Freezer Nesting: Chicken and Dumplings

It’s hard to top Chicken and Dumplings when it comes to comfort food.

Not a quick dish by any means, but after the aromatic torture of the few hours it takes to prepare this dish, sitting at the table becomes a multi-sensory consumption. Lean over the bowl as the ribbon of steam unfurls across your face (this is particularly nice if you happen to make your dish on one of those bitterly cold days where the wind finds tiny cracks to howl into around your house). Let the creamy broth soothe your eyes until a peep of orange or green from a vegetable in the broth wakes them up again. Break the surface of the seemingly dense dumpling with your spoon and marvel at how gently it rends under the pressure, and how light the starchy orb seems on the inside. The only sounds you hear for a while are the clink of spoon against porcelain as the dish is eaten, punctuated by the occasional slurp and sigh.

It’s practically a lullaby for your palate. A balm for whatever emotional wounds may need healing. A calm reassurance that, no matter what difficulties today brought you, a belly full of chicken and dumplings means everything will seem all right in the morning.

For those days when a batch of chicken and dumplings will hit the spot – but it’s not apparent until about an hour before dinner – this will be the perfect fix: grab a frozen packet of pre-made stew, and then as it’s reheating in a pot on the stove, mix up some dumpling batter to cook up fresh for dinner. Voila: instant comfort food! Of course we have to stock the freezer with this.

Chicken and Dumplings

From The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook

Stew

• 5 pounds bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
• Salt and pepper
• 4 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
• 4 carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4-inch thick
• 2 ribs celery, sliced 1/4-inch thick
• 1 onion, minced
• 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup dry sherry
• 4 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 cup whole milk
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme, or 1/2 teaspoon dried
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Pat the chicken dry with paper towels, then season with salt and pepper.

Heat 2 teaspoons of the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Add half of the chicken and cook until golden on both sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and remove the browned skin. Pour off the chicken fat and reserve. Return the pot to medium-high heat and repeat with the remaining 2 teaspoon oil and the remaining chicken. Pour off and reserve any chicken fat.

Add the butter to the Dutch oven and melt over medium-high heat. Add the carrots, celery, onion and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook until softened, about 7 minutes.

Stir in the flour. Whisk in the sherry, scraping up any browned bits. Stir in the broth, milk,thyme and bay leaves.

Nestle the chicken, with any accumulated juices, into the pot. Cover and simmer until the chicken is fully cooked and tender, about 1 hour.

Transfer the chicken to a cutting board. Discard the bay leaves.

Allow the sauce to settle for a few minutes, then skim the fat from the surface using a wide spoon. Shred the chicken, discarding the bones, then return it to the stew.

Return the stew to a simmer, stir in the peas and parsley, and season with salt and pepper.

At this point, we let the stew cool, divided into two FoodSaver pouches, and froze.

When we want to make up a quick batch next Fall or Winter, we’ll heat up one of the pouches and prepare a half-batch of the dumplings below. (NOTE: if you’re serving a bigger crowd and are using the entire recipe at one sitting, then obviously you’d just make the full recipe.)

Dumplings

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup whole milk
• 3 tablespoons reserved chicken fat (or unsalted butter)

Sire the flour, baking powder, and salt together. Microwave the milk and fat in a microwave-safe bowl until just warm (do not overheat), about a minute. Stir the warmed milk mixture into the flour mixture with a wooden spoon until incorporated and smooth.

Drop golf-ball-sized dumplings into the stew about 1/4 inch apart (the full recipe will yield about 18 dumplings). Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the dumplings have doubled in size, 15 to 18 minutes.

So, nine meals down. And only 21 to go. It’ll only get easier from here, right?

Freezer Nesting: Lasagna

I remember, after our first child was born, my sister came to visit when we were all home. She arrived with a full pan of lasagna, loaf of garlic bread, salad…all the things we’d need for dinner that night, and the only work we’d need to do was heat it up in the oven. It fed us not only that night, but for a number of lunches in the week that followed. And was even more delicious from the fact that it was made for us.

Not everyone in the house is a fan of Italian food, but we all love a pan of lasagna. To confess: we often purchase a pre-made frozen pan at the grocery store and call on the comfort of lasagna after a busy weekend day. Perhaps it was because I recalled witnessing the efforts of my own parents to assemble a good pan of lasagna for a dinner party, and recalling little more than the monumental work it seemed to take. We’ve even made lasagna in a crock pot, which still felt like a lot of work, but loved the idea that it would just cook all day and be ready for us to eat as soon as we came home. But still leaned on the crutch of pre-made pans.

Then it hit me: the bigger reason we avoided making lasagna (aside from my lack-of-Italian-blood complex) is because we are a family of 2.75 eaters. And getting leftovers to disappear is a very meh effort among 1.75 of those eaters. Unless we’re talking about a batch of Monkey Bread. But that’s a different recipe.

What if we could make two meals from a single recipe? That would solve the leftovers problem and bring me two meals closer to my goal. Inspired once more, I hit the cookbooks. Both recipes below come from The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook.

Chunky Tomato Meat Sauce

1/2 pound lean ground beef (85 percent lean)

1/2 pound ground pork

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, minced

Salt

6 garlic cloves, minced

1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes

1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Pepper

Heat oil in a large saucepan until shimmering. Add onion and 1 teaspoon salt and cook until onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until just fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Add the beef and pork and cook, stirring to break up the clumps, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes.

Stir in the tomatoes with their juices, the oregano, and red pepper flakes. Simmer until the sauce is slightly thickened, about 15 minutes. Season with pepper to taste.

Makes 6 cups.

Simple Meat Lasagna

15 ounces ricotta cheese (1 3/4 cups)

2 1/2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (1 1/4 cups)

1/2 cup minced fresh basil

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

6 cups tomato sauce

12 no-boil lasagna noodles (1 8- or 9-ounce package)

1 pound whole milk mozzarella, shredded (4 cups)

Mix the ricotta, 1 cup of the Parmesan, the basil, egg, salt, and pepper until well combined.

Spread 1/4 cup of the tomato sauce over the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish.

For freezer prep, I used two 8×8 foil pans.

Place 3 of the noodles on top of the sauce and drop 3 tablespoons of the ricotta mixture down the center of each noodle, then spread it to an even thickness.

From this point forward, I simply divided the two ingredients in between the pans.

Sprinkle evenly with 1 cup of the mozzarella. Spoon 1 1/2 cups of the sauce evenly over the cheese.

Repeat this layering two more times.

For the final layer, place the 3 remaining noodles on top. Spread the remaining 1 1/4 cups sauce over the noodles. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 cup mozzarella and then the remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan. Spray a large sheet of foil lightly with vegetable oil spray and cover the lasagna.

Bake in preheated 375-degree oven for 15 minutes.  Remove the foil and continue to bake until the cheese is browned and the sauce is bubbling, about 25 minutes longer. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving. (Serves 6 to 8.)

For final steps before freezing, I added the first layer of foil (this is great for keeping the cheese from sticking to the foil). Then I measured another layer of foil where I wrote out the thawing and cooking directions. Then it was a simple matter of adding the plastic domed lids, and they were off to the freezer for a summertime slumber.

(And, according to the big-brother-to-be, the baby will really love this recipe. He had a hand in helping put this particular one together.)

Here’s where the meal tally stands to-date: 10 down, 20 to go. The freezer silo we’ve started is starting to grow noticeably.

Freezer Nesting: Pulled Pork

“Meanie!” shouted the subject line of the email from my husband that afternoon.

His note continued: “I just walked in the house. That’s crock-pot-evil, I tell you.”

You see, he’s usually home about a half-hour before I am at the end of the workday. And any sort of empty stomach he carried home was, shall we say, provoked into even more crankiness by the aromas wafting through the air. Hence the nastygram.

Now it’s not like he was unaware I was going to have a crock pot cooking throughout the day while we were at work. He saw the early stages of the process before he left for his office that morning. And he knew we wouldn’t be eating any of it for dinner that evening. But still…

Pulled pork may be one of his favorite homemade hot sandwiches. The tender shreds of meat tossed with sweet and tangy spices from a dry rub and barbeque sauce, stuffed inside some impossibly starchy sandwich bun is a quick and easy weeknight meal. That’s why I knew it would be a great addition to the freezer roster for post-partum meals.

Beginner’s Pulled Pork

(From America’s Test Kitchen’s Slow Cooker Revolution)

• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar, plus extra as needed
• 1/4 cup sweet paprika
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper
• 1 (5-pound) boneless pork butt roast, trimmed and quartered
• 1 cup barbeque sauce, plus extra for serving
• Cider vinegar

Combine sugar paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, cayenne, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in bowl.

Using fork, prick pork all over. Rub sugar mixture over pork, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 8 to 24 hours. Unwrap pork and place in slow cooker.

Spread barbeque sauce evenly over pork, cover, and cook until pork is tender, 9 to 11 hours on low or 5 to 7 hours on high.

Transfer pork to large bowl, let cool slightly, then shred into bite-size pieces, discarding excess fat.

Let braising liquid settle for 5 minutes, then remove fat from surface using a large spoon. Season with salt, pepper, sugar, and vinegar to taste.

Toss shredded pork with 1 cup braising liquid; add more liquid as needed to keep meat moist. Serve with barbeque sauce.

For freezing this recipe, I did add the braising liquid. Then I divvied up the pork into 1-pound packages, and vacuum sealed them for freezing. This yielded three packages, which should be more than enough for an evening meal and perhaps a leftover sandwich or two in the following days. To serve them up, it’s a simple matter of thawing in the fridge, reheating in a microwave-safe bowl, and serving up the sandwich fixings: buns, barbeque sauce, and if we’re feeling a little decadent, maybe topping that with a dollop of coleslaw…

Freezer Nesting: Shepherd’s Pie

I first tried out this recipe as a freezer-friendly option when I was making some meals to bring over to my sister. She and her family were caring for her mother-in-law for a bit. Knowing how not having to worry about a meal would be a nice way to help, I took this Shepherd’s Pie recipe – designed to be made in a skillet – and translated it into a thaw-and-reheat respite. With the savory meaty flavors, the bright notes from the beer and the visual medley of vegetables, it’s a complete meal right out of the pan.

When we make it at home, there’s always leftovers; we can only manage to eat about half of the recipe in one sitting. So I knew this would be a nice two-fer in the mission to fill the freezer!

Skillet Shepherd’s Pie

(From America’s Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook)

Filling

• 2 teaspoons canola oil
• 2 carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4-inch thick
• 1 onion, minced
• 1 celery rib, sliced 1/4-inch thick
• 1 pound 95 percent lean ground beef
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 3/4 cup beer – you can use nonalcoholic beer if you like, or a mild lager.
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh thyme (or 1/2 teaspoon dried)
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 1 ear corn, kernels removed – or you can substitute 3/4 cup frozen corn, thawed
• salt and pepper

Topping

• 1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
• 1/3 cup 2 percent lowfat milk, warmed
• 1/4 cup lowfat sour cream, room temperature
• salt and pepper

FOR THE FILLING

Adjust an oven rack to the upper-middle position and heat the oven to 375 degrees [I skipped this, as we were not eating it right away and would be freezing the entire recipe].

Heat the oil in a 12-inch ovenproof skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add the carrots, onion, and celery and cook over medium heat until the vegetables are softened, 8 to 10 minutes.

Stir in the beef and cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon until no longer pink, about 5 minutes.

Stir in the flour, garlic, and tomato paste and cook for 1 minute.

Gradually whisk in the broth, beer, Worcestershire, and thyme. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-low heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened but still saucy, 20 to 25 minutes.

Off the heat, stir in the peas and corn and season with salt and pepper to taste.

FOR THE TOPPING

Bring 2 quarts of water and the potatoes to a simmer in a large saucepan over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the potatoes are tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

Drain the potatoes and return to the saucepan. Mash the potatoes with the butter, stir in the milk and sour cream until smooth, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Dollop the potatoes over the top of the filling then smooth them into an even layer, making sure to spread them to the edges of the skillet. [Or just skip to the freezer prep section below.] Bake until the filling is bubbling, about 15 minutes.

Position an oven rack 6 inches from the broiler element, heat the broiler, then broil the casserole until the top is golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the skillet to a wire rack and let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

TO PREP FOR FREEZING

I departed from the recipe right after preparing the filling, and while the potatoes were boiling up in the pan I divided the filling into two 8-inch foil pans. 

Then when the topping was made, split the topping between the two and spread it over the top just as the recipe directed.

I then took two squares of aluminum foil and a Sharpie, and wrote out the thawing/heating instructions on top: thaw in the fridge overnight, remember to uncover, bake in 375-degree oven for 1 hour, and broil 3-5 minutes for the golden brown crust.

Once the pans were covered (and they came with plastic lids too, which I figured wouldn’t hurt in protecting the pans from a rogue rack of ribs in the freezer, or something like that), it was off to the freezer.

That brings the meal tally up to 5; 25 more meals to go!

Freezer Nesting: Cassoulet

The very first time we made this recipe at home, my husband peeked into the slow cooker as I was shredding the chicken to add back into the pot and asked, “did we invite anyone to dinner tonight?” One hasty phone call later and we had some impromptu guests…and still enough leftovers for a full meal later.

Cassoulet is an awesome stew, if you ask me: three kinds of meat that my carnivorous niece gets a charge out of, beans for either a nice source of fiber or a dramatic reenactment of a memorable scene from Blazing Saddles, and the density of the broth that feels like a grandmother just tucked an afghan around your freezing feet and planted a kiss on top of your head.

So when it came to imagining the sort of foods that we’d love to find in a freezer while in a sleep-deprived state, this one sprang immediately to mind. I also liked the fact that I’d work on this a bit in the morning to get the crock pot set up, and could go about my day until it needed the final touches and prep for the freezer.

Cassoulet

(From America’s Test Kitchen’s Slow Cooker Revolution)

• 2 onions, minced
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried)
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 3 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 pound dried great Northern beans, picked over and salt-soaked and rinsed
• 8 ounces kielbasa sausage, sliced 1 inch thick
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 pounds bone-in country-style pork ribs, trimmed
• 2 pounds bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed and trimmed
• 2 slices high-quality white sandwich bread, torn into pieces
• 2 tablespoons unsalted, butter
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Microwave onions, oil, garlic, thyme, and tomato paste in a bowl, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened, about 5 minutes; transfer to slow cooker.

Stir broth, beans, kielbasa, tomatoes, wine, and bay leaves into slow cooker. Season pork and chicken with salt and pepper and nestle pork into slow cooker.

Wrap chicken in foil packet and lay on top of stew.

Cover and cook until beans are tender, 6 to 8 hours on low.

[If I was making this to eat right away, I would proceed to this step. As we're freezing, though, I've skipped it.] Meanwhile, pulse bread, butter, 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper in food processor until coarsely ground, about 8 pulses. Transfer crumbs to 12-inch skillet and toast over medium-high heat, stirring often, until golden brown and dry, about 5 minutes; set aside.

Transfer foil packet to plate, open it carefully (watch for steam) and transfer chicken to cutting board. Let chicken cool slightly, then shred into bite-size pieces, discarding bones. Let braising liquid settle for 5 minutes, then remove fat from surface using a large spoon. Discard bay leaves. Stir in shredded chicken and parsley, season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve with bread crumbs.

It was at this point that I simply switched off the crock pot and let the cassoulet cool while we made the dinner we’d eat that night instead. After dinner, I set up three pouches for the FoodSaver, divided up the stew among the three and sealed them up.

To reheat, it’s a matter of letting a pouch thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating either in the microwave or on the stovetop. The toasted breadcrumbs are easy enough to pull together the day we serve and bring that nice little crunch that’s always a pleasant surprise.

So, we’re off! Three meals down, 27 to go.

Freezes Beautifully

If you’re any sort of fan of chick flicks, you know the scene.

In Steel Magnolias (the 1989 production) Annelle DuPuy was scrambling to make a batch of red beans and rice to give to M’Lynn’s family so they’d have a little something to eat while she recovered from surgery. As she was hurrying into the kitchen her fiancee, Sammy deSoto, pointed out that the beans needed to be soaked overnight…derailing the timing of her dish delivery. Making something else was not an option, according to Annelle, because “it’s in the ‘Freezes Beautifully’ section of my cookbook, and I want to make something that freezes beautifully!”

I’m surprised she didn’t use the Lord’s name in vain when she realized the recipe problem. (Image found on IMDB.)

Amen, Annelle.

I don’t know how aesthetically pleasing they may look when we get around to defrosting and heating them up, but I want to use the renewed energy of my second trimester to stock our chest freezer with food that we not only like, but will want to eat on those days when cooking just isn’t a priority.

This sense of food-stocking urgency is new to this pregnancy. The last time we were expecting, I’d just freeze the leftovers of something we’d made, figuring it would come in handy, but didn’t really pay attention to what was or was not piling up in the freezer. Clearly we survived, but this time around I’m acutely aware of the fact that there’s three of us to feed postpartum instead of just two, in addition to keeping a newborn healthy and happy.

I don’t want to feel like I’m making a last-minute dinner decision out of desperation because of a new feeding schedule.

I’m also not expecting to stay out of the kitchen for a very long time after giving birth – something would have to be seriously wrong for such a thing to occur.

What I do want is the security of knowing there’s a variety of meals -or meal starters- to choose from that will make life a little easier on those days that didn’t go as anyone expected, or those evenings when worlds suddenly collide. Something that will be a resource for a few months or so as we get into our new family life groove.

The brainstorm: Paged through our favorite cookbooks to find recipes that are family favorites from about early Fall through mid Winter. Comfort foods, in some cases, go-to weeknight staples in others. Figure out how much of the meal I can make ahead of time, and how many meals I can get out of a single recipe. Like I said earlier, I don’t expect to eat them all right away, and the early Fall is still warm enough to do some grilling. So we’ll be making hamburger patties and stocking packs of chicken drumsticks for some grill-out nights in addition to this cooking.

Timing: Make one dish a week, usually on a weekend, then divvy up and freeze.

The goal: Stock approximately 30 meals in the chest freezer by the end of the second trimester.

The roster: Here’s what will be made, one week at a time. In no particular order:

• Chicken Enchiladas
• Meatloaf
• Shepherd’s Pie
• Chicken Pot Pie Filling (the idea being that we make the crust the day-of to top the pies)
• Cassoulet
• Chicken & Dumplings – or at least the stew (the dumplings don’t take much effort to make the night-of, and taste better that way)
• Pulled Pork, for quick sandwiches
• Lasagna
• Beef Stew
• Beef Stroganoff Casserole
• Kielbasa Potato Casserole
• Tater Tot Hotdish
• Lettuce wraps – the filling, that is.

Once a week. Seems doable, right?

Radio Silence

It’s been a little quiet around here, hasn’t it?

There was a good reason.

I was starting a new project that really sapped my energy for the first few months of the year.

For the very curious, here’s the lowdown:

• Due around September 23.
• Confirmed via ultrasound that we are having a baby – not an alien, dashing my hopes yet again for a financially lucrative exclusive with a tabloid – but as for the gender, we’ll find out when the little one is born.
• Feeling fine, but definitely feeling pregnant.
• Our kiddo is excited about being a big brother, and is busy thinking of things he can teach the baby, baby names, and seating assignments around the dining room table.

So, some home improvement priorities are going to shift. New ones are moving to the top of the list, and some – like painting the front porch – may not be physically possible and will wait for a bit. As the first trimester is past us now, the top concerns are organized by trimester:

Trimester Two: stock the freezer with meals – or meal starters – that we can use after the baby is here to make fast meals that still taste good and are good for all of us.

Trimester Three: set up the baby’s room. Luck and Fate must have been conspiring when I got the harebrained idea to make a big boy room for our son before becoming pregnant. No panicking over how to transition him into a new space, because he’s happily settled into his purple palace. Instead, this will be a matter of pulling the crib and related infant accoutrement from the attic, figuring out if anything needs to be replaced or added, and moving the current guest bedroom furniture up to the attic.

Time to pull out the cookbooks and start making a shopping list. Care to join us in the kitchen as we get cooking?