Crock Pot Freezer Meals

It is no secret that I hate to cook. I would really like it if somehow dinner would just magically appear on our table each night, but that does not happen. It used to happen when my mom lived in Willowcreek. She loves to cook, so she would just call and say "There is homemade macaroni and cheese in my refrigerator. Stop by and get it and put in in your oven for 30 minutes at 350 degrees." Or even better - "Why don't you come down for dinner?" This was heaven for me! But, after eight years, I have to come to terms with the fact that my mom is not moving back to Willowcreek. So instead, my brother gets those phone calls!

My problem is not so much that I despise cooking, but I hate planning, shopping, cooking, and cleaning up after getting up at 5:45 a.m. and working all day. It is just exhausting. I would much rather be spending time with my family, sewing, or crafting. Too often, we get home, I get everyone settled, and I finally sit down and think "Shit, now I have to cook dinner!" Don't laugh, that is really what I think! So, I have a few go-to meals. Recently, those have been tacos, hamburgers, or pancakes (I love breakfast for dinner). I get into a rut and cook the same dinners over and over. Luckily, the boys don't seem to mind, but I feel bad and know that I need to provide a more diverse menu.

Recently, I have noticed many recipes on Pinterest for crock pot freezer meals. With the recent change in the weather (it is finally beginning to feel like fall), I have been inspired to get my crock pot out. I really enjoy cooking in my crock pot - I actually have four of them! It does not feel like cooking though because I can just throw a few ingredients into the crock pot, turn it on and forget about it for the rest of the day. Then, the house starts to smell delicious and when dinnertime rolls around, I feel like super mom! After falling into my cooking rut, I decided that crock pot freezer meals might work well for us. So, I gathered some recipes from Six Sisters' Stuff a recipe from Gooseberry Patch and one recipe from Amy our babysitter. When I picked up the two little boys the other day, her house smelled so good that it was all I could do not to invite myself to stay for dinner. She must have seen the drool falling from my mouth, because she offered me the recipe!

On Friday, I made my shopping list and went to the grocery store. I was pleased to see that many ingredients were consistent among the recipes which made shopping easier. When I arrived home, I didn't even put my groceries away. Instead, I took them out of the bags and left them on the counter. Then, I began chopping and bagging according to the recipes. Although the Six Sisters' Stuff post said that it only took an hour, it took me a little longer. However, if I was to do it a second time and be more familiar with the recipes, I think I could probably complete the process in one hour. While I was in the groove, I added the ingredients for the Black Bean Chili into the crockpot for dinner that evening.

I ended up with:

• BBQ Spareribs
• Chicken Broccoli Alfredo
• Chicken Cacciatore
• Hearty Beef Stew
• Maple Dijon Glazed Chicken
• Beef, Tomato and Tortellini Casserole
• Cilantro Lime Chicken with Corn and Black Beans (I made two bags because it smelled so good!)

With about an hour of preparation, I had dinner in the crock pot and EIGHT more meals ready to go. In addition to having future meals planned, there were other benefits to this process. First, I only ended up with a couple of grocery items to put away. Everything else was used in a recipe. Second, I had so few dishes! Instead of using the cutting board, knife, measuring spoons, measuring cup, etc. eight different times for eight different meals, I was able to using all of the dishes over and over with each recipe. After I was finished, I ended up with less than one load of dishes to load into the dishwasher! I am totally doing this again!

We ate the Black Bean Chili on Friday and I cooked the Chicken Broccoli Alfredo on Saturday. They were both amazing! Just a side note, I added a little more meat than each of the recipes called for because my family eats so much! Both nights, I ended up with just enough leftovers for one lunch which is perfect for me to take to school! I will let you know how the other recipes turn out, and if you have any amazing crock pot freezer meal ideas, send them my way!