Slow Cooker Pumpkin Steel Cut Oatmeal

I know, I know. It is no longer "pumpkin season," meaning this month does not end in "-ber." However, it still feels like a "burrr" month, (have I mentioned how much I love puns yet?), and tasty, warm and easy breakfasts are still required.

Enter Pumpkin Oatmeal.

As you can tell from my lovely decor, we first made this for November's freezer cooking club. Doesn't it look cozy?! We made it again for February's freezer cooking club to use up some inventory, and my family still loved it. As in, my two littlest guys ate half the pot.

Really, just put this hot mess in the crock pot over night, (about 7 hours) and you wake up to chewy, pumpkin-y goodness. Be SURE to spray your crockpot with non-stick cooking spray to avoid a painful clean-up experience. And really, finding steel cut oats is a must because your typical rolled oats won't stand up to the long cook time.

When we prepare our freezer meals, we throw all of the ingredients for the oatmeal in a ziplock bag and freeze them. I've never frozen this oatmeal though because I've been too excited to make it, and my family was too excited to eat it.

The oatmeal does turn out very thick, so if you like a thinner meal, douse your bowl with a hefty amount of milk.

Slow Cooker Pumpkin Steel Cut Oatmeal

adapted from Overnight Crockpot Pumpkin Oatmeal

Ingredients:

1 cup steel cut oats
2 cups almond milk  (we've also used just 1% milk)
2 cups water
1/2 cup brown sugar (plus more for sprinkling, if you want...)
1 cup canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
2 tbs butter, melted

Directions

1. Mix all ingredients in a bowl or bag.
2. Spray crockpot with non-stick cooking spray and pour oatmeal mixture into crockpot.
3. Cook on LOW for 7 hours.
4. Serve with milk. Optional toppings: almonds, cranberries, walnuts, or even whipped cream!

Slow Cooker Pineapple Chile Verde

Here at The Freezer Cooking Club, we love taking weeknight meals from "OK" to "OLE!" We always have at least one variation of Mexican food because it is cheap, easy, and most importantly, our families eat it.

We found this recipe on The Gracious Pantry and we actually really liked it. For our Freezer Cooking Night, we just threw all the ingredients into a ziplock, so prepping was a snap! I just plopped the whole frozen mess right into the crockpot on low and let it simmer all day. It was glorious. No defrosting required.

Because we only used one chicken breast per family I served the Pineapple Chicken Verde over some protein-packed quinoa and baby spinach. Of course all that healthfulness was helped along with generous amounts of sour cream and cheddar cheese. I was really surprised at how far the meal stretched. I was eating chile verde burritos for lunch for days. Putting the tastiness in toasted tortilla added such a delightful crunch to a fairly sweet and mellow meal.

(As you can see, I managed to capture this bad boy before I devoured it. I liked to cut a bite of burrito and pair it with a bite of fresh baby spinach as an easy way to get in a serving of veggies.)

Slow Cooker Pineapple Chile Verda

adapted from http://www.thegraciouspantry.com/clean-eating-slow-cooker-pineapple-chicken-verde/

Ingredients:

• 2 raw chicken breasts (about 7 ounces each)
• 1 cup crushed pineapple, no sugar added, packed in pineapple juice
• 1/2 cup clean chili verde sauce (I got mine at Trader Joe’s)

Directions:

1. Place the chicken breasts in your slow cooker.
2. Pour 1/2 cup crushed pineapple over each chicken breast.
3. Pour 1/4 cup chili verde sauce over each chicken breast.
4. Cook on low for 4-6 hours or until the chicken easily falls apart when poked at with a fork.

Freezer Directions:
Just pour all the ingredients in a ziplock bag and freeze. Defrost or place in crockpot frozen. Cook as directed above.

January Meal Plan and Shopping List

Now that the holidays are over, it’s time to get back to cooking! I was at the store today and made an comment to the cashier that I was cooking meals for approximately 400 people next week.  We did the math…turns out I was right on…and that doesn’t include leftovers! 14 meals for 4 people X 7 families=392.  So it’s a big month.

This month’s theme is HEALTHY.  Not a bad way to start the year, right?

MEALS:

Cherry Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Smoothies

Stuffed Peppers

 Fajitas

Mexican Rice

Turkey Chili

Chicken Parmesan Casserole

Lasagna Rolls

Baked Chicken

Chicken Noodle Soup

Sausage Soufflé

Quinoa Chili

Cilantro Lime Chicken

Turkey Burgers

Garden Lasagna

 

SHOPPING LIST:

Scallions: 7

Ground Turkey: 21 lbs

Onions: 12 (we have a bunch in the inventory)

Red Peppers: 54, I know! That’s a ton!!!

Celery: 2 bunches

Carrots: 5 lbs

Worcestershire sauce

Pesto: 8 cups

Spinach: 2 Costco bags

Ricotta: 35 cups

Eggs: 74

Butter: 4 sticks

Milk: 32 cups (2 gallons)

Mushrooms: 5 lbs (I bought canned during a case lot sale!)

Lasagna noodles: 7 boxes

Mozzarella: 40 cups

Basil: 1 bunch, fresh

Cream of Chicken: 6 cans

Corn: 1 Costco bag

Egg noodles: 12 cups

Chicken: 72 breasts (I have a raincheck to Dans for $1.59/lb!!!

Bread: 2 loaves, thick sliced

Cheddar Blend Cheese: 10 cups

Diced tomatoes: 15 cans---case lot sale!!!

Tomato Pase: 4 cups

Lemon Juice: 1 1/2 cups

Rice: 22 cups

Olive oil

Parsely: 3 cups

Oregano

Tortillas: 3 bags

Cumin

Dark pitted Cherries: 56 oz

Tomato Sauce: 18 cups

Almonds

Teriyaki sauce

Smoothie ingredients: Frozen Strawberries (14 cups), bananas (10), Greek yogurt (4 cups), Mango-Passion fruit juice concentrate, Peaches (4 cups), Orange Sherbet (1 container), Pineapple (1 bag), Pineapple juice

Diced Green Chilies: 56 oz

Green Peppers: 12

Cannelli Beans: 14

Bread Crumbs: 5 cups

Marinara Sauce: 13

Bone-in Chicken: 28 breasts

Seasoning Salt

Parmesan: 4 cups

Quinoa: 14 cups cooked

Kidney Beans: 7

Black Beans: 14

Cilantro

Lime Juice

I’ve bought all the beans, some noodles, and the cans of tomato products, and we’re only down $115, which is only $16/each.  So far so good. Can’t wait until next week!

Why Freezer Cooking Works For Me: Katie

My name is Katie. I come from a long line of amazing women who know a thing or two about cooking. The women I descend from are passionate about love, laughter and amazing food.

My Grandma was a wonderful cook. She was able to feed her large family - of ten - great meals on very little income.

The next generation of women in my family are very talented in the kitchen as well. They specialize in sugar cookies, canning, bread, rolls, candy making, enchiladas, Homemade Chinese food, etc. You name it they can make it and it will blow you away. Every family party I attend, I never go home hungry or dissatisfied. Talk about talent. These women have it!

Next in line is me, one of many grandchildren. My life is completely crazy and complicated. I work full time, have two kids, a dog and a husband who works crazy hours that change constantly. Our family dynamic is always changing. My time in the kitchen is non-existent due to daycare pickups, feeding a brand new baby, 40 hour workweeks, and extra curricular activities. Freezer Club has made dinnertime at my house S-I-M-P-L-E! It gives me the ability to sustain the tradition of cooking great food and still have time for my kiddos. It also helps me maintain the tradition of cooking in a more practical manner that works with my crazy life. This is why freezer club works for us!

November Shopping

With 7 different shopping trips between Cortney and I, resulting in piles and piles of groceries, we are just about ready to begin our next freezer club.

I got lucky on my bike ride home from Michael's with the kids and ride by a man  who had too much donated chicken from Harmon's for Thanksgiving. The man's church gives it to the needy and they had too much. Being in the right place at the right time, I got 6 pkgs of perfectly good chicken. What a great way to cut costs.

Here is what our shopping looked like:

Dan's: $111.85

Dan's #2: $46.61

Smith's: $43.48

Target: $43.03

Dollar Tree: $21.37 (for freezer tins)

Costco: $232.78

Cortney: $150.08

Totaling in $649.20 paid in groceries (I got some killer deals though, so the retail value is much much more), we each will end up paying $108.20 for 17 meals, 2 large sides, and 1 batch of cookies, not including leftovers. Not bad.

Looking forward to a long night of freezer cooking, laughter, and good friends.

Why Freezer Cooking Works for Me: Kristi

When we started Freezer Club, I was at the tail end of a Master's Degree, working full-time, wrangling my first baby less than a year old, and still in charge of keeping the house together and feeding my family.

My husband has many talents, but the night I asked him to cook dinner, we ate

popcorn. April and I threw around the idea to cook ahead of time, freeze the meals and make each day a little easier. Before we knew it other friends were clambering to join us. We’ve made a few mistakes; we are not experts in food or cooking.  But we are experts in friendship and experts in loving our families.

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

"Is there any more pumpkin bread?"

"Well...How about I make cookies?"

I look up with a sheepish grin.

Look, the kitchen is the center of my home. I literally have to walk through it to get to my kids' bedrooms, the bathroom, the basement, the front door, the living room, the back door, everywhere. So, when I have two beautiful loaves of the above pictured bread sitting easily on the kitchen counter with a butter knife strategically placed next to the loaves, (so that I can more readily supply said bread for the family), it goes without saying that I will need to check in on the loaves to make sure they are feeling wanted, loved, and appreciated. Wouldn't you? Clearly, it is the right thing to do.
When you consider that this delightful bread embraces fall in all its pumpkin, spicy, chocolatey richness; that even the natural coloring of the bread echoes the comfortable, cheery browns, rusty oranges and golden glows of the heaven-sent fall that is upon us all, you will see how, logically, eating this bread is actually showing your appreciation for this autumnal beauty. You are literally becoming one with fall. Really, eating this bread is a moral obligation. Clearly, it is the right thing to do.

In all honesty, the only thing I don't like about this recipe is how much I like it. The last time I made it, I was smart and put a loaf in the freezer which was a lovely idea. The loaves thaw magnificently and taste just as fresh as the day you baked them. Plus, freezing a loaf was fantastic because when I got a craving for the bread again, I could just pull it out and slice it up! Unfortunately that was the day after I finished the first loaf. Clearly, it was the right thing to do.

Now to business, I've adjusted this recipe until I feel it is my own. Despite the fact that it is made with whole wheat flour, my family eats it willingly, and because it is made with whole wheat flour, I eat two thick slices for breakfast each morning. Yes, there is chocolate in there. But, to extend my rationalization, There isn't too much sugar, (just 1/2 cup per loaf), there is very little oil (1/8 cup per loaf), and it has this moist, irresistible texture which I am crazy about. Oh, and there are eggs, which clearly makes this bread breakfast-friendly. (Right, Bill Cosby?)

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread

Ingredients

• 3 cups whole wheat flour (you can use all purpose, but then you can't eat the bread for breakfast)
• 2 tsp cinnamon, ground
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg, ground
• 1/4 tsp cloves, ground
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar 
• 3/4 cup low fat sour cream
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup applesauce (I like to use my homemade applesauce because it ROCKS!)
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 15 oz canned pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling
• 1 cup chocolate chips (or more) Semi-sweet or milk chocolate work. I love a combination of the two.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350. Grease or spray 2 9"x5" bread pans and set aside.
2. Combine flour, spices, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
3. In a larger bowl, combine the sugars, eggs, sour cream, oil, applesauce, vanilla and pumpkin.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and stir until combined.
5. Gently fold in chocolate chips.
6. Bake 50-60 minutes until a plastic fork or skewer comes out clean or with only a few crumbs.
7. Let cool in pan for 5-10 minutes before removing the loaves from the pan. 

 Bonne chance and freeze on!
Cortney