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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

batch cookers...what are you making?

118 replies

woodwaj · 01/01/2015 12:56

Looking for some easy meal suggestions for some fussy eaters!

Also pretty much all of my pregnancy i have gone off meat...for anyone else that went off any foods...did you enjoy it again afterwards?

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woodwaj · 01/01/2015 19:36

Think ill go with the cookie dough!

Weelamb, are you in the 1st trimester you sound Like i did! Poor OH ate crap for god knows how long.

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woodwaj · 01/01/2015 19:36

Thanks comeagain!

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pocketsized · 01/01/2015 19:40

Portions of mash potato, in flat zip locked bags - great to go with stews/casseroles that you can batch cook :)

woodwaj · 01/01/2015 19:51

Think im going to go to a farm shop tomorrow for a big bag of spuds! Grin

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NickyEds · 01/01/2015 20:23

This time around (not due till July!!) I'll be doing stews, cottage pies, lasagne etc. I'll do whole meals this time. With DS I made things like Thai paste and Tomato sauce for homemade pizzas- totally misunderstanding just how knackered I'd be. I remember thinking I'd just turn them into decent meals but when DS arrived I couldn't be bothered. This time it'll be fully made pizzas and curries, frozen. Pizzas and tomato pastas are actually really good as you can eat them with one hand and they're ok cold Smile.

woodwaj · 01/01/2015 22:28

Ive got my shopping list ready and as of today i also have motivation. Hopefully that will stay!!

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bubalou · 02/01/2015 09:33

Sorry if this is repeating - I haven't read the other replies.

I went off mince completely and that hasn't resolved itself after 7 years - however I eat quorn mince instead which I love.

When it comes time to batch cook I will be making -

Lasagne
Bolognese
Pasta bakes
Cottage pie
Soups

Smile
MrsCaptainReynolds · 02/01/2015 11:40

Moussaka is a nice alternative (with lamb mince) to all the beef mince freezer meals (chilli, bolognaise, lasagne). Especially quick and easy if you don't do aubergine layers, but instead roast whole aubergines until soft and add the soft flesh to the lamb mince. Same flavour, less finicky.

At the end of my first pregnancy I used the first week of mat leave to make chilli (gordon ramsay recipe), moussaka, lasagne, pizzas, tomato sauce for pasta, tomato soup, mashed sweet potato, butternut squash pasta sauce (the annabel karmel one -i have a toddler), home made macaroni cheese with ham and tomatoes, and chicken pie filling ready in dishes to have a piece of puff pastry added to the top, and feta and spinach pies.

The feta and spinach pies are really useful as a light non meat snack and when frozen in slices, can be taken out only and hour or so before you want to eat them. Make a mix of 2 beaten eggs, chopped block of feta, chopped steamed spinach (standard bag) and half a jar of chopped sundried tomatoes. Put in the middle of 3 sheets of filo, spread out at angles to each other and wrap around to enclose, making a circular pie. Use the oil the tomatoes come in to stick the filo together and coat the top. Bake at high temp for 5 mins to set the egg, then down to 180 for about 30 mins. Allow to cool then cut into slices and freeze. I usually make about 4 of these in a go, since you get 12 sheets of filo per packet. Get 6-8 slices per pie.

Second pregnancy had no time as I unexpectedly delivered my son in about 90 minutes at 38 weeks. Really miss all the home cooked meals. When we first reliably got him down for the evening at 8, we make about 6kg of chilli!

legolammb · 02/01/2015 14:06

Can I ask about reheating? Do stews, soups etc need to be defrosted before cooking, or can you stick them straight in the microwave from the freezer?

I always get a bit nervous about defrosting - does it need to be overnight in the fridge? I'm not usually organised enough to remember

LizziTea · 02/01/2015 14:39

I tend to heat most things up in the microwave straight from frozen, but my food is vegetarian so I don't know if you have to do things differently with meat. I always intend to defrost in the fridge as it reduces cooking time, but mostly I don't remember! I do try to transfer the food out of plastic for most of the microwaving where possible, but I expect most people would say that's over-cautious.

ThereMustAndShallBeTea · 02/01/2015 14:52

Genius idea I read online: line lasagne dish with tin foil, put lasagne in, freeze. Once frozen, remove now solid lasagne and wrap more or put in freezer bag. Line dish again, make new lasagne, freeze and remove as before.

When you want to cook, just unwrap and put it back in the dish then bake.

Saves ending up with all your dishes out of action in the freezer!

agoodbook · 02/01/2015 14:54

I defrost all my frozen stuff in the microwave. I batch cook lots as I have an allotment.
I also tend to do basic stuff which can then be zussed up - so I don't do lasagne,( its takes forever to defrost, and i dont think the white sauce is up to much when it is ) but bolognese sauce- that way I can use it for pasta or gnocchi or make a lasagne - does that make sense?
Also savoury mince ( bolognese without tomatoes, but with veg Grin) that I can make into a cottage pie, put with mash or top rice with.
Also
Tomato sauce
Tomato sauce with vegetables
Bean casserole ( can add suasages )
Soup - I freeze in plastic bags - just put plastic bag into a bowl first, put in soup and tie, then it wont run everywhere ( experience talking here)
Meat/ Veg stew
Casseroles - when I make one for tea, I tend to make x 4 - saves on electricity as well
Little loaf tin cakes banana cake/ lemon drizzle etc.
If I cook sausages, I tend to do x 2 and freeze half -good for a quick sausage sandwich.
The only thing I dont freeze is fish - has to be fresh for me.

IAmOnMyBike · 02/01/2015 16:41

I like the idea of taking the frozen food out of the dish, so you free them up. I waste so many containers to the freezer.

I normally defrost things rather than put them straight in the oven. I would be interested in knowing if anyone else cooks from frozen?

KentExpecting · 02/01/2015 16:49

Chilli - with meat and vegetarian (with lentils and lots of different types of beans)
Soups and stews - any kind , but I normally make Potato & Leek and Chicken Noodle soup
Casserole - any kind, but I usually make Beef Bourguignon and Sausage & Cider casseroles as my husband loves them.
Lasagne - meat or veggie
Quiche - you can freeze them as individual slices if you want so you have quick/ easy lunch options

PrettyCherryTrees · 02/01/2015 17:10

We have winter born twins and my DH doesn't really cook so I batch cooked enough meals for the first six weeks after the children were born so the at we didn't starve!

I made:

Bolognese sauce
Chilli (beef and veg)
Steak & ale stew
Cottage pie
Lasagne
Curry (chicken and veg)

My suggestion is make enough variety that you don't get bored. I have a friend that made three things and it got to the point they just couldn't face any of the choices.

Also make sure things are clearly labelled as chilli and Bolognese doesn't look that different frozen.

In response to Carrot puff both lasagne and cottage pie I make them directly into little metal trays with cardboard lids. That way you aren't trying to cut them up to freeze. You can buy them very cheaply in the supermarket.

Otherwise I find that Morrisons plastic tubs are the cheapest and freeze well. I've got some that have been going for years.

Buttercup27 · 02/01/2015 17:14

I always make double enchiladas so I can freeze them. Spag bol mix is good to freeze as it can be used as a base for lots of meals.

RudeBarbandCustard · 02/01/2015 18:06

I freeze crumble topping in a ziplock bag, then you can just bung some fruit in a dish e.g. tinned peaches, plums, stewed apples, shake some sugar over it, then put the defrosted crumble topping on top and bake.

If you're feeling really short on time, you can just open up a carton of ready made custard and microwave it. yum!!

Works really well

dwarfrabbit · 02/01/2015 18:08

agoodbook - what a genius idea for freezing soup. going to copy it when my soup is done!
i freeze:
leek and potato soup
lentil, carrot, celery, onion and red wine mush.
you can either chuck some stock in later and call it soup, or top it with sweet potato and it's a lovely veggie dinner.
curried butternut squash soup
bolog sauce - you can then defrost for spag bol, cottage pie, chille or lasagne
white sauce - ace for taking out for pies, lasagne or leeks.
portions of wine that you don't fancy drinking. add to gravy, stews , risotto etc.
I've really enjoyed reading this thread and am going to use some ideas!
my mum's pizza dough. mine is rubbish.

bubalou · 02/01/2015 19:53

I'm having a summer baby this time in May / June so I will probably only make some spag Bol for protein as we will most likely eat a lot of salads and pastas etc.

Smile
HazyShadeOfWinter · 02/01/2015 20:19

A freezer standby for us is some oven-roasted tomato sauce. WHen you have oven on for a roast or whatever fill a roasting tin with tinned tomatos - we use whole plum ones that I have snipped into strips with scissors. Add a good glug of olive oil; garlic to taste (whole cloves, smashed up a bit) and dried oregano/herbs of choice. Glug of wine if you have it. Pop in oven with roast til it thickens and is a nice sauce consistency.

Freeze portions in zip bags.

When needed can be defrosted in a bowl of water, then either makes plain pasta sauce or add veg/protein of choice to it as you reheat it.

RudeBarbandCustard · 02/01/2015 20:46

Hazy that sounds amazing, and just my kind of cooking! Will definitely try that.

I just made root veg casserole in the slow cooker, and saved 2 leftover portions to freeze, as well as enough to put in my soup flask to freeze for work. Instant meal from freezer that involved almost no effort to cook the first time round = Ultimate lazy food!

saturnvista · 02/01/2015 22:26

I do twelve weeks of meals in advance - shepherd's pie, lasagne, mango chicken curry, chilli and a lovely gluten free dish called apricot chicken. (The other nights we roast a chicken and eat takeaway!)

MademoiselleG · 02/01/2015 23:02

Loving reading this thread and getting lots of inspiration!

Re: defrosting, I usually de freeze a little bit in microwave, just enough to 'loosen up' the frozen object, then bake/cook/grill as required. Things like quiche and other pastry foods really need to be defrosted then baked, otherwise the pastry is soggy if just defrosted. I sometimes part-bake then freeze bread, works incredibly well as long as it's stored and wrapped well.

I also bought a clever Dymo label maker on Amazon to avoid the UFO-syndrome (Unidentified Frozen Object)!

Suzietwo · 02/01/2015 23:11

I often buy a huge joint of meat for a roast. Whatever remains is turned into pork and cider/beef casserole etc and frozen. I find it a better use than having the leftovers in the fridge.

I also make and freeze brocolli cakes and Salmon cakes, chicken "nuggets", meat loaf, burgers, meat balls, chicken balls etc. stuff the kids can eat quickly during the week either with pasta, in wraps or on baked potatoes etc.

woodwaj · 02/01/2015 23:11

I bought those take away style trays today where you can write on the lid...I've got to admit though im tempted to google the UFO label maker ;)

I could do all my batch cooking this weekend but i think ill wait till Monday when i am at "work" (after the lie in obviously!!) Wink

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