It’s Back to School Time! My kids start back on 8/29/12. Part of getting ready for school in our house is freezing sandwiches for the days my kids don’t like what’s on the school’s cafeteria menu.
Selecting Ingredients: Make sure to use the fresh bread and the freshest ingredients possible. Fine textured breads and egg enriched breads tend to stay freshest longest.
Preparing for Freezing: Unless you are using peanut butter for filling, coat each slice of bread one side thoroughly with butter or margarine to keep filling from soaking in. For very moist fillings, freeze buttered bread first before spreading on filling. Bread and fillings can also be packed frozen separately and assembled at mealtime.
Packaging: Good quality packaging for freezing prepared sandwiches includes freezer grade plastic bags, rigid plastic containers, glass containers, heavy-duty aluminum foil and foil containers. Sandwiches should be double wrapped in heavy duty foil or in freezer plastic or packed in small, airtight container designed specially for sandwiches.
Storage Time: Store cheese, ham and bologna sandwiches for 3 to 4 weeks. All other sandwiches from 4 to 6 months.
Thawing: Let sandwiches left in wrappers thaw out in lunch boxes throughout the morning or in the refrigerator.
Fillings That Freeze Well: Peanut butter with or without jelly; cheese spreads; cream cheese mixtures with olives, nuts or raisins; and sliced meats, poultry and canned tuna. Small amounts of condiments, like ketchup, mustard or relish freeze fine.
Fillings That Don’t Freeze Well: Mayonnaise or oil based dressings.
Additional Tips: Add toppings like hard boiled eggs, lettuce, tomatoes and other fresh vegetables to sandwiches after thawing.
Northerly Nosh 