The holiday season is a busy, sometimes stressful time of year for families. When your schedule gets full, cooking can feel like a chore, making the drive-thru so much more appealing. But we all know takeout isn’t the healthiest option for a family meal. So what’s a busy mom to do? Reach into the freezer for a healthy meal that’s ready to heat and eat!
The following recipes are some of FNP’s best freeze ahead meals.
To Freeze: Prepare enchiladas according to recipe directions. Place enchiladas into a foil-lined baking dish and top with remaining salsa and cheese. Freeze until firm, then remove from baking dish and place into a freezer safe container (sealed plastic bag or airtight container). Label with contents and preparation date and place in freezer.
To Serve: Unwrap enchilada dish and place into baking pan. Thaw in refrigerator overnight. Bake at 350°F for 15 minutes or until enchiladas reach 165°F and are steaming hot.
To Freeze: Prepare meat sauce according to directions. Cool quickly in the refrigerator. Once meat mixture is cooled, pour into a freezer safe container (sealed plastic bag or airtight container). Label with contents and preparation date and place in freezer.
To Serve: Thaw meat mixture. Reheat in saucepan over medium heat until meat mixture reaches 165°F or is steaming hot. Add cooked pasta, cottage cheese, and mozzarella cheese on top. Stir well and heat through, allowing cheese to melt.
To Freeze: Once chicken is cooled, pour into a freezer safe container (sealed plastic bag or airtight container). Label with contents and preparation date and place in freezer.
To Serve: Thaw chicken mixture. Reheat in saucepan over medium heat until chicken mixture reaches 165°F or is steaming hot.
To Freeze: Once meatballs have cooled, place into a freezer safe container (sealed plastic bag or airtight container). Label with contents and preparation date and place in freezer.
To Serve: Thaw meatballs. Reheat on a baking sheet in the oven at 350°F until center of meatballs reach 165°F, about 15 minutes.
To Freeze: Once meat mixture is cooled, pour into a freezer safe container (sealed plastic bag or airtight container). Label with contents and preparation date and place in freezer.
To Serve: Thaw meat mixture. Reheat in saucepan over medium heat until meat mixture reaches 165°F or is steaming hot. Serve on whole wheat buns.
To Freeze: Once chili is cooled, pour into a freezer safe container (sealed plastic bag or airtight container). Label with contents and preparation date and place in freezer.
To Serve: Thaw chili. Reheat in saucepan over medium heat until chili reaches 165°F or is steaming hot.
(Make a large batch of 36 servings to freeze by increasing the ingredients to 3 cups whole wheat cereal, 1 1/2 cups peanut butter, 1 1/2 cups honey, and 3 cups nonfat dried milk.)
To Freeze: Place into a freezer safe container (sealed plastic bag or airtight container). Label with contents and preparation date and place in freezer.
To Serve: Thaw peanut butter balls until slightly softened before serving.
Butternut Squash and Lentil Soup
To Freeze: Once soup is cooled, pour into a freezer safe container (sealed plastic bag or airtight container). Label with contents and preparation date and place in freezer.
To Serve: Thaw soup. Reheat in saucepan over medium heat until soup reaches 165°F or is steaming hot.
Carrot Pineapple Muffins, Oatmeal Raisin Muffins, and Peanut Butter Muffins
To Freeze: Once muffins have cooled, put them in a freezer safe container (sealed plastic bag or airtight container). Label with contents and preparation date and place in freezer. Muffins can be frozen for 6-12 months.
To Thaw: Remove muffins from freezer and leave at room temperature for an hour or place frozen muffins on a metal tray and heat in the oven for 20 minutes at 300°F.
Make ahead meals are a great time saver for busy families. This is a really great resource for freezing many different prepared foods from University of Georgia. Have you ever made freezer meals? What is your advice for beginners?