Cranberry Ginger Pork Roast

From:
http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/02/18/slow-cooker-freezer-recipes/

Ginger Cranberry Pork Roast

Serves: about 6 per bag

 

Guest recipe by Stephanie Brandt Cornais
*Note this recipe makes two complete meals/bags

Ingredients

• 2 pork roasts, left whole
• 12 ounce package fresh cranberries or 2 jars (cans have BPA in them) of whole cranberries
• 1 cup peeled and sliced (or minced) fresh ginger
• 2 tablespoons rapadura sugar (or honey or maple syrup)
• 2 tablespoons of quick cooking tapioca (or some other thickening agent like whole-wheat flour or arrowroot powder)
• 

Instructions

1. Label 2 one-gallon freezer bags.
2. After chopping, evenly divide all ingredients into the two bags and lay flat in the freezer.
3. Day of cooking: Pull one bag from the freezer and lay it on the counter for several minutes to slightly thaw. Peel away the bag, dump the contents into your slow cooker along with ½ cup of filtered water, and cook on low for 4 to 6 hours, or until fully cooked. Remember each slow cooker is different, so the first time you make a recipe, really watch it closely so you don’t over or under cook the dish.
4. Serve with broccoli sautéed in butter. I cook frozen broccoli this way – no need to thaw, just dump frozen broccoli into a hot pan with hot butter and it is delicious.

----My own comments: Having made and eaten this meal this past week, I have to say again, as with other recipes I have used from Stephanie Cornais, this recipe seriously lacked in an edible flavor as written. (I just keep hoping that they will be good because they look and sound so healthy...!)  I admit I was suspicious as there are literally only 5 ingredients to this meal (and none of them contained sodium), so I tasted the "sauce"that came out of the crockpot.  It was queer, and that's the only way I can describe it.  I added both salt and sugar, probably a teaspoon of each, and this helped a lot-- so that I could actually put it in front of my family with any hopes of them eating it!  I did not serve this with the ginger pieces, as pictured above, as they are very strong.  My sauce also looked nothing like the one pictured above!  I think you'd need to stir and break up a lot of the berries first, and add a lot more tapioca or flour than the recipe calls for.  So, in short, if you don't expect it to look like the picture above,  add at least 1 tsp salt and 1-2 tsp sugar to the list of ingredients, you won't be as disappointed.   Oh, I also left it on lo all day-- from 9am to 5 pm-- and it was cooked well.

 Good luck!  And let me know what you do to this recipe to improve it, if anything.

Indian Hand Pies with Lamb

From the Family Fun magazine, Feb 2011

Makes 12 hand pies

Ingredients:
1 lb lean ground lamb
1/3 cup chicken broth
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp turmeric
1 Tbsp paprika
1 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1 small onion, minced
2 Tbsp minced parsley
2 Tbsp minced cilantro
1 Tbsp grated fresh ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium russet potato, diced into 1/4-in cubes
1/2 cup frozen peas, defrosted
1 egg, beaten and seasoned with 3/4 Tbsp sea salt and 1/2 tsp pepper
3 (9-in) refrigerated pie shells or 2 lbs pizza dough
Egg wash (an egg beaten with 1 tsp water)

1. In a large, nonstick skillet over hi heat, saute the lamb until it's no longer pink, about 8 minutes.  Pour away the rendered fat, then add broth, all spices, onion, herbs, ginger, garlic and potato.  Simmer until potato is cooked through, about 10-12 min.  Remove the pan from heat and stir in peas.  Spread mixture on a baking sheet and let it cool for 20 min.  Stir in seasoned egg until blended.
2. Heat oven to 375.  Cut pie or pizza dough into twelve 6-in rounds.  (I find I can only get 9 out of the 3 pizza crusts.)  Divide the filling evenly among the dough portions (about 1/3 cup per pie), making a mound in the center of each round.  Brush the edges with the egg wash, then fold each pie in half and crimp the edges.
3. Place the pies on a greased baking sheet.  Brush the tops with the remaining egg wash and make a 1/2-in-long slit in the top of each one.  Bake the pies until they're golden brown, about 20-25 min.  Serve with your favorite mint or fruit chutney.

Make-ahead tip:
To save your pies for another meal, freeze them unbaked on a  cookie sheet, then bag them up.  Bake them as instructed in step 3, adding 10 extra minutes.  (FYI, I've found that baking them from frozen does not actually require any extra oven time.  When I add 10 extra minutes, they come out burned.)

"The Best Vegetarian Chili in the World" (from allrecipes.com)

made this week by Kristin Fox

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon olive oil 1/2 medium onion, chopped 2 bay leaves 1 teaspoon ground cumin 2 tablespoons dried oregano 1 tablespoon salt 2 stalks celery, chopped 2 green bell peppers, chopped 2 jalapeno peppers, chopped 3 cloves garlic, chopped 2 (4 ounce) cans chopped green chile

peppers, drained 2 (12 ounce) packages vegetarian burger crumbles 3 (28 ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes, crushed 1/4 cup chili powder 1 tablespoon ground black pepper 1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, drained 1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained 1 (15 ounce) can black beans 1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Stir in the onion, and season with bay leaves, cumin, oregano, and salt. Cook and stir until onion is tender, then mix in the celery, green bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, garlic, and green chile peppers. When vegetables are heated through, mix in the vegetarian burger crumbles. Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and simmer 5 minutes.
2.	Mix the tomatoes into the pot. Season chili with chili powder and pepper. Stir in the kidney beans, garbanzo beans, and black beans. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer 45 minutes. Stir in the corn, and continue cooking 5 minutes before serving.

Freezer Rols & Split Pea Soup

 

Hey ladies!  This month I thought we could all get cozy with some warm rolls and hot soup!  The rolls are baked a little in advance so you only have to pop them in the oven for a bit right out of the freezer.  The soup recipe is one that came from a sweet friend of mine from medical school, Julie Jensen.  She brought this lovely soup to us when we had just had Lincoln.  I had never cared for split pea soup until this recipe.  I hope you find it equally satisfying! 

Taste of Home Freeze & Bake Rolls 

Recipe Yield:  48 rolls

Ingredients

• 2 packages (1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast (or about 5 tsp.)

• 1-1/2 cups warm water (110° to 115°)

• 2 teaspoons plus 1/2 cup sugar, divided

• 1-1/2 cups warm milk (110° to 115°)

• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

• 4 teaspoons salt

• 7-1/2 to 8-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

• Butter, melted

   

Directions

1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add 2 teaspoons sugar; let stand for 5 minutes. Add milk, oil, salt and remaining sugar. Stir in enough flour to form a stiff dough.
2. Turn out onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1-1/2 hours.
3. Punch dough down; turn onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into four portions. Cover three portions with plastic wrap. Divide one portion into 12 balls. To form knots, roll each ball into a 10-in. rope; tie into a knot and pinch ends together. Repeat with remaining dough.
4. Place dough knots 2 in. apart on greased baking sheets; brush with melted butter. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 20-30 minutes.
5. To serve immediately, bake at 375° for 15-18 minutes. To freeze for later use, partially bake at 300° for 15 minutes. Allow to cool; freeze. Reheat frozen rolls at 375° for 12-15 minutes or until browned. Yield: 4 dozen. 

Julie Jensen's Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup
Recipe Yield: 12 servings

Ingredients

• 1 - 16 oz pkg split green peas, rinsed
• 2 cups sliced ham
• 3 carrots, sliced (I actually used parsnips instead since I had them on hand)
• 1/2 cup onion, chopped
• 2 stalks of celery with leaves, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 2 tsp. seasoned salt
• 1/2 tsp. fresh black pepper
• 1 1/2 quarts hot water (I adjusted this to 1 1/4 because after the first batch I found it a bit watery)
• 2 - 14 oz cans chicken broth (I used fat free)

Directions

1. Layer ingredients in slow cooker in the order given in ingredient list
2. Finish by pouring in water and chicken broth. Do not stir. 
3. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or until vegetables are soft. 
4. Remove bay leaf. 
5. Mash peas to thicken soup, if desired.
6. If you want to freeze any, cool completely and then freeze in freezer bags.
7. To serve after frozen, thaw completely and reheat on the stovetop! This one freezes REALLY well.

Nutritional information: Per 1 cup serving: Calories 133; Total Fat 5.3g; Cholesterol 14mg; Sodium 1465mg; Total Carbohydrates 10g; Dietary Fiber 0g; Protein 9g.

Hello Ladies!

I am sorry to announce that I will not be able to participate in the meal swaps for a little while.  We really have to tighten our budget so we can make it through Thanksgiving and be able to get our children Christmas gifts. I won't be able to participate for a while, but strictly for financial reasons. 

We have truly enjoyed all of the wonderful meals so far, and all of the effort that has gone into them!

Thanks for sharing your talent and friendships with me!  What a wonderful group of women!!! :0)  (and such good cooks too!)

Thanks again, and HAPPY HOLIDAYS to you and your families!
Ellen Ashton

P.S.  I can give back the Tupperware that I have too. ;0)