Meatballs

• Meatballs freeze well and can be served quick and steaming hot. Prepare your favorite meatball recipe using pork sausage or ground beef along with tomato sauce or sweet and sour sauce, garlic, onions, and your favorite seasonings. Form the mixture into small meatballs, which are easy to freeze and quick to heat. When it's time to use the meatballs, cook them in a hot oven and they're ready to serve.

Puff Pastry

• Puff pastry is a handy component in a variety of freezer-safe appetizers. Saute filling ingredients, such as chopped garlic, onion and shredded crab meat or spinach. Stir in an egg and cheddar or feta cheese to add flavor, then bind the ingredients together.The mixture is divided and placed on small pieces of buttered phyllo dough. The edges are sealed into neat little packages. At serving time, bake the frozen appetizers in your oven until the phyllo is golden brown and crispy.

Cheese Balls

• Cheese balls are easy to make in your food processor. Shred your favorite cheese such as cheddar or pepper jack, then process the shredded cheese with flour and butter. Spice up the cheese balls with minced garlic, hot sauce, paprika, poppy seeds, sea salt or green olives. To serve the cheese balls, bake the frozen cheese balls on a baking sheet until golden brown.

Foods to Avoid

• Although most foods are safe to freeze, many foods lose their flavor or texture. Appetizers containing milk, hard-boiled eggs, mayonnaise, yogurt, cream cheese, cottage cheese or cream sauces aren't good candidates for freezing, as the foods will separate or become watery. Although long grain rice freezes well, instant rice becomes gummy. Don't freeze appetizers containing fried foods, which become soggy. Raw vegetables tend to become watery when frozen.

Freezing Appetizers

• Place appetizers on a cookie sheet and freeze the appetizers quickly. The frozen appetizers are removed from the cookie sheet and stored in a tightly sealed plastic container. Alternatively, place the frozen appetizers in a zip-seal bag to save freezer space. If the appetizers are sticky, place parchment or waxed paper between the layers. Label the containers clearly, including the date. If tightly sealed, most frozen appetizers will keep for three to six months.