Can I Freeze It?: How to Use the Most Versatile Appliance in Your Kitchen

227 Pages·1986·6.25 MB·English

by  Susie Theodorou

Can I Freeze It?
How to Use the Most Versatile Appliance in Your Kitchen
Susie Theodorou
Photography by Deirdre Rooney

To my mother, grandmothers, and aunts—all wonderful cooks

contents
Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vi
Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . viii
Perfect Freezing Every Time. . . . . . . . . x
Raw Freeze. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Cook Once, Eat Twice. . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Cooking for a Crowd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Pastry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Sweets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Glossary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204
Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206
About the Author
Credits
Cover
Copyright
About the Publisher
acknowledgments
A cookbook, no matter how big or small, cannot be done without the help of friends and
colleagues—especially when one is a freelancer.
The biggest thank you must go to Beth Pilar and Deirdre Rooney. Beth, for her patience and
care in testing many of the recipes and for her honest comments. Deirdre, for her guidance in
art direction and beautiful photographs for this book. I remember it was so, so hot during the
shoots, but Deirdre and Beth worked super-hard and with humor—there was no air-
conditioning in the studio! It was fun, but not always easy.
To Frigidaire, for the loan of a smart standup, frost-free freezer that was a great help during
the writing, testing, and photographing of the recipes for this book.
To Staub USA Inc. and Le Creuset of America Inc. for the use of their beautiful pots, co-
cottes, roasting dishes, wok, and grill pan used for testing the recipes and in some of the
photographs—thank you.
A big thank you to Jean Conlon, Clive Streeter, and Valerie Berry for the loan of their studios
for the shoots.
To my dear art-director friends, Matthew Axe and Scot Schy, who offered me sound advice
during the shoots. They listened to me on short notice—most appreciated. Thank you.
Thank you so much to my family of friends in New York who put up with the dinner parties
in my non-air-conditioned apartment, where shamelessly I pushed my recipes on them. All
your comments were taken on board.
To Jane Druker, Bill Tikos, and Liz Marcy for helping me get this book off the ground, into a
project, and finally a book. Thank you.
To Level for their design—I am very happy our paths have crossed.
And finally, thank you to Harriet Bell for believing in this idea, and to everyone at Harper-
Collins who has guided me through the stages of producing a book.
Acknowledgments vii
introduction
In many homes, the freezer is nothing more than a place to display family photos and
children’sartwork, attached with a collection of magnets. Or, worse still, the freezer can be a
dusty repository in the basement or garage to which too-good-to-pass-up supermarket bargains
are consigned, never to be used.
Can I Freeze It?will help you transform your freezer into the most essential appliance in your
kitchen, allowing you to prepare family meals as well as dishes for entertaining well ahead of
time. If the cupboard is bare, at least the freezer will be full of make-ahead meals, sweet and
savory frozen pies, and other dishes.
“Can I freeze it?” is the question I’m most often asked when giving out recipes. This book
explains what you can and can’t freeze successfully and offers lots of recipes that show how to
use your freezer to its best advantage. On the other hand, this isn’t an encyclopedic guide to
preparing and freezing seasonal fruits and vegetables from the garden or farmers’ market.
You will find information on how to make the most of your freezer space, how to freeze foods
effectively, and most of all how to prepare dishes for the freezer without it becoming a chore.
Introduction ix