Hello! I’m Karrie, also known as the “Freezer Meal Queen”.
I’m the author of the international award-winning cookbook “Seriously Good Freezer Meals“, the recipe developer, cook, writer and the-sometimes-photo-taker of the recipes and other pictures on my blog happymoneysaver.com. I’ve been making and developing freezer meal recipes for over 15 years in my kitchen and have learned all the best techniques and strategies.
I’ve been featured on…
I’ve been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, Huffington Post and featured in the All You Magazine as well as some local news segments. I’ve been featured in Buzzfeed, Msn.com, Yummly, Bloglovin, and Flipboard. As for magazines I’ve been featured in Marie Claire Magazine UK, San Diego Woman Magazine, At Home New Jersey Magazine, Seattle Magazine, Shape Magazine, Albany Times Union Newspaper, Eat This, Not That Magazine, Mom Magazine, Paris Post Intelligencer Daily Newspaper, Bella Magazine and more!
Food is my love language. But so is saving money. So I like to combine the two a lot and make thrifty make ahead and freeze meals to save time. Because life is busy, and freezer meals can come to the rescue for all of us. And yes, they actually CAN taste good.
A little bit about me.
Growing up in a large family I’ve always been keen to find ways to cut costs and more importantly time. I live my dream of spending time with my family while getting into all sorts of trouble and living life to the fullest. You know, doing crazy things like making 50 freezer meals in a day, raising chickens, learning to make things the old fashioned way, and dancing to 80’s music while cleaning the house.
I live and blog out of eastern Washington with my husband and four amazing kids who keep me running around crazy all day long with sports, activities, and all the other regular mom stuff. But they also steal my heart.
I’m a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and I love love love the Gospel. I love that I can always ask God to help me out in this crazy thing called life. And I know that He loves me and answers my prayers. This is a big part of who I am so I wanted to mention it.
The blog.
I started blogging in 2009 as a way of sharing recipes and money saving ideas with my 3 silly sisters. I never dreamed of the exciting ride it would take me through the years working with brands like Frigidaire, Quaker, Albertsons, Allegiant Air, Maytag, Instant-Pot and Kimberly-Clark. I’ve also been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, Huffington Post and featured in the All You Magazine as well as some local news segments.
My blog happymoneysaver.com helps my readers find delicious recipes, learn ways to live life to the fullest while on a budget, make things from scratch, and learn to try try again when things go wrong. We like to have fun around here. So I share ideas to keep my readers cooking in the kitchen and laughing along with my funny adventures.
The cookbook.
In 2018 I released my very first published freezer meals cookbook. Seriously Good Freezer Meals is full of my own tried and true, best freezer-meal recipes. As soon as I started posting freezer meal recipes on the blog my readers instantly fell in love. They were hungry for a whole freezer meal cookbook full of my best freezer meal recipes and commented/emailed me often about wanting a cookbook. Seriously Good Freezer Meals cookbook is helping out thousands of busy families by teaching them methods of time saving freezer meals. But seriously tasty ones.
Catchin’ Up with Karrie
First thing you wanna do is subscribe to my email updates in the little box at the top of my site. That way when fresh new content or big things are announced you’ll be the first to know.
You may also want to follow me on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, Youtube and if you love freezer meals you can ask to join my private freezer meal club group too.
If you need to get ahold of me feel free to shoot me an email at [email protected] If you are a brand that wants to work together also shoot me an email. I’d love to hear from you!
Hi Karrie, I recently read your account of visiting the Big Ben Hutterite Colony near Cardston, Alberta
very interesting. I also visited the same colony but almost 50 years ago. I have some wonderful archival items I’d like to share with the members of the colony. I have photographs of Hutterite youngsters I met that summer August day of 1967. I’m sure current children would get a kick out of trying to figure out who’s who, which parent or grandparent it was I captured on film. They might also enjoy even more listening to their forebears singing–oh how they loved to sign! I had recorded
their songs (two hours worth) on a reel to reel recorder and only recently discovered the reel’s whereabouts in our old attic–up there all that time in all the heat and freezing cold through the seasons. I’ve had the recordings transferred to cds and the quality of the sound, old as it is, is remarkable, in fact…awesome! So, would you respond using another email address so I could attach a collage photo the kids? Thank you. Hope to hear from you soon.
Karrie,
Huge fan of the website. May be a little presumptuous of me but, if you have more freezer recipes, you should sell a cook book. I feel kind of bad using your recipes and advise of which I’d gladly pay for. If you wrote a book, I’d buy it. If you wrote an Ebook, I’d buy it and print it off.
I appreciate all the information you’ve provided on your site.
Regards,
A Father, A full time worker, full time student, full time husband, and a guy running a bit short on time.
Oh you are so very nice Chris! Thank you very much. I am currently working on my cookbook and hope to have it finished soon. 🙂 Can’t wait to share it with you!
Could you send me a bread recipe for banana bread Karrie ?
Thank you.
Found your site while looking up articles on expired food. Looked interesting to me, so I added you to my Google+ list. I hail from SoCal, the land of perpetual summers! (I once lived in the Northeast U.S…. I actually miss the snow a little.)
So glad you found me!
When you make your bread, is it with a bread machine or in the oven? I love home made bread(especially wheat). I want to make some but don’t know how. Can you buy the bread mix at the store or better to put all the ingredients together yourself?
My mom always made stuff from scratch till she got older. Used to can fruits too.
I miss all that good cooking.
Thanx,
Chris
You can use a bread machine but I think it is just as easy to make it yourself with your own ingredients. And it’s cheaper (and better!) too! 🙂
Are you LDS (Mormon?). Just wondering!! Happy new piece of land!!
Yep! I sure am!
Hi Karrie!
I stumbled across your blog today while looking for something dōTerra related (I’m consultant too!). I have plans to try your homemade laundry detergent recipe for my family of nine. I’ll let you know how it goes, and thank you for sharing!
So glad you found me! Let me know what you think! 🙂
I just stumbled across your website. In a word: Amazing!
Loving all the money saving tips that I’ll use…bonuses: environmentally sound & healthy!
Literally went to Bath & Body Works today and an employee attested to the fact that they stopped producing the anti-bacterial soap due to Triclosan. Once my new bottle is empty, it’ll be filled with your recipe 🙂
All the best,
Belinda
I am new to your posting. Found you through Pinterest. Iam from the Midwest and love doing things the old fashion way. I am retired now so I have more time to play. Thanks.
So glad you found us!!
Normal ziplock / sandwich bags are already reusable. Just wash them and reuse them. Or use those tiny size Tupperware, super useful and they can just be thrown in the dish washer 🙂
Hey Karrie! I see you live in the Pacific Northwest! I do as well. Do you live near Spokane, WA perhaps? I moved to the area in August of last year and always want to met fellow Spokane area blogger like myself 🙂
Hello Christine, I am actually in the Tri-Cities so not too far away. We are practically neighbors. 🙂
Just discovered your site… I think I may be in love!!
So glad you like it! 🙂
Could you substitute Lema-Shime (sp) for the lemon flavored drink mix?
Hi Karrie, Loved your play-by-play on tallow rendering. I have 15-yr old rendered tallow in my freezer (it doesn’t go bad)…one day I’ll get back to soap making. Many years ago I made all of my family’s soap and candles, it was lovely hence the rendering. I thought I’d pass on a couple of tips. No need to chop it up (this will make straining easier later on), just lay the sheets and chunks into a big roasting pan and put them into a 200 degree oven. Your house will smell like roasted beef (but that’s better than boiled beef) and you don’t need to constantly watch it…also it’s safer around little ones. Once it’s all rendered (seems like this took hours) you could pour off most of the rendered fat into jars without straining as the “stuff” stayed at the bottom of the pan…I only strained the last quart maybe. Glad to see that some young people are still interested in the old ways…who knows, we may need this knowledge some day. My son’s wives don’t get it…my daughter understands completely. Anyway, good luck on your “pioneer adventure”.
Thanks Monica! It was an experience that is for sure. 🙂
Hi Karrie, I love your site!!! You save me time by trying out recipes and only posting the best of the best! My request is for Liquid Dish Soap and Liquid Hand Soap! There are so many recipes out there that I just don’t know where to start and your are always tried and true! Plus you show me step by step how to make them AND how much money it saves me!! Thanks and keep them coming! Kelly
I have a question for you, my husband is so picky all of a sudden with his lunches I’m sure it’s because he eats it over and over but do you have some easy reasonable lunch ideas? I usually do like chicken with rice or something like a sandwich and chips he is very healthy to.
Hi Jessica, yes I am currently working on some great ideas for lunches – it will be a post hopefully within this month. 🙂
hi…just found your site via hip2save….i have downloaded your savings tracker and watched your video but cant quite understand how to get my own spreadsheet top come up from the download I did…not sure if this makes sense to you…but all i can see on my download are your instructions, not a blank spreadsheet…can you help me, please?
Karrie,
Great tips for household management and money saving! Do you have any concerns about using so much processed foods and heavily preserved items
. That’s my main struggle! I’m very concerned about GMOs and artificial everything! Any ideas on this? 🙂
Yes, lately I have been trying or at least thinking about doing more natural and organic foods. I think if you are couponing for toiletries you should be able to save so much money to be able to justify spending a little more on natural foods. Good luck on your savings journey!
I have recently gone threw brain surgery and have been diagnosed with brain cancer! I am only 25! I have two little girls, age 5 and 2.5 not to mention my wonderful husband . I would love you help with whatever fundraiser u can give and it is November 10th at the moose lodge ( knights of
Columbus) on Sylvester from 4-8p. If u just want to come and support it that would be great! We are having a silent auction there’s going to be a lot of things there to bid on! We want to get all the stuff together this friday! Let me know!
I really like your website! I totally believe in couponing, once a month shopping & beginning once a month cooking. So much that my co-workers got me a t-shirt that says “I have a coupon for that”. Keep up the good work. Crazy how those who roll their eyes one day, will be cheering you the next. God bless.
Thanks Kathy!