Easy freezer friendly meals!

For any parent out there who is trying to save time (duh) here is a list of easy freezer meals that I have found very helpful! I typically, spend a weekend a month preparing a handful of these to keep in the freezer for an easy week night dinner! They are easy and allow you to make variations to accommodate your family.

Enjoy!

1. Enchiladas. Use canned enchilada sauce from any grocery store. Green is less spicy than the red, typically. Microwave corn tortillas for a few seconds, until soft. Fill with grilled meat; chicken or lean beef, peppers and onions. Or mix lean beef with a container of chive and onion cream cheese. Set in a baking dish, fold side down. Pour over sauce. Sprinkle cheese and freeze.

2. Pizza. Homemade pizza dough takes this recipe to a whole new level. Take 4 ½ cups flour, 1 tsp yeast, 1 ¾ tsp salt, ¼ cup oil, 1 ¾ cup hot tap water. Mix the dry ingredients, then add the oil and water. Knead it all together. Cover it with a tea towel and let sit in a warm place for 20 minutes. Then separate the dough into four loaves. Roll out on a floured cutting board until at desired size and width. Top with sauce and cheese. Place on a cardboard, (you can use cut up diaper boxes) covered with aluminum and wrap with plastic wrap. Freeze. Then use whatever toppings you'd like. Let it thaw, then take it out of the plastic and off of the cardboard. Throw on a pizza stone, into a pre-heated oven at 500 degrees. Baked for 5-10 minutes, or until bubbly.

3. Chicken and Vegetable Stir Fry. Bake the chicken breasts ahead of time. Let them cool, then dice them up and toss them in with a pre-made teriyaki sauce and frozen stir-fry vegetables. Place them in a container. When ready, just toss in a high heat pan with peanut oil. Serve with rice.

4. Marinara with Meatballs. Make the meatballs (I have made turkey meatballs and regular-both tasty!) and store them in a separate container from the marinara to prevent sogginess. Serve with noodles, or on hoagie rolls.

5. Mexican Lasagna. Layer browned ground beef, onions, enchilada sauce, corn, and cheese, as you would lasagna.

6. Baked Chicken Penne. It's important to leave the noodles slightly al dente, so they won't get soggy from over-cooking. Then pour over marinara, (or cream sauce) and diced, cooked, chicken breast.

7. Honey Mustard Chicken. 4-6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves. salt and pepper to taste. 1 cup of honey. 1 cup mustard. 2tsp. dried basil. 2tsp. dried paprika. 1 tsp. dried parsley. preheat oven to 350. in a 9x13 baking dish, lightly greased. place chicken breast. In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Pour half of mixture over chicken. Lightly cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil, turn chicken over and cover with remaining mixure and bake 10 more minutes until chicken is cooked. Allow to cool, sit for 10-15 minutes before packaging it in freezer friendly containers. Allow to cool and freeze. When ready to eat, thaw completely in the fridge, then bake at 350 for 20-45 minutes (depending on how many peices of chicken you are baking).

* Best storage is in disposable aluminum pans, label with the date and meal description.