A morning of cooking ahead from items in my freezer, fridge, and pantry, allowed me to take some mini freezer meals to my aging parents this week! A whole cooked chicken (marked down and cooked in the slow cooker the day I bought it) and some precooked ground beef made this a much faster task. Less than 2 hours including clean up.
First I got all of my ingredients out and ready to use.
Secondly I chose my music to cook by. Being a child of the 70's usually makes me turn to my Pandora Carpenters Radio Station. :)
A muffin tin and a mini loaf pan worked great for this project. I lined the mini loaf pan with foil since I was unsure if the frozen pot pie would pop out well, but that wouldn't have been necessary. I also sprayed the pans with cooking spray which was a help.
I made Lasagne Soup using this recipe without the ricotta cheese topping..it is SO GOOD! I did add 1/3 cup of grated parmesan cheese to the soup at the end, and it was the crowning touch. Easy, too. And some instant Idahoan Baby Red mashed potatoes to which I added a large dollop of plain Greek yogurt and topped with grated cheese and bacon pieces. I also made an easy Chicken Pot Pie (using a can of cream of chicken soup and 1.5 cups of cooked/cut up chicken) and put in the mini loaf pan.
I flash froze everything in my freezers (uncovered) and when solid, I was able to pop them out quite easily with the tip of a knife. Into freezer bags they went, on which I had written the name of the dish and any instructions. I baked crescent roll dough that I cut into rectangles, and packaged them in a separate bag before adding to the pot pie bag.
The crescent roll rectangles are ready to crisp in the toaster oven and add to the top of the heated pot pies.
I thought it would be handy for my mom to have some mashed potatoes cooked and ready to add to a meal.
Last but not least, I baked up a package of peanut butter cookie mix with added mini chocolate chips. My Dad's eyes brightened when I carried these in the house. He loves chocolate and peanut butter together. :)
This technique would be easy to use to freeze some of your family leftovers, for individual meals for yourself, your family, or your favorite elderly folk. Give it a try and let us know in the comments below!
Thanks for stopping by!
Blessings!
Donna
