Paleo Batch Cooking…Freezer Edition!

My first Paleo Batch Cooking game plan met with enthusiastic response, and I’m so happy it was helpful for many of you. My goal is to show that healthy, grain-free cooking doesn’t need to be fancy or time-consuming. I use unprocessed, quality ingredients and simple preparation methods to create tasty and easy meals. These recipes won’t break your budget either, since they rely on economical items like wild shrimp, carrots and squash.

In this Batch Cooking Routine, I focus on one-pot meals that freeze very well. I’ve found that having homemade meals in the freezer helps me stay on track when I’m too tired to cook. You only have to plan a day ahead and move the dishes from the freezer to the fridge to thaw.

Healthy dorm cooking

As I’ve discussed, I recently moved to a naturopathic/holistic health college called Bastyr University to continue my education. I’m currently living on campus in the student housing, which provides a full-sized kitchen in each student building. Since I must cook 100% of my food to naturally address my autoimmune disease, I’m learning to juggle college life with meal preparation.

I’ve been promising to share recipes of my dorm-friendly freezer meals and in this post I share a couple of recipes along with an outline to create 12+ meals in just two hours. If you like this routine and want some more options, don’t forget to read my first Paleo Batch Cooking post here!

The Ingredients and Game Plan

What you’ll get out of this batch cooking session:

• 1 Shrimp Casserole, for at least 6 servings
• 1 Chicken and Vegetable Stew, for 8 servings
• Roasted sweet potatoes, for 5-6 servings (as a side dish or dessert)

The ingredients:

• 1 large winter squashes, either butternut or kabocha
• 1-2 packages frozen butternut squash or another fresh butternut squash
• 4 sweet potatoes (I love the white or purple-fleshed varieties!)
• 1 1/2 lb. of cooked wild shrimp
• 2 packages boneless, skinless chicken breasts (highest quality possible, preferably pasture-raised)
• 1 lb. package carrots
• 1 package of frozen beets or 2-3 large fresh beets
• Seasonings, apple cider vinegar, and spices

The Game Plan:

1. As always, I begin a batch cooking session when I’m feeling well-rested and fed. You don’t want to start cooking when you are starving or frustrated.

2. First, I preheat the oven to 450. Place the sweet potatoes and 1 squash in baking dishes and cook, whole, for 80-90 minutes until very tender. This doesn’t count in the 2-hour time frame because it requires no hands-on time.

3. Let the squash and sweet potatoes cool slightly. Split the squash open and remove the seeds, then separate the skin from the flesh. You will use this for the Shrimp Casserole. Remove the skin from the sweet potatoes and transfer the potatoes to a container in the fridge or freeze. You can serve the sweet potatoes as a side dish or dessert – I like sweet potatoes served warm with applesauce and sprinkled with cinnamon! It makes a warming fall breakfast alongside some protein.

4. Use the following two recipes to prepare Shrimp and Green Bean Casserole and Autoimmune Paleo Chicken and Vegetable Stew. These are two recipes I created because they are one-pot meals yielding at least 6 servings, plus they are very simple to prepare.

5. I leave a few servings of each casserole in the fridge and then portion the rest into individual serving glass storage containers. Then, I pop these into the freezer so I have some ready-to-thaw meals.

Shrimp (or Chicken) Green Bean Casserole Recipe

• 1 1/2 lb. cooked wild shrimp (alternatively, use the meat from a rotisserie chicken. In the image above, I used chicken)
• 1 large butternut or kabocha squash, roasted and seeds/skin removed and mashed
• 2 packages frozen green bean
• Knob of ghee or butter
• 4 egg yolks or whole eggs (I used just the yolks because I don’t do so well with the whites)
• Salt, pepper, a splash of apple cider vinegar, and other herbs or seasonings if desired

1. Steam the frozen green beans until just tender and drain.
2. Remove the meat from the rotisserie chicken and shred. In a casserole dish, combine all ingredients including the cooked green beans.
3. Bake, uncovered, at 400 degrees for 30 minutes.
4. If desired, portion into individual serving sizes and freeze in individual glass containers.

{Autoimmune Paleo} Chicken and Vegetable Stew Recipe

• 1 lb. carrots, chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
• 2 packages of skinless, boneless chicken breasts
• 1 can of full-fat coconut milk
• 1 small butternut squash, peeled and diced (or 1 or two packages of frozen butternut squash, chopped into 1/4 inch pieces)
• 1 package frozen beets or 2-3 large fresh beets, peeled and sliced
• Salt, pepper, a splash of apple cider vinegar, and other desired seasonings

1. In a CrockPot, layer the ingredients in the order listed.
2. Cover and cook on LOW for 6-7 hours.
3. If desired, portion into individual serving sizes and freeze.

Do you have a batch cooking routine? Are you doing dorm cooking, too? And please share this post if you enjoy the recipes!