Freeze-O-Rama: 12 Bloggers+1 Kitchen = Lots of Food in My Freezer!

Saturday was the Big Day: Freeze-O-Rama!

This linky party was a little more special--and a lot more fun--because it started in person. Now we're all following up with our link-up. So, if you need some ideas on how to stock your freezer or pantry, see what our other Freeze-O-Rama gals brought to the party!

Liz of Two Maids-A-Milking and

Party Organizer Cris of GoodnessGracious

were just two of the dozen gals who were part of Freeze-O-Rama.

We all gathered Saturday morning at a local church (big thanks to Rocklane Christian Church!)that graciously allowed us to use the kitchen. Everyone came armed with supplies, favorite utensils and recipes, each with the mission to make one dish that serves 4 to 6 people x 12. That way, at the end of the day, each gal left with one dish of her own and 11 other meals to feed the family later.

I had a good time--even peeling carrots and potatoes, lots of carrots and potatoes. Hours of cooking is a lot more fun with friends and the fellowship that comes with them!

I made Sausage Cornbread Bake.

Here's my disclaimer for this post... I didn't photograph every step, like a good blogger should, because I was to sticky from eggs and batter to bother with the camera. Besides, I was trying to crank-out a dozen meals and I was on a deadline! Besides, Cris did a fabulous job chronicling who was there and what happened, so check it out.

Besides, I was wounded in battle...

The church kitchen had a really, really big industrial-style gas stove/double oven. I really thought this was cool (at first) and thought I could really channel my inner Julia Child. Only, I learned soon enough that the stupid thing GETS HOT!!!
Yeah, how dumb am I?
Well, the OUTSIDE of the oven doors gets hot!!!
Who knew? There's this lip on the top edge of the oven door (it's a Vulcan, so there's my online call out on the bad design) that gets just as hot as the inside. And, when you pull the door down, if your arm makes contact, it's going to sizzle and blister. And mind did.
I'm still brandishing a band-aid after four days.

Enough about my battle scars... on with the cooking!

Sausage Cornbread Bake

I started by dicing lots of onions (my fingers still are a bit stinky, even today. And, yes, I have washed my hands!) Then browning them in the skillet. I would've browned them with the sausage, but I had rare, and brief, moment of genius and bought pre-cooked sausage crumbles in bulk for this event.

After all, I had to cook and drain 12 pounds of sausage.

Call me lazy, I don't care--gave me more time for talkin'!!!

Once all the stop-top work was done, it was just a matter of assembling the casseroles before putting each of them in the afor-mentioned, scorching-hot oven.

Basically, I mixed up the cornbread (mix, milk, oil, and 2 eggs in each batch), then layered the batter in a foil pan that I'd sprayed with non-stick spray, followed by the sausage crumbles and onion and a layer of shredded cheese. Then I topped the whole thing with the remaining cornbread batter.

The result was a dozen beautiful cornbread casseroles. Great for dinner or breakfast.

After they had cooled a bit, I covered them in two layers of foil and slipped each in a two-gallon freezer-rated zipper bag to lock out air.

I did curse that blasted oven, apart from my scorched skin. We were warned that it didn't heat true to temperature, so we had to turn up the temp a bit. I'm afraid the outer edges may be a bit over-cooked, so my apologies to my bloggy pals who might have to choke-down dry casserole. But, you can always thrown salsa on it!

Regardless, it was a fun time with friends. And we got to try out each other's favorite kitchen gadgets as a bonus.

Here's the recipe. (I couldn't get the handy recipe-making card to load, sorry.)

Sausage Cornbread Bake

INGREDIENTS

1 lb. bulk sausage
1 medium onion, diced
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 ½ cup self-rising corn meal mix
1 (17 oz) can of cream-style corn
¾ c. milk
¼ c. vegetable oil
8 oz (2 c.) shredded cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Grease or non-stick spray a 2-qt. baking dish.
In medium skillet, brown sausage and onion; drain well.
In large bowl, combine eggs, corn meal mix, corn, milk and oil.
Pour half of the corn meal mixture into greased pan; sprinkle with sausage, onion and cheese. Pour remaining batter over top.
Bake for 30-40 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

FREEZING:

Prepare in a foil pan. After baking, cover pan tightly with foil or plastic wrap.
Thaw completely in the refrigerator before reheating. If reheating in the oven, keep covered with foil.

Serves 6-8.