Meals to Freeze in Preparation for New Baby...

I agree with anything that can go in a crock pot is great. However, if you are familar with Dinner Done they have a wonderful program for new moms, they prepare everything for you and all you have to do is pick it up. I was able to get 12 meals out of it when did it, great for when you first come home. Also, when someone ask you if they can do anything for you SPEAK UP, say yes, dinner is always nice especially one that freezes well!!!

L., I just asked this same question on Facebook(I too have a 2 yr. old and a baby due March 11th) and the best suggestion I got was to brown ground beef and cook/chop chicken, put in 1 lb. ziploc bags and freeze. This will prepare you for quick painless crockpot meals. Then order this book..."Fix-It and Forget-It 5-Ingredient Favorites" by Phyllis Pellman. I ordered mine on Amazon today and plan to start the cooking/browning/freezing process this weekend. I agree, the thought of having to cook dinners while sleep deprived from newborn/mommy duties and chasing a toddler around all day is terrifying! Best of luck to you!!

I made meatloaf, just mixed the meat and seasonings and froze it in ziploc baggies. I would pull one out, defrost it and then just have to bake it! I also made a batch of chili and froze it in small portions. The last thing I found that worked well, and I still do it (my kids are now 2 and the other 5 months!), I clean and cut up things like chicken breast or pork, put them in ziplocs with some marinade and freeze them. Just defrost and grill them!

L.,

Chili freezes well.

I also like lentil soup, which also freezed well.

If you can afford it, order pizza once a week (that is if dairy doesn't bother you or baby). My husband & I order pizza on Friday's & freeze the left overs. We reheat it in the oven. Once a month or so we have enough frozen, not to order it for a week.

How about Chicken pot pie- I personally would not make this from scratch. But then I hate to cook.

Have you gone to Food Network.com- there may be some good ideas.

I like your dumb dog comment- I use to have one of those. Bless her heart, she was the sweetest, but not the sharpest tool in the shed.

Hope this helps

Hi L.- Before the kids my husband and I both worked in the restaurant business and worked 70 hrs a week in the season so I froze a lot of food for easy but homemade dinners. Any soup freezes well and its easy to make a lot of. Any stewed/braised meals like beef stew, pot roast, chicken cacciatore, chili, etc. I have a great hawaiian kielbasa recipe if you'd like which is delicious and easy to make.

I freeze chili. Also you can cook roast and freeze it. Just about any meat can be cooked and frozen for later use. You can freeze cookies, cakes and pies. Fresh veggies and fruits make the best snacks.

Anything you can drop in the crock pot will be your best friend. All you have to do is drop in the ingredients and push a button. Dinner is ready when you want it. My mom does this for my sister all the time. She makes beef stew, chili, and all kinds of other stuff during the day. Then, when my sister gets home from work and picks up the little one, dinner is ready to take home. Make sure when you're thinking of snacks to include some fresh fruits. Pick things that you don't have to worry about cutting or peeling (like pineapples or oranges). I would stick with apples, pears, grapes, etc. and maybe some carrots or celery. You can always add a bit of peanut butter or cream cheese as well.
Best of luck!

HOW ABOUT:

BEEF STEW WITH POTATOES AND CARROTS

SPLIT PEA SOUP

CHINESE RICE (MAKE RICE WITHOUT SALT FIRST, THEN ADD CHOPPED CKN OR BEEF, SOY SAUCE ONIONS PEAS AND SCRAMBLED EGGS, CHOPPED FRESH GARLIC AND SPRINKLE WITH GINGER)

yOUR IDEA OF PLANNING AHEAD IS IDEAL!!!!

D. P.

Lentil soup- you warm a loaf of bread and voilá.
Make meatball and freeze- you serve with spaghetti or rice.
Humongous sandwiches- meats, chicken or turkey -prep is only a few minutes
Macaroni salads, either hot or cold, same as sandwiches.
For snacks, chesses and fruit, nuts, even corn flakes or granola.
When friends and family ask how they can help, don't hesitate. They'll gladly bring something for a meal. Congrats on #2

I made restaurant size trays of food at the end of my pregnancy for the same reason...I knew I wouldn't have the energy later. Some of the things I remember making (in addition to shephard's pie) By making large amounts We could eat 1/3-1/2 at a meal and still have additional meals from that meal to rotate with other leftovers. I bought the foil baking pans from Sam's Club so even clean up was as simple as throwing away the pan:

ziti
chicken and veggie casserole (cut up chicken breast, frozen veggies, cream of mushroom soup)
stroganoff
chicken and yellow rice (made with cream of chicken soup)
homemade macaroni and cheese (great for a snack too with lots of good protein)
Potato Cheddar soup

And I agree on the crockpot idea. If you don't have a big one, Aldi's grocery has them often for quite inexpensive. You can mix any meat, veggie and liquid together to create all sorts of yummy things...I love doing my stroganoff there. I cook the meat and veggies for a few hours and add the pasta or rice for the last few hours, but you can add the pasta or rice in the beginning too for a truly, no bother meal with no thought needed once you toss everything in.

Tex-Mex casserole has been a staple for me and my sisters for each of our pregnancies. Freezes really nice. And it makes a lot, so you can usually get 2 meals out of it. You can send me a message for the recipe or google it. Good luck with number 2!

Hi L.,

I wanted to add these for meals:

-mac n cheese with broccoli
-quiche
-just about any casserole

These are staples at our house.

BTW we did freeze-ahead stuff for baby #2, but she had food intolerances (the food I ate gave her "colic" because she received it through the breastmilk and it upset her stomach). So our preparation didn't help me (because I couldn't eat the prepped meals), but it did ease the family's meal needs.

Just in case your babe has colic, it's often due to inability to digest a protein (like dairy, soy, etc) and Dr Sears has an elimination diet that may help. It solved our colic completely.

Me, too! When are you due? I am not due until Aug.

Anyway, here is a link with tons of recipes for meals that freeze well. There is a great idea about friends who make 5X as much and then share it with the others.. pretty cool!

http://www.recipelink.com/rcpmenus.html

Excellent tips for freezing and what not to freeze

http://extension.missouri.edu/publications/DisplayPub.asp...

Good luck! PS remember the crockpot will be your best friend! lol

This isn't a make ahead but it is so super easy if you have a crock pot. Buy a boneless pork roast. Cover lightly with salt and pepper. Put into crock pot with a can of pineapple chunks including the juice and a can of whole cranberry sauce. That is it. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Takes less than 5 minutes to prep and tastes yummy.

Do you have a Dream Dinners or similar nearby? Check out the website - www.dreamdinners.com, because you can go, make all of your dishes, come home and freeze them. they do all the shopping and chopping, and have all the ingredients set up for you. You follow the recipe and assemble. It's awesome!

Garlic chicken

4-6 chicken breasts or parts
10-15 garlic cloves thinly sliced up
1 teaspoon of Onion powder
1 1/2 teaspoons of paprika
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon of EVOO

Throw it all into a freezer safe ziplock bag mush it all around and pop it into the freezer. The night before you go to make it take it out of the freezer and put it in the fridge.

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil (makes for SUPER easy clean up!!) empty it all in and pop it in the oven for 30-45 minutes @ 350 degrees

this is my emergency meal that I always have in the freezer...it comes out great!!!

also...just a thought but Mr Foods No Fuss meals is a great option...even if you looked over their site you can get some great ideas!!! they all go in the freezer once you make them and I used to do them before we had a kid because I could split the meals and I got double the food for the same price....now it is a bit out of our budget but I still use their site for ideas...LOL!

Congrats and Good luck!!!

Hi! First off...congratulations!

I like to make a big batch of cheese stuffed shells and freeze them. I use a whole box of shells, two tubs of ricotta, a little mozzarella and parm cz, salt, pepper and basil. After I boil and stuff the shells, I put them in a single layer in a gallon freezer bag(s), and freeze the bag flat. Once they are frozen you can throw them anywhere..that just helps them to not stick to each other. Then you can just pull out how many you are hungry for and heat them in a casserole dish with sauce. My three year old loves to help me mix the ingredients and stuff them. Good luck!!
A. :)
By the way...what is spaghetti pie???

Hi L.,

It looks to me as if you have chosen all hearty meal options. To stay with that theme, what about: chicken and rice; chicken and dumplings; MILD chili; and meatloaf? You can find recipe's for all those on recipezaar.com. And don't forget about those new steam-able packaged veggies. You can go out and get some and your sides will be ready to go. Just pop them out later to microwave. I also want to suggest that you make family-sized portions of each of these meals, and then you will have leftovers and in effect much more than 7 or even 12 meals. I know some families aren't very fond of leftovers, but you'll know that you and your family will be eating well-balanced home cooked meals - just maybe two or three times in a row. :)

Congrats on the new baby!

PS - Fresh fruit brought home by Dad would make great snacks. Add some whole grain crackers and cheese and you've got a balanced snack that you don't have to freeze or thaw. :)

You can make beef stroganoff. There is a reciepe in Better Homes cookbook. Or you can go on line. Its pretty easy. And you just through the noodles and sauce together and freeze it. Its great!! Spagetti and meatballs always works. Also I am not sure how much you are willing to spend but there is a great place in South Tampa called Lets Eat. The meals are already done. Check out the web sight. Hope this helps. And congrats on your new addition!!!

How about a couple of loaves of pumpkin, zucchini or sweet potato bread for snacking...

I like to get some chicken cutlets, bread them in breadcrumbs, then either fry or bake them and freeze them to use later. They are so versatile, you could defrost them and make chicken parmegiana; top them with shredded cheese and bacon bits; use them as is and dip them in bbq sauce or ranch; cut them up and add to an easy rice mix; etc. It's great you are planning ahead. Not sure if you have anything like it near you, but meal prep places are really great too. I've used them just to have some frozen meals already prepared for the days I am short on time or don't feel like cooking. Some will prepare them for you for free or a small fee, then you can pick them up and throw them in the freezer. Good luck!

You can make twice baked potatoes and freeze them individually for up to 2 months. I have started doing that and it's a great side item that you can easily pop in the oven to warm up! Good luck!

A nice thick chicken soup in small containers will freeze well and be so nourishing and taste so good with every food group in it. Put as many chicken pieces into the pot with water a bit of sliced onion, celery and carrots. let it simmer till chicken falling apart. Remove chicken and you can cook the pasta in it now or after putting the chicken meat back in freeze all that good stock and chix and veggies in containers. Of course you put your own seasoning in it and it is good to put some Wylers or some other brand of dried veggies in it to give it more taste. You will have a nourishing hot meal with the soothability and comfort of soup! Good Luck Rose

sounds like others have given wonderful advice. I hated for anything to taste like the freezer, so I bought one of those vacuum pack food machines at wal-mart and made some of my own breakfast biscuits. I bought some of the frozen biscuits at wal-mart and baked them a little over half the time it called for. Then split them. I scrambled a thin layer of eggs and cut them with a round biscuit cutter(for the round shape) I bought some thin sausage patties and cooked them and also the cheese slices I cut in a round shape. Then put them together for my own quick breakfast. when they cooled completely. i put each mornings serving size in a vacuum seal bag. when you get them out, put in a toaster oven for the remaining time for the biscuits to cook. If you do all these ingredients from scratch, it is a lot less money.