Make ahead recipes

Hi guys. Looking for some ideas of things which can be made ahead-either fully cooked, freeze and just reheat-or prepared ahead and frozen to cook later. I don't want anything that has much cooking to do at all afterward, other than just throwing it in the oven or microwave. I did a huge meatloaf the other day, and froze half of it--uncooked. I've never done that before, so I have no idea how that will turn out. I also will probably make some homemade spaghetti sauce with lots of meat, onions and peppers and fresh basil. I have some chicken noodle soup that I made last week, already in the freezer. Other suggestions??

Lasagne in foil pans freezes well, ucooked, just thaw
(do not dethaw LOL!) and cook in the oven... 350F... til bubbling hot in the center...

also, meatballs in chili sauce and grape jam (mix 50/50) freeze well for apps...just thaw and then nuke...

Itallian Rice Balls (pre-cooked), again thaw & just re-heat in the nuke...

..actually, it's UNthaw. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Smile.gif" alt="" /> Didn't think about lasagna. That's a good suggestion. What the heck are Italian rice balls?

Itallian Rice Balls

They are really tasty!
I get them, the size of a softball, filled with a ground meat mixture, from a local Itallian Place... for $3.50 each...
Have 4 in the freezer now...

Chili freezes well and is very easily heated afterwards. Also any kind of homemade soup is a quick and easy dish served with some nice fresh bread. Most casseroles can be frozen and heated also.

Yes, I was thinking about chili, but it's a bit warm here in Florida now.. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Smile.gif" alt="" /> Probably will do that though.

Huhm, call me crazy, that doesn't look good to me..

OH... believe me! They are excellent! serve topped with a good marinara sauce and shredded Mozzarella!

they don't have rice balls in florida?? if you're ever in brooklyn, tommaso serves some of the best. to answer your question, from someone who was on a prepare and freeze kick for awhile, there are so many options! meatloaf freezes nicely, by the way. i've marinaded meat and froze it, burritos, chili,... you name it. i have a recipe for whole chicken that you prepare (minimal prep), freeze, and put directly into the slow cooker when you're ready to cook it. very tasty. what types of recipes are you looking for?

We make a huge batch of onion soup and freeze in dinner size batches - all you need to do is thaw, reheat, and throw in the oven with toasted french loaf slices and some Gruyere cheese on top - easy dinner with a side salad!

I also make huge batches of lazy cabbage rolls in the dutch oven and freeze in single servings for a quick reheat later.

Carol, there are a bunch of good recipes on this site, I have made the chicken and potato casserole, using O'brien potatos instead of onions and peppers. It is easy and good
http://busycooks.about.com/od/makeaheadrecipes/a/freezecasserole.htm

Thanks so much for that website! I took a quick look there now and will definitely make more time to check it out later!

CS--we lived in Northern Virginia for 30 years before and I don't remember rice balls there either, but I may not have been looking for them. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Smile.gif" alt="" /> Don't know what I'm looking for specifically, although probably casseroles. Thanks to Ellen for posting that link.

I lived in MA for 33 years before moving to SC & NC and I'd never heard of rice balls until now either! But I love Italian anything so I certainly plan to check them out

Carol, if you have a Food Saver... the possibilities are endless!

Actually, I don't. We have looked at them several times and just never done it. We live 20 miles from any kind of a grocery store, so we freeze almost all our meats and a lot of other stuff, so we go through a TON of freezer bags...

Judging from the amount of freezing you do... you really should consider getting one...
they also save a lot of room in the freezer... cause there is NO air in the bags...
I love the one we have... annie swears by hers...

During corn season on LI, which is now, I'll partially cook fresh corn, cut it off the cob, and freeze dinner sized portions...
It will last til Corn Season next year...
also great for freezing fresh fish... package fillets individually and freeze... will also last a year...

Peconic, how do you cook the corn? Do you thaw it first? Nuke it? Love corn and it is plentiful right now at 5/1.00 - would love to freeze it and have it all winter.
Thanks,
Ellen

Carol, I am not a cook but love to try new recipes, I have found the RSS feeds to be very beneficial, either, Google, Yahoo or my feed page, I see new recipes every day that I would like to try, if you are not doing RSS feed, do try it out - it is NOT the same as favorites, or bookmarks, you see new listings each day.
Ellen

lasagna freezes nicely also. i like ina garten's turkey lasagna recipe and since there's just two of us there's always plenty of leftovers that i throw in the freezer in 2 serving size portions.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/turkey-lasagna-recipe/index.html

also, if you're interested in a food saver, let me know. we have one that is practically brand new (used once). i'll send it to you if you cover shipping costs.

Seriously, would love to have that food saver, if you're serious!! Send me a PM if so.

You will love it Carol. I gave mine to my son when I left CT and I do miss it.

Looking forward to trying it out!

We often make a big batch of Ham and Corn Chowder and freeze in zip-loc bags (Quart or Gallon size) Very easy recipe, I often make it the day after we've cooked a ham for dinner. The recipe below calls for half-and-half, but milk is a fine substitute and lower in fat. I usually multiply all portions X6 except butter- just multiply that by 5. It just seems like a lot of butter!

1/2 cup coarsely chopped onion
1/2 cup butter
1 (17 oz) can cream style corn
1/2 cup half and half
1 cup chopped cooked ham
salt and pepper
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup shredded carrots

Saute onion and celery with butter in Dutch oven until tender. Add remaining ingredients. Cook over low heat until heated. Do not boil. Yield: 4 cups

Wow, that looks good!!! Seems like a lot of corn though..

I am an on again, off again, once a month cooking fan. The theory... you cook like crazy for one weekend and then just have to pop a dish into the oven and make a salad or side. Love it! The con - at this point, freezer space (so doing this modified - not for the whole month, but for about 10 days). I used to have a cookbook that led me through the process, but recently I ran across this great website! They have put together everything you will need from recipes to shopping lists to labels to direction on cooking day for one or two people. It is an awesome site!

http://onceamonthmom.com/

Carol,

I'm guessing this question was asked for a particular reason and for a particular time so I'm probably a day late and a dollar short on the suggestion but among the things I make and freeze ahead, one we've always enjoyed is chicken cordon bleu.

The mess is the same whether you're making portions for two or ten and it freezes very well. Years ago I used to cook this completely and freeze to take to SXM as an easy eat-in-night supper as it reheats easily in oven or microwave. You can reheat and serve it with a packet of chicken gravy made with a teaspoon of lemon juice and a side of rice or even better, when you're in that cooking mode, consider making a batch of your favorite double stuffed baked potatoes. They freeze and reheat beautifully, too, and voila - an instant but very enjoyable reheat meal.

pat, I love to make chicken cordon bleu also!
and yes, they do freeze beautifully!
I like to use Gruyere cheese and Prosciutto in mine!

Thank you for sharing that site <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" />

The Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins look and the recipe ingredients sound delicious.

Brian,

An equally nice alternative to ham/prosciutto is either broccoli (SP?)or crabmeat with the cheese of your choice, the latter being just as good as a hot entree or as a left-over sliced and served cold on a salad plate of greens, fresh tomato and/or seasonal fruits.

pat,
I love it made with broccoli! (with cream cheese & mascarpone mixed 1/2 & 1/2)!!!
Not so keen on mixing crab meat with other meats...
I like crab by itself... crabcakes, stuffed mushrooms, etc...

Pat--you are correct, on both counts. Since we have just received a food saver, courtesy of the generosity of another TTOL member <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Thumbsup.gif" alt="" />, we will definitely be trying to do some more cooking ahead though, in future.

hopefully it's still functional or that ttol member would feel badly about it. <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Blush.gif" alt="" />

pat- you just reminded me about an old recipe i used to make: chicken stuffed with cheese and sundried tomatoes. i may just have to dig up that recipe.

L,

I'm betting it will freeze just as nicely as those other things mentioned. Isn't it amazing how we loved those things at a point and time and them lost track of them? But oh, how enjoyable when we resurrect them and get to enjoy them all over again? Enjoy, my friend, enjoy!!

Me, too, but opening a can - it has to be a can because, heaven forbid, no way would I waste fresh - of crabmeat and mixing it lightly as a salad and using it in the chicken does do nicely. Try it sometime - you may be pleasantly surprised.....or not! <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/handshake.gif" alt="" />

And now that I'm thinking about it, I bet that crabmeat stuffing we make for the mushrooms would be great, too!

Thanks so much! We will hopefully try it out today. Please do post the recipe for the chicken if you find it, as it definitely sounds interesting!

Here's an old family recipe that everyone loves! Don't let the name fool you...

Sour Noodle Bake

1-16 oz. pkg. wide noodles
1 lb. ground beef
1 red onion, chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, chopped
Dash of garlic powder, season salt and black pepper
1-15 oz. can tomato sauce
1-1/2 c. cottage cheese
1 c. sour cream
1 sm. can black olives

While you wide noodles are boiling, brown the ground beef with the chopped red onion, chopped yellow bell pepper, garlic pepper, season salt and pepper. Then drained and add the can of tomato sauce, cottage cheese, sour cream, and small can of sliced black olives.

In a casserole dish, layer the noodles and meat mixture. Then, top with grated cheese, cover and freeze.

You normally baked it for 30 minutes on 350 right away but I'm sure you can freeze it and bake it later for an hour or so. Just make sure the middle is hot before serving.