Chest Freezer Organization

This afternoon's addition to our freezer:
Oh She Glows Veggie Burger

I have long resisted getting a chest freezer. I enjoy cooking freezer size batches (in case you couldn't guess). But I did not want to use the energy/money/space of a whole chest freezer. For a number of reasons I caved this month.

This may be strange but I really like packing. The couple days before a vacation where I get to plan and pack are actually something I look forward to. So in a weird way getting to organize a chest freezer, essentially "pack" a freezer, is oddly enjoyable. I found this and this source helpful and came up with this system:

You will need:

White Board and Pen
Reusable Grocery Bags of Different Colors

Example format from last month:

"July 2012: Red Bag
III Stuffed Shells in Al Bread Tins
II Gallon bags Butternut Squash Ravioli
IIII Quart Blueberries
I Gallon bag of bags of Breastmilk
II 2 cup Kale portions
III Quarts Chana Masala"

Why hash marks? Why not numbers?
Because if I take a quart of blueberries out all I need to do is erase a mark.

Red Lentil Thai Chili Frozen Flat

Why sort items by date?
To assure that nothing gets too old. I know some people prefer sorting by object type but the contents of my freezer are a bit too random.

Why bags? And why specifically different colors?
Bags have handles. Bags are cheap. Bags stretch. The colors are an easy visual cue as to which month or category you are looking for.


Why packaging size?
So I know what to look for.

A note on freezing flat:
Whenever possible try to freeze flat on a cookie sheet before transferring to a grocery bag for storage. In the case of a freezer group this is an important courtesy. You will always be able to see the writing on a flat bag and is often easier to find room for a flat bag.

July Vegan Freezer Exchange and the Beauty of Specialty Grocers

Grand Rapids has been breaking one heat record after another this month. But I will be heating up my kitchen a lot less because I have a stash of freezer meals.  The exchange has been a great gift in this heat. 

This month we exchanged:

Beans and Quinoa with Chipotle Raspberry Sauce

Bombay Potatoes Meet Chickpea Tomato Curry

Potstickers

Spicy Thai Tempeh

Wendy brought these.

Roasted Vegetable Pasta

Concerning Potstickers: 

Many premade potsticker wrappers you find in grocery stores contain egg. So check the ingredients label before you buy. Quite often a Asian grocery will stock vegan ones.  They are wonderful for making pierogi as well. I recommend freezing a single layer flat on a cookie sheet so they do not stick together. Later you can transfer them to bags or containers to save space.

If you have never been to a specialty grocer I would recommend checking one out in your area. You will probably be amazed by the prices and quality of ingredients. I have also found them to be a great source of help and information. Recently, I had bought a new Indian cookbook online and picked out three recipes I wanted to try. I brought it into a local Indian grocer and they walked me through the store getting everything I needed and advising me on what to keep in mind while cooking. They are also extremely good for bulk items. Not only does it lower the cost to buy in bulk but you will be reducing your post consumer waste compared to smaller packages.

April Exchange

This month we exchanged:
Vegan Breakfast Burritos
I combined this and this recipe to make Coffee Muffins
Cold Carrot and Broccoli Soup
Funky Vegan Spaghetti with Marinara and Italian Sausage
Delicious Dal
Curry Stuffed Flatbread made use of this and this recipe
Broccoli and Potato Soup


A benefit of the freezer group that I had not anticipated has been that these meals are easy to give away. We had a family member give birth a few months ago and rather than work to cook a bunch of different meals I just handed over most of that month's exchange. Another friend had a nasty cold that he just could not shake. I guessed what in my freezer he might like best and ran it over to him.


All of the meals come labeled with cooking directions and no dishes to return. (Some groups have casserole dishes and other containers that they trade, reuse or return. Our group has for the most part used Ziploc bags.) Because of this they are particularly suited to being given away. 


Giving a dish away also mollifies the issue of not liking something that you get. Let's say that no one in your family has a taste for breakfast burritos. What do you do with the four servings in your freezer? Just throwing them would be wasteful. Next time you hear that someone is sick, in the hospital, just had a baby, or something else, ask them if they would enjoy it. Chances are they would like it and appreciate the break. Have you ever been the recipient of homecooked meals? What did you get and enjoy?

Vegan Breakfast Burritos for 24 (1 bowl and 1 skillet)

2 bell peppers chopped
1 large red onion chopped
2-3 carrots peeled and chopped

5 med. tomatoes seeded and chopped
1 or 2 blocks firm or extra firm tofu
4 cloves garlic minced
1 cup nutritional yeast flakes
1/2 t chili powder (vary this to how spicy you want it)


2 cans black beans
2 cans kernel corn


olive oil for pan
24 burrito size tortillas

Prep veggies. Saute peppers, onion and carrots in skillet. While those cook prep tomatoes, tofu and garlic. Move veggies to large bowl. Saute garlic , tomatoes and tofu. Mix in yeast flakes and chili powder. When hot move to the large bowl. Add beans and corn to the mix. Stuff and fold into tortillas. Below are pictures of the finished product ready for freezing.

There are a couple nice aspects of this recipe. First, while it takes a very large bowl it only takes one normal skillet.  Second, to eat we take one out of the freezer the night before to thaw in the fridge and microwave in the morning. The convenience of the microwave in the morning is great (we cook for 1:20 (my husband has it down to a science) but this may vary depending on your microwave). Third, as far as breakfast goes this is about as healthy as you are going to get. Forth, it is simple to adjust for taste and seasonal preferences. Last and perhaps most important, it tastes excellent.  :)

To evenly divide the veggie mix I spoon out into the tortillas with them folded like this.

Plastic wrap is between all of them accordion style for freezing. 

March Favorites Month

One of our members had a great idea this month--she suggested that rather than have everyone do another new recipe, we would vote for our favorites and divvy up those. There are several benefits to this idea. First, it saves us the research of a new recipe. Second, it essentially guarantees that this month is going to be particualy awesome. Third, it's a nice excuse to try a recipe that another person made before.


I pulled a rough list from this blog, about 25 dishes, and emailed a request for a top three. I was surprised and pleased by the amount of convergence. The winners:

Sweet Potato Burritos- 4 votes

Vegetarian Groundnut Stew- 3 votes

Red Lentil Thai Chili- 2 votes

Vegan Galumpkis and Pierogi- 2 votes

Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese- 2 votes 

Lentil Burgers/Quinoa Burgers- 1 each-so I figure some kind of burger got 2 votes.

For the Vegan Galumpkis and Pierogi I did not feel up to repeating the whole process involved in making proper rolls. So I did a modification that I think turned out quite well. With all of the ingredients listed in the recipe I chopped the cabbage (as if making coleslaw) and mixed everything together in a giant bowl. I think it was an improvement for two reasons: first, it was shockingly easy compared to making rolls and second, it became quite a bit more cabbage in proportion to the other ingredients so I feel like we ended up with a healthier dish. 

Managing Large Batches

Nietzsche approves of the size of this measuring cup.

Cooking for 6 families can feel daunting and could be a barrier for enjoying freezer exchange groups. Here are some tips that I have found useful:

• Copy and paste the text of a recipe into something you can edit--covert all units up to six meals worth at one time rather than having to think about it as you go shopping or while cooking. 
• Shop for ingredients on a different day then you plan on cooking.
• If a recipe contains lots of directions that begin with things like "In a separate bowl..." you may want to rethink the recipe. 
• You do not have to do a one dish meal. Include a side dish, muffins or a dessert. My vote is generally for a dessert. 
• You don't even have to do all aspects of a meal in one day. Split it up as is convenient. Cut and chop veggies the night before. Cook muffins one night and the main dish the next.
• Or, take the opposite route, and plan a day to do everything. In my case this means letting hubs know he's on baby duty for an afternoon.
• Large slowcookers are your friend.
• It probably would not hurt to invest a large cooking pot, bowl, slowcooker or measuring cup.
• Label containers that you are freezing in before you place food in them. 

So, what did I miss? Any other suggestions from your experience?