I live alone, and I make a lot of recipes that serve anywhere from 2-6 people. Really, I try not to eat something more than twice in a row. I tend to get bored if I make a dish and eat it six nights in a row, for example, even if I dress it up with extra vegetables.

What's saved me is freezing foods. I'm not one of those commando cooks who do a month's worth of meals in one marathon day's worth of cooking. But, I'll cook something, save one portion as leftovers, and freeze the rest. I live and die on those Ziploc semi-disposable plastic containers.

Anyone else had experiences with this? Most things I have good luck with, if they're main dishes. I eat semi-vegetarian/pescatarian (which is vegetarian plus fish), so that's the type of things I freeze. I've noticed that pastas freeze pretty well, as do tomato-based dishes and bean-based dishes. I'll make something like beans and rice, and just freeze the beans part and then cook rice when I thaw it. Or shrimp creole, freeze the shrimp creole in individual containers and then cook rice in the microwave separate. (When I ate meat I found that beef seemed to freeze better than chicken, at least in the dishes I made.) I haven't tried freezing, say, fish dishes. That just seems wrong, and I usually cook those in small quantities anyway.

I've had bad luck freezing breads, though, or bread-based things. If I freeze muffins, or fresh-baked breads, it's a disaster trying to thaw it out to eat. Now, frozen meals heat up like... well, frozen meals, the type they sell in the stores. That's easy. I still don't get how I can freeze muffins and English muffins and breads and have them thaw. I've never tried to freeze cookies. Never really tried to freeze anything but main dishes.

Anyway, just curious if anyone else freezes. When I first went to a dietician three years ago, I told her I would never, ever cook. That I'd live on convenience foods, fast foods, and frozen dinners. And I did -- for a while. Now I find I like cooking, and it's cheaper. And I still have the convenience of frozen meals to bring into work, say, just at less cost. Plus it's great when I don't feel like cooking, to peruse the freezer and see what's there.

I'm surprised that your'e having a hard time freezing breads and muffins, etc. They are usually the easiest to freeze. What happens when you try to thaw them? Is it because you freeze it together in a big bunch and they are hard to seperate? You might want to try wrapping each piece individually in plastic wrap and then put into a container/freezer bag.

They just don't taste right. Or, oftentimes, they get some weird texture -- too hard, or too mushy as they thaw, or something like that.

What are some examples of thawing procedures for bread products? Like, if I have a regular size muffin, do I just zap it in the microwave on full power for 30 seconds? Or do you let it thaw in the fridge or on the counter overnight first? Or what?

when we freeze bread at my house (my mom buys, like, 8 loaves at a time) we just stick it in the freezer. when we need new bread, we just take it from the freezer and let it thaw on the counter. if i'm really impatient for a sandwich, i'll pry off a few slices of bread and toast them.
whatever you do, don't pull out the ice pieces in the bread bag...it'll dry the bread out too much.

andrea

About how long does it take a loaf to thaw, then? Or a muffin? Maybe I should try heating them up in the oven, and not the microwave. The garlic bread I buy frozen I heat in the oven, not the microwave, come to think.

I freeze meals all the time. I am doing weight watchers, and freezing ahead of time just keeps me on track I think. I make the Duncan Hines 100 % bran muffins all the time, and freeze them. I take two out for breakfast the night before and have a 2 point very filling breakfast. I make meat loafs and freeze it in 4oz foil packages. Each package is like 4 points since I use 97% lean meat. I also make chicken and rice and freeze it, and a veggie lasanga. I make my lunches over the weekend. For some reason if I can have a hot lunch instead of a sandwich I am better satisfied. I mae the pineapple angelfood muffins for a one point dessert and freeze those, and also the no pudge brownies.

I hope this helps you.