Adopt a new standard, and start freezing foods right as they become “leftovers”. It can change the way you use food — for the better. Following are many reasons why you should become better friends with your freezer.

Why is it called the Crisper?

From my audience I often hear about the frustration of throwing away produce that never gets used, leftover main courses that never get eaten and more. It’s a common problem. In fact comedian Jerry Seinfeld did a segment on it at a stand up show I attended that was belly-cramping funny… because we can all relate. He exclaimed, in his talk-yell tone “Why is it called the crisper?! It should be called the wilter! We don’t put vegetables in that special refrigerator drawer to crisp. We put them in there knowing full well that the next time we touch them they’ll be wilted.” Ha ha ha. Sound like a familiar scenario? There is a way around this!

Shopping Smart, Cooking Smart and Now… Freezing Smart

Shopping Smart means buying only ingredients that you know will add up to dinner. But there’s another element that follows the Shop Smart theory through to kitchen success, Cooking Smart. The main way to succeed at Cooking Smart is to get yourself in the kitchen, and dedicate yourself to playing offense and winning the cooking game. To do this you must employ good offensive strategies, just like with any sport. In the sports analogy-arena they could also be referred to as “plays”. They are strategies that help you become a success. And Smart Freezing of food is one of them.

Freezing Guidlines

I love Ziploc (or other similar brand) bags for freezing. One of the keys to freezing food without getting freezer burn is to not have the food exposed to oxygen. With Ziploc bags you can squeeze out much of the excess air that threatens the food. Bags specifically marked “freezer” on the package are thicker and therefore put up a stronger barrier between the food and air. For maximum flavor retention, you should freeze food as quickly as possible. Tips for this are to not lump too much food into a freezer container, and to also distribute to as flat a form as possible, rather than a ball of food within the bag. Another tip is to put the unfrozen food on its own shelf, rather than onto a shelf surrounded by other foods. Frozen food should be used within 3-6 months of the date it was frozen. When you are already Cooking Smart and playing the cooking game, this becomes natural.

What to Freeze

Put the freezer right in the line of activity in the Smart Cooking game. Putting leftovers into the fridge can often add stress of when to use. We often set high ambitions that we will use everything that goes into our fridge as a “leftover”, but as Seinfeld pointed out, and we all know, we don’t always do it. Why not just get the ingredients right into the freezer, and eliminate the issue? Fresh spinach and mushrooms are great examples. I love to use both vegetables fresh for salads, and in cooking, but they go bad SO quickly. The pressure of using the rest of the package in time is too great. After the first use, I take the remainder, and freeze it in sandwich-size Ziploc bags. These portions are perfect for use in soups, baked pastas, quiches, omelettes and more, and I love knowing that I alwyas have them on hand. If I’m grilling chicken, or roasting one whole, I immediately dice the leftovers and put them in the freezer in 3/4-pound portions. It’s the perfect amount for BBQ Chicken Pizza, Chicken Fried Rice, Chicken Pot Pie, soups and more. Yes, fresh is always better than frozen — but rotten and wilted are worse. And if there are items in your fridge that are coming up to their expiration dates, and you want to use them up but they aren’t “freezable items” such as eggs, make a freezable meal Make a quiche or a strata (both super easy… if you follow the 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store cooking plan, as you will have everything you need for either on hand) or a quick bread or rolls, and pop into the freezer. Voila, frozen eggs. While tomatoes aren’t something you would likely freeze, tomato sauce is! And while making a quiche or tomato sauce may sound like a lot of work to some, it is work that pays you back. You will either have full preservative-free frozen dinners made, or ingredients on hand to make great dinners, saving you time down the road, and/or trips to the store for ingredients.

Last year I was getting asked all the time if I “Super-couponed” by either passionate couponers or those who felt like they should be in on the latest thing. I get it – couponing can make the grocery store a game and the money saved can make you a winner. But like a kid who graduates from hungry Hippos to Monopoly, it’s time to learn a better game that makes more sense and works for life, both saving you money at the store and bringing you success in your kitchen. It’s called Shopping Smart.

The goal of the Shopping Smart game is to NOT have to go the store more than once every 7-10 days. And, to buy only items that can be mixed and matched to add up to dinner success in your home. Not shopping Smart would mean going to the grocery store, buying a bunch of this-and-that that looks good/is new/would be great in one dinner. Shopping Smart means going to the grocery store knowing just what items to buy because they are items that ALWAYS add up to dinner in your house. If you read my blog often, you’re used to pasta being a frequent example. Forgive me, here I go again… but I’ll throw in a side of produce too. My family loves pasta. I make it at least once a week though rarely the same way twice in a month, alternating baked pasta, mac and cheese, fettuccine, pasta with vegetables herbs and olive oil, and many of the other pasta recipes you can see on my website. The low price on pasta around here lately has been $1.39. This week a great brand was on sale for $0.79 per pound, so I bought ten pounds. I saved $5!…I won! I didn’t have to scan the papers, find the scissors, cut anything out or make sure I brought it with me, and there’s no chance that it won’t get used or will go to waste, because it’s one of my family’s Smart ingredients. Spinach is another great example. In the winter, fresh spinach can be a bit pricey. With Spring on the horizon, I found a large bag for just $2.22 at my local fresh market-type Euro grocer. I froze the majority of it in sandwich-size Ziploc bags for use in soups, pastas, pizzas, quiche, strata and more, and kept in the crisper just the amount I’m sure I’ll use before it wilts. 

As one mother of five who uses my cookbook 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store, says, the Smart shopping method is “a godsend.” This Mom, Shelly Mabe of Warren , MI, and author of the freehomeschooling.com blog, is using the cookbook to help her family get out of debt. She said “This falls right in line with our family plan to be out of debt in 1 year.” And, as a woman known for her tendency to grab her family a pizza for dinner, she is impressing her friends that she has actually making dinner every night — and that even her picky eaters loved the meals.

The fact that the “Super-coupon” phase seems to have faded speaks to it’s sustainability as a lifetime plan. By going to the store with the intention to save money using coupons you are risking two things: one is buying things that may not add up to dinner just because you have a coupon for them — and buying them in bulk for that matter. The other thing you’re sacrificing is your time. You don’t need to spend time accumulating, clipping, sorting, printing, and remembering your coupons. By buying only what adds up to dinner success you will save more money than could be put on a piece of paper. Think of it as a 40% off for life, with an added bonus of a lot of free time. And, this plan never expires!

Pasta is a Smart Ingredient in the 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store cookbook. It’s also one of the top 10 Smart ingredients in my house.

It is a great example of how shopping Smart adds up to more dinner success. Shopping Smart for Smart Ingredients means buying more of what adds up to dinner and less ingredients that you will only use for one recipe. We call these items “ingredient clutter”.

Once you understand your family’s Smart Ingredients you will never again struggle with not having things on hand you can make for dinner.

So why is pasta so Smart? For my family, pasta is a favorite main course, and also in many variations, a favorite side dish to round out almost any meal.

It can be made fresh and vegetarian with eggs as a Frittata, hearty with meat for a Baked Pasta Bolognese or Chicken Parmesan, creamy as a Fettuccine, Cajun Shrimp Pasta or a Homemade Mac and Cheese. Other favorites include Chickpea Olive Pasta Salad or Spicy Peanut Satay Noodles. Find these and other pasta recipes on the recipes area of our website. 

Knowing this, pasta is one of the things I will always make sure I have on hand. Since I know I will use it, I will dedicate much of my cabinet space to this Smart ingredient. Prices for pasta in my area range from $0.88/pound to $2.00/pound. When it’s on sale for under $1, I buy 10 packages. It is a beautiful thing to have cabinets that flow through Smart Ingredients, rather than cabinets that gather ingredient clutter that doesn’t add up to dinner success.

Dinner inspiration does not always need to come from completely new ingredients. Much greater dinner success comes from expanding on your family’s favorites within their themes. If you’ve been to one of our classes, you’ve heard me say this… easily change up your dinner menu from 3 or 4 “go-to” dishes to 20-30 just by expanding on family favorites. Anything in a tortilla (such as soft-shell tacos or Chicken Caesar Wraps), pizza and baked tilapia are a few of my family’s other favorites for dinner. I make these dishes often, but with different fillings, and different toppings, respectively. WIth just the basic ingredients from the 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store shopping list, that I always have on hand, there are more than 7 ways I can make each item. Combine that with the 7 different pasta dishes that I mentioned, and that’s 28 “go-to” recipes that my family loves that I can turn to any night of the year. And that’s just a start.

It really can be easy to win at dinner, just by changing the way you shop. Pay attention, and discover what are your family’s Smart Ingredients. Buy more of those, and less clutter, and just try not to have more dinner success, spend less at the store, and reduce stress at dinnertime… our bets are on you!

I had a great reminder of how well 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store works this week. We had a busier-than-usual week. In addition, I tried to spend very little on groceries. I spent a total of $100 for the week for our family of five… which for me is very little. This included all of our fresh fruit and breakfast items, but also the 14 items on the 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store weekly shopping list.

This list includes:

• Milk
• Eggs
• Butter
• Shredded Cheddar cheese
• Mozzarella cheese
• Green Peppers
• Mushrooms
• Lettuce
• Tomato
• Bread/Rolls
• Chicken
• Ground Beef
• Fish Fillets
• Tortillas

Combined with the Smart Ingredients that I have stocked in my cabinets, I love that there are so many things I can make, every night this week, using what I have. Tonight we are having Homemade Pizza and Pizza Salad (one of the very best from the 30 Spectacular Salads cookbook). Tomorrow is Chicken Fried Rice with peppers, onions and mushrooms, and the next day is Chicken Fajitas. Beyond that I’m not sure, but it’s nice knowing that I don’t have to plan and yet know that I will have everything I need to make dinner.

My weekly stock up was all fresh ingredients. While I may use some processed foods this week in my meals, the majority of what goes on my table is fresh. And even if you use some packaged shortcuts, know that if you are cooking a fresh meal you are still many steps closer to healthy eating than if you were eating out or wholly-processed pre-packaged dinner.

I was on a frugal cooking chat group for a while. I learned some very interesting tips and recipes for how to eat extremely frugal (who knew you could make burgers out of ramen noodles??). While I was entertained, I was also affirmed that my strategies were innovative and that 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store does frugal in a way that does not have to equal unappetizing or processed foods. If you are looking for a way to save money on groceries, or just to be able to make dinner every night without a trip to the store, try our book. It will pay for itself many times.

Is organizing the dinner process on your list of resolutions for 2012? 

Together, let’s tackle this. Organizing Dinner looks forward to helping you, and showing you it’s much easier than you might think. We have simple strategies that have been working for hundreds of happy cooks over the years. Here’s a recap of some of the simple steps we recommend:

Step 1 – Play on the Offense

Approach the cooking process like a sport. Prepare yourself with the right equipment. Have a game plan. Make it a game plan for life (every time you set out to play your favorite sport again you don’t recreate your plan — build on the skills you’ve already honed). Practice. And most important, show up “ready to play”. This means get in there and using the Smart Ingredients you have, make the most of your time in the kitchen, work efficiently, and use strategies that are aimed at saving time and money and streamlining the process to WIN the dinner game.

Step 2 – Shop Smart

Whether you buy and use the 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store cookbook, or follow your own list of stock up Smart ingredients, focus on those for the year ahead. Cut out all the ingredient clutter. This means don’t buy things necessarily because they are just on sale or you have a coupon, but rather buy more of the things you know you will use many times, and less of the things you know you will use once, if ever. The result: ALWAYS have many options on hand that you can make for dinner.

Step 3 — Gifts to Yourself

Make the most of your time in the kitchen. There are many things you can multitask in the kitchen that later result in gifts to yourself. For example, while simmering one dish, prep ahead for the next meal or tomorrow. When grilling chicken or browning ground beef, make double and freeze half for a future meal. Use the leftovers in your fridge to create a great soup or second meal. See our website and 40 Dinner Duos, Cook Once Eat Twice for recipe ideas.

 Step 4 — Stay Tuned

Organizing Dinner provides new tips, strategies and recipes for dinner success each week. Our past blog posts are full of them. We offer in-home classes in many major markets. And we are always here if you have a cooking question. E-mail info@organizingdinner.com, or post on our Facebook page.

Yes, we are a bit behind, but no less in the giving mood… Reply to this post to be entered to win a FREE copy of “70 Meals, One Trip to the Store.”

Every month in 2011 we are giving away a copy of our best-selling cookbook to a lucky blog subscriber. Here is some feedback from one of our recent recipients:

“We are really enjoying trying the recipes in your cookbook.  We especially like the Parmesan Crusted Fish Filet and the Black Bean Tortilla bake. Living in Northern Minnesota it can sometimes be difficult to get to the store at a moments’ notice.  I’m using the tips in your cookbook and on your website to help cut down the number of times that I need to go to the store.  This will be especially helpful come winter. This will save us big time on gas and on grocery costs as I can stock up when there are sales.”       — Rose

Thanks Rose. Those are two of my favorite recipes too. The Parmesan Crusted Fish recipe is one of the easiest I have for achieving great flavor in fish with about two steps and two minutes prep time. A quick 20 minute bake in the oven, and you have an incredibly delicious dish. And the Tortilla Bake is one of those gem recipes where you combine four simple ingredients and come away with a ton of flavor. Glad you are enjoying the book and the convenience/cost-savings it provides you and your family!

The recipe I want to share with you this week is one I created for the Apple Fest Celebration at the Olive Tap last weekend: Pork Empanadas using the Olive Tap’s Cinnamon Apple Balsamic Vinegar. (You can order the Cinnamon Apple Vinegar at theolivetap.com. Or substitute cider vinegar with a 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon.) The smell the simmering meat generated through the store was amazing.

Pork Empanadas

You know I’m not a fan of freeze-ahead meals, but freeze-ahead ingredients that can be used for a fresh, homemade meal I’m all for. One that works the best in my opinion is seasoned cooked chicken. Chicken is one of those meal bases that I call a palette. A great neutral meal base that tastes great with dozens of preparations. And when seasoned with my favorite poultry seasoning, Vegeta, it provides a rich flavor in so many recipes. I know Vegeta is not easy to find in stores, so we are now offering Vegeta for sale through our website. We will ship it direct to you to help you have dinner success in your home. And for this month only, we are having two giveaways… one copy of 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store, and one can of Vegeta, to two separate winners. (All you have to do is comment on this blog post to be entered to win.)

To plan ahead for this busy time of year, season several pounds of chicken meat with Vegeta or other poultry seasoning, and cook over medium heat in a touch of olive oil for approximately 20 minutes or until cooked through. Alternately, you can grill your chicken, or bake your chicken at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Cool the chicken and dice into 3/4-inch cubes. Place approximately 2 cups of chicken each in Ziploc bags. Here are 5 of the many recipes from the 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store cookbook in which you can use the pre-cooked chicken for delicious, fresh and EASY weeknight meals. Others include Chicken Cacciatore, Chicken Stir-Fry, Chicken Stroganoff, Barbecue Chicken Pizza and Chicken Fajitas.

Chicken Fried Rice

Chicken Strata

Grecian Chicken

Ingredients

• 1 bag of 2 cups diced pre-cooked chicken
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1  14-ounce can marinated artichoke hearts
• 1  14-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained of most of the liquid
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 2 cups cooked rice

Cook rice according to package directions. Add remaining ingredients to crock pot or pot on stove and cook over medium heat until well blended.

Chicken Pot Pie

Ingredients

• 1 2-cup bag of diced chicken
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1/4 onion, diced
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 -1/2 cups chicken broth, or broth made with Vegeta
• 2 cups mixed vegetables (typically peas, carrots, green beans and corn)
• 2 crust pie crust

Thaw chicken and vegetables (if frozen). Mold one pie crust into the bottom of a 9″ pie plate. In a large pan, Make a roux by melting butter and stirring in flour, salt and pepper until thick. Add onions and broth, and stir until smooth. Add milk, and continue stirring until thick and bubbly. Blend in chicken and mixed vegetables. Cool slightly and pour into prepared pie dish. Top with second crust and seal edge. Cut slits in top of crust. Use a pie shield or place tinfoil around edges to prevent excess browning. Bake at 400 degrees F for 45 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Chicken Caesar Wraps

Ingredients

• 1 bag 2-cups pre-cooked chicken
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 4 tortillas
• 2 cups lettuce, diced

Whisk egg, oil, salt, pepper, garlic, cheese and lemon juice for dressing. Add chicken to dressing to coat. Spoon 1/4 mixture into each of 4 tortillas, and add equal amounts of lettuce to each. Roll to form wraps.

I’m excited about what’s on sale this week. And this back-to-school sale isn’t about backpacks and school supplies. It’s on dinner supplies that can get us one step closer to dinner success this school year. Right now ground beef is $1.99/pound in the Chicago suburbs, about a dollar less than it has been the rest of the year. As an added bonus, pork roast is $1.50 pound. This is fantastic just in time for the school year and after-school activities. It is time to stock up on both. Being prepared for busy weeknight dinners during the school year does not mean you have to revamp your life, commit to a new “plan” or otherwise stress yourself out. It just requires thinking ahead, and playing the dinner game on the offensive. Come to the game prepared to win. For example, if your family likes ground beef and/or pork for dinner, there are a multitude of options you can make just by having those two basic ingredients on hand. The 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store cookbook includes 20 recipes that are based on ground beef. Since the recipes all include only items you are likely to have on hand at home (whether or not you use the book’s shopping list) that means without stress there are any number of dinners you can make using ground beef, such as tacos, enchiladas, spaghetti and meatballs, salisbury steak, chopped steak, hamburgers, beef stroganoff and more.

There are also many, many ways to cook a pork roast. My favorites include shredded barbecue pork in the crock pot or pork roast with mango salsa, or teriyaki glaze, and use the leftovers another night that week to make one of the many dinner duos from 40 Dinner Duos that include pork, such as pork fried rice, or chipotle pork sandwiches.

Shop smart for yourself this back-to-school season, not just for the kids, and prepare yourself with cabinets full of Smart ingredients that add up to dinner success.

September’s blog posts will focus on quick and easy weeknight dinners such as crock pot cooking and cook once, eat twice. Please share our blog link with any friends you think might be interested in these recipes. We appreciate it!

I was in Wisconsin’s beautiful North Woods last week, and as always when I travel, I looked for local food inspiration to bring to my kitchen and to you. The best thing I ate in the North Woods was an Olive Burger from The Bear in Stone Lake. This half-pound burger was topped with a generous helping of soft white cheese and a generous helping of sliced green olives. Other than high-quality meat and a fluffy toasted bun, that was all that was needed to make one of the best burgers I ever ate. I would recommend cream cheese to create this burger in your own kitchen, and some steak seasoning in your burger meat.

When I got home, I had to go to a get-together and didn’t have time to run to the store. So olives and cheese again were key players in helping me create a great dish with what I had on hand. I made the following pasta salad that was a unique blend of hearty chickpeas and sauteed vegetables.

Chickpea Olive Pasta Salad

• 1 (16 ounce) package pasta
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup chopped olives (I used a combination of canned black olives, and kalamata)
• 2 tablespoons minced oregano
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 2 tablespoons onions, chopped
• 1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained and rinsed
• 1/4 cup balsamic (or other red) vinegar
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• salt and pepper to taste

Cook pasta according to al dente package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water. In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium low heat. Add the olives, oregano, parsley, onions and chickpeas. Cook over low heat for about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool. In a large bowl toss the pasta with the chickpea mixture. Add the vinegar, grated cheese and salt and pepper to taste. Chill in refrigerator. When ready to serve taste for seasoning and add more vinegar, olive oil and salt and pepper if desired.

And since I was away during the end of the month, it is late… but still here! Please comment on this blog post to be entered to win July’s FREE cookbook giveaway of 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store. Recent month’s winners, we’re still waiting to hear your feedback, so please send it along in the form of a blog post comment or e-mail to info@organizingdinner.com. Happy cooking everyone!

If you’ve come to my demos, or are a loyal blog reader, you’ve likely heard me talk about some of these before. Today, I want to give you a recap of a few of my favorite Smart Ingredients and the ways I have been using them for great flavor and health impacts in my cooking. We’re also including Smart ingredients with all purchases from our website this week. . . and it’s Giveaway Time! (Read on for details.)

Vegeta

Vegeta is my favorite seasoning. It’s made from dehydrated vegetables, and has a fantastic flavor. I use this powder to season all my poultry, as the base for all of my soups and gravies, and to add great flavor to my mashed potatoes and rice pilafs, replacing 3/4 of the butter usually used for flavor and moisture.

Greek Yogurt

I keep Greek yogurt, such as this one from Fage, on hand all the time. I use it as a straight substitute for sour cream in dips, potatoes and fajitas, often to replace mayonnaise, and as an addition to many of my baked goods. If a recipe calls for buttermilk, I use equal parts Greek yogurt and milk to substitute for the buttermilk quantity (It’s much easier than keeping Buttermilk on hand, which I rarely use). When I am making biscuits or cake that call for just milk, I always blend the milk with the Greek yogurt for added creaminess and moisture. Greek yogurt not only has less fat, calories, and additives than sour cream, but a hearty serving of natural protein, which is great for any diet. It also has great flavor and is very filling.

Vinegar and lemon juice 

Making a potato or pasta salad this summer? Chances are that many of you will. And before you go to mix them up with mayonnaise or oil, try this: Immediately after boiling your potatoes or pasta, rinse in cold water until fully cool, and then douse in the juice of one lemon, or a half cup of vinegar. Stir to blend. This will seal in the moisture. Once you’ve done this, you will need less than half of the oil or mayonnaise you would normally use. In fact, we encourage you to use even less, and instead dress up your salad with fun vinegars, such as Sicilian Lemon Balsamic Vinegar or the Oregano White Balsamic Vinegar from the Olive Tap. Add to that your choice of fresh herbs such as rosemary, basil, oregano, parsley or dill, basic seasonings such as salt, pepper, onions and garlic, and fresh vegetables that add a flavor punch such as onions, peppers, cucumbers and more.

It’s time for some FREE Smart Ingredients. I know the Vegeta is hard to find. I hope to start offering it for sale on the Organizing Dinner website soon. In the meanwhile, for just this week, we are going to including an 8.8 ounce can of it, RED STAR yeast, and other FREE Smart Ingredients with any order from Organizingdinner.com. This includes cookbooks, cookware and cooking classes. Order by Friday, July 1st.

It’s also the end of the month giveaway time! Comment on this blog post to be entered to win a FREE copy of 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store. Our randomly-chosen winner will be notified via e-mail on Friday, July 1st.