Category Archives: Recipes & Cooking Tips

Grilling the perfect burgers & steaks

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We get a number of cooking questions on how to make grilling more successful, so we wanted to provide a few quick tips:

For the perfect burger:

  • Did you know? It’s best to form your patty with an indent in the middle, causing the middle to be thinner. That way, when you cook it, it stays the same thickness.
  • Also, after you’ve formed your burgers, place them back in the fridge for a few minutes to cool the beef. This helps your burgers stay together so they don’t break apart on the grill!

For the perfect steak:

  • Let them stand for 20-30 minutes to bring it to room temperature before you cook (this allows the middle to cook without burning the outside). Continue reading →

Summertime Grill Cleaning Tips

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So all that summertime grillin’ and chillin’ by the barbeque has left your outdoor grill a bit grimy? No worries. Our seasoned chef, catering guru and co-founder of Dream Dinners, Stephanie Allen, offers these easy steps to cleaning your barbeque before each use.

“Our family loves to cook outside, so this is important to do and keeps the grill safe between big cleanings.”
- Stephanie

 

  • Turn the heat on high, leave the lid closed for 5 minutes.
  • Take a 12-14 inch piece of aluminum foil and make a loose ball, baseball size.
  • Turn off the heat, and after the grill has cooled a bit, but while it’s still warm, rub the grate with the aluminum foil ball to clean.
  • Follow with a warm watery and soapy paper towel. Wipe the walls too.
  • Empty cabinet or trays at the bottom of any ash or debris.

Tailgating with Dream Dinners

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On-the-go-moms need on-the-go meals. Watch this video!

You may know how it feels… the school-sport-music-church midweek shuffle between activities that leaves a home-cooked meal by the wayside. Many folks may pick it up at a drive-thru, roadside. But remember that Dream Dinners was started when two soccer moms faced that same problem. They were time starved and struggling to get a healthy home-made dinner on the table on those busy nights. Continue reading →

National Salad Day is also in May

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Chicken Honey, Garlic & Orange

Chicken with Honey, Garlic & Orange

Rethink the way you use your Dream Dinners this month so that you maximize your meals with versatility.

Create a salad from these April & May Menu items:

  • Lemon Chicken Piccata. Leftovers of this dinner make a great chilled pasta salad. Just chop the chicken into bite size pieces, add some artichoke hearts, celery and green onions and toss with a little Italian dressing. Easy!
  • Penne with Chicken and Peanut Sauce. Add shredded carrots Continue reading →

Recipes for Leftover Hard Boiled Eggs

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Dream Dinners has been noted as a great idea for busy moms in Real Simple magazine, and they know that you are likely going to need some ideas on what to do with all those hard boiled eggs after the your big Easter Egg hunt.

Well, from awesome deviled egg recipes, to the unusual breakfast style pizza on a muffin, this list of ten ideas delivers healthy ideas so that nothing goes to waste. Now that’s egg-xtra efficient!

View the recipes on realsimple.com >

 

Spitfire Beef Roast In The Crock Pot

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If you would like to cook your Spitfire Beef Roast from frozen using your crock pot .. it’s as easy as 1-2-3!

  1. Add beef roast with marinade and enough water to have 1″ of liquid in the crock pot.
  2. Blend horseradish mixture and rub evenly over top of roast.
  3. Cook on low for 8-10 hours (internal temp. 145°F). Let rest 15-20 minutes before slicing (cover with foil to keep warm).

Heat and serve with mashed potatoes provided. Enjoy!

Get all the seasonings out of the bag!

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You know how you pour out the seasonings from the quart size bags and sometimes, a bit of it sticks to the sides? Co-founder Stephanie Allen is brilliant at providing the simplest little tip that gives you the biggest bang of flavor.

-Simply pour the liquid out as directed.
-Then put a tablespoon of water in the bag.
-Seal it.
-Swish it around and then pour it all out in the pan.
-Voila! You got it all without jeopardizing the recipe or flavor of your dish.

Saucy Tips for Dream Dinners Cooking

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Sometimes it is hard to get all of the sauce out of your sealed bag. Especially if the sauce is less fluid. Here is a great way to get all of the sauce out.

-Take the sealed bag and push it flat and get as much of the sauce out of one corner as you can.
-Take your scissors and snip the empty corner so that you have an opening that you can pour out from.
-Squeeze the sauce out of the bag and get it all without leaving a drop behind.