Freezer Meals

By Liz Garrett, mom2mom committee member 
[Note from Jaime: Always the awesome prepared-gal, this post was written in advance--before the arrival of Levi Grayson Garrett on Sunday, October 7, at 5:10 am. Congrats Garrett family!]

Perhaps it’s the fact I’m due to have a baby in less than 30 days. Maybe it’s because I feel slightly lost without a massive to-do list (thank you type A personality).  For you,  it could be a desire to combat the combination of your hectic daily schedule and the holiday madness joy upon us.  Whatever your motivation may be, freezer meals can be a life-saver for the busy mom with more items on the to-do list than hours in the day.  All it takes is a little advanced planning, shopping, time (sigh), and possibly a calculator to help when doubling those pesky recipe fractions.

First, I visited the following websites here and here, which I “discovered” on Pinterest.  I selected and printed the recipes I knew my family would eat. I also added in a few family favorites I just knew were necessary to my sanity family’s happiness.  Next, I wrote down all the ingredients on a shopping list.  After that, I organized the list by grocery department to streamline my shopping trip (produce, dairy, canned goods, meat, spices, etc).  And finally, to sweeten the deal, I scoured the grocery ads to find out what items were on sale where and searched the coupon database at Mojo Savings to find any applicable coupons. 

On my shopping trip, my initial stop was the dollar store to stock up on  aluminum foil, gallon and 2.5 gallon freezer bags, and disposable foil pains (8x8 and 9x13). Next, I stopped at Sprouts  to pick up my produce, then onto both Fry’s and Safeway (tip: buy the meat products last).  Once, I got home and unpacked my groceries, I embarked upon the cooking extravaganza.

Some organizational tips that helped  me was to cook each type of meat first.  Since I purchased a 5 lb package of ground beef, I decided to do those recipes first before unwrapping the chicken.  (Bonus tip: if you are making multiple Italian dishes you can save yourself a headache some time by cooking all the meat requiring the same seasoning together.)  I have a deep freezer, but if you don’t have much freezer space, cover a glass baking dish in aluminum foil, then fold the foil shut and place the baking dish in the freezer for 1 hour. After your dish has a chance to set, transfer the foil wrapped meal from the baking dish  to a gallon freezer bag.  I wrote the dish’s name and baking instructions on the freezer bags in permanent marker to avoid searching for the recipe to find cooking instructions when ready to bake.  I don’t have a ton of pots/pans/cooking utensils, so I enlisted my husband to hand wash the dishes as I finished so I wouldn’t have to wait to run the dishwasher or do them all myself.  This could be a great job for an older child.

By the end of my day, I had made 20 different meals, many of which will have the bonus of leftovers!  (Tip: enlist a friend to make double batches of 5 meals, and you do the same, then swap to save yourself some time!)  My freezer is now stocked with lasagna, bbq chicken, baked ziti, chicken and beef enchiladas, chicken kiev, pesto chicken stuffed shells, and honey Dijon chicken, amongst other delectable dishes.

One well-organized Saturday has provided  meals for my family for at least 1 month.  I can rest easy and set about to accomplish things on my to do list that would normally take a backseat. And I won't even have to spring for take-out (unless I just cant live without Smashburger)!