Thai Pineapple Chicken Curry

Curry. Yum. Pineapple curry is my favorite thing to get at a Thai restaurant (as in, it's the only thing I get and I never branch out to try new things). I finally got brave and decided I wanted to try making some curry dishes at home. After a couple curry failures I decided I should give my old favorite a try. So I Googled and came across this recipe at Allrecipes.com. I read through the comments to see what variations others had tried and decided I wanted to make a few minor changes, so here is the original recipe, with comments as to my changes and suggestions. This recipe isn't exactly like the pineapple curry I get at Thai places - the sauce is a little thicker, and it tastes slightly different, but it's GOOD!

Reader Photo from Allrecipes.com.

Thai Pineapple Chicken Curry

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups uncooked jasmine rice (make this on serving day, and if there will only be two of you eating - half this - 2 cups is wayyy too much!)
• 1 quart water
• 1/4 cup red curry paste (I got this at an ethnic grocery store - they have so many cool ingredients, usually more authentic than the grocery store, and their prices are often better, especially for spices - I also only used 2 TBS of curry paste. I like spice, but not in this dish because it overwhelms the sweet flavor of the pineapple)
• 2 cans (13.5 oz) coconut milk
• 2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cut into strips
• 3 TBS fish sauce (at another reader's suggestion I only used 1 TBS)
• 1/4 cup white sugar
  
• 1 1/2 cups sliced bamboo shoots, drained (these come canned, if you're not familiar with them)
• 1/2 red bell pepper, julienned
  
• 1/2 green bell pepper, julienned
  
• 1/2 small onion, chopped
• 1 cup pineapple chunks, drained (I used almost twice this, I love pineapple! Also, you can reserve the pineapple juice and use it to sweeten instead of the sugar)

DIRECTIONS

1. [Only do this step now if you're making this and eating it on the same day, otherwise, wait to make the rice on serving day]. Bring rice and water to a boil in a pot. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 25 minutes.
   
2. In a bowl, whisk together curry paste and 1 can coconut milk*. Transfer to a wok (you definitely don't actually need a wok), and mix in remaining coconut milk, chicken, fish sauce, sugar and bamboo shoots. Bring to a boil, and cook 15 minutes, until chicken juices run clear.
3. Mix the red pepper, green pepper, and onion in the wok. Continue cooking 10 minutes, until chicken is cooked and peppers are tender. Remove from heat, and stir in pineapple. Serve over cooked rice.

TO FREEZE

Cool and divide into labeled freezer bags. On serving day, thaw and reheat on stove until gently simmering and heated through (or you can microwave it!). Serve over jasmine rice. One thing that I didn't do, but might do next time, is to wait to add the pineapple until I'm heating it up on serving day, I think it might hold up better that way.

* At the suggestion of another reader, I instead sauteed the curry paste in the pan in a little bit of canola oil for a minute or so, then added the chicken and sauteed for a few more minutes. After that I proceeded as the recipe directs.

Next time I make this recipe I think I will thin the coconut milk a tiny bit with chicken broth. I'm used to the sauce being a bit thinner. Also now that I know this recipe is a good starting place, I'll play around with things like adding more curry paste or fish sauce to see how it turns out!

Find this recipe for Thai Pineapple Chicken Curry at Allrecipes.com. Also, check out the comments for more ideas and adaptations!

Spinach Lasagna Roll Ups

I saw this recipe on Pinterest and went straight to the store after work to get the ingredients. I usually stay away from this type of recipe because something like rolling up noodles or stuffing shells is generally beyond the scope of my patience. These were kind of fun though! As for taste, they were really good but I would recommend being generous with the salt and pepper. I tasted the filling before I made the rolls and thought it was good, but once they were done they could have used a little more flavor. Also, I used store bought marinara sauce, but I may have to try out the recipe for homemade sauce on the blog where this recipe was originally posted, here.

You could also add some ground beef to the filling to make them a bit heartier. Just brown the beef and add it to the filling mixture. Serving with garlic bread would be tasty, plus you'll have the oven heated up already!

Photo from budgetbytes.blogspot.com.

Spinach Lasagna Roll Ups

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb lasagna noodles
• 15 oz ricotta
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/4 cup grated parmesan
• 1 lg egg
• 10 oz frozen spinach, thawed and drained
  
• 2.5 cups (1 regular size jar) marinara sauce
• salt and pepper to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Boil lasagna noodles for about 12 to 15 minutes, until al dente. While noodles are cooking, mix cheeses, egg, and spinach in a bowl. Once noodles are ready, drain them and allow them to cool (I ran them under some cold water to speed up the process). Spread a few tablespoons of cheese and spinach mixture onto each noodle, all the way to the edges, and roll up. Place rolled noodles in a greased baking dish. Continue making rolls until the cheese mixture is gone. There will probably be some extra noodles (I got about 12 rolls, and had about 6 noodles left - it's good to have extra in case some tear!). Cover with marinara sauce over all exposed surfaces so the noodles stay soft when baking. Cover with foil and baked at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.

TO FREEZE

Allow rolls to cool and carefully wrap in plastic in serving size portions (we eat 3 each, so I wrap them in sets of 3) then place in labeled gallon size bag. Freeze, being careful that they are not crushed, at least until they are fully frozen - although they'll still taste just as good if they're a little misshapen. On serving day allow to cool and bake at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until warmed through. Garnish with grated cheese, if desired, and serve.


The website (Budget Bytes) where I found this recipe is pretty cool, and definitely worth checking out!

Twice Baked Potatoes

I LOVE twice baked potatoes. I think I have my mom to thank for that (thanks!!). This is a great recipe because you can make it as simple or as complicated as you like. You can do basic with just a little cheese, butter, and sour cream, or you can add all kinds of fancy stuff like bacon (yumm...), green onions, whatever you like! As much as I love bacon, it's such a pain to cook, so I've been keeping it pretty simple. I keep meaning to cook a whole bunch of bacon, crumble it, and stick it in the fridge to add to things, but I have never gotten around to it - probably keeping us a little healthier though! Also, I've read that green onions don't freeze well, so if you're thinking of doing that you probably just want to use them to garnish.

Photo from sweetandsaucy.wordpress.com.

Twice Baked Potatoes

INGREDIENTS

• baking potatoes
• milk
• butter
• sour cream
• cheddar cheese (prep day and serving day for garnish)
  
• bacon (optional)
  

*The reason I don't give specifics is because it really is just to taste gradually add a little milk, a few TBS of butter, a handful of cheddar cheese, and a scoop or two of sour cream until it tastes good! I like them best when they are the consistency of lumpy mashed potatoes.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Wash and dry potatoes, and bake at 350 degrees for about and hour.
   
2. If you're using bacon, use this time to cook and crumble it.
   
3. Once potatoes are done, remove from oven and let them cool until they are cool enough to touch. (It's easier to scoop the insides out when they are hotter, so I hold them in a dish towel so I can get started sooner [plus, I'm impatient and don't want to wait!].) If your potatoes are large, cut them in half, lengthwise. If they are smaller cut off just the top 1/4 of the potato. If you're using larger potatoes and cut them in half you'll get twice as many potatoes.
   
4. Scoop out the inside of the potato into large mixing bowl, being careful not to tear the skin.
   
5. Using a potato masher, stand mixer, hand mixer, whatever you have, mix the potato with other ingredients until it tastes good (I'm a big fan of taste testing so much while cooking that I'm not hungry when the meal's ready!).
   
6. Spoon the mixture back into the skins.
   
7. To eat immediately bake, loosely covered with foil, for another 15 minutes, and serve garnish with remaining toppings such as sour cream, bacon, green onions, etc.

TO FREEZE

Individually wrap potatoes in plastic wrap and place in labeled gallon size bag to freeze. To serve, thaw potatoes and bake, loosely covered with foil, at 350 degrees for about an hour (how long they take to reheat will depend on how large your potatoes are). If you want to melt cheese on top, sprinkle it on in the last few minutes of cooking.

Ridiculously Easy Fudge

First, I know, another non-freezer meal recipe. I'm sorry! But not sharing a fudge recipe this easy would have been rude of me! Don't fear - I have freezer twice baked potatoes coming when I get home from work!

Now, what inspired me to make fudge at 10:15 in the morning when I should have been getting ready for work? I have no idea, apparently something on HGTV, since that's what I was doing when inspiration struck. So I Googled and found an easy, 3-ingredient fudge that I could easily complete (AND post) and still do my hair before work. Not gonna lie, it's not the BEST fudge in the world, I mean BYU Bookstore fudge would definitely beat it, but any recipe that requires a candy thermometer is probably not happening in my kitchen (especially on a Tuesday morning).

Photo from Allrecpies.com

No-Fail Fudge

INGREDIENTS

• 3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1/4 cut butter (cut it into little chunks so it will melt better)
  
• 1 cup chopped walnuts (optional, or anything else that might be good on it - mini marshmallows, coconut, butterscotch chips...)

INSTRUCTIONS

Place chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, and butter in a large microwave bowl. Zap ingredients in microwave on medium until chips are melted, about 3 to 5 minutes, stirring once or twice during cooking. Stir in nuts or other toppings, if desired. (You could also use a double boiler - aka a bowl over a pot of water on the stove - if you're ambitious. The fudge would probably be smoother). Pour into well-greased 8x8 baking dish (I just lined a pan with wax paper). You can also add toppings now, on top, if you don't want to mix them in! Refrigerate until set. Eat up!

This recipe is from Allrecipes.com.

Salad in a Jar

I wish I could say this was an original idea, but I must admit, I would have never thought of this one! This is not a freezer meal but is genius and totally works. Who would have guessed that you can vacuum seal washed, cut lettuce in a mason jar to keep it fresh longer? I came across it on Pinterest and actually asked for a FoodSaver Vacuum Seal System* for my birthday to try it out. Ryan and I love to eat salads, but I hate buying bagged lettuce because it's expensive and I think it smells funny, and when I want to eat a salad as a quick lunch or snack I don't want to deal with tearing up lettuce from a head, washing it, drying it... This allows me to buy in bulk (I buy romaine heads), do all the prep at once, and then actually vacuum seal it in a jar, which will last in the fridge for at least 10 days (or more, depending how fresh your lettuce was when you started).


Paula over at Salad in a Jar gives all the details, so I'll let you head over there and check it out. It does require some sort of vacuum seal machine, but it doesn't have to be a FoodSaver (although I don't know if another company offers an attachment to seal mason jars). Also, here are a few of my favorite easy to make salads! It's not like these are terribly original, but they're good! And you could easy add some grilled chicken to any of them to beef them up a little.

Asian Mandarin Orange Salad

• Kraft Asian Toasted Sesame dressing
• Mandarin oranges (I always end up using the whole can)
• Toasted, sliced almonds
• Chow Mein Noodles

Greek Salad

• Greek salad dressing
• Kalamata olives
• Feta cheese
• Cucumber

Poppyseed Peach Salad

• Brianna's Poppyseed dressing
  
• 1 sliced peach (this is best to do when peaches are in season)
• Toasted sliced almonds

Zupa's Fruit Lover's Salad

• Raspberry Vinaigrette dressing
  
• Diced green apple
• Grapes, halved
• Blueberries
• Mandarin oranges
  
• Cinnamon sugar almonds
• Gorgonzola cheese

* If you're wondering about FoodSavers, I have this one. I bought it new on eBay for about half the retail price, and I would recommend doing that or looking for one on Craigslist. This is the type of thing someone would buy and then never use, so you can probably find a good deal! As for the jar sealer attachment, I turned to my favorite website, Amazon.

BBQ-Coke Crock Pot Chicken

YUM. I made BBQ chicken in a crock pot a few times before this, using other recipes, and this one wins by a landslide. It's super easy, only has 3 ingredients, and tastes amazing. It would be great with some nice hearty rolls for a pulled BBQ chicken sandwich, but we've eaten it plain with corn bread and a veggie. Whatever you choose to do with it, it's good. Also, I've always shredded it, but I'm sure you could do some other fun stuff.

Photo from http://suretalent-books.com.

BBQ-Coke Crock Pot Chicken

INGREDIENTS

• 1 bottle barbeque sauce (any kind, I used Kraft Bulls-Eye Original - $.50 with a coupon. Yay!)
• 1 can regular Coca-Cola (you could try with another soda - we always have Coke in our house though. Somebody has a soda problem... and it's not Ryan)
  
• Boneless skinless chicken breast, fresh or frozen (I use about 1.5 lbs, but I have a smaller slow cooker)
  

INSTRUCTIONS

Place fresh or frozen chicken breasts in a crock pot. Pour barbeque sauce and coke over chicken and stir a bit. Cook on high 5-6 hours or low 8 hours. Remove chicken from crock pot and shred with two forks.

TO FREEZE

Divide shredded chicken into labeled freezer bags (I do about 2 cups per bag). You can add a little of the remaining sauce in the crock pot to the chicken, or freeze it separately to thaw and serve with the chicken on serving day, but you don't really need to. On serving day thaw and reheat in the microwave and serve!

Tortellini Vegetable Soup

This recipe comes from FamilyFun.com. If you want to print it neatly go to the link at the bottom of the post. The website won't have freezing instructions though, I added those.

This is another one that I've only made once and is still in the freezer, so the only time it's been taste tested was when I was making it. I approve. I would suggest being ready to add more salt and pepper though. I also found it to be quite brothy, and I tend to like soups with more stuff and less broth, so next time I will probably cut the chicken broth by a little. It's got tortellini in it though, so it can't really fail!

Photo from FamilyFun.com.

Tortellini Vegetable Soup

INGREDIENTS

• 2 TBS olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 small zucchini, diced
• 1 medium carrot, peeled and diced
• 5 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 1 tsp dried basil (more if fresh)
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 cup canned crushed tomatoes (I added a little more)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 8 to 9 ounces fresh or frozen tortellini (cheese or meat filled - I used cheese)
• 2 to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley (serving day)
  
• Black pepper, to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Heat the olive oil in a medium soup pot or large saucepan. Add the onion, zucchini, and carrot. Saute over moderate heat for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring often, until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the stock, basil, bay leaf, tomatoes, and salt to the pot. Increase the heat and bring the mixture to a low boil. Add the tortellini and bring the soup back to a low boil. Cook it for 2 minutes, then reduce the heat and let it simmer for 5 to 6 minutes longer.

TO FREEZE

Cool soup, divide into labeled freezer bags, and freeze. On serving day thaw and reheat on stove, until tortellini are heated through. Add fresh parsely and pepper during the last minute or so.

Printable version of Tortellini Vegetable Soup on FamilyFun.com.