[Sadie Lake]

So, I made it as far as cleaning out my freezer and making room to store some food for postpartum, but I haven't gotten as far as planning what to prepare and put in there.

We don't use/own a microwave, so I'm a little less accustomed to using things from the freezer that are already cooked. I guess I'm always worried that the texture is going to get ruined when things get reheated.

Besides lazagne, what other things freeze well, thaw well, and reheat well in the oven?

Sadie

 

[lotus.blossom]

We had been living without a microwave for the last couple years but my g'ma just gave me hers and I am finding it really convenient for reheating!

Heres what I am doing:

~several homemade pizza dough balls (I also have individually frozen bags of pizza sauce and mozarella cheese)
~Big bag of meatballs
~Bag of homemade chicken/cheese quesadillas
~Individual servings of mashed potatoes (make up a big pot and freeze portions in a muffin tin)

Thats all I have so far. I have half a dozen friends who are going to bring me meals. Also my mom will be around a lot to cook. And I am psyched that its grilling season. My DH will grill out every night and all I have to do is throw together a salad and a starch.

 

[j_p_i]

I'm relying on my DH and my family to make and bring me stuff. Of course, it's a little easier in my house because it's just going to be DH, me, and the baby to feed. I'm lucky in that I have a husband who really enjoys cooking and often kicks me out of the kitchen.

: Admittedly, he's probably a little better cook than I, so we're not doing any freezer meals, just stocking up. Grilling season makes it easier too, he *loves* the grill!

 

[cmoma]

hmm lets see right now theres:

leftover pulled pork (for sandwiches)
lasagne
spinach enchiladas

I plan on making

mac and cheese
baked ziti
stuffed shells
mini pizzas

hmmm I see its a lot of pasta stuff lol! I also want to put stuff in for snacks for the kids and me:

muffins
cookies
pancakes
waffles granola bars

I am not normally a feed the freezer person so it's all kind of new to me but the feed the freezer thread over in Meal Planning is awesome for recipes and advice!!

My friend and mil will probably make a couple meals for us but other than that we'll be on our own so I am trying to stock as best as I can.

 

[JenniferLovie]

Right now I have 2 lasagnas, 2 unbaked-baked zitis and cooked chicken breasts. I also plan to make meatballs, tamales and ravoli. Other than that I don't know what else I will be doing.

 

[mamayarn]

So far.... um........... about 10 lbs of butter (it was on sale!!). Oh, and some cookie dough.

I have two friends also having spring babies so we're each making the other two ladies two meals, frozen, to have on hand. So I'll have those four at least. Other than that I've just been making an effort to prepare a bigger portion lately and freeze a meal's worth instead of eating it for 4 days and burning out.

So far we've got shredded pepperoncini beef for sandwiches, pulled pork, and "lazy lasagna" (ravioli layered in a dish with sauce and mozzarella cheese). I'm anticipating a late may baby so soups and chili just sounds too hot already. I will probably cut up some chicken for thaw and dump in the pan stir fry with purchased frozen veggie mix (I like the veggie stir fry mix from BJ's). We love enchiladas so I'll make up a tray or two of those. I am experimenting with yeast doughs in the freezer now - italian bread, dinner rolls, etc. I'm also buying grilling meat on sale/bulk and portioning it out for one night's dinner. I guess it's time to get moving on all this stuff huh?

 

[roses25]

So far I have the following cooked foods in my freezer with plenty more freezer room to use up:

-Steak
-Hamburger patty
-Spaghetti
-cicken breasts

I have about four days worth of food right now. I want atleast 2 weeks, so I need to get busy. I also have stock piled cans of veggies such as green beans and corn.

Carolyn

 

[CookAMH]

This recipe does well and is tasty.

Cooking Light had a feature on how you can freeze marinated chicken in the marinade, and then thaw and grill/saute. I posted about it in the Recipe Swap thread.

I don't have much freezer space so I am not sure how much I'll actually get frozen. Also, our moms will be here and then I'll get 6-8 meals from church. It's our first and DH will be around, so I think I'm fine not doing any major stocking.

 

[lil_miss_understood]

I have a bunch of marinated/marinating pork chops, a couple of meatloafs (and glaze) ready to go in the oven, a couple of pre-proportioned bags of meatballs, a few bags of pre-cooked taco meat, a few bags of pre-cooked sloppy joes, a bunch of pre-cooked "spaghetti mix" (pork sausage and ground beef, mixed with veggies) and a couple of pork roasts in sauce with necessary veggies (pulled pork). Chops, meatloafs, meatballs and roasts are not cooked.
Also, some store-bought allergen free meals for DS1 (which he gets to eat on nights when we order pizza or get some other take out).
I still have to make sweet and sour sauce for the meatballs and am planning to make ginger-pineapple (sauced) pork balls. I'd also like to pre-make some chicken fingers, bake and shred a chicken and marinate some chicken thighs.
I'm still not sure what to do about sides though...

ETA: I'm aiming for 4-6 weeks of meals just because DH cannot cook anything more complicated than pasta and DS1 is gluten, egg and dairy free...

 

[Punchy Kaby]

I have so far:
Moussaka
Pasta sauce
Ratatoulle
Bag full of chicken breasts ready to grill
Carrot mango soup

Tomorrow I am making a few meatloaves and some lentil soup. Everything is Casein free, which I plan to do after baby is here. I know people will bring us food, but I cannot trust they will know what 'NO Dairy' really means. DH and DS can eat the stuff that is brought.

 

[Quate]

I've actually been freezing things! Not too much, but a little. Maybe I do have some inkling of a nesting instinct after all. So far I've got

-spaghetti sauce w/ meatballs
-BBQ chicken for sandwiches (along w/ some buns)
-bread (although this might get eaten and replaced

)
-a pork bone for soup (which I may still make into soup before baby arrives, but I don't have much freezer space)

I may yet freeze some of our Easter leftovers too. It's not very much, but we'll get a few weeks' worth of food from people at my church, plus my parents will be staying with us for a week and I'm pretty sure my mom will do all the cooking while they're here.