Freezer Meals Part 1 – Two weeks of pre-cooked meals!!

FREEZER MEALS!!! You either LOVE them or HATE them, right?! I’m definitely a lover of all things that reduce stress and make life easier. For me, freezer meals are one of those beautiful things in life that help those crazy, busy days go much smoother. They’re also great to take out on a day you just do not feel like cooking! As a mom, we cook and prep literally thousands of meals….I mean, my boys eat a minimum of six times a day!! Any other moms feel me?! So I love to have a day where I can just pull something out to thaw in the morning and know that dinner will be taken care of in 15 minutes without having to think about it.

In my opinion, freezer meals come in two categories. 1) Meals that are pre-cooked and all you need to do is take out of the freezer to reheat (and maybe cook a quick side to go with it) and 2) Meals that are “prepped” to cook at a later date. They’re both great for their own reason. Today I’m going to share two weeks worth of dinners that require no extra prep. They’re all meals I’ve personally tried, froze, and are still delicious when reheated!

The secret to starting a “stash” of freezer meals is simple. Choose meals you can cook for dinner (or at least the main dish) and that also freeze well by simply doubling the recipe. So, I started by menu planning (read more about that here) for two weeks and doubled the amount I would make for a typical dinner. Not only was dinner ready for that night, but then I was able to freeze the other half to pull out another night. So at the end of your two weeks, you’ll have 14 meals already in the freezer! And many of the meals I chose are initially cooked in crockpot (double win!), so they feel like no work at all! I typically stay away from the “casserole” type of meals, because they just weird me out a little to freeze. Chicken, ground meats, and soups are beautiful for freezing without worrying about soggy, gross food. Soups that have pasta, I simply don’t add the pasta to the soup. For dinner, I cooked the pasta on the side in a separate pot and then will do the same thing when I pull the soup out of the freezer.

I’ve read countless blogs on a month worth of meals and they honestly stress me out a little. Having to prep that many meals, grocery shop, plan it out is not helpful for me, personally. My idea for having freezer meals handy is for those on the go, busy, don’t-want-to-think about dinner days while still providing a healthy home cooked meal for my family! It’s not so that I have 30 days worth of dinners so that I don’t have to cook anything for a month. Some of the freezer meals are just the main dish (which also typically take the most time to prep), so I’ve also provided some ideas for simple sides to go with them. Some can be pre-prepped in the beginning of the week! The idea is keep it SIMPLE. If freezer meals scare you or you do not have four plus hours on a Sunday to prep a months worth of meals….THIS BLOG IS FOR YOU!!

So here we go:

Week 1 :

Sunday – Meat sauce with pasta, loaf of bread, and side salad. I used this recipe for my first homemade sauce and added ground turkey to it! It’s a simple one that’s based on roasting the tomatoes in the oven without taking hours to simmer over the stove. Freeze the meat and sauce to take out at another day.

Monday – Buffalo Chickpea Chili from Chocolate Covered Katie. Amazing cooked in the crockpot and add a side salad for a hearty meal.

Tuesday – Cafe Rio from LiL Luna! Crockpot win! Served on rolls with steamed veggies and a box of 5-minute couscous.

Wednesday – Slow Cooker Honey Sesame chicken from Damn Delicious. Healthier than takeout and so delicious with rice (pre-cook beginning of week) and steam Asian stir-fry veggies (frozen section at grocery store)!

Thursday – Turkey Meatball Subs with steamed broccoli. Use whatever your favorite recipe is for meatballs and freeze!

Friday – Pizza night! Here’s a simple 30-minute dough recipe that is also great to freeze and pull out for a quick dinner! For my husband and I, I use fresh veggies, mozzarella, ricotta for a more “adult-like” pizza. I like to have a “Fun Friday” for the kids, so applesauce/fruit, whatever your kids LOVE as a side.

Saturday – Pasta Fagioli from Cooking Classy is a family favorite! Served with breadsticks (frozen section) and side salad. *I use this recipe and throw everything in the crockpot minus the pasta so you aren’t freezing with the soup.

Week 2:

Sunday – Chili by Cooking Classy (basically I love all her recipes!). Serve with a side salad and easy cheddar biscuits (that you could also freeze after cooking)!

Monday – Stuffed Shells with instructions for prepping to freeze at the end of the blog! Serve with roasted green beans (Drizzle with olive oil and salt and put in oven for 400 degrees for 15 minutes).

Tuesday – Marinate chicken for a yummy salad. You could make it really easy on yourself and buy pre-made marinades. Or use a simple recipe like this one, freeze chicken after cooked with vegetables and pull out later to go in wraps or on top of salad.

Wednesday – Taco soup from Dinner then Dessert. Yummy! Served with crushed tortillas and toppings (shred cheese, sour cream, guacamole) with a side salad.

Thursday – Easy Homemade Sloppy Joes by Domestically Creative. My super picky eater has asked me to make these again! Serve on rolls with a steamed veggie.

Friday – Easy Mexican Shredded Chicken . I cook in the crockpot! Mix with black beans and corn to freeze. Add toppings (sour cream, salsa, avocado, shredded cheese) to go in wraps with a side of rice.

Saturday – Shredded Barbecue Chicken. Served on rolls with onion rings and corn on the cob!

*Recipes shared from other websites with credit given. Pictures are all my own.

Hope you find this useful and are able to ease into freezer meal cooking if you’ve never tried it before! I find it gets easier the more you do it. Plus, you find meals your family loves and can stash those away on your freezer meal list for next time. Happy cooking!!

XO, Steph