12 Things you can freeze to save money & time in the kitchen

Double the recipe, prepare your rolls and wrap them in foil or plastic wrap. Use it when you need it!

There's nothing like a good pasta with pesto alla genovese during the winter: you'll feel like you're in summer, eating on the patio or terrace. In this case, the night before I take the pesto out of the freezer and place it on the refrigerator and take it out of the refrigerator an hour before using it.

In my house we are all pasta lovers and we love tomato, vegetables and the inevitable Bolognese sauce. When I cook any of these sauces, I usually double the recipe to freeze it. Then, in those days that I don’t feel like cooking, I have always something good to thaw. In these cases, I thaw out of the freezer the night before.

Sandwich bread, a baguette or a loaf of artisan bread, every time I see a two-for-one special at the grocery store I buy, freeze it and always enjoy fresh bread at home. When it comes to homemade bread or artisan bread, I put it in a paper bag and then in a ziplock bag. To thaw, the previous day I transfer the bread from the freezer to the refrigerator.

They will be fresh longer and they will last months. This applies for pistachios, pine nuts, whole and sliced almonds, pecans and walnuts. No need to thaw before using.

Muffins, cakes, banana breads, pound cakes, you name it and they can be frozen.

Along with frozen sauces, this is a great resource to save time and money in the kitchen and also to have a varied menu without much effort. When you cook, freeze half and then thaw when you need it.

Freeze grated Parmesan. As I also buy it in bags of two pounds each, I storage them in the freezer. No need to thaw before use it.

This is another ingredient that I can’t live without it and for the same reason I buy it in 4-pound packs. I go from freezer to refrigerator to the extent that I need.

I take advantage of the offers, wash them and put them in ziplock bags and straight to the freezer. Then. I use them to make pancakes, pound and all kind of baked goodies. No need to thaw.

I cannot imagine life without bacon. That is also why I buy it in bulk and freeze it. If it is to be eaten at breakfast, I take it out of the freezer the night before. If it is to be used as an ingredient, I usually cut it into small pieces and guess what: I find it easier to cut it frozen.

I also buy mozzarella for pizza in bulk. Then I save it in ziplock bags to preserve it in the freezer. As always I use this cheese for recipes that are cooked in the oven, no need to thaw before using.