Last month we did a full month of freezer meals, preparing them all in one day, and it worked out so so well that I did it again this weekend! With two toddlers that have their "witching hour" between 4-6:30pm, it was becoming impossible to cook on the stove without having them grab at me or getting to close to the stove which is very unsafe and in turn makes me a little cranky!
It has also been really helpful to plug all the recipes into Weight Watchers recipe builder and put my dinners into my tracker right away!
I have decided to keep a few of our favorite meals but change up the rest so we don't get too bored month after month! It takes me about an hour to pull recipes and make a grocery list and then about 4 hours to cook approximately 28 meals! Most of our meals are 4 servings only which has cut down tremendously on leftovers that went to waste! I buy the side dishes weekly such as a broccoli, taco toppings, etc. So here we go with February's Dinners:
Old Fashioned Chicken Pot Pie (Weight Watchers)- I used store bought rotisserie chickens and I froze without the crescent rolls on top since I will add those right before I put in the oven.
Marinated Flat Iron Steaks (Allrecipes.com)- We make one batch of marinade, divide into 4 gallon baggies, and cut a flat iron steak in half and add to the bag. Thaw 24 hours in fridge, broil 3 inches from heat source for 13 minutes, cover with foil and let rest 10 minutes before cutting into slices.
Green Chile Casserole (Cooking Light)- Made one batch and divided it into 2 8X8 dishes. Also used store bought rotisserie chicken.
Cheesey Meat Loaf Minis (Cooking Light)- Doubled the batch, put all 12 loaves on a cooking sheet, covered and put in the freezer for a couple hours, then pulled them out and bagged 4 to a bag, making sure to leave seperation between each. When thawing, make sure to place bag on a flat plate or pan in the fridge so loaves don't mix together!
Crock Pot Potato Soup (Pearls, Handcuffs, and Happy Hour)
Mexican Pulled Pork Tacos (Can You Stay For Dinner?)- Double recipe and used a 3lb loin which I divided into 4 bags after cooked! Easy to reheat in microwave after it's thawed for 4 hours.
Pizza Dough made in bread maker- I cannot remember where I got the recipe but here is what I use, in order of how I place it in the bread maker:
2 tsp Rapid Rise yeast
3 cups bread flour
1 tsp salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons slightly warm water.
Turn on dough cycle, after done move to a lightly oiled bowl covered with plastic wrap that has been sprayed with oil, let rise for 30 minutes....or if you are going to freeze, divide dough in half after removing from dough cycle, freeze in a baggie. Take out dough in the morning and place in the fridge. An hour before you need to use it, move to oil bowl covered with sprayed plastic wrap to let rise some more!
Spaghetti Sauce-
Enchiladas- I just make them with corn tortillas, chicken breast diced up, enchilada sauce and colby jack cheese.
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