Page 4 Portland Observer, March 21,1984
Make ahead freezer meals
by M ontne Stebbins
O S U Extension Service
“ I feel virtuousl” said my frient
who had just told me about spend
¡ng p a rt o f her Sunday m a kin g
some meatballs to put in the freezer.
It is a good feeling to get ahead o f
the feeding o f the fam ily sometimes.
D o -ah ead meals take some o f the
pressure o ff. I t ’ s kind o f like money
in the b a n k . Y o u m ay not even
know what you'll need it for but it's
c o m fo rtin g to know it's th ere if
something comes up.
I'v e worked outside the home for
so many years that I ’m more used to
cooking big items on weekends and
evenings than during the day. Even
though I w ork h alf-tim e instead of
fu ll-tim e now , it's a hard h ab it to
break. It just seems right to do a big
pot of stew or soup on a Saturday or
Sunday.
D o -a h e a d meals are especially
helpful when I know I ’ m going to be
in a h u rry . In fa c t, as soon as my
kids were old enough to come home
by themselves a fte r scho o l, they
learned to fo llo w the directions to
finish up the meal. There are many
casseroles th at are fin e fix e d the
night before, refrigerated and then
baked fo r supper. T h e re are even
several that need to set overnight to
have flavors blend or the moisture
ab sorbed. S tra ta , a s o u ffle -lik e
casserole th a t can have a w ide
variety o f meats and vegetables, is
best if it stands o v e rn ig h t in the
refrigerator so the egg and m ilk m ix
ture penetrates the bread.
The other time I just love having
meals that are done ahead is when I
have an ex tre m ely busy or tirin g
day. It is so nice to come home, put
som ething in the oven, sit d o w n ,
prop my feet up and read the paper.
I t ’s like having ’ ’ maid service” or a
resident cook. Even a h a lf hour o f
resting can reju ven ate me. I t is
sometim es d isco ncertin g fo r the
other fa m ily m em bers, th o u g h .
They may w orry that you've given
up cooking and that they’ re going to
starve or have to cook fo r th e m
selves. N ot such a bad idea— makes
them appreciate you more.
It's also nice to have some o f the
mess out o f the way when y o u ’ re
having a party or luncheon. It gives
you a feeling o f control and time to
spend with your guests.
I f do-ahead meals are so great,
how can you get ahead w ith o u t
working yourself to death7 You can
do w hat my frie n d d id w ith her
m e atb alls. She ju s t m ade a big
batch, served some fo r d in n er and
put the rest in the freezer. You can do
this with or without sauce. Then you
can vary how you use them.
Every tim e you make a casserole
for a meal, you can split it into two
containers. Most casseroles make a
large am ount anyw ay. Then freeze
one and bake one. Some people line
their casserole dish with fo il, so they
d on ’ t have to do w ithout that con
tain er a ll the tim e the casserole is
frozen.
T h is p rin c ip le applies to o th e r
things besides casseroles, too. That
b ran m u ffin m ix was p o p u la r
because you could mix up a batch
and easily have some fresh baked
muffins any time you wanted them.
I do marinated vegetables the same
w ay. A big b atch o f m ushroom s,
carrots or mixed vegetables w ill be
re ad ily a v a ila b le fo r tw o or three
weeks i f they a r e n 't eaten b efo re
then.
Fresh vegetables can be fixed
when you have tim e availab le and
then stored for a day or two. Carrot
or celery sticks, spinach or leaf let
tuce can a ll be prepared ah ead . I
even like to wash spinach and sort it
into the tender young leaves which I
use for salads and the larger leaves
which I cook for a vegetable.
H e re are tw o recipes th a t are
d e lig h tfu l to do ah ead . O n e is a
casserole, sim ilar to a strata w ith a
Mexican flavor. The other is a very
light yeast biscuit that makes a large
batch. The dough can be frozen and
baked when you w an t to ad d a
special touch to a meal.
V IV A L A C H IC K E N
I to 2 cups cut up, cooked chicken
or turkey. A
ounce can o f chi-
ken can be used.
4 cups medium white sauce with some
chicken broth an d /o r mushrooms
to flavor it. O R I can, 10 ounces
each, cream o f chicken and cream
of mushroom soup.
I can chopped green chibes, 4 ounces
18 com tortillas
Vi cup cheese, grated
C o m b ine m e at, w hite sauce ot
soup and green chibes. Tear tortillas
into bite size chunks and add to m ix
ture. M ix lightly. Let sit covered in
the re frig e ra to r o v ern ig h t. Bake
covered at 3 5 0 * fo r I h ou r. A dd
cheese fo r last 10 m inutes. Serve
with taco sauce or salsa.
F E A N ’S A N G E L B IS C U IT S
5 cups flour
V* cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
I teaspoon soda
I teaspoon salt
1 cup shortening
2 packages dry yeast
M cup warm water
2 cups buttermilk
melted butter or margarine
S ift dry ingredients. C u t in shor
tening. Dissolve yeast in warm water
and add w ith b u tte rm ilk to d ry
ingredients. Roll out Vi inch thick,
cut with round biscuit cutter. Dip in
melted butler or margarine, fold In
h alf. Bake on cookie sheet at 40 0*
fo r about IS m inutes o r u n til
golden. Bake only what you can use
fo r the m eal. F o rm the rest very
close together on a co o kie sheet,
freeze and then p u t in a freezer
quality bag. W hen you want them,
rem ove fro m the bag, p u t on a
cookie sheet, let thaw, rise and then
bake. Thaw in g and rising may be
hurried by putting the cookie sheet
into an oven that has been warmed
to 200* and then turned o ff. It takes
ab o ut IS m in utes. T h e n rem ove,
preheat the oven and bake.
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