Once a month cooking

[kibbleforlola]

About once a month the bf and I will pull out the crock pit and make a big batch of spaghetti sauce. Then we divide it up into several portions and freeze it. I can't tell you exactly how much we put into a portion because we eyeball it, but each portion is enough for both of us to have dinner with enough left over for him to take to work. This past weekend, we made enough to freeze six portions. At about one pasta night a week, that's six weeks where we have an easy go to meal.

Does anybody else do this? What do you like to make ahead and freeze? We want to try freezing soups, and even individual homemade pot pies. But we've never tried anything other than sauce. Advice would be appreciated!

 

[KLS52]

I make chili and lasagna and freeze those. Works really well. Chili would work in the crockpot and the lasagna is easy with no bake noodles...and you already have the sauce. Just need the tofu ricotta.

 

[kibbleforlola]

Do you have a recipe for lasagna? I've actually tried freezing it once before, when I was in high school I nannied for a summer for my cousin, and tried my hand at cooking/ freezing lasagna. It did not turn out well. My cousin was super nice and was all "this is so good!" But I'll never forget her kids saying "dint make us eat that again".

 

[KLS52]

Not a "real" recipe. But I can probably put one together.

 

[PTree15]

I make sauce, chili, soups, chickpea cutlets (I freeze them before cooking, and when I thaw them, it's as if I just made them) and zucchini cakes (cooked, then frozen), among other things. I also will make pesto in big batches and freeze two-to three-serving portions. I get a lot of basil in the summer from my mom, so I will make it all summer, eat some and freeze the rest. I still have a couple of containers of it it in the freezer and might even have some for dinner tonight.

I wish I had a bigger freezer because I'd would probably have more frozen meals in it. It's nice to be able to pull something together out of the freezer in a matter of minutes, especially when I work late and don't feel like cooking when I get home.