Freezer Meals

One of my Dinner Diva newsletters had an idea I just love. I may try this concept of making your own Freezer Meals. She specifically cited meatloaf. You make up the meatloaf, then freeze it raw. Defrost and cook when ready.

That's what stopped me from making make-ahead meals before. They were essentially frozen leftovers that always came out soggy and terrible. With the Dinner Diva concept, you leave it raw and ready to cook. No soggy meatloaf when you cook it, because it hasn't been cooked before.

Wow! What a revelation. I began to think of all my favorite recipes, many of which could be easily frozen in their ready-to-cook state, defrosted overnight, then popped into the oven or crock pot. My mind races ahead to soups and stews, casseroles, and even pre-preparing roasts/meats but adding the veggies at the last minute. Wow, now there's a marinade that really has a chance to work on a steak.

I'm so thrilled with this concept, I can barely stand to go to work today. I so want to play with this. Why not do it? Why not pull those meals out of the pantry, and make them ahead of time so they're ready to cook in a flash? I'm dancing in place, anxious to try this out.

If you have a suggestion, please comment. (Comments made in Facebook may be cross-posted to my blog so my Fat Frog Diary friends can see.) I also welcome recipes to post. What recipe would you do ahead and freeze?


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