We became a 2-person household many years ago. We both are always either watching our diets or actively dieting. And when the household dropped to 2, we were working opposite shifts and seldom got to eat together. It seemed like the perfect time to switch my freezer cooking to single portions and it turned out to be the perfect solution to everything.
I've tried a number of different things but the one that seemed to work best was the Glad reuseable/disposable containers. They are actually quite rugged although they do eventually wear out (and they do break if you happen to drop them while frozen). The small rectangular 9 oz. size is perfect for most entrees. The 1/2-cup round containers work perfectly for most sides. And the large 3-cup rectangular size is perfect for soup/stew/chili. I also have a number of sandwich size that I use to put together mini-casseroles. My one frustration is that Glad doesn't leave well enough alone. They keep redesigning them so the new lids don't fit the old containers. I saw no advantage in buying just one brand so now I have a mix of Glad, Ziploc, and generic. The only reason I started with Glad was they were the only ones on the market at the time. Another frustration is the fact that they discontinued the little 1/2-cup size so when mine wear out
I can't replace them. And I haven't seen the sandwich size in a long time so I suspect they've discontinued that size as well. I ran across some silicone muffin cups on sale so I bought some individual style that you place in the metal muffin pan as you would a paper liner. Unfortunately when I got home and opened them I found that they were too small for my purposes; they hold slightly less than 3 oz. I wonder if the 12-muffin pans might be a bigger size.
I don't want to keep my food in Gladware for long-term freezer storage. They're not heavy enough for freezer storage, they take up more space than I want, and, like I said, if dropped when frozen, they tend to break. After the food is frozen, I pull them out of the freezer and set them on the counter for a few minutes. Then I can easily pop the food out. The 1/2 and 1-cup portions each go in a sandwich-size Baggie. As I twist it shut I press the air out. Then all the little individually wrapped bricks and hockey pucks go in a larger freezer Ziploc. All label info (for me it's date, name of dish, portion size, nutritional info, and any reheat info I will need) is written on a slip of paper (recycled from computer printouts I no longer need) and slipped into the freezer bag so the into is easily read without opening the bag. The mini casseroles and soups/stews/chilis are popped out and wrapped in the 1-gallon size Baggies before being
placed in the freezer bags. When I'm ready to cook or reheat the mini-casseroles, I use a small square Corningware casserole. I have several and they can be used in the microwave or the oven. The reason I wrap everything in Baggies before placing things in a freezer bag is to provide an extra measure of protection against freezer burn and assure that portions don't stick together.
Another thought occurred to me. I make pizza dough and store it in disks wrapped in a gallon Baggie and placed in an ice cream bucket. You could make personal-size pizzas the size of the ice cream bucket, wrap them in a Baggie, and freeze in an ice cream bucket.
Desserts such as cakes and brownies can be cut into portions, wrapped, and bagged.
Mini pies can be made in the large-size muffin cups or in individual-size souffle cups.
Things like enchiladas and burritos are folded to fit in a small Baggie. I place them in the Baggie warm and freeze before I place them in the freezer bag. If you want to include sauce, cheese, etc., place these things in a snack-size zipper bag and slip those bags in with the enchiladas/burritos.
The reason I started using Baggies for my first wrap is that they are easier to use than plastic wrap (it's always sticking to itself and needing to be pulled apart) and they don't have the somewhat inflexible zipper strip of the other brands of bags.
I know that a lot of people do use the metal muffin tins to freeze things in but when I tried it, I found it a hassle to get things to pop out of them readily.
I'm probably leaving out a number of things but right now I can't think of anything else I routinely do. Good luck with your endeavor.
----- Original Message -----
From: lindastolz lindayg@telus.net
However, I am getting back into freezer meals due to
the fact that I am going to have to start making individual meals for my
mother. Ah, the "sandwich generation"!
I am thinking that I am going to be using muffin tins to portion out the foods
and freeze each menu item separately so as to give Mom some control of what she
eats with what. Anyone have other ideas?
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