I have been freezer cooking since about 2008. I will NEVER go back to another way of getting dinner on the table. When I first started out I did all the cooking with a friend. We would get together once a month and cook several meals and split them. While this method was fun (cooking is so much better with a friend!), it was hard! She would pick about five meals and I would pick five too. Then I would create a shopping list based on the meals we had chosen. We would shop separately and then on another day we would meet and cook. Eventually, we started cooking separately simply because it was less planning and coordination for us. Nowadays, I cook six recipes, doubling it, and giving her half. She does the same for me. We don't worry about the cost and who is spending more or less. We just shop, cook, and give. This may not work for everyone. Sharing meals can be hard if your families don't like the same foods or if you are overly concerned about the financial aspect of it and that the spending is perfectly even.
In the past year I have expanded my freezer meals to include breakfasts and some lunches. I have learned the beauty of having meals at your fingertips. I am not so pressed for time. I don't have to clean my kitchen as often (when you cook all at once then there is only one clean up session). And if the freezer is fairly full, we have choices each night. Going back to trying to cook each evening just won't work anymore for us between teen activities, my work schedule, and lack of time to prep a meal each day.
There are months when I do prep all the meals on one day like we used to. Sometimes I spread it over two to three days. I actually prefer it this way. And there are months when I have more breakfasts and lunches to choose from and months when I am too busy to get it all done. But the bare minimum is to have those twelve dinners each month staring out at me from their icy chambers! Ha!
So do you freezer cook? How do you do it?
I am new to freezer cooking but you have inspired me. That picture of broccoli and tomatoes is beautiful. Did you take it?
ReplyDeleteYes, I did take it! Thanks! Hope you are able to glean some info this month from my blog.
ReplyDeleteHow nice to cook with a friend! Someday, I'd like to do that. For now, my style of freezer cooking is to cook double amounts of my dinner - eating half now and freezing the other. I like to do breakfast and lunches, too. Freezer cooking is a life saver for me!
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