Pretty much.
I cannot tell a lie.
I buy all of the groceries in bulk, even the canned beans, broth etc.
I buy crock pot liners to make clean up easier. Genius I tell you.
Sheer genius.
We settle in for a long evening of chopping, measuring and pouring. One night that will keep us going for a few months of meals.
These last meals we did were easier because many call for whole chicken breasts to be shredded near the end of cook time which means- you just throw the whole breast in the bag and freeze!
Brilliant!
Why freeze meals?
Life can be hectic and crazy. When we do prepared crock pot meals we:
- tend to save money and eat out less
-eat healthier and eat more veggies
-have easy no stress meals for when company comes over
-have easy no stress meals during stressful/busy days
-put meals in tupperware and have lunch the next day
-put meals in tupperware and freeze and have easy go-to meals for at least two more meals
Voila!
Recipes this time included:
-Honey Sesame Chicken (not low calorie- but so good!)
-Crock Pot Lentil Sweet Potato Soup (Low cal./dairy free/gluten free/vegan)
-Crock Pot Santa Fe Chicken (Low Cal./Dairy free)
-Crock Pot Chicken Taco Chilli (Low Cal./ Dairy Free and Easy... the easiest of them all)
*With most of these recipes we make a big pot of rice to go with them.
Bon Apetit!
In the bag: 1 onion chopped, 10 oz. frozen corn kernels, 1 taco seasoning packet, 1 T cumin, 1 T chili powder, 3-4 chicken breasts
Add: 1 can black beans, 1 can kidney beans, 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce, 2 cans diced tomatoes with chilies
Cook: Put all contents in slow cooker and place chicken breasts on top. Cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours. Half hour before serving, remove chicken and shred. Return chicken to slow cooker and stir in. Top with fresh cilantro. Also try it with low fat cheese and sour cream (extra points).
Calories: 203.7
In the bag: 4 chicken breasts, In a small separate bag: combine 1/2 cup honey, 2 Tbsp low sodium soy sauce, 1/2 onion, diced, 2 1/2 Tbsp ketchup, 1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, 3 cloves garlic, minced, pressed or grated, 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
Cook: Put chicken into crock pot. Pour contents of small bag over chicken. Cook on low for 3-4 hours or on high 1 1/2 – 2 1/2 hours, or just until chicken is cooked through.
Cook rice according to package directions. Add green beans in last 30 minutes.
Remove chicken from crock pot, leave sauce. Whisk 2 T cornstarch into liquid in the crock pot.
Replace lid and cook sauce on high for ten more minutes or until slightly thickened.
Shred chicken or cut into bite size pieces, then return to pot and toss with sauce. Serve chicken over rice with green beans, garnish with 1 T sesame seeds.
Calories: 553
In the bag: 4 large carrots, chopped, 4 stalks celery, chopped, 1 onion, diced, 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed, 1.5 cups chopped green beans, 2 cups green lentils, 1 tsp minced fresh rosemary, 1 bay leaf, 1 tsp dried oregano, 4 cloves garlic, minced,, 2 tsp salt (or to taste), 1/2 tsp pepper
Add: 1 15-oz can diced tomatoes, 64 oz vegetable broth
Cook: Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker. Turn heat on low and cook for 10 hours, adding a little more broth at the end if soup seems too thick.
Calories: 257
In the bag: 1 1/2 lb chicken, 8 oz frozen corn, 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp. onion powder, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp. cayenne pepper, 1 t salt and pepper, 3 scallions chopped,
Add: 1 can 14.4 oz diced tomatoes with mild green chiles, 1 15 oz. can black beans, 1 box chicken broth,
Cook: Put all contents in slow cooker and place chicken breasts on top- season with salt. Cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours. Half hour before serving, remove chicken and shred. Return chicken to slow cooker and stir in. Adjust salt and seasoning. Serve over rice.
Calories: 190
Interested in last time's recipes?
-Minestrone
-Chunky Chicken Stew
-Chili Verde
-Garlicky Chicken & Rice
Click here:
Dairy Free & Low Cal. Crock Pot Freezer meals
Thanks friends!
Have you tried any other easy recipes? I'd love to hear what you've loved or tried.
Want a grocery list? E-mail me and I can send you one. If anyone is tech savy and can show me how to share a document I will do that here.
10 comments:
awesome. can't wait to try some of these!
question...if you freeze one of those giant ziploc bags full of food...how then do you get it to fit into your crockpot without thawing it first?
That's a great point April. I actually have one of those 7 quart ovals vs. the old round ones. I find that the vegetables break apart easily and the only thing that doesn't "budge" is the meat. I use the bag itself to shove the vegetables down and it normally all fits (though awkwardly until it begins to thaw). Even if it is a small round crock pot I think if you don't mind touching frozen veggies and meat (and of course washing your hands right after) you could break it part with your hands.
Also, once you pour broth or the canned goods on it everything begins to break down/fall apart and melt almost immediately.
Another option is sitting it out the night before in the fridge... but that would require planning ahead. :)
Thank you for all of this tasty meal help! I'm excited to get started!!!!
I'm so excited to hear how it goes Bess! Share any new recipes you do!
I'd love a grocery list or two...don't know how to contact you!
Forgive my ignorance...:0) Linda H.
Linda, you can contact me at reedup@gmail.com and I will send those right to you! I will keep trying to figure out how to include them. I'm learning...
Hope to get them to you soon!
:)
Happy cooking~
Georgia
Sent you an email request last night, Thanks!
Linda H.
Linda, I will respond now! Can't wait to hear how it goes!
How many servings do each of these make?
I'm also curious about the number of servings. Also, are you calculating the rice or is the calories listed just for each serving? OR is that for the whole meal in itself?
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