There’s a mystery available every time the freezer lid is raised and householders attempt to determine what exactly they have frozen away for future use.
Is that rhubarb in that bag with all the ice crystals? Are those saskatoon berries showing some freezer burn? That other package is a pie, but the flavour will be a mystery because the tag has fallen off. And shouldn’t those chunks of garlic sausage take a trip to the dump — or maybe be given to a friend?
Removing the first few layers of recent insertions will provide a number of surprises, many of them still edible. This week’s recipes offer a few ideas for making use of the mysterious contents.
• • •
Carrot Pie
1 cup cooked carrots, mashed
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 pint whole milk
2 tbsps. molasses, optional
1 tbsp. cinnamon
1/2 tbsp. ginger
Place frozen carrots in boiling water and cook until extra tender. Drain off water and mash or puree carrots until any lumps have been removed.
Place carrots in a large bowl then add in all other ingredients and mix well.
Pour into an unbaked pie shell. Bake at 425 degrees F for 10 minutes then reduce heat to 350 degrees F and bake until mixture is set, about 50 minutes. Chill and serve with whipped cream.
Any extra carrot puree may be used in milk smoothies or in a favourite muffin recipe. Freezing is not recommended for the puree.
• • •
Fruit Drink
8 cups frozen rhubarb, thawed
1-16 oz. pkg. frozen strawberries, thawed
3 cups sugar
8 cups water
1 pkg. strawberry Jello
1/2 cup lemon juice
Thaw rhubarb and strawberries. Try not to use fruit that is clearly freezer burned.
In a large pot bring fruit, sugar and water to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until rhubarb is tender. Remove from heat and press through a sieve. Return juice to pot and discard pulp.
Stir Jello and lemon juice into the fruit juice and stir until Jello is dissolved. Pour into a container and chill slightly.
In a punch bowl combine equal amounts of fruit juice and chilled ginger ale, add ice cubes and consume as soon as possible.
Leftover juice may be stored in refrigerator for up to a week. Whip in a blender if juice has turned to gelatine then add ginger ale and ice.
• • •
Beef Chunk Stew
1 lb. beef cubes, cooked or raw
2/3 cup water
1 cup diced carrots
1 cup diced potatoes
2 cups tomatoes
1 onion
salt and pepper to taste
1 tbsp. flour
Thaw the meat. If raw, brown in a small amount of fat. If already cooked, proceed to place cubes of beef into a greased casserole. Add water. Cover and bake in moderate oven for one hour.
Add vegetables, spices and flour and bake until vegetables are tender. If desired, add a can of tomato soup or some vegetable juice to the casserole. Stir.
Joyce Walter can be reached at ronjoy@sasktel.net
