I love to watch meal prep videos on YouTube. There is something mesmerizing about watching an internet stranger with a snappy apron fill their freezer with casseroles and marinated meats

As much as I love to watch these videos, they aren’t always helpful. We eat vegetarian dinners more often than not and try to opt for less processed ingredients. While this is healthier and usually more affordable, eating a whole foods plant-based diet can mean spending a lot more time in the kitchen. If you are a busy parent trying to throw dinner together between getting off of work and getting the kids to bed, meal prepping is essential.

I have found a few freezer recipes that are vegetarian, healthy, and also tasty enough that my children love them.

1. Homemade veggie burgers
2. Seitan stirfry
3. Falafel
4. Black bean taquitos
5. Homemade pizza dough

With an inpatient rotation coming up, last weekend was the perfect time to throw a few easy meals in the freezer. Nothing makes those 80 hour weeks more tolerable, but at least we can eat well. I also made about 30 pumpkin pancakes for the freezer and a few random snacks that were eaten within days.

If I had a larger freezer, I would make 3-4 each of these recipes and be set for a month. Unfortunately, that is not my current situation. I don’t have space for more than a few meals, but these are so easy that it’s no big deal to whip them up on a weekend morning.

1. Design-your-own veggie burgers

We love veggie burgers but they can be so expensive – especially when you consider that my family will easily go through 10 or more burgers in a sitting. I developed a template recipe for veggie burgers that freezes well, allowing me to have a fast, affordable, and kid-friendly meal ready for weekdays. I love the flexibility of this recipe because I can use whatever is on sale or already in my refrigerator to develop new flavor combinations.

Mix the following in a bowl:

2 cups cooked legumes, partially mashed
1 cup cooked grains
1 cup finely chopped veggies
0.5 cups sauce
0.5 cups binder (oatmeal, panko, cornmeal, or similar)

This week, I decided to use black beans as my legume, brown rice as a grain, mirepoix as my vegetables, and some enchilada sauce. The binder was plain whole wheat flour. I merely mixed the ingredients, shaped the burgers, let them firm up and toast a bit in a hot frying pan, then cooled and froze them. Before serving I usually thaw in the refrigerator and then lay them out on a cookie sheet and heat for 15 minutes at 350F

I love the versatility of this recipe because it allows me to use whatever is left in my refrigerator or on sale at my local farmer’s market to fill my freezer with healthy homemade meals. You can come up with some really delicious combinations, such as:

• Southwestern black bean burgers with pepper jack and avocado
• Chickpea burgers with Middle Eastern spices and tahini sauce in a pita
• Kidney bean and kale burgers with sharp cheddar cheese

2. Seitan for stir-fry

Homemade seitan is not as complicated as it seems. Made with vital wheat gluten and chickpeas, it is high protein and damn cheap. Although it takes some time to master, it is so affordable and freezes so well that it has become a staple in my home. My kids love this recipe for Mongolian seitan. I make the seitan, slice and freeze it, and freeze the sauce in a separate mason jar. It freezes so well that you can make a ton at a time. Just throw in some fresh chopped vegetables to stir fry at the last minute and serve over your favorite Asian noodles for a fast, vegan meal that even carnivore children eat up.

3. Homemade falafel

Falafel is one of our favorite fast foods to grab when we need a fast meal while running errands. This NY Times falafel recipe freezes well, so I can make several servings at a single sitting and then enjoy them later when I am busy. Although the recipe says to deep fry them, I find that toasting them in a hot pan with a light spritz of oil gives falafel the desired crunch without as much fat as long as you make flatter patties instead of round balls. Simply toast them and then freeze, heating in a 350F oven when you plan to use them. You can also make and freeze homemade pita, which means your delicious weeknight falafel dinner will require just chopping some vegetables and throwing together a tahini sauce.

4. Black bean taquitos

Frozen taquitos are a cheap convenience food but not always the healthiest choice. These Creamy Black Bean Taquitos from Budget Bytes are vegetarian and can be baked. I make them in large batches to have on hand for dinners, lunches, and late night munchies. Instead of canned beans, I keep it cheap by using dried beans that have been cooked until soft.

I bake these until they are just starting to crisp up and then freeze them. I then thaw them in the refrigerator and bake them at 400 until brown and crispy when I am ready to enjoy them.

5. Pizza dough

What kid doesn’t love pizza? Because it bakes so quickly, pizza is definitely a working-mom-friendly food as long as you have the dough ready to go. Our family can easily eat a double recipe of pizza in a single sitting, so I make 4 to 6 times the recipe and freeze the extra.

Pizza dough can be frozen after the first rise. When you are ready to enjoy it, transfer it from your freezer to your refrigerator. The dough will undergo its second rise while it is thawing, so it will be ready to roll out and use when you get home. Although we love a cast iron skillet pizza, you also can use pizza dough for stromboli, calzones, and a variety of American Italian dishes.

Zero waste freezer meals: is it possible?

Many people approach freezer meals with the assumption that they will be going through a lot of plastic. We use a minimal amount of disposable plastics in my house and haven’t had any problems with freezer burn or spoilage.

First, I use reusable containers and fill them to the brim. Air causes freezer burn, so packing your containers full of food will cut back on damage. This can require being creative; taquitos actually get frozen standing up in several old Tupperware containers that are just the perfect size. Wrapping items in parchment paper or other paper also can reduce air exposure. Second, I reuse a lot of ‘single use’ wrappings in my meal prep. For example I reuse the waxed paper from bakery items and the plastic bags from tortillas. I have found that you can get multiple uses out of these supposedly disposable items.

That may not be completely zero waste, but it is an improvement. Most importantly, it is easy enough that lazy moms like me can handle it. Altogether, this meal prep took me about four hours, but I was not working even half of that time. A lot of that four hours was spent watching Netflix and waiting for the pizza dough to rise.

This vegetarian meal plan is one I turn to over and over, not just because it is tasty but because it requires such little effort. It’s such a relief to come home after a 12 or 13 hour shift to a healthy, vegetarian meal that will take minimal time and energy. Like many people in the medical field, I have a significant other who takes over a lot of burden of housekeeping when I am on more demanding rotations. I love that I can make a contribution to the home even when I am away for so many hours.

Do you meal prep? How do you balance health with convenience? Let me know in the comments because I am always in need of more ideas!