Meal Time Made Easy class

Meals Time Made Easy
Enrichment Class By Autumn Kizerian
For additional ideas from time to time visit my blog http://www.kizerianisms.blogspot.com/

First 4 steps:
Plan. Take the time to sit down go thru your recipes and your calendar. Find out what will work for you. Pay attention to the days you need quick meals. (Crock pot or Freezer meal days). What meals need the same type of meats? How can I plan them to make my life easier?
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday













There is a 3 week calendar here. e mail me and I will send you the word doc. I don't know how to post the doc here. I'm still learning.








* Don’t for get leftover days.

Shop. Use your recipes to make a list, Check your pantry and cross out what you have. Having everything on hand makes cooking a lot easier. Especially if you are prepping in advance (Freezer Meals).

Cook. This is where COST comes in. Cook Once Serve Twice. Or even for me this is when the ease comes in. I come home from the store and cook all 5 pounds of ground beef. Personally I cook half in Taco soup seasoning and half in Garlic lemon. If I’m having meatloaf I go ahead and make it then. NEVER make just one, unless you’re using your crock pot. I take my bag of chicken and stick it into the crock pot or I use my favorite 4 meals in 4 minute recipes so I’m ready to go on the assigned day.
Enjoy! If you meat is prepped in advanced it makes cooking a lot easier and takes the guess work out. Or so it does for me.


What meals can you think to use Cost on?
What recipes can you easily double? Spaghetti is one at my house I always double the sauce and then freeze it. (My preferred method is gallon Ziploc).

Tips to know
Don’t forget to plug it in or turn it on!

Most chicken and pork chop recipes take 4-6 hours on low in the crackpot, or 2-3 on high (high is always half the time as low in most crackpots). This also usually equates to one hour at 350 degrees in the oven.

Don't lift the lid to stir, especially if you are cooking on the low setting. Each time you lift the lid, enough heat will escape that the cooking time should be extended by 20 minutes to half an hour. To check progress without lifting the lid, spin the cover until the condensation falls off. Then it's easy to see inside.

· LiquidsUsually liquids may be decreased in slow cooking - about half the recommended amount. Unless the dish contains rice or pasta, one cup of liquid is usually enough.
· You can line the crackpot with an oven cooking bag before placing the food in. This makes clean up a snap. The cooking times are not affected, but the mess stays in the bag rather than on the pot. I usually find these bags on clearance after Thanksgiving or Christmas and stock up then.
· Tenderness of the meat is directly related to the cooking time. A longer cooking time at low will yield a tenderer roast, as long as it is cooked beyond done to the falling apart stage. The difference between a tough piece of meat and a tender one is about 1 hour. When you check your meat for doneness, if it isn't tender, let it cook for another hour and check again.




Crock Pot Meals

4 meals in 4 minutes
You can use chicken breast or pork (even roast for some) for any of these
Each of the following is enough for 6-8 chicken breast or pork chops. You will also need a freezer bag for each.
** Cook on low heat 4-6 hours in your crock pot, bake in the oven at 350 for an hour or grill over medium heat. **
This is a table it's not coming right I'll keep working on it!
Garlic Basil Chicken
Garlic Lemon Chicken
Southwest Chicken
Sunday Roast Chicken
Seasoning

2 Table spoons Garlic Basil
2 table spoons Garlic Lemon
2 Table spoons Southwest Seasoning
4 table spoons or a pot roast mix or Lipton onion soup packet.
Additional Ingredients
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can chicken broth
1 can diced tomatoes and green chilies
1 can cream of mushroom soup and ½ can of water
Possible sides
Pasta
Rice
Spanish Rice, Black Beans
Mashed Potatoes
Meatloaf
Make according to your favorite recipe.
Put in crock pot Cook on low 6-8 hours.
** Use your leftover meatloaf to make Shepard’s pie another night.

Cost Meal Ideas
Ground Beef- Taco soup flavored
· Tacos/ taco salad/ taco soup
· Western Meal
· Beef enchilada Casserole
· Shepard’s pie
Ground Beef- Garlic Lemon flavored
· Spaghetti
· Corn bread casserole
· Shepard’s Pie
· Lasagna