Summer is here which means I’m wanting to spend time outside as much as possible. More time outside = less time in the kitchen. I’ve been looking for ways to step up my food prep game and after reading about the FoodSaver®, I knew this little machine could be a game changer! If you’ve never played around with vacuum sealing in the kitchen then you better buckle up, because I’m about to blow your mind. The FoodSaver® has ALL KINDS of great uses, which we’ll talk about in a minute, plus I’m going to show you one of my favorite ways to use it in: DIY Smoothie Packs.
Let’s do a quick rundown of this fun little gadget, shall we? The FoodSaver® FM2000 Vacuum Sealing System is a compact appliance that is simple to use and will prolong the life and quality of your food – it keeps food fresh up to 5x longer! Plus, it’s a great tool to use for meal prep because you can cook one time in bulk and divide it into multiple portions for future use – and it’ll be just as fresh each time! This not only saves you a TON of time, but it’ll save your wallet too! Buying in bulk is always cheaper and you’ll have so much less food going to waste.
Great uses for the FoodSaver®
- Buy items like meat once a month when they are on sale – portion into vacuum seal bags and freeze until ready to use
- Package leftovers into single serve meals for later. Having a freezer stocked with single serve meals is a lifesaver on busy nights! Reheat it in the microwave right in the bag.
- Reseal snack bags, such as potato chips, to keep your snacks fresh for longer!
- Keep unused portions of ingredients fresh for future use. You know those times when you only need half of an ingredient and have no plans to use it again in the near future? Seal it up and never worry about wasted money on half used ingredients again!
- Non-Food sealing: FoodSavers® aren’t just for food! Get creative with uses. Sealing up a bag of toiletries when you travel is a great way to prevent messy leaks in your suitcase.
Other great FoodSaver® features:
- Bags and rolls are recyclable
- Bags are resealable – simply cut off the existing seal, make sure the top of the bag is clean, and then reseal!
- FoodSaver® makes a TON of great accessories such as canisters for pantry items, marinade containers, sealable lids for mason jars, bottle stoppers, deli containers, etc. Each FoodSaver® comes with an accessory hose to use with these items.
Smoothie Packs with the FoodSaver®
Now that we’ve established how awesome the the FoodSaver® is, let’s talk about one of my FAVORITE ways to use it – smoothie packs! I love smoothies in the summer but I do not love having to pull a bunch of ingredients out of the freezer, fridge, and pantry each time I want to make one. I load mine up with protein powder and other boosters so I’ve got a lot of ingredients to get out. With FoodSaver®, I can put all of my ingredients into a single-serve bag and then just pop one out of the freezer when I’m ready. I just need to add my liquid and blend away! HUGE time saver.
I shop for my fruit when it’s on sale and then spend a few minutes assembling my bags. Once they’re full I vacuum seal the tops and in a just a few minutes, I have enough smoothie packs to last for weeks!
Here’s the basic formula I use for my smoothie packs:
- 1 cup frozen fruit
- 1 cup greens (spinach or kale)
- 1 scoop protein powder
- Additional smoothie boosters (I’m currently using organic acai berry powder and an organic energy blend made with beets and cacoa)
- 1 cup liquid added when ready to blend (I use unsweetened almond milk)
That’s it! I love having these smoothie packs on hand for easy breakfasts and whenever I’m in the mood for something refreshing. They’ll keep in the freezer for months with no worries of freezer burn.
Today I prepped my two favorite combos:
- Mixed berry + Kale
- Tropical Fruit (mango, pineapple, banana) + Spinach
If you want to check out FoodSaver® for yourself visit their website – your fridge and your budget will thank you and you’ll constantly be thinking up of news ways to use it! FoodSaver® is the #1 best selling vacuum sealing brand + all of their products come with a 5 year limited warranty and are ETL Safety Certified.
This post is sponsored by FoodSaver®. All comments, opinions, and recipe are my own.