Today I'm sharing three easy ground beef freezer casseroles with you. I like to buy organic meat in bulk and cook up the entire batch. Sometimes I'll make 3 of the same dish (last month I made three shepherd's pies), but today I am making three different casseroles, and they are all delicious and family friendly.
First, I cooked up a large batch of ground beef, around 4 1/2 lbs (this is the three-pack of organic ground beef I buy at Costco). I cooked the ground beef with chopped onion. Once the meat is cooked, I drain the fat. Then I add several cups of greens (spinach, swiss chard and kale). I also added shredded carrots and seasoned this with garlic salt. I then cook the mixture about 5 minutes longer to cook down the greens. Feel free to add whatever vegetables you have on hand to your meat base mixture. I also cooked around 8 cups of brown rice in my rice cooker.
Once you prep these two steps, you are ready to assemble your casseroles.
Here is the info regarding useful supplies for these freezer meals:
If you plan to freeze your meals, check out these aluminum foil casserole dishes. The rice cooker I use is by Hamilton Beach. I use it to cook up to 8 cups of rice. I go through a lot of panko bread crumbs. Here is a link to a 6-pack of panko bread crumbs on Amazon. I also go through a lot of diced green chiles in my cooking, here is a link to a 12-pack of mild chiles on Amazon.
Deconstructed Stuffed Pepper Casserole
1 1/2 lbs ground beef mixture (see above)
2 to 3 large bell peppers, chopped
1 28 oz can whole peeled tomatoes
2 to 3 cups cooked brown rice
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs mixed with 1 Tbs olive oil
Mix your cooked beef mixture together with the bell peppers, tomatoes, and brown rice over medium heat. Cook until the peppers are less crunchy, around 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the cheese. Pour into a casserole dish. Top with the panko bread crumbs mixed with olive oil. If you are going to serve this tonight, cook at 350 degrees F for 8 to 10 minutes. If you are going to freeze this meal, cover and label your casserole dish or foil baking dish. When you are ready to serve it, you can either defrost it in your refrigerator overnight, and cook it at 350 degrees F for around 60 minutes, or if you are cooking this from frozen, you can cook at 350 degrees F for around 1 1/2 hours to 1 hour 40 minutes. Please note that all ovens are different and your cook times will vary.
Southwestern Rice Bake Casserole
1 1/2 lbs cooked ground beef mixture
2 to 3 cups cooked brown rice
1 4oz can mild diced green chiles
chopped olives
1 cup frozen corn
1 1/2 cups sour cream
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
In a large bowl, mix the cooked beef mixture with the cooked brown rice, chiles, olives, corn, sour cream and cheese. Save some cheese to sprinkle on top. If you are eating this tonight, cook at 350 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes. If you plan to freeze this, cover and label your casserole in your casserole pan or foil baking dish. If you plan to defrost the casserole before cooking, you will cook it at 350 degrees F for around one hour. If you plan to cook from frozen, you will cook at 350 degrees F for 1 1/2 to 1 hour and 40 minutes.
Broccoli Beef and Cheddar Casserole
1 1/2 lbs cooked ground beef mixture
2 cups cooked brown rice
one bag of frozen broccoli florets (or use fresh cooked broccoli) about 1 1/2 cups
1 cup frozen corn
1 can cream of broccoli soup
1/2 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs mixed with 2 Tbs melted butter or olive oil
Combine the beef, brown rice, broccoli, corn, broccoli soup, milk, and cheddar cheese. Stir to combine. Place in a casserole dish and top with the panko bread crumbs. If you are eating this tonight, cook at 350 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutes. If you plan to freeze this, cover and label your casserole in your casserole pan or foil baking dish. If you plan to defrost the casserole before cooking, you will cook it at 350 degrees F for around one hour. If you plan to cook from frozen, you will cook at 350 degrees F for 1 1/2 to 1 hour and 40 minutes.
I hope you enjoy today's video. For more inspiration for my past freezer meal blogposts, click here.
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I hope you enjoy today's video and feel inspired to create freezer meals in your own home. Remember, being chic is being prepared :) Have a wonderful weekend and I'll see you on Monday!
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2 comments:
Jennifer, these meals look delicious and I can't wait to try them! My favorite part of this video is the adorable voice of your little sous chef!!!
I try avoiding the use of aluminum foil as much as possible with food acids such as the meat, and the tomatoes, because they leach out the aluminum into the foods. You can line the pans with parchment paper sometimes (depending on the foods used) or freeze in glass pans. You can freeze in glass pans and then, when the food is frozen, remove the block of frozen food from the glass pan, wrap in parchment paper, then refreeze in a ziplock freezer bag.
Jennifer, I have had great success with your freezer meals and I look forward to trying these! I really try to have a home cooked meal for my family every day if possible, and this makes it so much easier. Please keep sharing these! There's something rather pleasant about watching you make them too...when I've tried your recipes in the past, I make them along with the video. :)
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