Freezer Stash

Aubrey and I have been enjoying food from our freezer stash for the past several months. Before Breyson was born, I started preparing meals for when he came. I knew I wouldn't have much free time to cook (nor would I feel like cooking) when baby arrived, so I prepared ahead of time. It was much easier than I thought it would be. I chose healthy things to cook since I knew I would have baby weight to lose. I also chose foods that I knew would freeze well (see the bottom of this post for examples), and I made double of whatever I was cooking. We enjoyed one portion right away, and the other portion went into the deep freezer.

I also kept a log of what was in the freezer. There are several printable freezer lists on the web. The site where I got mine is no longer available.

 

 

All of the burgers, chicken breasts, buns, etc. were stored inside the freezer door. Casseroles, soups, crockpot meals, etc. were stored on the freezer shelves. I made sure everything was frozen flat so they would stack well. I made sure to wrap burger patties and chicken breasts with plastic wrap so they wouldn't get freezer burned.

 

I found the most awesome idea on Pinterest for freezing casseroles:

•  Line the 8 x 8-inch casserole dish with aluminum foil (leave excess foil hanging off edges of dish).
•  Spray foil with cooking spray and put casserole into the dish.
•  Place dish into the freezer until food is frozen solid. 
•  Once casserole is frozen, lift out the foil with the frozen block of casserole, and wrap the excess foil around it.
•  Place it into a gallon freezer bag and label it with the name and cooking directions.
•  Place in the deep freezer, and enjoy later.

 



I have multiple 8 x 8-inch casserole dishes, but I used the same dish for simplicity sake. You can see above that the frozen casserole fits perfectly into the dish. I don't let it thaw like the picture above, though. I unwrap the frozen block and place it into the greased baking dish to thaw.


Here are some of the recipes that I froze:

Pork Carnitas
Turkey Taco Burgers
Southwestern Sloppy Joes
Beef Ziti
Turkey, Bean, & Veggie Chili
Crockpot Chicken Cacciatore
Crockpot Teriyaki Chicken
White Bean Enchiladas (one of my favorites)
Black Bean Veggie Burgers
Broccoli Quinoa Casserole
Breakfast Burritos