Time Savers

Here are a few time savers I have recently started:
1. When you make pancakes, make the entire box. Wrap the rest individually and freeze. They go right in the toaster just like a waffle.
2. When you buy meat like chicken and ground beef, cook it all when you bring it home and place in freezer bags in the amounts you will use. I bought 12 pounds of ground beef for $1.28 per pound at a Harris Teeter grand opening. I cooked it all and put it in quart size freezer bags. I have made chili, sloppy joes, hamburger helper, lasagna and baked ziti in a zip by having the meat already cooked. It thaws so quickly under cold running water and in many dishes it can go in frozen.
The same is true for boneless chicken breasts. Cut them the way you will use them. I just made grilled chicken salads in no time by using my pre-cooked frozen chicken breast strips.
**I'll do a separate post on how to get 5 great meals from one whole chicken, some egg noodles, vegetables, and rice.
3. Buy one of those Pampered Chef stone mini-loaf pans. When you make bread or even a cake mix, using the mini-loaf will make 4. Eat one, give one away while hot, and freeze the remaining 2 for later. I do this for banana bread, Tastefully Simple beer bread, cakes, etc.

If you're not sure what can be frozen, take a look at your grocer's freezer section. If you can buy it frozen, you can freeze it yourself, save money, and avoid preservatives and other unnecessary ingredients.