Four Healthy, Make-Ahead Freezer Meals For Busy Moms

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Four Healthy, Make-Ahead Freezer Meals For Busy Moms

Nobody can argue that being a mother is a full-time job in and of itself, and that’s before factoring in the cooking, cleaning, and other work that many moms do on a daily basis. As a parent, we want the absolute best for our kids. Since you’re visiting us here at Ecocentric Mom, we’ll hazard a guess that you might be interested in feeding your kids healthy, make-ahead freezer meals as part of a wholesome, organic, and GMO-free diet.

While it would take awhile to list every single benefit and advantage associated with organic recipes, the problem is that as moms, we are strapped for time. Therefore, cooking these meals from scratch everyday seems like an insurmountable task!

[bctt tweet=”Top tip: freezing food is the only all-natural way to preserve its goodness!”]

Thankfully, there is a natural way of preserving your meals without pumping them full of chemicals, and that is to simply place them in the deep freezer! Here are four healthy, organic freezer recipes that are perfect for busy moms.

Spicy Carrot, Parsnip, and Honey Soup

Organic carrot and honey soup on a wooden background

When it comes to healthy make-ahead freezer meals, you simply cannot go wrong with soup! This soup recipe is simple to make, tastes amazing, is loaded full of healthy vegetables, and can be prepared using 100% organic ingredients.

Ingredients:

  • 2 large peeled organic carrots
  • 1 large peeled organic parsnip
  • 1 small organic red chilli pepper
  • 3 cloves of organic garlic
  • 1 medium diced organic onion
  • 1 tsp of organic coriander
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 3 cups of organic vegetable broth
  • 3 heaped tsp of organic honey
  • 2 tbsp coconut oil

Method:

  • Peel and roughly chop your onion, garlic, carrots, and parsnip
  • Meanwhile, take a deep pan, add the coconut oil and melt, before adding your diced onions
  • Cook on medium until soft, add your garlic, and add the roughly chopped red chilli, and heat on low for 5 more
  • mins.
  • Add your remaining veg and stir gently until coated in the oil
  • Add your ground coriander and salt and pepper to taste, before drizzling the honey over the veg.
  • Add the vegetable broth, bring to a simmer, and cook for 40 minutes.
  • Let cool, blend the soup to a find puree, transfer to a Tupperware, and freeze in individual portions.

Organic Beef and Vegetable Stew

healthy make ahead freezer meals: organic beef stew with vegetables

This stew is hearty, tastes delicious, and is full of protein and vitamins. It definitely deserves a spot on our list of healthy, make-ahead freezer meals because it freezes so well and can be added straight to the crock pot when needed.

Ingredients:

  • 400g diced organic beef
  • 1 organic onion
  • 2 cloves organic garlic
  • 2 diced organic carrots
  • 1 stick diced organic celery
  • 1 can of organic tomatoes
  • 1 organic bay leaf
  • 1 sprig of organic rosemary
  • Salt and pepper
  • 3 cups of organic beef stock

Method:

  • In a deep casserole dish, add the oil, add the onion and garlic, and cook gently until soft
  • Turn up the heat, add the beef, and gently brown on all sides.
  • Next, add your diced carrots, celery, the tomatoes, the bay leaf, and the rosemary, and top up with the stock.
  • Season to taste, bring to a boil, put on the lid, and cook on low for 3 hours.
  • Allow to cool, transfer the stew into Tupperware, and freeze.
  • To re-heat, defrost, empty into a crock pot, and cook on high for 4 hours.

Organic Chicken Pasta Bake

Organic make-ahead pasta bake with vegetables and chicken

This dish is full of healthy Mediterranean vegetables and is rich in carbs, protein, and is naturally low in fat. You can easily make it vegetarian by opting to leave out the meat — and it still packs a powerful punch of flavor.

Ingredients:

  • 3 diced organic chicken breasts
  • 1 diced organic red onion
  • 2 diced cloves organic garlic
  • 1 diced organic bell peppers
  • Handful sliced organic mushrooms
  • Fresh organic basil
  • 1 can organic diced tomatoes
  • Handful organic parmesan cheese
  • 4 asparagus spears
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 200g wholegrain organic pasta

Method:

  • Bring a pan of water to a boil and add your pasta and cook for 8 minutes before draining and setting aside.
  • In a frying pan, add your oil, onions, garlic, and chicken breast, and cook for 6 mins.
  • Add the sliced peppers and mushrooms, and a handful of torn basil leaves, and cook for a further 2 mins.
  • Take a deep casserole dish, add the pasta, add the frying pan contents, and pour in the can of tomatoes. Fill the empty can with water, add that, cover, and bake in a pre-heated oven at 350 degrees F for 35 minutes.
  • Remove the cover, sprinkle with cheese, and cook for a further 5 mins.
  • Remove from the oven, allow to cool, transfer the pasta bake into individual Tupperware containers and place into the freezer.

South-Western Style Chicken and Rice

Easy make-ahead meal of southwestern chicken with rice

Though it sounds simple, this dish tastes great! It’s also very balanced, containing protein, carbs, a little healthy fat, and plenty of vitamins and minerals. It’s one of those healthy, make-ahead freezer meals that packs a lot of flavor — it does well with or without meat.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cooked and shredded organic chicken breasts
  • 2 cups of cooked organic brown rice
  • 1 green or red bell pepper, diced
  • 1 can of drained and rinsed organic black beans
  • Half a cup of organic salsa
  • Half a cup of organic grated cheddar cheese
  • ½ tsp of cumin
  • Half a cup of organic sweetcorn
  • 1 tsp coriander
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Method:

  • Take a large mixing bowl, combine your COOKED chicken and brown rice, bell pepper, the can of beans, the sweetcorn, the salsa, and the spices.
  • Next, transfer the mixture to a freezer-proof baking pan, top with the cheese, lightly cover with wrap or foil, and freeze.
  • To cook from frozen, bake for one hour at 350 degrees F whilst covered, finishing off with 10 mins uncovered to brown the cheese slightly.

There we have it! We’ve shared four easy, make-ahead freezer meals for busy moms! We love that these recipes pack a lot of flavor without being too overly complex. These are perfect for when you’re pressed for time, but you still want to serve a healthy family meal.

Have you given any of these recipes a go? We’d love to hear your opinions about them, so please feel free to leave a comment below.


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