Freezer Frustration?

A few years ago we purchased a freezer to have the extra space to stock up on meat and veggies...and pizzas! My wonderful husband was insistent that we purchase a chest freezer because they are more energy efficient. I really had no opinion at the time, so I agreed energy efficiency was a good selling point. HOWEVER, I soon came to realize that chest freezers are hard organize!! If the one freezer was devoted to one particular item, it wouldn't be such a problem. I don't know too many people that have this luxury, but if you do...I am jealous. 

Does your freezer look something like this??

BEFORE:

I searched the internet for ideas to get this freezer in some kind of order. After getting an idea that I needed some sort of stackable bucket, the shopping began. I finally found a milk crate type container at my local Wal Mart...imagine that! 

I designated meat to one crate, pre-made items to another, and veggies to the last one. This makes getting in the freezer much EASIER...no more digging to try and get items. All I have to do now is move the top crate to reach items stored on the bottom of the freezer. I did keep the two small baskets that came with the freezer as well. The small baskets only allowed me to use 3 of the 4 crates I had purchased, but do not worry, the fourth crate got put to use holding extra Mason jars and lids. My freezer has a small shelf to the left side...I didn't get a picture of it...the dimensions didn't allow for two crates on the bottom, so I utilized this small space by placing a gallon of milk and a pre-packaged item there.

AFTER:

Freezer Frustration is gone! The first few days, I would find reasons to go get an item out of the freezer just so I could admire the organization. It has made grocery shopping and meal planning easier as well because I can actually see what we already have on hand. What have you done to help organize your freezer? 

Thanks for stopping by and Happy Organizing!

Make Once, Freeze Many

 

 
My family likes to have this lasagna with a green salad and garlic bread if we are really hungry! It is super EASY to make and it makes A LOT. The original recipe says it makes 2-9x13 pans of lasagna, each having a serving for 12. For our family of 3, a 9x13 pan of lasagna is too much, so I started making it in 8x8 pans. This makes 3-4 lasagnas, so time spent making this is VERY PRODUCTIVE.  I have also made this as one HUGE lasagna for family and friend gatherings and it is always a hit. I sometimes get a little over zealous with the meat sauce and run out...NO PROBLEM...just make lasagna rolls to freeze. The lasagna rolls just need marina sauce over them before baking.   

THE RECIPE:
1-16 oz pkg lasagna noodles
3 lbs. ground beef
3-26 oz jars spaghetti sauce 
2 lightly beaten eggs
1 1/2 lbs ricotta cheese (I use the entire 2 lb container)
6 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (again, I use the entire 8 cup bag)
1 T. dried parsley flakes
1 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese 

• Cook noodles according to package directions.
• Brown meat until no longer pink and drain. Rinsing the meat with hot water will help remove some of the extra fat. Add spaghetti sauce and set aside.
• In another bowl, combine eggs, ricotta cheese, 4-5 cups or handfuls of mozzarella, parsley, salt and pepper. Get your hands messy in this step to really blend all of the ingredients together.
• Drain the noodles. Spray pans with Pam to help prevent sticking. Spread 1 to 1 1/2 cups meat sauce in each pan. Layer 3 noodles...cutting them in half for smaller pans...1 cup ricotta mixture, then 1 1/2 cups meat sauce. Repeat layers twice. Top with mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
• Cover lasagnas for the freezer with saran wrap or something similar to seal the edges, then cover with foil. Use a Sharpie to write Lasagna and the date on the foil. I put each lasagna on a cookie sheet, stack the cookie sheets in the freezer until lasagnas are good and frozen, then remove the cookie sheets and stack them up. These will stay good for about 3 months.
• Cover tonight's lasagna with foil and bake at 375* for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake 10 more minutes or until really bubbly. Let it stand for about 10 minutes before cutting.
• TO USE FROZEN LASAGNA:  Thaw in refrigerator overnight. Take out of fridge about 30 minutes before baking. Cover and bake at 375* for 60-70 minutes or until heated through. Uncover, bake 10 more minutes or until really bubbly.

Hope this recipe helps you get your freezer stocked for those busy days, days you just don't feel like cooking, and to help keep you and your family healthy and happy!

Thanks for stopping by...Happy Cooking :)

                                                               

On Sale and Stocking Up

When strawberries go on sale for BOGO, how can you resist?? As usual with strawberries from the grocery store, they rarely last more than a few days in the fridge before they start to get moldy or go bad in general. We LOVE strawberry banana smoothies, so this is the perfect opportunity to put these in the freezer for future use. Freezing strawberries is EXTREMELY easy. 

• cut off the top leafy part of the berry...I didn't take time to actually hull the berries because it gets blended up and not a problem for smoothies
• cut berries in half or quarters
• rinse berries...a salad spinner can be used to remove the extra moisture. If you don't have a salad spinner,I would recommend you invest in one. Greatest invention EVER! OR you can pat the berries in a paper towel to get the extra moisture off of them.
• place wax paper on a baking sheet and arrange a single layer of the berries...I do this just to make it easier to get the berries off of the pan.
• place in freezer for a few hours...you can put berries into bags not frozen, but you may end up with a big glob. Freezing them first helps them to not stick together and easier for blending.
• once frozen, the berries can go into some sort of freezer storage...ziploc, freezer containers, or vacuum sealed. Leaving the berries on the counter while you prepare bags makes it easier to get them off of the wax paper. We purchased a Food Saver a year ago and I LOVE IT!! I precut the bag size needed for individual servings, wrote berries and the date, and then sealed them for the freezer! 

My favorite classic smoothie recipe is quick and simple!

1 cup orange juice (or juice of 2 fresh squeezed oranges)
1-2 frozen bananas (depends on the size of banana...as you can see in the pic, I freeze them in the peel and use a knife to remove ends and peel when ready to use them)
1 pkg of frozen strawberries

Blend thoroughly and ENJOY!

Hope this was useful...thanks for stopping by and happy smoothie making :)