First-Time Freezer Cooking {The Series}

First Time Freezer Cooking Series | Creative Savings

I like to call myself the “non-intentional” freezer-cooker.

I’ll spend a few hours in the kitchen making my very favorite strawberry freezer jam, cook up some homemade applesauce to freeze, or occasionally double a casserole for later.

We’ve even gotten into the habit of freezing all our sweet treats after their baked. With it only being the two of us, a lot can go bad if we don’t eat it all right away, {either that, or our waistlines start expanding}! Besides, I think they taste really yummy frozen.

Maybe I’m weird…but at least our freezer gets quite a bit of use.

An Actual Freezer Cooking Day

It was time to step up my game though, and actually plan a freezer cooking day.

That meant planning, prepping, and spending about 5-6 hours in the kitchen preparing foods exclusively for the freezer.

But I really didn’t know where to start.

I feared standing in the middle of a huge kitchen mess with 5 recipes going on at once, flour and sugar and crumbs everywhere {because that’s how life happens in my kitchen}, and a mental breakdown because I was missing that one essential ingredient.

Does that sound like you?

Freezer Cooking Doesn’t Have to Be Scary

I’ve read just about everything I could get my hands on about freezer cooking, and over the next few Mondays, I want to share with you what worked for me, what didn’t, and give you some additional resources to help you figure out your own method of freezer cooking.

Because there’s no one-size that fits all, and everyone needs a bit more wiggle room in their lives, don’t you think?

Here’s what we’re going to discuss:

I don’t want to provide so much information that you are super overwhelmed, but I also want to give you a good idea of what to expect if you’ve never attempted a freezer cooking day before. I want you to love it as much as I do!

We enjoyed our freezer cooking day so much, that we’re already planning on doing it once a month. I think it will really help keep our freezer stocked, save us some meal time prep, and give us a nice variety.

In the meantime, you might want to start following my Freezer Cooking Pinterest board {it has some great articles that I recommend, along with some recipes that I’ll be adding as I find them}, and subscribe via email so you don’t forget to check in for the first post in the series.

Oh! And if you ever find yourself feeling overwhelmed with all the prep work involved before you freezer cook, hop on over to Once a Month Meals for printable plans and menus you can adjust to your tastes and health requirements.

Did I mention I’ll have a printable for you too? Yep, now you definitely want to come back!

Tell me, have you ever tried a freezer cooking day before?

 

Tweetables:

  • Follow along with Creative Savings Freezer Cooking Series – loads of resources, tips, and ways to simplify! <– {Click to Tweet}
  • Freezer cooking doesn’t have to be scary! This new series by Creative Savings will help you keep it simple.  <– {Click to Tweet}

Was this post helpful? Please consider sharing the love!

11 Comments

  1. Just tried two sessions of 4 hour freezer cooking and love it. As far as the Do Not Freeze list I found a few things we successfully freeze – most notably green peppers. We chop and freeze them and sauté them as if fresh. Also have frozen them whole (seeded of course) to use for stuffed peppers.

  2. Hi Kalyn, when I first tried out the freezer meals I think I did about 10 meals 3 different recipes. It really helps out. I work full time so this helps when I just don’t have the time to fix a meal. I’m hoping to get a better variety of tasty recipes so my family of five doesn’t get bored. I have to step my game up to making a whole month worth of meals.

    1. I know exactly what you mean about not always having the time to fix a meal — and I really dislike having to resort to fast food. It’s not so great for your health or your budget!

  3. Oh, I am excited. Nothing really has worked for me as I am not a first born. I make 2 of a few things but know I need to do more. This sounds up my alley. My only concern is that I am a family of almost 7!!!

  4. Kalyn,
    I just started reading you blog because I am now officially a stay at home mom, and I decided some life style changes were in order! like healthy living so I’ve been hitting the gym and making every meal from scratch! which can be a lot of work and super expensive!!! So, push came to shove, and freezing cooking is the answer! I think… anyway, I thought you should know that your link to follow you on pinterest does not work. It takes you to a URL that is Pinterest/kalynbrook/freezercooking which I guess doesn’t exist? I had to find you by looking up freezer cooking boards and then scrolling through them to find you! anyhow, your actual URL is pinterest/creativesavings/freezercooking. Thanks again for the great advise! I am still reading through it all to get started! 😀

    1. Good for you! Like you, I feel like the only way I’m making things from scratch is if I do a lot of freezer cooking, but it’s one of the reasons I love it so much, and I hope you enjoy it too!

      Also, thank you for letting me know about that link. All fixed now. 🙂

  5. You mentioned all the reasons I haven’t tried intentional freezer cooking yet – only 2 of us, freezing leftovers, splitting desserts, etc. But if it works well for you guys (and saves money!) then maybe I’ll finally give it a try. Looking forward to the rest of this series!

  6. Freezer cooking is such a great way to stay on top of the meals for my family. It can be one long day of work but then it makes the next 4-6 weeks so much easier. And my freezer cooking has been different with the different seasons of life I’m in. Sometimes it’s just doing a lot of baking and getting some breakfast items in the freezer. Other times it’s just doubling a recipe and sticking an extra one in the freezer. And sometimes it’s an all day job of making 20 meals. 🙂

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *