So... to freeze or not to freeze? Since the wonderful website - Pinterest - came along, I have had my eyes opened to a lot, especially making the most of your time in the kitchen.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE to cook! I love trying new recipes, putting food and left overs together to see what I can come up with. Chris and I have had many 'kitchen dates' where we cook together and enjoy a great meal. It's fun to experiment and add great meals to our repertiore.
Well, that's when I realized you can freeze so much more than I ever thought possible. (AND the food still tastes great!) For example, our I Am Second group (iamsecond.com) had a Love Feast for Thanksgiving. I roasted a 22lb turkey, with gravy, and all the fixins. Everyone brought something to add and it was wonderful. BUT...after all our guests ate their fill we had tons of turkey left over and some gravy. So, we put it in a container (freezer appropriate) and put it in the freezer. We pulled it out over Spring Break - mid march and enjoyed turkey, gravy and (freshly made) mashed potatos and corn. It tasted just like it did the day I roasted it and was a fantastic treat!
So - to make it a little easier on the young adults out there - please take this to heart! Especially when you are cooking for one and always seem to have left overs. Leave out a little bit to enjoy taht week and freeze the rest! It will make for a great meal a few weeks or months later.
Here are a list of items you CAN freeze :) I am putting this into practice consistently...it saves money and time. WIN WIN!
I pulled this list off of the Simple Organized Living website... :) It has some great information that I use.
1. Baked Goods:
.I’ve been known for baking huge batches of sweets in one day and then freezing them for our enjoyment over the next few months. This save me tons of time — we LOVE our sweets!
Brownies & Cookies: Yup, I do it all the time. Just put them in resealable bags or storage containers with tight-fitting lids and they’ll last as long as you can resist them!
Breads, Buns, Muffins, and Rolls: Just double-bag them to prevent freezer burn and they should be fine for several months
Cupcakes & Cake: Yes, I’ve frozen cupcakes and even full cakes! You can frost cakes before or after freezing them, but if you use store-bought frosting, you’ll want to wait to frost them until after they defrost…trust me, I know!
Granola: We love homemade granola but if I’m going to make it, I only make a huge batch….and then freeze it in mason jars or zip-top bags.
Pies: I don’t usually freeze pies, but if you do, just make sure to freeze them BEFORE you bake them.
2. Baking Supplies:
.I freeze many of my baking supplies in shoe boxes in our freezer! {Shoe boxes stack well and allow for ventilation.}
Chocolate: I store all my baking chocolates in the freezer because I think they keep for much longer this way and taste “fresher”. Plus it frees up more space in my cabinets.
Nuts: I store all our nuts in the freezer to keep their oils from going rancid. I first heard this tip from Rachel Ray and it seems to work — so it must be true!
Flour and Sugar: While it’s not necessary, I often freeze my flour and sugar — especially in the summer when our house is more humid.
3. Dairy:.
I’ve saved a bunch of money by purchasing dairy products in bulk and freezing them. From my experience, most dairy products should keep for at least 6 months.
Butter/Margarine: No trick here, just stick the whole package in the freezer and remove when you’re ready to use.
Block Cheese: I freeze cheese ALL the time, just remember to slice and shred it before you freeze it, otherwise it will crumble.
Cream Cheese: Believe it or not, you can freeze cream cheese. It might be a bit “lumpy” after it defrosts but it still tastes the same.
Milk: I don’t have the need to freeze our milk on a regular basis, but I do it whenever we go on vacation. Just remember to pour about 1 cup of milk out before freezing.
Yogurt: Freeze yogurt for a delicious, healthy treat. I let it defrost a bit before eating so it’s really creamy.
4. Fruits:
.
Before freezing fruit, make sure it’s washed, dried, and divided up into smaller portions. This will make it easy to quickly grab what you need without defrosting the entire batch. Fruits should keep for up to a year if properly sealed.
All Fruits: You can pretty much freeze any fruit you plan to use in smoothies because it will get mashed up anyway, however, don’t plan on freezing fruit simply for eating — it will be really soggy.
Berries: I freeze all kinds of berries for pancakes and smoothies. I also keep 2-cup containers of crushed berries to use for making jam, ice-cream toppings or, for berry shortcake.
Bananas: I peel any rotten bananas and put 4 bananas in a bag or freezer container. Then whenever a recipe calls for bananas, I just grab a container to defrost {most recipes call for 3-5 bananas so I figure I’m safe with 4!}
Jams and Jellies: I usually can my jam, but my mom and mother-in-law always freeze it. Freezing jam is quicker and easier…so if you have the freezer space, here are 20 delicious freezer jam recipes to get you started!
5. Herbs & Vegetables:
.
Herbs: I freeze fresh herbs in ice-cube trays to use for soups, stews, and casseroles later in the year. Here’s a free Herb Reference Sheet that explains how you can use and preserve different herbs.
All Veggies: To save myself some time — here is a link to my Vegetable Freezing Worksheet. It’s a list of 20 different vegetables and how to freeze them … and you can print it for free!
6. Meals:
.
I’m always making double batches of our favorite foods to store in the freezer. Then on busy days, I just defrost one in the morning, and it’s usually ready by dinner time.
Soups, Stews, and Broths: I divide these up into 1 or 2 cup portions so they defrost quicker. Here are some of my favorite soup recipes.
Casseroles: I’ve frozen everything from lasagna and fajitas, to enchiladas, chicken dishes, and more! Just make sure all the ingredients are fully cooked before you freeze it. When you’re ready to eat it, just defrost and bake as normal.
Pasta Sauce: We usually never go through an entire batch of pasta sauce in one meal so I just pop the leftovers in the freezer for the next time we eat pasta.
Meat: You can freeze cooked meat, raw meat, ground meat, shredded meat, “whole” meat, etc. Just make sure it’s properly sealed to prevent freezer burn. {I once had a whole turkey in the freezer for about 18 months and it was absolutely delicious when we cooked it!}
Original content from Simple Organized Living: http://www.simpleorganizedliving.com/2011/02/10/freezable-foods/#ixzz1pgJ8Jh1B
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives
Had I known about these amazing tricks 15 years ago, I would have saved a ton of money in rotten foods. :) Enjoy and learn!
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