Defrost, Sauces and Mac

I spend all day yesterday, defrosting my old, tired...but just won't die deep freeze. Now don't get me wrong, I don't like to see any appliance bite the dust, but this is one I will be glad to bid farewell too.. When we had to buy this one 15 yrs ago, it was an emergency, since the one I had ( it was only 5 yrs old) just up and died one night unexpectantly, and it was full of all our summer labor. Isn't it funny how....that is the way it always happens. Well as I said it was an emergency to get another right then. I live in a very small town and at the time we only had a small Sears store that carried freezers in stock...lord knows we didn't have time to order one...my food was slowly defrosting. So we took what we could find and promised to buy frost free next time.

Now my hubby is a frugal man, you don't threw away a perfectly good item and replace it just because there might be something about it you don't like...hump..he don't have to defrost this sucker, Now I pray every night that it will give up the ghost and depart this world, but it just hangs in there...(where are the shotty made appliances when you need one). I think it survives just to torture me....lol..

Now that it is all clean and ready to be refilled. I will spend today and tomorrow making my spaghetti sauces and Mac n cheese. I usually take one day a month and make freezer meals for the days I am to busy to cook. DH favorite is the home made sauces that I use our home grown tomatoes in. In the summer I use them fresh out of the garden, but in the winter I used the ones I freeze for just this purpose. I plan on making a big pot of home made veg. soup next week and half of it will be put in freezer containers and frozen for a later day. I purchased a vacumm sealer several years ago and if you don't own one it is well worth the money. The saving in food the first 3 months along will pay for it.

Here are my recipes for the sauces I make . If anyone wants to use them.

Spagetti Sauce.....

Ingredients
2 onions, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1/4 cup vegetable oil
8 cups chopped tomatoes (with no skins)
1 tablespoon oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 tablespoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
Directions
1Combine onion, garlic, green pepper and vegetable oil in pan. Cook until onion is transparent.
2In large pot add the chopped tomatoes, oregano, basil, parsley, sugar, salt, pepper and tomato paste. Cook for 2-3 hours on low heat stirring frequently.
3Let sauce cool. Pour sauce into quart size containers or freezer bags. Store in freezer.
4Note: You may add hamburger, mushrooms etc. when preparing the sauce to eat.

Mac' N cheese

8 oz dried macaroni noodles

5 tbsp butter

6 tbsp white flour

3 cups milk

1 small green or red pepper, sliced (or half of each color) (optional)

1-1/2 cups cheddar cheese

2 cups fresh breadcrumbs

salt (optional)

pepper (optional)
Cook macaroni noodles according to instructions until al dente. Drain. Melt a small amount of butter and mix with noodles, to prevent them from sticking together. Cover and set aside.
Melt 5 tbsp butter, add flour and stir over medium heat for about thirty seconds, being careful not to brown. Add milk and whisk until mixture thickens. Add salt and pepper, reduce heat and simmer. Heat pepper on stovetop in a separate pan, or microwave for about a minute. Add to milk mixture, then add cheese, stirring until melted.
Toss mixture with macaroni noodles, and place in a 3 pint casserole dish or disposable foil casserole dish. Top with breadcrumbs. Can split into two for smaller families. Allow to cool, cover and freeze.
Instructions from Freezer:Allow to thaw at room temperature for one hour, or all day in the refrigerator. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and bake for 45 minutes. If you split into two, baking time may be reduced.

I usually make 2 batches of this, in one I put peppers for hubby and 1 without peppers for my Grands, they're not crazy about bell bepper.

I also am going to try a new recipe I found on http://www.momsbudget.com/freezerrecipes/

This is a neat site for other Mom's who, like me, love to plan ahead....

Beef & Broccoli Freezer Recipe
1 lb beef strips (can use inexpensive steak cuts)

1 red pepper, chopped

1 large onion, chopped

4 cups broccoli florets

1 can cream of broccoli soup

1/2 cup water

1 tsp dried basil

1/2 c cheddar cheese

Cooking oil
Heat a small amount of cooking oil in skillet and saute pepper, onion and broccoli about five minutes or until tender. Remove veggies from skillet. With another small amount of cooking oil, stir fry beef until cooked through, about 6-8 minutes, depending on the thickness of strips. Add soup, water and basil, mixing well. Add vegetables, bring to boil. Reduce heat and cook over low for ten minutes. Add cheese, stirring until melted. Allow to cool then transfer to freezer containers.
To serve: Defrost then reheat over low heat in skillet.

I hope these will help someone and that you enjoy them. I got to get busy...never any rest for the weary...who ever said retirement was boring didn't live at my house...lol..bye now.