Guys! Welcome to our September Mini Freezer Stash!
I absolutely love how my life feels when I have stuff ready to go. Like a crockpot meal set for our busy ballet night, or wholesome homemade muffins to tuck in a lunchbox. Makes me feel like I’m just crushing it at life.
I really wanted this set to feel NOT overwhelming and actually useful.
This Mini Freezer Stash:
- Takes less than one hour
- Uses whole food ingredients
- Has recipes that we *actually* want to eat.
The format couldn’t be easier – you basically assemble stuff in bags and freeze it!
And the recipes this month are some of the top-rated fall faves!
- Pumpkin Muffins
- Butter Chicken
- Tortilla Soup
- Ricotta Meatballs
If you want, you can get the cute little recipe cards sent to you (free) via email – the form is right here below. I like to print the cards out and attach them to the bags!
I hope you find this as helpful as it’s been for me!
Makes 16-18 muffins
Blend:
- 14-oz. can pumpkin puree
- 3 cups rolled oats
- 1 cup full-fat plain Greek yogurt
- 3/4 cup maple syrup
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp. cinnamon (optional)
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips (optional)
Blend all these ingredients for 30-40 seconds until a cohesive batter comes together. Add everything, including the oats, to the blender! The texture of the batter should be almost like a bran muffin – mostly smooth with just a few light flecks of texture.
Bake: 375° // 15-17 minutes
Freeze: Store muffins in an airtight container or bag in the freezer (or fridge). To reheat from frozen, microwave 45-60 seconds.
Things to Know:
- I bake these in a muffin tin lined with avocado oil.
Serves 4
(the picture above shows meatballs – you can make this with meatballs or just chicken thighs as directed below!)
Freeze Together:
- 1 red onion, roughly chopped
- 2 tsp. garlic paste
- 2 tsp. ginger paste
- 1/4 tsp. turmeric
- 1/4 tsp. smoked paprika
- 1 tsp. garam masala
- 1/2 tsp. cumin
- 1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
- 1 tsp. sugar
- 14-oz. can crushed tomatoes
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
Cook With:
- 1 1/2 lbs. chicken thighs
Crockpot: Low // 8 hours
Instant Pot: High // 16 minutes
Stovetop: Simmer // 30 minutes
Final Step: Remove chicken from the sauce and shred into large chunks. Puree the sauce (I use an immersion blender). Add ½ cup heavy cream and 2 tbsp. butter to the sauce. Add chicken back in. Serve with rice, naan, and cilantro.
Things to Know:
- The chicken is listed separately to make it safe for crockpot cooking. You add the frozen portion above, plus a package of chicken thighs, to the crockpot (or whatever method you’re using).
- Chicken breasts also work.
- I thaw this by running the bag under warm water for a few minutes and breaking the mixture into chunks.
Serves 6
Freeze Together:
- 1 red onion, diced
- 1 jalapeño, minced
- 2 tsp. garlic paste
- 1 1/2 tsp. cumin
- 1 1/2 tsp. chili powder
- ¼ tsp. dried oregano
- 1 1/2 tsp. salt
- 28-oz. can crushed tomatoes
Cook With:
- 1 1/2 lb. boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 3 cups chicken broth
Crockpot: Low // 8 hours
Instant Pot: High // 16 minutes
Stovetop: Simmer // 30 minutes
Final Step: Shred chicken. Add a 14-oz. can drained and rinsed pinto beans. Serve with tortilla strips, lime wedges, and sour cream!
Things To Know:
- Chicken is listed separately to make it safe for crockpot cooking. You add the frozen portion above, plus a package of chicken thighs and the broth, to the crockpot (or whatever method you’re using).
- Chicken breasts will also work.
- I thaw this by running the bag under warm water for a few minutes and breaking the mixture into chunks.
Serves 4-5
Mix, Roll, and Freeze:
Freeze on parchment-lined pan; divide into two bags
- 2 lb. ground turkey
- 1 cup full-fat ricotta cheese
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese
- 1 cup panko
- 2 tsp. garlic powder
- 2 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
Instructions for one bag:
Bake: 400° // 30 minutes
Final Step: After baking, add 32-oz. of marinara sauce like Rao’s. Bake for 10 mins to warm. Mix 1/4 cup panko, 1/4 cup Parmesan, 2 tsp. olive oil, and parsley, sprinkle on meatballs, and broil until golden and crispy. Serve with pasta or garlic bread and a salad!
Things to Know:
- Freeze the meatballs on a parchment lined pan so they won’t stick together. Once frozen, transfer to a bag (or two).
- I bake these in a shallow Dutch oven or cast iron pan with a bit of oil. Then I can add the sauce directly to that same pan.
- The crispies on top are optional but make it more fun to eat!
If you love this mini freezer stash and want even more freezer meal life-savers, you can get a full packet of 22 dinner recipes right here!
These are amazing!! I just got everything printed and am ordering the groceries for them now. Fingers crossed you’re going to do this series monthly!!
I love the idea of this mini freezer stash! Do you plan to publish this series monthly?
Love these. Prepped these before a surgery I had and my husband was able to get dinner on the table easily. The soup was a big hit with my 3 year old. He was upset when I ate all the leftovers.
Will plan on prepping these every month to have on hand for easy future meals.
Could you include the chicken in the freezer bag and thaw in the fridge overnight before using in the slow cooker?
We’ve loved your other freezer meal list and always include the meat when we do them from frozen in the Insta pot. Is that OK too?
Made the ricotta meatballs for my son at college and he loved them!!
Yay!
Thanks for these! In your other freezer meals, you do have chicken added to the freezer bag if using the instant pot. Is it the same for these? And would that change the cook time at all? Thanks!
My family loved each recipe! These were all delicious and easy to make. Looking forward to more of these!
This is so fab! I know you put a lot of thought into what format would be helpful for this and it’s so great! I gave this a try last week and it’s come in so handy, on the weekend when we hadn’t done a shop yet, for after school muffins. So great! Haven’t tried the soup yet but the kids (6 and 4) have lived everything else. Thanks so much!
Great feedback, thank you!
For the pumpkin muffins, when you say “blend” the ingredients, do you mean literally blend them in a blender or food processor, or do you mean just mix them together?
In a blender or food processor!
Okay, thanks so much for the clarification! I assumed it meant just mixed because of the chocolate chips listed in the ingredients. I made them that way, and like the other commenter, I didn’t think they came out great. I also think they could do with some more “oomph” from the spices? The taste was good, but a bit lackluster.
I just made them without literally blending and I’m pretty sure they are supposed to be blended. Still good, but I don’t think the texture is quite right!
Do you think I can fully make these meals and then freeze them? If so, how would I thaw/reheat them?
I want to make some freezer meals for my daughter in college!
Thank you! I made a double batch of all of this, one for my family and one for my aging parents to have on hand. Question – were the pumpkin muffins supposed to have flour in them perhaps? They did not turn out well for me and I was surprised by the lack of flour. That may have been user error knowing how good your recipes typically are.
Hello! They do not have flour in them. They are a denser muffin in general.
We need more mini stashes!!
I made the butter chicken for dinner tonight, and threw an extra one together for the freezer at the same time. It was nice and mild. A great starting point to adapt to our family’s preferences!
Thank you! This came up on my facebook feed. my spouse is having surgery at the end of the month and we have a house full of kids, including a newborn. I am looking for ways to streamline dinners and lunches so this takes something off my plate. Thank you so much
Sending your spouse well wishes for a smooth surgery!
Love your recipes and they are easy
I’ve browsed the “freezer meal” recipes in the past but always felt intimidated and overwhelmed by options. This format — four specific seasonal recipes with a combined shopping list, a short time estimate, and cute cards I can print at home! — finally convinced me to go for it and now I’m totally hooked. Crossing my fingers you publish more mini freezer stashes through the winter. Thank you so much!
Oh my God this looks amazing and this really helps me out with meal prep for two teenage boys. Just put it in freezer and can’t wait till you do another freezer prep. Thank you.!
The timing couldn’t have been more perfect for this to show up in my inbox! I’m having a small surgery this month and need to prepare some meals for our family during my recovery. These all look delicious and kid-friendly! Thanks for sharing such a great freezer friendly menu 🫶
Wishing you a restful recovery!
So awesome! Thank you!
This is amazing! Thank you. Haven’t made any yet but I love all of your recipes & so does my family.
Love this!! One hour freezer is sess is what busy moms need. Keep them coming. The GF and DF ones help us so much! I always tweak yours and they still work.
Agreed, I would also love more freeze-ingredients-and-throw-in-cooker recipes (or recipe adaptations)! The recipes in the freezer meal guide that Lindsay links to above were all we ate for 3+ months during a kitchen renovation; they’re a life-saving and special recipe category that I cherish having on hand! (That being said, I love all of your recipes, Lindsay! I’ve cooked most of them…).
I love these cute cards! Having the ingredients pre-chopped and measured in the freezer makes cooking feel so much more doable. Thank you, as always, for this great resource!
This is an amazing idea! More of these please!
Hi, thank you for sharing these. Would appreciate to see other recipes like that that are good for school and freezer meals, It is very challenging to find good recipes for crockpot. Really appreciate to see the different options for cooking