What a week it has been. Let me just start off by saying thank you for all the wonderful emails complimenting the different meals that we make. Our family works hard each week to bring you delicious meals that are convenient and affordable. Just to give you an example our meals will generally cost between $3 - $5 per person, sometimes even less (unless you are a teenager)!! This has been our business philosophy from the very beginning. Keep the quality high, the portions big, and the prices low. 15 years ago, it made sense and as I look at what it cost to eat out in 2024 it makes even more sense today. Some might ask, "How do you do it?". The answer is simple, we've dedicated almost 15 years of our life mastering this space and because of that you get the highest quality freezer meals at the absolute best price. Our menu has a vast range of mouthwatering dishes because we know that everyone likes something different, but truth be told what we cook for you is also what we eat as well (so you know it's going to be tasty).
This week was a fun week because we got to make several dishes that many of you have been requesting for some time and they happen to be some of our favorites; Italian Lasagna, Southern Beef Pot Roast, Salisbury Steak, Eric's Kicked up Meatloaf and our Creamy Cheesy Grits (don't worry our Chicken Pot Pies will be back on the menu real soon). Let me tell you a little about each item and I'll be sure to include an actual photo of what each item looks like after it's been cooked (no stock photos here what you see is what you get😉).
Our Italian inspired Lasagna is crafted from the very best ingredients. A rich and delicious meal that starts with the meat. After carefully selecting local 100% premium grassfed cuts of beef and locally farm raised pork we go through the process of grinding it ourself. This way we can select the grind size and the fat ratio resulting in the perfect mouthfeel. After grinding the beef, we start the browning process with a pot full of sauteed onions. Our ground pork is turned into Italy's very own Hot Italian Sausage for an additional boost of flavor. This sausage brings a lovely element of fennel and adds a great texture to our finished lasagna. Our house crafted lasagna sauce is a powerhouse of flavor utilizing both stewed and roasted tomatoes. This sauce is added to our beef and Italian sausage mixture and slow cooked for 6-8 hours on a very gentle heat to really maximize the flavors. As you might imagine, the entire process of making this lasagna takes time, but it's so worth it. Our lasagna is enough food for several meals (this lasagna weighs is at just close to 2 pounds). Feeds 2-3 Adults. This is our Italian Lasagna minutes after it came out of the oven.
Let's talk about Pot Roast because there's just something special about Southern Cooking. It's simple, delicious, and never pretentious. Pot Roast is a great example. Chuck roast that's seared and braised for a day with carrots potatoes and onions. Growing up this dish was on our dinner table at least once a week and the memory of eating delicious pot roast over rice always brings a smile to my face. Was it the tender beef, the delicious potatoes and carrots, perhaps it was the beautiful smells that emanated from the kitchen. Maybe this dish just reminds me of a simpler time. Regardless, I wanted to bring all of that to you this week.
This dish starts with a proper sear. A step that's critical in creating the Mailliard reaction and introducing beautiful complexity. Next is the stock. It's got to be loaded with onions, garlic, carrots, baby potatoes, a few spices and herbs. This after all is where our beef will braise for the next 12 or so hours so it needs to be perfect. Broth or Gravy? The debate continues to this day. I personally like a pot roast with body to the stock. A gravy that's rich and velvety, a meal I can eat entirely with a fork! So, we've taken our cooking stock up a notch to create a gravy that really embodies the spirit of that classic pot roast that you've all come to love. I'm talking about 1950's 1960's style!! A beautiful dish with tremendous flavor. Our Southern Style pot roast is over 2 pounds of food and can easily feed 2 hungry adults. Lots of tender meat, lots of vegetables, and lots of gravy!! Serve with rice or mashed potatoes (not included). The picture you see below is the actual meal (both plates). 1 bag will make 2 huge dinners.
What about Salisbury Steak? One of our classic menu items and a local favorite. This fortified meat patty is absolutely delicious as its not only loaded with flavor but has a perfect tender texture that really sets it apart from the standard meatloaf or the classic hamburger. Our steaks start with the careful selection of locally raised 100% premium grassfed cuts of beef that's skillfully ground. Next the meat is seasoned, mixed, and our steaks are weighed before forming to ensure consistency. To cook we start by searing each steak on a cast iron skillet, then they get braised in our silky house crafted brown mushroom and onion gravy. Speaking of the gravy, our brown gravy is paired perfectly with the flavors of this steak. We use garlic, onions, and fresh button mushrooms that were literally harvested the day we used them. The trick is a little browning to get that rich deep color and beefy flavor in our brown gravy. We then add some of our delicious house crafted beef stock which brings a delicate richness to the gravy After a few hours of cooking and a few chefy techniques the perfect gravy has been created. If you choose to add on a bag of our creamy mashed potatoes, you will quickly realize that these are not your ordinary taters. No Sir!! These mashed potatoes are made with one thing in mind, Mind Blowing Flavor. I'm talking about Taters that are miles above the ordinary with a velvety smooth mouthfeel and beautiful richness. You can easily get lost in our generous portion of cloud like Pomme Puree. The end result of all this is a Salisbury Steak dinner that's meaty, juicy, and smothered in a complimentary brown mushroom/onion gravy that will make you wish there was more. Each portion comes with 2 huge steaks as this meal weighs in at over 1.25 pounds (without mashed potatoes). With our mashed potatoes this meal weighs in at over 2 pounds. Can feed 1-4 adults. Serve with rice or mashed potatoes (not included). I took a bag of Salisbury steak and a bag of mashed potatoes out of the freezer, placed the two bags in a pot of simmering water for 20 minutes, then put them on a huge plate. This is what our dinner looks like. WAYYY to much food for me. I'm thinking 2-4 meals at least.
Let's talk about Meatloaf. Meatloaf is one of those dishes that can either be very boring or incredibly delicious. When we first started making Meatloaf 12 years ago it was just called meatloaf, but quickly locals started referring to it as a "kicked-up" version of meatloaf, so the name changed to Eric's Kicked Up meatloaf. We literally take every element to this dish and "kick it up". Starting with the vegetables that are used inside, some are caramelized, some roasted, some sauteed. We create a vegetable reduction sauce that's later added to the meatloaf for an incredible boost of natural umami flavor. Our meat selection is ground in house and include a delicious blend of local grass-fed beef and pork. A combination that delivers mouthwatering results. Heavy Cream, Dijon Mustard, Ketchup and a blend of herbs and spices are added to finish the process. Every meatloaf needs to have a ketchup glaze on top right? Not here, for our topping we create a bold meatloaf sauce that brings a combination of zesty and semi-sweet flavors. This sauce caramelizes beautifully atop this meat masterpiece as it cooks. To finish the process our meatloaf is baked to perfection. Juicy, meaty, and totally satisfying. Each meatloaf portion weighs almost 7 ounces (and you get 2). This dish also comes with an order of Home Fries (roasted seasoned potatoes with sauteed bell peppers and onions). The total weight of this dish is roughly 1.5 pounds and will feed 1-2 adults. This dish sells out very quickly just to let you know.
Buttery Creamy Cheesy Grits! A southern staple and a funny reminder of that classic scene in My Cousin Vinny where Joe Pesci is sitting at a diner asking, "What is a Grit?". Our grits are slow cooked in a well-seasoned cream, milk, and water bath because after all "No self-respecting Southerner uses Instant Grits". This cooking process alone elevates the dish, but to make it a little extra we add sharp cheddar cheese and 100% New Zealand Grass-Fed butter to finish it off. The end result is a buttery cheesy silky smooth grit eating experience. This wonderful meal can be eaten by itself or you can add your very own sauteed garlic shrimp for that perfect shrimp and grits experience. Each portion is 1 pint and can feed 1-2 adults. This dish reheats beautifully as you can see in the image below.
I love the convenience of a sandwich, so I really enjoy having them around all the time. Italian Beef, Philly Cheese Steak, Italian Panini, Sloppy Joes, and Rotisserie Chicken Panini. A perfect quick meal for lunch or dinner. Below are the images of each one. I personally have a hard time choosing, but I think the Philly and the Sloppy Joe are my favorites this week. As the picture suggests you can get 2 Sloppy Joe Sandwiches with 1 order.
If you've made it this far, this week we also have freeze dried tootsie rolls (I wanted to run an experiment to see how they turned out) as well as freeze dried ice cream. They both came out great. Puffy, crunchy, melt in your mouth with a concentrated flavor. If you want some, I am giving away sample bags this week for FREE!! Limit 1 of each type per order. Just scroll through our Freeze-Dried section and you will see the listing. We will continue to offer more free freeze-dried treats as I continue to experiment with different foods. Here's what the tootsie rolls and ice cream look like:
The above items are just a few of our offerings. Each week we are adding new entrees and sides to the menu. Here are just a few entrees that we plan on making in the very near future: Chicken Pot Pies, Boquete Chili, Shepherd's Pie, Greek Moussaka, Chicken Cordon Bleu, Italian Chicken Parmesan, Shrimp Alfredo, Buttermilk Fried Chicken over Country Mashed Potatoes smothered in a Country Gravy.
See you soon.
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