Charlie and I are going to start making meals to freeze pretty soon and I'm looking for some suggestions that aren't all soup/stew/casserole type options. Even if it's store bought and easy to have on hand, that can count as a suggestion (for example: potstickers from Costco). If someone tells me what to make, I'm all set. It's coming up with the ideas that is challenging to me.
Multiple suggestions are acceptable (and appreciated!).
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Seeking Suggestions
Posted by Beth at 7:01 AM
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8 comments:
Beth,
Here are a few ideas:
-refrozen pre-cooked chopped/cubed chicken. After thawing, it can be added to a variety of things in a flash without the extra 20 minutes if cooking.
-canned soups! I know you said you were looking for something different, but canned soups can be changed up soooo easy. Adding 15 minute rice to a can of cream of mushroom, or clam chowder is cake.
-when I was pregnant, people offered to bring meals and I kept saying that we would be fine, that I didn't think we would need any. But I was soooo glad when Eric's co-workers started bringing meals. They were a lifesaver. Having recently moved it might be harder for you, but if you can possibly get a two or three people a week to make meals it would help out a lot! Especially with twins!
I'm a big fan of frozen ravioli (Costco has a great spinach & mozzarella one, but regular grocery store stuff is fine, too). Boil water. Throw in. Open jar of sauce. Done! Instead of sauce, you can toss the cooked pasta with olive oil, parmesan, dried basil & other Italian seasonings. Yum!
Frozen broccoli, peas, and green beans are also great for a quick veggie quota. Toss in the microwave, steam, or boil for a couple of minutes without the prep hassle for you or Charlie. Don't have to worry about it going bad within a few days!
~Autumn
Beth,
Costco has really good orange and general tso's chicken. It comes in a big bag and you can just fry it up or bake it and serve with rice and frozen veggies! :) yum!
freezing portions of pre-cooked chicken and ground beef is great cause you can just add it last minute to whatever you're making! something I did towards the end of both pregnancies was to make double portions of certain meals and then freeze the extras for after the babies came..some were breaded chicken breasts, mac n cheese, pancakes, lasagna, chicken pot pie, etc. did you hear of those places where you can go and they have all the recipes and ingredients to make different pre-portioned/freezeable meals? I forget what they're called but there are a few in reading--i heard its expensive but it might be a fun date night for you and charlie! have fun!
Here is what we made and froze:
Spaghetti sauce & meatballs
Meatloaf
Chicken Pockets
Beer Beef
Stuffed Shells (cheese)
Chicken Stuffed Shells
Everything turned out pretty good. Let me know if you want any of those recipes...I will email to you.
here are a few things we have done,
-meatloaf
-stuffed peppers
-tacos (you can do the meat and freeze it then add to the shells later)
-pirogies (it may just be easier to buy the frozen ones)
-Frozen bag of Stir fry always an easy but goodie
thats all I have now, I am sure I can come up with some more stuff for ya
I think everyone else just about covered it. You can freeze single serving burritoes, for Char to take to work. I actually like Trader Joe's potstickers. They have great single serve frozen Indian/Thai food. It's $2/piece, but still cheaper than take out. Frozen spinach is a staple in my freezer, too, because you can add it to anything to get "salad" like nutrients.
Speaking of Trader's Joes, they also have great jar sauces: pesto, Indian, Italian. All you have to do is add them to a skillet with meat and noodles/rice.
I don't know how big your freezer is, but there is always more pantry room than freezer room. So, make sure you stock up there. Since you'll have moms in, you should be ok for awhile.
Let us know what works best!
these are not official "dinner" suggestions, (or really cook-in-advance), but anyways...
our favorite go-to food when the cupboards are bare and we don't feel like cooking is belgian waffles. our waffle iron is awesome. sometimes we make the batter and other times we use bisquik. also, i love to cut up freeze fresh fruit when it's on sale for delicious smoothies with plain yogurt and juice. simple, healthful, and EASY.
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