Great Recipes To Stock Your Freezer!

Thanks to Margaret S. for emailing a link to a couple of these.

These recipes are from Holly Clegg's Trim & Terrific Freezer Friendly Meals (Trim & Terrific):


French Bread Pizzas for the Freezer:

Author Notes:	This recipe is meant to make individual French Bread pizzas that you store in your freezer until you're ready to heat them up for dinner. The recipe is healthy and low in fat. These are so easy to make, a child could do it. A six-pack of rolls makes 12, so this is a convenient number to make at a single outing, but this recipe is very adaptable -- just multiply the ingredients below by the number of pizzas you want to make. If you like dinners like those made by Lean Cuisine®, Weight Watchers® or Jenny Craig®, you'll love this homemade alternative. You'll save money and time (cook once and make twelve dinners), not to mention you can avoid unnecessary sodium and preservatives. And unlike the commercial versions, you can season these meals to suit your taste. For general information about cooking and packaging foods for the freezer, as well as more delicious, low fat freezer recipes, click here.
Ingredients:	Per Pizza: 1/3 cup pizza sauce 6 slices low fat beef and turkey pepperoni 2 tablespoons grated mozzarella cheese 1 teaspoon grated Parmesan cheese one half long French roll
Instructions:	Cut each roll in half. Spread 1/3 cup sauce over the cut side of each roll, sprinkle with grated cheeses and top with pepperoni and other desired optional toppings. Wrap each pizza tightly in foil or other freezer wrap of choice and freeze. When you're ready to eat dinner, here's how to cook your pizzas: Conventional Oven: Preheat oven to 350°F and place unwrapped pizza on a baking sheet. Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until heated through and cheese is melted. Microwave Oven: I like this recipe best when cooked in a conventional oven, as it's difficult, if not impossible to get a crisp crust in the microwave (maybe you have better luck with browning trays then I). But if you must cook in the microwave, 2 1/2 to 3 minutes on high usually does the trick.

Fill Your Freezer Recipe -- Burritos:

Author Notes:	These burritos are awesome! You make a bunch in advance, keep them in your freezer, and anytime you want a quick meal or snack, cook for about 2-3 minutes in the microwave. Adults and kids love them. If you have a freezer and microwave at work, you’re set for lunch, although you may have to keep your coworkers from stealing them, once they see what you’re eating. The recipe below is written as a utility recipe, meaning you can use the specific ingredients you prefer and/or happen to have on hand. I often use this recipe to clean out the freezer and fridge of various meats and veggies, and I’ve been known to make as many as 60 burritos at a time! Why not? Once you gather together all your ingredients and supplies, it’s just as easy to make lots as it is to make a few. See the instructions below for further notes on ingredients, variations and substitutions. The amount of ingredients you will need will depend on how many burritos you want to make (this is a great way to use leftovers). Multiply the amount of ingredients below by the number of burritos you want to make.
Ingredients:	Mix and Match Per 8-inch Tortilla Burrito: generous 1/4 cup cooked rice or cooked Spanish rice 1/4 cup chopped cooked protein – cooked beef, chicken, pork, or tofu generous 1/8 cup grilled veggies generous 1/8 cup cooked beans (black and/or pinto beans work well) generous 1/8 cup grated cheese 1 tablespoon cooked salsa (see Related Recipes section below for recipes), optional 18-inch flour tortilla Mix and Match Per 10-inch Tortilla Burrito: 1/3 cup cooked rice or cooked Spanish rice 1/3 cup chopped cooked protein – cooked beef, chicken, pork, or tofu 1/3 cup grilled veggies 1/3 cup cooked beans (black and/or pinto beans work well) 1/3 cup grated cheese 1/8 cooked salsa (see Related Recipes section below for recipes), optional 1 10-inch flour tortilla
Instructions:	Gather your ingredients together. I sometimes take several days to prepare before actually making the burritos. Making beans (usually in my slow cooker) one day, salsas another day, grilling meat, tofu, and veggies another. When I have all the pieces, I make a big burrito assembly line. To make individual burritos for the freezer, center a tortilla on a piece of freezer paper, wax paper, or parchment paper. Leaving about an inch margin at the bottom, layer ingredients in a single line down the center of the tortilla as in the photo below. fold up the bottom of the tortilla, fold one side over, and roll up as tightly as possible. fold the paper over the burritos, tucking in both sides, the tightly rolling the burritos in the paper as in the photos below. Pack paper wrapped burritos in a zipper top plastic freezer bag. When ready to eat, remove burritos from the paper and put on a microwave safe plate. Unwrap and microwave on high for about 2 minutes. Carefully turn the burritos over – careful, it will be hot! Microwave another minute. Remove from oven and enjoy. Add additional salsa and/or hot sauce as desired. All microwaves are different, so you may need to adjust cooking times for your oven. Check often during cooking and make notes of just how long it takes your oven to perfectly cook the burritos. Freezer Friendly Burrito Making Tips Once you assemble together all the ingredients, it’s just as easy to make lots of these at once as it is to make just a few. I’ve been known to make as many as 60 at a time and pass out extras that I couldn’t fit in my freezer to appreciative friends and family members (everybody loves a quick meal or snack they can pull out of their freezer). Don't be afraid to mix and match the above ingredients in any combinations that suit you – if you eliminate one, add more of another. The only ingredient I don’t recommend cutting is the rice – unless you plan on eating the burritos right away instead of freezing. If you do plan on freezing, I find that rice will soak up any excess moisture, keeping the burritos from becoming too wet upon reheating. Otherwise, if you don’t like beans, leave them out. Don’t have any cooked meat on hand? Make a rice, bean, and cheese burrito, etc. Grilled veggies like onions, peppers, mushrooms, zucchini, etc. are always a tasty and healthy addition. Just about anytime I have a fire in the grill going, I grill up a bunch of veggies for this purpose. Just brush with oil and grill. The addition of grilled tofu is great for vegetarian burritos -- just brush with oil and lay firm tofu on the grill, just as you would meat. Label and date the bags that hold the burritos in your freezer. Try to use within 3 months. Trust me, that won't be a problem. Why cooked salsa? Because raw veggies that are frozen emit too much water which will make your burritos soggy.

Holly Clegg's Italian Pizza Rolls:

Servings:	20
Author Notes:	These tasty meat sensations quickly disappeared as I pulled them from the oven. My kids and the adults were both grabbing for seconds.
Ingredients:	1/3 cup finely chopped carrots 1/3 cup finely chopped onion 1/3 cup finely chopped green bell pepper 1 teaspoon minced garlic 1/2 pound ground sirloin 1/2 cup tomato sauce 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano 1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves 1/2 cup shredded part skim mozzarella cheese 9 egg roll wrappers
Instructions:	Makes 18 to 20 Half Rolls In a non-stick skillet coated with nonstick cooking spray, sauté the carrots, onion, green pepper, and garlic for 5 to 7 minutes over medium heat until tender. Add the sirloin, cooking until browned. Remove from heat and stir in tomato sauce, oregano, basil, and mozzarella cheese. Place about 2 tablespoons in the middle of each egg roll wrapper. Fold the lower bottom third up, Fold the 2 sides toward the center, and then roll up. To Prepare and Eat Now: Preheat oven to 425°F. Place pizza rolls on a nonstick baking sheet coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 9 minutes, turn the rolls over and continue baking for another 4 to 6 minutes or until crispy and browned. Cut each roll in half and serve. To Freeze: Do not Bake prepared rolls and freeze on baking sheet, then transfer to freezer zip top bags, label, and freeze. To Prepare After Freezing: Preheat oven to 425°F. Remove rolls directly from the freezer and place on a nonstick baking sheet coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, turn the rolls over and continue baking for another 5 to 6 minutes or until crispy and browned. Cut each roll in half and serve. Diabetic Exchanges: 1 very lean meat, 0.5 starch.