Today is a busy day including a midwife appointment (I am currently 37 weeks pregnant), but I know that it will be nothing in comparison to having a new baby. That’s why I am starting to put together a few freezer meals for us for after our baby is born. I don’t normally do a lot of freezer meals just because I like my food to be freshly cooked (and I am just not that “type” of cook, I guess. Many of the types of meals I enjoy would freeze very poorly). However, realistically I know that if I have freezer meals on hand that are nourishing-as well as premade-we will eat a lot healthier.
In fact, when I met with a nurse midwife/nutritionist, she informed me that I needed people to bring me meals for a whole month after the baby was born as well as have all of my laundry and cleaning done by others. Wouldn’t that be nice! But since I wasn’t going to ask my friends and family to feed us for a whole month, I thought I had better do some meals for the freezer before this baby is born.
So today I am doing just a few little projects for the freezer to get me started, but meanwhile I would love to hear dairy free, nourishing freezer meals from you! While I always love ideas, even better would be time tested recipes. I find that many typical freezer meals have a lot of dairy in it, so dairy free recipes are a little more limited.
So if you have ideas, or, better yet, time tested recipes, please share!
Latest posts by KimiHarris (see all)
- 2 Ingredient Peppermint Bark - December 21, 2022
- Herbal Hibiscus Lemonade (Keto, THM) - March 16, 2022
- Creamy Curry Red Lentil Soup - December 8, 2021
I don’t necessarily have time tested recipes as I usually google and modify to my tastes, but I find these nourishing type of meals freeze well that are almost always dairy-free
Meatloaf (of all kinds) – sometimes I make it with chopped up greens in it to disguise the taste and sneak in some greens as I am not usually a fan of cooked greens
Lamb Stew – any soups that have a lot of broth in it, sometimes potatoes come out with a different texture, but I don’t mind that
Chicken/Red Quinoa Stew with chicken broth and thyme in a slow cooker – I think this recipe might be from you actually
Lentil Soups
Veggie Soups
Congrats on the baby
I had my baby 2 weeks ago. My freezer “meals” were cooked beef (various cuts, including ground beef) and cooked chicken … so part of my meals are ready to go.
In the weeks leading up to the birth, I also made double batches of soaked oatmeal and blender waffles (Sue Gregg’s recipe) and we’d eat one and I’d freeze the other batch.
Congrats. You are close!
Oh, and when my mom was visiting last week, she assembled chicken soup in freezer bags, with chopped veggies and cooked chicken. She made broth too, and froze that. So I can make 7 big pots of soup over the next couple of months, with little prep time.
I’m vegan, and I’ve learned that Indian & African foods actually freeze beautifully and rarely call for dairy. Obvious things like dal are fantastic because there are so many variations (my favorite: http://tinyurl.com/chj8ok).
I’ve also learned that making big batches of ingredients helps dinner come together quickly. For example, I’ll make a big batch of beans (or broth, or grains, etc), then freeze it so that I have it on hand if I want to jazz up a stir-fry or make miso soup.
I found cooking large batches of beans up and freezing them in 2 cup (15 ounces is a typical can) jars helped out. That way I didn’t have to remember to soak and cook the beans, just pull the jars out of the freezer 🙂
I did a bunch in one week, soaking on day, then cooking. Then starting another batch soaking…… did white, black, red and pinto – though I made the pintos into refried beans for quick burritos.
Meatloaf and meatballs are also good in the freezer
What helped me too was just making a list of meals I could make with what I had on hand, already cooked or not, and making sure I was stocked up on the essentials like oats, honey, spices, etc.
Knowing what you are going to serve for dinner and having everything in the house is over half the battle…… 🙂
Good Luck! I’ve never had a lot of luck with the traditional freezer meals. (Burritos being the closest I come, but I can’t attest to their quality b/c I make them for my Hubby, not myself. He likes them though 🙂 We really don’t eat casseroles, and many freezer meal are exactly that.
My favorite freezer meal is chili. It’s easy to make in larger quantities, or even in the slow cooker, and freezes great. The texture does change a little due to the meat breaking into smaller pieces when it’s reheated, but it’s still delicious. I also love to freeze soups. My two favorites to freeze are cauliflower and butternut squash soups (my recipes both use cream, but I think coconut cream or even just broth would work for both). I will often freeze cauliflower soup and chunks of ham, they’re delicious together! Other soups can be frozen with just the meat and flavored broth, then heat up and add fresh veggies (and grains or pastas if you’re interested) if you prefer the fresher taste!
New mom of 4 days 🙂 I like having frozen cut up veggies and meats to just pull out and warm up. I made some meat pies with the NT’s yogurt dough similar to your recipe of samosas. They freeze great and have been my favorite. We’re still getting meals brought by family and friends but it helps to have a few thing to fill in gaps. My kind of freezing for postpartum was more of individual ingredients than meals. My thinking is I can have my mom pick up some fresh items like produce when she comes each week and then just pull out whatever I want to go with it. Like frozen chicken breasts can be cooked with some frozen peppers and put in tortillas or top a salad or just warmed with some rice and veggies. I have some taco meat frozen, chicken fried steaks, hamburger patties, and breaded fish. Also chopped onions, sliced bell peppers, organic corn, black bean soup, chicken and rice are some of the other items I have to mix. Another thing is you don’t want to have to use a lot of appliances to have to clean so pretty much everything I have to cook will use either my toaster oven or cast iron skillet.
Thanks for the post! I am pregnant too and also trying to think of freezer meals…. we also need dairy free because my son is allergic. So far I have black bean and chard enchiladas with tomatillo sauce, tomato soup, tomato sauce for pasta, and chili. I can’t wait to hear everyone’s suggestions. 🙂
is there a link for the black bean and chard enchiladas with tomatillo sauce? It sounds great!
Hi Amy! This is the recipe that was my inspiration: http://www.herbivoracious.com/2009/02/swiss-chard-enchiladas-in-a-tomatillo-sauce-recipe.html We don’t eat cheese though, so I put Bearitos refried black beans inside with the chard and left the cheese out. I also didn’t bother making the tomatillo sauce, and just used canned Herdez green tomatillo salsa, and put in and on top of the enchiladas. They are really great, and I’m not usually a huge fan of chard! I’ll try to post a better recipe for you on my blog if I get a chance!
Black bean burgers and lentil sloppy joe’s are two meals that are always in my freezer for busy nights!
Bethany,
Would love a quick recipe for lentil sloppy joes!
I would love the recipes for both of these! They sound delish. I’m also 37 weeks and need to start freezing some food! So far all I have in the freezer is minestrone soup, broccoli & rice casserole and waffles.
I don’t necessarily make meals, but prepare items in advance that will make meal assembly simple. Things like browned ground beef, taco meat, spaghetti sauce, meatballs, preformed hamburger patties, turkey sausage, muffins, beans, brown rice, soups, etc… all help to eliminate several pre-planning steps and add lots of convenience. For those days when I’m short on time, or forgot to plan, we have eggs! So versatile–fried, scrambled, hard-boiled, french toast, quiche, omelettes, dutch babies, etc…
Blessings on you! May God expand your time in these next couple of weeks as you prepare for this next chapter in your family’s life.
I made 6 weeks worth of postpartum freezer meals this spring. Not much variety, but we honestly did not care. Sleep sounded better than variety. 😉 And as we are strictly gluten-free, people bringing us meals wasn’t an option anyway. Whatever you make, make each ‘meal’ big enough for a second, leftovers meal. You will be so glad!
Shepherd’s Pie (sprinkled paprika instead of cheese)
Stir-fry (then just cook up rice or quinoa to go with)
Spaghetti & meatballs (just cook the pasta)
But mainly I had ground beef and beans frozen in meal-sized portions. My sister in law makes meatloaf in muffin pans – perfect serving size for fast lunches.
When our last baby was born I made huge batches of soaked oats, your quinoa and chicken, cooked grass-fed beef, and soups galore for the freezer. Also hired a doula to cook me tons of greens, quinoa, and beef after the birth to rebuild the massive blood loss I had during the birth.
Other ideas would be my recently posted French Lentil, kabocha, and kale stew or maybe your root vegetable cobbler with the topping made as biscuits and froze separately?
I’ve been thinking of you recently, knowing that you will be giving birth in the coming month. Blessings to your family.
I agree that soups are fabulous – especially at this time of year. I love to freeze chili, potato cheese soup, and chicken rice soup (from NT). Also, pasta sauces are lovely – you can just thaw them and serve them with brown rice pasta when you’re short on time.
I pray you have a lovely end to your pregnancy, and that the babymoon is delightful!
I’m not great with freezer meals either, except the obvious, like soup. Like others, I would recommend premaking a lot of beans and freezing them. A quick meal here is black beans, brown rice, and sweet potatoes (throw in some avocado, too) in a tortilla. I am always STARVING when I breastfeed (one of the many things I love about it- food tastes so good!), so just making sure you have lots of food around to snack on is important. I ate a lot of nuts and trail mix-type food. Good luck to you! What an exciting time!
I just did a post about this, and I actually used one of your recipes, turned it into a soup, and it froze wonderfully!
I also posted a recipe for Spinach Pasta w/ Meat Sauce (totally dairy and gluten free!)
here is the link:
http://healingthebodythroughthetummy.blogspot.com/2010/09/lending-helping-hand.html
We did lots of soups, a few pasta dishes, meatballs, sweet potato burritos. I also made granola bars, muffins, and biscuits. Good luck getting everything prepared!
I did the same in my late pregnancy. We’re not dairy free but here are some of the things I froze:
-Soups freeze very well, and if you cool them first you can pack in gallon size zip lock bags and freeze flat. So, any soup you like would work great!
-Enchilada casserole: instead of making individual tortillas rolled up, I just would layer corn tortillas, meat (ground beef, chicken or pulled pork), cilantro, green peppers and onions, corn, beans whatever else you like, and then top with more corn tortillas if you wish, and smother the whole thing with enchildada sauce (a white one would be a flour-thickened chicken stock with green chilis in it, or a red one would be regular tomato sauce seasoned with cumin and chili powder). We like cheese but it’s certainly optional. It goes together really quickly if you have leftovers to repurpose, too.
– Dirty rice – saute bacon, beef, pieces of sausage, leftover bits of meat/veggies, and combine with cooked brown rice, and any seasonings you prefer.
– Beans with homemade recaito sauce – dice very small and saute: 1 onion, 2+ cloves garlic, 1 red or green bell pepper, jalapenos (optional), and a whole bunch of cilantro. If you want it to be green you can stop there, if you want it to be red you add some tomato sauce (1-2 cups). Then add your cooked beans, simmer and save. This goes really well over rice which can be cooked and frozen or just made when you need it (it’s not that hard even for husbands to do :)). It’s great with meat or bacon, too, but usually we have this for a meatless meal so we don’t do that.
– Cook and season meat for tacos or taco salad, then have husband chop veggies when needed.
– Same for sloppy joes – cook and season to taste, then freeze. Later pick up some sprouted grain or sourdough buns, reheat and enjoy.
I’m sorry if some of these were mentioned already, I did not read the other comments first. 🙂
God bless the remainder of your pregnancy! Happy incubation and nesting! 🙂
Here are some things I like to make ahead in batches: pasta sauce, meatballs, jelly,apple butter, pancakes (soak all your grains the day before, doubling/tripling the recipe, and then freeze in large gallon sized bags with family-sized servings. ) We also do doubled and tripled muffins (banana, zuchini, etc), beans, some just plain and then frozen in 2 cups sizes, and then some made up for refried beans, etc. Soups we love and that freeze well: wedding soup, green chile stew, homemade chicken noodles, butternut squash soup, etc. Enjoy and happy planning, eating, and enjoy that baby!
Breakfast type freezer foods are our favorites–waffles, muffins, pancakes, quick breads (I package banana bread in two slice increments–just enough for me and a toddler). I recently made a dozen egg/sausage/biscuit sandwiches and plan on making a quiche or two. Breakfast can (and does) easily double as dinner in our house.
I’m also making soup-black bean with ham, butternut squash & sweet potato, chili. Things that can just be tossed in the crock pot and ignored.
I am 34 weeks along and am trying to get all my ‘feeding the freezer’ done in the next two weeks. I’m impressed that you are still motivated at 37 weeks! Take care of yourself these last few weeks and have a joyful birthing.
I am 32 weeks pregnant and am just beginning to put up some meals for when my baby comes. Additionally, we are about to move into another house! So I am going to need some ready-made meals within the next couple of weeks! Like others have said, soups are perfect for this, but many soups do not freeze well (chopped potatoes in a veg. soup, for ex). What I like to do is make a lot of stocks ahead to store in the freezer, then have some NT-soaked and cooked beans frozen in 14 oz. sizes, and then maybe stock my freezer with some organic frozen green beans (from the store). Stock up the pantry with some organic diced canned tomatoes, also. These items are very easily thrown together with some chopped carrots, a handful of greens, some seasonings, or some beef from the freezer, etc. for an easy and simple yet nourishing homemade soup. Also, the NT Cream of Vegetable soup is a family favorite and freezes GREAT because it is all pureed. I believe it is also dairy free. Also, you can find great recipes for curried butternut squash soup on the web that are dairy free, using coconut milk. They are also pureed so they freeze well and taste so very gourmet. Another freezer favorite of mine is a basic BBQ beef. These recipes are plentiful on the web (or you could contact me for my recipe -too long to type here) and are easy to double, simple to prepare, and freeze very well. You don’t need buns, just eat with a fork. A perfect hearty meal for a cold, wintry night when you are exhausted from baby care! I’ve made this for each of my births, and am doing it again for #4. Spaghetti sauce freezes well and is easy to make in large quantities. And don’t forget meatballs – although I don’t know how you make meatballs taste yummy without parmesan, but you may have a recipe for that! Overall I have found that if I stock my freezer with the essentials that take time and effort to prepare, like stocks and beans etc., and I stock my pantry with all the extra ingredients, then when the baby comes it is easy to send hubby to the store for a few fresh items and quite easy to assemble them at the last minute in a state of sleep deprivation. This works well for me. I hope it is helpful for you!
It isn’t a meal but it sure is nice to just have around for a snack: zucchini bread. I made a large bundt cake of it and have lots left in the freezer and it’s so great just to have on hand. Also we bought a giant soup pot to make “zuppa toscana”, sausage, kale, potato soup (I added lentils to it this time around–mmm) in which you could use coconut milk in place of evaporated milk, and I use Italian sausage links, cut up. You might already make that, I didn’t check the archives. It’s made in a chicken broth base and it’s so yummy. We usually end up freezing some in small containers. Or a giant pot of turkey and rice soup or stew. I guess I’m a soup/stew person though.
Happy baby!
You’ve probably explained this before, but I’m a fairly newbie. Why are you dairy free? Is it just the lack of access to raw dairy?
Obviously things like waffle freeze really well, but since you mention meals – I like freezing soups and stews like this one:
Chipotle Chicken & Chard Chili – http://www.onefrugalfoodie.com/2010/03/30/chipotle-chicken-chard-chili/
Here’s a quick entree – http://www.onefrugalfoodie.com/2009/11/03/oven-fried-fish/
We also slice meat and generously coat it in an asian marinade and freeze. Simply cook the meat and some fresh veggies for a quick stir fry.
Also, I recommend keeping homemade seasoning blends on hand for making quick meals. We use this taco seasoning often – http://www.onefrugalfoodie.com/2009/06/18/easy-mexican-meals-part-1-taco-seasoning/
I cook and freeze beef roasts and whole chickens to pull out as needed. Precooked and seasoned beans of all kinds to use with tacos, with cornbread or to make burritos, shredded chicken, mini meatloaves, rice pilaf, spaghetti sauce, chili, soups, seasoned chicken strips (lime-garlic, bbq, etc and use them in wraps or salads), cinnamon rolls, dinner rolls, bread, waffles, pancakes, muffins, biscuits, coffee cakes, other cakes and pies and cookies, sweet and sour chicken, fajitas, taco meat, grilled meats…I also make up large batches of granola that will keep for months in the freezer.
I’ve just done a bunch of dairy free freezer meals as my baby is due in two days and I have a son with dairy allergy.
Chili
Beef Stew
Chicken Broth
Chicken/rice/broccoli casserole (use your fav. mayo for creaminess)
Meatloaf
Lentil soup
Ground beef, black bean, and rice (mexican casserole with salsa in it)
I made breakfast burritos, ground sauage, eggs, whatever else sounded good that day, salsa,etc. I made a ton of them and found them to be a good, filling, one handed snack/meal during the hungry nursings. I froze in foil and would just throw in oven frozen for about a half an hour. I also made tons of chciken, tortialla soup. THe only freezer thing I don;t like is potatoes…they just don;t seem to freeze well.
Great mommies plan alike. We are headed to stock up on meats to freeze in to meal size amounts. Plus I have some lasagnas and soups already in the freezer. My best asset is my husband being home for a month. We are due the first week in Nov. with our second. He does the most amazing breakfasts which we all know is the more important. So, I will look forward to making dinner with the rest of the day supported by him!! Good luck to everyone pre and post labor:)
Whenever I make tacos I always make a big batch, because of all the extra veggies I put in the meat sauce. I only use 1 lb of ground beef, but I usually dice 2-3 carrots, a zucchini or squash, and an eggplant. I basically add whatever I have on hand. I sautee the veggies in some coconut oil with a little butter. I double my taco seasoning recipe, and we have a great meal the night I make it plus enough for another meal or two. I freezes really well, and it has become a staple in our diet. It’s great if you add all the fixins’ to it like lettuce, tomatoes, salsa, guacamole, etc, but it does well all on it’s own, too.
I forgot to mention that pancakes freeze really well, too. :O)
I keep reading meatballs suggested, so I thought I’d post a quick meatball recipe that is standard fare at my house…even though my last baby is now 9! It makes a bunch and is adaptable to whatever sounds good to you that day.
3 cups oats
12 ounces milk/coconut milk
1 finely diced onion
2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
3 lbs. ground beef
2 eggs
Combine everything but the ground beef and eggs and soak overnight. In the morning mix in beef and eggs and shape into meatballs. Freeze in a single layer in gallon zipper bags. When ready to use, pull out the number needed and top them with homemade barbeque sauce, slightly reduced and thickened beef broth for Salisbury steak style meatballs, or cook them and add to pasta sauce. I often season a can of coconut milk with salt, pepper, and herbs and pour over them, adding mushrooms if I have them on hand.
Many blessings for a smooth delivery and an easy transition!
Nancy,
Do you cook the meatballs before you freeze them? Or only when you pull them out?
Thanks,
Anne
I’ve been cooking like crazy and filling up my freezer (I’m due any day now)…bless your heart if you have the energy to do it at 37 weeks! by that point I was having too much hip pain to be on my feet all day in the kitchen cooking extra.
I’ve frozen a lot of soups that are nourishing and dairy free…chicken tortilla soup, vegetable beef soup, taco soup, tomato soup, pasta fagioli, white chicken chili, “end of summer harvest soup”…a couple of pasta-based dishes (macaroni and beef saute; beef stroganoff) I mixed/cooked everything but the pasta, so it’s not a *complete* meal but will be super easy to just boil some pasta and add the pre-made sauce/meat. Let’s see, what else that could be dairy free…Italian meatloaf. Homemade sauce for ribs. Thought about shepherd’s pie, but haven’t gotten to that one yet.
I’ve also frozen lots of muffins/quick breads, pancakes, and granola.
oh, if you’re wanting actual recipes…pasta fagioli and end-of-summer-harvest both came from crockpot365.blogspot.com – I mixed them but did *not* cook them and will thaw them, then throw them in the crockpot. white chicken chili is here, though it’s been tweaked more since then:
http://schmamy.blogspot.com/2009/11/white-chicken-chili-in-crockpot.html
oh, Lindsay’s sloppy lentil recipe is another one I froze.
HI!
OH, so close… I remember those days well.
I have three in school, youngest just started kindergarten. They all have food allergies so all need to bring lunch each day. In order to make hot breakfast and lunch for all each day I rely on some frozen emergency meals for those crazy mornings when I just don’t have left overs or anything new to cook. We do a lot of broth soups- I make the broth up and let it simmer down to a super concentrate, freeze in pint jars. I can then thaw that overnight and add fresh veggies in the am for a quick soup. My kids also like crunchy raw veggies in soups.
I also keep frozen split pea and lentil soup on hand, much better than out of a can. Black beans, navy beans and lentils all freeze well once you soak and cook them, so very convenient. You can also freeze stuffed peppers, make up chicken or burgers and freeze in family serving sizes.
A word to the wise- with my first child I made up all sorts of nice meals- lasagnas, ravioli, stuffed peppers with cheese etc.. baby ended up allergic to dairy so I finally gave it all to my friend who had a baby a few mos after me. You might want to go easy on top allergens to begin with just in case…nothing worse then a freezer full of prepared meals you can’t eat!
Good luck and keep us posted! I can’t believe you are already 37 weeks…seems like you just found out!
I love your midwife/nutritionist – that’s great advice! But, as you said, rather impractical.
As a mother of 3, 4 yrs. and under, I have gotten into quite the freezer-meal-habit, just so I can occasionally have a ‘day off’ from the kitchen. Whenever I make something for dinner that can be easily doubled and frozen, I do so. Here are a few of our favorites that could be dairy free.
Sweet Potato Shepard’s Pie http://trintje.blogspot.com/2007/09/monday-is-meat-loaf.html
Creamy Chicken Soup http://trintje.blogspot.com/2007/11/dont-throw-away-that-turkey-carcass.html
Teryaki Chicken Thighs (I buy a bunch of thighs, debone them and freeze them right in the marinade. they can be grilled or baked in the oven. Sooo yummy) http://trintje.blogspot.com/2010/04/grill-season-in-full-swing-or-we-love.html
One of my kids favorite freezer meals (that they will actually eat since they don’t like leftovers and freezer meals have that “leftover” feel) is french toast (I add spices and stevia to the egg so they can grab it and go or use syrup and butter). I also make a lot of bread at a time and freeze most of it in slices so we can grab it as needed (I currently have two soaked challah’s in the deep freeze plus 2 loaves of sourdough.). I also have bags of soaked and cooked beans, lots of premixed bags of frozen veggies, and keep a large quantity of oatmeal soaked and ready to go (either in the fridge or freezer). I freeze leftover soups and the remains of pot roasts but I am the only one who will usually eat soup reheated. Also make halupkis (pigs in a blanket) and stuffed peppers and freeze those. Anytime I make a dessert (usually pie, cupcakes, or “candy”) I make extra and freeze it so I have it ready. So, mostly it is just ingredients or parts rather than meals.
For a few years now I’ve been making large batches of quinoa/bean burritos. I cook up some quinoa (sometimes in broth for added flavor), make spicy re-fried beans (usually from a combination of pinto and black), saute mushrooms, kale and onions together and grate raw beets and carrots. I put all of the ingredients onto a tortilla, add a tablespoon or so of salsa and sometimes some avocado (and feta which you don’t need) fold it up and heat it ‘seam’ down in a dry pan on medium for a few minutes to seal the burrito closed. They freeze beautifully and can be re-heated easily. Nutritious, delicious and very nourishing.
Thanks everyone for the great ideas! I am loving reading through your comments. Keep them coming!
Stuffed peppers freeze & reheat wonderfully, as do pepper steak, and Hawaiian chicken. Email if you would like recipes.
Most of what I would have suggested has already been said! I have to eat GF so that also rules out a lot of freezer things too, like casseroles. But, an easily assembled meal (and possibly partly) freezable meal would be Korean Wraps. You slice a cut of beef such as London Broil or a Cross Rib Roast and marinate it in Good Soy Sauce, garlic and ginger for 4-24 hours. We just put ours in a ziploc bag and flip it over halfway through. Broil it for 10 minutes or so on each side (watch like a hawk). Serve it cooked brown rice and whatever sauces you like wrapped up in a piece of lettuce. This sounds like something you may already make! We love it here and it doesn’t take long at all to prepare and so wouldn’t be too much work for a hubby just back from work.
My Baby isn’t due until January. I’m very excited for you and praying you have a great labor along with a speedy and easy recovery!
Also, do you have any tips for how to graciously make your food allergies known when people offer to bring meals?
Hi Kimi 🙂 wow that time has passed so quickly I cannot believe you are 37 weeks , it seemed like only a few months ago you mention you were pregnant . Obviouly not ! time goes by to quickly these days ! I’m not a great fan of frozen meals I freeze soup if I have made to much also chick pea curry freezes well and also freeze spaghetti sauce some times. I make lots of muffins and freeze them all the time great for the families lunch boxes and make great quick healthy snacks. Do you know if it’s a boy or a girl . I have 3 sons and I never wanted to know while pregnant if they would be boys or girls , I would say as long as they are healthy ! Good luck on the big day :):)
I have been blogging about simple living , reducing,recycling,reusing, great money and time saving tips , sewing, crafts and lots of other great ideas to help live a simple good life ! I hope you all drop by and pick up a tip or recipe
simpleliving-sherrie.blogspot.com
I don’t do a lot of full-meal freezing either. I freeze things like freezer jam, vegetables and pasta sauce during the summer months, but I rarely make whole meals to freeze. However, I have found that soups and stews freeze well. I’ve frozen chicken noodle soup, beef vegetable soup, chili and the following Morrocan Stew recipe that is FANTASTIC!
http://thosewhohunger.blogspot.com/2010/01/featuring-winter-vegetables-in-this.html
I have 4 kids now and do rely on lots of freezing – nothing beats the knowledge at the end of a ridiculously frantic day, that yes, you can pull something together at a drop of a hat from the freezer! I have just made up a HUGE batch of fried rice to give to friends with newborns – packed full of onion, shallots, corn, peas, sliced omelette & seasoned with chinese 5-spice, garlic, ginger & a little tamari. It’s really a meal in itself! Also, stock up on a few gorgeous organic chooks – roast them in the oven, strip them and cut up the meat into portions for the freezer & then you can make a huge pot of stock as well straight after. The chicken meat can be pulled straight out of the freezer and added to quick pasta sauces, risottos, frittatas or just used in wraps or sandwiches. My other absolute favourite is apple & berry crumble ( I think they are called “apple crisps” in the US.) I roast diced apple till tender and then leave to cool before mixing with frozen or fresh blueberries with a little cinnamon & maple syrup. I then top it with 100g cold diced butter rubbed into 1/2 cup of coconut flour, 1/2 cup of almond meal, and 1/2 cup coconut palm sugar. I also mix in 1/2 cup of chopped macadamias to the topping and cook it till golden, cool, cover and freeze. Nothing beats having a delicious, nutritious dessert on hand to either offer friends or to treat yourself to!
I can not seem to reduce my soup recipes to serve just 2 people now that my children have grown and left the nest. So I resort to freezing most of the left overs which come in handy for my husband when I am traveling and he is home fending for himself. Also I ate spicy foods all through my pregnancies and while nursing my babies and they never seemed to have issues with this. Coffee yes. But garlic and spices did not bother them. So this could be or not be the right recipe if you are sensitive to spicey.
This recipe will feed 12 hungry souls, is flavorful and warming. Indian home food is what we call it. Freezes well and is very hearty. I make ghee or clarified butter and in a pinch you can make just enough ghee for this stew/soup with one stick of butter. But, if ghee falls into not dairy free, replace with refined coconut oil.
Alyse’s version of Kitchari
Soak over night
1 c split mung beans or yellow dal
1 c brown basmati rice
The next day: drain and rinse then set aside
Place in a blender and blend until creamy:
1/2 c water
2 T shredded dried coconut
2 T virgin coconut oil
1 small handful fresh cilantro
the toasted and ground spices and seeds
Set aside.
In a small saute pan on med heat quickly and lightly toast:
(keep the pan shaking to help with not scorching or over toasting the seeds since this will make the kitchari bitter tasting)
1T coriander seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
add to a a clean coffee grinder or in a mortar & pestle grind:
13 black pepper corns = 1/4 tsp ground
4 whole cloves = 1/8 tsp ground
5 whole cardamon pods = 1/2 tsp ground
grind until fine. Add to spice mix-1 tsp ground turmeric, pinch of Hing. Set aside.
Dice 2 stalks celery, 3 large carrots, 2 med. zucchini
1 large sweet potato or yam -cut into small cubes
In a large soup pot saute on med heat:
3 T ghee or refined coconut oil
1 med. onion diced
sweat the onions till clear.
stir in
4 – 6 cloves garlic minced
Stir well.
Add 8 c water or veg stock along with the soaked rinsed and drained mung beans and basmati rice and the cilantro coconut spice blended mixture. Stir well.
Stir in the cut up vegetables.
add 1 can coconut milk, 1 stick of cinnamon and 3 bay leaves.
Add 2 tsp sea salt to taste.
Bring kitchari to a boil. Turn the heat down to med. low and cover. Stir often and cook until the mung beans are soft and most of the liquid is absorbed.
Stir in:
1 very large bunch of swiss chard or fresh spinach, washed and cut into bite sized squares.
Stir until wilted.
Stir in the juice of 1/2 of a lemon and one whole lime.
Taste to adjust for salt.
I just thought of more 🙂
Waffles freeze really well.
Also, I love to can and having canned sauces on hand is a huge time saver. Tomato sauce is a staple at our house! Also, canned potatoes are a great way to have a quick meal. Just throw them in a cast iron skillet with some bacon grease and they fry up very quickly since they’re already cooked. You can also can soups to save room in the freezer for other things 🙂
I was just thinking I need to have a cooking day and do some freezer meals. I haven’t read all the comments but I’m going to go back through them. I’m hoping for some non-casserole dishes. My family won’t eat them. Thanks for posting this. I need some new ideas!
You’re getting so close!! How exciting!!! Nine months ago I was in your shoes, cooking up a storm.
I love making a roux with butter, a little flour and chicken or beef stock. Add in a few seasoning and you have a “can” of cream of whatever soup. Comfort food that is warm and filling.
Noodles with a can of salmon, some frozen veggie and a roux- tuna casserole.
Potatoes sliced with ground beef and a few veggies and a roux- yumm-o! (This one freezes well.)
Also baked goods are a must for hungry nursing momma’s.
Fill your crockpot up with scrubed and pricked potatoes at the beginning of the week and have lots of cook potatoes for a side dish or to fry up for breakfast. Sloppy joe mix over baked potatoes is great and gluten free.
Happy baby waiting!!
Here is the list of food I made before we were blessed with number five.
http://mypresentseason.blogspot.com/2010/01/food-food-food-food.html
Vegetarian Chili is one of my favorite meals to freeze. You can make a HUGE batch of it at once and cater it to your tastes. It freezes and thaws well. I like to freeze this in 8 oz. mason jars so I can bring it to work with me and throw it in the microwave. I like to eat it with some brown rice.
http://vegetarian.about.com/od/soupsstewsandchili/r/veggiechili.htm
stuffed cabbage rolls – I know they freeze well, and I just made a batch with buckwheat last night instead of rice, and it was great! http://www.leftoverqueen.com/2008/02/18/recipe-golubki-polish-comfort-food
Meatballs and cabbage rolls are two of my favorite non-dairy freezer dishes.