About 4 1/2 years ago I discovered the wonderful world of making freezer meals! I was a new mom to Jack and pregnant with Lucy. I decided I should learn how to make fabulous freezer meals in case of those emergencies. Sometimes emergencies are in the form of an evening where I am just too tired (or lazy) to cook), while others are true emergencies like I (mom) is sick so there are wonderful freezer meals for Chad (my hubby) to make quickly! Knowing that I have a few meals already prepped and assembled also puts my anxious mind at ease.
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| Prepping the Freezer bags paired with their Recipes |
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| My favorite vegetable chopping knives! |
I hadn't made many freezer meals in the past year other than large batches of spaghetti sauce, meatloaf, and sometimes soups. Of course I did make a ham and cheese quiche using my leftover Christmas ham (see Holiday Happenings post) But my slow cooker meals are the ones I like the best! Most of them are a lot of freshly chopped vegetables with a sauce and a protein. The best part is you can dump them into the slow cooker (even from a frozen state) and just let them do their magic!
This past week I was down for the count with a horrible sinus infection. I had no interest in cooking dinner because I couldn't taste them anyways. My main goal last week was to breathe through my nose and to not go through an entire Kleenex box in one day. While I was resting one day I came across some new freezer mealswhen perusing Pinterest. So I decided to make 5 new freezer meals which come in extra handy during the winter (especially on weeks like last week). By Saturday I was feeling much better so I took the afternoon to prep 5 relatively healthy slow cooker freezer meals.
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| LOVE the look of freshly peeled carrots! |
I LOVE recipes from New Leaf Wellness because they use very little (if any) processed foods and LOTS of fresh vegetables. None of their freezer meals listed as healthy contain condensed soups, added sugar, or anything that you can't find in your local supermarket. They are simple and delicious.
Here are the five recipes I chose from their list.
1. Crockpot Red Pepper Chicken Recipe
Yields: 3 servings per pound of meat
Ingredients
- 1-2 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, fat trimmed
- 1-2 medium-sized red bell pepper, sliced
- 1 small yellow onion, sliced or diced
- 4 large garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Directions
- Combine all ingredients in crockpot and cook for 3-6 hours, or until chicken is cooked through and tender.
To Freeze and Cook Later
- Combine all ingredients in a gallon-sized plastic freezer bag. Remove as much air as possible and freeze for up to three months. To cook, thaw and add to crockpot. Cook on “low” setting for 3-4 hours in a 6-quart crockpot or 6-8 hours in a 4-quart crockpot.
Serve with brown rice and broccoli or a salad. You can also shred the chicken and serve on a tortilla with cheddar cheese. YUM.
2. Slow Cooker Cranberry Pork Roast
Yields: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 2.5 pound bone-in pork shoulder (sometimes labeled as a “Boston butt” or “pork butt”)
- 15oz can whole berry cranberry sauce (or half of this homemade cranberry sauce recipe)
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/4 cup dried minced onion
Directions
- Combine all ingredients in your slow cooker and cook on “low” setting for 6-8 hours or until pork shreds easily with a fork.
- Remove bones and shred meat.
To Freeze and Cook Later
Combine all ingredients in a gallon-sized plastic freezer bag and freeze for up to three months. When ready to eat, thaw overnight in refrigerator. Add to slow cooker and cook on “low” setting for 6-8 hours or until pork shreds easily with a fork. Remove bones and shred meat.
3. Slow Cooker Meatball Vegetable Soup
Yields: 8 servings
Ingredients
- 1 pound small meatballs (store bought or homemade)
- 24oz jar of pasta sauce (about 2.5 cups)
- 4 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 1 pound carrots, peeled and chopped
- 3 cups green beans, ends cut off and cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 medium-sized zucchini, ends cut off and cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 medium-sized yellow onion, diced (about 1 cup)
Directions
- Combine all ingredients in slow cooker.
- Cover, and cook on “low” for 8 hours or until veggies are soft.
To Freeze and Cook Later
Combine all ingredients (except chicken broth) in a gallon-sized plastic freezer bag. Remove as much air as possible, seal, and freeze for up to three months. When ready to cook, thaw in the refrigerator overnight and add to slow cooker with chicken broth. Cook on “low” setting for 8 hours or until veggies are soft.
Slow Cooker Meatball Veggie Soup (link)
4. Make Ahead Freezer Chicken Fajitas
Yields: 6 servings if you use two pounds of chicken
Ingredients
- 1-2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips
- 3 medium-sized sweet bell peppers (I like a mix of red, orange, and yellow), sliced
- 1 large sweet yellow onion, sliced
- 2 large cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon honey
- The juice from 1 lime
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
To Freeze and Cook Later
- Combine all ingredients in a gallon-sized plastic freezer bag and freeze for up to three months.
- When ready to eat, thaw overnight in the refrigerator (or in warm water, if you forget).
- Cook in large pan on stovetop for 10-15 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and peppers are tender.
Serve on tortillas or rice with your favorite fajitas toppings, like shredded cheese, salsa, and guacamole.
5. Slow Cooker Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Yields: 6 servings
Ingredients
- 2 pounds of ground chicken (you can also substitute ground beef or ground turkey when they’re on sale at the grocery store)
- 1 medium-sized red bell pepper, diced
- 2 large carrots, grated (1 cup)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Directions
- Add all ingredients to your slow cooker and cook on “low” setting for 4-6 hours or until chicken is tender.
- Break apart chicken and serve.
To Freeze
Add all ingredients to a gallon-sized plastic freezer bag. Remove as much air as possible, seal, and freeze for up to three months. Thaw in refrigerator overnight and then cook in slow cooker for 4-6 hours on “low” setting. Break apart chicken and spoon onto lettuce.
Serve on big pieces of iceberg or Boston bibb lettuce. YUM.
FINAL PRODUCTS! 5 finished freezer meals!
Course: Dinner
