(This post was last updated on: 11/5/2024.) We are here to help you plan out how to stock up your freezer and fridge with lots of yummy goodness. We will lay out a 5 week program with a weekly focus on either breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert or snacks. At the end of the 5 weeks, you will have so much food prepped and stored, it will free up time in your busy daily schedule to spend more time with family or doing fun things that you haven’t been able to do lately. Here is our first installment: 5 Week Plan to Meal Prep: Week 1- Breakfast.
5 Week Plan to Meal Prep: Week 1- Breakfast:
Breakfast Freezer Meals
There are a ton of breakfast options that freeze well. It’s probably the easiest meal to prep and store for later.
Menu: Muffins, Chocolate Chip Pancakes, Burritos, Quiche, Waffles, Crock Pot Casserole, Smoothie Packs and Eggs.
Muffins:
I cheated a bit by buying a premade muffin mix (blueberry cheesecake) that only requires ½ cup of milk. I baked these up and placed 2 in each freezer bag; they came out pretty small. Muffins are super easy to freeze and taste just as great when they thaw. You can of course bake your favorite homemade muffins if you have the time. Take a bag out every night to thaw or put one in your lunchbox in the morning. It will be mostly or completely (depending on the size of the muffin) thawed by the time you get to work.
HACK: Purchase those packs of oversized muffins at Sam’s Club or Costco and freeze individually. Major time saver! And you can get a variety of flavors.
Chocolate Chip Pancakes:
Mix up a big batch of pancakes and add in some chocolate chips if you like, if not, leave them out. I like to get out my large griddle so I can cook up a bunch of pancakes at one time. After they cool, bag 2 or 3 in each freezer bag.
TIP: Remember to label all freezer bags and containers with the contents.
Burritos:
These are a versatile and filling meal that you can mix and match ingredients according your family’s preferences. We like to make them with scrambled eggs, sautéed onions and peppers, sausage and a little shredded cheddar cheese. Cook up all of your ingredients and add them all to a big bowl. Take 4 or 5 large flour tortillas and place them on a paper towel in the microwave. Nuke for about 10 seconds to get them more pliable. Add a couple tablespoons of your mixture onto each tortilla. You could top each one with a little salsa or ketchup, then roll the burrito. Place each burrito in a freezer bag, and then place all of your burritos into one gallon sized freezer bag.
HACK: Used leftover crock pot casserole as your burrito filler.
Quiche:
This dish makes a good breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner option. I started by browning a pound of ground sausage and sautéing a red pepper and one onion all together. Once cooked, put all of this mixture into a glass pie dish sprayed with non stick spray. In a separate bowl, whisk 6 eggs with ½ cup milk and salt and pepper to taste. Pour this mixture over your sausage. Place in the oven at 350 for approx. 15-20 mins. Slice the quiche and place in freezer bags or Tupperware.
Tip: I kept it crustless to make it low carb, but if you prefer, buy a frozen pie crust and use that instead of the glass pie dish.
Waffles:
Mix up your favorite batter and go to town. Make as many waffles as you want. As soon as they are cool, you can bag them up and place directly in the freezer. They are easy to reheat in the microwave. I make quite a few at a time to make cleaning the waffle iron worth the time. Such a pain!
Crock Pot Casserole:
This is a great, hearty breakfast to wake up to on the weekend! In your crock pot, pour in a bag of frozen hash browns or diced potatoes. Top with 1 lb. cooked ground sausage, diced onions, peppers, mushrooms (your call) and 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese. I mix this all up. In a separate bowl, whisk 10-12 eggs with ½ cup milk and salt and pepper to taste. Pour this egg mixture into the crock pot. Set the temp to low for 6 hours before going to bed. You will wake up to a yummy breakfast the next day.
Hack: Use leftovers to make breakfast burritos or place in individual Tupperware to eat as is. Top with salsa, hot sauce, ketchup, whatever you prefer.
Tip: This meal can be prepared the same but instead of using a crock pot, you can put everything in a disposable baking pan, cover with foil and leave in the fridge to bake the next morning.
Smoothie Packs:
If you love a good smoothie in the morning or are looking for an easy meal on the go, check out our previous post on how to make frozen smoothie packs.
Eggs:
This has to be the easiest item to stock up on. Every weekend I boil at least 10 eggs to have for breakfast throughout the week. I keep them in a bowl in the fridge.
Tip: I place two shelled eggs in 5 Tupperware bowls along with a couple pieces of bacon or a piece sausage for easy to grab low carb breakfasts during the week.
Tip: I also like to have extra boiled eggs on hand to make deviled eggs if I need a quick side for dinner, again low carbbing it.
When you are in prep mode, you can scramble a dozen eggs and place them in individual Tupperware bowls. You can place a couple in the fridge to be eaten in the next few days and the rest can go in the freezer. Eggs reheat well and quickly in the microwave.
General Breakfast Hacks
- On the weekend, cook an entire pound of bacon. Keep it all in a Tupperware dish in the fridge. You can grab a couple slices for breakfast, crumble some on top of a salad or add a little to many common recipes. It tastes so much better than store bought bacon bits.
- Cook a pound of breakfast sausage in slices. Keep in a Tupperware dish in the fridge for use throughout the week.
- Keep fresh fruit on hand; makes a good breakfast on the go or as a side to accompany any of the dishes listed above.
Well that’s all for Week 1. Get busy on stocking your fridge and freezer with breakfast meals because next week we are going to tackle lunches. Leave me a comment below on your tips and hacks on prepping breakfast meals!
