Category: Freezable

Turmeric Chicken and Chickpea Soup

As the weather turns cooler, it seems like everyone around me is fighting a cold. My husband is currently feeling a bit under the weather, so I wanted to make him a nice comforting soup. Cooking Light had this recipe for Turmeric Chicken and Chickpea Soup in their November magazine and their timing is impeccable!

This soup is packed with antioxidant-rich ingredients including turmeric, ginger, and garlic. It also substitutes in chickpeas for noodles for added texture and fiber.

The chicken broth in the recipe is further enhanced with the addition of coconut milk at the end.

Even better, this soup comes together really quickly, and has a bunch of ingredients that you may already have on hand in your fridge and pantry.

Ingredients: (serves 6)

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  • 1 teaspoon salt, divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided
  • 1 large red bell pepper, seed and membranes removed, chopped
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
  • 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 4 cups unsalted chicken stock
  • 1 (15 oz) can unsalted chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  • 1 cup canned light coconut milk
  • 1/2 cup torn fresh basil
  • the juice of one 1 lime

Continue reading Turmeric Chicken and Chickpea Soup

Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

You’ve probably noticed that I’m a huge fan of slow cooker recipes; I have almost 50 slow cooker recipes on this blog! Slow cooker meals work great for make ahead meals, feeding a crowd, and getting that “cooked-all-day” flavor.

I was sent Phyllis Good’s latest cookbook Stock the Crock, which is right up my alley. The cookbook has 100 delicious, tried-and-true recipes, plus 200 easy to follow variations for any dietary preference, such as gluten-free, paleo, vegan, etc.

There are a ton of awesome sounding recipes, but a recipe for Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala caught my attention. Gotta love a make-at-home takeout favorite!

This recipe for Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala is incredibly simple but really delivers on flavor.

Ingredients:

  • 1 (15 oz) can tomato puree
  • 1/2 cup coconut milk
  • 2 small onions, chopped, divided
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 2 teaspoons garam masala
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • pinch sugar
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
  • 2 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs
  • 2 cups cooked rice
  • 1/4 cup red onions, minced
  • 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon fresh mint, chopped

Continue reading Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

Slow Cooker Parmesan Herb Pork Loin with Chunky Tomato Sauce

It’s a bit rare for me to share a recipe like this Slow Cooker Parmesan Herb Prok Loin because, for whatever reason, I tend to shy away from making pork or ham.

So when my friend and I were having our cooking marathon, I figured it was a good time to add one in for some variety.

We found this Southern Living recipe for Slow Cooker Parmesan Herb Pork Loin with Chunky Tomato Sauce on myrecipes.com. I couldn’t resist a freezer friendly slow cooker meal, especially when it’s served over pasta!

(Please excuse the quality of these photos. This recipe was too good not to share, even with crummy photos!)

Ingredients:

  • 3 small onions (~2 1/2 cups chopped yellow onion)
  • 1 large carrot (~1 cup chopped carrots)
  • 1 large fennel bulb (~1 3/4 cups chopped fresh fennel bulb)
  • 6 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 cup red wine
  • 1 (28 oz) can whole tomatoes
  • 1 (14.5 oz) can crushed tomatoes
  • 1/4 cup chicken broth
  • 3 1/3 teaspoons salt, divided
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper, divided
  • 1/4 cup parmesan cheese
  • 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
  • 2 (1.5 lb) boneless pork loin roast
  • 1 (16 oz) box spaghetti, cooked according to package directions

Continue reading Slow Cooker Parmesan Herb Pork Loin with Chunky Tomato Sauce

Frozen Cinnamon Peach Oatmeal Cups

Note: I was sent a box of various Bob’s Red Mill products to make the below recipe. Opinions are mine alone.

I’m still rolling through the freezer-friendly recipes my friend and I made a couple of weeks ago. This recipe for Cinnamon Peach Oatmeal Cups was specifically for her oldest son, who absolutely loves oatmeal, particularly when topped with cinnamon and fresh peaches.

 

This freezable version of Cinnamon Peach Oatmeal Cups substitutes in frozen peaches, but the tradeoff for convenience should make it worth it.

These make a tasty breakfast readily available any day of the week, and can be customized to fit specific tastes.

We made these using Bob’s Red Mill Organic Regular Rolled Oats, which Bob’s Red Mill was kind enough to send my way.

Ingredients:

  • 4 cups water
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups Bob’s Red Mill Organic Regular Rolled Oats
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, plus more, to taste
  • 6-12 frozen sliced peaches (depending on muffin/cupcake tins used)

Continue reading Frozen Cinnamon Peach Oatmeal Cups

Lemony Red Lentil Soup

Note: I was sent a box of various Bob’s Red Mill products to make the below recipe. Opinions are mine alone. 

Lentils are one of those foods that I wish I had experimented with earlier in my cooking. They are easy to cook, really tasty, and packed with nutritional goodness. Just one serving (1/4 cup) of red lentils has 14g of fiber and 13g of protein. Red lentils in particular are great for soups and stews because they cook really quickly and break down when heated, making for a nice thickened base.

This Lemony Red Lentil Soup is adapted from a New York Times Cooking recipe. I mostly kept to the original recipe, but increased the spice and lemon and added in another carrot.

The half chunky half smooth soup is super comforting and makes for a really satisfying lunch or dinner.

My friend and I made this during our cooking day and froze it for future meals.

Ingredients:

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, more to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  •  1/4 teaspoon ground chile powder, plus more for garnish
  • 1 quart chicken broth (or vegetable broth to make vegetarian)
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 cup Bob’s Red Mill Red Lentils
  • 2 large carrots, peeled and diced
  •  The juice and zest of 2 lemons
  • 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnish

Continue reading Lemony Red Lentil Soup

Coconut Matcha Muffins

Note: I was sent a package of Matcha Green Tea from Tenzo Tea in order to write this post. Opinions are mine alone.

I’ve been on a bit of a muffin kick recently. I’m trying to make sure we have as many “quick meals” as possible on hand during the busy fall season!

 

I was recently contacted by Tenzo Tea, a matcha green tea company that is based in Los Angeles. They were kind enough to send me some Tenzo Matcha to try in a recipe.

 

Matcha is finely powdered green tea leaves. To make into a tea, you just add a teaspoon of matcha powder to hot water and whisk until frothy. Because you ingest the whole tea leaves (rather than just steeping leaves in normal tea), there are a bunch of health benefits attributed to matcha.

I have never tried matcha before, but my sister is a huge fan, so I figured it was worth my time. Coconut matcha lattes seem to be quite a popular way to enjoy matcha, so I decided to turn that into a muffin I could enjoy during the week.

 

I based this recipe off of Smitten Kitchen’s Double Coconut Muffins, with a few tweaks.

 

Tenzo Tea was kind enough to provide a promo code for I Can Cook That readers. Use code cancook to receive 15% off a one-time purchase!

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup virgin coconut oil
  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons matcha powder
  • 1/2 cup shredded coconut
  • 1 cup coconut milk
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 large egg, at room temperature
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Continue reading Coconut Matcha Muffins

Pistachio Muffins

Note: I was sent a box of various Bob’s Red Mill products to make the below recipe. Opinions are mine alone.

I love pistachios. So when my friend and I were determining what freezer-friendly recipes to make for a cooking marathon last weekend, I immediately suggested we make pistachio muffins.

Luckily, my friend was willing to make a batch with me!

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Bob’s Red Mill sent us a goodie box of ingredients to help with our cooking day, which included their Unbleached White All-Purpose Flour.

We used a recipe I found on Food.com to make these muffins.

Ingredients (makes one dozen muffins):

  • 1 1/3 cups all purpose flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill unbleached white all-purpose flour)
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
  • the zest of 1 lemon
  • 1/2 cup finely chopped pistachios
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 2/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/2 cup whole milk
  • 1/2 cup pistachios, coarsely chopped

Continue reading Pistachio Muffins

Freezable Ratatouille

This Freezable Ratatouille is another recipe my friend and I made last weekend during our cooking marathon. This time of year is perfect for making a huge batch of ratatouille and freezing it!

Ratatouille is a produce-heavy dish, using eggplants, zucchini, onions, and peppers. My friend doesn’t really love eggplant, so I used fairy tale eggplants which are smaller, with thinner skins and are a bit sweeter than regular eggplants.

This Freezable Ratatouille also allows you to do a lot of the prep work ahead of time. The vegetables are cooked separately, so prep work does go into a bunch of bags, but it makes the cooking process much easier. We used a recipe from The Kitchn as our base.

Ingredients (makes 8 to 10 servings):

  • 2 medium yellow onions, chopped
  • 3 medium green bell peppers, chopped
  • 6 to 8 medium zucchini, cut into bit sized pieces
  • 4 large tomatoes, chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 fairy tale eggplants
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 4 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 1/4 cup basil, sliced into ribbons, plus more for garnish
  • salt and pepper, to taste

Continue reading Freezable Ratatouille

Chunky Beef and Vegetable Chili

Note: I was sent a box of various Bob’s Red Mill products to make the below recipe. Opinions are mine alone.

This past weekend, a friend and I got together to stock our freezers. The fall is a super busy time of year for most, so we wanted to have a variety of meals ready to make some nights (and mornings) easier. We settled on eleven (11!) recipes, organized a shopping list split between the two of us, and set up prep work (chopping veggies for the most part) for the night before. The next morning, we met at my place and got to cooking!

Chili is a go-to freezer recipe. Not only does it freeze well, but it works great on its own, with cornbread, over polenta, as a “dip” with corn chips, with eggs for breakfast, etc. This recipe originally began as a vegetarian chili, but we had more ground beef leftover, so in it went!

I am a firm believer that dried beans make for a tastier dish than canned beans. There is some prep work needed, but it is very much worth it. I used Bob’s Red Mill Red Kidney Beans and Cannellini Beans for this recipe.

source: bobsredmill.com

We made a LOT of this chili, somewhere around 20 servings, so I’ve scaled it down for this post to make it more appropriate. Feel free to double if needed.

Note: I will share and link all of our recipes below. It was quite a successful cooking day!

Ingredients (makes 8-10 servings):

  • 12 oz dried Bob’s Red Mill Red Kidney Beans (~1/2 bag)
  • 12 oz dried Bob’s Red Mill Cannellini Beans (1/2 bag)
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • 1 1/2 cups cubed peeled butternut squash (in bite sized pieces)
  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 large red bell peppers
  • 4tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
  • 3 cups chicken broth
  • 1 (28 oz) can no-salt-added tomatoes, undrained
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • cilantro, chopped, for garnish

Continue reading Chunky Beef and Vegetable Chili

Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

 Note: This post for Meatballs in Tomato Sauce is sponsored by Moyer Beef. All opinions are mine alone.

Sunday night in my house is pasta night, which almost always means pasta with a meaty tomato sauce. I tend to make Meatballs in Tomato Sauce in batches about once a month and freeze it for future Sundays.

It’s funny, I make this Meatballs in Tomato Sauce recipe all the time and yet

  1. I had no clue what measurements I was putting into my sauce, and
  2. never posted the recipe to my blog!

Continuing my partnership with Moyer Beef, I decided it was about darn time I actually figured out what exactly I make every month and to share it on here.

These meatballs are half ground beef and half hot Italian sausage. It adds a touch of heat to the overall sauce without being actually spicy.

Ingredients:

Meatballs:

  • 1 lb 80% lean ground beef (I used Moyer Beef’s 81% lean ground beef chuck)
  • 1 lb hot Italian sausage removed from its casing
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1/4 teaspoon fennel seed
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
  • 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
  • 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

Tomato Sauce:

  • 1 lb beef short ribs (1-2 pieces)
  • 1 lb 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1/2 white onion, finely chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 (28 oz) cans crushed tomatoes
  • 2 (28 oz) cans strained tomatoes (can substitute tomato puree)
  • 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
  • salt and pepper, to taste

Continue reading Meatballs in Tomato Sauce

Peanut Butter Ice Cream Sandwich Cake

  This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #SoHoppinGood #BlueBunny #CollectiveBias

Spring has finally sprung and this past weekend was absolutely beautiful. Warm weather has me dreaming about frozen treats, especially ice cream.

For more than 80 years, Blue Bunny® has been offering yummy ice cream made with fresh ingredients for families. Blue Bunny® Ice Cream just came out with their new 2017 lineup of ice cream flavors and treats, including two awesome Ice Cream Cakes: Bunny Tracks and Vanilla Bean Blondie. Bunny Tracks is made with the Blue Bunny® signature flavor: vanilla flavored ice cream with caramel and fudge swirls, chocolaty covered peanuts, and peanut butter filled chocolaty bunnies.

Their other new flavors include: Mint Cookie Crunch, Monster Cookie Mash, Toffee Brownie Twist™, and Rockin’ Rocky Road™. Also worth mentioning, Cherrific Cheesecake, which used to be seasonal is now officially available year-round!

One of my favorite ice cream treats are ice cream sandwiches. So what could be better than a cake sized ice cream sandwich like this Peanut Butter Ice Cream Sandwich Cake? I decided to make large peanut butter cookies to make the Blue Bunny® Bunny Track Ice Cream Cake into an Ice Cream Sandwich Cake.

I went to my local Walmart to pick up the ice cream cake and the ingredients I needed for the cookies. The ice cream cakes can be found in the same aisle as other ice cream.

Ingredients:

  • 1 Blue Bunny® Bunny Tracks Ice Cream Cake
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 stick butter, at room temperature
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup smooth peanut butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 1/2 cups flour

Continue reading Peanut Butter Ice Cream Sandwich Cake

Cape Malay Curry

My husband and I (obviously) love trying new and different recipes. Living in Philadelphia, we are lucky enough to have a pretty solid restaurant scene, covering quite a range of cuisines. So my interest is always peaked by a recipe I haven’t tried before that comes from a different part of the world and I can make at home, like this recipe for Cape Malay Curry.

Cape Malay Curry comes from Cape Town, South Africa. Beginning in the 17th century, slaves from Indonesia and Southeast Asia were brought to work the farms of Cape Town, South Africa. Known as Cape Malays, the name “Cape” is derived from the Cape of Good Hope and “Malay” refers to the community’s Indonesian, Malaysian and Singaporean ancestry.

The Cape Malay community has had a lot of influence on South African foods, particularly with the introduction of certain spices, hot sauces, and curries. This chunky beef stew is a sweet and savory curry dish, which reminds me a bit of my husband’s favorite meal, Slow Cooker Chicken and Chickpea Tagine, so I had a feeling we’d like this recipe.

This is definitely a weekend meal; it simmers on the stove for 2 hours. However, it could easily be multiplied to make a large batch and frozen for future meals.

 

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground turmeric
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons canola oil
  • 2 cups chopped onion
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 1 pound beef stew meat, cut into bite-sized pieces
  • 2 1/4 cups less-sodium beef broth
  • 1 cup chopped green bell pepper (about 1 medium)
  • 1/3 cup chopped dried apricots
  • 1/3 cup apricot spread
  • 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
  • 1/4 cup low-fat buttermilk (or coconut milk to make dairy-free)
  • 1 cup cooked rice

Continue reading Cape Malay Curry

Very Berry Pie

Note: I was sent a Glass 9″ Pie Plate, a Steel Pie Server, a Double Pastry Wheel, and a 1″ Pastry Brush from OXO. All opinions are alone.
This time of year get’s crazy busy doesn’t it?  I feel like December always flies by! Before you know it, the holidays are here. And prepping for them can be tough; it’s difficult to figure out what can be made ahead of time without sacrificing quality.
This Very Berry pie recipe is here to save the day! It can be prepared ahead of time and frozen.
I call this a Very Berry Pie, because it has 5 (!) different types of berries in it: Blueberries, Raspberries, Blackberries, Strawberries and Cranberries. It uses frozen berries to make prepping even easier.
 
When ready to bake, thaw in your fridge overnight and then bake. Simple right?
Making it even more simple is the use of an OXO Glass 9″ Pie Plate. All OXO Glass Bakeware is made of thermal shock resistant borosilicate glass, so you don’t need to bring it to room temperature before adding it to your oven! (The other glass baking dishes are perfect for pre-made sides for your holiday dinners as well!)
Source: OXO.com

 

OXO has many other tools that help make preparing for the holidays even easier. You’ll see quite a few of them pop up throughout this post.
Ingredients:
For the pie crust:
  • 1 1/3 cups cold butter
  • 4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
  • 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/2 to 3/4 cup ice-cold water
  • Note: You can also buy pre-made pie crusts. I won’t tell.
For the pie filling:
  • 2 (16 oz) bags frozen mixed berries (mine had blueberries, raspberries, blackberries and strawberries)
  • 1 (16 oz) bag frozen cranberries
  • 1 1/2 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling on top of the pie
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 egg white

Continue reading Very Berry Pie

Slow Cooker Short Rib Ragu

This Slow Cooker Short Rib Ragu is the ultimate comfort food and is perfect for busy fall weeknights!

It is definitely feeling like fall in Philadelphia now. The days are getting shorter, and there is a chill in the air. Which means my slow cooker is back in full force!

I absolutely love my slow cooker (paid link). It makes me so happy to come back to an awesome comfort food meal at the end of the day. This recipe for Slow Cooker Short Rib Ragu is basically a really thick meat sauce, made with shredded boneless short ribs. And. It’s fantastic.

This can be served over pasta, egg noodles, polenta, or even mashed potatoes (I went with pappardelle pasta for this round). The recipe makes quite a bit, so you can stock your freezer for nights you just don’t feel like cooking.

Ingredients:

  • 3 pounds boneless short ribs
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 3 large carrots, peeled and chopped
  • 2 celery stalks, chopped
  • 1 yellow onion, chopped
  • 5 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 3 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 (28 ounce) can whole tomatoes, undrained
  • 1 cup red wine
  • 3 cups beef broth
  • 1 tablespoon corn starch
  • 1 tablespoon dried parsley
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 1 tablespoon dried basil
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 bay leaf

Continue reading Slow Cooker Short Rib Ragu

Slow Cooker Braciole

My mom recently put in a request for braciole. And by put in a request, I mean she went to Esposito’s in the Italian Market, purchased braciole, and told me I was going to make it. So. Slow Cooker Braciole it is!

I was excited to try; I’ve never made braciole before. Braciole is a thinly pounded meat that is topped with a filling and then rolled up and secured either with string or toothpicks. The rolled meat is browned and then added to a tomato sauce to cook.

I have to let you know. Braciole is a labor of love. There is so much prep work! The version I am sharing below is a recipe from a family friend that my parents have been using for years. I decided to make it in my slow cooker so that I could leave and run some errands while it cooked. Because of the prep work involved though, this is definitely a weekend meal.

Ingredients:

For Braciole:

  • 3 eggs, hardboiled, diced
  • 2 russet potatoes, boiled and diced
  • 1 green bell pepper, finely diced
  • 1 onion, finely diced
  • 1 lb mushrooms, finely chopped
  • 1/3 cup chopped parsley
  • 1/4 cup grated Romano cheese
  • 1/4 cup Italian breadcrumbs
  • 8 pieces of braiole, or 2 lbs top round, cut into half inch thick slices
  • 8 slices prosciutto
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil

For Sauce:

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 small onion, finely diced
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1/3 cup dry red wine
  • 1 tablespoon dried parsley
  • 1 tablespoon dried basil
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 tablespoon onion powder
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 (26 oz) cans crushed tomatoes
  • 1 (26 oz) can strained tomatoes

Continue reading Slow Cooker Braciole

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