Quick & easy meals for long shift workers ?!

Actually I just read this over the weekend and decided to try it for my kid who works nights and wanted something easy to grab. I always knew you could freeze bread, but you can freeze whole sandwiches! You pull them out when walking out the door and by the time you are ready for lunch they are thawed and ready to eat or heat if you want. The trick is to put a thin layer of butter on the bread before freezing to make a barrier for the meat/cheese so it doesnt make the bread soggy, and then wrap in aluminum foil then plastic wrap. I made up a dozen of them on Sunday and my kid is a huge fan now. I also bought some pumpkin and cinnamon loaf bread, separated into individual servings and wrapped and froze it too. And I made some tortilla with meat/cheese/rice and froze them. And tortilla with PBJ and froze those. Now he just grabs a few items from the freezer before work and he has his lunch ready.

I spent a lot of time googling the best methods and what freezes well and what doesnt etc. But then after a few hours on Sunday, he has food for 2 weeks now.

For myself, I eat a lot of eggs (i like protein, and that is easiest for me). I was cooking a dozen every sunday by frying 2-3 at a time. Took forever! Then I put into snack size baggies individually and put in fridge drawer. Pulled out a few a day to take to work fridge. This past Sun, I did it different - get a muffin pan (mine is square and makes 12 cakes or whatever), spray with nonstick stuff, crack an egg into each muffin/cake spot, stir slightly with fork/poke the yolk to break, add salt/pepper then put into over (I use a toaster oven) at 375 for about 12-14 min. Then when they cool, pop them out and put into snack bags and put in fridge. Made a dozen of them in less time than it took to make 2-3 before! Next time planning to add cheese and maybe green peppers - little muffin omelets I generally microwave when ready to eat, but I have eaten cold too and not bad.

Now I am googling as many kinds of make ahead stuff as I can I go through a lot of zip bags, and spend most of Sundays prepping for the week. As I get more freezer stuff, I think I can get that down to once or twice a month.

Heya, I am in the same boat as you job wise! I have been trying to use leftovers where I can as I generally have quite a healthy dinner! Also try and make sure I have enough protein so I don't get hungry during the shift! (Nothing worst right!?) Or if all else fails, make a massive salad and take that in with you?? x

I work for a utility company and sometimes work 17 hours on, 7 hours off. I find that if I have food on hand that is satisfying and filling, I can eat several small meals but stay full. You might want to have some quick go-to items that are high in protein/beneficial fat for in between your meals. I like to smash an avocado with a packet of tuna and eat it on a multi-grain English muffin. Top it off with some fresh spinach and you have added iron. A Greek yogurt with slivered almonds or fresh fruit and a dash of cinnamon is another favorite. I make turkey sausage, vegetable and egg patties ahead and keep them in the freezer for quick protein. I also make steel cut oatmeal with walnuts, apples and cranberries in my rice cooker. I freeze individual portions in a mini muffin tin for quick meals when I need energy. I keep Teddy's all natural peanut butter and honey on hand. I can use it on a few crackers or half a whole wheat bagel to fill me up for a while.