Yesterday, my friends Ellie, Kelly and I spent 5 hours making 21 meals for each of us to take home. Again, it was a ton of work and we were wiped-out by the end...but looking at my freezer and knowing that I don't have to spend time cooking on weeknights makes me sooo happy!
Why freezer cooking works for me: I love pulling something out of the freezer before I go to bed one night and having a home-cooked meal the next night. It's mindless, really. It also cuts down on the big trips to the grocery store. Although I still go to the store once a week, I just have to pick up our daily items (milk, juice, cereal, fruit, etc) and any side dishes. Add a bag of salad or some fresh veggies to the frozen main-dish and I'm all set. :)
How we did it: Since there were three of us this time, each one of us came up with three recipes. I couldn't narrow it down, so I actually did four. Then we were each in charge of buying the ingredients for our three recipes. We took each recipe times 6...meaning that we each got to take home 2 of each casserole. It sounds a bit overwhelming, but it worked. As we assembled the meals, we did one recipe at a time but divided up the jobs...chopping, stirring, etc. We worked fast and each had a hand in each recipe.
How much it cost: Well we spent just under $200 for 21 meals. I thought under $10 a meal was great! And most of the items would have enough for left-overs.
What we made: We tried to have a nice variety of meats and meal-types. Some were done in foil 9x13 pans, some in freezer bags to be baked, and others are crock-pot items. I also made a list of the items, side-dish ideas, what is still needed for the recipe, and cooking instructions. The list is on my freezer and I'll check off the items as we use them. Here's a list of what we made this time around:
-Ham & Cheese Hashbrowns
-Mini Meat Loaves
-Meatball Subs
-French Dip Sandwiches
-Lasagna
Can't wait to try them out!!
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