A Simple Thing We All Can Do

March 19, 2020March 19, 2020Leave a comment

This is a strange time for me—and for all of us!

Just ten days ago, I flew home from a speaking engagement through Philadelphia—not knowing this would be the last time I would work for (quite possibly) months.

Five days ago, I cried on my way home from the grocery store because the shelves were bare—I was making dinner for another family and was unable to find enough chicken for my own. (We found what we needed and all is well now, but initially, this was a shock for me and I cried overwhelming tears from shock and uncertainty.)

Today, I am investigating how to do remote learning alongside my four elementary-aged children and managing my pandemic-induced agoraphobia and obsessive compulsive disorder.

I am doing the best I can.

Because I know I am doing my best to manage all of the uncertainty in my life, this leads me to compassion—my compassion allows me to see: you are doing the best you can too!

In this time of social distancing, we need to show up for people in new ways.

We can write letters—a lost art I long to grow in!

We can make phone calls.

We can engage in someone’s social media post instead of scrolling past it—as if we didn’t see it.

We can like someone’s video or attempt at doing the best they can with balancing work and school from home.

We can comment—great article, good job, or I am here—when we see people we know doing the best they can.

We can encourage.

The simplest thing we can do at this time is redeem social media and be kind to one another.

In this strange time of social distancing, social media will become a main source of connection for many.

Be kind.

You never know the battles, fears, and uncertainties people are dealing with.

Like more, comment more, engage more.

Watch someone’s at home workout video and comment, “Great job, thank you for teaching me.”

You never know who in your feed may need some encouragement at the exact moment you see their post.

Being kind on social media is a simple thing we all can do to show love and be intentional about pursuing connections during this strange time.

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you (Ephesians 4:32).

30 Simple Freezer Meals

February 28, 2018Leave a comment

Every other month I prepare close to thirty meals for my freezer. I am a mom to four kids, a wife to a busy pastor, and I need dinner to be thought for and simple.

I am not a culinary wizard. All of these meals are super easy. All these meals are yummy. And my kids will eat most of these meals. My husband is also a happy camper because this way of cooking saves us money. When I have a plan for dinner, we order pizza and eat out less. I also don’t spend extra money of foods we don’t eat. We eat every meal I make over the course of six weeks. If my husband is happy and my kids are eating, I’m a happy mom.

Yesterday I did a facebook live video to show my friends how easy it is to prep these meals, and I was asked to share some of the recipes. Most of these recipes us Wildtree ingredients. Wildtree is a company that sells USDA organic, preservative free sauces and seasonings. I love Wildtree, but I do not sell Wildtree. I have a few friends that do and I’d be happy to point you in their direction.

If you don’t use Wildtree products, don’t let that stop you from making a few freezer meals. Most of these seasonings can be found in the aisles of your local grocery store. I said this in my Facebook Live video yesterday, this is about what do you already have, and what is easy to make. In January I was low on all my favorite Wildtree seasonings and I just worked with what I had in my pantry. In January, I made enough meals to stock my freezer until the end of February.

We buy all our ground beef, steaks, salmon, chicken, and pork at Costco. My husband actually does all the shopping. Realistically he spent $140 on proteins at Costco, $30 on pantry staples, and I just went to a Wildtree party to restock my favorite items, I spent $180. The Wildtree and pantry staples will last me about a year, the $180 Wildtree cost is not an every time Freezer Meal expense. Even if it was, we spent $350 dollars on dinners that will last us six weeks (conservative estimate, sometimes they last eight weeks). According to my math, it will cost us about $55.00 a week to feed my family of six dinner. That sounds pretty good. It costs us $35.00 to eat at Chick-fil-a just one time.

Recipes. I’m going to share them in the order I made them on the Facebook Live video. Here is the link to the facebook video:

Pork Freezer Meals:

One package of pork tenderloins from Costco, contains 4 tenderloins, cost ~$20. Eight meals.

Asian Pulled Pork Sandwiches *feeds my family 2 nights

One tenderloin

1/2 cup frozen chopped onions

1/2 cup Asian Zing Buffalo Wild Wings Sauce

2 Tablespoons of Sesame Oil

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Crock on low from frozen for 6-8 hours. Serve on sandwiches.

Mojo Pork Tacos *feeds my family 2 nights

One Tenderloin

1/2 jar of Wildtree Mojo Sauce

Asian Pork Tenderloin *feeds us two nights, a family favorite

Two tenderloins

1/2 cup soy sauce

2 1/2 Tablespoon sesame oil

2 Tablespoon minced garlic

2 Teaspoon lime juice

2 teaspoon rice wine vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon sugar

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Defrost bag, sear defrosted loin in a hot pan, bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.

Ground beef Freezer Meals:

One package of ground beef from Costco, divided into four gallon ziplock bags. ~$20, for seven meals.

Not So Sloppy Sliders, feeds my family 2 nights

Ground Beef

1/2 cup chopped frozen onion

1 teaspoon mustard

3T Sloppy Joe Blend (Wildtree, can be and sloppy Joe seasoning)

1 6oz jar of tomato paste (I subbed ketchup)

1 teaspoon light brown sugar

Best Burgers Ever *feeds my family 1 night

Ground Beef

1 Tablespoon Chipotle Lime Rub (Wildtree)

1 Teaspoon Ranch Steak Rub (Wildtree)

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Defrost bag, then pay ground beef to form burgers. Grill.

Hearty Spaghetti Sauce, feeds my family 2 nights

Ground Beef

2 Tablespoons Minced Garlic

1/2 cup chopped onions

1 can diced tomatoes

2 Tablespoons Smoked Tomato Mozzarella Blend (Wildtree)

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Defrost bag. Brown seasoned ground beef in skillet. Add red spaghetti sauce of choice. Toss with pasta.

Hearty Meatloaf, feeds my family 2 nights

Ground Beef

1 cup of breadcrumbs

2 eggs, beaten

2 tsp garlic galore seasoning (Wildtree)

1/2 cup onion

4 Tablespoon Smoked Tomato Mozzarella Blend

1/2 cup ketchup

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Defrost bag in fridge. Shape into a loaf pan. Bake in the oven 400 degrees, 40 minutes.

Salmon Freezer Meals:

purchased at Costco ~$25. Cut into 10 fillets to feed our family three nights

Salmon Scampi

2 Tablespoons Wildtree Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil

2 Tablespoon Wildtree Scampi Blend

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Defrost bag in fridge. Grill salmon fillets.

Chipotle Ranch Salmon

2 Tablespoons Wildtree Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil

2 Tablespoons Wildtree Chipotle Ranch Seasoning

Wicked Good Salmon, a family favorite

Salmon Fillets

1/2 cup of Wicked Good Sauce

2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Defrost bag in fridge. Bake Salmon on a lined or greased baking sheet. 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

Steak Freezer Meals:

We chose Ribeyes from Costco, we get whatever is a good deal. ~30 for two meals

My Favorite Steak Rub

1 Tablespoon Wildtree Garlic Galore

1 Tablespoon Italian Dressing Mix

1 Tablespoon Wildtree Ranch Steak Rub

2-3 Tablespoons Wildtree Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Defrost bag in fridge. Grill steaks.

My Favorite Marinade

1/2 cup Soy Sauce.

2 TBSP olive oil.

1/2 cup brown sugar.

1/2 tsp Season All {or any type of all-purpose seasoning salt}

1/4 tsp ground ginger.

1/4 tsp black pepper.

1/4 tsp garlic powder.

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Defrost bag in fridge. Grill steaks.

Chicken Freezer Meals:

we chose 24 chicken breasts from Costco, ~50 about 12 meals

Sweet Onion Chicken, one meal

3 chicken breasts

1/2 jar of Wildtree Sweet Onion Spread

Ranch Chicken Chili, 2 meals, a family favorite

3 chicken breasts

1 bag frozen corn

1 can diced tomatoes

4 Tablespoons Chick Broth

1 bag of Wildtree Creamy Ranch Mix (Or 2 1/2 Tablespoons of Ranch Dip Mix)

1/2 teaspoon of Wildtree Spicy Carne Asada Seasoning

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Can put this bag in frozen, in the crock pot. In the last 30 minutes of slow cooking, stir in one block of room temperature cream cheese cut into cubes.

Lemon Dijon Chicken, 1 meal

3 chicken Breasts

1 Tablespoon Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil

1 Tablespoon Wildtree European Dipping Oil-Balsamic

1 Tablespoon Lemon Pepper

1 Tablespoon Red Bell Pepper and Garlic Seasoning

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Defrost bag in fridge. Grill Chicken

Honey Balsamic Chicken, one meal, a family favorite

3 Chicken Breasts

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/2 cup Wildtree European Dipping Oil, Balsamic

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup brown sugar

Chipotle Pineapple Chicken, one meal

3 Chicken Breasts

1/2 jar of Wildtree Chipotle Pineapple Marinade

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Defrost bag in fridge. Grill.

Chicken Scampi, 2 meals, a family favorite

3 chicken breasts

3 Tablespoons Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

3 Tablespoons Wildtree Scampi Blend

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Defrost bag in fridge. Bake in a preheat oven. 350 degrees, 30 minutes. Add to pasta and cream sauce.

Zesty Lime Fajitas, 2 meals

3 Chicken Breasts

1/2 cup onion

1 teaspoon lime juice

2 Tablespoons Wing Sauce

2 Tablespoons Roasted Garlic Grapeseed Oil

2 Tablespoons Taco Seasoning

1 teaspoon Wildtree Ranch Steak Rub

Add all ingredients to a gallon ziplock, smoosh the ingredients around from outside of the bag. Double bag, label with a sharpie. When it comes time to cook. Defrost bag in fridge. Or dump in crock pot from frozen. Defrosted bag can cook for 4 hours on low. Frozen bag, 6-8 hours on low.

Chicken Tacos, a family favorite, 2 meals

3 Chicken Breasts

1 cup chicken broth

3 Tablespoons of Taco Seasoning

Happy Freezer Meal Making!

Kroger Online Ordering

August 10, 2015August 10, 20153 Comments

There are so many reasons why I am thankful to be a mother in 2015. TiVo is probably the first, not churning my own butter second and the crock pot and the wrinkle free setting on the dryer are tied up for third.

Kroger is now stepping up their online ordering and I have to say, the ability to order my groceries online and pick them up at the store the next day may be better than TiVo.

Yesterday I logged onto Kroger’s Online Ordering website using only my email, a password and my Kroger Plus Card Number. The website already had all my purchases from the last four months stored from the times I’ve used my Plus Card and all I had to do was go through and check off what I needed.

I then selected a store near me to pick up my groceries. You pick a store and a time. Then you get an email saying Kroger received your order and you get another email when your groceries are ready for pick up.

I was so excited to load up my four kids and PICK UP MY GROCERIES. I was even more excited because it was pouring rain and I didn’t have to run four kids into a grocery store.

We pulled in near the pharmacy window to a clearly marked door.

I pulled into a clearly marked space.

I pushed a clearly marked button and told the online ordering angels my name.

My kids were so happy and they could not believe what was happening.

An online ordering angel pulled my groceries out to my car and I paid him from my front seat. You can also give him your coupons if you have them.

The angel then loaded my car.

And we were on our way home in less than ten minutes.

The kids gave Kroger Online Ordering TWO THUMBS UP!

And I was leaping for joy.

You have to try this.

The first three visits are free and then the fee for online ordering is $4.95.

Find participating stores below.

Liberty Twp 7300 Yankee Rd Liberty Township, OH 45044

Lebanon 1425 Columbus Ave Lebanon, OH 45036

Springfield Twp. 8421 Winton Rd Cincinnati, OH 45231

Easy Freezer Meals

July 4, 2014February 20, 20161 Comment

The name of my cooking game is efficiency. I cook for efficiency only.

If your looking for Martha Stewart caliber dinners or dinners that would impress your all-natural-eating-yogi neighbor, you will not find that here.

If you are looking for simple efficient ways to feed your family then welcome to my blog and I am excited to share my time and money saving ways of prepping and freezing dinners with you.

**A note about me: I am a stay at home mom with four kids, three boys ages 5, almost 4 and 2, and a 7 month old daughter. My kids are all little so my dinners may stretch a little farther than yours because my young children eat like they have like tummies. And my sweet husband… I never put anything in front of him that he does not in return tell me, “this is the best dinner I’ve ever had, thank you for making dinner.” He is very gracious husband.

I cook for mostly children so almost everything on here is kid tested and approved.

In this post you will find two different sets of recipes. A starter freezer meal recipe list and the mother-load of recipes.

The starter list contains mostly crock pot recipes with simple ingredients to just get your feet wet in the world of freezer meal cooking. I even have included a list of ingredients at the end of this post.

The mother-load recipe list is if you are a go getter, sleeves rolled up and game face on ready to bust out an entire day of productivity. You will be tired but at the end you will be thrilled with all you accomplished in one day!

I prefer to shop one day and cook the next so I am only focused on one thing at a time. I do not feel any shame in putting a movie on for my kids or sending them out with their dad so I can get my cooking done. I also sacrifice my beloved nap on cooking day. Like I said: game face.

You will need:

Plenty of Ziplock Freezer Bags (I double bag everything)

Sharpie

Aluminum Foil Pans (I’ve heard from a friend you can buy these in bulk at Sam’s Club)

Saran Wrap or Wax Paper

Aluminum Foil

Cutting Board and good knives

Empty Dishwasher (I like to clean as I go)

Empty trash can (I don’t have time to waste taking out the garbage)

Apron (Check out ckstitches on etsy for cute handmade aprons from a friend.)

For Freezer Space:

I don’t keep much in my freezer except my dinners, Eggos (my middle two sons love Eggos), Chicken Nuggets, Popsicles, Uncrustables and steam fresh vegetables.

I have a freezer that is a pull out freezer underneath my fridge. I ditch all the bulky packaging of the Eggos, Popsicles, Uncrustables and those are all loose or in ziplocks in the top two drawers of my freezer. This leaves the two deeper bottom cavities of the freezer strictly for meals. You can also stagger when you buy your freezer junk. If you know your cooking at the beginning of the month maybe wait until mid month to restock your chicken nuggets and corn dogs when you’ve depleted your dinner stash a little.

Also, do not forget to press all the air out of your ziplock bags.

For Planning:

I have a dry erase monthly calendar on my refrigerator where I plan out all our meals. I have also found it helpful to plan in iCalendar on my iPhone or iMac. Then your planning is saved electronically.

For weekly planning I have an old picture frame on my counter which I have put cheery scrapbook paper inside and scrapbooking sticker letters. I write out what we are eating weekly in dry erase marker on the glass.

I pull meals from the freezer two-three at a time the day before I need the first one and keep them in the fridge.

For Fun:

I like productive cooking with a friend. Someone needs to pack up their stuff in a cooler and someone needs to share their kitchen but it is fun being productive and kicking mom life butt when you’re doing it with someone else.

Please share your pictures with me of your freezer meal cooking productivity on Instagram @rachelann314 . We can all kick mom life butt together and celebrate all productivity.

Cheers to cooking for efficiency. Recipes found in the links below.

The Starter Recipes

Starter Recipes Grocery List

The Mother-Load

Shopping List For Starter Freezer Meals

July 4, 2014July 4, 20141 Comment

Proteins

12 Chicken Breasts (one large package of chicken breasts from Costco)
A package of pork tenderloin (costco)
5 lbs of hamburger
1 package of flank steaks

***i will cook 4 of the chicken breasts and 1 pound of the hamburger the night before

Other

Gallon Ziplock Freezer Bags (enough to double bag)
4 large onions
Celery
Carrots
Breadcrumbs ***
2Eggs
Minced Garlic
Large Container Chicken Broth
1 can whole cranberry sauce
Orange juice
Sugar ***
Brown sugar ***
Cloves ***
Pepper ***
Chunky applesauce
BBQ sauce ***
Chili powder ***
Taco seasoning ***
1 can diced tomatoes
2 cans beef consumme
Frozen tortellini
Frozen green beans
Cumin ***
Frozen Corn
1 can whole peeled tomatoes
1 can enchilada sauce
1 can chopped green chile peppers
Bay leaf ***
Cilantro
Ranch Dressing Mix (2)
Italian dressing mix (3)
Olive Oil***
Medium Red and Green Bell Pepper
Dijon Mustard***
Red Wine Vinegar***

***these things you may already have

Rachel Craddock

Category: Life Simplified

A Simple Thing We All Can Do

30 Simple Freezer Meals

Kroger Online Ordering

Easy Freezer Meals

Shopping List For Starter Freezer Meals

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