From Freezer to Slow Cooker

Before Bryson was born, I stocked our freezer with easy crock pot meals .  Since he came along, I've found it's so much easier to spend an hour or two in the kitchen on Sunday prepping meals for the week than to cook each night.  I have to clean the kitchen once instead of every night, which leaves a lot more playtime with my little man.

I got this crazy notion to prepare a month's worth of crock pot meals, thanks to my friend, Kim.  Since I don't have the freezer space for that, I cut it in half and did 16 bags that provided supper for Clay and me, as well as lunch for one of us.  It took me 96 minutes to get everything chopped, measured and bagged.  Clean up each night was as simple as packing leftovers and tossing the slow cooker liner!

This round, I made:
- pesto ranch chicken x2
- meatloaf (1/2 ground turkey, 1/2 ground beef) x2
- garlic beef stew
- balsamic roast
- ribs
- sweet Asian meatballs x2
- fajitas x2
- Philly cheesesteak
- beef w/ sugar snap peas
- chicken teriyaki x2
- tex mex chicken

Coming up with the list of things I wanted to make was the hardest part.  I tried to make similar recipes so I could use all of what I bought.  Since I was buying so much in addition to the groceries we needed for the week, I also matched sales and did a lot of ad matching.  What can I say?  I love a couponing high!  I got all of this plus our regular groceries for less than $150!

To start, labels bags with what's in it and the date.  DO NOT skimp on bags.  Great Value and other cheap bags leak and the last thing you want is garlic beef stew frozen to the bottom of your freezer.  I prefer Hefty slide zipper bags.

Start with a staging area.  Get everything you plan to use in one area that's easily accessible.  Open cans and jars.  It makes things so much easier when you can just grab and go.

I used to drag the garbage can beside me and dump everything as I went, but have started using a Rachael Ray trick and keep a garbage bowl handy.  It prevents me from tripping over the trash can.  Now I only have to worry about Bailey being under foot...

Invest in Reynolds slow cooker liners.  They're something like $2.50 and prevent you from having to wash the crock pot with each use.

All of the recipes below are either my own creations or adapted from recipes I've found online.  We prefer to eat as healthy as possible and live on the AdvoCare/Paleo diet, so all of these recipes fall into that category.  When possible, I've included a link to the original recipe.

Pesto Ranch Chicken Source

- 5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 

- 1 small jar Classico pesto

- 1 package dry Ranch dressing mix (I use homemade Ranch mix)

- low sodium chicken broth 

- Combine chicken breasts, pesto and Ranch mix in the bag.  Add chicken broth when cooking.  I use roughly half a box of broth- it's never enough to cover the chicken as I don't like the texture too much broth gives chicken, but does give it some flavor and moisture.  Chicken doesn't need to cook long because it dries out. The max I ever leave chicken in the crock pot is 6 hours on low.

Meatloaf

- 1 pound lean ground beef (I use 97/3)

- 1 pound lean ground turkey (I use 97/3 when possible)

- 1 egg

- 2 cloves garlic, minced

- 1 small can no salt added tomato sauce

- 1 tablespoon dry Ranch mix

- salt

- pepper

- Mix all ingredients except the tomato sauce and half the mixture.  

- Form the mixture into two loaf shapes.  Top each loaf with tomato sauce and place in individual bags.  

- When cooking, just place in crock pot.  No liquid necessary.  This doesn't take long to cook, but can go all day if necessary.  I did 6 hours on low.

Garlic Beef Stew Source

- 1.5 pounds lean steak, cubed, or stew meat
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 3-4 medium carrots, sliced
- 6* cloves of garlic, finely diced
- salt
- pepper
- no salt added tomato paste
- 2-3 cups low sodium chicken broth

- Combine all ingredients in the bag and just toss in the crock pot when you're ready to cook.  No additional steps needed.
- * I never tried this because I had a stomach bug when we cooked it.  Clay wasn't a huge fan of it because it was pretty garlicky.   I think I'll probably reduced it to 3 cloves next time.  I like green beans in my beef stew, so I'll probably add some frozen cut green beans to the bag.
- I used a soup/stew preset on my crock pot, so it cooked for 3 hours on high and 6 on low.

Balsamic Roast Source

- 1.5-2 pound roast 

- 1 large onion, sliced

- 8-ounce can no salt added tomato sauce

- 1/2-cup balsamic vinaigrette (I used Marzetti brand I got on sale)

- extra virgin olive oil

- salt

- pepper

- garlic powder

- Season each side of the roast with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet and brown the roast on all sides.
- Allow it to cool, then put in the bag with the remaining ingredients.
- When cooking, just put everything in the crock pot.  No additional steps required.  Cook low and slow- I did 8 hours on low.  

Ribs Source
- rack of ribs (I used baby back, trimmed of all visible fat)
- pepper
- salt
- garlic powder
- onion powder
- cayenne (I didn't add this because Bryson was eating them)
- BBQ sauce for dipping, if desired
- 1/4 cup reduced sodium chicken broth

- Rub the ribs with the seasonings and place in the bag.
- Pour the broth in the bag before freezing. It will act like a brine and make the ribs more flavorful and tender.
- Cook on low for 8 hours.

Sweet Asian Meatballs Source
- 1 pound lean ground turkey
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 yellow onion, minced
- 1 large can crushed pineapple, drained
- 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 2-3 cloves of garlic, finely minced
- 1 egg
- salt
- pepper

- Combine all the ingredients and form into balls.  I made the meatballs palm-sized, but you can do mini balls or big ones.  Totally your preference, just make sure they're the same size.  Separate the balls into 2 bags.
- Cook on low for 6-7 hours or on high for 3-4, depending on the size.

Fajitas
- 2 yellow onions
- 4 bell peppers (I used one pack of tricolor and a green)
- small handful of taco seasoning (I make my own from this recipe, minus the salt)
- 4-5 boneless skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of fat
- 2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth

- Rub the chicken breasts in taco seasoning.  Toss everything except broth in 2 bags, no need to chop the chicken.
- Dump the bag in the slow cooker, then pour in broth.  Cook on low for 6 hours.  As the chicken cooks, it will become very tender and will shred easily.  Shred the chicken using tongs or two forks, then wrap up in a tortilla or put on a salad!

Philly cheesesteak in a bowl Source
- 1.5 lb lean steak, sliced thin (I use eye of round most often)
- 1 green pepper, sliced thin
- 1 yellow onion, sliced thin
- 1 tbsp low sodium worcestshire sauce
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- pinch of black pepper
- pinch of chili powder
- 1 tsp-1 tbsp hot sauce (optional)
- 1/2 cup low sodium beef broth
- 1/2 cup part skim mozzarella shredded cheese (optional)

- Combine all ingredients except broth and cheese in the bag and shake well.  Toss in the crock pot and add chicken broth.  Cook on low for 6-8 hours.  Since the steak is sliced so thin, it doesn't need long, but does get more tender the longer it cooks.  Eye of round is super lean, but can also be chewy, so the extra time in the crock pot really helps the flavor and texture.
- Add cheese on top in the last 30 minutes to give it time to melt.  Dairy isn't allowed on the 24 Day Challenge and some Paleo eaters avoid dairy, so if you follow either of these, leave out this step.
- We've eaten this on a wrap, but it's good all by itself!  No carbs necessary!

Beef with Sugar Snap Peas  Source
- 1.5 - 2 pounds lean steak, sliced very thin (I used sirloin)
- 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1 tbsp minced fresh ginger (or about 2 tsp dry ginger)
- 5 scallions, sliced on the diagonal
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 clove garlic, either finely minced or made into a paste
- 1.5 - 2 cups snow or sugar snap peas (fresh or frozen)

- In large bag, combine in all of the ingredients except the peas.  Toss to coat everything in the sauces.
- Put the snow peas or sugar snap peas in a smaller bag and place it in the big bag.  I used sugar snap because I couldn't find snow peas.  I've since  made it with snow peas and they're both fantastic!
- Cook the ingredients of the large bag on low for 6-7 hours.  Add the sugar snap peas in the last 30-45 minutes.  They'll give the dish a freshness and crisp crunch!

Chicken Teriyaki Source
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed
- 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 2 tbsp Splenda brown sugar
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
- 1/4 cup low sodium, low sugar teriyaki sauce or 1 teriyaki chicken seasoning packet
- 2 scallions, sliced on the diagonal
- 1/4 cup low sodium chicken broth

- Pour soy sauce, sesame oil, brown sugar, garlic, sesame seeds and teriyaki sauce or seasoning in the bag.  Close and shake to mix.  Break up the brown sugar with your fingers if it clumps.
- Add the chicken to the bag, then toss to coat.
- Pour the contents of the bag in the crock pot, then add chicken broth.  Cook on low for 5-6 hours.  In the last hour, add the scallions and stir to make sure they're covered by the liquid.
- If you want to make a sauce, pour the leftover liquid from the crockpot into a pot and get to a rapid boil.  Let it boil for 3-4 minutes, then reduce to a simmer.  It'll take a while to reduce unless you add cornstarch, which of course, I don't do, but it will reduce to a thicker consistency and it's soooo good!

When you've made all of your bags, lie them flat and remove all the air you can.  Place them on the bottom of your freezer, as flat as possible.  When they're frozen through, you can file them like books on a shelf.  Thanks for that tip, Grandmama!  It saves so much space in the freezer!

Tex Mex Chicken
- 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
- no sugar added salsa
- 1 yellow onion, sliced
- 1 bell pepper, sliced
- 1/2 bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
- juice of 2 limes

- Put the chicken in the bag and add all ingredients.
- Cook on low for 5 hours.  I shred the chicken when it's cooked and add to a salad with black beans.