I have finally begun to get into a normal routine...ish. Part of that routine is my son napping for an hour or so every afternoon. While he's napping, I have been able to get back into the kitchen to make and freeze things from scratch! On Monday, I made/ froze homemade cinnamon rolls (they look/ taste just like the Cinnabon ones you get at the mall). I bake them, allow them to cool, then bag and freeze. Shane doesn't like cream cheese, so I use this recipe for icing (tastes like the icing on the Pillsbury cinnamon rolls you get in the can) and freeze it in a separate container.
On Wednesday, I cut up two whole chickens and made/ froze them in 3 different ways. I have talked before about how much money you can save by cutting up whole chickens rather than buying chicken breasts, and I still swear by it. If you go a step further and prepare them for future meals like I did, it takes a lot of time initially, but it's worth it. It took me about 2 hours to do all of this, but Shane and I will now get to indulge in a few quick dinners over the next couple of weeks!
The first thing I did was cut out the breasts. I took two, cut them each in half, and breaded them to make this copycat recipe of Chick Fil A's sandwiches. I marinated the breasts in pickle juice while I cut up the rest of the chicken, then came back to bread and freeze. I did not pre-fry these.
The first thing I did was cut out the breasts. I took two, cut them each in half, and breaded them to make this copycat recipe of Chick Fil A's sandwiches. I marinated the breasts in pickle juice while I cut up the rest of the chicken, then came back to bread and freeze. I did not pre-fry these.
I took the other two breasts, chopped them up into bite size pieces, and took the wings as well and made this copycat recipe of Hooter's Wings. (If you haven't noticed, I get a big kick out of making things we get eating out, but at half the price! Oh, and with this one you get the good wings without the boobs ;-) ) I went ahead and pre-fried these at 300 degrees for a minute or so in my deep fryer before freezing so 1) they wouldn't stick together, and 2) they would be extra crunchy when I'm ready to fry/ eat them.
Last but not least, I took the legs and thighs and tossed them into the slow cooker with some salt and pepper. When cooked through, I shredded them, bagged, and froze them for some... healthier meals. I promise you Shane and I don't eat greasy food daily, but I don't think there's anything wrong in satisfying that craving every now and then!