Individual freezer meals?

[MEmama]

Does anyone make their own individual sized freezer meals? I'm thinking things like enchiladas, lasagna, stuffed shells etc that can be cooked quickly. Are they par-baked or fully baked before freezing?

 

DS (12) is eating so much right now, it's getting be a real challenge to keep him full (or even not starving). He's in the middle of a growth spurt plus he's super active with his cross country and cycling teams. I'm not worried about what he eats as he's very conscious about proper nutrition (although I'd love to hear ideas!), I'm mostly just trying to come up with ways to get him enough fuel. Yesterday I stocked up on frozen meals at Trader Joes but that's not practical or preferred for the long term.

 

Ideas?

[medawyn]

I do package leftovers in individual servings for the freezer for either DH's lunch or me to grab on crazy days.   Usually these are out for several hours to defrost before they get reheated (microwave).  It works fine, but I don't always love the texture.

 

Frozen (homemade) burritos work really well, though.  I wrap them in foil and pop them in a gallon ziplock bag.  15-20 min in a 350 degree oven usually defrosts them, although rewrapping in a paper towel and microwaving can work also.

 

I also keep individual servings of beans and rice (separately) in the freezer.  These reheat very quickly and can be topped with cheese and avocado from the fridge.  The rice (or other grains) also comes in handy to serve with individual servings of chili or soup, also usually in my freezer.  These are definitely things that reheat quickly and well in the microwave.

[plansrme]

I don't have ideas for frozen meals, but I do have a 15 yo swimmer who eats constantly, or so it seems.  We say she eats like a hobbit:  second breakfast, second lunch, etc.  She is 5'2", 139 pounds, and 14% body fat, so she's not eating too much, but these are her between-meal staples:

1.  Chocolate milk.

2.  Pasta (although less of this than she used to).

3.  Cheese of any sort.  She eats a LOT of cheese.

4.  Scrambled eggs.  

5.  Turkey sandwiches.  This is actually what she eats for breakfast a lot of mornings.

6.  Fried rice.  I make it with extra eggs and make sure it has chicken in it.

7.  Greek yogurt.  There is only one brand and flavor she likes, so I keep that on hand.

8.  Luna bars.

9.  During the summer, she probably has two Chick-fil-A milkshakes/week because they train so hard and because she loves me more when I meet her after practice with a milkshake.  Food is her love language.

10.  Chick-fil-A nuggets.  No fries or the rest of the meal, just nuggets.

11.  And it pains me to admit this, but right now, she eats a lot of fried cheese.  I buy the big box from Sam's, and she bakes it in the oven.

 

Why, yes, there is a Chick-fil-A between her school and her pool.  Why do you ask? :tongue_smilie:

 

 

[MEmama]

I don't have ideas for frozen meals, but I do have a 15 yo swimmer who eats constantly, or so it seems. We say she eats like a hobbit: second breakfast, second lunch, etc. She is 5'2", 139 pounds, and 14% body fat, so she's not eating too much, but these are her between-meal staples:

1. Chocolate milk.

2. Pasta (although less of this than she used to).

3. Cheese of any sort. She eats a LOT of cheese.

4. Scrambled eggs.

5. Turkey sandwiches. This is actually what she eats for breakfast a lot of mornings.

6. Fried rice. I make it with extra eggs and make sure it has chicken in it.

7. Greek yogurt. There is only one brand and flavor she likes, so I keep that on hand.

8. Luna bars.

9. During the summer, she probably has two Chick-fil-A milkshakes/week because they train so hard and because she loves me more when I meet her after practice with a milkshake. Food is her love language.

10. Chick-fil-A nuggets. No fries or the rest of the meal, just nuggets.

11. And it pains me to admit this, but right now, she eats a lot of fried cheese. I buy the big box from Sam's, and she bakes it in the oven.

 

Why, yes, there is a Chick-fil-A between her school and her pool. Why do you ask? :tongue_smilie:

We do multiple meals here too. First breakfast is often a veggie and cheese stuffed omelette plus milk. Second breakfast could be a bagel with cream cheese and blueberries. Morning snack is likely yogurt and/or nuts and raisins.

 

Lunch used to be a sandwich or leftovers, but sandwiches have become mere snacks and there are never leftovers anymore. Yesterday he devoured an Amy's veggie pot pie (something like a whopping 480 calories) plus grapes and milk, and then he ate a Whole Foods quesadilla stuffed with cheese, tofu, black beans, corn and picked onions for an afternoon snack a couple hours later. They are massive and one easily lasts me two meals. After cycling training he was starved again and ate a huge dinner. He is unfillable!

 

He's 4'11 and weighs 75 pounds. There's not an ounce extra on his wiry frame! :)

[Lara in Colo]

I used to do this for DH, when I had leftovers after dinner (now I have a child that eats and eats and eats)

If making your own frozen dinners-- be sure to use pre frozen veggies because broccoli is SUPER gross if frozen fresh.

I too have a bottomless pit and I just keep lots of easy to grab foods around (and easy protein)

 

I have a large tupperware dish that has sections in it and I keep chopped veggies, meats and some fruit in there

 

boiled eggs

cooked ham (dh gets a huge one at Costco a few times a year and I cut it into chunks and freeze it-- one chunk is about a week)
apples, grapes, string cheese, fresh spinach, those pre-made salads from the store,

granola bars--- the "Perfect Bar" is great, but expensive http://perfectbar.com/products/

[MEmama]

I used to do this for DH, when I had leftovers after dinner (now I have a child that eats and eats and eats)

 

If making your own frozen dinners-- be sure to use pre frozen veggies because broccoli is SUPER gross if frozen fresh.

 

I too have a bottomless pit and I just keep lots of easy to grab foods around (and easy protein)

 

I have a large tupperware dish that has sections in it and I keep chopped veggies, meats and some fruit in there

 

boiled eggs

cooked ham (dh gets a huge one at Costco a few times a year and I cut it into chunks and freeze it-- one chunk is about a week)

apples, grapes, string cheese, fresh spinach, those pre-made salads from the store,

granola bars--- the "Perfect Bar" is great, but expensive http://perfectbar.com/products/

 

Good tip on the frozen broccoli! I usually keepa bag of frozen broccoli bits and pieces that I just add on to here and there until I have enough for a soup. But I puree the soup so the texture doesn't matter. I'll definitely keep that in mind!

 

Proteins are sort of an issue (maybe?) since we are (sort of) vegetarian, but he eats lots of cheese, drinks milk, loves eggs and fish, nuts of all kinds etc. Often before a big race he'll make himself a protein drink. I can't really imagine he doesn't get what he needs.

 

[MEmama]

Huh, weird formatting.

[Lady Florida.]

I'm considering doing this because dh's work schedule has changed plus ds has college classes that often go until after dinner.

 

In the past I've frozen burritos individually and I slice leftover lasagna into individual portions to freeze.

 

Some things I'm looking at doing or have done:

 

-I made pulled pork recently, and froze it in individual portions. 

 

-The above mentioned burritos as well as breakfast burritos

 

-Breakfast casserole - I make it in a 9x13 inch pan, then cut it into individual portions and freeze the portions.

 

-I'm going to make soup and freeze it in serving size containers

 

- I plan to season and shape hamburger patties to freeze. These won't be cooked. I'm thinking about making mini-meatloaves as well, also uncooked. 

 

-I'll do the same with pieces of chicken, which I usually marinate in family size portions.

 

I prefer prepared and ready to cook freezer meals over cooked and frozen. However, knowing dh and ds I'm going to need a combination. There are times when they'd eat fast food rather than cook something (even if it cooks quickly), so I'm going to need pre-cooked things they can just heat.

 

[SamanthaCarter]

Yes, just put a serving of your fully cooked entree in a sandwich sized storage container and pour in a serving's worth of frozen veggies next to it. Lots of things work, as evidenced in the previous replies. Some things I don't like because of texture issues are egg based dishes, dishes with white sauce, chunks of potato (mashed potatoes freeze fine), or cooked fish. 

[happypamama]

I do that with chicken breasts for DH, for whenever whenever we don't have leftovers for him to take for lunch. I bake them in some sort of salad dressing and then cut them in half, wrap them in plastic, and stick them in a big ziplock bag in the freezer. We usually have some leftover vegetables, so he puts them in a container and unwraps a chicken breast portion to put in with it.

 

(This thread is frightening me. I'm staring down four teenage boys.)