Freezer Sessions 2018...
- Thread starter AuntJamelle
- Start date
Here is what I have planned so far:
Ground Beef, Cooked - 3 lbs
Cheesy Beef Taquito Filling - I thaw overnight in fridge then fill tortilla shells we "fry" in our NuWave
Multi Purpose Shredded Beef - 4 lbs
Crockpot Beef and Mushrooms - One batch will make 2 meals for us, I serve over mashed potatoes or noodles
Chicken Meat, Cooked and Shredded - 6 lbs - This will be used to jumpstart various meals
Oven Chicken Fajitas (Meat frozen in Marinade) - I'll either buy onions and bell peppers fresh or I may slice and freeze ahead
Cheesy Chicken Alfredo Stuffed Shells - I've frozen the shells in the alfredo sauce before but this time I'm going to make and freeze the stuffed shells only. Then I'll thaw in fridge and make the sauce fresh before baking them.
Lasagna - 2 big pans
Pork Sausage, Cooked and Crumbled - 2 lbs - Will use for pizza, quiche, strata, etc.
Bacon, Cooked and Crumbled - 1/2 lb - For a Christmas quiche
PW Mashed Potatoes - 1 batch will do at least 2 meals; These are a bit watery when thawed so plan to have a box of instant mashed potatoes on hand to thicken them after rewarming them up in oven or crockpot
Bacon Wrapped Pretzel Sticks - Christmas Party appetizer
Jalapeno Puffers - IF I can find fresh jalapenos when I'm ready to make them! Christmas Party app
Sesame Shrimp Toasts - Christmas Party App
Puff Pastry Bacon Twists - Christmas Party App
Puff Pastry Sausage Rolls - Christmas Breakfast
Baked Goods:
Reese's Pieces Soft Peanut Butter Cookies - For Halloween Camping Trip, baked then frozen
Reese's Peanut Butter Cheesecake - I'll make and freeze the cheescake only, then top with ganache and buttercream after thawing
PW Cinnamon Rolls - Hoping to fit at least 2 batches in the freezer already baked and iced
Sea Salt Butterscotch Pretzel Cookies - Baked then frozen
Chunky Chocolate Gobs - Baked then frozen
Peanut Butter Choc Swirl Cookies - Baked then frozen
Gingersnaps - Baked then frozen. I'll dip in melted almond bark after thawing if I have time!
Kieffles - Baked and then I'll roll in powdered sugar after thawing
Browned Butter Salted Caramel Mocha Cookies - Baked then frozen
Chocolate Chip - Trying a "new" recipe!
Baked then frozen
Milky Way Blondies - Baked, cut then frozen
Rugelach - Apricot Jam and Ground Walnut Filling - Baked then frozen
White Chocolate Apricot Squares - Doing these as a way to use up opened jar of apricot jam from the Rugelach - just going to try baking, cutting then freezing and seeing what happens! lol
Key Lime Snowball Cookies - I bake, roll in powdered sugar then freeze. I toss again in sugar after thawing
Cocoa Kiss Cookies - I bake, roll in powdered sugar then freeze. I toss again in sugar after thawing
Double Dark Chocolate PB Cup Cookies -Baked then frozen
Pecan Sandies - Baked then frozen
Lemon Snowballs - I bake, roll in powdered sugar then freeze. I toss again in sugar after thawing
Brownies - Baked, cut and frozen - these are for Christmas Party
Ground Beef, Cooked - 3 lbs
Cheesy Beef Taquito Filling - I thaw overnight in fridge then fill tortilla shells we "fry" in our NuWave
Multi Purpose Shredded Beef - 4 lbs
Crockpot Beef and Mushrooms - One batch will make 2 meals for us, I serve over mashed potatoes or noodles
Chicken Meat, Cooked and Shredded - 6 lbs - This will be used to jumpstart various meals
Oven Chicken Fajitas (Meat frozen in Marinade) - I'll either buy onions and bell peppers fresh or I may slice and freeze ahead
Cheesy Chicken Alfredo Stuffed Shells - I've frozen the shells in the alfredo sauce before but this time I'm going to make and freeze the stuffed shells only. Then I'll thaw in fridge and make the sauce fresh before baking them.
Lasagna - 2 big pans
Pork Sausage, Cooked and Crumbled - 2 lbs - Will use for pizza, quiche, strata, etc.
Bacon, Cooked and Crumbled - 1/2 lb - For a Christmas quiche
PW Mashed Potatoes - 1 batch will do at least 2 meals; These are a bit watery when thawed so plan to have a box of instant mashed potatoes on hand to thicken them after rewarming them up in oven or crockpot
Bacon Wrapped Pretzel Sticks - Christmas Party appetizer
Jalapeno Puffers - IF I can find fresh jalapenos when I'm ready to make them! Christmas Party app
Sesame Shrimp Toasts - Christmas Party App
Puff Pastry Bacon Twists - Christmas Party App
Puff Pastry Sausage Rolls - Christmas Breakfast
Baked Goods:
Reese's Pieces Soft Peanut Butter Cookies - For Halloween Camping Trip, baked then frozen
Reese's Peanut Butter Cheesecake - I'll make and freeze the cheescake only, then top with ganache and buttercream after thawing
PW Cinnamon Rolls - Hoping to fit at least 2 batches in the freezer already baked and iced
Sea Salt Butterscotch Pretzel Cookies - Baked then frozen
Chunky Chocolate Gobs - Baked then frozen
Peanut Butter Choc Swirl Cookies - Baked then frozen
Gingersnaps - Baked then frozen. I'll dip in melted almond bark after thawing if I have time!
Kieffles - Baked and then I'll roll in powdered sugar after thawing
Browned Butter Salted Caramel Mocha Cookies - Baked then frozen
Chocolate Chip - Trying a "new" recipe!
Baked then frozenMilky Way Blondies - Baked, cut then frozen
Rugelach - Apricot Jam and Ground Walnut Filling - Baked then frozen
White Chocolate Apricot Squares - Doing these as a way to use up opened jar of apricot jam from the Rugelach - just going to try baking, cutting then freezing and seeing what happens! lol
Key Lime Snowball Cookies - I bake, roll in powdered sugar then freeze. I toss again in sugar after thawing
Cocoa Kiss Cookies - I bake, roll in powdered sugar then freeze. I toss again in sugar after thawing
Double Dark Chocolate PB Cup Cookies -Baked then frozen
Pecan Sandies - Baked then frozen
Lemon Snowballs - I bake, roll in powdered sugar then freeze. I toss again in sugar after thawing
Brownies - Baked, cut and frozen - these are for Christmas Party
- Spaghetti sauce (will try to can 1 batch and 1 batch in the freezer)
- Italian sausages (cooked and cut in slices) - for nachos & pasta recipe adds
- Ham (cut and diced) - for NY's Eve buffet sandwiches
- Chicken (cooked and diced) - for NY's Eve buffet sandwiches
- Ground meat and onions (cooked) for quick recipe assembly
- Bacon wrapped sausages - for NY's Eve buffet
- Meatballs - for quick recipe assembly
- Bread
- Butter
- Cheeseball for NY's Eve buffet
- Chicken wings - for NY's Eve buffet
- Might add some casseroles (cabbage rolls, chicken casserole)
- Chocolate Fudge
- Brown sugar fudge
- Thumbprint cookies
- Skors squares
- Muffins
- Breakfast breads
Packs of 1lb ground beef pre cooked
Packs of 1lb ground turkey pre cooked
Dinner size and single serve packs of taco meat
Single serve packs of chili
Dinner size and single serve size packs of pulled pork
Frozen meatballs
Tray of Uncooked Lasagna
Single serve packs of lasagna
Mini loaves/muffins - pumpkin spice, banana, zucchini and applesauce spice
Pancakes and waffles
I don't get sick that often but when I do I feel the house comes to a complete stand still when it comes to dinners so I like to have single serve packs of stuff in the freezer so hubby and the kids can pull out and reheat what they want to heat instead of ordering take out.
Packs of 1lb ground turkey pre cooked
Dinner size and single serve packs of taco meat
Single serve packs of chili
Dinner size and single serve size packs of pulled pork
Frozen meatballs
Tray of Uncooked Lasagna
Single serve packs of lasagna
Mini loaves/muffins - pumpkin spice, banana, zucchini and applesauce spice
Pancakes and waffles
I don't get sick that often but when I do I feel the house comes to a complete stand still when it comes to dinners so I like to have single serve packs of stuff in the freezer so hubby and the kids can pull out and reheat what they want to heat instead of ordering take out.
I am loving this thread. I really am not using my frezser to the best that I can. Am really wanting t do some batch cooking in the new year and try and get on top of the meal prep. Some nights it is just too hard to cook and we end up with take out or not eating well. Am going to look at this more.
AJ, your thought provoking threads this summer on preparations has been good for me. Lots of activity is happening here on the home front and these reminders are keeping me sane and hopeful for the next four months.
Each month I'll make a batch of the following for meals:
Thanksgiving:
Each month I'll make a batch of the following for meals:
- Shredded chicken (chicken Reuben sandwiches, BBQ chicken sandwiches, chicken chili)
- Ground beef (tacos, shepherds pie, beef and beans, chili, meat sauce)
- Italian sausage
Thanksgiving:
- Mashed Potatoes
- Creamed Spinach
- Mashed Sweet Potatoes
- Stuffing with pork sausage
- Cranberry Bread
- Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
- Oatmeal Cookie Dough
- Rolled Sugar Cookie Dough
- Gingerbread Cookie Dough
- Specuulas Cookie Dough
- Andes Mint Cookie Dough
- Stollen Bread
- Shredded beef
- Sliced Turkey
- Pulled Pork
This is when I wish we still had our deep freeze but now all we have is our refrigerator freezer and it's not very big at all. I wouldn't be able to fit everything I would want to freeze plus the regular items. I'll have to choose carefully. But i'm loving reading these lists and getting great ideas!
I was just talking to 2 other families last night about freezer meals and maybe planning a day to do it. I need to start stocking mine to cover me abs DH getting PT jobs this winter
Well, here's the Cajun coming out in me. I'm already planning my holiday freezer as well.
Meals:
Jambalaya Mix- I've sliced, diced, seasoned and sauteed everything (chicken, pork, sausage, onions, bell peppers, garlic, celery, green onions, etc...) for 8 jambalaya meals. The only thing to do is heat, add rice or pasta and eat.
Crawfish Ettouffee - Again I made enough for 8 meals, everything is cooked and only needs to be thawed, warmed and served over rice or pasta and can even be put in omelets.
Shrimp Creole - The dish is made and frozen so that it's simply a matter of heating and serving over rice.
Ritz Chicken - 8 meals -Boneless chicken thighs have been seasoned, coated in butter and rolled in the Ritz Cracker crumbs and frozen. Just take out to thaw and place in oven until golden brown. I have sauteed asparagus spears to go with this simple but delicious meal.
Gumbo - Lots of gumbo flows through these veins. It's a cool weather staple. Varieties include chicken & sausage, chicken & okra, seafood, & shrimp & okra to name a few. I will definitely have a whole day dedicated to this production line to provide 8 meals of each variety.
Soup - I love ham/cheese/potato soup, beef & bean chili, vegetable beef soup, chicken enchilada soup, taco soup, cabbage soup, split pea soup, cream of asparagus soup, corn soup and good old chicken noodle soup. I usually can my soups in quart jars.
I generally do 8 meals at this time of year to carry me through December by serving each meal no more than twice in a month. I've not started on the sweet treats yet but you wonderful ladies have me thinking about it now.
Meals:
Jambalaya Mix- I've sliced, diced, seasoned and sauteed everything (chicken, pork, sausage, onions, bell peppers, garlic, celery, green onions, etc...) for 8 jambalaya meals. The only thing to do is heat, add rice or pasta and eat.
Crawfish Ettouffee - Again I made enough for 8 meals, everything is cooked and only needs to be thawed, warmed and served over rice or pasta and can even be put in omelets.
Shrimp Creole - The dish is made and frozen so that it's simply a matter of heating and serving over rice.
Ritz Chicken - 8 meals -Boneless chicken thighs have been seasoned, coated in butter and rolled in the Ritz Cracker crumbs and frozen. Just take out to thaw and place in oven until golden brown. I have sauteed asparagus spears to go with this simple but delicious meal.
Gumbo - Lots of gumbo flows through these veins. It's a cool weather staple. Varieties include chicken & sausage, chicken & okra, seafood, & shrimp & okra to name a few. I will definitely have a whole day dedicated to this production line to provide 8 meals of each variety.
Soup - I love ham/cheese/potato soup, beef & bean chili, vegetable beef soup, chicken enchilada soup, taco soup, cabbage soup, split pea soup, cream of asparagus soup, corn soup and good old chicken noodle soup. I usually can my soups in quart jars.
I generally do 8 meals at this time of year to carry me through December by serving each meal no more than twice in a month. I've not started on the sweet treats yet but you wonderful ladies have me thinking about it now.
There are some awesome things going into these freezers!!!
I've been doing some work on cleaning out and organizing what is in the freezers currently. Used a roast and some burgers up this weekend. Added a batch of lime juice - 1 Tbsp amounts frozen in icecube tray - and another bag of lime rinds (will use for zesting later).
Also used all the bags of chicken bones, wing tips, etc. to make a double batch of chicken stock. Getting all those bags of bones out of the freezer was nice! Will skim the fat off the cooled stock tonight and freeze in 1 and 2 cup portions in Ziplock bags.
I've been doing some work on cleaning out and organizing what is in the freezers currently. Used a roast and some burgers up this weekend. Added a batch of lime juice - 1 Tbsp amounts frozen in icecube tray - and another bag of lime rinds (will use for zesting later).
Also used all the bags of chicken bones, wing tips, etc. to make a double batch of chicken stock. Getting all those bags of bones out of the freezer was nice! Will skim the fat off the cooled stock tonight and freeze in 1 and 2 cup portions in Ziplock bags.
Stopped at a local farm stand last night and they had sweet red peppers marked down .. 12 small/medium red peppers for 1.49 so tonight I will be slicing some and dicing others, flash freezing them and then diving them up into freezer bags to store in the chest freezer for the winter time. I am stopping there tomorrow to pick up fresh corn to blanch, bag up into quart size bags and freeze for fall/winter. Hoping to be able to get 2 big bags for Thanksgiving/Christmas dinner, 4 bags for chowders and several smaller bags for family dinners.
DH prepared a huge batch of burgers yesterday to go into the freezer for quick bbq's through Summer. I also broke up a large pack of bacon into small batches. Still have a way to go but glad to have a few things ready to go.
I just finished Post #1 for the year to House & Holiday 2018. I'll be on this thread too for my freezer planning. These lists are very inspiring!
I haven't got it all figured out but I'm pretty sure I DO know that I'm going to skip the grassfed beef order this year because last time I got it in October my freezer was so full I couldn't fit anything more into it. It still has plenty of beef in there. This year I want to load it more slowly. Still pondering my strategy. DS wants to learn how to cook more things so hopefully I'll get him to help!. He's already asked when I'm going to start the freezer cooking.
Also need to update my big red recipe book. I tore it all apart last year so I could make digital versions for the kids. Lordy ~ it became a real project! Still haven't gotten back to it. Can't go into the season with it in that condition. It's my bible!
Ellen ~ What do you mean by 8 meals? Do you mean you only cook 8 different meals but enough to last til Christmas?
I haven't got it all figured out but I'm pretty sure I DO know that I'm going to skip the grassfed beef order this year because last time I got it in October my freezer was so full I couldn't fit anything more into it. It still has plenty of beef in there. This year I want to load it more slowly. Still pondering my strategy. DS wants to learn how to cook more things so hopefully I'll get him to help!. He's already asked when I'm going to start the freezer cooking.
Also need to update my big red recipe book. I tore it all apart last year so I could make digital versions for the kids. Lordy ~ it became a real project! Still haven't gotten back to it. Can't go into the season with it in that condition. It's my bible!
Ellen ~ What do you mean by 8 meals? Do you mean you only cook 8 different meals but enough to last til Christmas?
Since last week I have blanched and bagged up almost 4 dozen ears of corn which gave me 2 big bags of corn (1 for Thanksgiving and 1 for Christmas eve dinner), 2 bags of corn for chowder and 4 bags of corn for dinners. I may do another dozen before the end of season to get more bags of corn for dinners. Diced up enough red peppers to fill 3 quart size bags, cooked and shredded a huge pork should roast which I bagged up 2 dinner size bag and 4 lunch size servings and placed in the freezer. The rest will be used for lunches this week.
Did a test bake of an Italian style loaf of bread yesterday - dough uses cottage cheese, minced sun dried tomatoes, etc. Was super LUCKY that although the power went out while it was in the oven - it did end up being done. I just left the oven door closed for a good while and then took it out.
I'll be slicing and freezing it and then in a couple weeks or so I will take some out to see how it did with freezing. If it does ok I'll be making and freezing loaves of this type of bread to go in the Italian gift baskets I'm making for Christmas this year.
I'll be slicing and freezing it and then in a couple weeks or so I will take some out to see how it did with freezing. If it does ok I'll be making and freezing loaves of this type of bread to go in the Italian gift baskets I'm making for Christmas this year.
I made some crockpot "refried beans" this week for the freezer. Those are always yummy and my family likes the homemade beans so much more than the canned beans. Tomorrow I'm going to can some Salsa for this coming year. That's a new thing for me, but it will be great to have when I'm asked to bring a snack somewhere or need something quick for a snack at home.
My brother is going in for surgery this coming week, so I've been saving a couple 2 serving meals for my husband and I to have while I'm running back and forth to the hospital. After I use those up it will free some space in the freezer for bigger meal prep for the holidays. Making casseroles was such a help last year I'll be doing that again for sure this year. I would line an 8x8 pan with foil, prep my casserole like normal, put it in the freezer and when it was frozen I'd pop it out of the pan and into a gallon zip lock. Then when I wanted to serve it I would pop the foiled casserole back in the pan and cook it that way. Wasn't the prettiest as far as presentation, but it was so easy that way.
My brother is going in for surgery this coming week, so I've been saving a couple 2 serving meals for my husband and I to have while I'm running back and forth to the hospital. After I use those up it will free some space in the freezer for bigger meal prep for the holidays. Making casseroles was such a help last year I'll be doing that again for sure this year. I would line an 8x8 pan with foil, prep my casserole like normal, put it in the freezer and when it was frozen I'd pop it out of the pan and into a gallon zip lock. Then when I wanted to serve it I would pop the foiled casserole back in the pan and cook it that way. Wasn't the prettiest as far as presentation, but it was so easy that way.
Well so far I have the following in the freezer:
2 meals worth of Crockpot Beef and Mushrooms
2 meals worth of Oven Chicken Fajita meat (in marinade)
1 Batch of Chocolate Gob cookies (still need to bake the dough then freeze the cookies)
1 Batch of Lemon Snowballs (same)
1 Batch of Dbl Dark Choc PB Cookies (some are baked, need to finish baking rest of dough)
1 Batch of Choc Chip Cookies (these are more for anytime use though vs. Christmas)
Last night I made up another batch of Lemon Snowball dough and tried a new recipe for Lime Snowballs. Both doughs are in the fridge and I will shape and bake tonight before flash freezing. At least that is the plan!
Our freezer under our main fridge is having issues with defroster - we have to empty entire fridge/freezer tonight and unplug to attempt to fix. That is before I go to do the grocery shopping. Then when I get home I was going to work on cookies - we'll see how that goes - lol!
2 meals worth of Crockpot Beef and Mushrooms
2 meals worth of Oven Chicken Fajita meat (in marinade)
1 Batch of Chocolate Gob cookies (still need to bake the dough then freeze the cookies)
1 Batch of Lemon Snowballs (same)
1 Batch of Dbl Dark Choc PB Cookies (some are baked, need to finish baking rest of dough)
1 Batch of Choc Chip Cookies (these are more for anytime use though vs. Christmas)
Last night I made up another batch of Lemon Snowball dough and tried a new recipe for Lime Snowballs. Both doughs are in the fridge and I will shape and bake tonight before flash freezing. At least that is the plan!
Our freezer under our main fridge is having issues with defroster - we have to empty entire fridge/freezer tonight and unplug to attempt to fix. That is before I go to do the grocery shopping. Then when I get home I was going to work on cookies - we'll see how that goes - lol!
Whew! You ladies are busy! I have made three cakes this week and froze them. I will frost them before serving them. I made up a batch of cubed chicken and baked ziti for some night when it is busy in October.
I like Michelle's idea for freezing the meal in a foil lined dish and then removing the frozen meal from the dish. That would probably help me when I run out of Pyrex dishes closer to Thanksgiving.
I like Michelle's idea for freezing the meal in a foil lined dish and then removing the frozen meal from the dish. That would probably help me when I run out of Pyrex dishes closer to Thanksgiving.
Holidays are normally no busier than usual for me but since I went back to Kohls seasonally I will have less time to cook between jobs. I have been doing some cooking for that. So far I have
1. Chicken pot pie
2 BBQ chicken lasagna rolls
3. Another lasagna roll
4. Enchilada
Uumm and honestly something else but i forgot what.
1. Chicken pot pie
2 BBQ chicken lasagna rolls
3. Another lasagna roll
4. Enchilada
Uumm and honestly something else but i forgot what.
Hi AJ and all -- These sound so good. I'm now starting to hover on these threads each morning. It is Fall and my freezer has finally whittled down some on all the GrassFed beef I had loaded into it....(makes freezer cooking very difficult with no freezer space left). I'm gluten free so everything has to be adjusted but I'm really hoping to get some new recipes going this year.
MinnieCo -- Curious what casseroles you like to freeze?
MinnieCo -- Curious what casseroles you like to freeze?