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The topic for February's activity, which I was in charge of planning, was BEE Mine - Love Your Honey, with a main focus on Meal Prep, so I took a spin on that and went with BEE PREPARED and gave a presentation on Freezer Meals. I thought I'd share with you the activity from start to finish. These were the adorable invitations I found, which were absolutely PERFECT for this month. I customized them to work for our activity and printed them through Minted.Com.
And here is my presentation:
FREEZER MEALS 101
Freezer cooking is a secret weapon for
busy moms and wives (or busy dudes) that want to put a homemade meal on the
table without having to slave away in the kitchen every night. By doing the
work ahead of time, you can pull out a prepared freezer meal and stick it in
the oven.
No pots and pans to wash.
No pots and pans to wash.
No counters to clean.
No time spent in the kitchen.
No time spent in the kitchen.
Whether you’re serving up dinner or a delicious weekend
brunch, make an extra batch and freeze to save for later. It is always a good
idea to double or even triple recipes and freeze portions for later so you
don’t have to cook every night to have a delicious and nutritious meal on the
table. Keep in mind that some food is better suited to freezing and reheating
than others. For example: casseroles, soups, chili’s, and meat loaf all stand
up to the freezer well and most cooked dishes will keep for two to three months
in the freezer.
WHAT CONTAINERS ARE GOOD TO USE FOR EASY FREEZER MEALS?
1. Gallon or quart sized plastic or
reusable freezer safe bags. I take advantage of these the most. I just pull
them out of the freezer and put them directly in the crockpot to cook on low
for 6-8 hours (depending on the recipe). Just make sure and get as much air out
as possible by squishing the food around and flattening the bag. Seal it
tightly to avoid any spills and freezer burn. You can even purchase a Ziploc Vacuum Starter Kit from Walmart
to help protect your frozen food and keep it fresher for longer. These
specially designed Ziploc bags have a one-way valve on them making it easy to
suction the air out with the hand-held pump.
2. Aluminum foil pans or your own baking dishes.
I often will use a 9x13 glass pan and that will provide my small family dinner
for 2+ nights. If you are planning a freezer meal for two and aren't a fan of
leftovers you can always prepare in a smaller pan.
3. Plastic Tupperware or other plastic containers
with sealed lids. I mainly use these for soups. These can take up a lot of
space so consider space when using them.
Types of Make Ahead
Meals
Once a Month Cooking
Once a month
cooking is taking a weekend to prepare meals ahead once a month. This generally
includes prepared uncooked dinner meals only. Most once a month cooks do not
prepare 30 different meals but make 3-5 family portions of each meal. This is
the most misunderstood type of freezer cooking because people think they only
have to spend one day a month, not a whole weekend, preparing food and are
disappointed to find they still have to cook dinner each night since the meals
are not precooked.
Pros:
·
Great way to get your freezer
stocked.
·
It’s all done at once.
Cons:
·
Takes a lot of time, planning,
shopping, preparing, cooking and packing for the freezer.
·
Easy to get over whelmed, especially
if cooking alone.
·
Way more steps and more dishes.
·
Cost can seem high because you’re
spending most of your grocery money for the month all at one time.
·
Variety can be a challenge or
exciting. Depending how you feel about such things.
·
Not good for a small freezer, the
food takes longer to freeze and decreases in quality.
Once a Week Cooking
Once a week cooking
is taking one day or afternoon during the weekend and preparing dinner for the
weekdays, it might be cooked ahead but not always. This method is
more budget and time friendly to get started than once a month
cooking.
Pros:
·
Better variety
·
Not too much to take on by yourself;
if you choose easy or similar recipes.
·
Shouldn’t cost more than you usually
spend on a weeks’ worth of groceries.
·
Not long for food to freezer burn.
Cons:
·
It’s tempting not to freeze things.
Why bother when you’re going to thaw it a few days. The problem is 3-4 days is
as long as food should be in the fridge and preparing food on
Saturday to eat next Friday without freezing is long enough to risk making your
family ill.
·
You won’t have as much of a
stockpile of freezer meals.
Batch Cooking - I utilize this one most
Batch cooking is
doubling, tripling or quadrupling a recipe that you’re already
making. With this method, you get one for dinner and more for the freezer
without the hassle of extra ingredients to prepare, extra shopping or much
extra planning. This is the easiest way to get stocked up on make ahead freezer
meals.
Pros:
·
Great time saver.
·
No new steps.
·
Not creating more dishes.
·
Not expensive to start.
·
Easy to plan for.
·
Use any size freezer.
Cons:
·
No variety. But as you keep making
batches of family favorite recipes, you’ll slowly stock your freezer.
Session Cooking
Session cooking is
making a collection of recipes with the same main ingredient, one
type of meat, or vegetable that is in season or on sale. This is the most
budget friendly way to stock up on make ahead freezer meals.
Pros:
·
More variety than batch cooking, but
still limited compared to once a month cooking.
·
Can save money if you’re buying your
main ingredient at a great sale price.
·
Fairly easy to plan and shop for.
·
Faster than once a month or once a
week cooking.
Cons:
·
More dishes.
·
More time consuming than batch
cooking.
Meal Swaps
Meal Swaps are
groups of friends who all cook batches of favorite meals and swap them with
each other to save on time and effort, while adding more variety to their
freezer. This method is hard to set up, but rewarding later.
Pros:
·
Only need to plan, shop for and cook
one meal.
·
Get a variety of meals in the
freezer.
·
Less time cooking.
Cons:
·
Hard to organize.
·
Must find families with the same
size and tastes as yours.
·
Won’t always like the recipes.
FOOD – TIME
IN FREEZER (0°F)
Milk - 3 months
Butter - 6 to 9 months
Cheese,
hard (Cheddar, Swiss) - 6 months
Cheese,
soft (Brie, Bel Paese) - 6 months
Cream,
half-and-half - 4 months
Sour
cream - don't freeze
Eggs
(raw yolks, whites) -
1 year
Frankfurters
(opened or unopened packages) - 1 to 2 months
Luncheon
meats (opened or unopened packages) - 1 to 2 months
Bacon - 1 month
Sausage,
raw, links or patties - 1 to 2 months
Ham,
fully cooked (whole, half, slices) - 1 to 2 months
Ground
or stew meat - 3 to 4 months
Steaks - 6 to 12 months
Chops - 3 to 6 months
Roasts - 4 to 12 months
Chicken
or turkey, whole -
1 year
Chicken
or turkey, pieces -
9 months
Casseroles,
cooked, poultry -
4 to 6 months
Casseroles,
cooked, meat - 2 to 3 months
Soups
and stews - 2 to 3 months
Fish,
lean (cod, flounder, haddock) - 6 months
Fish,
fatty (bluefish, mackerel, salmon) - 2 to 3 months
Fish,
cooked - 4 to 6 months
Fish,
smoked - 2 months in
vacuum pack
Shrimp,
scallops, squid, shucked clams, mussels, oysters - 3 to 6 months
Pizza - 1 to 2 months
Breads
and rolls, yeast -
3 to 6 month
Breads,
quick - 2 to 3 months
Cakes,
unfrosted - 3 months
Cheesecakes - 2 to 3 months
Cookies,
baked - 3 months
Cookie
dough, raw - 2 to 3 months
Pies,
fruit, unbaked -
8 months
Pies,
custard or meringue-topped - don't freeze
Piecrust,
raw - 2 to 3 months
Nuts,
salted - 6 to 8 months
Nuts,
unsalted - 9 to 12 months
FRESHNESS
GUIDE:
Foods frozen for
longer than the recommended times aren’t harmful, they just won’t be at their
peak flavor and texture.
And these are the recipes that I provided them with, two of which we made, with the help of my good friend Jennie. We made the Chicken Tortilla Soup and the Honey Lime Chicken. Both were DELICIOUS and both were based off Batch Cooking where you cook a meal, doubling or even tripling it if you like, and have that for dinner on night 1. Then, after you're done eating, package the food up, wait for it to cool, and then stick it in the freezer for when you want to eat it next!
Slow
Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup
Yield – 8 servings, or 2
meals worth
Preparation Time – 10
minutes
Cooking Time – 8 hours
in slow cooker
Ingredients:
·
1 lb. chicken breast
·
1 lb. chicken thighs
·
2 15 oz. cans tomato
sauce
·
about 1/4 cup taco
seasoning
·
4 cups frozen corn
·
2 red peppers, seeded
and diced
·
2 quarts chicken stock
·
8 to 12 corn
tortillas, cut into strips
·
Couple pinchfuls of
shredded cheese
Directions:
1.
Add all the ingredients,
except the tortillas and cheese, to the slow cooker and cook on low for 8
hours. Gently shred the chicken pieces once cooked.
2.
Before serving, add the
tortilla strips and a pinchful of cheese to each bowl.
3.
Freezer
instructions: Do not add the
tortillas and the cheese to what you freeze. Let the main soup cool completely before
adding to container or plastic freezer baggie. Thaw in a bowl of warm water and
reheat in a saucepan. Add tortillas strips and cheese to each bowl before
serving.
Honey
Lime Chicken
Yield – 6 servings
Preparation Time – 10
minutes
Cooking Time – 25
minutes
Ingredients:
·
4 Chicken Breasts, cut into strips
·
1½ tsp garlic salt
·
1 tbsp. Oil
·
1 20 oz. can pineapple tidbits, keep
the juice!
·
¼ cup honey
·
3 tbsp. Lime juice
·
2 tbsp. Soy Sauce
·
2 tsp. Corn starch
Directions:
1.
Cut the chicken into strips or bite
sized pieces and sprinkle with garlic salt.
2.
Heat oil in a skillet over med-high
and add chicken.
3.
Cook chicken until golden brown.
4.
Drain the pineapple, keeping the
juices.
5.
Add ¼ cup of the pineapple juice to
the skillet.
6.
Cover and simmer 6-8 minutes.
7.
Remove the chicken from the pan.
8.
Add honey, lime juice, soy sauce,
cornstarch and remainder of pineapple juice to the pan.
9.
Bring to a boil stirring constantly.
10.
Cook and stir until thick and clear,
about one minute.
11.
Add chicken and pineapple tidbits
last and heat through.
12.
Serve over hot rice and it's cool to
garnish with lime wedges or Chow Mein noodles.
13.
Freezer Instructions: Cook
it all up as directed above. Then let it cool, and add it to a gallon size
freezer bag. Label and freeze. Then warm it up and serve with fresh hot rice.
Homemade
Fast and Easy Freezer Pancakes
Yield – 18 pancakes
Freezer Pancakes are so easy to make and can be reheated
quickly – from frozen to plate in a matter of seconds. You can pop
them in the toaster or in the microwave, whatever your family prefers.
Pancakes are also inexpensive, can be dressed up or down, eaten on a plate, or
rolled like a tortilla with some scrambled eggs or peanut butter inside for
something to eat on-the-go. The recipe also doubles easily -- You’ll double
your product with only a slight addition of time.
Ingredients:
·
2 cups all-purpose flour
·
¼ cup sugar
·
1 tsp. salt
·
1 tsp. baking powder
·
1 tsp. baking soda
·
8 tbsp. Buttermilk Powder
·
2 cups water
·
⅓ cup sour cream (sour cream is ok
to freeze for this recipe)
·
2 large eggs
·
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
Directions:
1.
Whisk dry ingredients
together in a large mixing bowl.
2.
Make a well in the
center of the dry ingredients and add in water, sour cream, eggs, and oil.
3.
Mix until wet and dry
ingredients are incorporated, but don’t over mix. Batter will be lumpy.
4.
Let the batter set on
your counter for 10 minutes. The sour cream and baking soda will react and
begin releasing carbon dioxide, creating tons of bubbles through your batter
and helping to make light, fluffy, pancakes.
5.
Using a 1/4 cup
measuring cup, pour batter onto a lightly greased, hot griddle. I set my
electric griddle to 375 degrees when I make my pancakes and I can usually get
four at a time on my griddle.
6.
When the bubbles in the
top of the pancakes have popped and they are dry around the edges, they are
ready to flip
7.
Turn the pancakes and
allow to cook on the other side until that side is golden brown, also.
8.
Serve with butter,
syrup, jelly, or other condiments your family loves.
9.
Freezer Instructions: If you’re prepping them for the freezer, move
the pancakes to a rack to cool. Then place in single layers on cookie sheets
and flash freeze. Once they are frozen, place them in a Ziploc bag and store in
your freezer. They can be quickly reheated in your microwave or toaster.
Possible
variations:
You could substitute yogurt for the sour cream AND you could add fresh or
frozen fruit or even chocolate chips in the batter. Also, if you keep
buttermilk on hand,
substitute 2 cups buttermilk for the water and buttermilk powder.
And then to finish off, I baked and decorated these cookies with the help of my cute mama. Working a full-time job sometimes makes it hard to finish off things in time, so she was a big help in baking these cookies so I could decorate them.
