Being a busy mum and always surrounded by little people (and growing another one) means that I’m hard pressed to find ways to volunteer my time and do something in person for someone. But one way that we can show that we care is by taking a meal to someone who needs it and especially after they have a baby. Oh and knitting. I always love to knit for a new baby too. New baby, operation, death of a loved one. All times when we care about someone and we know that they just don’t have the time or energy to cook a meal. This weekend I’m cooking for a family who have a little bub born with some health issues who is still in hospital and a big family at home to feed. I’ve been keeping their little baby in my prayers and knew I wanted to make them a dinner.
Now the first thing that springs to mind that is easy to freeze and take to someone is lasagne. But you might want to be the first in there with the lasagne as I’m guessing that lots of other people think of that option too. I’ve got 2 great lasagne recipes. First up is a super easy vegetarian lasagne and then I’ve got a big hearty meaty lasagne that always gets eaten too. Well lasagne in this house gets eaten full stop. Meat or vegie. And makes for extra dishes but is always worth it.
Now after I thought about lasagne I decided on chicken pies. This is a big family with lots of little ones so I know that my guys love chicken pie so I’ve decided to make a huge rectangle one and not be limited to a pie dish. Otherwise I would be dropping off 3 pies and who knows how big their oven is.
When you really want to show some love and tap into your inner nonna (yes that’s right your italian nonna) then you need 3 hour meatballs which are amazing! easy to freeze and you could drop over some garlic bread and a salad bag that could keep for a few days.
Now if nuts are not a problem and it’s always a good idea to ask first then these vegetarian sausage rolls are always a winner here. They are super easy to freeze and just pop into the oven and my kids love these. Super easy and healthy at the same time.
These cheesey pizza scrolls would be great to take to someone as they can be made into disposable trays and easily frozen. Just looking at this post has me thinking I must make some this week and try a gluten free version for little miss.
Enchiladas are another crowd pleaser, easy to make then freeze and all that needs to happen at the other end is a bit of reheating in the oven. I love Pioneer Woman’s Simple perfect enchiladas which we made here. These are really fresh with coriander and cheese and just delicious.
and speaking of pioneer woman and since I’m making them this weekend let’s not forget one of the best things you can take anyone – sick, with a new baby or just because you’re popping in. What am I talking about? Well I’m talking about Pioneer Woman’s Cinnamon Rolls of course. They take some time and a lot of butter but man they are worth it. Everyone is excited that I’m making these on the weekend and when I looked back at old blog posts I found this time when we made cinnamon rolls and my big helper was only 4!
You seem to just forget the calories or butter that went into them once you have one………and reach for a second. Now what I do is I make them in a mixture of my own and disposable containers from the supermarket. The ones that I’m freezing and giving away I will bake as directed, leave to cool, cover with alfoil and then place the whole tray into 2 plastic shopping bags that are knotted up tight. I get a little worried about freezer burn. I’ll pop them in the freezer until I need them. Hot Tip. Try not to eat them all yourselves before you are taking them somewhere. Then I take them to wherever I’m going with a little post it note and ask them to place in their freezer or pop in the oven straight away for 10-15 minutes to reheat them. About 160 to 180 degrees will do.
Now these ideas were just off the top of my head. What’s your go to recipe when you are taking a meal to someone? Love to hear. Pinterest was full of ideas too….I loved this one and pinned a few to my I love quick dinners board here and if you’re vegetarian you’ll love my vegetarian board here.
It’s definitely lasagne-always a real crowd pleaser and you can’t beat an apple crumble to go with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream for a treat.
ohhhhh apple crumble is perfect and you can drop off with the ice cream. great idea! will have to think of that one next time, haven’t made crumble in ages
Great ideas Connie, i’m always on the lookout for new meals to give. I am a big fan of meatballs too – Bill Grangers baked meatballs from “simply bill” are delish and freeze beautifully. I also like to give all the bits for burritos – prepared and ready to go with crumbed chicken, salad and tortillas. Easy to pop in the oven and always a crowd pleaser. Anything slow-cooked is always great comfort food too when you’re not feeling your best or a bit stressed!
yep! can’t wait to get the slow cooker up and running when the weather gets a bit cooler!
Soups are a winner with a lovely loaf of french crusty bread.
I tend to stick with pumpkin, lentil or minestrone.
Or for meat I go with a osso bucco or moroccan meatballs and cous cous.
great idea! Oohhhhh osso bucco! my mum used to make that and I loved it. they are great tips! I think I might need to do a reader’s list of best recipes:)
Thanks for the idea-filled post, Corrie! My friends and I MamaBake about once a fortnight and always make one extra family meal to donate each time. It is sad that we always know someone who could do with that help. I like to make pizza for families with kids, with a home made dough base and hidden veggies. Spag Bol usually goes down well too
yummo! we love home made pizzas
Quiche I find great, especially little ones..
quiche! how did I forget quiche, of course! love quiche with salad and garlic bread! thanks, I think I need to do a part II with everyone’s suggestions! thank you for reminding me
Corrie:)
I also bake something to go into lunch boxes. Maybe fruity cornflake cookies from the ww biscuits book. Can’t beat them!!
that’s a great idea! hopefully they can take the cinnamon rolls!
Pasta bake as a change from lasagne, pasta sauces freeze well and they only need to boil up the pasta. Chopped salad is good especially for lunch or with a bbq chicken for dinner.
Our church has used this webiste – https://www.takethemameal.com/ – to coordinate meals. It ensures the recipient doesn’t receive 6 lasagnas and can be personalised to include special food needs. At one stage we were doing meals for a diabetic lady and another time had a couple who were avoiding cheese. Should meals be needed longer than the initial period the roster can be extended
yes we use that website too!!!!!!! so fabulous – we had no dietary needs with this meal which was good mind you it’s fun finding something you can make to suit a requirement:) thank you!
Those meals are always so appreciated
I hope you find plenty on your doorstep in a few months time!
Also it’s great to take the food in a disposable dish so they don’t have to remember to give back a casserole dish and have it sitting on their bench for a week along with multiple others!
Quick snacks for a new mum are handy too. Things like lactation cookies, boiled eggs, roast chicken legs, bliss balls. All kinds of stuff that she can grab from the fridge and eat with one hand while feeding the baby. Smoothie packs are very handy too. I’m trying to use them while pregnant instead of resorting to toast for quick snacks. I’m not even supposed to eat bread but got through 8 slices a day last pregnancy plus in the months after baby was born. Hello fatty liver!
Some great recipes here that I can’t wait to try. I have been trying to decide on a dish that I can take to a wonderful teacher at our school whose teenage son is going through chemo at the moment. For those nights when they come home from hospital and she just doesn’t have the energy to cook for the rest of her family, and I think I will make your lasagne. It sounds tasty, but not spicy. It’s hard to cook for someone when you don’t know their kids likes and dislikes, but I think this dish should be perfect. Thanks for sharing and I hope your friends stock your freezer for you when the time comes for your little bundle to arrive. Take care