Freezing small quantity ingredients

t33

I don't make cakes/squares etc that often but being GF I generally make my own, but often it seems waste ingredients due to racidity, especially with sesame seeds, walnuts and other nuts, ground almonds and want to freeze small individual quantities.  I've checked and most nut/seed etc ingredients seem to be freezable, but I'm wondering if the taste is intact when used after freezing.  Also best in plastic bags or I imagine better small pots with airtight lids?  Anyone done this?  Good success?

Thanks

Florenceem

I make gluten free cake for a Church friend - cut into slices and froze - it was fine - meant she could have cake when the rest of us did.

London_1

Because I live alone when I make a cake (haven't done so recently ) once cold I slice and wrap in foil or cling film as I only enjoy a slice now and again.

If I see a nice offer on say malt loaf, or ginger cake I will buy and do the same. I have some nice slices of stem ginger cake sliced and wrapped and froze that I bought when I was away on holiday a few weeks ago.I will probably be still eating a slice now and again over the next month or so. To me my freezer is my friend, and I freeze stuff as much as I can, Different perhaps if you have a family or several people in the home ,but on my own I can please myself, and I know ,especially with cake a slice of cake defrosted can double as a pudding with a dollop of custard on top.

JackieO xx

annieb64

I freeze nuts and ground alm9nds. Never had a problem. I usually freeze them in bags.

caronc

Small bags with as much of the air squeezed out as you can. Much better IMHO than tubs, which unless you can get titchy ones and fully pack tend to have air spaces that fill with ice. Vac packing could be the way to go if you do a enough  to make the investment in a machine and bags/roll. 

goldfinches

I freeze most nuts and seeds and don't find that it affects the flavour at all. The way I do it is to have large plastic boxes that fit into my bottom freezer drawer and then I stash the plastic bags everything comes in into those. I also freeze flours some just for 48 hrs to deal with potential weevils but store those like wholemeal, coconut, buckwheat etc. that might not keep for a long time in the freezer too. I do take whatever is needed out of the freezer the night before to allow ingredients to come to room temperature.  My only gripe about this method is that I have to keep and update a list of what I have by weight and where it's stored to prevent me doubling up or starting a recipe without having the necessary amount of an ingredient.

Katiehound

I'm wondering if it would be worth freezing items in weighed out portions for the favourite recipes. That's what I do with the cooking bacon- message on bag says for example 'QL bacon' (Quiche Lorraine) All ready to defrost and be cooked!

KxMx

I freeze cheese that's been grated by me (I find the ready grated too dry) into 100g bags.
Does Quiche and Cheese Straws, and for scones I grate another 50g from whatever block I have in the fridge.

I also portion out sandwich meat into individual slices wrapped in clingfilm placed into one bag, and use CF for 2 sausages, 2 bacon rashers etc.

A loaf of bread gets broken down into bags containing 4 slices and I get 2 slices out at a time. Best to freeze as flat or even as possible! 

My freezer is quite small so bags and CF work best for me.
If they haven't contained meat I wipe the bags, dry and re use. 
Anything that has had meat I wipe, dry and take to the SM for recycling. 

For me zero food waste is worth the heavier plastic use. 

t33

Thanks for suggestions.  I think I'll try bags they come in or tightly packed for each item and keep in a large tupperware container (good idea, will prevent small items going awol).  Good to hear flavour is unimpaired.

Rosa_Damascena

I am going to go against the grain here and say that cake from the freezer is no way near as good as fresh; the more moist it is, the worse it fares. Madeira is just about ok but its not particularly tasty. Most need smothering in cream / custard / ice-cream, all of which I could quite happily inhale individually.

Credentials: I have eaten a LOT of cake in my lifetime.

JIL

@Rosa_Damascena but is it not a case of one piece of previously frozen cake is better than no cake at all.