I know, I know....don't say it.

I won't say it if you don't.

We'll just pretend like I didn't avoid you for over a year.

Just pretend like it never happened.

Okay?

Okay.

Good.

*******

Maybe I can distract you with a cute baby picture.  Yes?  Yes.   Good idea.   Here, stare at this beauty:

Isn't she a cutie?

Miss E is our newest Circus clown.   I adore her.   And her sleeping habits.   10pm - 6am EVERY NIGHT, folks.   8 gorgeous hours of baby sleep.  In a row.

I love her.

*******

Anywho.

I'm trying to get some "normal" back into my life, so I'm dipping my toes back into the blogging pond for awhile.   We'll see how well it works.   (anyone know a good site for blogging via iPad?  Fighting for the computer just isn't really my style).

It's quiet here - the kids are sleeping, Mike got called into the hospital, the chores are *mostly* completed.   So.....here I sit.   I want to read the next chapter of Belgravia, but first....let's do a quick little blog post, 'mkay?

How about a quick rundown of my favourite veggie freezer meals?  It's a question I get asked a lot - what the heck do you make in those "stocking the freezer" weeks that you speak of?    Most people know what we hardly ever eat meat, and they also know that I use A LOT of crock pot and freezer meals, what with our crazy gymnastics schedule and all.  (soon to be TWENTY ONE hours of practice a week.   5 days.  FIVE DAYS.   So, fifteen hours of practice for two kiddos, with 6 hours of practice - at a different time, of course - for a third kiddo.   And 1 hr of driving a day.   So, really, 26 hours a week devoted to gymnastics.   Oy vey).  

It's pretty hard to find blog posts dedicated specifically to vegetarian freezer meals - I know, because I've looked - so most of these recipes were found on a trial-and-error kind of system.  We had a meal that was a crowd favourite, so I attempted to freeze it and it either worked (yay!) or it didn't.   Some of these double as crock pot meals, so I'll mention that in the descriptions, too.

Alright, here we go....the Circus' favourite vegetarian freezer meals....

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Roasted Veggie Burritos

These are so versatile.  I love them - I usually just use up whatever we have in the fridge that needs to be used up, and call it good. We've made a few modifications along the way, but nothing to elaborate.

 I double the veggie amount and use half the amount of rice.  This doesn't really matter when it comes to the freezability (yes, I just made up a word) of the recipe, but it's a preference of our family.  We like the veggies more and the rice less.  On that note, I also don't add salt to the rice.  It seems too salty for our taste buds with salt in the veggies AND the rice.   To make up for that, I double the other spices with the veggies (cumin and oregano).   I leave out the cheese - we avoid dairy - and use fajita sized tortillas instead of the ginormous ones.  (fajita size is just right for my littlest clowns, and the older ones can just eat two if they're still hungry).  I roast the veggies, cook the rice in my rice cooker, mix it all up together (it's just easier than measuring stuff out), wrap it up in the tortilla, and crisp it on my griddle.   Once crisped, let it cool all of the way, wrap it tightly in saran wrap, then throw a  bunch of them into a large freezer ziploc bag.   We also use these as quick and easy lunches  - you can pull out as many or as few as you need.     Just zap them in the microwave, and you're good to go (the kids and I also crisp them up again on the griddle if we have time - they're yummier that way).   Super easy to just make double one night and freeze the leftovers.....which is my favourite "stock the freezer" maneuver.

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Red Lentil Curry with Kale

This was a total comfort food for me during pregnancy.   The lentils and kale are super high in iron, and cooking them with the tomatoes helps to really draw that out.    For me, someone who eats primarily vegetarian (especially when pregnant), that's a huge plus.   We must have eaten this one at least once a week during my last pregnancy, especially since it's a great "winter night" kind of meal.

I actually make this one entirely in the crockpot - no sauteeing or anything.  I just chop it up, and throw everything except the kale into the crockpot.  Right before I leave the house (or during naptime, if it's not a gymnastics day), I add the kale and hit the road.   Just cook it for about 8 hours, on low, and it will be perfect when you get home.

We usually eat this over rice, but it can be eaten as a stew and all by itself, too.

To freeze, let it cool to room temp, and spoon it into a gallon sized freezer bag.   Lay the freezer bag flat on a small cookie sheet and stick into the freezer.   Once it's frozen, you can pull the cookie sheet out and stack up the ziploc bags to save space....and prevent everything from falling out on you when you open the freezer door.

Rice can also be frozen with the same method - cook, cool, and then freeze flat in a ziploc bag, squeezing out as much air as you possibly can.   When I reheat it, I add a little bit of water, then stick it in a microwave safe bowl and zap it until it's cooked.   To reheat the curry, you can cook it on the stove top, or....my favourite.....let it thaw a bit until you can break it into chunks, and stick the chunks back into your crockpot.   Cook on low (feel free to stir it occasionally) and it'll be ready about 8 hours later!

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Sweet Potato Chili

Oh, this chili.

How I love it.

This chili is my go-to when carnivores are coming over.   They don't even miss the meat, I promise.

I've brought this to soup suppers.   I've given it away.  Every single time, I get bombarded with requests for the recipes.  It's a keeper, I promise.

It's also another one of those double-duty recipes:  a great freezer meal AND a great crockpot meal.

To freeze, let it cool after cooking and freeze flat in a ziploc bag, like I described above.

To cook in a crock pot, just chop up  everything and stick it in and cook on low for 8 hours.  No need to sautee anything or do any other prep, other than chopping things up.   Right before serving, I tend to mash it up a bit with the back of the ladle, but even that's not necessary.  I just like a thicker chili, and that seems to help.

Seriously.  This one is a keeper.  If you don't try any other recipe on this blog post....try this one.

Now.

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Black Bean and Quinoa Burgers

This recipe might have the most unappealing pictures of the finished product than any other one I've seen, haha.   Don't let that scare you.  We've tried MANY do-it-yourself veggie burgers over the past couple of years, and this one is by far our favourite.   The babies prefer their burger without a bun, and the older clowns like to add ketchup, mayo, AND mustard, but no matter how it's eaten, it's an all-around crowd favourite here.

To freeze it, I double the recipe (it has an added bonus of being a "pantry" meal for me - I almost always have all of the ingredients on hand, except for the buns.  That's an easy thing to pick up at the store - or have Mike pick up on his way home - so it still counts as a "pantry" meal, I think!).  Once the burgers have cooled, I freeze them between layers of waxed paper in a gallon ziploc bag.  Squeeze out as much air as you possibly can, and you'll prevent that nasty freezer burn that can happen on things like burgers.     If you're really prepared (only happens when I'm pregnant and nesting, let's be honest), freeze a pack of your favourite hamburger buns, and then you can quickly defrost those at the same time.   To reheat these, I tend to zap them for a few minutes and then crisp them up quickly on the griddle.   The crisping part isn't necessary (the zapping is fine on its own), but we prefer them that way.

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Red Beans and Rice

The title of this one is "Easy Red Beans and Rice", and believe it or not....I've made it even easier by converting it into a crockpot meal.  ;)

Seriously.  Another dump-and-go recipe.   Just dump everything into the crockpot (except for the Liquid Smoke - add that just before serving.  Oh, and the rice.  Cook that separately), turn it on low, and you'll have a delicious meal in about 8 hours.   

I've had a hard time finding canned red beans up here in the good, ol' Northeast, so I've started using dried red beans.   To make it with dried beans, dump the dry beans (I use a whole bag) into that same crockpot.   Add about 6 cups of water, and then cook it on low for about 8 hours.   When those are done, drain the beans, and then add in the other ingredients.   Continue to cook on low for another 8ish hours.  The beans will break down a bit more than the canned ones, but I actually like it better that way.    I usually rehydrate the beans overnight, drain them after breakfast, add the other ingredients, and then let it go until dinner time.    The rice cooker makes the rice, and then we're good to go!

To freeze, just do the ziploc bag trick again.  To reheat, I thaw it a bit, break it up into chunks, and stick it back into that crockpot and cook it on low all day.

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Sweet Potato and Black Bean Enchiladas

These enchiladas with this sauce were my first-ever attempted vegetarian recipes.   Ahh, the memories.    I honestly don't know if I'd ever even MADE a sweet potato before that moment in time.   Crazy to think about that, isn't it?   Huh.

They've become a staple for me, that's for sure.   This isn't a good "gymnastics night" recipe, but it's a fantastic comfort food/cold weather one.   To freeze, I put them in a disposable tinfoil baking dish, cover with a layer of tinfoil, then saran wrap, then tinfoil again.    If you plan to freeze them, omit the sour cream when you're putting them together - it'll get funky in the freezer.  Instead, I'll just offer sour cream as a "topping" when serving it.   

When freezing these, I cook the filler as directed, build the enchilada (omitting the sour cream), line them up in the tinfoil baking pan, slather them with the yummy sauce, and then freeze.   To cook them later, I'll pull them out the night before and let them thaw in the fridge, then bake at 350º until they're cooked all of the way through.   

Yum.  Served best with margaritas.  

Just kidding.

Kind of.

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Those are my staples - the meals I make when I know the next few months are going to be crazy and I'm going to want a stash of "easy to make" dinners.    I don't think I've ever gone more than 3-4 months before pulling them out and using them, so I'd probably advise you to do the same.   They may have a longer freezer life than that, but I can't guarantee it.    

Whew.

That wasn't too hard to do.   Maybe I'll get back on this blogging horse again, after all!

Good night, y'all!