Freezer Meals made easy

Not long to go now until Baby #2 makes his way into the world, and my nesting has kicked in to high gear. I will probably end up with a c-section due to medical reasons and complications from my first son's birth, so I wanted to make sure my son and husband had some food to see them through the 4-5 days I will be in hospital as well as in the weeks following the delivery. So I stocked up my freezer with these recipes, which serve 2 adults plus 1 toddler:

Lamb Kheema with Peas
Adapted from skinnytaste.com

Ingredients:

1 large onion, minced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp ginger, chopped

2 tsp butter

1 lb lean ground lamb

1 tsp coriander

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp garam masala

1 tsp cinnamon

1 cup frozen peas

1 chili pepper, minced (or more to taste)

2 tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 cup tomato sauce

1 bay leaf

salt and fresh pepper

In a large pan, heat butter and onions on medium heat. Cook about 8 minutes. Add garlic and ginger; cook another 2 minutes. Add ground lamb to pan and brown. Season with salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, cayenne, chili powder, turmeric, garam masala and cinnamon. Stir well. Add chopped chili pepper, cilantro, bay leaf, tomato sauce and 1/2 cup of water. Reduce heat to low and cover. Simmer for about 15 minutes then add frozen peas and simmer covered another 5-10 minutes.
To freeze: Cool the lamb mixture to room temperature then freeze in a freezer-proof container. I freeze this with cooled cooked rice so that it is a complete meal when defrosted and reheated.

Creamy Chicken Taquitos
Adapted from Penniesonaplatter.com

150g  cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup salsa

1 Tbsp fresh lime juice

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp chili powder

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 Tbsp chopped cilantro

2 Tbsp sliced green onions

2 cups shredded cooked chicken

1 cup grated cheese

small flour or corn tortillas

In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, salsa, lime juice, ground cumin, chili powder and garlic. Once combined, stir in the cilantro and green onions. Add the chicken and cheese; mix thoroughly.

Working with a few tortillas at a time, heat them in the microwave between two paper towels until they are soft enough to roll (about 20 – 30 seconds).

Spoon 2-3 Tablespoons of the chicken mixture onto the lower third of a tortilla. Roll the tortilla as tightly as you can.
To freeze: Freeze the taquitos in a single layer on a baking sheet for about 20 minutes, then place in a labeled freezer bag and store up to 3 months. To bake a frozen taquito (no need to thaw first): Preheat oven to 200 degrees C and bake for 15-20 minutes.

Hawaiian Chicken- directly from freezer to slow cooker
Adapted from six-cents.com

• 2-3 chicken breasts
• 1 cup of chicken broth
• Small can of pineapple pieces
• 1 red bell pepper sliced into thin strips
• 1 large onion sliced into strips 

Place all the ingredients into a freezer bag or container. When required, place the frozen ingredients into a slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours.  Serve on buns with lettuce and cheese, or over white rice.

I hope these recipes can help you for the times when you need to stock up your freezer with easy food! I also bought a lot of staples such as rice, spaghetti, canned tuna, chicken breasts etc to make some easy meals after the baby arrives, as well as a lot of freezer-ready options such as crumbed fish, family sized pies, meat and vegetable stir fry mixes and beef schnitzel. Overall, I have three weeks worth of meals on hand, plus another week of dinners planned out that I haven't shopped for yet. For the sake of a couple of hours today, I now feel prepared and know that my family will have lots of options for cooking dinner when I am not there.