Freezer staples: 10 items you need in your freezer 10-24-14

Like & Share

Freezer staples: 10 items you need in your freezer

The other day I said "Quick & Healthy meals start in the freezer" and I got a alot of people asking "What should I have in my freezer?" So, I created a list and info graphic. I hope this helps. This is just the beginning, but its a small step away from the fast food industry and back to preparing meals for yourself. Who doesn't want that?

On to the list.

1.Bell pepper
2.Hot pepper (scotch bonnet)
3.Cheese (grated)
4.Chives/Scallions
5.Fresh vegetable mix
6.Beans (Bora Bora or String)
7.Ginger
8.Turmeric
9.Seasonal Fruits (cut up and labeled)
10.Bread

Peppers (both bell and hot) freeze them whole, cut off what you want and put the rest back in the freezer. Yes, they break down quickly after being frozen, so you would use these peppers when you are cooking or in a salad where you need the flavor but not the crunch.

Chive/Scallions seem to break down after a day in the fridge. Unless you use the entire bunch and make a bottle of seasoning, it goes to waste. Not anymore. Do a rough chop, throw them in a Ziploc bag, and into the freezer with them. They last indefinitely.

Cheese can be expensive. It's great to have on hand, but once again, it doesn't last long. Grater your cheddar or mozzarella, throw it in a Ziploc and into the freezer. In a hour, check back and shake the bag to prevent the cheese from freezing into a big clump. Now you can sprinkle your frozen cheese on to pizzas, casseroles, hot sandwiches, anything that will be heated. No one likes frozen cheese...

Beans. Wash them, cut them up, throw them into a Ziploc. That's it.

Fresh vegetables mix.
Carrots, cabbage, broccoli, cut up peppers, etc. You can make your own mix or buy one from the market and then freeze it in the bag it came in.

Ginger and Turmeric
Both roots that last FOREVER in the freezer. Wash, dry, (peel ginger) and cut into slices. Bag and label. You're welcome.


This one is for my people in the Caribbean.

Seasonal Fruits are a thing out here. Buy them when they are abundant and cheap. Wash and cut them up. Label and date the bags. You can make smoothies, breads, compotes, chuntneys, etc.

Bread
This refers to anything with flour. Sliced bread, tortilla shells, roti skin etc. These items can be reheated in the oven or pan fried, and taste lovely. Great when you are hungry and haven't/dont want to make an elaborate meal.

Vegan Cupcakes 6-7-14

Who says vegan cupcakes can't be sexy or tasty???

Vanilla almond cupcakes with Vanilla-Chocolate faux-buttercream

No butter, milk, eggs, and its soooo good!
Look at the babies loving the cupcakes

Cake Pudding: The story & recipe 12-31-13

Last week in the mist of my holiday baking storm I accidentally made a batch of holiday cakes without baking powder. The result was the hard footballs on the left. The cake failed to rise but still tasted lovely. A friend of mine suggested making a "cake pudding". I was intrigued! 

Google search "cake pudding"! Not much came up, about three recipes. For each recipe, you had to make a specific kind of cake first, in order to create the "cake pudding". To me, that defeats the purpose. Traditional bread pudding is a way to utilize stale bread, so cake pudding should work the same way. So that means I have to experiment. I love to experiment 

Searching through hundreds of bread pudding recipes I came across a Hawaiian Bread pudding using fresh pineapple and coconut. Euerka! That's it. I had some glaced pineapple left over from a failed white fruit cake experiment and lots of dried coconut... cause I'm the CoconutBaby

Anyway... recipe time. In creating my recipe I had to take a couple of things into consideration.

1. My cake was very dense because there was no baking powder

2. I wanted to add more fruit than what the bread pudding recipe called for.

3. I wasn't using fresh fruits.

So, what does all this mean?

1. Had to use more liquid than recipe called for. I opted for a mix of coconut milk, evaporated milk and condensed milk.

2. Adding more fruit doesn't mean throwing in everything without measuring. Never go over the ratio set in the original recipe. If the total amount of fruit adds up to 1cup, then only use 1 cup just divide the fruit into that one cup. Example: If you're using pineapple, golden raisins, coconut and maraschino cherries. 1/4 of each fruit.

3. Using glaced fruit adds sugar to the recipe, this means you have to lessen the amount in the original. 1/2 cup became 1/4 cup.

4. The orignal recipe called for 4eggs. This cake is very dense so I don't think it needs that much egg. I lowered it to two.

Ok, so that's the thought process behind the recipe. Here is the actual recipe  

Any plain 1/2 sheet cake (no icing)
2 eggs
1/2 cup of coconut milk
1/4 cup of evaporated milk
1/4 cup of sweetened condensed milk
Vanilla extract
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 unsweetened coconut
1/4 dried pineapple, cut up
1/4 golden raisins
1/4 maraschino cherries, cut up
1/2 stick butter, melted
Toasted coconut to garnish

Glaze
1cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon of vanilla
2 tablespoons water

Cut the cake into cubes. Add all the fruits. In a separate bowl break 2eggs and lightly beat. Add milks, sugar, and vanilla extract. Pour over cake and fruit mixture. Mix, but don't mash. Make sure that all the cake has soaked in the milk/egg mixture. Drizzle the melted butter over, lightly mix and then transfer to a buttered baking pan. 350 degrees for 30- 45. Do a clean fork test. 

Garnish with vanilla glaze and toasted coconut

Thats it. Enjoy