slow cooker freezer meals Archives - Page 2 of 2

It’s been about a month since I tested the Slow Cooker Freezer Menu (get a sneak peek at it near the bottom of this post). I’ve been using those meals slowly, only reaching into the freezer when I know the day is going to be too busy for cooking.

But even though I’m trying not to use them all at once, after this week I only have 1 left!

I may be testing some new slow cooker freezer meals soon. Those meals have made dinner time so simple and having them stashed away in the freezer is like a bit of insurance against the “crazy days”.

Sunday

Last Sunday, we ate leftovers after church. There were several different things that needed to be eaten and I decided I didn’t want to cook. It worked out well, at least for me!

Jim and I also went out on Sunday evening. There was a free jazz concert at a local historic home that we decided to go to. Before that though, we stopped by Lowe’s. I’m wanting to give our kitchen a facelift with new countertops and possibly painted cabinets.

I snapped this picture so I could remember the prices for laminate. We also priced quartz and granite and decided it would be more than we want to spend. And to be honest, I like laminate.

We currently have something called Butternut Granite, I think. It’s not my favorite. I like it better than I thought I would (the builder chose it before we bought the house), but I’d like to change it to something different. If you’ve got a laminate you love, leave me a comment!

Monday

Labor Day meant a day off work for Jim and no school for the rest of us. We went disc golfing with the boys. They’ve been playing all summer, but I’d never been. I’m terrible at throwing the frisbee, but it was fun to watch them.

Friends had given us a bunch of tomatoes from their garden the night before. I decided they needed to be part of a pasta dish. So I made a quick meal with angel hair pasta, bacon, basil, tomatoes and white wine. I’ll share the recipe soon!

Tuesday

Our son had a soccer game, so we went to watch. I used one of the slow cooker freezer meals – Honey Hoisin Chicken. I shredded the cooked meat and we put it on sandwiches with quick cole slaw and sweet potato fries on the side. Yum!

Wednesday

I used a bottle of Kung Pao sauce with some chicken tenders, onions and bell peppers. We ate it over rice. The bottle of sauce had enough kick that all of our mouths were tingly and burning afterward, but it was good.

Thursday

I made another of our slow cooker freezer meals. This time it was Maple Apple Pot Roast. It turned out great! I served parmesan potatoes too – from a box – and they were delicious! I hardly ever buy boxed au gratin style potatoes, but they just looked so good. Everyone loved them. We also had broccoli. And I made Peach Pie Squares for dessert. Recipe coming to the blog soon!

And I repurposed our leftover roast for Friday’s lunch. I shredded the beef, added a can of black beans and some salsa. Heated it in the microwave and filled taco shells. It worked great and would have made a good dinner for a small family.

We had some tiny company on Thursday night. This little guy and two of his brothers were hanging out in our garden. They were only about the size of the palm of my hand. Cute!

Friday

It’s Friday as I write this post and I’m planning to make French toast and ham for dinner. Fancy, I know. *Update: When I went into the kitchen to make dinner, I realized we were out of milk. So I turned the French bread into French bread pizzas, using the ham for a topping and gathering up anything else I could find. They turned out great! But I really do need to hit the grocery!

Simple Weekly Meal Plans

Here’s a sneak peek at this week’s meal plans. When you join the Weekly Meal Plan list, you get the grocery list and printable recipes with side dishes included. You can find out more about how to get them for yourself by clicking here. Now, you get access to a whole month at a time! And September is our focus on stocking the freezer, including the week where you cook 7+ Slow Cooker Freezer Meals in just 1 hour!

Slow Cooker Plan – this is the freezer meals plan!

1. Taco Soup
2. Mediterranean Chicken in the Slow Cooker (as round steak)
3. Whole Chicken in the Slow Cooker
4. Honey Hoisin Chicken in the Slow Cooker
5. Easy Slow Cooker Pork Carnitas
6. Maple Apple Chicken in the Slow Cooker (as pot roast)
7. blueberry orange bread

Traditional Plan

Raspberry Chicken*
Mel’s Diner Chili *
Stromboli
Spaghetti and Meatballs
BBQ Chicken Fajitas* (prepare chicken like this)
Beef Stew
Peanut Butter Fluff Pie

A couple of weeks ago, I made over 7 slow cooker freezer meals in 1 hour. It was easy to do and I have loved having those meals ready to go!

We’ve used several of them and they’re super convenient.

Today, I’m going to get all brave and share the video I made on my cooking day. This is the first video I’ve ever done for my blog. For someone who can’t even stand looking at pictures of herself, putting a video out there is pretty intimidating.

I wanted to share it though, because I thought it would be helpful for others who want to do some freezer cooking in a limited amount of time. I’ve also got some tips to share with you.

Tips for Making Slow Cooker Freezer Meals Quickly

1. Choose easy recipes.

This may go without saying, but if you’re trying to accomplish a lot in a small amount of time, you need to keep it simple. Choose recipes that don’t require a lot of chopping or pre-cooking. You want “assembly only” type recipes.

2. Don’t measure what you don’t have to measure.

Many times, you can just eye-ball the measurements for ingredients. Look for recipes that will be forgiving of variances. It’s much faster to pour approximately 1/2 cup of an ingredient in than to measure it and then pour.

3. Do all your chopping at once.

Count the number of onions, garlic and other items that you’ll need to chop. Cut them all at one time and set aside.

4. Group ingredients for each recipe together.

As you open cans, chop onions or set out spices, group the ingredients for each recipe. And don’t forget to keep your printed recipe handy so you can refer to it.