McNelis - No Cook Freezer Meals

Table of Contents

COPYRIGHT

No Cook Freezer Meals. Second Edition.

Copyright 2014 by Kelly McNelis

This book was written to help educate readers about freezer meals. The author is not liable for the use of misuse of information provided. More information about food safety can be found on the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food Safety and Inspection Services website .

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from the author.

www.newleafwellness.biz

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dr. Kelly McNelis is a psychologist, blogger, and the author of two other cookbooks: 15-Minute Freezer Recipes and Easy & Healthy Slow Cooker Recipes . She lives in Pittsburgh, PA with her husband Andy and their three young daughters, Cameran, Isla, and Caiden. Kelly shares her favorite crockpot recipes, freezer meals, and simple DIYs on her blog, New Leaf Wellness .

PDF Printable Pack

Download a PDF of the grocery list, nutrition information, and printables here.

INTRODUCTION

My favorite thing about freezer meals is that they make it possible for me to always have a home-cooked, real food, healthy meal no matter how busy my day is, especially when it's a long day that leaves me too tired to cook.

-Heather

My Background With Freezer Cooking

I started making freezer meals after my first child was born. Freezing a casserole for a holiday or birthday party meant I could enjoy the day with my daughter and husband instead of spending it in the kitchen.

Four years and two more children later, I still use freezer meals to simplify our busy lives. I froze two weeks worth of dinners before my second daughter was born and a MONTH of dinners before my third daughter was born.

Sure, I freeze meals for births and special events, but I also use freezer meals to help us eat homemade meals more often than take-out. We eat homemade dinners six nights a week, and freezer meals are a big part of making that happen.

Consider this book my attempt to hold your hand and walk you through the process. I promise that freezer cooking is much easier and quicker than you think, especially if you make no-cook freezer meals.

What Exactly Are No-Cook Freezer Meals?

No-cook freezer meals dont require any cooking before freezing. Simply combine the meats, vegetables, sauces and spices, and freeze!

Since no-cook freezer meals dont require any cooking ahead of time, theyre very easy and quick to make. Theyre also absolutely delicious when eaten because they dont taste like leftovers at all.

Dont just take my word for it. Throughout this book youll find quotes from other women who have served their families healthy, homemade freezer meals and saved lots of time, money, and stress along the way.

Ready to stock your freezer? Lets get started!

THE BENEFITS OF FREEZER COOKING

My favorite thing about freezer meals is the joy of discovering that I don't have to find something to make for dinner or find the time to make it. All I have to do is thaw, put it in the crockpot and relax. Dinner is served!

Jill

Once you get the hang of freezer cooking, I know youll be hooked. I simply cant say enough good things about it.

Since youre reading this book, you must already be somewhat motivated to start freezer cooking. The way I see it, there are five major benefits.

1. Save Time

Freezer meals require time upfront to prep, but no time the day of cooking (or very little time). If you prep multiple freezer meals at once, youll only have to get out your cutting board, knives, and pans once. (And youll only have to wash them once too. Wahoo!)

No-cook freezer meals are much faster to prep than traditional freezer meals that are fully cooked before freezing.

2. Save Money

There are several ways that freezer cooking can save you money. You can take advantage of sales at the grocery store and buy items to freeze. For example, you can freeze a couple of my Slow Cooker Cranberry Pork Roasts the next time pork is on sale (Recipe in this book). You can also buy food in bulk (which is often cheaper) and freeze what you dont use. For example, buy a big container of pasta sauce next time youre making spaghetti and freeze the rest in a batch of my Slow Cooker Spicy Sausage & Veggie Soup (Recipe in this book). Once you get the hang of making freezer meals, you can even get creative with meat and produce that are going to expire (what a waste of money!) and turn them into freezer meals instead.

3. Help Your Family Eat Healthier

Having dinner waiting in the freezer means that you dont have to stop at the drive-thru as often. If you freeze healthy, homemade freezer meals with vegetables, then your family is likely to eat them. You can control exactly which ingredients go into every recipe and what quality of ingredients you use (for example, organic, low sodium, low fat, etc.). I provide the nutritional information for every recipe in this book so you can decide what is best for your family to eat.

4. Simplify Your Life

Making no-cook freezer meals is fast, easy, and addicting! When you freeze meals ahead of time, you can cross cook dinner off your daily to-do list and devote that time to something else instead. Not only can freezer meals simplify your daily routine, but simple, no-cook freezer meals can help you prepare for holidays, birthday parties, births, and surgeries too.

5. Help Others

Freezer meals make wonderful gifts for other people. Ive made freezer meals for my parents, pregnant friends, and sick community members. Other people have told me that theyve shared freezer meals with elderly grandparents, traveling spouses, grown children, friends having surgery, and more. It seems like everyone appreciates a healthy, home-cooked meal and making a no-cook freezer meal doesnt require much time or money on your part. Its a win-win for everyone involved.

GETTING STARTED

I love making freezer meals because, to be honest, I am not a very good cook. With freezer meals I know I can make good, healthy, delicious meals at home.

-Lisa

Clean Out Your Freezer

Before you do anything else, do yourself a favor and clean out your freezer to make space for your freezer meals. If anything in your freezer is expired, throw it in the trash (or put it down your garbage disposal). If there is food in your freezer that has been in there for over a year, get rid of it. I hate wasting food, but consider this your free pass. You are never going to eat that food and it is holding you back from filling your freezer with healthy, homemade meals.

When you start stocking your freezer with new, no-cook freezer recipes, you can use the freezer inventory sheet at the end of this book to keep track of what is in your freezer and when its going to expire. Youll never have to waste food again.

Required Materials

I dont use any fancy equipment when prepping my freezer meals. On page 19, youll find more information about what I use to package and label my freezer meals.