Bringing home a baby from the hospital can be some of the hardest couple weeks of your life. Between laundry, bottles, and a scattered sleep schedule, it can be really hard to prepare healthy meals for your family.
The following are recipes that can be prepped ahead of time and batch frozen, and then thawed and warmed back up in a crock pot to make it easy to feed your young family with little to no effort.
1) Beef Chili
This is ground beef, onion, garlic, tomatoes, beans, and spices cooked into a chili and then frozen flat in Ziploc bags. You have the option to add lime or vinegar once it’s cooked and serve it with chips on the side.
For this recipe, I’d recommend cooking the entire batch of chili ahead of time and then just freezing it in bags. That way you’re not relying on the slow cooker to cook it, just to heat it up. When making your initial batch, make sure not to cook off too much of the liquid so that you’ve got plenty left for when you reheat it in individual bags.
This recipe, as well as all of the other ones following, is meant to be frozen and then reheated in a crock pot on low. This one you’ll want to freeze in gallon Ziploc bags, laying them flat in the freezer.
2) Chicken Tortilla Soup
This is chicken, onion, garlic, tomatoes, corn, beans, broth, and spices, cooked all day on low in a crock pot. Tortilla chips and shredded cheese are optional. I like to use chicken thighs in the slow cooker. Not only does the extra fat give you more flavor, but they’re also more forgiving as far as overcooking goes.
I like to add a can of diced green chilies to really kick the flavor level up on this dish. Tortilla chips, Fritos, shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, hot sauce, or sliced green onion are great options for toppings.
3) Salsa Verde Chicken
This is chicken thighs, green salsa, cumin, and onion. I like to season the raw chicken thighs, add onions, diced bell pepper, and garlic, and toss them in a Ziploc bag right in the freezer. Then when it’s time to cook, dump the frozen bag into the crock pot, add your jar of salsa verde, and cook on low all day.
Frozen or canned corn is a great addition to this meal. I like to shred the chicken afterwards and serve it with warm tortillas or over rice.
4) Honey Garlic Chicken
This is chicken thighs with a honey, soy, garlic, and ginger sauce, served over rice. Make your sauce ahead of time by mixing the soy sauce, garlic, and ginger, and then adding the honey and heating it on low to dissolve the honey thoroughly. Then mix this with your chicken thighs and freeze in bags.
To save time and make this easier for new parents, you could use frozen pre-cooked rice. Just heat it up in the microwave and serve. If you want to get a little more nutrition out of this dish, you could easily throw in a cup or two of frozen mixed vegetables during the last hour of cooking in the slow cooker.
5) Lemon Chicken
This is chicken thighs, lemon, garlic, oregano, and potatoes, with spinach at the end if you would like. If you plan to cook this meal for a long time in the slow cooker, I think it’s important to keep your potatoes on the larger side so they don’t completely fall apart. I would add chopped yellow sweet onion to this dish.
If your guests don’t like chicken thighs, you could easily substitute chicken breast. If you’re adding spinach, make sure to add it at the end of the cooking process because it won’t take long to wilt. Serve with rice or pita bread.
6) Pulled BBQ Chicken
This is chicken, BBQ sauce, and onion, shredded and served on buns with pickles. I cut my raw chicken into smaller pieces before putting it in the bag to freeze it. When it’s thawed and placed in the slow cooker, it will cook evenly without drying out, and it also won’t take too long to cook the interior.
Toast your buns before putting your shredded BBQ chicken on top to keep the bun from getting too soggy and falling apart. Serve with pickles, and also as an option, shred some cabbage and make a quick, easy coleslaw.
7) Italian Beef
This is chuck roast or any other type of roast, peppers, onions, garlic, broth, and seasoning. Be sure to cut your chuck roast, or whatever roast you’re using, into even-sized cubes so that it cooks evenly and the fat is rendered out well.
I like to serve this one with rolls as well as pepperoncinis from the jar on the side. You could also add jarred marinara to this dish in place of some of the broth, and then serve your rolls with a side of provolone cheese.
8) Barbacoa Beef
This is chuck with chipotle and paprika, vinegar, garlic, and cumin, served in bowls or tacos. Cube your chuck into even-sized pieces, season well, and then freeze. This will ensure a consistent cook time and a very nice shredded beef at the end.
This is a great healthy dinner option because you could serve it with anything, bread, rice, mashed potatoes, really anything you have laying around when you don’t have time to make it because of the new baby. If you’re looking to make this spicy, throw some chopped jalapeño or chopped Fresno peppers in with the beef before you cook it all day in the slow cooker.
9) Meatball Marinara
This is meatballs and onions in marinara, served with pasta or rolls. This one you want to be careful not to overcook. This is a great one to sneak some extra veggies into to stay healthy. Bell pepper, onion, mushroom, and even carrots work great in this crockpot meal.
Make sure you’re only putting enough marinara in the pot to just cover the meatballs, and make sure you cook it for about 4 hours maximum on low so they don’t fall apart. Serve with whatever kind of pasta you have alongside garlic bread.
10) Stuffed Pepper Soup
This is beef, peppers, tomatoes, and broth, cooked with rice added at the end. Just make sure that you’re adding the rice at the very end of the cooking process, and set yourself a timer so you don’t overcook it and ruin your soup. Smoked paprika would be a really nice addition to this one.
Top this soup with your favorite hot sauce, shredded cheese, or sour cream. I like to use a cut of beef like chuck for this because it shreds up when it cooks, but you could easily use ground beef instead.
11) White Chicken Chili
This is chicken, white beans, chilies, onions, garlic, broth, and cumin. After everything is done cooking, but before you serve it, take your chicken out and shred it using two forks. Then add it back to your soup.
You can add cream at the end to make it a creamier version of this chili, or you could also add in half a block of cream cheese, just stirring consistently until it is dissolved. I like this one served with shredded cheese, tortilla chips, and hot sauce.
12) Chicken Enchilada Soup
This is chicken, enchilada sauce, broth, beans, and corn. Shred the cheese at the end, and serve with cheese or avocado. I like to use chicken thighs for this recipe because they hold up to the long cook time in the crock pot.
A trick I like to use to make soup thicker, if it needs thickening, is to set some aside in a small stock pot, blend it with an immersion blender, and add it back to the total batch. This will increase your flavor and thickness.
13) Butter Chicken
This is chicken, tomato sauce, garam masala, ginger and garlic, and butter, with cream or milk added at the end. I would avoid adding milk and just stick with cream, because if you add milk it can break and curdle and make the dish unappetizing.
I like to warm my spices up a little bit in a pan with a little bit of oil to really wake up their flavors. I like to serve this with rice, but pasta could also be fine, or either pita bread or naan bread. Chicken breast or chicken thighs would be great for this recipe, or even a combination of both.
14) Chickpea Curry
This is canned chickpeas, tomato, onion, garlic, coconut milk, and curry spices, with spinach added at the end of the cooking process. I like to add diced golden potatoes to this curry as well to thicken it up and add a little bit more heartiness to the dish. If you don’t have coconut milk, you could always substitute heavy cream.
If you want to add spinach at the end, just take the lid off the crock pot, throw the spinach on top, give it a couple stirs, and you’ll be done. I like to serve this one with lime wedges on the side.
15) Lentil Stew
This is lentils, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, tomatoes, broth, and thyme. This is one I would recommend cooking ahead of time into a stew, then bagging and freezing, and then just simply reheating when you want to eat it.
For an authentic flavor, I like to be sure to add a dash of cumin to any lentil soup. Serve this with buttered rice or garlic naan bread. Lentils are a hearty, filling food, so they’ll be great for those late nights with no sleep.
16) Split Pea Soup
This is split peas, onion, carrot, celery, garlic, and broth. Ham and turkey are optional. If you have a ham hock in the freezer or left over from a whole ham, definitely use that for this soup. It’s hard to beat the ham flavor.
Once you’re done cooking this one all day, it definitely benefits from a good puree to give it a nice smooth consistency. Saltine crackers and buttered bread are great sides for this meal.
17) Chicken Noodle Soup
This is chicken, broth, herbs, garlic, celery, onion, and carrot, with noodles added at the end. I like to cook my pasta ahead of time, rinse it in cold water, and then leave it in a Tupperware in the fridge, ready to use whenever I heat up the soup.
Use chicken breasts for this meal, and then when you’re done cooking, take the chicken breasts out, shred them with two forks, and add them back in to help thicken your soup. This is another one you could make creamy by adding heavy cream at the end once you’ve turned the crock pot off. When prepping the ingredients for soup, do your best to cut everything small enough to fit inside of a spoon.
18) Chicken Rice Soup
This is chicken, wild rice, mirepoix, which is diced onion, carrot, and celery, herbs, and broth, with the option to add cream at the end. I like to use a mix of chicken thighs and chicken breasts for a rice soup like this.
Add your wild rice in towards the end of the cooking process so you don’t overcook it and turn it to mush. Not only is this soup with rice in it filling, but it’s also very nutritious. Perfect when you barely have time to eat a meal.
19) Classic Pot Roast
This is roast, carrots, potatoes, onion, garlic, broth, and tomato paste, cooked until the beef is tender. Whatever cut of beef you’re using for your roast, just be sure to cut the pieces in even sizes so they cook evenly. Cut your carrots and onions and potatoes into really large pieces because of the long cook time. This way they’ll still be intact at the end.
If you have time when prepping, the meat could really benefit from a sear. Lightly toss it in flour and salt and pepper, and sear it in a pan with oil on medium-high heat before adding the ingredients to the bags and freezing.
20) Onion Pot Roast
This is roast, sliced onions, broth, thyme, and Worcestershire, served with noodles or potatoes. Add more onion than you’d think to this dish, because they tend to disappear when cooking for a long time in the crockpot.
I like this one served over mashed potatoes or with homemade potato wedges baked in the oven. Be careful not to add too much Worcestershire sauce because it has a very intense flavor.
21) Chicken Cacciatore
This is chicken thighs, tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic, and oregano, served over pasta or polenta. If you have time, I like to season and sear the chicken thighs ahead of time. The browning gives you a lot better flavor in your final product. Add a little crushed red pepper at the beginning if you prefer your food on the spicier side.
Serving this one over polenta or pasta is great because it’s super filling and will hold you over all night. If you find there’s not enough liquid in your crockpot, you can always add a couple splashes of chicken stock to this recipe.
22) Sausage and Peppers
This is sausages, peppers, onions, garlic, and tomatoes, possibly broth, served with rolls or rice. You don’t want to do too much liquid with this because you don’t want everything swimming, just partially submerged, so broth or canned tomatoes are a great option. I like to serve this with garlic bread. I feel like it’s a great addition, plus it keeps the Italian theme.
I like to throw a little jar of marinara into the crockpot while it’s cooking as well. This is great if you’re putting the sausage and peppers on buns and you need a little bit of sauce to go with your cheese. Be sure to cut your sausages up into thick slices instead of leaving them whole. This will give you an even, consistent cooking time as well as eating experience.
23) Red Beans and Rice
This recipe features something called the Holy Trinity, which is a Creole take on mirepoix. Mirepoix is typically carrots, onions, and celery. In this one, you sub out the carrots for green bell pepper.
Add sausage, broth, beans, Cajun seasoning, and your trinity to your crockpot, and then serve over rice, which isn’t included in the crockpot. Add as much Louisiana hot sauce as you like to make this one spicy. I like to use a spicier sausage for this, like andouille, as opposed to just your typical smoked sausage.
24) Turkey Meat Sauce
This is browned turkey, onion, garlic, seasoning, and tomatoes, served with pasta or potatoes. Brown your turkey first, then add the rest of your raw ingredients and your tomatoes before bagging it up to freeze. This is essentially bolognese, but made with turkey as opposed to beef and sausage, so add whatever Italian seasonings you typically would to your Italian meat sauce.
Parmesan cheese is not only great for adding flavor, but it’s also very high in protein, so it’s perfect for young families. I like to add frozen peas at the end of making bolognese. It’s a nice flavor and a bit of vegetables you can sneak in.
25) Black Bean Chili
This is sweet potato, black beans, corn, tomato, onion, garlic, and spices, served with cilantro and lime. Cut your sweet potato on the larger side because it will fall apart over the length of the cooking process.
Don’t be shy with the chili powder, because the sweet potato and the black beans can take on a ton of flavor and are typically bland on their own. I serve this with all the typical extras of regular beef chili: sour cream, hot sauce, shredded cheese, and tortilla chips.
26) Peanut Chicken
This is chicken, soy, ginger, garlic, brown sugar, and lime. Stir in the peanuts at the end of the cooking process. I like to use chicken thighs when I’m making slow cooker Asian food. Mix your soy, ginger, garlic, brown sugar, and lime together first until the sugar is completely dissolved, and then add it to the chicken before freezing.
Stir in creamy peanut butter at the end, being sure not to use chunky. I like to serve this with rice or plain ramen noodles.
27) Teriyaki Beef
This is sliced beef, garlic, ginger, and onion with teriyaki sauce, with broccoli added to the crock pot for the last half hour to hour of cook time. Slice your beef into thin, small strips so it’s ready to eat once the crock pot is done and you don’t have any extra slicing to do.
Broccoli should be added in the last half hour so it doesn’t overcook, and if you don’t have broccoli, you could always add shredded carrots or snap peas right out of the freezer. If you’re looking to make this meal even more filling and last the night, serve it with some egg fried rice on the side. I like to garnish this with slices of green onion, sesame seeds, and lime wedges.
28) Minestrone Soup
Onion, carrot, celery, zucchini, beans, tomatoes, and broth, with pasta either at the end or on the side. If you’re adding zucchini to this dish, make sure you add it in the last half hour that it’s in the crock pot, otherwise it will just turn to mush and disappear.
I like to cook the pasta for this one, rinse it, cool it off, and keep it in the fridge, and then every time you serve a bowl of the soup, just add a little bit of pasta to it that way. Otherwise the pasta will overcook, sit in the liquid overnight, and soak all of it up.
I like to add beans to this dish, either northern beans or cannellini beans. Really any white bean will do. I make sure to add plenty of garlic to this as well, and if you do have a Parmesan rind, go ahead and throw it in. That will really add to your flavor. This is another recipe that needs thickening, so I like to set a couple cups aside in a small stock pot, blend them until pureed with a stick blender, and then mix this back into the total batch of the soup.
29) Egg Casserole
This is sausage, spinach, peppers and tomatoes, and cheese. These are essentially your ingredients for your egg casserole in the freezer, and then when you thaw them out, you’ll mix in the eggs and the milk and cook on low. This recipe will not take too long to cook, so keep an eye on it.
If you have some frozen tater tots laying around, these are great to go with this meal. Just toss them in the oven until they’re done and serve alongside your egg casserole. I like to crack my eggs into a bowl, whisk them with a little bit of salt, and let them stand. This gives them a really nice fluffy texture. Serve this meal with hot sauce and slices of toast.
Freezer Labeling Tips
Label your bags with a meal name, date, and cook time so that you won’t have to guess what “red-ish sauce” is in two weeks. I also include notes for what should be added after cooking, such as pasta, rice, cheese, or crunchies. Lay your bags flat like books in your freezer for easier stacking and thawing later. If you are giving meals to new parents, a note with serving suggestions is a small kindness that will be appreciated.
