Beef Freezer Meals

As promised here are the recipes for the 3 hour cooking marathon. For detailed instructions of how to prepare 5 freezer meals in 3 hours go here.

Home-Style Meat Loaf $2.76
½ c. chopped onions .20
1 lb. Ground beef 1.99
2 large eggs .16
2 c. fresh breadcrumbs or crushed saltines .25
½ c. water free
¼ c. ketchup .10
2 T. chopped fresh parsley or 1 t. dried .02
1 t. salt .01
¼ t. ground black pepper .01
½ t. dried basil .02

Preheat oven to 350. Finely chop onion. In a large bowl place onion, ground beef, eggs, bread crumbs, water, ketchup, parsley, salt, pepper, meat. Mix well, it mixes best using your hands. Place mixture in loaf pan. Bake meat loaf 1 hour. When meat loaf is done, let stand 10 minutes to set juices for easier slicing. (Freeze when cooled, to prepare simple defrost and warm.)

Calzones $2.14
Use this pizza dough .56
1 c. shredded moz. cheese .43
1/4 lb. pepperoni .50
½ c. ricotta cheese or cottage cheese .25 (cottage cheese)
½ c. chopped fresh basil leaves or a 2 t. dry basil .05
handful fresh spinach chopped .20
dash of Ground pepper .01
1 large egg slightly beaten .09
2 T. parmesean Cheese .05

Make dough for pizza crust and let rest 30 minutes.

Heat oven to 375 F. Grease 2 cookie sheets.

In small bowl combine riccotta/cottage cheese cheese w/ basil, spinach, pepper, egg, & parmesan cheese.
Divide dough into 12 equal parts. Roll each part into a 7 inch circle on lightly floured surface with floured rolling pin.

Top half of each dough circle with mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, ricotta/cottage cheese mixture, basil and tomatoes to within 1 inch of edge. Sprinkle with pepper. Carefully fold dough over filling; pinch edges or press with fork to seal securely.

Place calzones on cookie sheets. Brush with egg. Bake about 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Freeze once cooled. To prepare, defrost & warm.

For more great recipes check out the recipe swap on Friday over at Grocery Cart Challenge.