Cooking for One = Learning How to Freeze!

Other than the Homemade Granola my husband continues to hold fast to his "fend for myself" philosophy on food.  Other than take out and eating out we never have coordinated our meals with each other.  I suppose we never moved past the bachelor / bachelorette lifestyle of doing your own thing ... and eating it in front of the television.  Up until recently leftovers haven't been an issue since what I bought at the grocery had a long shelf life.  Though I'll admit that many a times fresh food leftovers have ended up in the trash instead of in my tummy.


When my husband and I first bought this house we figured out pretty fast that our fridge wasn't a 'normal' fridge.  It isn't a dorm room version but it is smaller than the size one would usually find in a home.  We saw it once at Lowes advertised specifically for office break rooms.  Simply, it works for us because there are just two of us and we have eaten out so much over the years.  Now?  It is full and fast!  Especially the tiny freezer.

In learning to cook I am wary of cutting down the recipe considering the more I mess with things right now the more apt I am to screw it up!  The meal planning has really helped to make sure that I'm going to use what I buy but I have already learned some great lessons on freezing.  I've found some really great tips online (Pinterest God bless you!) that I've used with success that are worth sharing for anyone else who is new at all of this!

Fresh herbs ... no way was I going to use an ENTIRE bunch of cilantro that I'd bought for the Vegetable Fajitas recipe!  I'd also bought some fresh mint to make some infused water since honestly I'm a soda gal and going with plain old water is definitely bugging me.  So instead of let them go bad I used ice trays and got to freezing.  The Cilantro I chopped up and put a pinch in each portion of the ice cube tray and then poured a little olive oil in.  With the mint I did the same but just used water.   After they were frozen I popped them out of the tray and put them in freezer bags so they'd take up less space.

Whole Grain Banana Pancakes - I've been eating these one at a time all week.  (See - I'm down to the ones I almost burned at the very beginning!)  Just put them in a Gladware container with a piece of wax paper in between so that they wouldn't stick and then grab them as I go and microwave a bit.  Truly as convenient as an Eggo or other frozen breakfast item!  Slice a fresh banana on top and add a little real maple syrup and you are good to go.

What's that?  It's BACON!  I saw this on Pinterest.  The pin actually had the bacon seasoned with pepper on top and then rolled up individually before frozen.  I personally hate pepper so left it off.  According to the pin you can easily grab one piece at a time.  Good thing b/c even thought it is 'allowed' it is still something to be eaten in moderation!

I still had some more Chicken Stock in a Crock Pot left over so I took a muffin tin, sprayed a little olive oil to make sure it didn't stick and then filled each muffin hole with 1/4 cup of the stock.  Stuck it in the freezer - once frozen I popped them out and into a freezer bag!  I also did this with an ice cube tray of the stock for when I just want a little for seasoning.  That recipe made a TON!  

Obviously a whole recipe for Mashed Potatoes needed some saving since I just had it as a side for one dinner last week.  Once again Pinterest came in very handy ... add an egg to the recipe and then grab a muffin tin.  Spray with olive oil so it won't stick and then put a portion in each muffin hole.  Freeze in tin.  Then pop out and put in a freezerbag!  I put some wax paper in between so they don't stick to each other.  Haven't tried them reheated yet but will let you know! 

Itty bitty freezer is filling up!  And no longer with packaged soy 'meat' patties!