This is a business where you go in and make 12 meals to take home and freeze. Before having Mo, mom treated me to a FTM gift certificate. I was ecstatic, having several meals in the freezer to supplement what the church ladies were bringing me was something I knew would be essential with a newborn in the home. The first problem I encountered was that I had trouble finding a month where the menu offered enough meals we would eat. Dana is not a big chicken eater (he isn't nearly as thrilled about the Fussy Day Chicken as I am). Neither of us eat seafood. Kaia eats almost anything, so I wasn't worried about her. I decided on March though, and chose our meals, doubling up on a few that sounded really good.
The second problem I didn't discover until we started using those meals. Some were practically inedible to us due to the high sodium content. They were disgustingly salty. When you consider that Dana always salts his food and he couldn't eat it, you know it's salty. There were at least 3 meals that were too salty. I did email them regarding this, but never received a response.
Another meal that I chose 2 of was just plain bland. It was an italian casserole. I put the second one to good use by having Dana deliver it to our preacher Kevin right after his wife (my good friend) had their son (a month younger than Mo). I warned her ahead of time how bland we found it, and what I would do to give it better flavor.
We did like 3 of the meals really well. Luckily that made up 5 of the meals. 2 of the meals I have replicated at home quite easily. Sweet and Sour Meatballs and Calzones. The other meal that I expected Dana to dislike (and I was only allowed to make one of) was Prosciutto wrapped Chicken breasts. There was an herb cheese spread that was first put on the breast, then prosciutto wrapped around, and egg noodles on the side to serve them over. This was excellent, and because the "meals" are at the least 4 servings, it made us dinner a few times.
The other meals were nothing exciting. Not bad, not great, just food. Now please don't think I'm ungrateful for this gift. With the exception of the salty ones that we just couldn't eat, we were happy to have these ready made meals that provided leftovers for lunch (it's difficult to cook when you're constantly nursing an infant or chasing a toddler).
The biggest problem with the meals, is a problem I have now, the price! It has gone up substantially since mom bought my certificate. It is now $18.75 per meal, when you buy 12 meals at once. I can hit Papa Murphy's Pizza for less!
If you need to (or want to) put some meals away in the freezer, visit the library and get a good cookbook on freezing meals, or visit the Yahoo Group Frozen Assets. Before my surgery I managed to put away
- 2 meatloaves- just make up and freeze in pan
- 1 mexican meatloaf- add green pepper to mix, and use enchilada sauce instead of tomato
- 3 freezer bags of marinated frozen chicken
Another idea is to stock up on Hamburger Helper when it gets really cheap. I picked up 4 boxes at Fiesta Foods for 77 cents a piece last week. Even when I'm sick and have no energy (like last week) I can brown some burger and add milk and seasonings. So it's more expensive than a homemade dish, but when you're sick or running late, it is handy. I've also at other times put away split pea soup and pinto beans. Just make extra when you cook, and freeze it! With these tips you'll save money, have healthier meals, and won't have to rely on take-out.
3 comments:
Thanks for visiting. I go to a place called My Girlfriend's Kitchen every other month to supplement my own freezer cooking and get ideas. Being a repeat customer brings the price down (buy 10 get 2 free this month!). I'm not sure how the place you visited worked, but when I assemble the meals I control all of the ingredients and can make it suit our families likes and dislikes.
Maybe you could try a different franchise?
I have always wanted to try one of these places. There is something called Supper Supers where I live. One time a lady that started her own business like this came to MOPS. Her meals sounded really good. She did a demonstration of her meatloaf. I usually don't like meatloaf, but her's was very yummy. She put all sorts of vegtables in there.
Freezing meals on my own always seems so daunting to me. Maybe it is just because I don't like to cook much anyway. :( I am getting better at it though.
TJ, thanks so much for stopping by my blog and commenting. Did you find mine through Like Merchant Ships?
I have tried these make ahead places too and have found some dishes I liked, some were too salty and some too bland. There were some women who used to go up to our church kitchen and cook in bulk and all take some home to freeze. Sounds fun to me and you can do it with friends and use your own recipes.
That's really cool that you had friends who attended Harding. From Washington? The Hennigers by chance?
Have a great evening! Kelly
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