Josh Elledge - Chief Executive Angel
The National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Association, Inc. (NFRA) says that this year a 2-page national insert for Frozen Food Month will be in newspapers March 1st. The insert is planned to include coupons for various frozen foods and brands. We can also expect coupons, special inserts, and sales by specific frozen food companies and local stores that day. Although there should be some additional coupons as the month goes on, you'll definitely not want to miss the main ones released on Sunday, March 1. The first Sunday of Frozen Food Month has historically been the biggest cache of coupons for the month.
The availability of coupons and sales make March an ideal month for stocking up. To help someone with this, Easy Home Meals, in conjunction with NFRA, is giving away $10,000 in a sweepstakes. Need a new freezer for all your bargains? According to the NFRA website, are also giving away a new freezer every week during March, provided by Hussmann brand, through their Easy Home Meals Facebook page.
In addition to great deals, the NFRA is putting forward the theme of “Take a fresh look at frozens!” Research has proven that many frozen foods are just as healthy as fresh, and some are actually more so. This is particularly true with vegetables and fruits, because they are usually frozen at optimum ripeness. (Just watch out for added sauces or sugars in some varieties.) Fresh fruits and veggies, on the other hand, are usually picked before they ripen, because accommodation for shipping and store shelf time has to be made. This can result in produce items that haven't reached their full spectrum of nutrients before consumption. Another reason to be a champion of frozen produce is that it will last longer at home ““ and you will be less likely to lose food (and your food budget) to spoilage.
Among other healthy frozen foods, you can find meats (just watch any added sodium levels), healthy frozen dinners, vegan and vegetarian choices, and more. Product ingredients can vary, even from the same manufacturer, so you might be surprised at the range of healthy frozen options where you wouldn't expect them. On the flip side, because manufacturers and preparation techniques do vary widely, no matter the product, be sure to read the label before putting it in your cart.
In this week before we load up on frozen deals, it's time to get the freezer ready. If you haven't cleaned yours out in a while, you might not even have room for the bargains to come. So I recommend sorting through your freezer and seeing what meals you can make this week, what items might just need to be tossed, and what you can condense or combine. If you are able to, you may want to completely empty your freezer, setting the contents in coolers, or even in boxes outside in areas where it's cold. If you want to clean and deodorize it, wipe down the walls with vinegar, then wipe completely clean with fresh water. Follow with a mixture of baking soda and water to deodorize. Be sure all the vinegar is gone, or you'll have a fun, but messy, chemical reaction that foams up when you use the baking soda. Think grade school science fair volcano.
Now that you've cleaned and sorted your freezer, jot down everything you want to use up, and place it all back in one section, so they don't end up buried again. Then hop online. Sites like EasyHomeMeals.com have ideas and recipes to use up frozen goods. You can also do specific searches by inputting ingredients that need to get eaten. This technique brings up recipes and ideas to use your ingredients, and you'll find everything from slow cooker meals, to oven-baked goodness, and sometimes even microwave options.
Now that the freezer is ready and your meals are planned ““ sit back, relax, and warm up from handling all those frozen goods!
