Don't Get Burned Out Freeze It Instead!

Last week I listed homemade freezer meals as one of my 100 Favorite Ways To Save Money. Today I am sharing some ways that it can help save you money.

I prepare my make ahead meals differently than most once a month cookbooks suggest. I will prepare and cook a large recipe then freeze the leftovers into individual serving containers. Other people freeze the uncooked meals then thaw and cook it the day they plan to serve it. Also, instead of doing all of my cooking for the month in one day I will cook when the ingredients are on sale.

Freezing the meals in individual servings allows Tim to get a meal to take to work for lunch out of the freezer and heat it in the microwave there. When I have a variety of different meals prepared he has a choice in what he wants to take that day which cuts down on the potential boredom of leftovers from the night before. The "kits" that I make are very convenient for him to pick up out of the freezer in the garage when he leaves for work in the morning.

A Few Advantages to Preparing Meals in Advance:

• Ability to choose recipes that have ingredients that are on sale or have on hand.
• Being able to fully take advantage of sales by stocking up on the great deals.
• Homemade meals are usually more nutritious than going out which will probably save on medical bills in the future.
• Less expensive than eating out.
• More efficient use of our time preparing meals allowing us to do other things.
• Saves gas by not going out to eat or having to run to the store at the last minute.
• Store bought frozen dinners often have less food and cost more than a similar homemade meal.
• The opportunity to have a cooking day with friends. I was surprised at how much more fun it is to cook with other people!
• Especially for a smaller family or lunches, preparing individual meals saves on electricity by not having to use the oven every day. This not only saves money from the electricity used on the stove, but also when trying to cool the house on a warm day.

If you want to try your hand at making meals in advance this is a good time to try some chicken dishes since the chicken is on sale at Ingles through next week. The Unsinkable Molly has a few examples of what she, Emily from Random Ramblings, and I made with some of the chicken on Thursday afternoon.

For more frugal ideas and tips be sure to check out Frugal Friday at Biblical Womanhood.