Your best freezer recipes

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  • Rebekahy
    Participant

    Do you have a recipe that you LOVE for the freezer? We’re gearing up for another cooking day, but we’re looking for the BEST recipes. There’s nothing worse than spending a whole day cooking only to pull out one of those treasured meals and find out it’s absolutely disgusting, as in NO one in your family will eat it. So this month we’re not taking any chances, we’ve saved a few of the recipes we’ve loved so far, but we’re looking for YOUR tried and true recipe. Please share here!

    And to get your started – I’ll post the Chicken Marsala recipe we found our first month cooking – that is FABULOUS!!! (even the family that doesn’t like mushrooms finds it palatable).

    Here is the DELISH recipe – you can Quadruple this recipe and freeze 3 and eat one for dinner!

    Chicken Marsala
    (Source: It’s a Darne Good Cookbook, with lots of adaptions by me)
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    4-6 thin chicken breast pounded out to 1/8 inch thickness (buy the skinny frozen ones from Costco for NO pounding!)
    1/2 cup flour
    1/3-1/2 cup butter
    salt and pepper to taste
    2 cups mushrooms, sliced (I used baby bellas)
    1-2 cloves garlic minced
    3/4 cup marsala wine
    1/2 cup chicken stock
    1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
    1/4 cup parmesan cheese
    1/2 box angel hair pasta

    Dredge the chicken in flour. Place 2 chicken breasts at a time in the skillet with 2 tablespoons melted butter (add more with each addition if needed) in skillet. Cook over low heat for 3 to 4 minutes on each side. As each one is done place it in a 9×13 baking dish and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Repeat until all chicken is cooked.

    Adding more butter if needed, saute mushrooms and garlic in the same skillet. When the mushrooms are done use a slotted spoon to remove the mushrooms and place them on top of the chicken.

    Use the marsala wine to deglaze the pan then stir in the chicken stock. Bring to a boil then reduce the temperature. Spoon 1/2 of the sauce over the chicken. Top the chicken with cheese and bake at 425 degrees for 10-12 minutes. (OR cover with foil and FREEZE! – divide remaining sauce into 4 quart size bags and freeze until eating day.)

    While the chicken is baking prepare angel hair noodles. When the noodles are done drain the water and dump the noodles into the pan with remaining sauce.

    Serve chicken and mushrooms over top of angel hair pasta.

    **Recipe note** If you are concerned with the amount of butter in this recipe you can substitute olive oil for half of the butter. Some butter is required to give it a rich flavor but it is perfectly okay to use half butter and half olive oil.

     

    Misty
    Participant

    This is my familys favorite and my favorite to share!  (new baby, new couple, someone sick)

    Zesty Italian Casserole

    Serves 6-8

    2 lbs


    Ground Turkey

    ¼ cup


    Chopped Onion

    ¼ cup


    Italian Seasoning

    1 can


    Spagetti Sauce

    1 ½ cups– Mozzarella Cheese

    ½ cup


    Sour Cream

    2 cans


    Cresent Rolls

    2 tbls


    Melted Butter

    1/3 cup—- Parmesan Cheese

    Brown turkey and onion. Drain Fat. Remove from stove.

    Stir in spagetti sauce and Italian seasoning and mix together.

    Spoon into 9×13 ungreased baking dish.

    Spread sour cream and then sprinkle mozzarella over the mixture.

    Spread cresent rolls ontop of the above.

    Melt butter and brush over cresent rolls, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

    *If making for now: Heat oven to 325 degrees and bake until cresent rolls are golden brown. This is anywhere between 15 –30 minutes.

    **To freeze: Let set out until cool. Then cover or a 9×13 will fit in a 2-gallon freezer zip lock bag and freeze. When ready to use pull out and place in a preheated 325-degree oven “frozen”. Bake 1 ½ – 2 hours or until top is brown. If rolls become brown too soon, cover with tin foil and continue to bake.

    Rebekahy
    Participant

    Thanks for sharing – so just to clarify – if I’m going to freeze I do finish the recipe all the way through the baking for 15-30 minutes and then cool off and freeze – so it goes into the freezer totally baked?

    Misty
    Participant

    Oh, sorry I will clarify.

    No do not cook at all just prepare! Well cook the meat up front but not the finished product.  I like the cheep tin pans and 2 gallon zip locks to freeze it in though I can’t seem to find those 2 gallon ones anymore?  It is very tasty says my family! (I don’t know I’m a vegitarian).

    csmamma
    Participant

    Hi Rebekah,

    Those recipes sound yummy! Have you seen The Big Cook http://www.thebigcook.com ? They have wonderful dishes and the great thing is that you prepare the meals (without cooking) and then put them in the freezer. They are oven or crockpot ready the day you want to use them; that way you’re getting a fresh meal not just reheating. Have fun!

    Heather

    LindseyD
    Participant

    I have a tried and true lasagna recipe that’s super-duper easy. I’ve frozen it many times, and it always comes out tasting great!

    Lazy Lasagna

    1 lb. ground beef or turkey, browned and drained

    1 24 oz. can or jar spaghetti sauce

    Oven-ready lasagna noodles (you DO NOT cook noodles!)

    1/2 cup sour cream

    3/4 cup cottage (or I sometimes use 1/2 cup cottage cheese and 1/4 cup Ricotta cheese)

    1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

    2 cups grated mozzerella cheese

    Italian seasoning

    Assemble:

    Preheat oven to 350. Combine browned meat and spaghetti. Spread in a 9×13 pan. Next, layer uncooked noodles on top of meat sauce. (I do 2 layers.) Combine sour cream, cottage cheese, Ricotta (if using), and Parmesan. Stir until mixed, then spread on top of noodles. Top the whole thing with the mozzerella cheese. Then sprinkle a little Italian seasoning on top.

    Cover w/ foil and bake for 1 hour. Uncover and bake an additional 30 minutes or until cheese is bubbly. We like our cheese a little browned and crispy!

    It freezes well. Just don’t bake it before you freeze it. It also makes great leftovers! Hope this is helpful!

    Rebekahy
    Participant

    It’s that time of year again.  Anyone come up with more freezer ideas in the past 12 months?

    amama5
    Participant

    Just a tip for freezing meals, I found that if I line a casserole dish with a long length of foil, then after I’ve baked it(or if it goes directly into the freezer) I just fold the foil over top and then freeze it.  Then when giving to someone, all they get is the foil wrapped meal, saves a lot of space in their freezer vs the disposable pans you can buy.  They also stack well that way in the freezer. 

    LindseyD
    Participant

    amama5,

    I also line my pans with foil before putting whatever casserole in the pan for freezing. I don’t have to buy foil pans, and I can pop the frozen, foil-wrapped casserole back in the pan before baking. No washing the 9×13 afterward! It really saves lots of steps and space in the freezer. 

    Great suggestion and reminder,

    Lindsey

    Rebekahy
    Participant

    The foil is a good suggestion, especially if you’re tight on freezer space. 

    Does no one else do freezer cooking?  If you don’t you’re definitely missing out on a BIG stress reliever.  I would like to say that I use all whole foods and cook fresh every day, but that’s just not reality.  I have found that our family eats healthier, when I’ve got a few things in the freezer made primarily with whole foods, because then when I know I’m going to be rushed I pull out a meal from the freezer as opposed to cooking with convenience foods that often contain MSG, or other things we don’t like to consume.

    Wings2fly
    Participant

    I can’t wait to try these recipes!  Does anyone have any more freezer recipes to share?  Do you have a favorite cookbook for freezer cooking healthy family meals?

    Sue
    Participant

    Oo, I’m glad you brought this thread back, Wings2fly.  I really need to start cooking things for the freezer so I don’t get stuck with nothing planned or no prep time on busy days!

    crazy4boys
    Participant
    homeschooltraveler
    Participant

    I just started doing freezer meals recently and it is such a huge stress relief! This is a website that I have found some real gems as far as my family is concerned. http://thrivinghomeblog.com/healthy-recipes-index/healthy-freezer-meals-recipes/

    Our favorites so far are the Asian Lettuce Wraps (which my oldest two wouldn’t stop eating), Easy Cheesy Mexican Chicken, Cilantro Lime Chicken – well, basically every recipe that we have tried so far has been delicious.

    HSMAMA
    Participant

    Love this thread! I have been wanting to try freezer meals, so this is a great!

Viewing 15 posts - 1 through 15 (of 15 total)
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