Filling a Freeze with Meals Cheap

[Tink2000]

My sister-in-law just had her first baby and I want to fill their freeze with a few meals for them. While I am cooking I want to fill my freezer also. Any ideas for cheap freezer meals.

 

[Mom23Disneybelievers]

frozen in trays: baked ziti, lasagna, macaroni and cheese, stuffed peppers, chicken cacciatori, eggplant parmesan

Frozen in freezer bags: chili, pea soup, chowders, pulled pork in bbq sauce

 

[WDWHo]

Chicken pot pies!

 

[Tink2000]

bumping

 

[AllesonWonderland]

I checked out 'Fix, Freeze, Feast' by Kati Neville and 'Don't Panic--Dinner's in the Freezer' by Susie Martinez from my library and liked them both. I was looking for meals to stock my dad's freezer with. The first book had lots of yummy recipes and the second had great techniques for freezing food--especially how to do it without tying up all your dishes in the freezer.

 

[Sagginit]

chili and soup are very inexpensive and freeze well, they are about the only cooked meals i freeze.

 

[smidgen21]

before my second child was born I bought whole chickens on sale and cooked them in my large roaster, deboned them and froze them in 2 cup portions. I also bought ground beef on sale, browned it and froze it in 2 cup portions. this way all i had to do was thaw the meat and add it to whatever i was making...chicken soup, tacos, chili etc.

 

[Alice2020]

Muffins are one of the easier things to freeze individually and you can defrost them as needed- plus not a lot of freezer items are breakfast food or snack items.

 

[schoen]

I love to make homemade spaghetti sauce and freeze it. Then all you have to do is cook the spaghetti and you"re ready!

 

[disneyfan2]

i have never made homemade soup ( well i tried a broth chicken soup once, and was suggested to dump a bunch of chicken pieces into pot with veggies and boil) Well it tasted sooo bland ( had to add lots of salt which we did not like) but ever since i have never made soup.

What are some good and easy soup recipes(veggie, chicken etc) and flavor options.

BTW- Can you actually freeze soups and taste good?

 

[FoundMyPrince]

I make baked potato soup to freeze for later dates. It seems to take a while to thaw, but takes great!

I also like to make hashbrown casserole and free it. I can make one recipe of this and freeze it into two 8x8 pans.

 

[Tink2000]

Could you please share the bake potatoe recipe? Of sould like something we would like.

 

[jacobsmom]

I make big batches of pancakes then flash freeze them so whenever my family wants they can either toast them in the toaster or nuke them for a warm breakfast!
We load the freezer with casseroles, precooked chicken/beef so I can make whatever in 1/2 the time, soup, cookies, candies (things that whenever guests stop by it looks like I was prepared).

 

[FoundMyPrince]

Could you please share the bake potatoe recipe? Of sould like something we would like.

Baked Potato Soup

2 lbs frozen hash browns, thawed
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup chopped green onion
1 can cream of chicken soup
4 cups half and half or milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 lb bacon

Saute' onion in butter. Add soup, half and half, and thawed hash browns. Stir in cheese, and cooked bacon (torn in small pieces).

I cook this in my crock pot for about 4 hours. If we don't eat it right away I will freeze this in a small container. Enjoy!

 

[bear74]

Baked Potato Soup

2 lbs frozen hash browns, thawed
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup chopped green onion
1 can cream of chicken soup
4 cups half and half or milk
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 lb bacon

Saute' onion in butter. Add soup, half and half, and thawed hash browns. Stir in cheese, and cooked bacon (torn in small pieces).

I cook this in my crock pot for about 4 hours. If we don't eat it right away I will freeze this in a small container. Enjoy!

sounds yummy!

 

[Mrs D]

My Mom's Bible Study group has done a few "Freezer Meals nights". We use recipes out of Don't Panic--Dinner's in the Freezer. Some of my fav's are the raspberry chicken, Chicken Pot Pie and Peanut Turkey.
I also do turkey meatloaf and freeze it.

 

[RumpleMom]

The Kraft Foods website has a really good recipe for mini-meatloaves that I make and freeze.

Also canned salmon or tuna cakes mixed with Stove Top stuffing, onion, celery. Brown in a skillet, then wrap individually to freeze.

 

[jennyopenny]

I like this thread-keep it up! :banana

 

[CherylA]

i have never made homemade soup ( well i tried a broth chicken soup once, and was suggested to dump a bunch of chicken pieces into pot with veggies and boil) Well it tasted sooo bland ( had to add lots of salt which we did not like) but ever since i have never made soup.

What are some good and easy soup recipes(veggie, chicken etc) and flavor options.

BTW- Can you actually freeze soups and taste good?

Well my chicken soup recipe is as follows-

Put in a large pot either a couple chicken legs and/or breasts with the bones in and skin still on or the carcass of a whole roast chicken (sometimes I buy the supermarket roast chicken, we eat that for dinner one night then I take whatevers left and usually there is some meat still on the bones and use that, bones skin and all) I then put in a gallon to a gallon and a half of water, 5 or 6 dried bayleaves, a whole small onion that I poke whole cloves into (about 10-15 whole cloves) A bag of baby carrots or a pound of large carrots cut into large pieces. 1 or 2 stalks of whole celery and a very generous dosing of kosher salt (i'd say 2-3 tablespoons) I boil it for atleast 3 hours, sometimes I just let it go in the crockpot all day. Then I let it cool some, strain everything and then add back into the broth chicken pieces that I pull off the bone and cut up, the carrots that I cut into smaller pieces and maybe some of the celery cut up depending on how mushy it got. Then I add two cans of drained corn and I cook some small pastas that I keep seperate and add to each serving as I serve it because if you try to save leftovers with the pasta in it the pasta noodles soak up all the liquid and it's gross! So I store them seperately. This can totally be frozen but I would just make the pasta part when you actually serve it, just freeze the soup part.

Sometimes I still have to add a little more salt when I eat it and we like some parmesean cheese sprinkled on top, I think thats an Italian thing!

 

[Tink2000]

We are having the baked potato soup for supper. I am making a double batch and will freeeze some for sister-in-law.

Thanks for all of the tips. I have my list going so I can go shopping.