Freezing Cheese

Today's post is another educational post about how to save money on buying in bulk & freezing your food.  This time I am talking all about CHEESE!  We love cheese, but it's expensive, so I buy it in bulk & freeze mine.  Or anytime I see a deal, like a 2lb block of cheese for $5 or less, it's stock up time!  This is how I freeze my cheese to use later. 

Basically, you need to get your cheese in the form you will be using it before you freeze it.  Freezing the whole block of cheese won't work because the structure of the cheese changes when it freezes.  So shredding & slicing cheese after it has been frozen, turns the cheese into a crumbly mess.  

I have frozen mozzarella, cheddar, colby jack & parmesan cheese with success, so I am fairly confident this works with any cheese.  Here is how you do it:

I buy some of my cheese already shredded.  I actually prefer it that way because they put some kind of coating on the cheese so it doesn't stick.  I buy the big 5lb bag at Sam's club for about $13.  Then I use my trusty quart size baggies that have been labeled with that days date & the name of the cheese if I think I will forget.  I don't use freezer bags, but I rotate the bags of cheese well.  Then I scale each bag to weigh 1lb, squeeze as much air out as possible & then zip it shut.  Weighing the bags is optional, you can eyeball it pretty easily.  Just squeeze as much air out as you can before you zip it shut.  

If you buy a block of cheese, which I like to buy the 2lb blocks when they go on sale for $5 or less, then you can shred that yourself as well.  Just cut the block into manageable pieces, then shred it in a food processor or by hand if you don't have one.  Don't shred it all at once or it will get packed into your machine & it will stick together.  I will put a 2lb block into 3 quart sized bags.  This also helps the cheese from getting packed down & stuck together.  Stack bags of prepared shredded cheese flat on top of each other to freeze.

To slice the cheese for sandwiches, I absolutely LOVE my marble cheese slicer.  It cuts so smooth & straight & I can get a lot more slices than any other knives or hand held slicers I have tried.  Colby Jack comes apart the easiest, but the harder cheeses like cheddar do okay as well.  When I stack mine, I stagger them.  You might need the assistance of a butter knife to peel it apart when you go to use it, but it should stay in tact pretty well.  You can also choose to cut little pieces of wax paper to place between the slices.  To me that is more work & more stuff to buy, so I just stagger mine & use a butter knife to separate my slice from the stack.  Again you will want to label your bags before filling them.  I use plain old sandwich bags & I like to store the cheese slices in the side door of the freezer.

When you pull any of these cheeses from the freezer to use, you want to allow some time for it to thaw in the fridge for best food safety practices.  That's it!  Just remember to prepare your cheese, portion it out, & package it squeezing as much of the air out that you can!  My cheese slices last about 2-3 months without any freezer burn & the shredded usually does better, about 4 months.  You can try using freezer bags to help with freezer burn, but we usually use the cheese before it sees any effects from the freezer.  Happy Freezing!

Today's post is another educational post about how to save money on buying in bulk & freezing your food.  This time I am talking all about CHEESE!  We love cheese, but it's expensive, so I buy it in bulk & freeze mine.  Or anytime I see a deal, like a 2lb block of cheese for $5 or less, it's stock up time!  This is how I freeze my cheese to use later. 

Basically, you need to get your cheese in the form you will be using it before you freeze it.  Freezing the whole block of cheese won't work because the structure of the cheese changes when it freezes.  So shredding & slicing cheese after it has been frozen, turns the cheese into a crumbly mess.  

I have frozen mozzarella, cheddar, colby jack & parmesan cheese with success, so I am fairly confident this works with any cheese.  Here is how you do it:

I buy some of my cheese already shredded.  I actually prefer it that way because they put some kind of coating on the cheese so it doesn't stick.  I buy the big 5lb bag at Sam's club for about $13.  Then I use my trusty quart size baggies that have been labeled with that days date & the name of the cheese if I think I will forget.  I don't use freezer bags, but I rotate the bags of cheese well.  Then I scale each bag to weigh 1lb, squeeze as much air out as possible & then zip it shut.  Weighing the bags is optional, you can eyeball it pretty easily.  Just squeeze as much air out as you can before you zip it shut.  

If you buy a block of cheese, which I like to buy the 2lb blocks when they go on sale for $5 or less, then you can shred that yourself as well.  Just cut the block into manageable pieces, then shred it in a food processor or by hand if you don't have one.  Don't shred it all at once or it will get packed into your machine & it will stick together.  I will put a 2lb block into 3 quart sized bags.  This also helps the cheese from getting packed down & stuck together.  Stack bags of prepared shredded cheese flat on top of each other to freeze.

To slice the cheese for sandwiches, I absolutely LOVE my marble cheese slicer.  It cuts so smooth & straight & I can get a lot more slices than any other knives or hand held slicers I have tried.  Colby Jack comes apart the easiest, but the harder cheeses like cheddar do okay as well.  When I stack mine, I stagger them.  You might need the assistance of a butter knife to peel it apart when you go to use it, but it should stay in tact pretty well.  You can also choose to cut little pieces of wax paper to place between the slices.  To me that is more work & more stuff to buy, so I just stagger mine & use a butter knife to separate my slice from the stack.  Again you will want to label your bags before filling them.  I use plain old sandwich bags & I like to store the cheese slices in the side door of the freezer.

When you pull any of these cheeses from the freezer to use, you want to allow some time for it to thaw in the fridge for best food safety practices.  That's it!  Just remember to prepare your cheese, portion it out, & package it squeezing as much of the air out that you can!  My cheese slices last about 2-3 months without any freezer burn & the shredded usually does better, about 4 months.  You can try using freezer bags to help with freezer burn, but we usually use the cheese before it sees any effects from the freezer.  Happy Freezing!

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Perfect Pie Crust {Tutorial}

I get that a lot of people shy away from pie crust, but it is a lot simpler than you think!  Today I am sharing my tips & tricks to perfect pie crust!  I am going to tell you how & why, so by the end of this tutorial, you can be educated & ready to make that special pie for Thanksgiving or Christmas.  This is THE pie tutorial you will want to keep pinned for reference!  

We'll start with the recipe followed by the step-by-step photos.  This is currently my favorite pie crust recipe.  It's a little more forgiving than an all butter pie crust, which you can find a recipe & tutorial for HERE.  Shortening has a higher tolerance for room temperature than butter because butter has more moisture.  Grab your ingredients & let's get started!

Perfect Pie Crust

Recipe adjusted from The Pioneer Woman by: Amber (Dessert Now, Dinner Later!)

• 1 cup shortening (I prefer butter flavored, if you have it)
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 whole egg
• 5 Tbsp + ice cold water
• 1 Tbsp white vinegar
• 1 tsp salt

1. Gather all your ingredients.  I like to fill a whole glass measuring cup with ice water.  Combine flour & salt in a large bowl.  Stir.  Cut in shortening with a pastry blender, two forks, or pulse in a food processor until pea sized chunks are achieved.  You do not want to crumble this mixture because those little balls of shortening are creating pockets of air in your pie crust, which become the flakey layers you want to achieve.
2. Add the egg, 5 Tbsp cold water & 1 Tbsp white vinegar.  Mix with your hands.  Keep adding water 1 Tbsp at a time until the mixture is less crumbly & is starting to come together.  Empty the contents from the bowl onto the counter.  Continue to add just enough water for the dough to come together, but not be sticky.
3. Cut dough in half & create 2 flat discs.  Saran wrap the discs & place them in the freezer for 15 minutes.  This gives the dough time to rest & keeps the shortening solid, since you want those flakey layers.  
4. Once the dough has chilled, remove one piece at a time as you work on your crust.  Flour your surface & rolling pin.  Roll from the center outwards & rotate the dough after a few rolls.  Add extra flour underneath as necessary, so it doesn't stick to the counter.  Continue rolling & rotating the crust until the dough is about 1/4" thick & nice & round.
5. Next, I like to roll my dough up around my rolling pin to make it easier to transfer to the pie dish.  When you set your dough into the pie dish, sink your crust down from the sides so that it's not being stretched.  The dough will shrink even more as it bakes, so you want to press the sides down towards the bottom of the dish forming the dough as close the the size & angles of the pie dish as possible.
6. Leave a good 1/2" space over the edge, but trim up any scraggly edges.  You may freeze the other pie crust disc for later if you double wrap it, or if you are doing a double crusted pie, go ahead & roll out the other disc.  Fill the pie shell with your choice of filling.  Wet your finger & run it around the edge of the crust, this will help seal the two pieces together.  Place the top crust onto the pie.  Cut off excess edges & proceed with the crimping as stated in the next steps.  
7. Crimp the edges of the dough by pushing the pointer finger of one hand into the thumb & pointer finger of the other hand.  You are kind of tucking that extra crust around the edges as your crimp.  This makes that crimped edge nice & thick & less likely to break.  This crust is ready for pumpkin pie filling, or if you want to use it for cream pies, you need to blind bake it.
8. To blind bake the crust for cream pies, go ahead & dock/pierce the bottom of the crust with a fork.  Place a piece of parchment inside the shell & fill it with raw, dry beans, about 1/2 pound. I used pinto, but it doesn't matter, whatever you have is fine.  NOTE:  These beans are no longer good to cook & eat afterwards, but I keep them in a container just for pie baking purposes.  The beans act as a weight so the pie crust doesn't bubble up & it stays in place all the way around the dish, keeping the crust from sinking downwards.
9. Bake at 350˚F for 20 minutes. The exposed edges will look dry & will have just started to turn light brown.  Pull the parchment with the beans out of the crust.  The bottom will look wet.  You will now return the crust to the oven for 12-15 minutes to finish baking the bottom part of the crust.
10. Remove the crust from the oven when it is light brown & the bottom no longer looks wet.  Use for cream pies. 
11. Note: If you are baking a pie with a double crust, you need to cut slits into the top layer & bake the pie for a minimum of 1 hour or until the filling bubbles & the crust is brown.  You should notice through the slits in the crust if the filling has bubbled.  If your crust is getting too brown, cover with foil until the filling bubbles.  In my experience it usually takes 1 hour plus 10 to 15 minutes for the filling to bubble & the crust to be completely baked.

Gather all your ingredients.  I like to fill a whole glass measuring cup with ice water.

Combine flour & salt in a large bowl.  Stir.  Cut in shortening with a pastry blender, two forks or pulse in a food processor until pea sized chunks are achieved.

You do not want to crumble this mixture because those little balls of shortening are creating pockets of air in your pie crust, which become the flakey layers you want to achieve.

Add the egg, 5 Tbsp COLD water & 1 Tbsp white vinegar.  Mix with your hands.  Keep adding water 1 Tbsp at a time until the mixture is less crumbly & is starting to come together. (COLD water is essential to pie crusts because it helps keep the shortening or butter solid so it can melt during the baking process & create those flaky layers.)

Empty the contents from the bowl onto the counter.  Continue to add just enough water for the dough to come together, but not be sticky.

Cut dough in half & create 2 flat discs.  Saran wrap the discs & place them in the freezer for 15 minutes.  This gives the dough time to rest & keeps the shortening solid, since you want those flakey layers.

Once the dough has chilled, remove one piece at a time as you work on your crust.  Flour your surface & rolling pin.  Roll from the center outwards & rotate the dough after a few rolls.  Add extra flour underneath as necessary, so it doesn't stick to the counter.

Continue rolling & rotating the crust until the dough is about 1/4" thick & nice & round.

Next, I like to roll my dough up around my rolling pin to make it easier to transfer to the pie dish.

When you set your dough into the pie dish, sink your crust down from the sides so that it's not being stretched.  The dough will shrink even more as it bakes, so you want to press the sides down towards the bottom of the dish forming the dough as close the the size & angles of the pie dish as possible.

Leave a good 1/2" space over the edge, but trim up any scraggly edges.  You may freeze the other pie crust disc for later if you double wrap it, or if you are doing a double crusted pie, go ahead & roll out the other disc.  Fill the pie shell with your choice of filling.  Wet your finger & run it around the edge of the crust, this will help seal the two pieces together.  Place the top crust onto the pie.  Cut off excess edges & proceed with the crimping as stated in the next steps.  (The photos in this tutorial are good for pumpkin pie or blind baking the crust for a cream pie.)

Crimp the edges of the dough by pushing the pointer finger of one hand into the thumb & pointer finger of the other hand.  You are kind of tucking that extra crust around the edges as your crimp.  This makes that crimped edge nice & thick & less likely to break.

The final prepared crust should look marbled with bits of shortening.  It should also be sturdy & as even as possible.  This crust is ready for pumpkin pie filling, or if you want to use it for cream pies, you need to blind bake it: i.e. bake it while it's empty.  Keep reading for those steps.

To blind bake the crust for cream pies, go ahead & dock/pierce the bottom of the crust with a fork.

Place a piece of parchment inside the shell & fill it with raw, dry beans, about 1/2 pound. I used pinto, but it doesn't matter, whatever you have is fine.  NOTE:  These beans are no longer good to cook & eat afterwards, but I keep them in a container just for pie baking purposes.  The beans act as a weight so the pie crust doesn't bubble up & it stays in place all the way around the dish, keeping the crust from sinking downwards.

Bake at 350˚F for 20 minutes. The exposed edges will look dry & will have just started to turn light brown.

Pull the parchment with the beans out of the crust.  The bottom will look wet.  You will now return the crust to the oven for 12-15 minutes to finish baking the bottom part of the crust.  

Remove the crust from the oven when it is light brown & the bottom no longer looks wet.  Use for cream pies.  

Note: If you are baking a pie with a double crust, you need to cut slits into the top layer & bake the pie for a minimum of 1 hour or until the filling bubbles & the crust is brown.  You should notice through the slits in the crust if the filling has bubbled.  If your crust is getting too brown, cover with foil until the filling bubbles.  In my experience it usually takes 1 hour plus 10 to 15 minutes for the filling to bubble & the crust to be completely baked.

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial & maybe learned something new!  Happy Holidays!

I get that a lot of people shy away from pie crust, but it is a lot simpler than you think!  Today I am sharing my tips & tricks to perfect pie crust!  I am going to tell you how & why, so by the end of this tutorial, you can be educated & ready to make that special pie for Thanksgiving or Christmas.  This is THE pie tutorial you will want to keep pinned for reference!  

We'll start with the recipe followed by the step-by-step photos.  This is currently my favorite pie crust recipe.  It's a little more forgiving than an all butter pie crust, which you can find a recipe & tutorial for HERE.  Shortening has a higher tolerance for room temperature than butter because butter has more moisture.  Grab your ingredients & let's get started!

Perfect Pie Crust

Recipe adjusted from The Pioneer Woman by: Amber (Dessert Now, Dinner Later!)

• 1 cup shortening (I prefer butter flavored, if you have it)
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 whole egg
• 5 Tbsp + ice cold water
• 1 Tbsp white vinegar
• 1 tsp salt

1. Gather all your ingredients.  I like to fill a whole glass measuring cup with ice water.  Combine flour & salt in a large bowl.  Stir.  Cut in shortening with a pastry blender, two forks, or pulse in a food processor until pea sized chunks are achieved.  You do not want to crumble this mixture because those little balls of shortening are creating pockets of air in your pie crust, which become the flakey layers you want to achieve.
2. Add the egg, 5 Tbsp cold water & 1 Tbsp white vinegar.  Mix with your hands.  Keep adding water 1 Tbsp at a time until the mixture is less crumbly & is starting to come together.  Empty the contents from the bowl onto the counter.  Continue to add just enough water for the dough to come together, but not be sticky.
3. Cut dough in half & create 2 flat discs.  Saran wrap the discs & place them in the freezer for 15 minutes.  This gives the dough time to rest & keeps the shortening solid, since you want those flakey layers.  
4. Once the dough has chilled, remove one piece at a time as you work on your crust.  Flour your surface & rolling pin.  Roll from the center outwards & rotate the dough after a few rolls.  Add extra flour underneath as necessary, so it doesn't stick to the counter.  Continue rolling & rotating the crust until the dough is about 1/4" thick & nice & round.
5. Next, I like to roll my dough up around my rolling pin to make it easier to transfer to the pie dish.  When you set your dough into the pie dish, sink your crust down from the sides so that it's not being stretched.  The dough will shrink even more as it bakes, so you want to press the sides down towards the bottom of the dish forming the dough as close the the size & angles of the pie dish as possible.
6. Leave a good 1/2" space over the edge, but trim up any scraggly edges.  You may freeze the other pie crust disc for later if you double wrap it, or if you are doing a double crusted pie, go ahead & roll out the other disc.  Fill the pie shell with your choice of filling.  Wet your finger & run it around the edge of the crust, this will help seal the two pieces together.  Place the top crust onto the pie.  Cut off excess edges & proceed with the crimping as stated in the next steps.  
7. Crimp the edges of the dough by pushing the pointer finger of one hand into the thumb & pointer finger of the other hand.  You are kind of tucking that extra crust around the edges as your crimp.  This makes that crimped edge nice & thick & less likely to break.  This crust is ready for pumpkin pie filling, or if you want to use it for cream pies, you need to blind bake it.
8. To blind bake the crust for cream pies, go ahead & dock/pierce the bottom of the crust with a fork.  Place a piece of parchment inside the shell & fill it with raw, dry beans, about 1/2 pound. I used pinto, but it doesn't matter, whatever you have is fine.  NOTE:  These beans are no longer good to cook & eat afterwards, but I keep them in a container just for pie baking purposes.  The beans act as a weight so the pie crust doesn't bubble up & it stays in place all the way around the dish, keeping the crust from sinking downwards.
9. Bake at 350˚F for 20 minutes. The exposed edges will look dry & will have just started to turn light brown.  Pull the parchment with the beans out of the crust.  The bottom will look wet.  You will now return the crust to the oven for 12-15 minutes to finish baking the bottom part of the crust.
10. Remove the crust from the oven when it is light brown & the bottom no longer looks wet.  Use for cream pies. 
11. Note: If you are baking a pie with a double crust, you need to cut slits into the top layer & bake the pie for a minimum of 1 hour or until the filling bubbles & the crust is brown.  You should notice through the slits in the crust if the filling has bubbled.  If your crust is getting too brown, cover with foil until the filling bubbles.  In my experience it usually takes 1 hour plus 10 to 15 minutes for the filling to bubble & the crust to be completely baked.

Gather all your ingredients.  I like to fill a whole glass measuring cup with ice water.

Combine flour & salt in a large bowl.  Stir.  Cut in shortening with a pastry blender, two forks or pulse in a food processor until pea sized chunks are achieved.

You do not want to crumble this mixture because those little balls of shortening are creating pockets of air in your pie crust, which become the flakey layers you want to achieve.

Add the egg, 5 Tbsp COLD water & 1 Tbsp white vinegar.  Mix with your hands.  Keep adding water 1 Tbsp at a time until the mixture is less crumbly & is starting to come together. (COLD water is essential to pie crusts because it helps keep the shortening or butter solid so it can melt during the baking process & create those flaky layers.)

Empty the contents from the bowl onto the counter.  Continue to add just enough water for the dough to come together, but not be sticky.

Cut dough in half & create 2 flat discs.  Saran wrap the discs & place them in the freezer for 15 minutes.  This gives the dough time to rest & keeps the shortening solid, since you want those flakey layers.

Once the dough has chilled, remove one piece at a time as you work on your crust.  Flour your surface & rolling pin.  Roll from the center outwards & rotate the dough after a few rolls.  Add extra flour underneath as necessary, so it doesn't stick to the counter.

Continue rolling & rotating the crust until the dough is about 1/4" thick & nice & round.

Next, I like to roll my dough up around my rolling pin to make it easier to transfer to the pie dish.

When you set your dough into the pie dish, sink your crust down from the sides so that it's not being stretched.  The dough will shrink even more as it bakes, so you want to press the sides down towards the bottom of the dish forming the dough as close the the size & angles of the pie dish as possible.

Leave a good 1/2" space over the edge, but trim up any scraggly edges.  You may freeze the other pie crust disc for later if you double wrap it, or if you are doing a double crusted pie, go ahead & roll out the other disc.  Fill the pie shell with your choice of filling.  Wet your finger & run it around the edge of the crust, this will help seal the two pieces together.  Place the top crust onto the pie.  Cut off excess edges & proceed with the crimping as stated in the next steps.  (The photos in this tutorial are good for pumpkin pie or blind baking the crust for a cream pie.)

Crimp the edges of the dough by pushing the pointer finger of one hand into the thumb & pointer finger of the other hand.  You are kind of tucking that extra crust around the edges as your crimp.  This makes that crimped edge nice & thick & less likely to break.

The final prepared crust should look marbled with bits of shortening.  It should also be sturdy & as even as possible.  This crust is ready for pumpkin pie filling, or if you want to use it for cream pies, you need to blind bake it: i.e. bake it while it's empty.  Keep reading for those steps.

To blind bake the crust for cream pies, go ahead & dock/pierce the bottom of the crust with a fork.

Place a piece of parchment inside the shell & fill it with raw, dry beans, about 1/2 pound. I used pinto, but it doesn't matter, whatever you have is fine.  NOTE:  These beans are no longer good to cook & eat afterwards, but I keep them in a container just for pie baking purposes.  The beans act as a weight so the pie crust doesn't bubble up & it stays in place all the way around the dish, keeping the crust from sinking downwards.

Bake at 350˚F for 20 minutes. The exposed edges will look dry & will have just started to turn light brown.

Pull the parchment with the beans out of the crust.  The bottom will look wet.  You will now return the crust to the oven for 12-15 minutes to finish baking the bottom part of the crust.  

Remove the crust from the oven when it is light brown & the bottom no longer looks wet.  Use for cream pies.  

Note: If you are baking a pie with a double crust, you need to cut slits into the top layer & bake the pie for a minimum of 1 hour or until the filling bubbles & the crust is brown.  You should notice through the slits in the crust if the filling has bubbled.  If your crust is getting too brown, cover with foil until the filling bubbles.  In my experience it usually takes 1 hour plus 10 to 15 minutes for the filling to bubble & the crust to be completely baked.

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial & maybe learned something new!  Happy Holidays!

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Freezing Meats

I have another budget friendly kitchen tip for you all today.  We are talking about freezing meats.  I ALWAYS buy meat on sale.  I cringe if I ever run out & have to buy more at regular price.  I like to spend about $2 or less per pound for most of my meats, especially chicken & ground beef.  Pork is usually cheaper too.  So tip number one is buy in bulk on sale!  Family size packages are the best deals anyway, but when you see the price has dropped between $1.99-$2.25/lb it's time to stock up.  

Now that you have bought all that chicken & beef & such what do you do with it?  We'll start with chicken.  Frozen breasts seem to be more expensive per pound & they are almost always huge, which means you are eating way more than the proper serving size of 4oz.  I always buy FRESH chicken breasts.  I actually prefer to purchase mine from Walmart.  They seem to be trimmed the best compared to Sam's Club or Smith's (Kroger), so even if I have to pay like $2.09/lb I am still saving money from all the fat & trimming that I have to throw out because they hide it under the chicken in the other brands' packages.  Even so, you will have to do a little bit of trimming, but buying pre-trimmed breasts is going to cost you way more.

Now that you have trimmed your chicken breast, I like to cut mine in half width-wise to create 2 chicken breasts out of the one original breast.  You are basically butterflying your breast, but cutting the whole way through.  This helps with portion control, especially when the chicken breasts are huge.  I even try to buy the smaller ones.  Your chicken breasts will be smaller if you buy natural/organic chicken, but we simply buy the hormone injected chicken; it's gross to think about, I know, so let's move on.  

Cutting the chicken width-wise, like this, helps us use less meat in our meals as well, so it stretches farther between purchases.  Also, when you are cutting, make sure your knife is sharp & you don't saw the knife back & forth.  Use swift, swiping motions & pull up on the top part of the chicken as you cut across the length of the breast.

So now that you have two chicken breasts from the one original breast, you are going to stack them back on top of each other, but remember that there are two there when you go to use it from the freezer.  Keep your portions small.  One portion of chicken or any meat should be similar to a deck of cards or equal to 4oz. which is why we are making two servings out of one chicken breast.

Wash your hands.  Then, using a regular fold-top sandwich bag that has been flipped inside out, grab the chicken breast & fold the bag around it - trapping the chicken breast inside the sandwich bag.  You should be able to do this without getting your hands contaminated if you bought smaller breasts.

Repeat with all of the chicken breasts.  My method: I will trim one breast & cut it in half width-wise, set it on the other end of my large cutting board & repeat those steps with all of the chicken breasts.  Then, I will wash my hands & fold the chicken breasts in the sandwich bags.  Make sure you have a system down so you can move quickly & efficiently.

The very last step is to LABEL & DATE a gallon sized zip-top bag.  I use regular gallon bags (not freezer bags), but I am efficient with rotating my meat, so it rarely gets freezer burnt.  Lay the individually wrapped chicken breasts into the bag & freeze it flat in the freezer.  When you need the chicken you can pull out however many breasts you need & thaw them in a bowl, with the sandwich bag on, in the fridge overnight, or in the microwave directly before cooking.  Remember to separate the two pieces of the chicken breast before cooking.

My method for ground beef or ground turkey is the same.  I buy it in bulk (about 5-10lbs at a time.  Then I use my kitchen scale to weigh approximately 1lb each & press it flat into a quart sized zip-top bag.  I NEVER use freezer bags because I feel like it is a waste of money, but I rotate my meat very well & I have organized meal plans.  If you are the unorganized or forgetful type, buy the freezer bags.  Also one thing to note about freezing your meat this way, is to not handle it too much.  You don't want your meat being tough from being squished like crazy.  Just press it enough to lay it flat in the freezer, squeeze out any excess air & seal the bag shut.  LABEL your bags clearly BEFORE you fill them.  

Your meat should last about 6 months this way with little to no freezer burn as long as you squeeze out as much air as you can before sealing your bag shut.  My turkey looks very crystalized in this picture, but it's not freezer burned yet.  This is because there is naturally more moisture in ground turkey breast than ground beef.  When you need one of these for dinner, you can thaw it in the fridge overnight or thaw in the microwave directly before cooking.

Well, those are my tips for freezing meats!  Your freezer will look so organized & will fit a lot more meats this way.  Saving you money since you are buying on sale & using better portion control.  Plus, if you can see what you have in your freezer, it makes dinner planning that much easier!

I have another budget friendly kitchen tip for you all today.  We are talking about freezing meats.  I ALWAYS buy meat on sale.  I cringe if I ever run out & have to buy more at regular price.  I like to spend about $2 or less per pound for most of my meats, especially chicken & ground beef.  Pork is usually cheaper too.  So tip number one is buy in bulk on sale!  Family size packages are the best deals anyway, but when you see the price has dropped between $1.99-$2.25/lb it's time to stock up.  

Now that you have bought all that chicken & beef & such what do you do with it?  We'll start with chicken.  Frozen breasts seem to be more expensive per pound & they are almost always huge, which means you are eating way more than the proper serving size of 4oz.  I always buy FRESH chicken breasts.  I actually prefer to purchase mine from Walmart.  They seem to be trimmed the best compared to Sam's Club or Smith's (Kroger), so even if I have to pay like $2.09/lb I am still saving money from all the fat & trimming that I have to throw out because they hide it under the chicken in the other brands' packages.  Even so, you will have to do a little bit of trimming, but buying pre-trimmed breasts is going to cost you way more.

Now that you have trimmed your chicken breast, I like to cut mine in half width-wise to create 2 chicken breasts out of the one original breast.  You are basically butterflying your breast, but cutting the whole way through.  This helps with portion control, especially when the chicken breasts are huge.  I even try to buy the smaller ones.  Your chicken breasts will be smaller if you buy natural/organic chicken, but we simply buy the hormone injected chicken; it's gross to think about, I know, so let's move on.  

Cutting the chicken width-wise, like this, helps us use less meat in our meals as well, so it stretches farther between purchases.  Also, when you are cutting, make sure your knife is sharp & you don't saw the knife back & forth.  Use swift, swiping motions & pull up on the top part of the chicken as you cut across the length of the breast.

So now that you have two chicken breasts from the one original breast, you are going to stack them back on top of each other, but remember that there are two there when you go to use it from the freezer.  Keep your portions small.  One portion of chicken or any meat should be similar to a deck of cards or equal to 4oz. which is why we are making two servings out of one chicken breast.

Wash your hands.  Then, using a regular fold-top sandwich bag that has been flipped inside out, grab the chicken breast & fold the bag around it - trapping the chicken breast inside the sandwich bag.  You should be able to do this without getting your hands contaminated if you bought smaller breasts.

Repeat with all of the chicken breasts.  My method: I will trim one breast & cut it in half width-wise, set it on the other end of my large cutting board & repeat those steps with all of the chicken breasts.  Then, I will wash my hands & fold the chicken breasts in the sandwich bags.  Make sure you have a system down so you can move quickly & efficiently.

The very last step is to LABEL & DATE a gallon sized zip-top bag.  I use regular gallon bags (not freezer bags), but I am efficient with rotating my meat, so it rarely gets freezer burnt.  Lay the individually wrapped chicken breasts into the bag & freeze it flat in the freezer.  When you need the chicken you can pull out however many breasts you need & thaw them in a bowl, with the sandwich bag on, in the fridge overnight, or in the microwave directly before cooking.  Remember to separate the two pieces of the chicken breast before cooking.

My method for ground beef or ground turkey is the same.  I buy it in bulk (about 5-10lbs at a time.  Then I use my kitchen scale to weigh approximately 1lb each & press it flat into a quart sized zip-top bag.  I NEVER use freezer bags because I feel like it is a waste of money, but I rotate my meat very well & I have organized meal plans.  If you are the unorganized or forgetful type, buy the freezer bags.  Also one thing to note about freezing your meat this way, is to not handle it too much.  You don't want your meat being tough from being squished like crazy.  Just press it enough to lay it flat in the freezer, squeeze out any excess air & seal the bag shut.  LABEL your bags clearly BEFORE you fill them.  

Your meat should last about 6 months this way with little to no freezer burn as long as you squeeze out as much air as you can before sealing your bag shut.  My turkey looks very crystalized in this picture, but it's not freezer burned yet.  This is because there is naturally more moisture in ground turkey breast than ground beef.  When you need one of these for dinner, you can thaw it in the fridge overnight or thaw in the microwave directly before cooking.

Well, those are my tips for freezing meats!  Your freezer will look so organized & will fit a lot more meats this way.  Saving you money since you are buying on sale & using better portion control.  Plus, if you can see what you have in your freezer, it makes dinner planning that much easier!

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Spiraled BBQ Hot Dogs

I first saw the idea for these hot dogs from my friend Kyra at Caramel Potatoes & I was in love!  I knew as soon as the weather got hot, I was grilling these hot dogs for my kids!  Heck, who am I kidding?  I was grilling these hot dogs for me as well!  Aren't they just adorable?!  Such a fun twist on the typical kid-friendly dinner.

I love that these char up beautifully while evenly cooking the hot dogs's centers.  Plus the addition of BBQ sauce is genius!  We loved these & I am NOT usually a hot dog eater, but I will eat them this way EVERY. TIME.  The spiral cut also makes them easy to break off for the smaller kids to eat as well.  Great little trick for your next BBQ!

Spiraled BBQ Hot Dogs

Idea inspired from Caramel Potatoes & shared by: Amber (Dessert Now, Dinner Later!)

• Wooden Skewers
• Water
• Bun Length Hot Dogs
• Favorite BBQ Sauce (I LOVE Bullseye Kansas City BBQ Sauce)

1. Soak wooden skewers in water for 10-30 minutes depending on how thin they are, the thinner the longer.  The ends are still going to burn, but I still think this helps some.
2. Insert wooden skewer down the center of your hot dog.
3. Using a paring knife, cut at a slight angle right up against the skewer, rotating the hot dog as you go, creating spirals about 1-inch in thickness.
4. Grill hot dogs, still on the skewer, over medium heat, rotating the hot dogs once or twice as you go until the hot dogs puff up, the edges are brown & they're hot in the centers.  Baste with BBQ sauce as desired.

*If you are good with a knife you can eliminate the need for a skewer.  The skewer just makes it easier to cut & cook without breaking apart.

I first saw the idea for these hot dogs from my friend Kyra at Caramel Potatoes & I was in love!  I knew as soon as the weather got hot, I was grilling these hot dogs for my kids!  Heck, who am I kidding?  I was grilling these hot dogs for me as well!  Aren't they just adorable?!  Such a fun twist on the typical kid-friendly dinner.

I love that these char up beautifully while evenly cooking the hot dogs's centers.  Plus the addition of BBQ sauce is genius!  We loved these & I am NOT usually a hot dog eater, but I will eat them this way EVERY. TIME.  The spiral cut also makes them easy to break off for the smaller kids to eat as well.  Great little trick for your next BBQ!

Spiraled BBQ Hot Dogs

Idea inspired from Caramel Potatoes & shared by: Amber (Dessert Now, Dinner Later!)

• Wooden Skewers
• Water
• Bun Length Hot Dogs
• Favorite BBQ Sauce (I LOVE Bullseye Kansas City BBQ Sauce)

1. Soak wooden skewers in water for 10-30 minutes depending on how thin they are, the thinner the longer.  The ends are still going to burn, but I still think this helps some.
2. Insert wooden skewer down the center of your hot dog.
3. Using a paring knife, cut at a slight angle right up against the skewer, rotating the hot dog as you go, creating spirals about 1-inch in thickness.
4. Grill hot dogs, still on the skewer, over medium heat, rotating the hot dogs once or twice as you go until the hot dogs puff up, the edges are brown & they're hot in the centers.  Baste with BBQ sauce as desired.

*If you are good with a knife you can eliminate the need for a skewer.  The skewer just makes it easier to cut & cook without breaking apart.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad