Cook aheads for later.......

[Mama Mangia]

Sometimes we get too busy to make healthy meals and we seem to always be pressed for time.

Here's a few ideas to help you during those "busy" moments:


Browning ground beef for dinner? Do extra to use in tacos later in the week.

Grate extra cheese and store it in a freezer bag in your freezer.

Cook extra rice or pasta and store it in a zip lock bag in the refrigerator. Leftover pasta and rice can be added to canned soups to make them more hearty or you can toss them with canned, seasoned tomatoes and vegetables for a quick meal.

Baking or frying chicken breasts? Cook a few more, and cut up later to use in stir-fry.

Chop a whole onion, even if you only need half. Keep the rest handy to toss into any number of meals.

Wash, rinse, dry, and store enough salad for a few meals. Then at meal time all you need to do is toss it into a nice big bowl, add some dressing and voila!

When you get back from the grocery store take the time to cut up vegetables, fruits, etc. and put them in zip-lock bags. You will be so happy you did this later in the week.

Love Your Leftovers - Cooking so much extra of everything may sound a little scary. Leftovers tend to get pushed to the back of the refrigerator, found weeks later, and are unidentifiable because of the hairy stuff growing on them. Never again! Plan to use them with in a few days or freeze them as part of your investment cooking. Just a little leftover chicken or roast? Freeze it for sandwiches or casseroles or even taco filling. If you plan your meals in advance you should already know where your leftovers are going. Use food to your advantage.

[Mama Mangia]

Save the ends of the bread that no one wants to use for sandwiches or toast and place in a plastic bag and freeze. Wheat, rye, white, sourdough, bread, rolls, English muffins, bagels - even hotdog and hamburger rolls or bulky egg rolls - toss in the same bag.

When you want bread stuffing/dressing, pull the bag out of the freezer and break or cut up the breads. Using a large pot, melt butter; saute diced celery, onion and green and/or red bell peppers. Season as desired. Dissolve chicken bouillon in boiling water. When veggies are tender, add bread and pour broth over; mix well; transfer to casserole and bake until done. The different types of breads/rolls give the stuffing/dressing a great flavor. And it is a great addition to any meal!



Dry day-old breads and make your own bread crumbs.



Cut day-old bread into cubes and freeze for making croutons later. To make croutons just melt a bit of butter in a skillet and add bread cubes that have been tossed with Italian dressing or any oil/vinegar vinaigrette; tossing to toast on all sides. Serve with salads, soups, chowders, etc.

Do the same with leftover French or baguette bread and even bagels - slice thin and freeze to make croutons later.

[Mrs. Chipotle]

We have Mexican food fairly regularly. A pound of seasoned beef is usually good for 2-3 meals for the two of us, and is handy to have in the refrigerator.

Also with celery, I chop a lot at once and freeze it in bags. I don't use a lot of celery and so if I buy a whole package of it, I usually end up throwing some of it away if i don't keep and freeze it.

Also, often I'll cook a whole chicken and we'll have roast chicken one night, then I'll chop up whatever is left and use it in casseroles.

[Mama Mangia]

I love to roast a large roast beef and make a large pot of gravy!

The next day the roast is very easy to slice and I bag it up in freezer bags with gravy.

I get several meals that way - and with this heat is really nice to have that - just warm it up; have it as open-faced sandwiches, or sandwiches, or as a meal with a salad and veggies.

And you can shred some and bag it to freeze (without the gravy) and warm up with your favorite BBQ sauce.

[Mrs. Chipotle]

Oh yes, in the winter I often make a roast in the crock pot.

Then the leftovers can be used just as you described. Or you can make soup!

[Traciray]

I always try to grill up a few extra chicken so I can have single serving marinated/grilled chicken breast in the frezzer so I can grab one for a quick lunch or dinner. Normally I just warm and add to a mixed green salad.

[TexasRose]

I do a lot of Cajun cooking and so I often chop extra onion, celery and/or bell pepper so I can have some ready for the next time.

Also, I make blackened catfish a lot. I mix 3-4 times the amount of blackening spices and save them in a tiny Tupperware container. That way, I don't have to mix them every time.

No, I am not from Louisiana, I just like to cook as if I was!