Honey Walnut Shrimp

As much as I love to cook, I also appreciate a fast and easy recipe.  This recipe is a little more labor intensive than I would like, so I'll probably end up tweaking this more the next time I make it...

Ingredients:

• 1 c. water
• 2/3 c. white sugar
• 1 c. walnuts, coarsely chopped
• 4 eggs, separated
• 2/3 c. rice flour
• 1/2 lb. precooked shrimp, defrosted and cut in half
• 1/4 c. mayonnaise
• 1/4 c. honey
• 1 T. coconut milk
• coconut oil

Directions:

1. Combine water and sugar in medium saucepan and bring to a boil.  Add walnuts and boil for two minutes.  Drain and place walnuts on a lined cookie sheet and toast in a preheated oven for about 15 minutes.  Check every 5 minutes and toss as needed for even toasting.
2. Whip egg whites in a medium bowl until nice and foamy.  Fold in whisked egg yolks and rice flour, until a thick paste forms.
3. Melt enough coconut oil to generously coat the bottom of a large skillet (over medium heat).
4. Dip prepared shrimp into egg-flour batter; working in small batches, fry both sides of battered shrimp until golden brown.  Remove to paper towels to drain.  Add more oil as needed.
5. Combine mayonnaise, honey and coconut milk in a medium bowl.  Toss fried shrimp to coat in sauce.  Add half of the toasted walnuts and combine well.  Serve with steamed veggies and rice, sprinkling remaining walnuts on top.

Thanksgiving Casserole

More often than not, I make this with my Thanksgiving leftovers, and rarely have an exact measurement of ingredients...  But for our food storage purposes, I've figured out a good ingredient-to-ingredient ratio which allows us the option of having this for dinner at any time of the year!  This also makes a great freezer meal, which means this is probably one of the easiest throw together and store/eat meals ever :)

Ingredients:

     ·  1 individual package of mashed potatoes, prepared

     ·  1 package/box of stuffing, prepared

     ·  prepared chicken gravy

     ·  shredded cheese, to taste (opt)

 Directions:

     You can either mix all the ingredients together in a casserole dish, or you can layer ingredients according to preference.  Warm in preheated oven until bubbling.  Top with cheese, if desired and broil until melted.  Serve with a side salad.

FSP Week 8

Whoops, sorry for the week-long hiatus!  I had a whirlwind of a weekend last week, and apparently needed an entire week to catch up ;)  But we're back on track with week eight.  Only five more weeks to go...

Mexican Monday: Shredded Beef Taquitos

Oriental Tuesday: Honey Walnut Shrimp

Twisted Wednesday: Thanksgiving Casserole 

Authentic Thursday: Pesto Pasta

TGIFriday: Hot Ham Rolls

Simple Saturday: leftovers/cold cereal

Special Sunday: Chicken Cacciatore w/ Polenta

Shopping List:

• 2 cans roast beef
• 1 can ham
• coconut oil
• corn tortillas
• precooked frozen shrimp (canned/dehydrated?)
• sugar
• walnuts
• eggs
• rice flour
• mayonnaise
• honey
• 1 package of instant mashed potatoes
• 1 package of stuffing
• 4 cans of chicken
• 1 can mixed vegetables
• chicken broth
• butter
• flour
• milk (DF of choice)
• 1 jar of pesto
• 1 avocado (opt)
• lemon juice
• 2 cans of mushrooms
• baking powder
• 1 green bell pepper (frozen/dried)
• dried onions
• chicken bouillon
• balsamic vinegar
• cornmeal (or popcorn kernels, ground)
• Parmesan cheese
• spices: chili powder, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme, sage, nutmeg, basil, Italian seasoning

This week's Build Your Food Storage is 8 cans of tuna.  By the end of this week you will have almost 2 months' worth of meal plans and shopping lists, so keep prepping!  *B

Quick Clam Chowder (food storage version)

My kids are obsessed with clam chowder!  And frankly, I don't blame them.  Unfortunately, the cream doesn't please our tummies as much as our palates...  So I figured I'd experiment with coconut milk, because heck, it's pretty creamy.  Imagine my delight when it worked fabulously!  Now I have happy kids with happy stomachs :)

Adapted from My Food Storage Cookbook

Ingredients:

• 1/4 c. bacon bits
• 2 T. butter/oil
• 2 T. dried onions
• 2 T. flour blend
• 14 oz clam broth
• 2 cans clams, with liquid
• 1 can whole potatoes, drained and chopped
• 1 can coconut milk
• 1/4 t. celery seeds
• 1 bay leaf
• salt and pepper, to taste
• dash of nutmeg

Directions:

     In medium soup pot, saute bacon bits over medium heat until crisp.  Add butter and onions.  Once butter has melted, stir in flour and cook for a minute or two.  Add clam broth to roux and whisk until smooth.  Add in remaining ingredients and bring to a low simmer.  Serve warm with biscuits or cornbread.

Minestrone Soup II

Minestrone is one of my all-time favorite soups!  I can't get enough of it.  It's Italian, and full of yummy veggies.  It's like the best of both worlds ;) Unfortunately, I seem to be the only one who feels that way in my family...  So I don't make this as often as I'd like to.  Hopefully you get to enjoy it more than I do!

Ingredients:

     ·    1 small celery, diced -or- 1/4 t. celery seeds

     ·    1 can mushrooms, drained

     ·    Handful of frozen green beans -or- 1 small can, drained

     ·    1 carrot, chopped -or- 1 small can, drained

     ·    4 cloves of garlic -or- 2 t. garlic powder

     ·    1 T. dried onions

     ·    ½ large zucchini -or- 1/4 c. dried, rehydrated

     ·    1 can diced tomatoes

     ·    1 can Italian stewed tomatoes, pureed

     ·    4 c. chicken broth

     ·    1 c. beef broth

     ·    1 T. Italian seasoning

     ·    1 t. salt

     ·    2 t. brown sugar

     ·    ½ t. pepper

     ·    1 T. balsamic vinegar

     ·    ½ - ¾ c. pasta

     ·    2 handfuls spinach, chopped -or- 1 small can, drained (opt)

     ·    1 can white beans, drained and rinsed

     ·    1 c. water (opt)

Directions:

Combine ingredients, except pasta/spinach/beans, in medium soup pot and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer until carrots are tender.  Add pasta and return to a boil.  Cook until al dente.  Add spinach and beans; stir well.  Add water to desired consistency.

Skillet Hash

This is one of those meals that I graciously let Brad make, and he always does a great job :) You can also throw in a few eggs and turn this into a killer scramble for breakfast.  Makes a great burrito filling, too!

Ingredients:

• 4-6 Chicken sausages OR hotdogs -or- 1/2 c. bacon bits
• ½ onion, chopped -or- 2 T. dried onions, rehydrated
• 1 can mushrooms, drained
• 5 medium potatoes, cut into ½ in cubes -or- 5 c. country style hashbrowns, frozen (or 2.5 c. dried potatoes, rehydrated)
• Salt/pepper, to taste

Directions:

     Heat large pan over medium heat; add coconut oil.  Fry potatoes in hot oil until al dente, then add remaining ingredients and cook until onions are translucent and sausage is heated through.  Season to taste.  Serve warm with ketchup or salsa.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

I honestly lovvve my original enchilada recipe, but this is a relatively low fuss version that works quiet well and is equally tasty.  I either use leftover shredded Southwest chicken as the filling (because it freezes well) or cook it in the crockpot the day of.  You can also use tortilla chips in place of tortillas for a truly simple casserole, which consequently is a great way to use up any stale chips!

Ingredients:

• 10-20 corn tortillas (depending on size of casserole dish)
• prepared Southwest chicken (for filling)
• 1-2 c. canned enchilada sauce
• cheese

Directions:

     Fry corn tortillas in coconut oil, if desired.  Add a fine layer of enchilada sauce to a casserole dish (or large oven safe skillet) before layering tortillas and then filling.  Add a little bit of enchilada sauce with each layer of tortillas/filling, ending with a final layer of tortillas, sauce and desired amount of shredded cheese.  Bake until bubbling and cheese is melted; broil for a few minutes to get a nice cheesy crust.  Serve warm with a side salad.