Idea's for new mum food presents

mummybearx

Hey all!

My sister in law is due a baby girl in a few weeks, and as well as buying a gift for the baby, I'm thinking of cooking up some food, freezing it, and taking it over to her. I don't have kids myself, but I can imagine you don't have much time to cook!

So, Im thinking I could do bolognese and chilli, that way she just has to boil rice and boil pasta, no peeling potatoes.

Any other ideas I can do? My mind has went a bit blank.....


Edit - Am I okay to add red wine to the bolognese if she is breastfeeding?

x

kittycat204

first off, lovely idea, so kind
you want to do thinks like moussaka and lasagna, things that can just be shoved in the oven. shepherds pie, pasta bakes, pies, fish pie, casseroles, stews,
to get more ideas look at a supermarket website and look at their ready meals. these are all things that are similar to what you want to be doing. but obviously a lot more healthy and tasty. they can be good for inspiration tho.

kiwimama

All great ideas I am pretty sure that the alcohol content of a few generous dashes of wine burns off in the cooking process so is absolutely fine. Maybe add in a batch of muffins, they freeze well and are a great snack to take out the night before to defrost or a minute in the m'wave.

Possession

I agree on the shepherds pie, moussaka, lasagne etc. my MIL has a sandwich shop where they bake all their own goods and after I'd had DD2 she used to deliver a freshly baked HUGE homity pie or quiche which we could just have with salad, which was very nice.

lizzywig

I did this but for myself before our baby was born. I spent two weeks cooking enough meals for a month then froze in those takeaway style foil trays as they freeze well. I made normal chilli, special chilli with steak, bolognase, beef casserole, chicken casserole, chicken curry, chicken soup and homemade meatballs. It was such a relief to be able to just take something out of the freezer for dinner, cook some rice/potatoes etc and bung on some veg.

Your friend will really appreciate this but for all the cooking I did when the time came I wanted a good old slab of chocolate!!!

ALIBOBSY

Brill idea, stews/soups are good alongside all the above. Some puds are always good tray bakes can be frozen in separate peices and then defrosted peice by peice. I like to freeze meatballs separate to sauce so that you can do a big batch then serve them with different sauces-basic tomato,spicy tomato, bar b que etc etc.
Things like quiche are handy sliced before freezing so you can defrost as much or as little as is required.

Pound shops are good for those "takeaway" trays, I have some collected from friends and family and our occasionally treats and the plastic tray things they seem to use now can be washed out and used over and over. Or you can freeze portions in a tray and "pop" them out like giant ice cubes-sillicone baking tins/trays are great for this. Then the portions can be bagged and labelled.

Something I found was great after I had my babies was mum and MIL being lovely and offering to do some washing/ironing for me,but then I hate ironing anyway lol.

Lovely idea as those first few weeks with a new baby (especially with the first baby) can be very tiring.

Ali x

eleanor73

I did this for one of my best friends. I did chilli and a lovely mild chicken curry. She was well chuffed. Other things you could do are a sausage casserole, lasagne, some kind of loaf (like banana bread etc), and just a simple tomato pasta sauce.

You might want to make sure she has room in the freezer!

Chakani

How about a couple of puddings, apple crumble, sponge puddings etc that could just go in the oven? Sometimes a bit of comfort food goes a long way. Someone made me a box of flapjacks when my second was born, and they were wonderful to just grab while feeding a baby, or because I realised I hadn't eaten.

mummybearx

Thanks for all the lovely ideas and suggestions

Sorry for this daft question..... but can if I cook and cool sausage casserole, lasagne etc, is it okay to freeze it?!?

I normally make enough for a few days, then just eat it over the next 3 days, I don't tend to freeze anything.

And can you freeze tuna pasta? My dh loves it when I make a big batch up, normally doesn't last more than 24 hours before it's gone, but was thinking I could make this for her as well x

Skint_Catt

Having had my first baby within the last 14 weeks can I suggest offering your time too if possible? Meals are all well & good if you get to sit & eat them, but for the first month I dont think I did as she would cry the second something was put in front of me. Even if its a bowl of cereal late morning or a cup-a-soup at lunch it would be nice if you could entertain the little one for 10 mins!
C xx

Nicki

Yes you can freeze pasta bakes, but it is best to undercook the pasta, as it can get a bit soggy and overcooked when it is reheated. Lasagnes are better frozen at the made up stage, but before they have been cooked in the oven. As others have said, all in one meals tend to be better at least for the first few weeks, or things which can be eaten with baked potatoes or bread. When my last one was born, I had stocked my freezer as you suggest, but found rice and pasta often got over cooked as I would have to go and tend to the baby after I had put them on to boil and not finish feeding in time to take them off! Less time critical accompaniments were a real life saver for me.