freezer cooking?

[brookglen]

I just made this which I really like for breakfast (although it claims to be a dessert). It's gluten free, dairy free and vegan. it's so good. I made it with almond milk instead of hemp milk and only used half the amount and added cranberries instead of fresh blueberries. It freezes very well in small portions.

quinoa pudding

[mom-of-QTs]

YES! This will be baby #4 for so having the wellness or energy to cook meals even right now is difficult. I don't cook meals anymore. I do all of my grocery shopping on one day and then spend the next couple of days cooking and freezing. I make at least two of everything and freeze it so all I have to do is grab, pull, and warm-up for dinner. I cook things for up to two weeks worth of meals. Two weeks is just because that is all the freezer space I have. It has been working out wonderfully because if I am having one of my headache spells, am too exhausted or nauseated... the family can still eat. I will keep doing this until baby is born and probably continue after.

[mandymatus]

Originally Posted by mom-of-QTs YES! This will be baby #4 for so having the wellness or energy to cook meals even right now is difficult. I don't cook meals anymore. I do all of my grocery shopping on one day and then spend the next couple of days cooking and freezing. I make at least two of everything and freeze it so all I have to do is grab, pull, and warm-up for dinner. I cook things for up to two weeks worth of meals. Two weeks is just because that is all the freezer space I have. It has been working out wonderfully because if I am having one of my headache spells, am too exhausted or nauseated... the family can still eat. I will keep doing this until baby is born and probably continue after.

like you i am really lacking the energy to continue to cook and clean daily. although i'm only on my third baby, they are all very close in age requiring a lot of time and energy) i thought i'd have more energy come the 2nd trimester, but no such luck! i'm working this week to get some meals in the freezer and hopefully here shortly i'll be able to get into a rotation of only cooking a few nights a week. i like your idea though...how many different meals do you do for the 2 week period?

also where are you getting your recipes from?

[mandymatus]

as for ideas this week i'm making for dinner and freezing an extra of these things:

-2 bean minestrone soup
-chicken pot pie
-spaghetti
-quiche
-cooked shredded chicken for quesadillas

[TiffanyAnn]

This is a great thread! I've never been great at consistently cooking meals, although I'm getting better (minus my 1st trimester that I just recovered from . So, I've never done freezer meals until I did one a few months ago. I just doubled a recipe and we ate the freezer one a few weeks later. I've been working on getting ideas and more recipes, etc. so that I can do more freezer meals. This is my third and our budget will be tighter than ever, so I definitely need to be prepared.

I've found most of my new recipes and freezer meal ideas through pinterest, which then brings me to some pretty awesome blogs about cooking and food prep. I really love the idea about freezing crock pot ingredients. Especially since that requires less time in prep which means I'll be more likely to do it. Unfortunately, I don't have room in my freezer for much more than maybe a week tops (if I stuff it) of meals...maybe if we get the extra cash I'll be keeping an eye out for a deep freezer. That would be awesome!

Sometimes I just stock up on stuff st Costco. Obviously, I prefer homemade b/c it's less preservatives, but sometimes I have to choose my battles if we want to avoid eating out which cost more $ and can usually be more unhealthy (if you're eating cheap).

I will be sure to share any recipes I found. I know the enchilada recipe that Veann linked to earlier, is really yummy! That is what I made when I did my first freezer meal and it turned out great!

[Sarahknavy]

want to share some of those blogs... I think I am going with crock pot type stuff too... that usually makes more than we can eat in one meal too... so there is a bonus.

[fides]

something that was suggested on here last time i was preggers - you can mix up meatloaf, then stick it in the freezer so all you have to do is toss it in the oven and eat... planning to do that again for this one, along with several crock pot stews and such.

[abunchoflemons]

Ideas only read first page... but only ideas I know are bean or red sauce.... anything else for ideasm do you make then freeze right away enchalatas? Or make, bake then freeze enchalatas? Most I can think of too are like leftover lasagna, soups.......