One way my nesting instinct is manifesting itself is by getting as much food prepared in advance as possible.  I wrote out a list of meals we like to eat, and notes about ways to adapt them to the freezer. 

Remember the Lazy Girl’s Lasagna from the other day? Here’s how much extra I made at the same time:

4 2-portion trays, and 2 larger casseroles.  Plus, 2 extra lunch-sized portions from this one I baked for our dinner. 

There are 2 different ways I’ve been freezing meals so far. 

First, I got these restaurant-grade aluminum trays. 

They’re just large enough for 2 portions, and small enough to not take too long to heat back up.  I packed them all up, and wrote the contents and directions on the top.

The second way I’ve been freezing meals is in our casserole dishes.  I don’t remember where I read this tip, but it’s a pretty great idea.  First you take the casserole dish:

line it with aluminum foil.  I use 2 sheets to make sure nothing escapes:

build your meal inside.

Cover the top with plastic wrap and put in the freezer. 

After about 24 hours, remove the dishes from the freezer.  Take off the plastic wrap which will have collected all the condensation.  Wrap the foil over the top of the dish (use more if you need to) and pull it out of the dish.  You’re left with a frozen casserole that you can put into a ziploc bag and put back in the freezer.  When it’s time to cook the casserole, put it back in the casserole dish, and bake as normal. 

This tip works great for larger portions, and makes it so all your casserole dishes aren’t tied up in the freezer!