My friend and fellow ranch-mom, Kelli, and I have a lot in common. We are ranch wives/rancHers. We have boys that were born two weeks apart from each other. We like to garden. We like to sew. We like to quilt. And we both like to make dinner time easier in our crazy lives…hence, freezer meals. We are also both MOPS mamas and we recently had a speaker who shared freezer meal ideas. We immediately put a date on the calendar to prepare meals together and allow the boys to play pirate ship and tractors.
#gallery-0-5 { margin: auto; } #gallery-0-5 .gallery-item { float: left; margin-top: 10px; text-align: center; width: 50%; } #gallery-0-5 img { border: 2px solid #cfcfcf; } #gallery-0-5 .gallery-caption { margin-left: 0; } /* see gallery_shortcode() in wp-includes/media.php */
We got together yesterday at her house and we each brought enough ingredients to make a recipe x 4. That way, we each went home with two of the same recipe of each. She had ingredients to make chicken pot pie and I brought ingredients for beef enchilada casserole. It’s been awhile since I shared a recipe on my blog, so I thought this would be a great one to share….it’s easy to make one pan or make several at once to freeze.
Our MOPS speaker had an ingenious way to freeze a casserole that allows you to take it of the dish after it is frozen to save space and pans that you may need.
Prep your pan with one layer of aluminum foil. Follow up with a layer of cellophane (Press ‘N Seal works great). Fill your pan with your casserole how you normally would. Top with a layer of cellophane and a layer of aluminum foil. The double-wall barrier helps prevent against freezer burn and keeps your food fresh for longer. Freeze your casserole in the pan; when completely frozen, remove the “food brick” from the pan and make sure to seal well with the top layer of foil. Stack many in your freezer on top of each other! When ready to use, take the foil and cellophane off of the casserole and put the frozen “food brick” back in the pan you froze it in. Let it thaw, then cook! (If any of the cellophane is frozen in a crevice of food, simply run warm water until it releases.)
This recipe is simple and can be multiplied. Here is the single recipe for one 9×13 in. pan casserole.
Beef Enchilada Casserole
{freezer meal directions}
Ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef
2 tbsp. minced onion flakes
1 – 15 oz. can chili beans
1 – 15 oz. can black beans
1 – 4 oz. can chopped green chilies
1 tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. cumin
1 ½ cups salsa
1 ½ cups shredded cheese
1 tsp. dried cilantro
12 corn tortillas
Directions:
1. Brown ground beef with minced onion until done; drain. Let meat mixture cool.
2. Stir in chili beans, black beans, green chilies, chili powder and cumin.
3. Line a 9×13 in. freezer safe pan with 6 tortillas (cut to fit if necessary).
4. Spread half of salsa onto tortillas. Then layer meat/bean mixture, followed by adding ½ cup of shredded cheese.
5. Place remaining 6 tortillas on top.
6. Layer starting with salsa, meat mixture and remaining 1 cup of cheese. Evenly sprinkle cilantro on top.
7. Cover with foil or freezer safe lid and freeze.
8. Defrost (set out at least for 3 hours) and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until heated through and cheese is bubbly.
Note: if not making for a freezer meal, no need to allow beef mixture to cool before assembling layers.
After assembling our freezer meals, we took the boys out to see their Longhorn bulls. Chisum was in awe of their huge horns – as was I. :)
Beef Enchilada Casserole Freezer Meal recipe....and how to wear out a 3-year-old boy! #lifeontheranch #freezermeals #beefrecipe My friend and fellow ranch-mom, Kelli, and I have a lot in common. We are ranch wives/rancHers.
