Building up my freezer

DigSunPap

LadyWithAPlan said:

I have taken loads of cookery courses in many different cuisines and it has transformed my cooking. 

 I also divide large meat packs eg chops into smaller portions.
I also make stock and then freeze portions ready to for soups and stews.

I make gf muffins and freeze those individualy and then pop together.

You can also freeze in muffin cases excess coconut milk and then just add a small portion to liven up stews.

I am currently looking for more recipes, bored of the usual stuff that I have been cooking. Any suggestions?

Rosa_Damascena

bouicca21 said:

The reduced price stuff in my freezer is not UPF because I don’t buy UPF, with the very rare exception of treating myself to ice-cream.

The really big deal for me is bread / bakery products, which I'd buy almost every shop and stick in the freezer if I needed to. Whilst cakes and pastries are obviously not good for you, I had no concept just how bad grainy wholemeal bread is. Hence I ate a lot of it, thinkingof it almost as a "free food" in as much as it is filling and healthy (wrong on the latter count). It is still very much a 4 on the UPF scale.

Longwalker

Rosa_Damascena said:

bouicca21 said:

The reduced price stuff in my freezer is not UPF because I don’t buy UPF, with the very rare exception of treating myself to ice-cream.

The really big deal for me is bread / bakery products, which I'd buy almost every shop and stick in the freezer if I needed to. Whilst cakes and pastries are obviously not good for you, I had no concept just how bad grainy wholemeal bread is. Hence I ate a lot of it, thinkingof it almost as a "free food" in as much as it is filling and healthy (wrong on the latter count). It is still very much a 4 on the UPF scale.

My freezer is filled with YS/ from the factory meat. and fish

I would never buy and store YS cakes/bread/processed foods ( I lie a bit because I do like onion bhagees and samosas with a curry and I cant always be bothered to make them ). I spend my money on meat and fish for the freezer and reduced veg for soups or if Im using it asap 

I was away this week for a few days in Italy, Had half a loaf of wholemeal, it went in the freezer along with half a litre of milk 

No shop bought bread is "good for you". Terribly addictive as it is an UPF and is full of salt and sugar, but for the tiny amount that gets eaten here, Tesco Nevilles - 45p a loaf, its the cheapest option

Funnily enough since I have basically cut nearly all UPF from my diet , not only do I have weight loss, my BP is in normal range to moderate high for the first time in nearly 40 years . I was diagnosed with high BP in my mid 20's, hospitalised a few times - normal weight/over weight, smoking or non smoking,  made no difference. Ive not medicated this year and am getting some really good readings 

bouicca21

Rosa_Damascena said

The really big deal for me is bread / bakery products, which I'd buy almost every shop and stick in the freezer if I needed to. Whilst cakes and pastries are obviously not good for you, I had no concept just how bad grainy wholemeal bread is. Hence I ate a lot of it, thinkingof it almost as a "free food" in as much as it is filling and healthy (wrong on the latter count). It is still very much a 4 on the UPF scale.

Bread is surprisingly easy to make.  I make it, slice it and freeze it. That way I can pull out one or two slices at a time.

If you don’t have enough courage to do it from scratch the old fashioned way, a breadmaker is your friend.

it’s only just occurred to me that I can do the same with cake.  As a singleton I’ve avoided cake making in case I ended up eating too much, so as not to throw anything away/go stale.  But if a whole lemon drizzle freezes, which I know it does, then a sliced lemon drizzle will too.  Oh, and then there’s a Victoria sponge … I wonder what else I could make and freeze?  Suggestions welcome, though not fruit cake cos I’ve never liked it much.

YorksLass

Almost any cake will freeze in portions, it doesn't have to be whole.  I make mine in a square cake tin then it's easier to portion up in squares/open freeze/bag up.

Other suggestions - scones, tea loaves (sliced), cheesecake (I use a 12-hole muffin tin for small ones), tarts, macaroons, individual fruit pies - the list is endless.  You could make up a bag of crumble mix then you could just take out what you need.  Singletons needn't be deprived of a little of what you fancy!     

Rosa_Damascena

bouicca21 said:

Rosa_Damascena said

The really big deal for me is bread / bakery products, which I'd buy almost every shop and stick in the freezer if I needed to. Whilst cakes and pastries are obviously not good for you, I had no concept just how bad grainy wholemeal bread is. Hence I ate a lot of it, thinkingof it almost as a "free food" in as much as it is filling and healthy (wrong on the latter count). It is still very much a 4 on the UPF scale.

Bread is surprisingly easy to make.  I make it, slice it and freeze it. That way I can pull out one or two slices at a time.

If you don’t have enough courage to do it from scratch the old fashioned way, a breadmaker is your friend.

it’s only just occurred to me that I can do the same with cake.  As a singleton I’ve avoided cake making in case I ended up eating too much, so as not to throw anything away/go stale.  But if a whole lemon drizzle freezes, which I know it does, then a sliced lemon drizzle will too.  Oh, and then there’s a Victoria sponge … I wonder what else I could make and freeze?  Suggestions welcome, though not fruit cake cos I’ve never liked it much.

My bread-making attempts have not been that successful so I drew a line under such activities a long time ago. The results look fine but on cutting the loaves are always dense, whether DIY or with the assistance of a breadmaker. I can't understand why that should be given that the dough always expands like The Blob both first and second proving, but I need a hacksaw to cut through it! Its easier to buy additive-free sourdough from Waitrose which comes sliced. Expensive compared to YS loaves but freezer ready.

I don't enjoy cakes that have come out of the freezer as I can then taste the egg in them.