[Txchef_fran]

Welcome to the site and what a great place to start with OAMC or what I call Investment Cooking. I teach classes on this and would love to share my tips, recipes, etc. BTW~Where is FL are you? I have family in Port St John (between Cocoa and Titusville)

INVESTMENT COOKING THEME SHOW NOTES
Prepared and compiled by Fran Johnson from NDSU Extention Service Nutrition Specialist website, “The Food Lovers Tiptionary”, dear friend of mine in the business I am in.

FREEZING REGULATIONS:

1.Onions – Chopped can be frozen up to 3 months

2.Red Bell Peppers – Are actually vine-ripened green peppers. Because they have ripened longer they are sweeter than the green. Seeded, chopped can be frozen up to 6 months.

3.Mashed Potatoes – Freeze mashed potatoes in muffin cups.

4.Corn on the Cob – Remove kernels and freeze for soups, casseroles and salads then boil cobs with milk and water. Freeze the corn broth for soup starter or chicken pot pies.

5.Celery – Freeze tops and leaves of celery then chop and freeze to save for soups.

6.Hamburger Patties – Freeze hamburger patties between wax paper to easily separate.

7.Herbs – Freeze in ice cube trays. Drop cubes in soups.

8.Pasta – When freezing pasta cook pasta aldente when freezing to prevent it from becoming mush once reheated.

9.Sauces – Freeze leftover sauces in ice cube trays. Then once frozen put in freezer bags. Keep all broth and save for soup starters. (Chicken, Beef and even potato)

10. Freezing casseroles – Freeze cooked or uncooked casseroles by lining dish with foil. Either cook, cool then wrap or just double wrap with foil and put in large freezer bag. Label and date. When re-heating it is best to defrost then warm up. If not cook @ 350 for double the time.

11.Cookie dough, muffin mixes – When making cookies, muffins, pancakes on the weekend make extra then freeze some for the week.

INVESTMENT RECIPES:

Coke Roast or Brisket
8-10 lb. roast or brisket, then add chili sauce, Lipton onion soup mix, and a can of coke in the round baking system. Cook @ 250 for 6-7 hrs.

Beef Ribs
Cook ribs in Rectangular Baking System for 1 hr on 250 with 1 can of beer. Drain then cook another hour with grape jelly and 2 bottles of chili sauce.

Lemon Rosemary Chicken (or any roasted chicken recipe) then Chicken Pot Pie (leftover chicken, cream of chicken soup, onion, mixed vegetables then top with biscuits for crust)

Shepards Pie: Ground Beef, onions, corn, cream of mushroom soup then top with mashed potatoes. Great recipe to make from leftovers.

Helpful Hints on Preparing:

**Clean out your freezer and refrigerator the day before planning your meals and shopping.

**Have a family meeting so everyone can vote on what’s on the meal list.

**Make your full menu for your two weeks. Keep in mind you will not have to cook all of the items on your menu ahead of time—only the foods that need a lot of preparation or that can be completed and frozen. For instance, if you are planning hamburgers on the grill, you only need to shape the burgers and freeze them.

** Get out all of your recipes and cookbooks that you might need to pull from.

**Make your shopping list (using pencil). This will be your Master List. You will need to alter the quantity of many items on your list several times as you go through each recipe.

**Make photocopies of your final two lists to use for future meals.


After your list is completed:

**Go through your freezer and cupboards. Highlight any item you may already have before you go shopping.

**Before shopping, clean off you counter tops. You will need the space!


Helpful Hints for Shopping:

**Shop the day before the day you plan to cook.

**Go to your “bulk” store first and get any items that you need in bigger quantities. This will save you money.

**Go to your regular grocery store (without children if possible)

**Shop the inner isles first. Then produce, bakery, and frozen last.

**As you shop, highlight in a different color. This will help you when you come home and know if it should be form the bags, the cupboard or the freezer.

** Pull any frozen foods that need to thaw for cooking and place in the refrigerator. (Do this shopping day)

**Pull any items from the cupboards and group ingredients for each recipe on your counter.


Helpful Hints for Cooking Day

**Put an empty garbage can at easy access. Have a bag available for items that can be recycled.

**Pull out all pans and utensils you will be suing for this project. (If you do not have enough large pots, you may want to borrow from a friend)

**Wash dishes as you go. Let one group soak while you preparing the next meal. When it’s the last time you will use a utensil, have the dishwater empty and fill as you finish.

** Wear an apron to keep clean, dry dishtowel in pocket. Have enough towels on hand, as you will use several.

**Write down the start and finish times of foods that are cooking at the same time.

**Tape the recipes to the kitchen cupboard where they can be easily be seen. (With messy hands, this really helps.)

**Chop and prepare all fresh foods at the beginning, grouping in recipe amounts that are called for.

**Plan to do nothing else in the morning. You must be in the kitchen stirring and watching pots.

**Turn on the answering machine, put on your favorite music and have you favorite beverage ready. (Coffee, tea, soda, wine, etc.)

**Make your lunch when you make your children’s in the morning. (Even in the summer or on weekends, get this done first.)

**If you have small children, trade baby sitting with a friend who also wants to cook Ten at a Time on a different day. (Or this would be perfect QUALITY time with Dad)

**DO NOT cook and shop on the same day!

**As you finish a meal, cool on racks away from your cooking area. (kitchen table, etc.)

**Start you longest cooking recipes first, so by the time you finish that last “quick” one, the first one will be completed.

**After you recipe has cooled off, store in zip-lock bags in appropriate sizes for individual meals.

**Keep and running list of all frozen dinners. An 8 ½ x 11 magnetic marker board works great for this.

**As you finish a recipe and you still have items (canned or frozen) that needed to be added on the day you serve the meal, put an X on the label and explain to your family they ARE BOT to eat this ahead of time. (You may even make a special box, shelf or section for these items)

**Any cheese or bread crumbs that need to be added in the final stages of cooking, measure the amount needed and put in small zip-lock bag and tape to the side or top of the freezer container.

**Pull the next night’s dinner out of the freezer the night before.

**Treat yourself! Eat out of cooking day!

You may not want to be tied to your calendar, but you just want to have your favorite meals in the freezer to use as you please. Just cross it off your master list as you use it!