December Menu

Thanks again to Sarah S. for hosting last night!  Was so excited to get all my "goodies" home. 
Here's the menu for December's swap.  We'll be swapping on Dec. 11th as well as conducting our annual cookie exchange.  Details to follow. 

FYI - there will not be any "assignments" for our January exchange.  We are looking for simple, no prep meals to exchange as everyone will be short on time during December.  Let me know if you are struggling to find a recipe!

December Menu
Sarah M. - Split Pea Soup or Smoky Corn Chowder
Jenny - Broccoli and Cauliflower Mac-n-Cheese
Sarah B. - Italiano Fish Fillets
Sarah S. - Chicken Tortilla Soup
Steph - Lumpia
Heather - Mini-Breakfast Frittatas

Also - cooking tips for November's Menu:

Sneaky Chef Chili and Sneaky Cornbread Muffins(veggie purees are hidden in both)
Muffins- stay frozen, bake 350 for 25 minutes
Chili- heat over stove, either frozen or thawed

Minestrone SoupThaw and simmer until veggies are tender and pasta cooked, about 25 minutes

Shepherd’s Pie and Chocolate Chip Cookies Pie- Thaw and bake 350 for 30 minutes or until bubbly
Cookies- 375 for 9 minutes

Mexican Lasagna Thaw and bake 350 for 25 minutes, let sit 10 minutes before serving

No Peeking Peking Chicken and Egg Rolls Chicken- Cook in Crockpot for 4 hours if thawed or 8-10 hours if frozen.
One option would be to serve this over rice.
Egg rolls- keep frozen and bake 425 for 18 minutes (one option for cooking)

Bolognese Sauce, spaghetti noodles, Parmesan cheese block, rolls and bars Sauce - Reheat over stove
Cheese- grate over top when serving
Spaghetti noodles- cook
Rolls- thaw and bake 375 for 8-10 minutes

Crockpot Chicken Tacos, Vegetarian Chili and Pumpkin Bread Tacos- thaw and reheat. Use to fill tacos, enchiladas or make a taco salad.
Chili- reheat either frozen or thawed
Bread- thaw and enjoy

November Menu/Recipes

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/20615631/November%202011%20Recipes.docx

Here's the link to our November Recipes.  Hope you all enjoy!

Also - this is somewhat unsolicited, but I recently made some cranberry white chocolate chip scones and then froze them (before baking) to see how they'd turn out.  Turns out - we happily ate the entire test batch!  :)  We will be serving these for breakfast when we have company over Thanksgiving.  Having them pre-made in the freezer will help with clean-up (and avoid having to get up early!!).  Anyway - thought I'd share the recipe since it is so simple and I always almost have all the ingredients on hand. 

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/20615631/Cranberry%20White%20Chocolate%20Chip%20Scones.doc

December "Assignments"

Ok - I know it's a little early to be doing the December Swap Assignments - but I think I'm just on a kick.   Maybe it's just the extra time at my disposal since I don't have to think about dinner tonight!!! Can't tell you how lovely it was to not have to do dishes last night....felt like our night went SO much smoother! (We had the pork chops - YUM Heather - I think that recipe is a winner!).

These are the recipes you will bring to the November swap to be voted on to be made for the December swap.  If you think your holidays are going to be too crazy with family, etc - and want to sit out for a month - just let me know and I'll take you out for that month.  No hard feelings!  I think we'll try to do something a little easier for the January swap (since we'll be doing the prep in December time-frame) but we can discuss further at our next swap. 

So without further adieu....

Soup/Chili/Stew - Sarah M.
Casserole/Comfort Food - Jenny, Sarah B.
Italian/Mediterranean - Libby
Southwestern/Mexican - Sarah S.
Asian - Steph
Breakfast for Dinner - Heather

November 2011 Menu

November 2011 Menu - Swap date is Nov. 13th at 8pm

Heather - Sneaky Chef Chili and Sneaky Cornbread Muffins
Jenny - Minestrone Soup
Libby - Black Bean, Sweet Potato, and Chorizo Enchiladas
Sarah M. - Shepard's Pie
Steph - Mexican Lasagna
Sarah B. - No Peeking Peking Chicken
Sarah S. - Bolognese Sauce

October Meeting Minutes

Hi Freezer Friends-
Just a few notes from our swap last night.

• If you are looking for chicken breasts at a good price - try Costco.  Target also seems to have some good prices on meat.
• Add-on's to meals do not need to be "approved".  If you choose to purchase something in addition to your recipe, just choose something that would be appropriate to eat with your meal - i.e. veggies, bread, cookies (which go with everything in my opinion....:)). 
• If you've tested your recipe or tried one that we've received and have some input - please post in the comments section.

I posted the recipes for the October Menu to the October post.  Please let me know if you can't access them.  I'm having a little trouble posting a document - but I think I've worked out the kinks.  I can view it - but I want to make sure that someone else can. 

Apple Recipes from Steph

Ok - here's a test to see if this link will work.  If not - I'll mess with it again this afternoon.  :)

Steph's Apple Recipes

November "Assignments"

Here are the assignments for the November swap.  I doubled up on two.  For those of you who are doubled up - if you'd like to do something different/out of category - just let me know.   Happy Recipe Hunting!  Please bring your recipes (or send them if you can't make it) to the October Meal Swap so we can vote on them.  Also - when you get a chance, please send me your recipe for October so I can post it on the blog.  (Sarah S. & Jenny - I already have yours.) 

Soup/Chili/Stew:  Heather
Casserole/Comfort Food:  Sarah M.
Italian/Mediteranean:  Jenny, Sarah S.
Southwestern/Mexican:  Steph, Libby
Asian:  Sarah B.