Making meals can be time consuming and tiring. You may not always have time to prepare a meal, but you still want to eat something good. An easy solution is to make freezer meals. Freezer meals are pre-made meals that you leave in your freezer in order to keep them fresh and ready to eat, anytime. Fill your freezer with these easy recipes so that when you need something to eat but don't have the time, you can simply pull them out, heat them up, and have a delicious (and non time consuming) meal.
Sausage-and-Kale Stuffed Shells
Using spicy pork sausage and kale together with creamy cheese makes for a mouthwatering comfort meal.
INGREDIENTS
- 4 ounces spicy Italian sausage, removed from casing
DIRECTIONS
Cook shells in a large pot of salted boiling water 5 minutes; drain. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add sausage; cook, breaking up with spoon, until cooked through. (4 to 5 minutes) Transfer to a plate. Add kale and 2 tablespoons water to pan and cook, stirring until wilted. Season with salt and pepper and add to sausage. Let cool completely then coarsely chop mixture. Combine ricotta, 1/4 cup Parmigiano, 1/2 cup mozzarella, and sausage mixture. Stuff each shell with about 2 tablespoons filling. Spread 1 1/2 cups marinara sauce in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Top with shells and spread 1 1/2 cups sauce over shells. Sprinkle with remaining cheeses. Cover with parchment- lined foil.
Freeze 1 hour, then wrap entire dish in plastic and keep in freezer up to 3 months.
Source and credited to: Martha Stewart
Curry and Chickpea Mini Pies
These veggie filled pies are looking so good! But they taste even better.
INGREDIENTS
DIRECTIONS
In a large straight sided skillet heat oil on medium-high. Add onion, cook, stirring until translucent. Stir in curry paste, chickpeas, potatoes, coconut milk, and 1/3 cup water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are almost tender. (about 8 minutes.) Add spinach, stir until wilted. Season with salt and pepper. Cool completely. On a lightly floured surface, roll 1 piece of dough into an 18-inch square (about 1/8-inch thick). Cut out six 6-inch squares. Brush edges with egg. Place 1/3 cup filling on one side of a square. Fold dough over to enclose filling creating a triangle. Press edges to seal. Cut 3 small vents on the top. Place on parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough and filling.
Freeze in single layer on baking sheet, 2 hours. Transfer to freezer bags. Will keep frozen for up to 1 month. To serve, heat oven to 375 degrees. Brush hand-pies with egg. Place on a baking sheet and bake until golden brown and bubbling, 45 minutes.
Source and credited to: Martha Stewart
Lemon Pepper Salmon
This super simple recipe is as tasty as it looks.
INGREDIENTS
- 1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
- 8 (1-inch thick) skinless salmon fillets
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Toss panko, oil and 1 teaspoon salt on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake, stirring twice, until deep golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool completely. (Crush a few handfuls, to help crumbs adhere.) Stir in lemon zest and 1 teaspoon pepper. Whisk 3 eggs in a bowl. (if you run low on egg at any point, whisk in the fourth egg). Place flour in a second bowl, and panko in a third. Pat fish dry; season. Dredge in flour, tapping off excess. Dip in eggs; coat with panko, patting to adhere.
Lay fish in single layer on parchment-lined baking sheet. Freeze 4 hours, then up to 1 month in resealable plastic bags. When ready to cook: heat oven to 425 degrees. Bake frozen fish on parchment lined sheets until fish is cooked through. (18 to 22 minutes.)
Source and credited to: Martha Stewart
An important note to make is to be sure that before freezing these dishes that they have fully cooled off. This prevents steaming, which creates excess moisture that encourages freezer burn and bacteria to stay and affect the dishes, making them last for less time.
Photo: Jar Of Lemons