Friday, January 21, 2011

Freezer storage

By golly it really works!
I readd an article in Better Homes and Gardens magazine a while ago, maybe this spring? I'll bet you saw it. It showed a before and after of a freezer all lovely organized and labeled so perfect. (I just searched for about 30 minutes and cannot find the picture or article to share online, sorry girls.) It described how to freeze liquids flat and put them on their sides to save space. They suggested putting soups, sauces, etc. in freezer bags and laying them on a cookie sheet in your freezer. Then transfering them to vertical storage after they have frozen.

Hmm, does this really work, I wondered. Heck ya, it does! I have a teeny freezer. Really. A frozen pizza barely fits in there. Say what? You didn't think we ate such gobbly goop? Well, we do people. (Amy's, Kashi, and Newman's Own are our favorites.) Anyway, at the bottom of my freezer is this drawer that is dumb, stuff gets lost in there and it never pulls out right so I get P.O.ed at it all the time. BUT right under it is about a two inch space and then the bottom of the freezer. So I thought, there is where I can lay my liquid stuff to freeze. Who has an extra cookie sheet or space to just lay stuff in your freezer? Not me!

I just fill the bag, squeeze out as much air as I can, lay it on the bottom of the freezer (under the annoying drawer) and later move it to the vertical storage. Hot diggity, it is so easy. Now I am freezing everything. I freeze all our leftovers of course but I found you can freeze half and half, heavy cream and other goodies you might need for baking. (Do not use heavy cream to make real whipped cream after it has been frozen, it won't whip correctly. All these ingredients I use in baking only, not as stand alone items after they have been frozen.) I promise it is so easy. I found this so helpful when a recipe calls for 1/2 cup of something (like chicken broth) and you have a whole bunch leftover. I used to put everything in plastic containers and they take up way too much space. This flat method works so much better.

Don't forget to label!

3 comments:

Jill said...

Great tips, my great Aunt told me about using bags to freeze a long time ago and I am amazed what a difference it makes for room. My biggest hangup is I'm not a fan of plastics, lol :-( But it seems it's hard to avoid these days because everything is made from it.
Have a great weekend!!
Blessings,
Jill

Becca said...

Impressive freezer girl! Looks very close to Better Homes and Gardens. Never knew you could freeze 1/2 and 1/2 and cream...good to know!

Kerri said...

What a great tip Jenny! Those plastic containers take up so much space! I think I'm gonna give this one a try...thanks!