10 Secrets To De-Stress Your Holiday, Part 1

November 17, 2016December 22, 2016 Rachel Sherwood

1. Make-ahead meals and no cooking required appetizers
2. Planning a workable menu and advance preparation
3. Decorate for less
4. Setting up for success
5. Get what you really need

I love this time of year! There is something magical about the holidays with all the food, parties, and presents. It is such a special time sharing the joys of the year, being thankful for all we have and creating memories together.

As much fun as the holidays are, there always seems to be so much to do and so little time to do it. Many clients share with me how they dread all the stress that comes with the holidays and worry about it being perfect.

We have all been there – guests arrive late, the turkey gets overcooked, you drop the side dish, you didn’t set enough places at the table, you worry about having enough food or dealing with family drama. It is enough to make anyone want to hibernate for the winter.

Yet some of our best memories are baking cookies with that special someone, preparing that favorite family recipe and sharing in the fun and laughter of gathering together. We make memories as we sit down to a beautiful feast with our most loved family and friends.

For me, food is more than just a delicious meal, it brings people together. Have you ever noticed at the holidays, no matter how big or small the house, people always gather in the kitchen? There is a reason for this. They come for food, but what really matters are the stories shared and memories made. The greatest gift I can give someone is a meal in my home. Not only is it a delicious, nutritious meal, but it is the gift of my time, a display of love and sharing that really makes it special. Food fills the physical need of hunger but being in community with others fills the need to belong and be loved.

So this year, I am sharing my top 10 secrets to help simplify and de-stress your holidays. In this holiday entertaining series, this week’s top tips include Make-ahead meals for busy nights & unexpected guests and no-cooking-required appetizers that are amazing.

1. Make-ahead meals

Make-ahead meals are essential for easy dinners all year, but holiday time makes them perfect for impromptu parties and welcoming last minute guests. Note that these are not crock-pot meals that can take up to 8 hours to defrost and 6 hours to cook. The key to efficient make-ahead meals is packaging them in small or individual portions, locking in the best flavor to feed as few or as many as you need, quickly and easily. Use recipes that are complete meals including a protein, vegetable and starch option all in one so when the dinner time is near, there is no extra work required.

One of my family favorites is Italian stuffed shells that can be filled with cheese, vegetables and meats. We get together and make a party out of it, making hundreds. We all have a good time and go home with a few meals in hand.

(Italian stuffed shells packaged for the freezer)

Find more Make-Ahead Meals here!

2. No-Cook Appetizers

Sometimes I just don’t have the time or energy to cook but people still need to be fed. For simple stunning party food, cheese plates are my go-to appetizer. They are perfect for the holidays as they can be made ahead of time, require no cooking, and can please any diet with the right accompaniments. Keep a variety of hard cheeses and cured meats on hand and pair them with crackers, nuts, fruits, vegetables, or preserves. Create a beautiful and tasty platter that can serve as first appetizers, first courses and even desserts.

Need help knowing what pairs well together? Get the Pretty Plate Cheese Guide to learn the 3 no-fail cheese plate combinations and a variety of tasty accompaniments that pair well. This guide is also a perfect stocking-stuffer or hostess gift.

You can also get one of my favorite kitchen tools, the Magic Cheese Knife, to make cutting cheese a breeze!

Happy Entertaining!

Dinner Made Easy with Freezer Meals

August 19, 2015August 19, 2015 Rachel Sherwood

Freezing meals is a huge time and money saver for those busy days. Dinner made easy with freezer meals sounds like an easy concept but there are a few secrets to making them easily accessible and tasty. No one wants to wait for something to thaw for hours when you are in a rush only to find bland flavors and soggy textures. This fall with baby on the way I am making sure to have a wide assortment of delicious meals ready to go. You can do this too making those busy school nights easier and not worrying about “what’s for dinner” after a long day. Follow these techniques below for dinner made easy with freezer meals.

Your family size and the type of food will help determine the best way to portion and store items. You want to package things in correct portion sizes for your desired meal. If you are unsure individual portions or portions for two are easiest to thaw quickly and use as many as you need for a particular meal. Remember the smaller the item is the faster it will defrost.

The key to keeping foods fresh and tasting great while frozen is keeping out as much air as possible. If air can move around the food this is what causes food to change flavor, dry out and cause freezer burn destroying the taste and texture.

Essential Dinner Made Easy with Freezer Meals 101:

Pack items in small quantities for quick defrosting times;
Take meat out of the containers and wrap it individually;
Avoid freezer burn by packing airtight, wrap in plastic then foil or use a vacuum sealer;
Clearly label, date and include cooking instructions on packages for easy use.

Freezer Meals Extra Secrets:

Freeze extra broth and sauces in ice cube trays so you can use just what you need.
Freeze extra coffee, juices or pureed fruits and vegetables to add to smoothies.
Remove the skin and cut bananas in chunks allow to freeze individually on a parchment lined sheet pan. This way they are easier to defrost faster, measure out for baking, quick additions to smoothies and easy snacks.
Make large batches of soup and freeze individual 1-2 servings in plastic freezer bags — lay each flat on a sheet pan so they freeze in sheets, they take up less space and defrost quickly this way.
Use foil pans to cut down on dishes.
Save your summer herbs by pureeing them with olive oil and freezing in ice cube trays.
Keep extra pancakes waffles by allowing to cool then freezing in a single layer. Transfer to freezer bags for up to three months. Reheat in a toaster or in a 350-degree oven on a baking sheet covered with foil for a hot breakfast without the effort and mess.

A few of my family favorites for Dinner Made Easy with Freezer Meals

Try this family-loved favorite 4 Cheese Italian Stuffed Shells.

My family loves stuffed shells. They are perfect for children and adults. We make them by the mega batch getting everyone together for a shell-making party making the work easy and fun. Yes, my sister in-law is drinking wine from a straw in this photo, you see your hands can get a little messy while stuffing.

(My husband and sister-in-law stuffing shells)

We package the stuffed shells in freezer bags so we can take out enough for one or enough for a party. After we are done making them we divide up the bags and everyone leaves with several dinner made easy meals.

(500 shells ready for the freezer)

Meatballs are another family favorite dinner made easy freezer meal. I also use the same recipe for meatballs and shape it into a meatloaf too. This one recipe can be converted to two completely different meals easily. Serve the meatloaf with mashed potatoes and gravy and meatballs with red sauce and noodles.

Freezer meals can go far beyond just dinner. Don’t forget about breakfast on those busy mornings. I always have some frozen bananas on hand for quick additions to smoothies. They are easily portioned out to make and freeze a few loaves of banana bread.

You can freeze the already baked loaves wrapped tightly in plastic then foil for great flavor and easy on the go breakfast and snacks.

(Banana bread, sliced frozen bananas and mashed banana portioned out for easy baking)

Get the recipe for this easy Banana bread here.

Baby on the way? Make dinner today!

July 29, 2013November 5, 2013 Rachel Sherwood

Brooke says, “I am due to have a baby soon. Can you point me in the direction of a few good meal options to make now and freeze for later when the baby arrives?”

Of course I can help you. If your tired the last thing you want to be worrying about with a new baby at home is what to serve for dinner. Here are two well loved favorites. I make these in large batches and freeze them in easy to serve portions to make thawing faster. This weeks Impressions at Home Newsletter is also on this topic as well. You can sign up by sending a email to info@impressionsathome.com if you don’t already receive it.

This is a family favorite make a head meal — This is a family favorite make ahead meal

Stuffed Shells

This is the basic cheese recipe but feel free to add 1lb of cooked italian sausage or 16oz cooked and drained spinach to the cheese mixture for more interesting flavor combinations.

2 box jumbo pasta shells

2 16oz ricotta

4 cups grated mozzarella

4 cups grated cheddar

3 eggs beaten

2 cups Parmesan

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 Jar of your favorite marinara sauce

Cook the pasta shells to the package directions.

In a large bowl mix the ricotta, 3 cheeses and eggs together, season with salt, pepper and onion powder.

Cool the cooked shells by running them under cold water. Stuff cooked shells with cheese mixture by using a tablespoon.

Place stuffed shells in pan cover with marinara sauce

Bake 350 for about 30 min till hot, or 45min-1 hour if frozen

To freeze stuff shells as directed and place in a freezer zip lock bag without sauce. To serve take as many as you need out, cover with sauce in pan and bake till warm.

Sweet Potato Walnut burritos

These take a bit of time to make so go for at least a double batch or invite some friends over and make it a party. Wrap and freeze them in sets of two for easy freezing and eating. They are a wonderful vegetarian option that even your meat lovers will enjoy.

1/2 cup green lentils sorted, rinsed well and drained

1 large sweet potato about one pound peeled and cut into 1 in cubes

2 T Olive oil

1 medium onion chopped

salt and pepper to taste

2 garlic cloves minced

1 1/2 tsp chili powder

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp coriander

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 c grated cheddar or monterey jack cheese

3/4 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped

3/4 can crushed tomatoes

6 (8in) flour tortillas

1/2 cup grated cheddar or monterey jack cheese

chopped fresh cilantro

Place lentils or peas in 1 1/3 cups water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until tender yet firm 25-35 min for lentils, 1 hour 15 min for peas. Drain and set aside.

Please sweet potato in a medium saucepan with just enough water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until cubes are soft but still hold shape about 20 min, Drain and mash them into a large bowl. set aside.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the onion salt/pepper and sauté, stirring occasionally until the inion begins to soften about 2 min. reduce heat and stir in garlic and all spices. Saute till onion is translucent about 6 min more

Add the onion mixture, lentils/peas, 1/2 cup cheese, walnuts, crushed tomatoes to the mashed sweet potatoes and mix well.

Pre heat oven to 350. In a 9×13 pan fill a tortilla with about 1 sixth of the filling and roll it securely. Place it seam side down in the baking dish. Continue until tortillas and filling are gone. Cover dish tightly with foil bake for 30 min until heated through. remove foil from pan place 1 -2 sliced tomatoes on top of each burrito and sprinkle with cheese. Return to oven to melt cheese and garnish with cilantro. Serve with salsa and sour cream if desired.

Stuffed Shells

May 31, 2013July 25, 2017 Rachel Sherwood

This is one of our family favorites as we love Italian food. This dish is easy and can suite a variety of different tastes making it a perfect make ahead meal or freezer meal. Our family will often get together and make hundreds at a time making it fun, easy and inexpensive to get dinner of the table.

Make-ahead meals — Four Cheese Italian Stuffed Shells

Four Cheese Italian Stuffed Shells

2 box jumbo pasta shells

2 16oz ricotta

4 cups grated mozzarella

4 cups grated cheddar

3 eggs beaten

2 cups Parmesan

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 Jar of your favorite marinara sauce

Cook the pasta shells to the package directions.

In a large bowl mix the ricotta, 3 cheeses and eggs together, season with salt, pepper and onion powder.

Cool the cooked shells by running them under cold water. Stuff cooked shells with cheese mixture by using a tablespoon.

Place stuffed shells in pan cover with marinara sauce.

Bake 350 for about 30 min till hot, for 45min-1 hour if frozen

Make Ahead Freezer Meals: To freeze, stuff shells as directed and place in a freezer zip lock bag with out sauce pushing out as much air as possible for best results. To serve take as many as you need out, cover with sauce in pan and bake till warm.

Flavor Variations: Try adding 1 pound of Italian sausage, ground turkey or frozen spinach (drained of excess liquid) to the cheese mixture and stuff as directed.