Tried and Tested: Crockpot Freezer Meals Part 1

I went to a church activity in August where we were taught how to do freezer meals for quick, easy, delicious meals to make dinner time easier and healthier. Since then, I have been notorious about making freezer meals.

I spend 2-3 hours prepping and bagging the meals then when it comes time to cook it, I drop it in the Crockpot and let it cook.  Since having my little in October our family has continued to have delicious dinners and I have been able to maintain my stress levels because it's so easy.

My hubby will even help entertain the little while I put on a movie or binge watch a Netflix show and chop away!!

Since I also like to save money, I'm happy to say I spend less than $200 each month to make about 40 freezer meals.  Since it's just Superman and I right now, that can actually last us almost two months. The first time I made them in September, I didn't have to make more until the third week of October. Take that grocery budget!!

8 Quick Tips for Assembling Crockpot Freezer Meals:

1. Before placing any food in the gallon bags, label the bag with the dish name, date of assembly, cooking time and any additional instructions such as, shred chicken and cook additional time or add cream cheese and cook 20 more mins or serve over rice/noodles.

2. Place meat and produce in the bag first and liquids such as sauces, canned beans or vegetables last.  This will help the bag not roll around as you are trying to fill it.

3. Prep like things all at the same time. For instance, if I have three recipes with bell peppers in them, I'll chop or dice all bell peppers before moving on to the next ingredient.

4. If you need to cut any meats, do it after the produce so you can use one knife (you're starting to see how lazy I am, aren't you??).

5. The girl I learned this from suggested having a bowl you can throw your trash straight into. I just bring my garbage can over to my working area (you call it lazy, I call it efficient).

6. When all ingredients are in the bag, seal the bag well and mix the ingredients around to mix flavors. 

7. Remove as much air as possible when you seal the bag.

8. Place in the freezer laying as flat as possible (when I did this for the first time I made the mistake of standing them up and as they froze, they got stuck in the gaps of the freezer shelf).

DISCLAIMER: These are recipes that I have actually TRIED, these aren't recipes I've found on Pinterest, pinned and forgotten about. I'll let you know of the ones I didn't like and why in case my taste is different than yours.

I usually double each recipe so I can buy more in bulk (hopefully things on sale) and it makes prepping easier.

In this post:
Chicken broccoli Alfredo
Chile Colorado Burritos
Chicken Taco Chili
Chicken Fajitas
Spicy Chicken over Rice

Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

-3 Chicken breasts, cut into strips (I left mine whole and then shredded them when cooked because I'm lazy)
-2 cups broccoli frozen or fresh
-1 large green bell pepper, chopped
-32 ounces Alfredo sauce

If using frozen broccoli, throw all ingredients into gallon bag and freeze.
Cook on low 6 hours, high 3 hours, serve over noodles.

The first time I made this I used frozen broccoli and felt it came out too soft/soggy so I opted to use fresh broccoli the next time and to steam it on my stove while I was making the noodles.  After steaming it, add it to the sauce in the crockpot and serve over noodles.

Thoughts: Just needed a little salt and pepper when we ate it so I just add that to my taste or I'm sure you can add it to the cooking process.

Chile Colorado Burritos

-1.5 pounds stew meat
-1 large can enchilada sauce (I use green sauce)
-1-2 cans refried beans
-Flour tortillas
-Cheese

Place beef and enchilada sauce into gallon bag and freeze.
Cook on low 7-8 hours, high 3-4 hours.
Shred beef (Usually just stirring it will shred it well) and warm up refried beans on stove top. Spoon beef from crockpot onto flour tortilla with refried beans (I like to use a slotted spoon for the beef so I cut out some of the enchilada sauce from the inside).
Roll into burrito and place on a cookie sheet or into a baking pan if you want more of an enchilada feel. Cover with enchilada sauce from crockpot and cheese. 
Place in broiler until bubbly and/or cheese melts.

Thoughts: I really like this one. I place them in a baking dish so they come out more like enchiladas. 

Chicken Taco Chili

-1 Onion, chopped (I like to use yellow, but any will work)
-16 ounces can black beans
-16 ounces can kidney beans
-8 ounces tomato sauce (I like making it with 16 ounces more)
-10 ounces frozen corn
-28 ounces diced tomatoes
-1 packet of taco seasoning
-1 T. Chili Powder
-1 T Cumin
-3 Boneless Chicken breasts

Cook on low 10 hours or high 6 hours.
30 mins before serving, shred chicken and return to crockpot.
Top with cilantro, cheese or sour cream if desired.

Thoughts: Another of my favorites, I've been making this for years, I just adapted it to be a freezer meal.

Chicken Fajitas

-2 Green Peppers, sliced
-1 Onion
-3 Chicken Breasts
-1/2 C. Chicken Broth
-1 Taco Seasoning packet
-1 t. Chili Powder
-1/2 t. Paprika
-1 t. Salt

Cook on low 5-6 hours.
Shred meat, serve on tortillas with cheese, sour cream and other toppings as desired.

Thoughts: This is a very simple yet delicious meal that continues to make it's appearance on our plates.

Spicy Chicken over Rice

-1.5 lbs Chicken (2-3 breasts)
-12 ounces Salsa
-2 T. Taco Seasoning
-1 T. Maple Syrup
-1 t. Lime Juice
-4 ounces cream cheese

Place all ingredients except cream cheese into gallon bag and freeze.
Cook all ingredients 6-7 hours low, 4-5 hours high.
Shred chicken and add cubed cream cheese.
Cook 20 more minutes allowing cheese to melt.
Stir and serve over rice.

Thoughts: This IS my favorite! I could eat this seven times a month.  It's name is spicy chicken but depending on the spice of the salsa you use will determine the spiciness of the dish (I hope everyone else likes it as much as I do).

After you try them, come back and let me know what you thought of them and what some of your favorites are.

A chore a day keeps this mommy willing to play

I knew when I was pregnant with Emmy I would end up being a stay-at-home mom (SAHM) at some point and I dreamt of all the time I would have on my hands.

I think the other SAHMs are rolling on the floor laughing at me right now.  I've been doing the job of SAHM for just under three months now and I had to finally admit to myself and husband last month how surprised I am at how little time I actually have.  OK, OK, I have just as much time as everyone else but being a first time mom to a newborn keeps you hopping!!

I spent the first month or two in my pajamas when I was at home because I decided if I was going to get spat-up on seven times a day why even get dressed.  The house began to look like a bachelor's pad with clean clothes unfolded and dishes constantly in the sink because we unloaded the dishwasher as we needed the dishes that were in there.

I knew something needed to change but what? I was feeding my little for at least 30 minutes every 2-3 hours but it took so much more out of me because after she ate, I had to hold her upright for at least another 30 minutes to keep her from turning into a milk geyser and regurgitating everything she just ate and needing yet another bath.


Luckily though, she does love baths!!

I decided I could spare 30 minutes a day to cleaning (I'm sure I could do more but I needed a slow start).  I timed myself when doing a chore and found that I can dust and clean all the windows and mirrors in 30 minutes.  I can even do a good cleaning of the bathrooms in 30 minutes if I did it once a week.  So, I committed!

Every day, I do one chore, some are easier and quicker than others so on the easier days I run other errands or plan appointments or plan my groceries for the month (that post later) or those are the days I really need to get laundry done.  So here's what I do; maybe it'll work for you too!

On top of the one chore I do each day, I make sure the dishwasher is unloaded (most of the time my husband does it for me, he's so good to me) so when dishes are used they go straight into the dishwasher and when it's full, it gets ran. Is this as mind-blowing for you as it was for me??

When I clean the windows it's the inside of the windows.  I plan on cleaning the outside of the windows during spring and fall cleaning.  I also clean the mirrors in my bedroom and in the bathroom to make cleaning the bathrooms a little easier the next day.  Since I do the dishes as they come up, the kitchen consists of making sure the counters are clean, the table is cleared and clean and the recycling is taken out (yes, I need to be reminded of that sometimes).

After the first couple weeks of completing all my chores during the week so I had nothing to do on Saturday I decided I could add in one of the more difficult chores that needed to be done monthly but could be done easier if my hubby was home to help with Emmy if needed.  That's where the Saturday chores came into play.  This way each month my fridge was cleared of the left-overs that were never going to get eaten and my husband's work clothes that have to be ironed wouldn't wait around forcing him to wear the same five shirts week after week because I stopped once he had enough shirts to get him through a week. When I clean the doors, it's to wipe down any finger or handprints around the knobs and any shoeprints from where we use our feet to close the doors.

It's not perfect and occasionally I still have to remind myself to get up and do my 30 minutes but I feel more accomplished at the end of the day and that gives me more energy and time to play and help Emmy grow and develop.