A Look Inside My Freezer

I've thought about getting a stand-alone freezer in the basement, since it often seems as though our freezer is bursting at the seams!  Here's what I've got packed in there.

• Left to Right
• Bags of frozen veggies
• Ground turkey in tomato sauce (for my husband's spaghetti)
• Frozen burrito
• Bagel
• Naan (for when my husband wants some bread with dinner)
• Popcorn shrimp (for my husband's non-chicken meals)
• Lean Cuisine meals (for my husband's lunches)
• Skinny Cow light ice cream cones (for my husband's dessert)
• Bag of chicken breasts (emergency back-up chicken)

• Left to Right
• Bags of frozen veggies
• Shrimp (for my husband's non-chicken meals)
• Mussels (for my husband's non-chicken meals)
• Tilapia (for my husband's non-chicken meals)
• Mahi Mahi (for my husband's non-chicken meals)
• Bagels (a weekend breakfast for my husband)
• Breaded butterfly shrimp (for a handy non-chicken dinner)
• Steam-in-bag rice (great for when I make my husband fried rice)
• Spring rolls (to go with any at-home Chinese food I make for my husband)
• Mini quiches (leftover from a party)

I love the convenience of "steam-in-the-bag" veggies!  Dinner (or lunch) is ready in 7 minutes, when I throw one of those bags in the microwave.    While I don't eat seafood, frozen shrimp are super easy to defrost and throw in with pasta sauce.  What I have learned is that some cooked and peeled shrimp still have their tails on - unfortunately I've learned this after tossing them with the pasta sauce.  Trader Joe's carries frozen, cooked, fully peeled and de-tailed shrimp that are great for putting in with pasta, turning into shrimp fried rice, or seasoning for shrimp tacos.  When I'm running late in the morning and don't have time to pack our lunches, I'll give my husband a Lean Cuisine meal.  There's more variety than the same old turkey sandwich and they don't go bad.  A great emergency back-up plan!

I've been trying really hard to not let foods linger in the limbo of the freezer.  Sometimes it's too easy for things to get hidden in the back or overlooked for newer purchases.  I may be reluctant to defrost some fish because it may not get cooked up right away.  Life does happen and I hate to be wasteful and throw out food because of an unexpected late night at work or a chance to eat out with friends.  I think one of my challenges for this year will be to methodically work through the oft-avoided frozen items and make it a priority to prepare them.


Food Log:

• Meal 1
• 4 egg whites and 2 eggs with salsa
• Meal 2
• 2oz chicken
• Green beans
• Meal 3
• 2oz chicken
• Tablespoon of peanut butter
• Meal 4
• 4oz chicken
• Green beans
• Meal 5
• Protein shake

Exercise:

• Time: 60 minutes on elliptical
• Level: Level 1 for 1 minute, Level 3 for 58 minutes (at average speed of 5.6), Level 1 for 1 minuteCalories:  700+

I had planned on taking today off from exercise.  Since it was a "snow day" and I was home, I opted to workout.  That way I don't feel pressured to get my cardio in tomorrow when I'm also dealing with the chaos of returning to the office.

 

Today's Weigh-In: 144.1