Getting ready for bub. What can you freeze?

[[M]umma[M]ia]

hey girls!

I have decided to start organising things for bubs arrival. I like to sit down with DP every night to a nice home cooked meal and i know when bubs here that might not always be the case. So im after things that can be frozen in containers and defrosted for a chuck together sorta meal when bubs here.
I have thought of spaghetti sauce coz then we just have to cook some pasta and defrost and reheat the sauce. PRESTO!
I have also thought about chow mien as u can easily defrost that and its got lots of vegie goodness in it.
Dp is quite a fussy eater so i dont want to do too many soups or stews if i can avoid it.

any ideas??

[squidipa]

curries all different flavors and chili concarnie, also try chicken parmajana. I am still eating he frozen food i made

[sangie]

Yep pasta sauce is a great one! Chow mein is also good but I couldn't eat it as I was bf and cabbage made DD super windy and cranky.

Other things that I did were:
Quiche
Crumbed chicken or beef schnitzel
Meatballs
Casserole
Soups
Shepherds Pie
Lasagne
Spinach and ricotta cannelloni
Cakes/muffins for visitors

Good idea to stock up on frozen vegies too - quick and easy! They were a godsend for me in the first few weeks. We also used the slow cooker quite a lot in the early days to cook roasts etc - so easy for DH or myself to turn it on in the morning and then dinner would take care of itself.

[Kazbah]

When you do your spag bol sauce, mix it in with some pasta for a pasta bake - cause sometimes I found it just too hard to cook pasta.

Stock up on the alfoil contianers to freeze your meals in - one serve per container. I would cook my lasagne etc and then cut into serves & freeze, with shepards' pie I'd cook/freeze individually. A hint is to put a thin layer of butter on the top of any meals like that if you're going to reheat in the oven (not microwave) as it stops them drying out.

With casseroles, I got the sausage casserole recipe from the slow cooker thread here and I would get my snags and all the ingredients (sliced onions, tomato tins, etc) and freeze them all chopped and ready to cook. Then in the slow cooker in the morning and dinner at night. Also get someone to buy you a rice cooker - best thing when you're after stuff to serve casseroles etc with.

Fried rice is a good one.

[[M]umma[M]ia]

thanks girls! they are some great ideas and most i didnt even think of.

thanks heaps

[Dasharity]

I make mince pastries that freeze realy well.
Just cook up some mince as if you were going to make a pie and add some vegies, i usually put in carrot, peas and corn but add what ever you like, then take a pampas puff pastry sheet cut it in half and place or a tray, place 3-4 tablespoons of the mince on one half of the pastry leaving enough room to seal the pastry around the edges, rub the edges with a bit of milk to help it stick and fold the top over and press edges with the back of a fork and ***** the top a few times, cook at 220 digrees until puffed and golden.

I can usually get 8-10 out of a batch of 500gm mince.

To reheat place in microwave and cook until thawed and hot then places a hot oven to crissp up.

It is best to use cooled mince but i usually have mine hot you just have to work quickly and have the pastry already on the tray in position cause if the mince it hot and you try to move it it will fall through the bottom

[[M]umma[M]ia]

thanks heaps.. just reminded me also that i can make sausage rolls too... im gathering u can freeze them..