Planning a Freezer Cooking Day with Friends

Have you ever wanted to try to Freezer Cook for your family but you weren’t sure where to start? Why not plan a day with a girlfriend or two and Plan a Freezer Cooking Day together?

My girlfriends and I are doing just that! I am so excited about a big day my Real Farmwives of America and Friends girlfriends and I have planned next weekend and I had to share it with you!

Long time readers will know how crazy I am about  freezer cooking and the fact that it keeps my kitchen clean all month long with very little effort.

Over the years my methods of freezer cooking have changed as my life has changed. I have even used it to lose weight. But one thing that has stayed the same is that freezer cooking with friends is one of my very favorite ways to fill my freezer while helping them fill theirs.

Step 1: Find a Buddy or 10!

I have freezer cooked with Aunt Lou and discovered her amazing Beefy Mexicali. I laughed my butt off with Leah when we freezer cooked together and discovered that Martha doesn’t live here. I have also got a large group of friends together for a casserole trade. We cooked all day and cut-up all day and that is what we are planning on doing this time around too!

It doesn’t matter if it is just a friend or two or 10, a cooking buddy will make the day fly by.

Here is who you will see participating in our big #FarmGirlsFreeze Day next weekend:

• Miss Amy over on A Latte with Ott, A
• Miss Cris (me!) over on GOODEness Gracious
• Miss Heather over on 3 Kids and Lots of Pigs
• Miss Jeanette over on Fencerow To Fencerow
• Miss Jent over on From My Front Porch
• Miss Liz over on Two Maids a Milking
• Miss Marybeth over on Alarmclock Wars
• Miss Megan over on Gal in the Middle
• Miss Meggie over on Hoosier Farm Babe
• Miss Sarah over on This Farm Family’s Life

Step 2: Find Your Recipes

There are tons of great recipes online but you can also find cookbooks dedicated to them like the one we will be cooking from, Freezer-Friendly Recipes. Gooseberry Patch generously sent each girl a copy of the cookbook to choose their recipe this time around.

Step 3: Decide How You Will Cook

Will you cook together all day long like we are? If there are two or three of you, you can probably manage in one of your kitchens. If there are 10, you may want to check into an industrial size kitchen at a local church. That is what we have done in the past and it was so wonderful!

If you can’t find a place big enough to do all the cooking, you might consider just having a trade party or an assembly party where everything is cooked at home and brought to the same location to assemble together… 10 dishes of the same recipe can get boring without a little friend time to make it fly.

Step 4: Plan for More Time Than You Will Think You Need:

Chopping an onion for one recipe becomes chopping 10 onions. Browning one pound of ground beef becomes browning 10… everything is going to take longer than you think it will and more cooks in the kitchen — while totally fun– complicates things because everyone has to take turns… just sayin’

Step 5: Shop

Disposable, reheatable containers are best for Freezer Cooking trades.  That way you aren’t tracking down 10 different casserole dishes. Don’t forget something to label everything with.

And don’t forget snacks for the day or you may find yourself nibbling on Gal’s Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins all day and not have any left for your freezer!

Step 6: Have Fun!

There is nothing better than doing something great for your family while spending the day with friends.

It is so much fun that we have decided to share the day with you by tweeting and instagramming the whole day using the following hashtags #FarmGirlsFreeze and #FreezerCooking.

All the fun starts at 2 PM on Saturday, Sept 7.

Then each of the girls will post their recipe from the day on their own blogs over the next few days.

I will then recap all the recipes on Sept 12 on Real Farmwives of America and Friends and giveaway a special treat from our friends at Gooseberry Patch– Cookbooks full of Freezer Cooking Recipes!

How about you, have you ever freezer cooked with friends?

Big thanks to Gooseberry Patch for their sponsorship of our #FarmGirlsFreeze day! I can’t wait to show ya’all what these girls will cook up… cause farm girls can cook folks 😉