This past weekend I was visiting my boyfriend at his university (he is in his last semester!) and I was tired of hearing about all the unappetizing food he was eating so I decided when I went to visit him I was going to stock his freezer with food so he has good things to eat until the end of the semester. When I say good food, I don't necessarily mean good for you (although a lot of it is) I mostly mean tasty food.
So I spent almost two full days cooking for him! This is what his freezer looked like by the end of the weekend, keep in mind he also had some stuff in his fridge that he planned on eating sooner!
The first thing I made were two green gnocchi with hidden vegetables!
Ingredients:
- 1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
- 1 Small Onion
- Sea Salt & Black Pepper
- 2 Cups (1 can) Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth
- 3 Lbs. Yukon Gold Potatoes (cut into 1/2-inch pieces)
- 1 1/2 Cups Water
- 1 Bunch Swiss Chard (Steams removed, leaves chopped)
- 1 (5 oz.) Bag of Spinach (it can be frozen)
- 2 Tsp. Lemon Juice
- Flour
Directions:
- Heat olive oil in large (needs to be quite large!) soup pot over medium
- Add onion and garlic; season with salt & pepper
- Add chard leaves and cook for 5 minutes
- Add spinach and lemon juice
- Puree soup using blender or immersion blender until smooth (make sure you have a high quality blender for this or you could break the blender like I did with my boyfriends! Whoops!)
- Add flour slowly to the "soup" mixture from above till it becomes slightly more doughy
- Then use two spoons and make the gnocchi into as much of ball as you can (make them whatever size you want to make them, as you can tell from the picture mine were on the larger size)
- Drop it into boiling water and once the float on the top take them out and place them on a paper towel till they dry out! You will probably need to layer the paper towels and gnocchi until they are dry.
It really is that easy and you are getting a lot of vegetables with your gnocchi what could be better!
Then a staple to always have on hand is a good tomato sauce, but I decided to go with something a little heartier so I made him a bolognese sauce. He liked besides the carrots (he has a thing against cooked carrots, so next time I will skip the carrots when I make it for him)
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 (28 oz) Can Crushed Tomatoes
- 1 (6oz) Can Tomato Paste
- 1 Tbs Chopped Garlic
- 1 Tbs Balsamic Vinegar
- 1/2 Tbs Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 Teaspoon Dried Oregano
- 1 Teaspoon Dried Basil
- 1 (14.5 oz) Can Diced Tomatoes
- 2 Carrots Finely Chopped
- 1 Onion Finely Chopped
- 1 1/4 Lbs Lean Raw Ground Turkey
- Salt
Directions:
- Brown the ground turkey in a large soup pot
- Add onions, carrots, and garlic
- Cook until the vegetables are soft
- In a separate large bowl mix together crushed tomatoes, tomato past, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, and diced tomatoes
- Add tomato mixture to soup pot
- Add oregano, basil, and salt
- Let it simmer for about 5 minutes, then bring it down to a really low heat for about 15 minutes
He is up in the mountains so I decided I needed to make him soups, because what is better than having a nice bowl soup on a snowy day?
The first one I made was enchilada chicken soup.
Ingredients:
- 3 Cups Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth
- 1 1/4 Cups Finely Chopped Celery
- 1/2 Cup Diced Sweet Yellow Onion
- 3 Can Green Enchilada Sauce
- 1 (15-oz.) Can Pure Pumpkin
- 10 oz. Canned Chicken
- 1 Cup Frozen Corn
Directions:
- In a large pot, bring broth to a low boil
- Add celery and onion, and simmer for about 5 minutes, until slightly tender
- Stir in enchilada sauce and pumpkin
- Once soup returns to a low boil, add chicken and corn, and mix well
- Cook for an additional 3 - 5 minutes, until soup is heated throughout
The second one I made was a tomato soup loaded with vegetables, he is not willingly going to eat vegetables so I have to sneak them in anyway I can.
Ingredients:
- 1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
- 1 1/2 Tsp. Fennel Seed
- 1 Large Fennel Bulb (diced small)
- 2 Large Leeks, sliced finely (white and green parts only)
- 1 Qt. Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth
- 1 Lb. Vine-Ripe Tomatoes (diced)
- 2 Small Red or Yellow Potatoes (quartered)
- Salt & Pepper to Taste
Directions:
- In a medium sized soup pot, heat oil over medium heat.
- Add fennel seed and cook until fragrant (about 3 minutes)
- Add diced fennel and leeks
- Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally until vegetables are soft (about 10 minutes)
- Add broth, tomatoes, and potatoes. Reduce heat to low and cover and cook until potatoes are cooked through
You can either serve it chunky but I personally prefer it pureed in a blender.
I just recently learned about Farro, an Italian grain, and it has become my new favorite so I wanted my boyfriend to try it!
Ingredients:
- 1 Qt. Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth
- 1/2 Lb. Farro (about 1 1/4 cups), uncooked
- 1 Cup Parsley
- 2 Tbsp. Basil
- 1 Tbsp. Fresh Thyme
- 1 Tsp. Chopped Garlic
- 1 Tbsp. Olive Oil
- 2 Tsp. Red Wine Vinegar
- 1/2 Tsp. Sea Salt
- 1/4 Tsp. Black Pepper
- 2 Tbsp. Parmesan Cheese, grated
Directions:
- In a large pot, bring to a boil
- Add farro and reduce heat
- Simmer for 25 minutes, covered, until farro is tender. Drain and set aside
- Meanwhile, in food processor combine parsley, basil, thyme, and garlic
- Pulse until coarsely chopped then add oil, vinegar, salt & pepper. Puree.
- In large bowl, combine cooked farro and herb mixture
- Sprinkle with Parmesan and serve warm
What college student doesn't love Mac'n'Cheese? I have yet to meet one, so of course I had to make him so Mac'n'Cheese! I altered this recipe slightly from this recipe:
http://www.marthastewart.com/348566/john-legends-macaroni-and-cheese.
Ingredients:
- 4 Tbs (1/2 stick) Unsalted Butter
- Salt & Pepper
- 3 Cups Elbow Macaroni
- 2 (12-ounce) Cans Evaporated Milk
- 1/3 Cup Skim Milk
- 2 Large Eggs
- 1/2 Tsp Garlic Salt
- 1/4 Tsp Garlic Powder
- 2 (8-ounce) Packages Extra-Sharp Cheddar Cheese (Grated)
- 1 (8-ounce) Package Monterey Jack Cheese (Grated)
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- Generously butter a 13-by-9-inch glass baking dish; set aside
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil; add salt and macaroni.
- Cook until al dente according to package directions.
- Drain, and return to pot.
- Add butter, and toss until pasta is coated and butter has melted; set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together evaporated milk, skim milk, and eggs.
- Add seasoned salt, garlic powder, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper; set aside. In another medium bowl, combine cheeses; set aside.
- Place 1/2 macaroni in an even layer in the bottom of prepared baking dish; cover evenly with 1/2 cheese.
- Repeat with remaining macaroni and cheese mixture.
- Pour milk mixture evenly over contents of baking dish.
- Bake until top layer is lightly browned, 35 to 45 minutes.
- Let stand 10 to 15 minutes before serving.
So on the super bowl post I made some taquitos that were amazing, so I needed to make them for him because he loves Mexican food. He actually liked them so much he passed on another recipe in order to make more of the chicken taquitos! Here is that recipe again!
Ingredients:
- 10 small (6-inch) yellow corn tortillas
- One 9.75-oz. (or 10-oz.) can 98% fat-free chunk white chicken breast in water, drained well
- 1/2 cup salsa, fresh salsa is best
- 1/2 cup shredded fat-free cheddar or mexican cheese
- 1 tsp. dry taco seasoning mix (not too much a little bit goes a long way!)
- Use salsa, fat free sour cream, or guacamole (my favorite, look below for link to it)
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees
- In a medium bowl, combine the chicken and salsa, and mix thoroughly
- Cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes
- Add cheese and taco seasoning to the chicken mixture, this is your filling, set aside
- Prepare a baking sheet by spraying with nonstick spray and set aside
- Dampen two paper towels, and place all the tortillas between them
- Microwave for about 1 minute, until tortillas are warm and flexible
- Take one tortilla (keep the rest between the paper towels) and place on the baking sheet
- Spoon about 1 1/2 Tbsp of filling onto one half of the tortilla
- Roll tortilla up tightly, so that you have a cigar-shaped tube
- Place the seam-side down on the baking sheet
- Repeat with remaining tortillas and filling
- Bake for 15 minutes, until crispy
- Allow taquitos to cool for 5 minutes
This semester he does have morning classes so it is important for him to make himself breakfast, but his idea of making breakfast is grabbing a power bar. So I decided to make some breakfast sandwiches and burritos.
Breakfast Sandwiches:
Ingredients:
- 1 Dozen English Muffins
- 1 Dozen Eggs
- Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Spray a cupcake pan with a non-stick spray (be generous)
- Placed one cracked egg in each cupcake hole
- Cook in the oven for 10 minutes
- Lightly toast the English muffins
- When the eggs are done sprinkle cheese on top of the eggs
- Once the cheese has melted use a silicone spatula and run it around the outside of the egg then you should be able to get the eggs out nicely
- Place on the English muffins!
Breakfast Burritos:
Ingredients (amounts vary depending on how much you want in your burrito):
- 6 Large Flour Tortillas
- 1 Dozen Eggs
- 1/2 Cup of Milk
- Bacon
- Shredded Cheddar Cheese
- Diced Onions
- Diced Potatoes
Directions:
- Fry the bacon in a large skillet
- Fry the onions and potatoes together in another skillet
- Crack all the eggs into a large mixing bowl, add milk and whisk together
- Pour eggs on a hot skillet sprayed with non-stick spray
- Warm the tortillas between two wet paper towels for about 1 and 1/2 minutes
- Place eggs in the middle of the tortilla
- Put cheese on top of the eggs
- Add potatoes and onion on top of the cheese
- Break up the bacon and place that on top of the potatoes and onions
He has this sweet tooth that never seems to satisfied, so what kind girlfriend would I be if I didn't have him so sort of dessert?
That being said I made him some red velvet cupcakes, this was a last minute decision so I ran to the grocery store hoping to find some red velvet cake in box (I know, I know it seems like a sin, but the weekend was almost over and didn't have much time!), but the store I was at didn't have much of a boxed cake selection. Having made red velvet cake from scratch in the past I knew how to make it so I decided to do a variation to a boxed red velvet cake mix. I bought some yellow boxed cake mix (I know white cake would have made more sense, but I love yellow cake so I figured why not give it s try!) add some cocoa powder to it and red food coloring and then also bought some whipped cream cheese frosting and off I went!
Ingredients:
- Boxed Yellow Cake (all the ingredients listed on the box)
- Red Food Coloring
- 1 1/2 Tbsp of Cocoa Powder
Directions:
- Preheat oven to temperature listed on the cake box
- Put the cake mix from the box in a large mixing bowl
- Continue to make the cake mix based off the cake box
- Add red food coloring (make it whatever shade of red you want)
- Place cupcake papers into a cupcake tray, fill them a little above half way
- Bake in oven according to cake box directions
At the end of the all the cooking he still had some leftover ground turkey in his fridge and I knew he wouldn't do anything with it before it would go bad so I made some turkey burger patties for him. I took the ground turkey add some seasoning, (Garlic powder, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and a little squirt of ketchup to help keep it moist!), made little round patties and add some cheddar cheese on top of one patty and placed another small patty on top of that one and rolled it in a ball so when he cooks it the cheddar cheese will be inside the burger! I don't have a picture of this because I didn't want to put a picture of raw meat on my blog!
If you want any clarification on any of the recipes just ask!
