trsinc, I too really recommend going with the "upright" freezer (with door in front). It's changed our lives, literally --- it's easy to find what I want. (If I had to dive into a chest freezer, I KNOW I wouldn't use the frozen stuff regularly the way I do --- I would find it a hassle to dig out what I was looking for, and the whole point was to be able to grab some veggies ready to go, or a frozen portion of a stew I'd made in a big batch, on a night when I was tired or busy.) Small ones do exist --- there's a second-hand appliance place nearby where I've occasionally seen one. It's definitely true that it costs much more than half the price of a big one for half the size, but if all you have room for is small, look around --- it can be found. (What we ended up with was a small full-sized one.) As for containers, I do use freezer bags, for things that don't "flow" to fill a container (fruit, veggies, meat) --- like you and others, I re-use them, though anything that's had raw meat in it I either toss or rinse with a bleach solution. For soups and stews and things, I did experiment with using canning jars, and I found that it took care --- in my fridge's freezer it works fine, and on the shelf in my upright freezer that is just a wire shelf it works fine, BUT jars that I put on the shelves that have cooling tubes in them (three of the four shelves) sometimes had the bottoms break off. Rather than worry about what shelf to use, I mostly go with plastic containers of various kinds. I reuse yogurt and cottage cheese tubs (though I have a strict rule of ONLY keeping one kind of container --- the 2- and 3-cup ones that take all the same size of lid, because it makes me crazy not to be able to grab a tub and lid that fit easily --- again, for me a lot of the joy in freezing stuff is in making my life easier). inexpensive ones are a good compromise between pricey Rubbermaid containers and use-just-a-few-times bags. I have some of the new(ish) Ziploc containers (Glad also has a line of them, and there are no-name ones too), meant to be tough enough to reuse and put in dishwasher, but inexpensive enough that it's not too bad if they get ruined or given away. (I loved the hilarious commercial they had where they "tested" them in freezer, microwave, dishwasher --- and wood-chipper. ;-) ) And I have two sets (given to me) of as-seen-on-TV freezer containers that came with a supposed "easy store" spinny thing, which was a piece of @#*!, but the conatiners are fine, and again, I like that they come in different sizes but *all use the same size of lid*. When I put up something, I try to put it all in one kind of container --- again, this helps me sort & grab at a glance (I know the blue-lidded ones are all chicken stock, the yogurt tubs are currently all chili, the Ziploc ones are either broccoli soup or Mexican Pork Stew, etc.). And I have pricey Rubbermaid containers, which I try to keep out of the freezer so they are available day to day for leftovers in the fridge. One general tip: given the choice, go for containers with a SQUARE cross section rather than a ROUND one. I do use some yogurt tubs, as mentioned, since they are free and a useful size, but generally I find it amazing how much more room one can make use of when things are SQUARE so they fill the space more fully. Happy freezing, and good luck! Z

You guys are funny. The chicken was $2.29 a pound which is unfreaking unbelievable for SLBL organic pasture raised chicken breasts and it was a loss leader (I am sure) for a local wholesaler. I used to buy chicken like this and prep it up for a couple of months worth of meals but I admit I haven't done it in years. I picked out my recipes, shopped for the stuff I didn't have on hand and had everything ready to go when I picked up the chicken. I label all the ziplock bags with the recipe name and date, placing the opened ziplocks in any container that will support them. Then I prep the marinade in multiple quantities, usually double, sometimes more, seperate it out into the ziplocks, add the chicken, seal and into the fridge. Then the next recipe and so on. When the second recipe is ready for the fridge the first recipe goes into the freezer. I freeze them flat. The soup and gumbo are in the fridge overnight before going into the bags and then the freezer. I start with the recipes that take the most prep work or need cooking first like the gumbo which has about 15 cups of finely diced veggies (all diced by hand - I don't like how uneven the food processor chops) and finish with the ones that are just measuring liquids. It took about 3 hours to do everything I did then about 3 hours lol to clean the kitchen. Here's the worst of it: Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup Skinnytaste.com Servings: 6 • Serving Size: 1 1/2 cups + cheese • Old Points: 5 pts • Points+: 7 pts Calories: 260.9 • Fat: 6.6 g • Protein: 25.4 g • Carb: 29.9 g • Fiber: 6.7 g • Sugar: 4.1 g Sodium: 572 mg (without salt) Ingredients: • 2 tsp olive oil • 1/2 cup onion, chopped • 3 cloves garlic, minced • 3 cups low sodium fat-free chicken broth • 8 oz can tomato sauce • 1-2 tsp chipotle chili in adobo sauce (or more to taste) • 1/4 cup chopped cilantro (plus more for garnish) • 15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained • 14.5 oz can petite diced tomatoes • 2 cups frozen corn • 1 tsp cumin • 1/2 tsp dried oregano • 2 8 oz skinless chicken breasts (16 oz total) • 1/4 cup chopped scallions, for topping • 3/4 cup shredded reduced fat cheddar cheese • fat free sour cream (optional) Directions: Heat oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Add onion and garlic and sauté until soft, 3-4 minutes. Slowly add the chicken broth, tomato sauce and chipotle adobo sauce and bring to a boil. Add cilantro and remove from heat. Pour into crock pot. To the crockpot, add drained beans, diced tomatoes, corn, cumin, oregano and stir.Add the chicken breasts; cover and cook on low heat for 4-6 hours. Remove chicken and shred with two forks. Add chicken back into the soup, adjust salt and cumin to taste. Serve in bowls and top with fat free sour cream, cheese, scallions and cilantro. You can also top with avocado or crushed tortilla chips. Enjoy! Maple Dijon Glazed Chicken Ingredients: 1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts 1 cup Dijon mustard 1/2 cup maple syrup 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar salt and pepper to taste Directions: Place all ingredients in a resealable gallon-sized freezer bag. Mix together and zip bag closed. When ready to eat, remove from freezer and thaw in fridge for 24 hours. Cook on LOW for 8 hours (or HIGH for 4 hours). Sprinkle with fresh or dried rosemary for serving. Chicken teriyaki recipe Servings: 4 Prep Time: 10 minutes Cook Time: 20 minutes From Catherine McCord's Weelicious Cookbook. ingredients: 1 (8-ounce) can crushed pineapple 3 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce 2 tablespoon honey or agave nectar 1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger 1 small garlic clove, finely minced 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 2 pounds) Mix everything together in a ziplock bag. Add the chicken. Freeze Thaw and bake in 350 degree oven till the chicken is done. Peach Ginger Bake 1 1/2 cups brown rice 2 1/2 cups water 1 jar Trader Joes Peach Salsa 1 tsp ginger powder 2 Tbsp ginger nibs or crystallized ginger finely chopped Put rice, water, salsa and ginger powder in ovenproof dish and mix well. Season 8 chicken breasts with salt and pepper and lay chicken breasts on top of rice, sprinkle ginger on chicken and bake at 375 for 45 minutes

My very best pound cake recipe: CREAM POUND CAKE 1 cup butter, softened (no substitutes!) 1/2 cup shortening 3 cups sugar 6 eggs 1-1/4 cups heavy cream 3 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 tsp. baking powder 1 Tblsp. vanilla extract Cream butter & shortening; gradually add sugar, beating well at medium speed of electric mixer. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Combine flour and baking powder; add to creamed mixture alternately with cream, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Mix just until blended after each addition. Stir in vanilla extract. Pour batter into a greased and floured 10-inch tube pan. Bake at 325 degrees F. for 1 hour and 40 to 45 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cake in pan 10 to 15 minutes; remove from pan and cool completely. BUTTER PECAN FUDGE 1/2 cup butter (don't substitute) 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream 1/8 tsp. salt 1 tsp. vanilla 2 cups powdered sugar 1 cup pecans, toasted and chopped roughly (To toast pecans, I put pecans on a cookie sheet in the oven at 350 for 8-10 minutes, stirring a couple times. Let cool before using). In a large heavy saucepan, combine the butter, sugars, cream and salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Boil for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat, stir in vanilla. Stir in powdered sugar until smooth. Fold in pecans. Spread into a buttered 8-in. square dish. Cool to room temperature. Cut into 1-in. squares. Store in an airtight container in the fridge. Makes 1-1/4 pounds. This one would use up the entire quart of cream: BLUEBERRY CHEESECAKE ICE CREAM Blueberry mixture: 1/2 cup sugar 1 Tblsp. cornstarch 1/2 cup water 1-1/4 cups fresh or frozen blueberries 1 Tblsp. lemon juice Graham Cracker mixture: 2-1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs 2 Tblsp. sugar 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon 1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted Ice Cream mixture: 1-1/2 cups sugar 1 pkg. (3.4 oz.) instant cheesecake pudding mix 1 quart whipping cream 2 cups whole milk 2 tsp. vanilla extract In a small saucepan, combine sugar and cornstarch. Gradually stir in water until smooth. Stir in blueberries and lemon juice. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes or until slightly thickened, stirring occasionally. Cover and refrigerate until chilled. In a bowl, combine cracker crumbs, sugar, and cinnamon. Stir in butter. Pat into an ungreased 15- x 10- x 1-inch baking pan. Bake at 350 F. for 10-15 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool completely; crumble. In a large bowl, whisk the ice cream ingredients. Fill ice cream freezer cylinder 2/3 full; freeze according to manufacturerÂs directions. Refrigerate remaining mixture until ready to freeze. Whisk before adding to ice cream freezer (mixture will have some lumps). In a large container, layer the ice cream, graham cracker mixture and blueberry sauce three times; swirl. Freeze. Yield: 2 quarts.

The substance is a chemical abbreviated as BPA and is called bisphenol A. It's been used in certain plastics since the 1950's to prevent them from getting hard and cracking. It's also used in lots of other things like the expoxy linings inside food cans. It's been link to a bunch of bad things but the FDA still claims it's safe even after banning it from baby bottles and sippy cups in 2012. Lots of stuff we use contains BPA, well almost everything. Some plastic products claim they are BPA free but have only been replaced with other chemicals they say are just as bad. Don't lose any sleep over it, if it does cause problems the damage is already done.