1. Fresh herbs: Even if you love basil or thyme, you may not be able to find a use for it at every meal. To avoid having to buy fresh herbs every time you go to the grocery store, opt to freeze them instead. Just wrap it tightly in plastic or put herbs in freezer-safe plastic containers with a tight lid. They take only minutes to thaw and still retain their flavor.
2. Fully cooked meals that you make yourself: They devote entire frozen food sections to frozen TV dinners -- including mac and cheese, pasta dishes and even seafood and soups -- so why not make one yourself? Cook a big meal one day, and then divide it up into meal-sized portions for two or three meals. You can eat them whenever you want, just like the store-bought kind.
3. Fresh fruit: Buy fruit when it's in season to save on the price, and then freeze whatever you can't eat in a few days. Fruit -- especially washed fruit -- tends to get soft and go bad within a week in the refrigerator, but it will stay longer in the freezer.
4. Fresh vegetables: Just like fruit, you can freeze raw and cooked vegetables instead of buying pre-packaged ones. Wrap up beans, peas, corn on the cob and even artichokes.
5. Cheese: Old cheese can smell up your entire kitchen, so instead of holding on to cheese thinking that you'll find a use for it, stick it in the freezer. Grate it beforehand and put it in an airtight container so that it's easier to cook with when you take it out. Hard and semi-hard cheeses freeze best.
6. Bread: When bread is on sale, go ahead and buy an extra loaf for freezing. When it thaws, it will still taste fresh, not soggy.
7. Already frozen meat: Meat that has been in the freezer, de-thawed, and cooked, can be frozen again. Just make sure it's wrapped up tightly!
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