Freezer Meals

After compiling these recipes I made my grocery list, clipped coupons and went shopping for the best deal on what I needed. 

On prep day:

1.Label all freezer bags (name, date, and any directions needed for cooking day), pay attention, a few of the recipes make 2 meals so you'll need 2 bags labeled for them, roll the tops down and lay them out on the table in groups:  Chicken, Ground Beef, Beef, etc.

2.  For casseroles I lined all my 9x13 pans with plastic wrap, I found this awesome idea on pinterest, you don't need to buy disposable pans or use yours up in the freezer at home (then you don't have one when you need it for other foods ;) ), instead you just line the pans you have with plastic wrap and fill with the casserole, cover with more plastic wrap and freeze, the next day you dump the casserole out of the pan and place in a freezer bag or wrap in more plastic wrap, then refreeze, you can now use your pan again :).  I actually went a bit further, I already had some disposable lasagna pans so I lined those and filled then covered and lined again, because they're so deep I was able to get not 1 but 2 casseroles in the dishes on top of each other and freeze in the same day, I also used the lids they come with and doubled up in them, this way none of my pans were occupied with freezing and I was able to freeze all of my casseroles at once rather than day by day waiting for them to harden enough to remove ;).

3.  Chop all veggies and grate all cheeses, set aside.

4.  Start sauteing veggies and browning ground beef.

5.  Cube chicken and cook.  Or if you want to move faster, you can substitute with canned chicken, I've done this a time or two ;).

6.  Cook and drain all noodles and divide into designated bags or dishes.

7.  Place all required amounts of uncooked chicken breasts and other uncooked meats in their labeled bags.

8.  Divide all cooked meats into their bags or dishes.

9.  Divide all veggies into their bags or dishes.


10.  Divide cheeses.

11.  Pour in all the rest of the ingredients into each bag or dish.

12.  Seal bags, pushing all the air out as you go.  Freeze flat.

Here are the meals I recently did:

Casseroles:

Skinny Mac Alfredo

2 cups Whole Grain Penne Pasta
1 jar light alfredo sauce
1 package frozen spinach
1 cup low fat cottage cheese
¼ cup skim milk
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp garlic
¼ tsp dried basil
1 egg
½ cup mozzarella
2 cups cooked, diced chicken

Cook pasta, drain and rinse.  Whisk together alfredo sauce, drained spinach, cottage cheese, milk, butter and garlic.  Add pasta and chicken, mix well.  Blend in egg and basil.  Sprinkle with mozzarella.  On cooking day:  Preheat oven to 450, spray 9x13 and unwrap and dump casserole into pan.  Cover and bake until bubbling, sprinkle with more cheese and bake uncovered until golden.  Rest 10 minutes.

Chicken black bean casserole

2 whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts
4 cups cooked brown rice
¾ cups frozen corn
15 oz can black beans drained and rinsed
1 cup plain greek yogurt (or sour cream)
4 oz Green chilis
½ cup salsa
1 cup cheddar cheese

 On cooking day:  Preheat oven to 350, spray 9x13 and unwrap and dump casserole into pan.  Cover and bake until bubbling, sprinkle with more cheese and bake uncovered until golden.

Chicken Tortilla Bake

2 cans Cream of chicken
1 cup Salsa
12 6 in corn tortillas
3 cups cooked chicken
1 cup cheese

Combine 3 cans and cheese and mix.  Chop tortillas into bite size pieces.  Layer 1/3 tortillas in pan, place half chicken on top, spoon ½ soup mix on top, repeat then top with leftover tortillas.  On cooking day:  Preheat oven to 350, spray 9x13 and unwrap and dump casserole into pan.  Cover and bake until bubbling, sprinkle with more cheese and bake uncovered until golden.  Rest 10 minutes.

Chicken enchiladas

1 can cream chicken soup
1 can green chillies
1 can chicken
whole wheat tortillas
Mozzarella cheese

Mix chicken, chillies and soup, spread over tortillas, sprinkle with cheese, roll up and place in baking dish, pour remaining soup mix over top, sprinkle with more cheese. On cooking day:  Preheat oven to 450, spray 9x13 and unwrap and dump casserole into pan.  Cover and bake until bubbling.

Baked Ravioli

25 oz Frozen Ravioli
1 Jar marinara
2 cups mozzarella
Parmesan for sprinkling

Spread ¾ cup sauce, arrange half of frozen ravioli in single layer over sauce, top with half remaining sauce, repeat.  On cooking day:  Preheat oven to 400, spray 9x13 and unwrap and dump casserole into pan.  Cover and bake until bubbling, sprinkle with more cheese and bake uncovered until golden.

Garden Taco Rice

(makes 2 meals – double to make 4)

Brown 2 lbs. ground beef

Add 1 onion, chopped

When beef is browned, sprinkle in 4 tsp. of taco seasoning and 1 tsp. chili powder

Stir in:

3 cups water

3 cups thinly sliced zucchini

2 cups corn

2 cans stewed tomatoes (I sometimes used the Mexican flavoured ones)

Bring to a boil.  Stir in 3 cups uncooked minute rice. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Divide mixture between 2 large resealable freezer bags. Label with these instructions:

Thaw. Reheat in skillet or oven. Near end of cooking time, sprinkle with cheese. Cover and let stand until cheese melts.

Tatertot casserole

2 lbs ground beef browned

2 cans cream of celery or mushroom soup

1 cup milk

6-8 cups frozen tater tots

Cheddar cheese

Mix soup, milk and cheese, add beef, gently toss in tater tots.  On cooking day:  Preheat oven to 400, spray 9x13 and unwrap and dump casserole into pan.  Cover and bake until bubbling, sprinkle with more cheese and bake uncovered until golden.

 

Chicken noodle casserole

2 cups cubed, cooked chicken

3 cups cooked egg noodles

2 cans cream of celery soup

1 cup milk

1 small bag frozen peas

Mix soup and milk, add all other ingredients and lightly toss together.  On cooking day:  Preheat oven to 350, spray 9x13 and unwrap and dump casserole into pan.  Cover and bake until bubbling, uncover and sprinkle with ruffle potato chips or bread crumbs and bake another 5 minutes.

Crockpot:

Vegetable Pesto Minestrone
1 tsp. olive oil
1 cup diced onion
2 cloves minced garlic
2 ribs of celery, chopped
3 carrots, sliced
1 cup white wine (or you can use apple juice)
14-19 oz. can diced tomatoes with juice
19 oz. can mixed beans
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup basil pesto
For cooking day:
4 cups vegetable broth
Saute onion in oil for a few minutes. Add garlic, celery and carrot and saute for a few more minutes until beginning to get soft. Add this to a large sized resealable freezer bag. Add wine, diced tomatoes, beans, tomato paste, seasonings, cheese, and pesto to the bag. Remove excess air, seal the bag and freeze.
On cooking day, thaw, pour into a stovetop pot or crockpot. Add 4 cups of vegetable broth and cook until desired temperature.
If you’d like, you can also add in some cooked gluten free noodles at the end of cook time.

BBQ Applesauce Chicken

Chicken
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup BBQ Sauce
2 tbsp minced onion

Slow cook on low 4-6 hours until cooked through.

Italian Chicken

Chicken
Tomato sauce
small onion chopped
1 zucchini chopped

Slow cook on low 4-6 hours until cooked through.

Salsa Chicken

Chicken
1 jar salsa
1 small bag frozen corn
1 can black beans drained and rinsed

Cook on low 4-6 hours until cooked through.

Caribbean Chicken

chicken
8 oz. can pineapple chunks with juice
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/3 cup orange juice
1/2 cup raisins
Cooking instructions:
Thaw. Bake at 350° for an hour or in the crock pot on low for 4-6 hours.

Lemon and Garlic Chicken

chicken
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
4 Tbsp. of olive oil
2 Tbsp. fresh chopped parsley
3 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. pepper
Cooking instructions:
Thaw. Bake at 350° for 45-55 minutes or in the crock pot on low for 4-6 hours.

Teriyaki Chicken

Medium bag of carrots
chopped red onion
2 large cans pineapple undrained
4 garlic cloves
4 chicken breasts
1 cup teriyaki sauce

Split between 2 bags, seal, mix, lay flat, freeze

Cooking day:  add additional ¼ cup teriyaki sauce to crock pot.  Cook low 6-7 hours.  Serve over rice.

Savory Chicken

4-6 chicken breasts
2 cans stewed tomatoes
4 tbsp broth
1 large onion
4 garlic cloves minced
1 cup chicken broth
salt and pepper to taste
4 cups broccoli

Spit between 2 bags, seal, mix, lay flat, freeze

Cooking day:  cook on low 6-7 hours.  Add broccoli during last 30 minutes.

Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

Ingredients

• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
• 1/2 tsp coarse salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 2 jars Alfredo sauce

Cooking Day Instructions

1. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.
2. Add broccoli (1 (12 ounce) bag frozen broccoli cut) cook another 30 min.
3. Cook 1/2 pound bowtie pasta to serve with.

Beef & Broccoli

1 lb boneless beef chuck roast sliced into thin strips
1 cup beef broth
½ cup soy sauce
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 garlic cloves minced

Cooking day:  Slow cook 6 hours.  Mix 2 tbsp corn starch with 4 tbsp sauce from crockpot after cooking, slowly mix into crockpot.  Add Frozen broccoli florets.  Cook on low 30 more minutes.