After renting 6 different freezer cookbooks from the library this is the one I decided would be worth purchasing. I would definitely check with your local library to see if they have it, if you don't want to spend the money till you see the recipes. I am not the most adventurous eater around, but this has numerous recipes that just sounded too good not to try. I just made 4 recipes yesterday - 12 meals in total Tequila Lime Chicken, Pecan Encrusted Chicken Strips, Chicken Broccoli Bake and Cashew Chicken Stir Fry. I have not tried any of them yet, but after seeing the ingredients in them, I doubt they could taste bad -- they all looked delicious!
My advice is to write down all the ingredients you need with how much you need per each recipe. I ended up being a 1/2 cup of honey short for one recipe causing me to have to run out again, which wasn't a big deal because I had to buy more panko, ground mustard, and curry powered too. :P However, even with my trip to Sam's then Target and eventually Cub Foods I was still able to make 4 different entrees in one day. I am planning on testing out a couple of my recipes this week, next weekend I plan on making beef or pork freezer meals! I am even thinking these meals would make great gifts at Christmas, who wouldn't want a easy meal night? Would be great for giving neighbors who help you out as a thank you or for someone who lost a loved one or is ill.
I am 25 years old who lives by myself with my boyfriend moving in to start grad school. I know we are both going to be busy this fall between work and school and this was a great way to start preparing. I think most entrees in the books have a serving size of 4 to 6, but I like leftovers for my lunches at work.
Hopefully, I will update my review after sampling a few recipes! Happy Freezer Meal Making!
**UPDATE** 8/25/14
So far some of out favorite recipes:
Tequila Lime Chicken (we plan on making one of three the entrees into chicken fajitas strips with peppers next time)
Pecan Encrusted Chicken Strips (AMAZING flavors, warms up leftovers in the oven to get the panko&pecans crispy again)
Sticky Drunk Pig On a Stick (Wonderful flavor, we basted it throughout cooking except the last 5 minutes. I used the metal cable skewers and it worked great. These would be wonderful for a party)
Salisbury Steak Meatballs (Yummy, but I did need to thicken the gravy a bit)
Cashew Chicken Stir-Fry (I think the sauce needs to be thickened a bit, but the boyfriend likes it as is)
I have also tried:
Chicken & Broccoli Bake (It needs more sauce and less bread crumbs) *I don't know if I will make this one again, it tastes alright but isn't anything special. I think I could find a better recipe online.
We plan on making up a few more next weekend. Also, ladies I am thrilled to state my boyfriend has had no problems making a meal with these. It's nice when I come home late that he can already have dinner started. Make sure you write the cooking instructions on the outside of the bag to make the process easier.
**UPDATE** 9/23/14
Sweat Asian Chicken- Great flavor for me, my boyfriend added Siracha to his, but he adds Siracha to just about everything.
Basil & Balsamic Pork Chops- These are tasty, we used left over pork chop on a homemade pizza and it was delicious!
Urban Garlic Chicken- **FYI when you freeze this put the bag of veggies in the cavity so it doesn't freeze shut when you want to make it in the crockpot. I might have missed/misread that or it's not listed that way. I ended up defrosting the chicken in the sink and making it in the oven. Great flavor, took longer to cook than the book suggested.
**UPDATE** 3/26/15
Yes, I still use and love this cookbook. If the instructions are super long, I now just reference the page number in the book. My fiance said he is going to put a max on how many meals I make in a day. Apparently, the chopping, dicing, mixing, bagging and cleaning make him feel like he needs to help. He cleaned dishes, minced some garlic and made on recipe all by himself last time, it's the little things in life. So I have a few more to recommend.
Turkish Pork Chops- Seriously these might be my favorite meal out of the book. It might be because it's wrapped in bacon...but it's got awesome flavor. I just about ate 2 full pork chops that's how good they were. I felt guilty only for a brief moment. We served it with a birdseye steamer rice and veggie mix.
Chicken Parm- Awesome, I honestly don't know why I didn't just make it before this book. It's not like it's terribly hard or time consuming. I made it this round because - I made the large batch of red sauce so decided to try out this recipe, along with a few others Pork Loin Ragout, Manicotti. *We weren't in love with the Manicotti, I don't think I will make it again. For the time it took to stuff those noodles...it didn't wow me. -We haven't tried the Pork Loin Ragout yet.
Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs- I had made these before from a different recipe, but these are great. I make up 6 lbs. of meatballs and freeze them into whatever portions we want. We generally use them with some jar sauce and then I make homemade spaghetti noodles. They make a great app too...all you need is a crockpot, sauce and some buns.
Raggin' Pork Garlic Stir-fry - *I made this the first time using chicken. We liked it with chicken so we made it with pork this time, haven't tried it yet, but it was tasty with chicken so I am guessing pork will be good too.
I filled our small chest freezer so we are set for awhile and thankfully it's grilling season now.
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Reviews with images
This is what I've been searching for...
In our household I normally do the cooking. I enjoy it. Most of the time. I'm also a guy and while I love good food I love efficiency! I've a good assortment of one pot or one pan recipe books, crock pot books, etc. None of the other books really hit the good food / efficiency / budget minded criteria so important to me. I'm a professional with a background in Process Improvement in the Financial Services industry... Go figure.This book hit the spot for me in all of criteria above. Even the shopping trip was simple and while it was a good size haul for just the two of us... We came in well under what we normally spend.While the book contains simple recipes requiring the "dump meat in a gallon freezer bag with marinade" it also included more sophisticated recipes as well for when I feel a little more spunky.Ultimately this book has helped me easily, with a severe lack of frustration, hit my criteria above and goal of having good food ready to go each day that makes the (always too short week nights) much easier. I can imagine what it might do for a couple with kids.Thank you for publishing this book!
Top reviews from other countries
Sarah
some have been great hits and most only require 5 or so ingredients
Reviewed in Canada on September 1, 2015