When you use the Garnished Plate meal plan, you always have the option to do the prep work for your meals ahead of time. This is a great option for people that are busy during the majority of the week, but have a couple of hours one day a week to get the majority of the work done. This ensures that no matter what comes up, you will still have a delicious home-cooked meal and won't be forced to grab take-out or eat cold cereal.

When you make meals ahead of time, we suggest keeping them in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. If it will be any longer than that before you cook it, it's best to freeze it. Otherwise you will risk the food spoiling or becoming unsafe to eat.

You may be wondering about the quality of food that has been prepared, frozen and thawed before cooking. Will it still be as delicious? Will the texture be weird. Believe us, we've been there. There's nothing more disappointing than spending time and money creating "freezer meals" only to be disappointed with the final results. That's why we've tested hundreds of recipes and only share the best as part of the meal plan.

We've created a list to educate you on what foods freeze well and which ones to avoid.

Freezer Friendly Foods:

1. Whole cuts or chunks of meat - chicken breasts, whole chickens, roasts, steaks and chops
2. Vegetables that don't contain a lot of water - carrots, corn, green beans, peppers, etc.
3. Dairy - to an extent - shredded cheese, cubed cream cheese or a small amount of milk mixed into a sauce
4. Canned items if opened and added to freezer bag - drained beans, diced tomatoes and tomato sauces or fruits (there are more, but generally these are the only canned items I use in recipes)
5. Spices - we generally add all dried spices to our freezer bag meals, it saves time later and quality is rarely compromised.

Non Freezer Friendly Foods:

1. Potatoes - it depends on the content of the other items in the recipe, but in general, potatoes do not freeze well.
2. Other dairy items - sour cream, heavy cream, milk (they may technically freeze and thaw safely but the texture will change so I don't generally recommend it)
3. Ground meats - when you are going to use it as part of your freezer meal I recommend cooking/browing ahead of time
4. Veggies with high water content (things like zucchini or spinach) - these can be included in freezer meals but can't be a main component of the dish or it will most likely end up soggy

Have more questions? Feel free to contact us. We are here to help.