A Month of Freezer Meals

Planning ahead for a baby, medical procedure or just because? Here are 30 freezer-friendly meals to cover you for a whole month!

Kielbasa

• Slow Cooker Kielbasa and Barbecue Beans
• Slow Cooker Creole Jambalaya

Beef

• Slow Cooker Meatballs
• Simple Ground Beef Enchiladas
• Crock Pot Cheeseburgers
• Baked Ziti
• Crock Pot Beef Stew
• Slow Cooker Korean Beef
• Crock Pot Cubed Steak with Gravy
• Individual Mini Lasagnas

Chicken

• Slow Cooker Chicken Pot Pie
• Crock Pot Cream Cheese Chicken Chili
• Slow Cooker Mexican Chicken
• Slow Cooker Chicken Curry Recipe
• Slow Cooker Italian Herb Chicken
• Crock Pot Sesame Chicken
• Slow Cooker Chicken Fajitas
• Cool Ranch Chicken Tacos
• Crock Pot Shredded BBQ Chicken
• Chicken Broccoli Casserole
• Swiss Cheese Chicken
• Chicken Tikka Masala
• Chicken Noodle Soup
• Chicken Pesto Parmesan
• Peanut Chicken Satay
• Easy Crock Pot Pork Chops

Pork

• Lemon Basil Pork Chops
• Boneless Country Style BBQ Ribs

Shrimp

• Mediterranean Shrimp
• Shrimp Fried Rice

Slow Cooker Pork Chili

Ingredients:

• 1-lb ground pork
• 1-lb ground beef
• (3) 14.5 oz cans of diced tomatoes
• (1) 15 oz can chili beans in chili sauce
• (1) 15 oz can dark red kidney beans
• 2 packets of chili seasoning mix (1-1.25 oz each)
• 1/2 cup cilantro
• 1 onion
• 2 green peppers
• 1 jalapeno pepper
• 1 TBSP garlic
• 1 cup water

Directions:

1. Brown ground pork and ground beef and drain off any excess grease. Add to slow cooker.
2. While meat is cooking, coarsely chop onion, bell peppers and jalapeno pepper (removing all seeds from the peppers). Chop cilantro. Mince garlic. Add all to slow cooker. 
3. Add all contents from the cans of tomatoes and chili beans to the slow cooker. Rinse the kidney beans and add with one cup water to the slow cooker.
4. Cook on low for 4-6 hours or high for 2-3 hours. Serve hot.
5. Garnish with sour cream, grated cheese and/or corn chips.

To Freeze:

1. Follow steps 1-3 from above and add all (except water) to a large freezer bag. 
2. When ready to cook, thaw overnight and then add to slow cooker along with one cup water and cook according to the directions above.

Baked Italian Meatballs

Ingredients: 

• 1 lb Italian sausage
• 2 lbs lean ground beef
• 2 tsp minced garlic {4 cloves}
• ⅓ cup fresh basil – finely chopped
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup Italian-style breadcrumbs
• ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• ¼ cup milk
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Lightly grease a baking sheet.
2. Mix together all ingredients by hand. Roll into 1½-inch balls, place on baking sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes (until insides are no longer pink).
3. Turn oven to broil and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes to brown and crisp the outside of the meatballs. Serve over pasta with marinara or Alfredo sauce. Yum!

This recipe yields about 50 meatballs -- which is way too many for my family of three, so I always freeze half of the meatballs for a later meal (which still leaves plenty cooked for dinner and for my husband's lunches that week!). 

To Freeze:

1. Place meatballs on baking sheet and pop into the freezer for 20 minutes. 
2. Remove from freezer and place all meatballs in freezer bag and put back in the freezer -- freeze for up to 3 months.
3. When ready to bake, remove from freezer and thaw on greased baking sheet. Follow baking directions above once thawed.