently form the meat mixture into oblong patties.

Can I make these ahead of time?

Can I freeze these kebabs?

Did you make these Ground Beef Kebabs? Leave us a star rating below!

* Don't use all lean ground beef for this recipe - it will be way too dry. Either use medium ground beef, a mix of medium and lean, or a mix of ground beef and ground pork.

** If you're making grilled kebabs, lightly oil your grill. If you're baking the kebabs in the oven, use a foil lined pan for easy clean up, and give it a light spray with cooking oil if you like.

*** My instant read thermometer is one of my FAVOURITE kitchen tools. Read about why: The $10 Kitchen Tool That Revolutionized the Way I Cook

You might also like:

This sweet, creamy HOMEMADE peach ice cream can be in your bowl in just a few hours! No ice cream maker. No eggs. No cooking. Just 5 ingredients, and it’s so fast and easy – you’ll be obsessed with it all summer long!

Guys, if you’re on Pinterest, you’ve probably seen recipes for “2 ingredient no-churn ice cream!”. Me too. I saw tons of them, but to be honest, it sounded too good to be true.

But now, the weather is warming up and ice cream is getting more appealing by the day! The other day I found myself eyeing up a pile of peaches my kids weren’t eating fast enough, and debating what to make with them.

BAM! I realized I should try no churn homemade peach ice cream! I figured I’d do the experimenting, so you don’t have to… find out if these claims were really as good as they sound. You can thank me later. 🙂

This no churn peach ice cream is NOT a process. It’s super-duper easy and takes less than 10 minutes of active time. Ten minutes, people. The freezer does the rest. It’s awesome.

Here’s how to do it:

Peach Ice Cream – Step-by-Step Instructions

Ingredients for Peach Ice Cream (No Churn!)

Wash five peaches, cut out the pits and throw them in the bowl of your food processor. Puree until fairly smooth. (I did not peel the peaches.)

In a large bowl, whip 2 cups of heavy whipping cream, 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and a pinch of salt until stiff peaks form. Add one can of sweetened condensed milk and mix until well combined.

Tip: Make sure your liquids are well-chilled before starting. The finished product will freeze faster.

Add the puree to the whipped cream mixture (it will sink straight to the bottom!) and mix well to combine.

Spoon the ice cream mixture into a chilled, freezer safe pan. Freeze 3-5 hours (time will vary depending on size of pan and depth of the ice cream in it, and how hard you want the ice cream to be).

Tip: If you have a metal loaf pan it conducts the cold really well!

Tip: If you want to freeze the peach ice cream in a hurry, use a large, shallow pan.

After a few hours it will have a soft consistency. If it freezes harder than you like, just let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes to soften up.

Enjoy! 🙂

Common Questions & Answers:

How does ‘no churn’ ice cream work?

When you make traditional ice cream you create a custard by cooking egg yolks, cream, sugar and flavourings, then churn it in an ice cream maker.

This recipe (and most no churn ice cream recipes I’ve seen) replace the custard with a mixture of sweetened condensed milk and whipping cream. No raw eggs mean you don’t have to cook it and the creaminess comes from the condensed milk, instead of egg yolks.

Condensed milk is has had the water removed from it. Water is what would cause unpleasant ice crystals to form in your ice cream. Because there’s no water, you’re left with nice, creamy ice cream!

What is sweetened condensed milk?

Sweetened condensed milk is milk that has had the water removed from it, and sugar added to it. Then it’s canned to be shelf stable.

Can I substitute evaporated milk for the condensed milk?

Nope. Evaporated milk is a whole different ingredient – it’s much thinner and unsweetened.

Can I use chunks of peaches?

I tried this and wasn’t happy with the result – I found the chunks of peach got too icy and cold for my teeth! If you’re not bothered by that kind of thing you could definitely give it a try.

Can I use other flavourings?

Did you make this Peach Ice Cream? Leave us a star rating below!

Every winter I start work at my seasonal day job as a tax preparer, which takes me away from home for about 60 hours a week. It’s a short but intense period of work, and we always try to make lots of easy freezer meals to have on hand before I start.

What we make varies from year to year, based on what we feel like eating and how much prep time we have, but one thing is constant: pizza.

Homemade pizza is usually cheap to make, freezes perfectly, and thaws and reheats super well. You can make healthy pizza, or less healthy pizza, or a combination – whatever you want!

Personally, we cut our pizza up and freeze it in individual portions, for the flexibility it gives us. If one of us wants pizza for lunch, we can take out a piece or two. If we want pizza for dinner, we can mix up and take out a few different kinds.

The only problem with pizza is that, no matter how much we make, we always run out!

This year Laurier and I made four large sheet pan pizzas: a vegetarian pizza, a works pizza, a Thai Barbecue Chicken pizza, and a Bacon Cheeseburger pizza.

We sent the kids to their grandparents’ house, cranked up the music, and got cooking. And dancing (you can catch a quick peek here )

We documented some of that day on our Facebook page, including some of our impromptu dance parties 🙂

What you need to know is that it’s super easy to have a freezer pizza cooking day, and we’ll show you how to plan it!

Homemade Freezer Pizza – Easy Freezer Meals in a Day

First, you’ll have to decide what kinds of pizza you want to make. Then, get out all your pizza ingredients so you can see what you’re working with.

Start by cooking the meat, since that process takes time. Here, Laurier is browning ground beef and sauteing chicken pieces.

And popping a sheet pan of bacon into the oven (an easy, hands-off way to cook bacon).

Starting the chopping! Get one (or a few people) to chop veggies while the meats are cooking. You’ll also want to mix/make any sauces and shred cheese.

Once all your toppings are ready to go, mix up your dough. I like to wait to make the dough, because even though it will have to rise, there will still be time and I don’t want it to over-rise.

Once your toppings are ready, preheat your oven to 450 degrees F and make sure your racks are centered in your oven.

Oil your sheet pans with butter, oil or non-stick spray. Then spread out your dough on the pans.

Add your toppings. You can’t see them in this picture, but we put little sticky notes on the wall above each pan so we’d know which toppings went on which pizza.

Bake pizzas, two at a time, for 14-16 minutes, or until the crust is lightly browned underneath (just use a butter knife to pry it up and have a peek). Rotate the pizzas between the racks half way through the baking time so that each has some time on the bottom rack and on the top rack.

The baking time could vary slightly depending on how thick or thin your dough is.

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