I make tartar sauce similar to Country Sunshine's, but I put chopped stuffed green olives in mine. Here is my recipe for Shrimp Gumbo. I don't measure anything, but this is the basics. 2 ribs celery 1 bell pepper 1 onion Chop and set aside. In heavy skillet or stock pot, make roux of approximately equal parts flour and oil. Bacon grease is actually best...so if you have that...use that. I'd say about 1/3 cup each or a little more. Stir without stopping over medium heat until roux is very brown, but do not burn. Don't stop stirring either. Add chopped celery, onion and bell pepper. Stir it in and turn off the heat. Transfer if using a skillet to pot or if using a stock pot, add 3 to 4 cans chicken broth. Stir until the roux is dissolved, and on low heat, add a small can of tomato sauce. You can add more or chopped tomatoes. I don't like tomato pieces in mine....so I go with the sauce. I just want it to color the gumbo. The gumbo will not have a pretty color at this stage, but will as you finish it. Bring to a boil and when the celery, onion, bell peppers are cooked done, add a bag of frozen, chopped okra. When the okra is done, add shrimp. I use a lot of shrimp...and if I have crabmeat, I put that in too. You can put in any kind of seafood. Some people put in sausage, but I don't because it over powers the flavor of the gumbo. When I don't have seafood, I use chicken. Season to taste. I use Tony Chachere's creole seasoning and thyme. Tony's is flavored salt, and I use it like salt when cooking. Do not over cook the shrimp. As soon as it turns pink, or the liquid starts to boil, turn it off. Sprinkle a liberal amount of gumbo file and stir in well. That will also change the color a little bit. Stir it well so it doesn't kind of make strings in the liquid. A handful of minced green onions is good to add now too...or parsley. Serve over hot, cooked rice. (When you make the rice, put a big lump of butter in it to give it richer flavor.) My husband shrimped for 45 years...we still have couple of shrimp boats. I have cooked hundreds of pots of gumbo and this is recipe that I have worked on over the years. You could make stock from the shrimp shells, but I have found that chicken broth gives it more flavor. It doesn't taste like chicken...so no worry there. A lot of people don't like okra because they think it is slimy. Frozen okra has been blanched...so it isn't slimy. You can use fresh okra too, and it won't be slimy but I doubt any one who doesn't eat okra would believe me...so I say use frozen.

I agree on the 8 inch round pans for the coffee cake. For the casserole, butter your 8 by 11 dish very well, and pack in the frozen and well drained shredded potatoes....grate a little onion over the top...not a lot just about 2 teaspoons....enough to flavor it. Not sure what size the "packages" of hash browns are....but make the crust about 1/2 inch thick...pack the shredded potatoes in and then bake at 375 until lightly browned. That's your crust. then fill the dish with veggies of your choice...you will need 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 cups of veggies to fill the dish....and I would like a mixture of lightly sauteed onions, some red peppers, either roasted or from a jar, broccoli, maybe some cauliflower...both briefly blanched to soften a little...or previously frozen and drained, sliced sauteed mushrooms, maybe carrot buttons blanched, perhaps some dried or roasted tomatoes, maybe some water chesnuts. Just have enough veggies to fill the dish...I always have on hand a cam of sliced mushrooms and a bag of frozen broccoli in case I am short. toss with the shredded cheese and parsley and add all to the pan. Then mix up the eggs and milk...because you have used a potato crust you likely won't need all the 7 eggs and 3 cups of milk....more like 2 cups of milk and 5 eggs....with 2 tsps of worchestershire. Pour over the stuff in the pan////bake....and cool I think this recipe is better cooked right after making and reheated....rather than saving and baking later. Good luck!! Linda C

Thank you so much for the ideas and support! It turns out she has two dorm-sized fridge/freezers (one has her TV on top and I didn't notice it, lol) so she has more storage space than I'd thought. She lives nearby so DH sees her often (stops on his way home from work) but is more than willing to stop by on his way to work with food at least once a week. So far I'm using Rubbermaid-type freezer containers, the same I've always sent home leftovers in, as she has her own dishes. DH's car just had some $$$ repairs so there's no money for buying separate dishes right now - DH says the food's more important than the presentation, and his mom is very practical. So far I've got 2 containers of pasta with beefed-up marinara, 2 meals of brisket with homemade baked beans and new potatoes and 2 bowls of from-scratch, from-fresh chicken soup. It's a start. I don't think the budget would allow it (gonna be a tight holiday season) but do you think she could possibly work a bread machine? I've never used one so have no idea how difficult they are to use. If she could operate it, I may suggest it to my SIL. I'm thinking a small electric skillet and/or a small toaster/convection oven might be useful, if she has the space (and if they would be permitted).

Hi, Lars! Appreciate your reply. I've heard so many stories (myths?) about the dangers of re-heating seafood, that I'm a bit leery just thinking about this. But I suppose if the worst that can happen is that I die of botulism, it's really insignificant in the grand scheme of things! Yes, my freezer is trustworthy, and the remaining portion is a one meal size. Although if you'd care to join me here in Australia to share the meal, I can happily extend the quantity to suit the 2 of us! A couple of crusty bread rolls, some grated pecorino and freshly ground black pepper, a bottle of really good local Shiraz, followed by a cheese platter, a chilled botrytus wine, coffee, brandy and a philosophical chat would be a fine ending to the evening. And I'll even make my specialty, Indian kulfi, to cleanse the palate. Do you prefer mango or chocolate? Whaddya reckon? Regards, Shax