As you know if you follow my blog, I am in love with freezer cooking and meal planning.
Sometimes, especially in the school holidays, it just isn't possible to meal plan or find time to cook in bulk. That is why I am trying to make extra NOW so that I can enjoy the days we are with the kids without worrying about eating junk food the whole time.
Here are a few easy freezer cooking recipes for you to make that are budget friendly and great to take when invited to impromptu parties:
Chicken Noodle Soup
Prep Time: 15mins
Cook Time: 1hr 15mins
Ingredients
- 1 pack of chicken pieces
- 2 cloves of crushed garlic
- 1 large brown onion, diced
- 2 large carrots, diced
- 4 celery stalks, diced
- 2L chicken stock
- 500g Vermicelli Pasta/Angel Hair Pasta
Instructions
1. Cook the chicken pieces in a large soup saucepan. Remove from pan.
2. Sautee the garlic, onion, carrot and celery. Whilst this is lightly frying, shred chicken from bones
3. Add shredded chicken and chicken stock to the pan with the vegetables. Leave to simmer for approximately 1 hour
4. Add the pasta for approximately 5 minutes, until cooked through
5. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve, or divide and freeze immediately
Note: I find that Bow Ties, Spirals or Macaroni work best for Pasta Bake.
Chicken Pasta Bake
Prep Time: 10mins
Cook Time: 30mins
Ingredients
- 500g Chicken Breast
- 500g of Pasta (your preferred type)
- 1 Jar of Pasta Sauce/Pasta Bake Jar Sauce (your preferred flavour)
- Shredded Cheese
Note: I find that Bow Ties, Spirals or Macaroni work best for Pasta Bake.
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 160°C
2. Boil a pot of lightly salted water on the stovetop. Add pasta
3. Brown the chicken breast in a pan on the stovetop.
4. In a casserole dish, add the sauce and browned chicken.
5. Drain the pasta and add to the casserole dish.
6. Cover in shredded cheese
7. Bake for 30mins
Chicken Pasta Bake
Prep Time: 10mins
Cook Time: 30mins
Ingredients
- 500g Chicken Breast
- 500g of Pasta (your preferred type)
- 1 Jar of Pasta Sauce/Pasta Bake Jar Sauce (your preferred flavour)
- Shredded Cheese
Note: I find that Bow Ties, Spirals or Macaroni work best for Pasta Bake.
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 160°C
2. Boil a pot of lightly salted water on the stovetop. Add pasta
3. Brown the chicken breast in a pan on the stovetop.
4. In a casserole dish, add the sauce and browned chicken.
5. Drain the pasta and add to the casserole dish.
6. Cover in shredded cheese
7. Bake for 30mins
Quiche
Prep Time: 15mins
Cook Time: 20mins
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups of Flour
- 110g Butter roughly chopped
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 egg yolk, beaten
- OR you can purchase frozen pastry
- 4 Eggs
- ¼ cup of Milk
- ¼ cup of Thickened Cream
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- ½ cup of Shredded Cheese
Quiche is great for left overs! So many things can be added to quiche. Here are a few of our family favourites:
- Asparagus
- Silverbeet
- Bacon
- Silverbeet and Bacon mixed!
- Tomato
Instructions
Pastry
1. Preheat the oven to 160°C and grease a 20cm round quiche dish
2. Blend the flour and butter in a food processor until it is the consistency of breadcrumbs
2. Slowly add the egg to the mixture using a flat bladed knife until it forms a dough
3. Roll dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and put in the refridgerator for 15mins
Filling
4. Whilst the dough is refridgerating, start preparing the filling. Add eggs, milk, cream, salt and pepper and a small amount of shredded cheese into a mixing bowl and beat together
5. Add any left overs or extras you want to the egg mixture.
6. Take the dough out of the fridge and roll flat. Line the quiche dish with pastry and put in the oven until golden brown
7. Once golden brown, take out of the oven and add your filling. Top with shredded cheese.
8. Place the quiche in the oven for a further 20mins
Note: To make your quiche look like it belongs in a french cafe, garnish the top of the quiche with slices of tomato, asparagus spears or crispy bacon.
5 Ingredients Cookies
Prep Time: 5mins
Cook Time: 12-15mins
Ingredients (4 Batches of Cookies)
- 500g Butter
- ½ cup of Caster Sugar
- 1 can of Condensed Milk
- 5 cups of Self Raising Flour
- Mix-ins (choc chips, nuts, cranberries, sultanas, 100’s and 1000’s)
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 180°C and line a cookie sheet with baking paper
2. Cream butter, sugar and condensed milk
3. Slowly add flour to bowl without over mixing.
4. If you are using a different mix-in for each batch of cookie dough, separate your dough into four even portions.
5. Gently add your mix-ins to each batch until just combined. (Our family favourite mix in is choc chips!)
6. With the dough you do not want to bake right now, roll into a log shape and cover in plastic wrap. Place in the freezer.
7. Bake remaining dough for 12-15mins depending on your preferred cookie texture
Sorry for the lack of photos! I will edit when I actually have time to make these things myself!!! I made four quiches last week and they were all eaten within two days! No chance to freeze those little suckers.
Just remember, you don't have to cook whole meals to take advantage of your freezer. Purchase your meat in bulk but don't just throw it in the freezer. Dice meat, divide mince into the correct portions, separate sausages, add sauces to ziplock bags with diced meats. You just halved your prep time and saved yourself money by buying in bulk!
I hope you enjoyed these tips and they help you out in this holiday and party season.
What is your "go-to" freezer meal of choice?
I'd love to feature some in my next meal plan!
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