Is your freezer or deep freeze used to its fullest advantage? Or maybe it is like mine: full of old ice cream and a package of chicken from 2008.

The freezer got cleaned out a couple of weeks ago and unfortunately, most of the stuff had to go because of freezer burn, age or just not being recognizable. My friend Carolyn Phillips suggested to me during the holidays that I look for recipes that would freeze well for gifts. It’s a great idea, but because I’ve waited too long for holiday gifts, I gave some thought to everyday foods that freeze well and got more ideas from AOLhealth.com.

There are some foods that simply do not freeze well. Did you know that salty items in particular, such as bacon, sausage, hot dogs and some lunch meats, don’t fare well in the freezer for longer than a couple of months? The salt causes the fat to go rancid in the freezer so use these foods up as soon as you can.

The white of boiled eggs turns rubbery if frozen. But, raw eggs can be removed from their shell, mixed with a little sugar or salt and frozen. That’s a new one on me.

Meat, poultry and fish all freeze well, as do breads, baked goods, butter, margarine, beans and rice. Raw meat keeps a better quality than cooked meat, because of the moisture lost in cooking.

If you will be using fresh meat within a month or so, it’s fine to leave in the store package. But, freezer bags or foil will do a better job of protecting. A long time in the freezer doesn’t make your food unsafe, but will certainly affect the quality.

Fresh herbs lose their texture, but retain their flavor, so they can be used for seasoning but not for decoration. If freezing pasta, cook it to about 3⁄4 done before freezing.

Any sauce or gravy made with flour or cornstarch will break down and separate if frozen, and crumb toppings on casseroles turn soggy. Hold off topping that casserole until it’s serving time.

Mashed and twice baked potatoes are good side dishes to have made ahead of time and ready in a pinch.

One of my favorite potato dishes is the hashbrown casserole. It is so easy to fix ahead of time and use later. This is definitely one dish to double so you can enjoy some right now. (I may have to run that recipe soon in case there’s someone out there who hasn’t tried it.) Freezing also works well for the make-ahead mashed potatoes recipe I shared recently.

If you have a favorite recipe, try freezing a small portion next time you serve it, just to see how well it stands up to the cold. If it survives intact, simply double your recipe next time, making one for dinner and one for the freezer. Then, when you get the urge to serve it again, it’s ready to go.

Frozen dishes should be thawed in the refrigerator, not on top of your counter. They can also be baked at 350 degrees, reheated on top of the stove with a little liquid added or in the microwave on 50 percent power.

If freezing casseroles, be sure your dishes can go from freezer to oven with no problem. I’m hoping to put some of these ideas to good use and fill up my freezer space. Not too full, though. About 3⁄4 full will be best for the food and the freezer.

Dancing with the Joplin Stars update: I thought we were dancing the waltz and the quick step. Turns out I’ve been practicing the waltz and the swing. Do you see where this is going? Actually, it’s going better than I expected, thanks to Fred’s patience.

From “What’s For Dinner” comes a freezer-friendly main course that would be good anytime. My sister-in-law Pam Roets makes wonderful cabbage rolls, but I don’t have the patience she does, so this recipe for Lazyman’s stuffed cabbage casserole is right up my alley. Raw cabbage doesn’t fare well but cooked cabbage will be fine frozen.

Continuing the cabbage theme, the freezer coleslaw from “Cooking Club” gets all the prep work out of the way and the slaw is ready when you need it.

I didn’t continue the cabbage theme with the dessert. From “Daily Recipe Swap” comes the recipe for macadamia cookies. The first time I had a macadamia nut was a few years ago when I bought some for my friend Tom Wells and decided to see why he favored them.

Now, they are probably my favorite. They are good by themselves, but even better in cookies with white chocolate. Most cookies are excellent candidates for freezing. Freeze them solid on cookie sheets before putting into freezer bags to avoid a great big cookie lump.

Happy food freezing and happy eating!



Lazyman’s stuffed cabbage casserole

1 medium head cabbage, cut up

1 pound ground beef

1 onion, chopped

1⁄2 cup uncooked rice

Salt and pepper to taste

1 can tomato soup

1 soup can water

Place cabbage in greased 2-quart casserole dish. Brown beef and onion. Stir in rice and place on top of cabbage. Season with salt and pepper. Combine soup and water. Pour over meat mixture. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for one hour.



Freezer coleslaw

1 medium head cabbage, shredded

1 teaspoon salt

1 green pepper, chopped

1 carrot, shredded

1 cup vinegar

2 cups sugar

1 teaspoon celery seed

1 teaspoon mustard seed

Add salt to cabbage. Let stand one hour. Squeeze out juice; add carrot and pepper. Combine sugar, celery seed, mustard seed and vinegar and boil one minute. Let cool. Pour over cabbage. Put into freezer containers and freeze.



Macadamia cookies

1⁄3 cup butter

1⁄3 cup brown sugar, packed

1⁄3 cup sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1⁄4 teaspoon raspberry jam

11⁄2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

8 ounces white chocolate chips

1 cup macadamia nuts, chopped

Cream butter and sugars. Add egg and beat. Add vanilla and raspberry jam; mix well. Mix together flour and baking soda. Gradually add flour mixture to batter. Stir in nuts and chips. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart onto lightly greased cookie sheets. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes — do not overbake. Cool on racks.