New feature: A to Z guide

Hello everyone.

I've been a busy beaver and have typed up a long list of different ingredients, in alphabetical order, with details on whether they can or can't be frozen.  It's a tidy summary of the "did you know you can freeze..." blog posts that I have written in the past, plus other snippets that you may find useful.

This list is a work in progress and I'll add items over time.  But don't worry, I'll write a blog post to alert you to any new additions.

You can see it on the menu on the left of the website, or click here to go straight to it:
Can I freeze it? A to Z guide

I hope you find it useful.  Any comments would be welcome.

Susan x

Giveaway with The Organised Housewife

I'm very excited to announce a giveaway between FROST BITE and The Organised Housewife.  I've long been an admirer of Katrina and all the brilliant tips and advice that she dispenses.  I thought I was organised and efficient but I'm afraid Kat beats me at my own game!

We have three copies of FROST BITE up for grabs so click here for details on how to enter.

Good luck!

Smoked trout pate

If you have a copy of FROST BITE you must try the Smoked Trout Pate.  It's so easy, only uses four ingredients and it tastes AMAZING!

The recipe makes a large quantity so I'll be serving half of it at our Australia Day get-together this arvo and freeze the rest for another party.  Love that.

Happy Australia Day to all my Aussie followers!



Recipe: mini pavlovas

Did you know that you can freeze meringues?  You don't even need to defrost them, they can be eaten straight from the freezer and taste deliciously crispy and a little cool.

Tomorrow is Australia Day so I thought I'd make mini pavlovas.  Pavlova is basically a meringue mixture with a little cornflour added to help make the inside marshmallow-like.  I must admit, I've never frozen a large pavlova, mainly due to space constraints in my freezer, but it should freeze well too.

Here are the pavlovas before they have been filled with whipped cream and fruit

Mini pavlovas


3 egg whites, at room temperature
150g (5 oz/1 cup) caster sugar (superfine sugar)
1 tablesp cornflour (corn starch)

later:
300ml pure cream or whipping cream, beaten/whipped till thick
fruit of your choice, sliced


Preheat oven to 140C (280F) and line two oven trays with baking paper and dust lightly with cornflour.

Beat the egg whites in a mixer with a whisk attachment (or whisk by hand if you have a strong arm) for a few minutes or until soft peaks form.  Add the sugar, one spoonful at a time, allowing about a minute between each addition.  The mixture should be smooth and glossy.  Sprinkle the cornflour over the meringue mixture and beat it in.

Place large spoonfuls of the meringue on the tray, allowing some room between the pavlovas.  Use the back of a spoon to shape the mixture into a circle shape with an indent in the middle (like a small nest).  You can make them as big or as small as you like - I made 18 mini pavs.

Bake in preheated oven for 40 mins or until they are crisp on the outside.  Turn off the oven and open the door slightly.  Leave the pavlovas in the oven till they are completely cold.


Freeze:  Place the pavlovas in a plastic container with a sheet of baking paper between the layers.  Don't overcrowd them and don't squash them in.

Defrost:  Not required. 

Serve: Remove the pavlovas from the freezer and place on a serving platter.  Top each pavlova with some whipped cream and sliced fruit then serve.

Makes: 18 mini pavlovas

Bargain alert: Borders books online

I've just been told that Borders Australia is taking 30% off any book bought from their website so why not use it to buy FROST BITE??!?  And free shipping in Australia too.

It's a special promotion for facebook customers (but it probably works for everyone - shhh!).  Simply enter the code (BFB-2630) on the website - click here to take you to Border's site:

http://www.borders.com.au/book/frost-bite-easy-cooking-for-your-freezer/24480896/


Gotta love a bargain!

Susan
x

Reinvigorating old furniture

A few years ago my grandmother moved into a nursing home and we were offered some of her furniture and furnishings.  We were living in Singapore at the time so my mother took some photos and asked which items we wanted.  We selected a few and they were moved into storage until we returned home.

When we returned we added them to the eclectic mix of furniture in our house and revamped them to suit our taste.

Here are Nana's armchairs and a small sofa (please excuse the 'before' photos which were taken hastily by mum):

Which we had reupholstered with fabric from No Chintz and now they sit proudly in our study - here is one of the armchairs.  You may notice that we removed the 'skirt' from the old sofa and found lovely turned wooden legs which are so much nicer.

We also updated this old lamp:



...with a new lampshade (again, from No Chintz) and now it looks like this:

Another upside was that Nana was thrilled to see everything find a new home and she didn't need to worry about it being sorted after she was gone.  She passed away in  August 2011 and these are some of my treasured pieces to remember her by.  Thankyou, Nana. xx



Happy Chinese New Year!

Gong Xi Fa Cai to everyone in the FROST BITE community, especially those of Chinese origin.

We lived in Singapore in 2007-2009 and loved all the drums, dragons, mandarins, red packets etc.  It's such an exciting time of year and a wonderful celebration amongst families and friends.  Happy New Year!

More lunchbox ideas

Yesterday I shared everything I know about freezing sandwiches.  I also like to freeze other items which I add to the lunchbox or morning tea box to give my children some variety.  Here are plenty of ideas to get you thinking.

Savoury food

The following items make great subsitutes for sandwiches if you're looking for something different for your children's lunchboxes or your workday lunches:

• leftover pizza slices can be wrapped in cling wrap and frozen (buy an extra pizza just for this purpose if they have a meal-deal or good offer)
• cheese rolls or cheese-and-bacon rolls
• cooked calzone
• make or buy savoury scones - cut the scone in the middle and add some butter or cream cheese then freeze. *
• leftover spaghetti bolognaise, pasta bake or other pasta meal (as long as your child is happy to have cold pasta at school) *
• soup can be frozen in individual portions (best for adults who have a stove or microwave at work).  Or you can defrost the soup in the morning, heat it and store in a thermos for school. *
• homemade or store-bought savoury muffins *
• wedges of a quiche or mini quiches
• slices of savoury tarts or spanikopita *
• croissants - plain or fill them with ham and/or cheese
• corn fritters
• slices of cornbread *
• zucchini slice
• quesadillas or burittos (best for adults who have a sandwich press at work to cook the quesadilla/buritto) *
• small cooked pastries such as empanadas
• cooked meatballs or meatloaf - you could add a sachet of tomato ketchup to the lunchbox *
• leftover fried rice *
• barbequed sausages freeze well and still have that bbq taste.  Place the frozen sausage in a hotdog roll and put in the lunchbox with a sachet of tomato ketchup 
• cooked skewers of meat (eg leftover kebabs from a bbq).  Some kebabs include pieces of vegetables on them, so you might want to cook and freeze kebabs that only contain meat.
• risotto balls or aranacini balls *

* Note: you can find recipes for these items in the FROST BITE book with detailed freezing and defrosting instructions

Sweet food

Any of these items can be added to the lunchbox as a sweet treat after the sandwich or they are great for morning tea at school with a piece of fruit.

• donuts - buy a bulk pack from the supermarket, especially when they're on sale
• lamington fingers (or normal lamingtons and cut in half if they're big)
• hot cross buns - as is or cut in the middle and butter the inside
• finger buns (cut in half or thirds if they're big)
• small pastries from the patisserie or cake shop
• mini chocolate croissants
• scones (plain, date, sultana etc) - cut in the middle and butter the inside
• pikelets and pancakes - sandwich them together with butter and/or jam *
• homemade or store-bought sweet muffins *
• homemade muesli bars
• cupcakes *
• small slices of cake *
• homemade cooked biscuits/cookies, slices and brownies *
• slices of banana bread or coconut bread *

* Note: you can find recipes for these items in the FROST BITE book with detailed freezing and defrosting instructions

Now all you need to do is add some other items such as fresh fruit, dried fruit, yoghurt, carrot sticks etc and lunch is DONE!


If you're looking for more ideas, check out the fantastic recipes on The Organised Housewife website.  Katrina has been collecting freezer-friendly recipes and you can find them here. You will even find a few FROST BITE recipes in the list.

Tips for making and freezing sandwiches

The new school year is just around the corner so many of us are dreading the thought of making school lunches again.  Have you considered making a batch of sandwiches and freezing them?  This means there's one less thing to think about in the morning rush.

And sandwiches aren't just for school children, having some lunches in the freezer are great for adults too who like to bring lunch (or dinner) to work.

Today I'll share some tips on freezer-friendly sandwiches and tomorrow I'll talk about some other items that are handy to freeze for the lunchbox.

image source: taste.com.au

Making sandwiches is pretty straight-forward, just educate yourself on which ingredients to use and which to avoid, then wrap them well in cling wrap and freeze.  You don't need to do anything for the defrosting stage, simply place the wrapped sandwich in your lunchbox and it will defrost slowly over the next few hours and be ready to eat at lunchtime.


Bread

There are so many breads to choose from as all breads are freezer-friendly:

• sliced bread (white, wholemeal, grainy etc)
• bread rolls
• bagels
• Turkish bread
• sourdough bread
• wraps and lavoch
• tortillas

Fillings

The choices are huge so I'm sure you'll find something in this list to suit fussy eaters:

• butter, margerine or cream cheese
• cheeses such as cheddar, camembert, brie, Swiss, parmesan, feta etc (but not cottage cheese).  Note that full-fat cheese freezes better than low-fat cheese
• ham, cooked bacon, salami or deli meats (eg devon)
• cooked chicken or turkey, roast beef, lamb or pork
• tinned tuna or salmon (drain well first)
• smoked salmon
• cooked egg yolk (not egg white)
• cooked meatballs, slices of cooked meatloaf, leftover burger patties
• pesto, olive tapenade and mustard
• peanut butter, nutella and vegemite/marmite
• honey, jam and golden syrup can be frozen but the bread may go a little soggy but kids don't seem to mind (butter the bread first for best results)
• grilled eggplant (aubergine) and grilled zucchini (courgette)
• chopped olives and capers 
• semi-dried or sun-dried tomatoes
• caramelised onion or onion jam
• pickles and chutneys
• salt and pepper

What to avoid

Here are some ingredients to avoid in your sandwiches as they won't freeze well:

• salad ingredients such as lettuce, tomato, cucumber etc
• I'm not a fan of freezing avocado but some people do it
• cottage cheese
• cooked egg white (it goes rubbery after defrosting)
• mayonnaise (it will separate or curdle after defrosting)

Other tips

• Spread some butter or margarine on the bread as it acts as barrier so that wet ingredients (eg, honey, jam or chutney) don't soak into the bread.

• You may like to add a few salad ingredients to the sandwich after it has been frozen.  You can either unwrap the frozen sandwich, add the salad then re-wrap and place in the lunchbox for defrosting.  Or you can put some salad ingredients in a small container in the lunchbox and they can be added at the time of eating.

• And if you have a sandwich press or jaffle maker at work, you can always cook your sandwiches after they have defrosted so that any cheese is melted and they taste extra yummy!

Check in tomorrow for my next post about other lunchbox items that freeze well.

Susan
xx

Freezer cooking in action

If you want a good example of freezer-cooking in action, here's one ...

Last weekend I prepared the Chicken with coriander peanut pesto from FROST BITE as we had friends coming for dinner. Unfortunately dinner was cancelled at the last minute so I put the uncooked chicken, sauce and rice in the freezer. Tonight we have my parents joining us so I've defrosted everything so all I need to do is bbq the chicken and make a salad. Horray!

If you'd like the recipe it was tested by Lovely Living Presents - Cook.Eat.Play and you can find it here.

E-browsing: morning tea

Hello everyone.  It's been a while since my last e-browse of FROST BITE.  For those new to FROST BITE, I like to share some of the pictures from the book as so many people buy books online these days and we miss out on that all-important browse.  I love to browse through cookbooks, looking for inspiration and planning which recipes I'd like to try.

As it's summer school holidays in the southern hemisphere I thought we could e-browse a few recipes from the Snack chapter which are ideal for morning tea or afternoon tea.

Alot of people don't realise that cakes, biscuits, brownies and slices freeze really well.  It's so handy to have one or two items in the freezer for when friends pop in unexpectedly.  Also, I hate food going to waste or going stale so I used to gorge myself on leftover cakes and biscuits.  But now I put them in the freezer for another day.  Much better for the waistline!

Here are the Chewy coconut brownies (page 79) which are one of my all-time favourite recipes in the book.  I could make them in my sleep (or even after a few glasses of wine, which I must admit I have done just that).

And did you know that biscuit and cookie dough can be prepared and stored in the freezer, then the uncooked balls go straight into the oven and can be cooked from frozen?  That way you can have freshly baked cookies in about 15 mins.  And no washing up.  Plus you can cook as many or as few as you need (again, good for the waistline.  You'll thank me one day for all these tips).

So here's the amazing Melting Moments from FROST BITE (page 88).  You can even keep the vanilla icing in the freezer and sandwich the biscuits after they have baked.  Yum!

Easy dinner - jacket potatoes

This isn't much of a recipe, more a reminder that it can be handy to make double batches of food so you have a spare meal in the freezer.

When you make tacos do you make a double batch of the meat mixture and freeze some of it?  That's what I do.  A few weeks ago we had tacos and I froze some leftover mince, and last night I didn't feel like cooking so I baked some large potatoes in the oven and filled them with the taco meat, added some grated cheese and sour cream and dinner was ready.

For those of you who live in one- or two-person households it's a great idea to make up a batch (or two) of taco filling and freeze it in small portions.  That way you can have tacos, or jacket potatoes, whenever you feel like it.


For those who like a recipe and detailed instructions on freezing and defrosting, here goes...



Taco filling

olive oil
1 onion, chopped
500g lean beef mince
1 packet (35g) of taco seasoning


Heat some oil in a large frypan over medium heat and add onion.  Cook for a few minutes or until the onion is translucent.  Push onion to the side, turn up the heat and add the beef.  Cook for several minutes or until the meat is browned, breaking up large clumps of meat as it cooks.

Add taco seasoning and 3/4 cup (170ml) of water and simmer for 5-10 minutes or until most of the water has evaporated and the mixture has thickened.  Allow to cool.

Note:
* you can add diced red capsicum (bell pepper) when you cook the onion
* you can add a 400g tin of kidney beans (drain and rinse first) when you add the water and taco seasoning.


Freeze:  Spoon the mixture into plastic containers or ziplock bags and store in the freezer

Defrost:  In the fridge or in the microwave

Reheat:  Reheat in the microwave or in a saucepan until piping hot.  Add some water if it's too dry.

Serve:  In taco shells with shredded lettuce, grated cheese, sour cream, guacamole, chilli sauce etc.  Or serve in jacket potatoes.



Jacket potatoes

Buy large potatoes and wash well.  Use a fork to pierce the skin in several places then place the potatoes directly on the oven rack.  Bake in 220C oven for about an  hour or until tender (use a sharp knife to pierce the potato to see if it's cooked through).

Remove from oven, cut open, spread a little butter on the inside of the potato then fill with the taco mince, grated cheese and sour cream.  Season with salt and pepper.

Our house - what to show first?

After yesterday's positive response to the renovating/decorating idea I'm wondering where to start.

Firstly, a little bit about our house. 

A few years ago we bought our house in Sydney.  There were lots of reasons why we chose it, one being that it was a good size for our family.  We didn't want to undertake a renovation which involved construction, so we loved that this house was the right size for two adults and three growing girls but each room needed sprucing up.  Perfect.  That way we could work on one room at a time, fixing things up when we get the renovating bug and when the budget allows for it.



Fireplace

I don't have too many 'before' photos of our house, which is a shame, but I do have one of our fireplace.  There is only one fireplace and it was servicable but not very attractive.  I managed to convince Luke that snazzing it up would lift the tone of the room, and it certainly has done that.

Here's what it looked like when we moved in (sorry for the brown-ish photo, it was taken on my phone in 2010):

After much calling around and internet searches I finally found someone who could renovate it for us.  The guys from Heritage Building Centre in Rockdale, Sydney did an excellent job.  Here's the finished product after it was painted:

For those who want details: the black area at the bottom and around the hearth is black granite (the bricks in the inside of the hearth are painted with a special black paint that is suitable for fireplaces, I can't remember the name).  The granite pushed up the cost of the project but it makes the whole fireplace look so much better.  The timer around the fireplace and the mantle is a combination of MDF and solid timber that has been carved which was then painted.

You can see we've also painted the walls in the room and added a mirror.  In case you're wondering which paints we used: the paint below the dado rail is Dulux 'White Duck' and we used Dulux 'Lexicon' (quarter strength) above the dado rail.  Our house is filled with yellowy cyprus pine floorboards which tend to give a yellow tinge to most shades of white.  The 'Lexicon' shade is brilliant for these types of floors as it's lovely and crisp without any yellow. 


Hmmm, I what shall I'll show you next?

A little deviation...

Hello everyone.

I'm abit of a talker and I have trouble sticking to the topics of cooking and freezing.  There's so much more to talk about! 

I asked the facebook crowd how they would feel if I chatted about renovating or decorating from time to time and the response was enormously positive.  Maybe they're all keen on decor too, or maybe you just want to sneaky peak at my house.  I don't mind either way.

Renovating isn't something we do every day, we go through fits and starts, so you don't need to worry about this blog turning into a reality tv renovation spectacular.  I'll probably take a few happy snaps of my favourite things around the house and share some renovating stories as they arise. 

How does that sound? 

Susan
xx

Q and A

I've had a few questions asked on facebook recently and thought I'd share the answers in case the questions are relevant to you too. 

Kylie asked if chocolate can be frozen.  She made too many Christmas pudding truffles and wants to know if she can freeze them.

Answer: Yes, you can freeze chocolates.  Make sure you wrap them well or store in an airtight container, and defrost slowly in the fridge for best results.  The chocolate may develop a white-ish exterior (known as the 'bloom') but you won't know if it will develop a bloom until you try freezing one. 

And one of the facebook followers, Lis, suggested that if the chocolate develops a bloom, it can be disguised by covering the chocolate with icing sugar or good quality cocoa (thanks, Lis).

Amanda asked for ideas on labelling food in the freezer.  She finds that permanent textas aren't so permanent and rub off, and stickers become unstuck.

Answer: I agree, textas don't work too well.  I normally use ziplock bags and write on the white strip before I fill the bag with food.  There's a few different brands but I like the Glad range as the zip is easy to use (some cheaper bags don't zip too well) and they come in lots of sizes so I have them all - I should be an ambassador for Glad products! 

Ziplock bags are surprisingly sturdy and can easily store most items, including liquids.  I use them for soups, bolognaise, casseroles, stock, balls of frozen cookie dough, uncooked sausage rolls, leftover cooked rice etc.

As far as plastic containers are concerned, I like the Tellfresh range by Decor as they have little plastic tags that you can write on.  Click here for the range.

Another reader, Triple Tee, said that they had lots of leftover prawns after Christmas and asked if they can be frozen.

Answer: Yes, you can freeze prawns as long as they haven't been frozen before.  Don't forget that alot of the seafood at your fishmonger or supermarket has been frozen and it is fine after defrosting (they often have a sign saying 'Imported from xxx.  Thawed for your convenience').  Make sure you defrost the prawns slowly in the fridge for best results.  I'm a broken record when it comes to defosting, but defrosting slowly ensures the texture of your food is unaffected.

The blogger known as Faux Fuchsia asked if chutney or jam can be frozen.

Answer: I wasn't sure about this one as I have never frozen jam but in theory it should be fine as sweet foods freeze well, salty foods (eg soy sauce) not so well.  This was confirmed by one of the readers, Niall, who said "Freezing jam is fine.  Comes out great" (thanks, Niall).

If you have a question feel free to drop me an email at frostbitefood@gmail.com or write on my facebook page wall.


Susan
xx

Recipe: Choc chip ANZAC biscuits

It's summer school holidays at the moment and that means lots of morning teas and playdates with other families.  Today we were invited to our friends' house and the girls specifically requested these cookies. 

Everyone in Australia and New Zealand is familiar with Anzac biscuits (for everyone else, here's some background history of this iconic biscuit/cookie), but we've tweaked the recipe and added choc chips.  I'm sure the Aussie and Kiwi diggers would have approved.

Choc chip Anzac biscuits

180g (1¼ cup) plain (all purpose) flour

180g (¾ cup) caster sugar
100g (1 cup) rolled oats
70g (1 cup) shredded coconut (or 100g/1 cup desiccated coconut) 
125g butter
2 tablesp (40ml) golden syrup
1 teasp bicarb soda
80g (½ cup) choc chips (dark chocolate)

Line an oven tray or two with baking paper.

Mix the flour, sugar, oats and coconut in a large bowl.

Melt the butter in a small saucepan then add golden syrup.  Dissolve bicarb soda in 2 tablespoon of boiling water in a small bowl or cup then add to the saucepan.  Stir to combine.

Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and mix well then stir in the choc chips.  Use your hands to press the mixture into balls and place on tray.


You can freeze them now (to cook at a later date) or you can bake them now and store the cooked biscuits in the freezer.  To bake now: place on a tray, allowing room for spreading, and bake in 160C oven for 12-14 mins.



Freeze uncooked balls:  Place the tray in the freezer and when the dough is frozen you can transfer the balls to a ziplock bag

To defrost:  Not required.  You can cook these from frozen.

To cook:  Place balls on a tray lined with baking paper, allowing room for spreading, and bake in 160C oven for about 15 mins or until golden brown (12-14 mins for thawed dough).

Makes: approx 30 biscuits

FREEZER FACTS

It's been a while since I posted one of my little lists.  Here's some more items that can be frozen:


Mangos - buy lots of mangos when they're in season, remove the peel/skin and the stone and freeze the chunks/slices of mango flesh.  You can then add them to smoothies whenever you feel like a mango hit.

Bananas - if you have some bananas that are too ripe but don't have time to cook with them, just freeze them.  They will go black in the freezer and the flesh will be wet when it defrosts, but they're great for making banana cakes, banana bread or smoothies.

Breadcrumbs - whenever you have leftover, stale bread (especially delicious sourdough which is too good to waste) I recommend making breadcrumbs in a food processor.  Then you can bag it up in ziplock bags and store in the freezer for future recipes.  I've used them for a herb and breadcrumb coating on lamb and salmon and it's delicious!

Stewed apples and pears - if you have too many apples or pears you can peel, core and slice them, then stew them in a small amount of water until they're soft.  Allow to cool then freeze in useable-size portions in ziplock bags.  Then you can use them to make apple pie or a crumble.

Milk - did you know that milk can be frozen?  It's a good idea to keep a plastic bottle of milk in the freezer so that you never run out.  Allow plenty of time for it to defrost, give it a good shake, and it'll taste the same as fresh milk.

Bacon - I like to wrap leftover bacon in cling wrap in small amounts (normally 2 rashers) and store them in the freezer.  That way I can have an egg and bacon roll whenever the mood strikes.  I must admit, the mood strikes in the morning after a few too many wines, although I've also been known to eat an egg and bacon roll for dinner when my husband is out at a work function.  So good!