Freezer cooking for the Holidays

Last year was the first time I intentionally made something ahead of time for all our holiday parties. I had gotten a great deal on frozen hash browns and cheese so I made up 8 pans of cheesy potatoes. I brought them to various parties as my "dish to pass" and also served them for Christmas dinner at our house which helped with dinner prep immensely! This year I made three different recipes including a brand new one. I had to make the cheesy potatoes again who doesn't love those? I also made a baked bean dish with lots of different hearty beans, and an apples and cheddar dish that the recipe promised could be served along side the meal or as a dessert. I figure I have all my bases covered depending on what I am asked to bring to a gathering. The main goal being simplifying and enjoying the holidays more!

If you are new to the idea of freezer cooking and wondering "why"....
1) Being able to pull something out of the freezer for a weeknight dinner when you have been going all day means you don't have to pick up a pizza or eat cereal for dinner!
2) Doing all the prep work at once means fewer messes to clean up. If you have to chop two onions whats the difference in chopping six?
3) Simplifying the Holidays by spending time with family and not in the kitchen is *priceless*.

Above: Cheesy Hashbrown mixture into gallon bags and flattened for easy storage in the freezer. Cheese topping is separate since you will pour your potatoes into your dish and top with the cheese. If you like you can put the topping into a larger bag with the mix. I personally keep all the "toppings" for various dishes in one spot in my freezer.

These Baked Beans are delicious and a hearty addition to any Holiday meal. I have never added the soy crumbles the recipe calls for, they don't seem to be missing it either!  Put theses into freezer bags or containers for the serving size you like. 

Apples and Cheddar recipe comes from my most used cookbook, "Fix Freeze Feast" So go buy it you won't regret it!
Again this recipe had a topping so I put that all into a separate bag. Can be used for a side dish or as a dessert.



I admit I was skeptical about these Butterhorn Rolls Crystal from "Money Saving Mom" (if you aren't already a subscriber to her emails please do!) promised you could freeze these uncooked then thaw and bake them later.... Let me tell you it worked! They taste ah.mazing! You can pull out just what you need instead of making an entire tube of crescent rolls which don't taste near as great as these! So again no slaving in the kitchen kneading bread the day of the party you can have fresh baked rolls with 2 mins of active prep time!

Favorite Things November 2013

Favorite Things Post #1 November 2013

One of my favorite bloggers Andrea Dekker does this, and I thought it was a neat way to give our favorite products some recognition! So here  goes ;)


#1 Felicity Slimming Cami 

I have been wearing these since day one with our second. He is now 13 months and the two I had from the start start are in as good of shape as the newer ones I've boughten recently. I do have one in white but for obvious reasons the black ones look newer longer. Maybe it's just me though I have problems keeping my whites from becoming dingy! These camis are great at giving you the slimming look, not being bulky and providing enough support to wear as a bra sometimes too! I love that when I pull up my shirt to nurse the cami still covers my stomach as well! So worth the $25 at target stores.

#2 Squooshi Sipn Combo pack

These were $18.99 for a pack of two of the reusable food pouches and two of the Sip'n caps. I went crazy with the canned applesauce this fall and my boys love those applesauce pouches so I figure this could save us oodles of moolah. :) What I love about these particular pouches: they open from the bottom so they are much easier to clean. They come with the normal hard plastic tops similar to the store bought pouches.  This particular set also came with two of the Sip'n caps with flow control (which basically means non-spill, your child has to suck on it in order for it to come out). My one year old immediately got the hang of it and that's saying a lot coming from a kiddo who refused to ever take a bottle and is just now getting okay with sippy cups. :) I love that I can control what goes into our pouches, and put less trash into the landfill too!

After using these 4.5oz. pouches I will go back and purchase the smaller 2.5oz packages.  The 1yr old couldn't finish the larger size pouch and once it gets to the bottom it's hard for him to realize how to "squeeze" the rest up. I actually end up rolling up the bottom and putting a clothes pin on it to hold it in place. :) My 3-year old has no problem with the 4.5oz size. Well worth the money spent!

#3 Cloth Wipes

Shameless plug here...:) I purchased about 12 of these when we first started cloth diapering N back in 2010 and we are still using those original 12 (along with about 30 more....).  I actually took over making these particular wipes for our local cloth diaper store a few months back. They are the perfect size to fold in half and fit into your regular wipes tub to use in place of throw-away wipes. Also great for bathtime and meal-time cleanups. My absolute fave use though is in place of tissues! My boys hardly ever get those red raw noses when we are using these super soft organic cotton sherpa wipes on them.  You know with kleenex your fingers tend to get wet after wiping a runny nose? (GROSS I know!) never happens with these babies! And obviously they are super cute! ;) Like I said our original dozen are still in great shape after 3 years of use! I sell them on my facebook page for $1 each. (The cloth diaper store marks them up to about $1.60 each).

#4 Thatsa Bowl

I have an older style pink Thatsa Bowl that I use All.the.time. I'm having a Tupperware show this month so that I can purchase the ThatsaMega Bowl! I quite obsessively frequently freezer cook and can foods and use my bowl almost every time. It's necessary when working with such large quantities of food. It also works great for making chex mix or any other snack mix and travels well due to the included lid. My bowl is so old it doesn't have the nifty handle they do now which I can see being a big help in carrying and storing the bowl. I admit I will have to buy a new thatsa bowl as well so they can match.... :)

#5 Pressure Canner I just purchased this a few months ago and have already used it numerous times! The thought of pressure canning used to be scary until a friend helped ease me into the idea.  I love this particular canner because you can also use it as a hot water bath and a pressure cooker. You can even stack your jars 2 high! It has a pressure regulator so no worries of it "blowing up" as my grandpa warned me of. ;) 

So far I have used it to can salsa, spaghetti sauce, applesauce (regular and strawberry), pinto and kidney beans, salsa verde, and grape juice! The instruction booklet that comes along with it is very helpful and includes all the recipes you need to get started. By purchasing through the amazon link provided you save 25% off the regular price as well! Score!