Freezer Friday! Video: Twice Baked Potatoes 4 Different Ways

Episode 4, Season 2 Cooking with Chef Tess

Twice Baked Potatoes 4 Ways

Baking the Potatoes and Gathering the Variations

12 medium baking potatoes, scrubbed, baked 1 hour and cooled (microwave 3 potatoes ,5-7 minutes works too.)
1/2 cup chopped green onions
8 oz tub low fat cottage cheese
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese (I used Jack)
2 T garlic powder

2T Organic Grains white chia seed
fresh chopped parsley
Chef Tess AP Seasoning

Directions:
Cut potatoes in half, lengthwise and remove pulp leaving ¼ inch in shell, put potato pulp and all remaining ingredients in a large bowl and mix until well blended.

Open 6 halves into 4 freezer safe dishes. 3 potatoes each.

Gathering the Flavors

Buffalo chicken

1 cup cooked diced chicken

Buffalo sauce

Ham and Cheese

Diced Ham

Cheddar Cheese

Dill

Fajita Chicken

Grilled chicken

Bell peppers

Onion

Cheese

Chili Cheese

Prepared Turkey Chili

Cheese

Episode 3, Season 2 Cooking with Chef Tess

 How to Freeze
When frozen, transfer individual potatoes into gallon size freezer bags. Label with date and these directions “ 2-3 minutes in the microwave for 2 single servings, or bake 400° on a sheet pan 25-30 minutes until golden brown.

Heating and Serving. Wrap-up

2-3 minutes in the microwave for 2 single servings, or bake 400° on a sheet pan 25-30 minutes until golden brown.

Freezer Friday! Video 3 Ways to use Sprouted Wheat dough: Cinnamon rolls, Dinner Rolls and Sticky Buns

Episode 3 Season 2 Cooking with Chef Tess as seen on the Heartland TV Network in Las Vegas! Here's last week's episode and recipes. 

Freezer to Oven Sprouted Grain Cinnamon Rolls, Dinner Rolls and Sticky Buns

Make the Dough

·       3 cups water (no hotter than 110 degrees)

·       2 Tbsp. active dry yeast

·       ½ cups Organic coconut sugar

·       4 ½ cups Organic Grains bread flour

·       4 ½ cup  Organic Grains sprouted white wheat flour 

·       1 Tbsp. salt

·       ¾ cup coconut oil or Ahuacatlan Avocado Oil 

·       2 egg

Combine everything in one large bowl or mixer. I like that. Knead 5 minutes by hand or 3 minutes in a mixer on medium setting. This is a less developed dough as far as gluten is concerned. Form into a ball and place in a bowl covered with plastic or a lid for 1 hour, or until doubled in size. Punch down dough and divide into 3 equal pieces.

Cinnamon Rolls

Roll out in rectangle on a lightly floured surface. 

Smear:

½ cup sugar

½ cup butter

2 Tbsp cinnamon or Chef Tess  Wise Woman of the East Spice blend

Cut into 8 rolls. Place 4 roll per 8 inch pan. Raise 45 minutes. Freeze.

Oven-Ready Stuffed Sticky Buns

Caramel Topping:

1 c brown sugar

1/2 chopped real bacon bits

 1/3 c maple syrup

¼ c butter, melted

Cream Filling:

1/2 package (4 oz) cream cheese, softened

¼  c shredded coconut (okay...how evil is that?!)

 2 Tbsp.  powdered sugar

 1 Tbsp.  butter, softened

 1 tsp vanilla

 Spread topping in the bottom of each pan.

Combine all cream filling ingredients and beat until well mixed; set aside.

Punch dough down and divide into 6 equal pieces. Flatten each piece of dough into a small circle, about 4 to 5 inches in diameter. Place a scant T of cream filling in the center. Pinch edges of dough together and form into a ball; It looks like a little cheese tortellini. Place in prepared pans, pinched side down. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 to 45 minutes. Yes, let them raise before freezing! That is the secret! (if freezing, put in freezer at this point. To prepare pull from freezer straight to the oven and add 20 min to bake time for room temp dough) Bake at 350°F for 25 to 30 minutes or until deep golden brown (45-50 minutes from frozen). Cool on rack for only 1 minute; invert onto serving platters. Remember, allow to cool only one minute before inverting onto a platter. Be careful, it's hot and that goo is delicious...but not in a molten mass attached to your arm. Oh my stars!

 Making Dinner Rolls

 I kind of put them in a log form. this helps to keep things pretty even. You can get science-like and weigh the dough and then divide it into 12 equal portions, but on most given days, I just eyeball it. I may go to baker's heck for saying that.

Now, lightly (I do mean lightly) dust the counter top with a little flour...just a little. We don't want the rolls sticking too much. On the other hand, we don't want so much flour that they just roll all over the place. The point is, we want a little tacky stuff so they form correctly. Take the dough piece and pinch the sides together...

Then turn it over so the pinched side is down.

You don't want it to look loose like this...

You want the dough balls to look like they have a skin holding them together. Like this picture below. Place the rolls on a pan lined with parchment paper (or a freezer friendly pan for easy make and bake). If you use metal pans, you don't have to worry about the glass shattering going from the freezer to the oven. I may mention that again.

Allow to raise at room temperature, uncovered for 35-40 minutes, until the rolls are touching if originally placed 1/2 an inch apart. Cover with foil and place in the freezer. Keep frozen up to one month. Removing them from a pan once frozen and placing directly in a freezer bag will save space in your freezer...big time!

 Bake, Serve. Wrap Up

When you want fresh rolls, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Remove pan from the freezer. Important note...don't place glass pans directly from the freezer to the oven, they will shatter. If you keep rolls frozen in freezer bags, place frozen rolls on pan and then place in the oven.

Bake 375 degrees 20-25 minutes until golden brown.
Try not to eat them all in one sitting...alone. 

Special thanks to Organic Grains for sponsoring this episode!

 There you go! Make some awesome buns!

Always My Very Best,

Your Friend Chef Tess

Meatloaf Turkey Muffin Cups Three Ways--Freezer Meals from Cooking With Chef Tess

Season TWO of my show will be airing on Heartland TV  in Las Vegas on channels 34.2 and on Cox cable channel 97 every Saturday at 1:30 pm starting June 24th! YES!!!!

There are several Heartland TV Affiliate Stations Nationally and we are hoping that we'll soon be on the network across the country We also filmed several one minute tutorial videos that will be airing on cox cable across the southwest starting in July. We'll keep everyone posted as those details are made public.

As for Saturday, here's the recipe:

Time-Saving Meatloaf Turkey Cups Made 3 Ways!

 Pepperoni Pizza Meatloaf Muffin Cup 

 French Onion Meatloaf Muffin Cup

Chimichurri Meatloaf Muffin Cup

Chef Tess Meatloaf Muffins

2 pounds ground lean turkey sausage

1 medium onion, cut into chunks

1 green pepper, chopped

2 large egg

1 cup Organic Grains 7 grain rolled cereal ---here

1 Tbsp. Chef Tess All Purpose Seasoning

1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

Put ground beef into a big bowl. Put onion and green pepper in blender. Pulse the blender to finely chop the vegetables into very small pieces then add them to the meat bowl. Add egg, bread crumbs and grill seasoning to the bowl. Next, mix together the smoky barbecue sauce, the salsa and the Worcestershire sauce. Pour half the sauce mixture into the bowl with the meatloaf mix. Mix the meatloaf together with your hands. Wash up.

Divide between 24 muffin tins sprayed with non-stick spray Use an ice cream scoop to help you fill meat into each tin. Bake 350° 20-25 minutes. Over 165 degrees internal temperature. When fully baked, top 8 of each of the meatloaf muffins with a spoonful of a flavor variation. 

Flavor Variations  

French onion

1 onion, chopped
1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 Tbsp. minced garlic

1 tsp lemon zest

½ cup beef broth

Saute onions in olive oil until golden brown. Add remaining ingredients and simmer until thick. 

Pepperoni Pizza

Spaghetti sauce

Pepperoni

Mozzarella

Italian Seasoning

As needed. Top each meatloaf with sauce, cheese, and pepperoni. 

 Chimichurri

If you're not familiar with it...Chimichurri is a sauce that is traditionally used as a marinade for meat in Central and South America. I almost want to call it a vinaigrette based pesto if I over simplify what it is.  I fell in love with it the first time it's flavors were unleashed on my pallet! It really lends a powerful punch of flavor and there are hundreds of variations on the internet.  This one is special because it is what I use for meat, but also for vegetarian dishes like this cheesy grain casserole.  I simply stir 1 cup of the prepared sauce into the base recipe and top it with roasted garlic.  Suddenly, everyone can't stop eating the meatloaf!

Chef Tess' Chimichurri Sauce1/3 cup red wine vinegar
2T fresh lime juice
1/2 tsp kosher salt
4-5 cloves garlic
1 shallot
1/2 jalapeno, seeded
1 cup minced fresh cilantro
1/2 cup minced fresh parsley
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp dry oregano
1/4 tsp ground cumin
Combine all ingredients in a covered food processor and pulse until smooth.

Freezing Instructions:
Cool completely, about 15 minutes. Transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet or plate and freeze until solid. Transfer to a gallon sized freezer bag. Label well. with cooking instructions.

Heating and Serving:
Reheat in microwave from frozen, about 2 minutes each muffin. Or, bake in oven 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Today we are going to serve  them over mashed potatoes with plenty of fresh micro-greens. 

My Fitness Pal Recipe Nutritional information Yield 24 servings, 57 calories each, 2 carbs, 2 gram of fat, 10 grams protein, 


Special thanks to our friends at Organic Grains.com for ingredients and financial support to help make this show possible. We are so very thankful for all you've done for our family here at Chef Tess Bakeresse.

Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess

Filming Days! Season 2 of Cooking With Chef Tess!

 

This has been a very productive week! We filmed six episodes of Season Two of Cooking With Chef Tess for Heartland TV Network in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was amazing once again working with my producer and friend Theresa Goss.  My best friend Gena let me use her gorgeous kitchen to film. 

 It is the prefect space for what we wanted to capture. 

The premise of the show has been well defined. We're focusing on whole foods on a budget and making 3-4 different meals from one base in a 30 minutes show! 

Here's a sneak peek at a few of the episodes:

The Best Homemade Freezer Lasagna! 4 casseroles the easy way...

Convenient  Meatloaf Cups 3 ways...

Summer Quinoa Salad, 3 flavor profiles (recipe courtesy of OrganicGrains.com) 

Plus 3 more episodes!

There will be tips on:

• Cooking from scratch
• Secrets for saving money on healthy meals
• whole grain nutrition hacks
• freezer meal safety
• slow cooker variations
• lowering the impact carbohydrates of food

It will all be whole food healthy meals.

Special thanks too my assistant Sonya for coming to the set and helping with setting things up and helping clean up after the mayhem!  

It takes about 4 hours behind the scenes to get the ingredients together, and cook for each show. Keeping in mind that it will be much less time for you to cook this way, we just have to make things several times. 

The new season will start to air in a few days! I'll keep you posted with new episodes and full recipes here on the website. 


There you go!

Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess

2 Chicken Dinners and Easy Homemade Stuffing (Full Video)

Cooking like a Chef-Boss has never been so easy! This is 2 chicken dinners, homemade stove-cook stuffing and the secrets to freezer-friendly potatoes all in one episode. That’s right! Today I'm back with incredibly delicious homemade convenience meals that will save you time, money and energy. Strap on your oven mitts and let’s get rockin’!


I am frequently asked how I make so many freezer meals so quickly. Here is the big secret. Sit down, it may be too much AWESOMENESS at once... It's called Dove tailing. You see it a lot in restaurants. One kind of meat 12 different sauces. This is basically how a lot of them do it. I think it's quite remarkable. I'm only using 2 sauces here today, but you will get the main idea. Don't worry, I will add a lot of sauce recipes along the way. This is the start.

First...I season and bake 5 lb of Chicken. Salt, Pepper, Garlic...you can use any "all purpose seasoning" out there. 5 lbs of legs and thighs is about $4 at my local Wal-mart. Gotta love that. It will make us 4 dinners. My kids eat a leg each, I eat a thigh, and my husband has all the side dishes because he thinks any cooked meat is just nasty. Ace is out of town this week. I am cooking FISH and CHICKEN and all kinds of animal stuff. Hint: side dishes .

Chicken Legs and Thighs

4-5 lbs leg and thigh meat (about 12 thighs)
2 T all purpose seasoning blend
Place legs and thighs on a large cookie sheet and season generously with seasoning blend. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes (until juices run clear when pricked with a fork or temperature reads 170 degrees when inserted with a meat thermometer). Divide meat between three plates, 4 thighs each and season with three different sauces...today I did two.

Mustard Glaze: 

2T whole grain mustard

2T molasses. Mix and wipe all over the chicken....

Put in a freezer bag clearly labeled. Put in the fridge immediately. Once cooled transfer to the freezer. (I do this cool, then freeze thing so that I don't have a lot of medium temperature meat sitting in my freezer making germs grow...the quicker the meat gets cold, the less chance my family has of getting a food born illness...which is good.)

Pesto sauce: 

3T prepared Pesto sauce. I also added 2T chopped Italian flat leaf parsley

and 1T fresh rosemary leaves....

Put Pesto Chicken in a freezer bag and label clearly. Transfer to the fridge immediately and then once cool, to the freezer.

Now I have 2 of each of these dinners in my freezer. I will be doing a lot more of these so don't feel like you are being left out of any secrets.

Oh. To reheat the chicken, DEFROST and then heat in the microwave 5-7 minutes on a microwave safe dish, or heat in the oven (covered casserole) 350 degrees 20-25 minutes until internal temperature is over 150. Simple stuff.

There you go darlings!

Always My Very Best,

Your Friend Chef Tess

Cooking with Chef Tess Wicked Enchilada Skillet Casserole (full video)

This week's episode was was amazing! Here are the recipes. First the Enchilada Skillet Casserole, and then the Homemade taco seasoning!

Enchilada Tortilla Skillet Casserole

• 1 poblano* pepper, (or bell pepper works too.)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 lb hamburger, very lean (or well seasoned ground turkey or chicken)
• 2 tbsp Homemade Taco Seasoning
• 1 can organic(15 oz) black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 1/2 cups organic thick and chunky salsa, (roasted variety has more flavor)
• 4 cups broken baked organic tortilla chips 1 cup
• (4 oz) organic shredded cheddar and Monterrey Jack cheese blend (for a lower fat version, try using only a 1/2 cup of sharp cheddar!)
• Snipped fresh cilantro (optional)
• Taco toppings like: fat free Sour cream, chopped avocados, fresh tomatoes and black olives (optional--but a must have around my house!)

1. Remove stem and seeds from poblano pepper, chop. Combine hamburger, onion, peppers and seasoning mix in a large skillet (12 inch or larger with a lid). Cook over medium high heat for 5-7 minutes until peppers are soft and meat is no longer pink. 2. Drain and rinse black beans. 3. Stir beans and salsa into hamburger mixture. Gently stir in tortilla chips. Grate cheese over casserole. Cover 3-5 minutes or until cheese is melted everything is hot. If desired, snip cilantro; sprinkle over casserole. Yield: 6 servings *Poblano peppers are dark green chilies with a rich flavor that varies from mild to slightly spicy. Poblanos are about 2 1/2 in. wide and 4-5 in. long, forming a triangular shape.

For a freezer meal: Put in a freezer safe casserole dish. Combine all ingredients according to recipe until you get to the last cooking time. Don't cook. Cover, label, and freeze. To cook, heat in microwave 15-20 minutes from frozen or 5-7 minutes if defrosted. For solar oven/conventional oven baking: Bake 1 hour from frozen, or 30 minutes if defrosted. Allow an extra 15 minutes of baking for every time you open a solar oven.

Chef Tess Taco Seasoning

For one packet (I usually store in a snack size zipper bag):
1tsp ground cumin
1tsp ground black pepper (and 1/2 tsp salt optional)
2 tsp ground oregano
2tsp onion powder
2tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp coriander (ground)


Combine and mix with 1 lb cooked ground beef with 1/4 c water for taco meat.

There you go darlings!

Always My Very Best,

Your Friend Chef Tess

Foil Dinners for Camping And Freezer Meal (full Video)

Episode 3 of Cooking with Chef Tess aired on Saturday in Las Vegas on channel 34.2 and Cox cable channel 97. The Heartland TV Network! Here's the recipe...

We've got summer vacation coming up soon...and that mean camping trips. What mom, dad or granny wouldn't love to be prepared way ahead of time for that big camping trip...or dinner tomorrow? I think this freezer meal will shock and amaze even the pickiest eaters in your house. We call it a Hobo Dinner (or Foil dinner), but it's one of those classic comfort foods that we always had as a kid when we went camping. It's basically a hamburger pot roast cooked over hot coals in the woodland setting. Or, at home it can be baked in the oven (or solar oven) They can be made fresh for dinner, or frozen for later use. However you do it, be prepared to sing a rousing ensemble with your favorite hillbilly harmonica songs. It's campfire good. Down home good. If you precook the veggies and meat, it's even fast and good. So...here we go:

Foil Freezer Dinner's A La Chef Tess

5-6 large russet potatoes, cleaned well and cut into cubes, cooked in microwave or stove top until fork tender OR 4 lb frozen cubed hash browns
1 lb baby carrots, steamed 5 minutes (or frozen)
2 medium red onions, chopped, steamed with the carrots
2-3 T Chef Tess All Purpose Seasoning
3 lb cooked hamburger patties, about 12
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley (optional)
2 Cups dark brown mushroom gravy of your choice (I use homemade Gravy Mix made easy)

12 sheets of heavy-duty foil (use the heavy stuff if you don't want a mess) about one foot long each.

Directions: 
In a large bowl, combine the carrots, onions, potatoes, and seasoning.
Place one cup of vegetable mixture onto a lightly oiled sheet of foil. 
Place the cooked hamburger on  top of the vegetable mixture and wrap tightly.

 I roll the ends and sides very well. Repeat until you have used all your hamburger and vegetable mixture. You can use veggie burgers if you choose instead of meat. Top the meat with a few tablespoons of the prepared gravy. Place 4 meals in a gallon size freezer bag and remove as much air as possible.

 Label with baking directions:

Remove from plastic bag and place in a 400-degree oven for 35-40 minutes until heated through, or place in a solar oven Pot, cover the foil with a dark sheet pan, and close oven. Cook 45 minutes to an hour. In the woods...place on hot coals and cook 25 minutes.

Pour contents onto a plate and sprinkle with parsley if desired.

There you go. Quick and easy on the go for camping, oven baking, or solar cooking.

Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess

Full Video: 3 Freezer Meals from One Beef Base

For those of you who don't live in Las Vegas, here's the full video of last Saturday's show. It was so much fun! If you want the Recipes click here.


Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess

Cooking with Chef Tess to Air on the Heartland Network in Las Vegas

I received an epic call from the owner of TgoTV a few nights ago and I'm still having a hard time digesting the gravity of the news.  Since my pilot episode launched in November, there hasn't been another episode of the show added to her network, and I was beginning to think that it was a pretty dream, but that it might not go much further.  Theresa Goss, the network owner and my Producer,let me know that she had been in a meeting with the head of the Heartland TV Network in Las Vegas.  During her meeting, she had been able to show them my pilot episode. She said that they loved it and wanted it on their network on local TV with the possibility of it going national on all their affiliate stations.  After I dropped the phone and stopped giggling with joy, I was able to compose myself enough to just scream! Hooooray!!!!!! 

 Long story short, the papers have been signed and my show will be airing on Heartland TV  in Las Vegas on channels 34.2 and on Cox cable channel 97 every Saturday at 1:30 pm starting March 25th! YES!!!!

There are several Heartland TV Affiliate Stations Nationally and this definitely has the potential to take the show across the country.  I'm trying to maintain some level of calm, but in my house, I've been squealing with absolute joy for days on end!  

That being said, not only has it been a remarkable few days, but I have been filled with so much gratitude.  The journey is still going to be long, but thankfully, there's new opportunities still ahead and I am so excited! 


Always My Very Best,
Your Friend Chef Tess