I do need to learn to do better to can/preserve foods, but until then I like to use my freezer. I have a lot of jars and usually do jams every year, and maybe tomatoes. Most of my jars are used for storage and doing experiments in my kitchen. Making buttermilk worked, making sourdough didn't. Well, the sourdough might have worked, I just didn't know when it was working so I let it sit for a few more days until I was sure it really didn't work. Now that was a pleasant aroma.
I freeze a lot of things. Jazzed up rice, bananas, strawberries and other fruits to use for smoothies and syrups, cooked ground beef, sausages, cooked poultry, homemade casseroles, lasagna, soups, beans all varieties, broths, spaghetti sauce, chopped onions, herbs, butter, stuff from the garden, or anything I get a good deal on. Let's just say, I have frozen things that I never knew could be frozen. Cookie dough without the egg was one of my favorites. Used for ice cream toppings it was just horrible to have around, no one could stay out of it. (Reminder to myself, find that recipe)
Anything that can make life easier is what I freeze. I very rarely plan a freezer cooking day but it might work for you. I like to make double of whatever I'm cooking and eat one and freeze one. If I'm chopping an onion, I'll chop a few. Instead of opening a can, we look in the freezer. It took a while for me to get into this freezer thing. It wasn't like I woke up one day and knew what to freeze. I started out with little things. Tasty things. Like ice cream. Picking what are the most important things to freeze is an individual preference, but I would think, taco meat, beans, burritos or a casserole.
I know that only having the freezer that's included with your refrigerator is not the best, but for years that's all I had. I really don't know how I managed with four kids thinking back on it. I believe batch cooking and freezing is the end result of having so many kids and little freezer space. I always made a ton of food, and there were very few leftovers. As the family grew smaller, it was hard to learn how to cook less. So I'd have tons of leftovers, and would try to eat them, and eat them, and eat them. Duh, why didn't I freeze them for another day?
Planning out your meals a week, or a month ahead can really help with this, and just make life easier. Okay, so I honestly can't even tell you what I'm having tomorrow. By planning our meals we can use the stuff that's been sitting on our pantry or in our freezer before it gets too old. Plus, we will know how to plan our grocery shopping trips. Or in my case, a trip to the farmers market tomorrow is needed.
I wish I could say I freeze in only healthy containers, but I haven't mastered that skill of not shattering glass. I use freezer bags for most things. I also reuse containers from the store. I do wait for any liquids to cool so the plastics do not release any harmful chemicals into my foods. I freeze on a tray, even liquids, then after they are all frozen I can stack them nicely. One trick I'd like to try is to stick the bag into an empty cereal box, pour your food in and freeze it. Pull it out and your items will be frozen blocks that save a lot of space. Do not forget to label your items. There's nothing I hate more than to open the same container fifty times to see the same spaghetti sauce, when all I wanted is broth.
One last thing, by cooking our meals at home it not only is cheaper, it is healthier. Making it easier to cook at home we are more likely to eat there. There are tons of freezer recipes and what foods freeze well on the internet. At least think about it, toss the idea around. I did for a long time before I actually picked something and even then I wasn't even sure what I was going to do with it. Now I've gotten to the point where I feel the pantry is bare if I don't have some frozen meatballs to fall back on for a busy day.
http://denverbargains.com/2011/05/eat-well-spend-less-life-without-a-deep-freezer/
This article is a remake of a newsletter email
This article is a remake of a newsletter email
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