Darienne

How exactly?

OK. Here's the gist of the situation. - we have a really heavily laden Macintosh this year - we want to make juice again and freeze it for the coming year - DH has NO time right now to stop and help - I can wash, peel, and cut the apples into chunks - I cannot core or juice the apples - DH will be able to work with the apples in 2 weeks - no, we have no help available, even for trading free apples My proposal is to wash, peel and chunk the apples, put them into plastic bags and toss them in the freezer for two weeks. Is this sensible? Useful? Stupid? (Found no useful info on Google in a modicum of tries) Thanks.

Time to trade us both and the hand mixers in on new models I fear.

Laugh for the morning... 1) not really and 2) no way

I googled Rendang and it sounds very delicious. Can you share your recipe, please? Thanks.

I'd like that recipe!!! Please. I really need some chicken recipes. I am not fond of chicken, but it's always safe to serve. So many people it seems no longer want to eat beef...and never did eat pork anyway. Thanks.

TheCulinaryLibrary said on 23 September 2011 "No matter how lovingly cooked and wonderful smelling something is when I freeze it, it always has that unloved, abandoned, frozen-hearted feel when thawed." This in response to my question about unexpected guests and what to feed them. I often feel exactly the same way. Family eats reheated thawed dishes...company doesn't. Well, not until I am satisfied with what I am able to freeze, thaw and reheat. So, this time the question is: what are your best finished dishes, casseroles, curries, chiles, meats, etc which not only FREEZE the best, but also THAW and REHEAT the best?

Never heard of them or seen one, but it does look like a very handy piece of kitchenware. Will look them up... ps. Roughly half hour later: OK. Who knows where to get one in Canada? pps. Found one on Amazon.ca

Thanks Pierogi. Yet another sad kitchen story. What to do? I think in the end, I'll simply stick with the ugly cracked old Sunbeam, which doesn't work well, but works. When it dies, I'll revisit the issue. (She shakes her head in sorrow.)

Terrific pain the last time I worked with Poblanos without gloves. Hours of agony. A first for Poblanos. No one answered my ps question. I tried googling it in a dozen different ways and couldn't make Google answer my question. I want to know. They can't have latex gloves in deepest inner Mexico. And they certainly didn't have them before quite recently when they do have them. How did they survive the procedure. Please.

You hit it right on the head. I can't seem to get my DH to see this, but I feel it deeply inside. And no, I will not serve frozen pizza any more. Not in this life. Unless it's for teenagers. Those days are long gone. Put that together with the astounding number of folks in Canada...maybe we just pick people who are this way ...who don't do spicy / hot / exotic / foreign / etc and Houston, we have a bit of a problem. Or maybe too many of our friends are as old as we are and by this time have developed all kinds of digestive problems. We are lucky? And maybe many Canadians are not exposed to 'foreign' cuisines. It's only recently that we could buy so many of the ingredients needed. Or maybe I am too new to cooking and have not assimilated so many of the basic recipes and concepts. Not that I can't do it, but that I can't do it blindfolded with one hand tied behind my back. And the thought of serving my cooked food to friends throws me. My DH keeps after me to serve Chinese food. He thinks mine is the best he has ever tasted. Ever. Seriously. And so, this morning, we are going to sit down and figure this one out for future reference. I should add that he does the mises for me and all I have to do is to cook it ( :laugh: ). Right. And I might add that I have typed out the most clear-cut step by step instructions for said mises for each dish. As noted in my last post. This thread has been an unexpected learning lesson for me. Thanks. CulinaryLibrary: I read your statement out loud to my DH and I said: a great statement. It just resonates. That's the word: 'resonates'. How I feel too.

Lovely Minas6907. Good going.

Thanks Snadra. Lots of good ideas. Added to the growing list. This has been a bit of a learning experience for me...with the realization that I don't really feel at home with a lot of basic North American/Aussie dishes. For instance I have still never cooked a pork chop in my life. And I've never roasted a chicken. Much to learn. DH did much of the basic cooking for years as I a) avoided cooking as much as possible and when I cooked b) cooked almost exclusively from non-North American sources. Odd. Oh well, just think of all the challenges left to me to try. At this rate, I'll have to live for half of forever.

On what? She can't eat gluten...and that is completely legit.

Thanks Andie. I found a local store which handles Waring and I shall think on it.

I need a place to rant. November of 2008 I bought through Amazon the Cuisinart 9-speed, so top rated by everyone. I have never mistreated it and it has increasingly made weird noises. Well, just now it quit. Over guacamole. So what did I do? Well, we never discarded our ugly, old...very, very old...antediluvian almost...cracked, 3-speed Sunbeam. Two beaters, no whip. Found it in the back of the cellar. Plugged it in. Works like a charm. I know it's at least 40 years old. DH says the best plan is to buy a Canadian Tire cheapie and just be prepared to throw it away in a couple of years. No rant, no tears, minimal money lost. Any more useful, and less cranky, thoughts on the subject? Thanks.

Shelby. Slow cooker pork? I guess so! Love it! On a bun. With fried onions. And this really neat Tex-Mex potato recipe I found. Or Mexican rice. Cole slaw. Love pulled pork. Am working on a house BBQ sauce, but usually use leftover Puerco Pibil sauce. Perhaps more Canadians have no experience with southwest or Mexican food. I was talking to the owner/chef of a recently opened Mexican restaurant. "Where are the pork dishes?" I asked. "You can't sell pork in Peterborough. They won't touch it". He answered. "Just beef and chicken". No fish either. (Except fish and chips.) Kouign. And conversation. Yes. Lemon with chicken is a good idea. I think I was thrown by having one after another suggestion thrown. And when I said "salmon with lime" and she said she didn't like salmon...I just said. Fine. Steamed chicken and stir fry. The problem was that I was by then really tired and pretty stressed, and what I was looking for is the answer to that problem. I have learned a lot this time around. Thanks.

I love Mexican food (and Indian and Thai and Sichuan and you name it in the hot/spicy/exotic variety). It doesn't have to be either hot or spicy...but much of North American cooking has little interest for us. And although I did as little cooking as possible for most of my life, we never ate a quote/unquote conventional diet. Perhaps this thread was prompted by that strange and not very satisfying dinner arrangement last weekend in which everything I suggested was vetoed for some reason. Our guests kept saying they ate a lot of chicken and vegetables with no spices and so that's what we gave them. But I am not at my best with just chicken and vegetables I fear. Maybe I just need some chicken recipes on hand... Oh well, I learned a lot in this thread thanks to all of you.

No, not tired...old and tired. If I waited until I wasn't tired, I'd have no life at all!

Lots of answers to ponder, Sylvia, Bad Rabbit, Jenni, Genkinaonna, ScoopKW, OliverB, TheNoodleIncident and HungryC. Thanks all. Lots of good pasta ideas. A bit of a problem with the low carbers and gluten-free types. (Hmmm...one sure thing. Dog people seem to eat anything. ) Short order cooking is out I fear and the middle of nowhere is also in the Great Frozen North (Ontario). Probably the pulled chicken is a good idea. We eat mostly pulled beef and even better pork, but I am amazed at the folks who eschew pork big time. Most people will eat chicken (not my favorite) and, in fact, chicken with a stir-fry was the dish we served Friday night to the folks who couldn’t, wouldn’t and didn’t. Not a dish I would pick, but it worked well and that's what they asked for in the end. Best for me to make a solid list of things which I can throw together or thaw from the freezer without problems. …and hope most guests can come for the mid-day meal and will eat spicy/hot.

I don't have employees, but could I stretch this one to include well-meaning friends? Because I work with chocolate, friends invariably will give me gifts of chocolate. Very generous and thoughtful, but DON'T DO IT. I could go on about why, but it would feel rather mean-spirited. Not all chocolate is created equal. There, that should do it.

My DH's recipe for French-Canadian Tourtiere comes from his French teacher in Quebec back in 1960 and uses 7-Up for the pastry liquid.

Thanks to all for a plethora of great ideas. I’m not sure why I get so frozen (easily thawed, good as new) when these occasions arise. I might add something left out of my initial post. Many of our friends are our age, and although we eat just about anything, I am dismayed by the number of proscriptions which go along with serving meals. “We don’t eat this…he doesn’t like that…I am allergic to the other”. Right. That just about leaves us with glasses of water. Perhaps Janeer was right…don’t invite them in the first place. Our Friday night guests (expected) were difficult to feed with the likes, dislikes, and allergies. Gluten is always a problem one. Our Sunday night guests (unexpected) were ostensibly easier. “Oh, we eat anything”. Until they got here and the food was put out. She was diabetic and I didn’t know. Still she was wonderful about it and that was fine. Plus they stopped off at a grocery and brought scads of food with them. Elsie: Ed makes his Mother’s Macaroni and Cheese and I never thought of that. There’s the old…”we don’t do carbs” thing tho… Heidi: Didn’t know you could freeze cooked pasta. Should keep some fresh pasta in the freezer. LindaK: Always have pesto on hand. PtEater: Are you suggesting cooking the chicken or thawing cooked chicken? Janeer: couldn’t fine rolled pizza shell on Google. Also…you can keep rice in the fridge for a week? We usually bag and freeze ours in portions. StuartLS: I like the Indian idea…but then the husband of Friday dinner doesn’t do hot or spicy. I like to do Mexican usually…but it was out. Ellen: Waffles. Right. With fruit. And chopped nuts. And yoghurt, or cream, or whatever. Jenni: lovely Indian ideas. Annachan: right. Puff pastry in the freezer. And canned coconut milk. I need to make a list.

The unhappy fact is that I simply haven’t the energy I used to. And when an opportunity to invite folks to dinner arises, I want to be able to say “Great” without panicking either over having nothing on hand, or being too tired to cook anything. This happened late yesterday. We ran into old friends and said…do come to a quick dinner on your way back home if you can fit it in. “What on earth can I serve?” I ask DH. OK. Toasted cheese sandwiches? Ed says: “pulled pork on a bun with salad”. Right. I have a packet of frozen pulled pork. Ditto buns. BBQ sauces in the garage fridge. Not homemade, but they’ll do. Salad stuff always. Ice cream is fast and no problem. I always have cream. I have frozen homemade lasagna…but thawed stuff is often not as good the second time around. Fine for family, but not for guests. I can always throw together an impossible pie: meat, vegetables, cheese, biscuit topping. But somehow…it's had its day. What dishes freeze and then thaw really well? Preferably one-dish dishes. What recipes you can throw together at the last minute with stuff which you are likely to have on hand in the freezer or pantry? (Please keep in mind that we live in the middle of nowhere and can't run out to pick up a missing ingredient.) Thanks.

Looks good enough to eat. I've never even had a S'more, but yours I would try!