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WereBear
Sat, Mar-19-11, 06:43
I admit it; I was getting a bit arrogant. People at the office were dropping like we were in a combat battalion, and staying out for a week at a time, while I cruised along. But last week, it got me, and I was the one calling in sick for a week. When just taking a shower makes you have to lie down, it's the best thing.

However, low carb and vitamin D supplementation gets the credit, IMHO, for me not having some of the agonizing issues my workmates reported. But I could not do the usual sickness routine, which was running out to get medicine & frozen dinners. I didn't wind up eating carbs, thankfully, just a lot of lunch meat and SF jello. And now convalescence hunger has derailed my previous plan; I still don't feel 100%. But things are getting better.

It's a lesson; I have to have more of my own frozen meals! I have to be more systematic about it; hopefully not for the flu again, but for crazy days where I work late, or have back to back appointments, etc.

So please; what are your favorite freezer-friendly recipes AND tactics? I had the Ziploc pump to suck air out of their bags, but I discovered their bags, once washed, won't keep their seal, and then the pump broke. So I have bought some much cheaper freezer bags and flattened them around the food; won't containers offer much more airspace and then create freezer burn?

My two mainstay casseroles are the Spinach Lasagna (http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=414539) and the Mock Mac n Cheese with Ham (http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=419800); I've successfully frozen them before, but now I've gotten a glass casserole dish twice the size of my 8x8 one, and will double recipes routinely so I have plenty to freeze.

I love cooking meat in my slow cooker with a bit of tasty, low carb, sauce; has anyone found that freezing the cooked meat works better than keeping the meat in the freezer in a raw state?

And is six months the outside limit? I'm going to date & rotate; I have put a Sharpie in the kitchen junk drawer for just that purpose.

I am so serious about this. It was awful, once I started feeling better, to have so few choices while I was still too compromised to actually cook things; as I've been used to doing.

And don't forget desserts!

Patina
Sat, Mar-19-11, 07:16
Glad to hear you're feeling better! They've been dropping like flies at my office too. In my particular division there are 15 of us and 6 of them were out sick the last week and a half.

I don't freeze cooked meal foods but when I cook I always cook more than we need so I can have leftovers. I never really thought about freezing them to use if I'm ill or really don't want to cook something.

I do freeze lots of meat in small portions; chicken, pork, steaks so they are easy to thaw and use.

I would think for cooked foods, if they're vacuum sealed, they would last upwards of a year. If not vacuum sealed, probably 3 to 6 months.

Requin
Sat, Mar-19-11, 08:15
I find broth based soups freeze well, and work well for when you're sick. I'm biased in favour of my recipe: http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=421194

Judynyc
Sat, Mar-19-11, 13:34
Great that you're feeling better and even better that you saw what was missing in the food for your life. :thup:

I like to make chilis, Italian and tikka flavored dishes. I will make a lot and then freeze them in the Glad 3 cup containers. Love those things.
I always use at least 2 lbs of the meat and then a lot of veggies.
I can fill up 5 x 3 cup containers when its all said and done. I usually will eat 1/2 of a container as my meal.

I've got a small freezer so I can't cook new stuff until the old is eaten. My freezer is now empty so I'm making a new pot of chicken soup as I type and then it'll be either chili or an Italian version of chili. :yum: Either way, I'm happy with my food simply because I make it the way I like it to taste. :yum:

Hope this helps!
Sorry, no dessert recipes here as I save my dk.chocolate alottment for the day as my dessert. :cool:

freckles
Sat, Mar-19-11, 16:37
I made this (http://lowcarbmadeeasy.com/2010/08/krys-low-carb-chicken-soup/) and froze it in portions in freezer ziploc bags. I was VERY happy I had done so when I was sick a while back!!! It got me through and kept me on plan.

When I made it I started with a whole chicken that I boiled so I would have homemade broth. It was delicious!

I'm looking forward to others sharing more recipes too!

ETA: I also usually have slices of Bawdy's Cheesecake, peanut butter cups and coconut cups in the freezer. The recipes can be found in the recipe section of this forum. I just don't normally desire sweets when I'm not feeling well.

oblong
Sat, Mar-19-11, 17:24
I do freeze lots of meat in small portions; chicken, pork, steaks so they are easy to thaw and use.
I tried to defrost a whole chicken last weekend. I put it in the fridge some time on Saturday morning thinking it would be ready by Sunday afternoon, but it was still frozen, with the bag of giblets still inside which I had to prize free from the cavity. I don't think I've ever managed to defrost any meat properly and without it tasting 'not quite right' after cooking.

WereBear
Sat, Mar-19-11, 18:45
I don't think I've ever managed to defrost any meat properly and without it tasting 'not quite right' after cooking.

Patina's right about the small portions being much easier to handle. I've not really tried freezing cooked meats because cooking, then freezing, tends to make chicken dry, for instance. Soups and casseroles avoid such issues because they have a lot of liquid to them.

I'll just have to give my crockpotted meat a whirl; since I do have sauce on them, and can freeze them in the sauce.

And I agree, Freckles; I don't crave treats when I'm sick, though I discovered the Jello worked well then. I asked about desserts because I also want to cover myself for when I work late & such.

freckles
Sat, Mar-19-11, 19:28
And I agree, Freckles; I don't crave treats when I'm sick, though I discovered the Jello worked well then. I asked about desserts because I also want to cover myself for when I work late & such.

Agreed...that's why I thought to come back and add my frozen treats to my post. It's also why I'm hoping people post more "freezable" recipes. All I need when I'm sick is some good chicken soup, but I would love to have more homemade frozen meals for when I'm short on time, need a meal to go - or the guys want to have a hc meal. ;)

Barnrat
Mon, Mar-21-11, 10:30
WereBear, thanks for the link to the spinach lasagna recipe. I made it yesterday and love it! Good to know, too, that it freezes well. I am also going to try the Moc Mac & Cheese receipe. It's time to start adding new foods to my line up!

Karen

chaos2010
Mon, Mar-21-11, 16:30
werebear: thanks for the mock mac and cheese recipe! that looks delicious!!! i'll have to try that one day for sure!

i love taco salad and i made a TON of taco meat last week. and with being busy and life getting in the way. i ended up freezing it. defrosted great and microwaved like it was fresh! i also sometimes pre-cook a few bonesless, skinless chicken breasts and freeze them cooked, so they're ready to go. my fav, is to use a spoonful of cream cheese and frank's red hot sauce (to taste, i like it spicy so i use about 1 or 2 TB) then microwave that so it spreads easily over the chicken. then put it back in the microwave (cream cheese, hot sauce and chicken). SO good!

WereBear
Mon, Mar-21-11, 17:47
(cream cheese, hot sauce and chicken). SO good!

Golly! That DOES sound good!!!

Nancy LC
Mon, Mar-21-11, 17:53
Nothing beats a foodsaver, vacuum sealer for freezing stuff. I think it at least doubles the freezer life of food. I adore my foodsaver.

Soups and stews freeze nicely.

I often package up a meals worth of red meat then just drop it into my water bath to cook for a few hours. But you'd need a sous vide system for that. Nothing is simpler.

Patina
Tue, Mar-22-11, 07:35
Nothing beats a foodsaver, vacuum sealer for freezing stuff. I think it at least doubles the freezer life of food. I adore my foodsaver.

I'll second that! I couldn't do this without my foodsaver because I buy in bulk and break everything into single or double portions. I also make homemade sausage during the winter months and then freeze it all in foodsaver bags and eat it throughout the year.

It's worth every penny in the amount of food that it saves from freezer burn and spoilage!

cldade55
Tue, Mar-22-11, 07:43
Great ideas. BTW Get a flu shot every year.

WereBear
Thu, Mar-24-11, 09:26
Happy to report that by investing in a TWICE AS BIG casserole dish and being conscientious about labeling and storing my "frozen entrees" has resulted in many moments of glad relief while standing at the fridge.

We have been so busy launching our own line of cat toys (http://www.wayofcats.com/blog/herbal-cat-toys) that I haven't had a chance to cook for a week!

And it's so darn helpful to grab one of these for lunch at work. One of my downfalls was relying too much on deli meat & cheese type lunches; I would get bored and they weren't as satisfying in the winter.

Previously, I would cook every other day or every week; when I'm busy or sick, I can't do that. Cook more, less often; that's my new motto.

Also, I believe I have perfected my versatile "Almond Fruit Muffin" recipe and will be sharing that shortly; they freeze well, too.

Sbear
Thu, Mar-24-11, 10:44
I keep this in the freezer. Makes a big pan, cut into portion size squares, pop in zip locks and in the freezer. (I too have a foodsaver and love it.)

http://forum.lowcarber.org/showthread.php?t=44087

WereBear
Thu, Mar-24-11, 12:30
The Deep Dish Pizza Quiche!

Thanks, Sbear, I've been meaning to give that one a try.

Barnrat
Thu, Mar-24-11, 13:04
That sounds excellent! has anyone worked out the carb count on it?

WereBear
Thu, Mar-24-11, 13:26
Here's what one poster got out of Master Cook:

Deep Dish Pizza Quiche

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 6 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories :
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
4 ounces cream cheese -- softened
4 eggs
1/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup parmesan cheese -- grated
1 tablespoon chives
1/2 teaspoon italian seasoning
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup monterey jack cheese -- shredded
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup pizza sauce
1 cup mozzarella cheese -- shredded
12 pepperoni slices
1/4 cup green pepper -- diced
1/2 cup mushroom -- sliced


Per serving: 440 Calories; 37g Fat (76% calories from fat); 23g Protein; 3.8g Carbohydrate; .2 Fiber, 224mg Cholesterol; 744mg Sodium

ECC: 3.6g

Brinethery
Sat, Mar-26-11, 02:41
Hey Wearbear,
People around my area have been dropping like flies too! My boyfriend's friend was sick a couple of weeks ago, then passed it on to him, and then now to me! Even worse than that, Pavel (bf) told me that almost everyone at in his mech engineering program is fighting a cold. You know when you get the dry heaves throwing up? Well I've been having that with sneezing all day long and I'm virtually drowning in all of the crap that's draining from my sinuses. We had London broil flank steak tonight and I pigged out even though I couldn't taste ANY of it. This cold has been SO effing weird because it's like a little bit of everything... throwing up on Thursday, sore throat for 4 days after that but with my stomach feeling much better, constant fatigue, and now the drainage stage.

When my stomach started to feel better, I was constantly hungry but the fatigue overshadowed it so I was too lazy to make anything. Ironic, huh? So it's been sort of hard to stay on track. I was pigging out on shredded mozzarella cheese since it was one of the only things that was ready to eat in the fridge but frankly I didn't give a shit, lol!

aaah I talk too much. Anyways, good thread :-).

FowlFiend
Sat, Mar-26-11, 13:46
You probably know this, but if all you have is ziplocks, you can get an almost vacuum sealed effect by bagging your food, then dunking it in a bowl of water nearly to the top of the bag while sealing the bag up. The water pushes all the air out of the bag around the food... (Hope I explained that coherently.)

I keep single servings of chicken, italian sausages, and other things like that in the freezer. Since they are used quickly ziplocks are fine for the job.