Ugh.
We have been purging our freezers and pantry for items that should have been used up over a year ago. Most expired items can still be used, but they just don't have the freshness that they would had we used them before they expired. One example of this is the frozen veggies in the 1-lb bags that we found way in the back. We had so many bags of french cut green beans, and some had a little white freezer burn that made them unappealing to look at.
Since these beans really could benefit from flavor, I decided to cook them in the crockpot with bacon.
I first put 1/4 pound bacon in the oven at 300 degrees and baked until crispy. (You can use a whole pound, or even two, to make bacon ahead for other recipes. You'll only need the quarter pound for this dish, however.)
Then, you simply dump the bag of frozen beans into the crockpot. Did you see massive ice crystals on them? No problem! This dish doesn't care how old those beans are!
Crank that puppy on high and add the 1/4 pound of bacon (crumbled), as well as about 2 tablespoons of the bacon drippings. This isn't low-fat, but it sure is tasty!
You can also add in 1/4 cup diced white or yellow onion, and -- for extra flavor -- 2 teaspoons of Garden Gourmet Garlic from the tube.
Cook for about 2 hours, or until the beans are thoroughly cooked through and the whole thing is sizzling and smelling awesome. My family ate these up, so we'll have to make 2 pounds the next time!
Do you have a recipe for "old" frozen veggies? Let's hear them!
Thanks for sharing this post.
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