Freezer Cooking...are you a fan?

[tanya]

They look so great. Especially the beef ones. There are other things we don't have here and I have never seen before- I have never heard of a giant shell pasta and had no idea that salad dressing came in a packet. I am wondering what else I could use instead of the salad dressing. Packet soup maybe? Ideas anyone?

 

[AuntJamelle]

tanya - I think you mean the Ranch Salad Dressing Packets? There are options for DIY'ing your own Ranch Mix like that...I haven't tried them yet but I'm sure you could use one of them in place of a packet and do fine.

Here are a couple links I've saved to try in future:

http://www.5dollardinners.com/homemade-ranch-dressing-mix/

http://selfreliancebyjamie.blogspot.com/2011/08/tis-seasonings.html

From browsing quickly online I would say that there is about 2.5 Tablespoons of mix in a typical ranch dressing packet we would get around here.


That is too funny that you don't have jumbo pasta shells in stores! An alternative might be to use manicotti pasta shells (you could cook then cut in half before filling) or even to take lasagna noodles - spread with the "filling" and roll up? That would probably work too...the trick with pasta and freezer cooking is just to make sure the pasta is only partially cooked before freezing. That way it doesn't turn to mush after thawing/freezing

 

[Ahorsesoul]

I'm freezer cooking today. Will have to spend some time looking at those recipes.

 

[ChristmasPir8]

If you click on my pinterest page I have a board for freezer meals. I like doing stuffed shells and have about 3 different recipes. I stuff them flash freeze and put in a bag and just pull out what I need.
I did a faux lasagna the other day that turned out really good. I am always looking for more stuff to try

 

[AuntJamelle]

Thanks, piratemama! I'm always on the lookout too!

Already found some new good ideas and I don't think I made it past the first couple of rows of pins! lol

I also wanted to post back and share a few other misc. freezer recipes I've had success with. These are mostly appetizers and a couple soups.

I love, love, LOVE having appetizers in the freezer for the holiday season! I'll be hosting one wrapping party with the girls and one big dinner party for several families and being able to pull out an assortment of goodies to bake is such a time saver!

DH and I will also have an "appetizer" night for dinner on Fridays sometimes - a nice treat at the end of the work week!

APPETIZERS

** Mini Bacon Pinwheels - Super simple really and probably something you've seen before! The only thing I do different from the posted link is that after I flatten the pieces of bread I spread them with the cream cheese mixture BEFORE cutting into 3 rectangular pieces - just goes quicker that way! And I've found a pizza cutter is quickest for taking the crusts off the bread and the rest of the cutting too.

I was worried about the toothpicks poking through the bag in the freezer but it was actually fine. I used Ziplock brand freezer bags which are thicker - and you could always double bag too.

http://busycooks.about.com/od/appetizerrecipe1/r/bacpinwheel.htm

** Pioneer Woman Holiday Bacon Appetizers - 3 ingredients and SO yummy!

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/12/flashback_1981_-_holiday_bacon_appetizers/


** Pioneer Woman Cheddar Puffs - Have made these SO many times! I usually make a double batch for the freezer. The recipe calls for freezing for a brief time before baking - I just flash freeze then pop into ziplock bags for longer storage. Bake from frozen.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/12/cheese-puffs/


** Crispy Southwest Wontons - I really liked these but DH was just so so. It may have been the Cilantro, not everyone likes that flavor. But it could certainly be omitted if so.

http://fabulesslyfrugal.com/fabuless-freezer-cooking-crispy

SOUPS

You can either freeze in one big ziplock or in single serving sizes. I freeze flat in smaller ziplock bags when I want to have serving sizes for my lunches.

I'm working on vetting bread recipes for the freezer so that I have can have the option to pull out a soup and some bread to be baked for a complete meal!

I just tried a Freezer Biscuit recipe I've had tucked into my Recipe Binder for years and it was a success! A yummier version of Pillsbury Grands whack 'em on the counter biscuits - lol - I'll post that soon!

** Broccoli Cheddar Soup - Made this a few months ago and froze the half we didn't eat. Thawed overnight a couple weeks ago, plunked in crockpot mid day and by dinner we had cheesy yummy goodness galore! This one is a keeper!

http://organizerbyday.blogspot.com/2013/12/broccoli-cheddar-soup.html

** Zuppa Toscana Soup (Olive Garden CopyCat recipe - Basically a potato, sausage, kale soup in a creamy chicken broth base)

http://fabulesslyfrugal.com/zuppa-toscana-soup-freezer-meal/

 

[FrostyShimmer]

I used to do a lot of freezer cooking, but my husband didn't like most of the recipes. I'll do up Shepherd's pie. Turnip-topped pie, lazy lasagna and mac and cheese, but that's about it.
If he's out of town, I'll buy raw chicken, divide it among glass containers and cover them with various sauces and freeze them that way. I can make 10 dinners or so in about twenty minutes that way. The kids love the meat, which you can cook right from frozen, so it's great to pull out of the fridge. And hardly any clean up after dinner!

 

[AuntJamelle]

I know it is not a "recipe" so much, but wanted to share something I did this weekend.

Aldi has sweet corn on sale for $0.10 each - so I got 20 of them and after roasting/cutting off the kernels I flash frozen the corn on wax paper lined cookie sheets. After it was frozen I had enough to fill up a large ziplock FULL.

And I also kept back about 4 cups fresh for a couple of recipes over the weekend.

THEN, I put the cobs in the fridge until I had a chance to make something I found on Pinterest. Corn Stock!

You cover the cobs with water and cook until the water tastes like sweet corn - about hour or so. That's it! I cooled it and then frozen in 2 cup amounts in small ziplocks frozen flat.

I plan to use this stock as a replacement for some of the chicken broth used in recipes like White Chicken Chili or Chicken Tortilla Soup.

Nothing beats homemade stocks! I have a batch of turkey stock chilling in the fridge right now! Finally pulled the turkey carcass out of the freezer!

 

[dreamto]

I used to do this a few years ago but I moved and life happened and .......well I got away from it. Lately, I have been thinking that I need to do some more of this again. You have inspired me to dig out my recipes and ck some new ones and give it a go once again

 

[DahliaDoll]

You cover the cobs with water and cook until the water tastes like sweet corn - about hour or so. That's it! I cooled it and then frozen in 2 cup amounts in small ziplocks frozen flat.

I plan to use this stock as a replacement for some of the chicken broth used in recipes like White Chicken Chili or Chicken Tortilla Soup.

Nothing beats homemade stocks! I have a batch of turkey stock chilling in the fridge right now! Finally pulled the turkey carcass out of the freezer!

Try it in place of water in recipes too, even bread if you bake bread. I always save the liquid from canned vegies (even beet and olive juice) to use as stock. I have a large container in the freezer and just "layer" the juices until I make a soup or something, then thaw it. Love the use of the corn husks idea!

 

[AuntJamelle]

Great tip, DahliaDoll!

I've also started freezing something else - it sounds dreadful - but it's a Compost bag.

My garden (and new compost heap) is quite a walk from my kitchen. So as I come up with scraps of veggies, etc. over the course of the week I've been adding them to a large ziplock that I'm keeping in the freezer. Then when it gets full enough to be worth the trip I'll walk the contents out to the compost pile itself.

Helps me feel like I'm wasting less without running all over the place constantly!

 

[DahliaDoll]

AJ ~ That's a good idea about the compost. We have a small garbage can with a flip up lid that we use for compost. When it's full, DH takes it out to dump. It's not too far, and he's in and out most of the day anyway and doesn't seem to mind. We usually go a few days before it needs to be dumped unless I've cut up a melon or something.

 

[Winged One]

Hi Gang, techie robs meant I was AWOL for a while.

I do a fair bit in the freezer, more batch than once a month style.

Sunday's, when I am cooking a decent dinner anyway, I make a dinner for Monday night - spaghetti sauce, curry, chilli, shepherds pie, lasagne, something like tat. But always at least a double batch, if not larger. One dinner, and hopefully a couple of single portions, get frozen for another night the following week.

I do batches of onions and garlic, which are the basis of so many of my dinners and take time to get going after work when everyone is starving. So I freeze in 1 cup batches, nicely softened down and ready for the next addition.

I try it have HM tomato sauce in there too, but have not been so good on that recently.

I make roasted veggies a lot, especially if there are some going past their best. I used to only freeze the leftover when cooked, which are great as a side dish or added to tomato sauce with pasta and maybe some bacon. But I discovered a while ago tht I can freeze them raw too and have a bag chopped just to throw in the oven on work nights with a lamb chop or chicken drumsticks and a few small potatoes.

I tend to keep a lot of raw meat and fish for midweek dinners, and I will freeze sausages individually to grab single ones from the bag. Sometimes I will make the efforts and have a couple of bags of chicken already chopped to save time later. I Lways have cooked prams as the basis of a fast meal.

I do HM stocks as well. I don't always have a lot, but Turkey always gets used that way. I am defrosting a fish stock for tonight's risotto (using prawns, clam meat and squid rings, all from freezer), nwhich I made using prawns shells and the juices and shells from a batch of mussels a few weeks back.

I could do so much better, but I am happy enough with it at the moment.