Request for freezer soup recipes and a Pizza story

14 years ago

A good friend will be having spinal surgery next week, and I'd like to make a few batches of soup or other things for her freezer. If you have suggestions for things that are pretty simple and freeze well, I'd appreciate some ideas. I've got a batch of squash enchiladas and some lasagna already.

Now the pizza story! A while ago, I asked for ideas for cheese-less pizza toppings for a pizza party including a lactose intolerant friend. You folks came through with great ideas and someone asked for photos.

I had your great toppings planned, the dough came out fabulous, the friends brought beer and wine... and my oven wouldn't ignite.

Gnashing of teeth and colorful language followed to o avail, so we had store pizza with my planned salad and after a beer I could laugh. Fast forward several weeks and I have a new range with convection oven. Now I'm cooking! So thanks for the earlier tips, here are some photos of pizza from my amazing new oven.

Featured Answer

nancyofnc

14 years ago

My family favorite for storing in the freezer is Leek and Potato Soup. It is simple to make; easy to defrost; it is nutritious and easily digested. It can be served with some cream added when hot, or chilled with a side of sliced cucumbers and tomatoes and crusty bread. There are a ton of recipes out there, but I stick with a couple pats of butter to soften finely sliced leeks and onions, adding plain old chicken broth, diced potatoes, s&p, and a bit of thyme. I think it tastes better chunky than it does pureed. (P.S. If it is chilled it is called Vichyssoise so they can charge more at the restaurant).

Nancy

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Comments (10)

Teresa_MN
14 years ago
"Gnashing of teeth and colorful language" - always a quick fix in a tight situation. LOL

Glad your next attempt worked well. The pizza looks fabulous.

Teresa - who is envious of your new oven!
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Create your own recipe to be famous for. If I had to write down and create a specific recipe it would mostly be needed for a list of ingredients. So many need to know what is in a recipe, likes and dislikes and allergies. Or veg/meat preferences. The soup I make 'famously' is more method than recipe. I have a shelf in the door of my upright freezer for fast soups. Straight from the freezer. No thawing needed. (we often cannot plan even the morning ahead)...if I'm home late, no at all hungry, DH is home early but famished....in the pot, 1/2hour, 45 min done. low simmer and ready when settled in after pup attention, laundry etc. I try to keep 6-8 quarts at all times...down to two now. Neighbors, friends, co-workers, for illness, sadness, expecting mothers, a co-worker was due Jan 1 but delivered Dec 21. She was at work Dec 20th! . (healthy and beautiful baby)...saw her yesterday. Take a good look at your two recipes you posted. Cioppino And potato leek. Your Cioppino base stock/broth...use beef, veg,or chicken stock instead of fish/clam broth...easy on the tomato paste...I use a few soft sun-dried tomatoes. (garden harvest). Even good canned tins whole toms roasted..and roast your veg. leek tops that are usually tossed or composted make a great stock ingredient. For us and my parents I freeze stocks and various grains, beans, and greens in smaller containers to mix-n-match. I'm guessing these soups will be frozen? The method I speak of is packing containers with greens first, fresh or blanched, then chilled cooked proteins, (chicken, ham, etc) then veg grains beans...veg sautéed in broth, room temp or chilled. Ladle veg/broth/stock over the greens/protein and freeze. When reheating the greens will be the last to heat/thaw in the pot and never get overcooked like whole pot soups. Same with the previously cooked proteins. Upside down the broth/stock reheats first. I just call it 'storm' soup as it is the easiest all-in-one meal during snow and power outages or just tired and overworked. Cheese, avocado, croutons, etc, just garnish if I have it.
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lindac
14 years ago
Tomato basil soup

1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 large clove fresh garlic
1 T. butter
1 T olive oil
Sweat the vegetables in the butter and oil in a 4 qt heavy pan until soft but not browned.
6 tomatoes, or amount to equal 5 cups
1 qt chicken broth (home made is best...boxed if you must)
1/2 tsp ground dry hatch chilis
2 T chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup chiffonade of fresh basil.
Peel and chop the tomatoes and add to the pot with the veggies, stir and cook until all it warm and beginning to yield the juice. Add the chili powder and the chicken broth to the pot and simmer until all is thoroughly cooked, about an hour.
Taste for seasoning, add salt if necessary and perhaps lemon if the tomatoes are very sweet....or a teaspoon of sugar if too sour.
Add the chopped herbs, remove from the heat and stir until well wilted and serve.
Linda C
annie1992
14 years ago
Muffins and breads freeze well, as does cookie dough or baked cookies and cupcakes without frosting.

Pizza freezes nicely, as do calzones, cabbage rolls, savory pies like chicken or beef pot pie, meatballs and pot roast!

Anyway, soup. One of my favorites is beef vegetable, but I have no recipe. I take every vegetable that I can get my hands on and chop them up. Chop up some beef into bite sized pieces, brown in the pan with some onion and celery. Add a couple of quarts of water and all the vegetables and cook until everything is done. Add salt, pepper, herbs. I like tarragon. If I have a jar of tomatoes open I'll add that, or leftover spaghetti sauce or whatever is in there. Leftover gravy? In it goes. Part of a jar of home canned beef stock? Double bonus, into the pot. I've used hamburger in this, venison, leftover steak, Italian sausage, kielbasa or a mixture of things, it's all good.

I keep adding to the pot, adjusting seasonings, until it tastes good and the refrigerator is cleaned. (grin) It's never failed, but sometimes it grows quite large, which is how I know it freezes well!

Good luck to your friend, I hope she comes through with flying colors.

Annie
User
14 years ago
Spectacular looking Pizzas. Everyone of them. Your crust looks amazing.

~Ann
teresa_nc7
14 years ago
Great looking pizzas!

Here is a link to several variations of pasta casseroles using Mornay cheese sauce that I recently found. This type of casserole can be found in the grocery freezer case, so I think these would freeze just fine.

Teresa

Here is a link that might be useful: casseroles on Zestuous.com
mabeldingeldine_gw
Original Author
14 years ago
Thanks for the ideas! Got the potato leek soup going now, and will be making a pot of the tomato soup later today. I don't have any dried hatch chile powder, but am very curious about it. I think I'll have to find some online to give it a try. I don't have any fresh basil, either, but have some basil butter in the freezer from the garden.

Another question: How about freezing a soup with cooked beans in it -- do the beans lost their shape/texture if frozen? Sorry for all the questions, but I rarely make soup ahead to freeze as the freezer is always full from the garden!
lindac
14 years ago
Cooked beans in the freezer work very well.

The tomato basil soup you know works best during tomato season....but canned tomatoes work too....as does basil butter.
Hatch chili powder has a full "chili" flavor without a lot of heat. When I am in Santa Fe...I buy it by the pound! Penzey's carries it too.
anoriginal
14 years ago
If you're making soup to freeze... suggest you try to find containers that are just the right size for 1-2 servings, unless person getting it would use larger quantity. Can't think of any soup that doesn't freeze fine.

Your pizzas look great! If an outdoor grill is available, you can make them on that. My sister puts her dough directly on the grates, but I prefer to start on a lightly sprayed hunka foil.
mabeldingeldine_gw
Original Author
14 years ago
Lindac, I'm using my home canned roasted tomato sauce and frozen whole tomatoes. So far it looks and smells great!

klseiverd, I often grill pizza in the summer. Alas, the grill is still in storage, but with the early spring, I hope it will be outside soon. And good idea about the freezing! I would have forgotten to freeze smaller portions for my friend. Thanks!

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