Once a month cooking?

[bamamom]

Does anyone do the once a month cooking? I am trying to cut out dining out so much from our budget. My problem is after I work all day and its dinner time before I get home, I will just run through the drive thru I was thinking if I already had dinner "made" and just had to pop it in oven that I could cut out the dining out. I would love any tips on this and also if anyone has recipes they use for their bulk cooking or recipes that freeze well they would like to share I would appreciate that too Thanks

 

[TiggerMomNine]

I've tried various methods - and I always end up back at Dream Dinners.

There are tons of websites, books, etc. that can help you with OAMC - I suggest you visit your library (don't buy anything - at least at first!).

Look online for OAMC, once a month cooking, freezer cooking, etc.

 

[ENSOCK]

instead of once a month cooking, I cook 3 or 4 different things on the weekend. We eat on that all week but if possible I will freeze so for later.

 

[susianew]

Last winter, I bought a bunch of 8x8 metal pans (not the disposables) at Dollar Tree ($1 each)-they evidently get them in 3 or so times a year. The pans just barely squeeze into a large Ziplock baggie, and I use a straw to suck out the extra air. They stack great & are the perfect budget freezer storage!

I make pans of manicotti, enchiladas, chili, chicken & rice, pastas and soups til the freezer is completely full. I pull stuff out of the freezer Saturday morning and let it defrost in the fridge til Sunday night, then cook it all up at one time. Then throughout the week, all I have to do is nuke individual servings and plate them up with fruit & veg.

Knowing I can get dinner ready in 2 minutes is a huge relief during the day, and it has really cut down on our eating out. Plus, my girls really like some of the 'new' dishes. I just really regret not having an even bigger freezer!

Susan

 

[HS3kids]

instead of once a month cooking, I cook 3 or 4 different things on the weekend. We eat on that all week but if possible I will freeze so for later.

I do this though not as often as I should. Now that the cooler weather is here and we can use the oven without threat of heat stroke, I will be doing it more. I made stuffed shells last night but doubled the recipe and froze the extras. When we are ready to eat- just add sauce and cheese and bake. This is the first time I have tried this with stuffed shells, hope they're good.
I have done chicken pot pie and froze, as well as zucchini breads though and they were great.
I wish I had a second freezer so I could fit more.
Try food.com, they have great OAMC recipes and tips there.

***edited to add that I have pre-cooked ground beef and frozen that- huge timesaver... and also stored chicken, pork or beef in marinade in the freezer, as it thaws it marinates the meat***

 

[figment3258]

Hey you could check out the thread eat at home. It has lots of great ideas for eating at home. there are also a few links to peoples blogs that share wonderful recipes!

 

[pamrob]

I did OAMC for years. On my own with cookbooks and websites as well as the businesses like Dream Dinners or Social Suppers. Check out books from the library and see if you can find a good match for your eating habits.

Right now I am subscribing to E-mealz. It gives you a weekly menu along with a grocery list. All of the meals are pretty easy to put together. We are on our third week and it is going well. It has definitely kept costs down and we are enjoying trying some new recipes

 

[SSRFred]

When the weather gets cooler, I do. I find it easier to make main courses in bulk, freeze them and then warm them up as needed. It's easier ( and quick) to whip up starch and veggie sides on a weeknight since the main course comes from the freezer.

My favorites are beef stew, chicken stew, meatballs and soups. I find that meats in gravy (or soup) freeze the best and when defrosted and reheated, taste like they are freshly made. My family is not great with leftovers, so meals that taste like they were just made work the best for us.

 

[Chelley00]

I do once a month (sometimes twice a month depending on our weekend schedule) With 4 kids in sports and a job, it's almost a necessity.

Try the library. I found tons of OAMC books, and had a friend loan me a bunch of hers. There are also tons of blogs and websites devoted to it. It takes an entire weekend for me to make a list, grocery shop and cook, but it's well worth giving up a weekend to not have to cook during the week.

 

[SDSorority]

I don't do once a MONTH but I do like to make a bunch of stuff on Sunday and then freeze it for the week or to fill in on really busy nights. I do things like veggie burgers, veggie chili, pasta and sauce, frozen veggies like broccoli and green beans, lentils...

 

[jadeblue13]

Check out 30 Day Gourmet-I would borrow from the library until you are sure you want to do a full freezer cooking day. A friend and I have been doing this for about 7 years. We like their forms for organizing your session, but you can download free forms from many sites online.

You can certainly make extra meals on your own of any main dish and freeze them as pp have mentioned. Best of luck!

 

[Sadie22]

A cooking day as described in the OAMC books would be too tiring for me. I do buy and cook in bulk, however, usually cooking one or two recipes at a time.

I will brown 20 pounds of ground beef at a time which will give me at least 20 meals. I then season it depending on how I want to use it. For example, I will add taco seasoning if I am making taco filling. I will make huge pots of chili. I freeze meal-size portions in plastic freezer containers. Plastic bags can be used but I prefer the stackability of the containers. I label and freeze. Then when I want to have chili for dinner I pot the contents of the plastic container into a microwavable casserole dish and thaw and reheat.

I made a batch of twice-baked potatoes recently. I baked five pounds of potatoes right on the oven rack, then scooped out the insides, mixed with spinach and cheese, and refilled the potato shells. I froze all the potato halves on baking sheets, then put the once-baked potatoes into plastic bags in the freezer. We can take out two or more at a time, top with more cheese, and bake in the toaster oven for about 15-20 minutes.

I tend not to use my large oven very much, instead doing most meal prep with our two microwaves.

 

[curlybop]

I do not cook a month's worth in a day, but I modify the idea to suit my schedule. Usually I make 2-3 extra meals on a weekend. It doesn't take very long once you figure out what to make. My main resource is this:

http://onceamonthmom.com/

I click on the menu I'm most interested in and the shopping list, labels, and cooking directions are right there. All I have to do is shop & cook. Or I pick and choose a few dishes and go with the quantities listed. It really works well for our family. My freezer is quite full now and I get a week long break from cooking. A little planning and effort goes a long way.

 

[stinkerbelle's mom]

How about investing in a good crockpot. That way you can make hot fresh things several times a week.

I have found tons of recipes from this board alone and saved them. Here are a couple great ones. (the notes are the posters notes, not mine)

Crockpot Italian Chicken

1 package chicken tenders cut into bite-sized pieces
1 can cream of chicken soup
4 oz. cream cheese
1 .7 oz packet dry Italian dressing mix

Put chicken in bottom of Crockpot. Mix soup, cream cheese, and Italian dressing together. Pour over chicken.

Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Serve over angel hair pasta.

Mmm mmm mmm! It tastes similar to chicken alfredo
**********************************************************

Ham and Beans

Ham bone (leftover or ham steak with bone)
1 lb soaked great northern beans
1 onion, chopped
water to cover
1 can campbells bean with bacon soup
Tabasco
black pepper

Toss ham bone, soaked beans, onion in crock pot. Cover with water. Cook on low for 10-12 hours. Remove bone, shred whatever ham you can, add ham back in to pot of beans and water. Stir in bean with bacon soup, tabasco & pepper to taste. Serve over cornbread

--------------------------------------------------------

Cheesy Chicken Pasta

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 cans cream of chicken w/ herbs (if you can't find them w/ herbs, just use the plain)
2 cans broccoli cheese soup
1 lb. any short-cut pasta (I use penne or mini-penne)
1/2-1 cup white wine, if desired

Place chicken breasts in the bottom of crockpot. Season with salt and pepper. Combine soups and spread evenly on top of chicken (when combining the soups, I grate some garlic into it. It adds a nice flavor, but feel free to omit). Pour wine on top of soup mixture.

Cook for 6-8 hours. Remove chicken and cube/shred. Add back to crock pot and stir well.
Cook and add pasta (I combine directly into the crockpot. Makes life easier).
*all soups are Campbell's*

************************************************************

Cheesy Crockpot Chicken

3 whole boneless chicken breasts
2 cans cream chicken soup
1 can cheddar cheese soup

Remove all fat and skin from chicken; rinse and pat dry, sprinkle with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Put in crock-pot and add the three soups straight from the cans. Cook on low all day (at least 8 hrs). Do not lift the lid. Serve over rice or noodles.

*****************************************

This one is the best I've ever tasted.


Pot Roast

2 boneless chuck roasts (2.5 pounds each)
1 envelope Ranch dressing mix
1 envelope Italian dressing mix
1 envelope brown gravy mix
1/2 cup water

Place roasts in a slow cooker. In a small bowl, combine mixes and water. Whisk together. Pour over roasts. Cover and cook on low 7-8 hours until tender.

I always add some potatoes, carrots and onions with this.



Hope these help!

 

[clh2]

A cooking day as described in the OAMC books would be too tiring for me. I do buy and cook in bulk, however, usually cooking one or two recipes at a time.

I about killed myself doing OAMC only 1 time.

Now - as others have suggested - I will make "extras" on the weekend, and freeze that. A great book is Fix Freeze, Feast, which is available at Barnes and Noble and probably other bookstores as well.

 

[Pigeon]

A cooking day as described in the OAMC books would be too tiring for me. I do buy and cook in bulk, however, usually cooking one or two recipes at a time.

This is what I do, too. I don't devote a whole weekend to OAMC. If I'm hanging around the house on a weekend day, I cook a couple of soups, stews, chilis, etc. in bulk and freeze in meal sized containers.

I also do some easy freezer prep "dump" recipes, like putting chicken pieces or boneless pork chops in a freezer bag with marinade and freezing. You just dump the bag contents into a pan and bake for dinner.

It's easy to build up a varied stash of meals this way.

 

[bamamom]

Thanks so much or all the tips. I think I will start with cooking several dishes the first time...maybe a weeks worth. And then maybe I can build myself up to 3-4 weeks of meals.

I notice alot of you suggested freezing meat in marinade. What marinades do you use or recommend? I'm wanting to try new things as well as our favorites. I thought I might could do a new recipe once a week and freeze.

Thanks for the recipes, I'm going to try those. If anyone else has some they would like to share that would be great Thanks again.

 

[mouselovr]

My family (SIL & Mom & I) used to do this then life became to busy for us to find time so now we eat a lot of macs & cheese, cold cuts and frozen pizza! 30 day gormet was what we used. They tell you how to freeze enough food for a month and stor it in your freezer in the kitchen and still have room for the ice cream! It is great. Recently a couple of friends and myself cooked for our families and one that we all had loose ties to that had suffered a recent horrible tragedy. We cooked just under 30 meals each for 4 families it took us a little over 12 hours and it cost us each right around $200! That was a great deal and some great shopping!

 

[polkadotsuitcase]

I about killed myself doing OAMC only 1 time.

That was my experience, too. I did it for several months years and years ago. While I liked that I had all those meals ready to go, the day spent cooking was really tough.

I like the idea of cooking on the weekend to prep for the week ahead. Maybe I should give that a shot.

 

[RadioFanatic]

I do once a week which is a necessity with working. Either saturday or sunday, during DS's nap, I'll make 2-3 casseroles which will take us through the week. For example, I made two pans of enchilada bake and two pans of chicken divan and a pan of mac and cheese. I froze one each of the enchilada and divan for another time, and ate the rest this week. I'll also crockpot food as well. I have in the crockpot for tonight a pork roast with a can of mushroom soup and apple juice - sounds yucky but its an amazing dish - very fallish. We will eat that with the mac and cheese and salad.