Freezer Meal Mania

Part of the postpartum plan is to have at least a month's worth of freezer meals stored away. 

There are 4 different types of freezer meals I'm going to put together, and it's looking more like it should last us 2 months at least.

1. 20 4-person slow cooker meal kits (everything in a ziploc bag that I can just toss into the pot in the morning).
2. 10 4-person dishes that are ready to heat/reheat like lasagna, meatloaf, chili, black bean taco salad
3. 30+ microwaveable and quick 1-person lunch things like burritos, pizza muffins, calzones, spring rolls (depending on open freezer space)
4. (Whatever freezer space is left) Snacks and side dishes like half-baked bread rolls, lactation cookie dough balls, and stir-fry veggies.
5. Bonus:  An inventory of the meals and instructions for each one.

The obvious benefit to filling the freezers to the brim with easy healthy foods is that we won't have to cook or eat out!  I haven't done the baby thing before, but I am already pretty sure that I will really not feel like taking the baby out by myself to get groceries or answering the "what's for dinner?" question for several weeks.


So today I began the slow cooker meal shopping!

I ran across this "20 Gluten Free Slow Cooker Freezer Packs from Costco for $150" meal plan, and it looked darn easy because it gives you 10 (x2 meals each) 4-person recipes plus a shopping list.  There's an option to buy the plan for a few bucks, but I just opened each individual recipe on the website to record the recipe.

Recipes are all meat-based (a must for my husband!) and extremely easy to put together, usually taking just 6 ingredients... they're also a little bland-looking, so I'm planning to spice them up a bit.  They are mostly meant to be served with side-dishes of bread or rice, which is perfect considering my bulk purchases of flour and rice a few months ago.


And now I need a break.

After lugging around giant sacks of veggies and meat for a few hours at 8 months pregnant, my separating hip joints are more than ready for a break... even though my brain is clawing its walls in desperation to get started on the 20 freezer meals.

I will post results by tomorrow, complete with progress photos for your viewing pleasure.  The lady claims it can be done in 2 hours, but I will let you know how long it actually takes me as a first-timer.

Here's a sneak peak at all the ingredients...

SO.  MUCH.  FOOD.
(I removed all the extras from the photo besides 1/3rd of the yellow potatoes, 3/4th of the carrots, and 1/2 of the frozen veggies to the right... because I may add more of these into the meals)

How much did it all cost?

I was absolutely sure that it would come out to be more expensive than $150 as is stated in that website's plan (or $162 - $20 in unused food + $8 worth of coconut milk, extra tomatoes, and spices).  Our local Costco didn't have the sweet potatoes so I had to get them elsewhere for $10 more, the amounts of meats were not quite the same (16.5lbs of chicken instead of 12lbs, for example), and I switched out a few items for organic or MSG-free ones (like the chicken broth, BBQ sauce, veggies). 

The plan also leaves you with extras that aren't counted toward the total, like extra broth, potatoes, and BBQ sauce.  I already had the coconut milk, brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, extra home-canned tomatoes, spices, and fresh rosemary on hand.

It actually ended up being exactly $150 ($161 at Costco - $26 in leftover food and ziploc freezer bags + $15 at Safeway)... I have no idea how this ended up being perfectly accurate with all my upgrades, except that the chicken broth from the bottom of the cart is mysteriously missing from my Costco receipt. 

Average cost per hearty meat-based 4-person meal:  $7.50, or $1.88 per person.  Not bad!


I've done "once a month cooking" on a much smaller scale before, just 10 or so meals... this'll definitely be an adventure.



Have you ever made freezer meals in bulk?  Are there any recipes you want to share?