Freeze Ahead Lunch?

     One common time-saving strategy for preparing healthy dinners is the "Make and Freeze."  Organized, busy families might spend Sunday afternoon cooking and baking in order to freeze ahead meals for a later date.  Others double, or triple!, a recipe during the week and freeze the extras.  You can find helpful tips at Busycooks.about.com, or check-out the summary below for more info:

Freeze Ahead Dinners

1.  Wrap food in microwave-safe plastic wrap to freeze.  Thaw in the microwave!

2.  Freeze in small, thin portions.  Food thaws faster!

3.  No time to premake the casserole?
     Freeze ingredients in individual packets - chicken, vegetables, cheese, - with instructions!

4.  Line casserole dishes with heavy duty foil before assembling.
     Fill casserole dishes.  Freeze.
     Remove foil wrapped frozen food and seal in ziplock heavy duty freezer bag.
     Place back into original container to thaw and bake.

5.  Freeze only top quality foods.  Once a lousy meal = twice a lousy meal.

Freeze Ahead Lunches!

     A creative lunch twist on the "Make and Freeze" dinner solution is to - FREEZE SANDWICHES!  It is important to note that this doesn't work for ALL sandwiches, but the TOP FIVE FREEZABLE SANDWICHES, according to busycooks.about.com are:
1.  Chicken Pesto,
2.  Peanut Butter Granola,
3.  Ham Salad Wraps,
4.  Freeze Ahead Tuna, and
5.  Tex Mex Pita.

     Kathy Peel, author of, Busy Mom's Guide to a Happy Organized Home advises freezing meat sandwiches and writes "If you are really rushed most mornings, make sandwiches for school lunches on Sunday.  Label and freeze each one in a zipper bag.  Kids can choose a sandwich each morning, then add fruit, chips, or vegetable sticks.  An ice pack or frozen box of juice keeps the sandwich cold until noon." 

Now, if we could just freeze TIME in a bottle :) 


(This week's posts are dedicated to a friend who finds it impossible to find time to make dinner.  She works full-time and has several kids.  “Impossible only means that you haven't found the solution yet.”)