Pre-Baby Freezer Meals
How to Make Pre-Baby Freezer Meals
When I was pregnant with Weston, I had every intention of making freezer meals for after he was born. Then, 36 weeks rolled around and I could barely get off the couch (hello nearly 10 pound baby)! This time, I’m feeling so much better and stuck with my plan of making pre-baby freezer meals. I have to say I’m surprised at how easy it was and how quickly I got them done (even with a toddler “helping” me). I made eight dinners in two hours for less than $100. Here’s how I did it!
Make a List
The first thing I did was make a list of the meals I wanted to make. To be honest, I was kind of intimidated by the whole thing, so I stuck with a lot of my own go-to crock-pot meals. I also got a couple recipes out of an e-book called “Healing Freezer Meals for Postpartum and Breastfeeding”. The book is super helpful, full of great tips, recipes, and ideas for leftovers.
Once I had my list of dinners, I made my grocery list. I made sure to include gallon sized Ziploc bags and disposable pans on my list. I combined this grocery trip with my normal weekly trip, so I was shocked to see that my total bill was only $116. *Note: Part of the reason my total was so low is because we have a deep freezer full of deer meat. I planned on using deer meat for some of the freezer meals and some of our regular meals.
RELATED: THE POSTPARTUM HANDBOOK – A 4TH TRIMESTER GUIDE BY MOMS FOR MOMS
Give Yourself a Full Morning or Afternoon
Although it only took me two hours, it could easily take a little longer. Give yourself a plenty of time so that you don’t feel rushed or stressed out over it. If you have the opportunity to do it kid-free, that’s even better. I had “help” from Weston, which definitely slowed things down.
Start with a Clean Space
I made sure all the dishes were done and my counter tops were clean. I knew I needed all the space I could get and wanted to make sure everything was clean and organized before I got started.
Label your Ziploc Bags
I pulled out enough Ziploc bags for all the freezer meals and labeled them with what I was making and their ingredients. This made things so much easier as I was chopping vegetables. I could chop all the carrots at once and just throw them in the bags that said “carrots” on them (and so on).
Use a Garbage Bowl
If you’ve ever watched Rachel Ray, you’ve probably seen her put a big bowl on her counter top for garbage. When it gets full, she dumps it out and starts over. I did this as I prepped the pre-baby freezer meals and it saved me a ton of trips to garbage can and kept my prep space clean.
Cut One Vegetable at a Time (and Save the Onions for Last)
Once I was ready to start slicing and dicing, I started with the veggies and cut one at a time. I looked at all the bags that needed celery, and chopped up enough celery for all of them. I looked at all the bags that needed carrots, and chopped up enough carrots for all of them (you get the idea, right?). I made sure to save the onions for last because I needed so many of them and I find them brutal to chop. I wanted to save my eyes for as long as possible. It also speeds things up if you have one of these flexible cutting boards so that you can slide the veggies right into the bag or one of these Rachel Ray scrape shovels.
Cut your Protein Last
I cut my protein very last so that I could use one cutting board the whole time. There really wasn’t much cutting that needed to be done, but I did slice some of the fat off the chicken.
Lay your Pre-Baby Freezer Meals Flat to Freeze
Once I was done, I squeezed all the air out of the bags, and laid them flat in the freezer to save space.
My Pre-Baby Freezer Meals
I’m going to be honest here and remind you that I’m a mom blogger, not a food blogger. I don’t write recipes, and I’m not very good at it. I’m more of a “little bit of this and a little bit of that” type of cook. If you can use these recipes, great! If not, I’ve linked to someone a little more professional as well.
French Dip Sandwiches
In a Ziploc Bag add:
6 white onions, sliced
1 roast (I used deer roast, you can use beef roast)
1 packet of French onion soup mix
When you’re ready to eat:
Thaw the bag overnight. Dump it into a crockpot with 1 cup of Soy Sauce and 1 cup of beef broth. Cook on high until onions are tender and the roast can be easily shredded. Serve on hoagie buns with provolone cheese.
You could also try this recipe.
Chicken Noodle Soup
In a Ziploc bag add:
2 large carrots, chopped
3 stalks of celery, chopped
1 large onion, diced
2 cans of cream of chicken soup
2 chicken breasts
When you’re ready to eat:
Thaw the bag over night. Dump it in the crockpot and add 4-5 cups of chicken broth and season to your liking (I use Italian seasoning). Cook on high until veggies are tender and chicken is easily shredded. Serve over egg noodles.
You could also try this recipe.
Chicken Pot Pie
In a Ziploc bag add:
1 bag of frozen peas, corn, green beans, and carrots mix
1 large potato, chopped
1 large onion, chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
2 chicken breasts
When you’re ready to eat:
Thaw the bag over night. Dump it into the crock pot and add 4-5 cups of chicken broth and season to your liking. Cook on high until veggies are tender and chicken is easily shredded. In a separate bowl, wisk together 2 tablespoons of corn starch and 2 tablespoons of the soup broth. Add the cornstarch mixture to the crockpot and stir until thickened (add more cornstarch as needed). Serve with a biscuit on top.
You could also try this recipe.
Pot Roast
In a Ziploc bag add:
2 large potatoes, chopped
3 large carrots, chopped
2 large onions, chopped
1 roast (I used deer roast, but you can use beef roast)
1 packet of brown gravy mix
When you’re ready to eat:
Thaw the bag over night. Dump into the crockpot and add about 2 cups of beef broth (until most of the roast and veggies are covered). Add garlic and season to your liking. Cook on high until veggies are tender and the roast is easily shredded.
You could also try this recipe.
Beef Stew
In a Ziploc bag add:
2 large potatoes, chopped
3 large carrots, chopped
2 large onions, chopped
2 large stalks of celery, chopped
1 cup of barley
1 roast (I used deer roast, but you can use beef roast)
When you’re ready to eat:
Thaw the bag over night. Dump into the crockpot and add 4-5 cups of beef broth. Cook on high until Cook on high until veggies are tender and the roast is easily shredded. In a separate bowl, wisk together 2 tablespoons of corn starch and 2 tablespoons of the soup broth. Add the cornstarch mixture to the crockpot and stir until thickened (add more cornstarch as needed).
You could also try this recipe.
Chicken Tortilla Soup
In a Ziplock bag add:
2 jars of salsa
1 can of corn
1 can of black beans
2 chicken breasts
When you’re ready to eat:
Thaw the bag over night. Dump into the crockpot and add 2-3 cups of chicken broth. Cook on high until the chicken is easily shredded. Serve over tortilla chips and top with cheese, sour cream, and jalapenos.
You could also try this recipe
Chicken Verde
I got this recipe from “Healing Freezer Meals for Postpartum and Breastfeeding”. I can’t give her recipes away, but I encourage you to check out the book for yourself! I also wanted to make the Thai Coconut Chicken from this book, but I forgot a major ingredient (coconut milk) when I was at the store.
Lasagna
Okay, full disclosure here… my lasagna isn’t hard to make, but I have no idea about the measurements on anything and I’d hate to steer you in the wrong direction. This recipe from About a Mom is very similar to mine and has great reviews!
Breakfast
I also knew I wanted to have an easy breakfast on hand. The mornings are always chaotic at our house and sometimes I look at the clock and realize it’s 11AM and I haven’t even had breakfast. Because I plan on nursing, I just got a canister of Milk Dust protein powder. It’s packed with ingredients that are great for lactation and weight loss. I’m awful at getting in enough protein throughout the day (especially when I’m breastfeeding because I just want all the carbs), so this was a quick and easy solution for me!
Overall, making pre-baby freezer meals was cheaper and quicker than I ever expected it to be. This was officially the last thing on my third trimester to do list so now all I have to do is sit back, relax, and wait for baby Elliott!
Related:
- 8 Genius Ways to Prepare your Home for Baby
- How to Make a Postpartum Care Kit
- 5 Safe and Natural Ways to Induce Labor
Easy Crock-Pot Recipes for Postpartum
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