Frozen Apple Rolls

It's apple season!  Yay!  I was lucky enough to have a neighbor let me pick apples off his tree last week and I got to make my favorite apple dish over the weekend.  It's quick. It's easy.  It is a great way to store apples to enjoy during the cold winter months.

 And yes, it is another one of those beloved recipes that my grandma and mom have made as long as I can remember.

Frozen Apple Rolls

2 cups flour                                                                  Syrup: 2 c. sugar

2 t. baking powder                                                                   2 c. water

1 t. salt                                                                                     1/4 t. cinnamon

1/2 c. milk                                                                                1/4 t. nutmeg

2/3 c. shortening                                                                       6-10 drops red food coloring

2 1/2 c. grated apples                                                                2 T. butter or margarine

Sift dry ingredients, cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Add milk all at once and stir until flour is moistened.

On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into an 18 by 12 inch rectangle about 1/4 inch thick. 

 Spread grated apples over the dough.  

Roll up like a jelly roll.  

Cut the log into 8-10 pieces.  

Place on cookie sheets and place into freezer.  

 

When the rolls are frozen solid, you can put them into freezer bags.

When ready to bake, place frozen rolls in an ungreased 9x13 pan.  

Make syrup by placing all ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. 

 Pour over frozen apple rolls.  

Bake at 375* for 35-40 minutes.

For some reason, I keep finding bowls that look like this.  Apparently, the family approves of a long time family favorite recipe.

What is your favorite apple recipe?  How do you store the summer and fall flavors for the winter?

-A Kansas Farm Mom

Frozen Apple Rolls

2 cups flour                                                                  Syrup: 2 c. sugar

2 t. baking powder                                                                   2 c. water

1 t. salt                                                                                     1/4 t. cinnamon

1/2 c. milk                                                                                1/4 t. nutmeg

2/3 c. shortening                                                                       6-10 drops red food coloring

2 1/2 c. grated apples                                                                2 T. butter or margarine

Sift dry ingredients, cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Add milk all at once and stir until flour is moistened.

On a lightly floured surface, roll dough into an 18 by 12 inch rectangle about 1/4 inch thick.  Spread grated apples over the dough.  Roll up like a jelly roll.  Cut the log into 8-10 pieces.  Place on cookie sheets and place into freezer.  When the rolls are frozen solid, you can put them into freezer bags.

When ready to bake, place in an ungreased 9x13 pan.  Make syrup by placing all ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to the boiling point.  Pour over frozen apple rolls.  Bake at 375* for 35-40 minutes. -A Kansas Farm Mom

W4DW- Cheesy Mostaccioli

I usually post my recipes on Wednesday and call them What’s for Dinner Wednesday, but this week it is Thursday and here is why.  I had this post all done except for the picture.  I had the card from the camera in the slot ready to download when the farmer called.  He wanted to take pictures of his sprayer, so he can try to sell it and get a new one.  Was I ready to take pictures?  Right now.  Sure!  So, I took the pictures and wasn’t getting enough, so I left him with the camera and went to finish supper.  When he came in for supper, did he bring the camera?  Ummm.  You guessed it, NO.  I finally retrieved my camera and the picture of this week’s W4DW after I operated the combine all afternoon and had the boys doing their homework in the combine for 2 hours.

If you are interested in a used sprayer, there are pictures of it at the bottom of the post.  ;)

I have talked before about how I love to stock my freezer when I am getting ready for one of our busy seasons.  I like to cook ahead of calving season, but also harvest.  I have written about how different times of the year demand different recipes in my Farm Wife Meal Planner.   We are getting ready for corn harvest, soybean harvest, calf weaning and wheat planting.  It looks like this year it will all take place at the same time, so I better get busy stocking the freezer.  Here is one that my family loves.

If you have kids in your house, anything with pasta and cheese is sure to be a hit.  I adapted this recipe from a Pampered Chef recipe about 12 years ago.  It makes a huge batch, so if you have a bunch of hungry boys to feed it might just be the ticket for you.

Cheesy Mostaccioli

1 (16 oz) package mostaccioli, cooked

1 cup onion, chopped

2 pounds ground beef

2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

1 clove garlic

¾ teaspoon black pepper

28 ounces tomato juice
1 package spaghetti sauce seasoning packet

1 (10 ¾ ounce) can condensed cheddar cheese soup

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 350*.  Brown ground beef and onion for about 10 minutes or until beef is no longer pink, drain off drippings.

Stir in seasonings, tomato juice, spaghetti sauce mix and soup and mix well.  (You can also substitute a jar of spaghetti sauce for the tomato juice and seasoning packet.)

Combine pasta, meat sauce and 1½ cups of the mozzarella cheese in large casserole dish. 

At this point, you can continue with the recipe and bake or freeze for another meal.

Cover the dish with either a lid or aluminum foil and bake for 35 minutes. 

Carefully remove cover and sprinkle remaining cheese over the top of the casserole.  Bake uncovered an additional 10 minutes.

 This make 12 servings.

-A Kansas Farm Mom

And one of the 20+ pictures of the sprayer that delayed my post.  Gosh I love being a Farmer's Wife!  :)  Have a great rest of the week and wonderful weekend!!

W4DW-Freezer Slaw

Sometimes, I run across a recipe in both of my grandmother's cookbooks.  They were great friends who loved to quilt weekly together, so it is no surprise that they shared recipes.  This week's What's 4 Dinner Wednesday is one that I found in both of their favorite recipe collections, but under different names and a bit different steps to get to the same fabulous end result.

If you have someone in your house that does not like mayonnaise, like my husband, maybe they will like this version of coleslaw.  My Grandma Evelyn used to freeze it in individual containers.  She lived as a widow for over 20 years and was pretty good at keeping a supply of individual meal servings after she would cook a big batch.

We have planted a few things in our garden in hopes of a fall harvest.  We have cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and brussell sprouts.  The sprouts were not my idea.  The boys requested them. With the rain we got this week, I think the boys need to plant some lettuce as well.  Do you plant a fall garden?

Sara’s Freezer Slaw

1 head cabbage (about 3.5 pounds)

Green Pepper, chopped

Carrots

1 tablespoon salt

2 cups sugar

½ cup water

1 cup vinegar

3 teaspoons celery or mustard seed, optional

Shred cabbage and carrots.  Sprinkle salt over cabbage and carrots and let stand 1 hour. Squeeze out the extra water. 

In a medium saucepan, bring sugar, water, vinegar, and seeds to a boil.  Boil 1 minute.  Pour over shredded vegetables and freeze.  My recipes say this will keep up to 6 weeks in the refrigerator unfrozen. 

-A Kansas Farm Mom

Nesting in a Big Way Part III

Part 3 of my nesting that has been going on is a bit different.  There are 10 things that I make sure are taken care of in my own home before the calves start to arrive.  This is very similar to the list I had and many others have before they have a baby of their own.

1.       I make sure the freezer is stockpiled with meals that can be warmed up by anyone in the family.  If we have calves that need special attention, I am typically the NICU nurse (I have a little more mothering instinct than the other members of the household.  This means that Randy or the boys are in charge of meal time and all 3 of them are at least capable of running the microwave.  Here is a list of items currently in my freezer:

•  French Dip
• Cheesy Enchiladas
• Christy’s Not so Famous Pork Loin
• Grandma Jessie’s Zucchini Cake
•  No Boil Lasagna
• Easy, Beefy, Cheesy Burritos
• Pork Chalupas
• Smoked Beef Brisket
• Beefy Nacho Potato Soup  
• Barbecue Meatballs

2.       A snack supply is a must.  If there is a birthing emergency, lunch time might not come until 2:00 if ever.  Often we keep some packaged emergency snacks in the feed trucks with us just in case.

3.       We get up in the middle of the night, usually around 3 am to check on the heifers (first time mothers) to make sure they aren’t having any problems.  This means a nap in the middle of the day is needed or A LOT of caffeine and sugar.  I try to stock up on pop before we get started.  I am well into week #1 of the nightly checks and have only begged to have a nap twice.  Pretty good for me. 

4.       Adult beverages are also a necessity in my household.  Some days things don’t go as they should or we spend a couple of hours with a special patient or two late at night.  When we are wound up on adrenaline, sometimes a beverage can help you sleep a whole lot better.

5.       I always make sure the mudroom is clean and organized before calving season.  This room of our home becomes the calf NICU.  Any calf that is having a hard time immediately after birth may get brought to the house for some special attention (including middle of the night feedings) and extra monitoring.  Just imagine having a 4 legged newborn in your house, except they don’t cry, instead they get up and bump around until you feed them or take them back to their mama.  :)

6.       Speaking of the mudroom, lots of laundry detergent is used in my house over the next 5 weeks.  Not only to our clothes get pretty gross helping new wet, slimy calves, but we also use blankets and towels for the calves and they need washed as well.

7.       It’s always a good idea to keep a supply of bleach or other disinfectant around.  The blankets, OB chains and calf bottles all can use a good wash and disinfection when multiple newborns are involved.

8.       Now, here’s one most wouldn’t have to worry about: Birthday Treats.  Our 7 year old has a birthday right at the beginning of calving season.  I try to make his treats for school ahead of time and freeze them.  I never know when a weather system will move in and  cause calving to move earlier.  Cows are just like people and that due date is usually plus or minus 10 days.

9.       As a mom, we also try to work on school Valentines ahead of time.  Remember, I have 2 boys that hate to write and if the weather is cold and wet it is likely that we will spend more time in the barn than in the house leading up to Valentine’s Day.

10.   I also try to keep all the laundry washed and put away while I have time.  I also take advantage of sunny warm days when the calves start arriving to get caught back up on the laundry.  The boys do like to wash the laundry this year, so maybe they will help out some, but they hate to fold and put their laundry away.

My friends all think I am organized and I think I have them all fooled.  I try to control what I can in my life, because I know when I walk out that door in the morning surprises can be around every corner.

Have a great week everyone and be sure to follow me on Facebook to see new baby calf pictures.

-A Kansas Farm Mom

You might also like:

Nesting in a Big Way Part I

Nesting in a Big Way Part II  

Freezer Pleasers Recipe Index

The busiest people need a resource of quick meals that either heat up great or bake with no prep.  I usually keep my freezer stocked with a variety of prepped food especially when we are busy during harvest and calving.

My Late Night Dinner Selections are those that are fully cooked and reheat tasting as good as the first time we ate them.  These are great when we get home late and no one has had time to think about a meal let alone start one.

My Company's Coming Selections are recipes that the prep can be done ahead of time and then baked/served when company is at your house, allowing you more time to spend with friends and family.

Late Night Dinner Selections

Beef Taquitos
Cheesy Enchiladas
Easy, Cheesy, Beefy Burritos

French Dip
Pork Chalupas
Slow Cooker Mexican Shredded Beef
Spicy Shredded Beef

Steak Roll Ups
Cheesy Mostaccioli

Company's Coming

Barbecue Meatballs
 Lasagna

Freezer Coleslaw

Frozen Apple Rolls
Grandma Jessie's Zucchini Cake