meals that freeze well
 

Need some easy recipes for a single man, my son, that will freeze well. I am spending every other week with him and Olivia. On the weeks I'm not there he doesn't take the time to cook for himself.

I thought I would make some meat loaf, he loves that. Crock of beans and my DH love chuck roast.

More ideas please.

Taste of Home makes a great cookbook that is called Freezer Pleasers and is full of of great ideas. Stuffed shells and lasagna freeze well. You could cook a variety of meats and then he could put up some simple side dishes or green salad at store.

chili, speghetti, i make up soups and freeze them. pot pies i make up and freeze also.

Barbequed meat freezes well. Thaw , add a deli fresh salad and some bread. Cobblers freeze really well for dessert. Smothered round steak is one of my favorite frozen meat dishes. When I used to travel I would leave the meat dishes frozen, my husband and teenage sons would fix commercial frozen vegies and bread. No problem at all. Baked hen, turkey, and ham freeze well also.

Thanks all good suggestions

Ideas from the Deep South.... Chicken & Sausage Jambalaya, Chicken & Sausage Gumbo, spaghetti sauce, Thanksgiving type cornbread dressing with cooked chicken in it. I buy a roterisserie chicken & debone it & put 6 oz servings in Sandwich bags, then put those in a freezer bag. Thaw & serve. I have friends who make shrimp or crawfish etoufee & freeze it.

I am going to follow this thread. I need more ideas on things that can be frozen. I like the idea of making a larger meal & having a couple of extra meals when I get through.

Meals you make for yourself may be easy to make extra helpings of and put in freezer bags. Potatoes, meat, gravy, spaghetti, etc. It all freezers well in freezer bags. All he would have to do is remove from freezer, remove from the bag-or rip away the freezer bag if needed- and place on microwave safe plate. You could add a large square of wax paper in the freezer bag so he has something to cover the plate up with. He would be eating exactly what you are. A taste of home.

I was looking for things like this last week. This site has some good ideas for the crock pot. She assembles the ingredients, puts them in the freezer. When ready to cook, just puts the contents into the crock pot. She doesn't say it but the contents would need to be thawed before going into the cooker. Still, it is a nice idea and should save you a little effort, too.
http://thekrazycouponlady.com/family...ng-my-recipes/

I tend to do a lot of freezer meals. These are my favorite:
1. Meatballs (cooked). Can defrost and add to cream of mushroom soup sauce, spaghetti or meatball subs.
2. marinara sauce (frozen in serving size)
3. stuffed shells
4. creamy orzo (lots of veggies can be added.
5. meatloaf (mixed and formed but not baked)
6. chicken and stuffing (make stuffing and put into a chicken breast (sliced almost thru). Freeze and wrap. Defrost.bake 30 min or so
7. shredded beef or pork for sandwiches
8. enchiladas
9. soup or chili
10. penne vodka

Make your own freezer buritos with lots of meat and some veggies. If you freeze it all in a dish you can add some rice and beans too or add them in the burrito. I agree on the casseroles, chicken pot pie, Italian dishes and enchildas and such. When I would be gone I would have to make meals that DH could just microwave and eat on the go. He would not sit down or make anything and he would not do dishes, so I inverste din some dispossable wares and packaging tha the could heat the food in. I noticed he was perfectly fine with a small selection of choices as long as it was easy to eat, on the go and had a lot of moisture like sauces.

Anything made by Stouffers!!!! I always keep a good stock on hand to use on my quilt all day days!

Oops a double post.

When my mother lived by herself she lived with various frozen dinners because even though she was the best cook on the earth she never really liked to cook. When my husband was overseas, before the days of microwaves, I would buy my favorite pizza, take it home eat my two pieces and freeze the others in sections. And remember those pie shaped Tupperware dishes? Since the two of us could never finish a whole pie, when I baked a pie (which seemed like a lot back then) I would half of the pie cut into those dishes and he could take out a piece at a time. His mother used to make 17 pies at a time so they always had pies in the freezer. (I understand a can of Crisco makes 17 pie crusts - don't know personally I like the Pillsbury dough brand and you get 2 crusts at a time.)

Just bought a crockpot, so this is a timely topic. thanks.

Hi
You girls seem to know everything about everything so, here is a question for you. Can pecan pie be frozen????
I just got alot of pecans from my sister and would like to make pies but, unless I can freeze them even one pie would be too much for me.
Thanks my intelligent friends

For Fran Foss.....yes, you can freeze pecan pie, does very well; can also freeze your pecans.

I make dressing like for Thanksgiving and cook it in a muffin tin; freezes well and if you are really hungry you can thaw up two of them, add your turkey or chicken to the dressing and you will have some in each muffin.

Also you can make individual ham quiches in a muffin tin without the pie shell. These freeze well also. You can also cook your veg side dishes and freeze them in serving sizes and they do well.

Bless you for still being a good mom

delma

Delma_paulk
Thanks for your quick reply. I'm off to make pies.
MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM
Dressing in muffin tin sound like a great idea.
Thanks again
I love you guys and this board. I have learned sew much

I'm making a salmon loaf tonight, it freezes well. Also the recipe from Eat, Shrink & Be Merry ladies called Starvin' Guy Chicken Pot Pie freezes well.

Since one pie is too much, try making tarts instead--just mini pies, using muffin pans or custard cups or whatever you have on hand. I prefer them myself because I like a higher crust to filling ratio with pecan pie so it's less sweet.

I get a newsletter/blog where the lady prepares recipes for a slow cooker all but the liquid and freezes it, then when using it puts it in the slower cooker and adds the liquid and when dinner time comes around it is ready. If he has a slow cooker he could start it before he goes to work in the morning and have dinner when he gets home. I get the blog under another screen name so can find it and post it later. I like this idea and plan to try it myself.

This is a great recipe, 1 lb. of meat makes four loaves. I usually double or triple the recipe, freeze the remaining loaves without the sauce. Once frozen, throw them all into a freezer bag. Whe ready to make them, I make the sauce for the top while waiting for my oven to pre-heat:




Busy Day Individual Meatloaves



1 lb. lean ground beef

1/2 tsp. salt

2/3 C cracker crumbs

2/3 C milk

1 beaten egg (medium or large)

3 Tbsp. minced onion (optional)

1/2 tsp. each dried sage and thyme

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp. black pepper

2 Tbsp. brown sugar, packed

1/3 C catsup or 3 Tbsp. tomato paste

1/2 tsp. each ginger and garlic salt (optional)

2 Tbsp. soy sauce

1 tsp. dry mustard



1. Crumble beef into large bowl, add salt. Sprinkle with crumbs and milk. Let stand a few minutes until crumbs are soft. Blend together.

2. Mix in egg and onion (if used), sage, thyme, nutmeg and pepper, mixing well. Shape into 4 loaves. Place on foil lined baking sheet about 3 inches apart.

3. Mix brown sugar, catsup, ginger and garlic salt (if used), soy sauce and mustard. Spread mixture over tops of loaves.

4. Bake at 350° F for 35 minutes



Serves 4



Tips: to freeze, pack into individual bread tins and spread tops with the sauce. Wrap airtight and freeze. To bake, remove from freezer and bake at 350° F for 45 - 55

minutes, until done.

2 servings - half the ingredients, but use 1 small egg

8 servings - double the ingredients

Potatoes don't freeze well but anything else should work fine. I'd cook a big batch of 2-3 different things (maybe BBQ for sandwiches, spaghetti and something with lots of veggies like pot pie), divide them into freezer bags or plastic freezer containers and freeze. That way he can pick one each night. Or better yet, find a few simple recipes and teach him to cook for himself.

I haven't frozen pecan pie (probably my favorite pie) but I freeze nuts all the time. I prefer to buy them in large quantities when they are on sale during the holiday times and then freeze them for use throughout the year.

I make baklava during Christmas which calls for 4 cups of finely chopped walnuts and 3 cups of finely chopped pecans. A few times I have chopped and measured the nuts and frozen them in large ziplocks so when I am ready to make a batch that part of the process is done. This works well.

Last year I froze some baklava after I baked and cut it up. It only stayed in the freezer for about 3 weeks and tasted fine when we ate it. I will try to keep it in the freezer for a longer period of time this year. It would be nice to make it ahead before the holiday rush and still have it on hand for gift giving at Christmas.

Acquire Once a Month Cooking. Has about 60 recipes in it. You can do it her way or break it up into several times. I like most the recipes and they use common ingredients.

Italian Wedding Soup freezes well. It is made with meatballs, rice and chicken stock.

A favorite for my bunch is a beef casserole.
1 1/2 to 2 lbs ground beef browned
1 onion chopped and sauted
1 green pepper chopped and sauted
l can mushroom soup
l can tomato soup
pasta - cooked
cheese
Sorry I don't go by quanties anymore but if you are a cook you know what you like for taste.
After this is prepared in a skillet I put into a casserole to bake. Sometimes I cook some bacon to brown the onion/green peppers for a deeper flavor. Bake until bubbly.