OAMC / Once a Month Cooking

[Darster]

Has anyone tried this? I think I might try one week at a time or two weeks at a time....I got a book from the library on this, called Frozen Assets - How to cook for a day and eat for a month by Deborah Taylor-Hough. It's a new book and Amazon.com should have it.

Cooking one day and storing up has several advantages:

Time Saving - You only end up washing all those dishes once!

Money Saving - because you can buy food in bulk (for example when meat is on sale you usually have to buy 5 lbs or more)
Having a full freezer saves your energy costs.

Convenience - you won't have to stress when something with the kids takes more time than you allowed for, dinner's in the freezer.

Security - perfect for pregnant moms to stock up and then have all those meals prepared and easy to pop in the oven so the family eats better.

Frozen meals are a great new baby gift!

If you are on a special diet the convenience of the proper foods being on hand and ready (in case you're tired) will help you stay on track.

Ttulips - apparently anything with a condensed soup base will freeze very well, things with sour cream in them do not freeze well, but you can add the sour cream later on, but then I think that defeats the purpose!

What I'm starting with is when I make lasagna, I'll make 2 batches, one for tonight and one to freeze. I'm going to slowly build at first, and then go for the 6 hour cooking fest lol

[lauseng]

I've tried the two day cooking fest (prep work friday night, then cooking all day saturday). I didn't have enough freezer space at the time. I cooked for a month, but we didn't eat the meals every night, so they lasted monthS. I liked the payoff, but could never get motivated to do it again. I MUCH prefer making extra like you suggested, and freezing the excess. Done a couple nights a week, it will keep you in stock enough to take quite a few nights off. For instance, I never make just one meatloaf. I always make at least 2 or 3.

Another idea is to season meats before freezing...then thaw and cook when ready. Also, you can make several loaves of bread at once or several pizza crusts.

Even if I'm not ready to cook, I'll buy in bulk. Large packages of ground beef get divided into 3/4 lb sections (no one has noticed that I no longer put a full pound into recipes...so it goes further), placed into freezer bags, and pounded flat, getting all the air out. These thin packages stack nicely in the freezer and thaw quickly even when I forget to take them out of the freezer ahead of time.

Jackie

[kat]

Originally posted by Darster
What I'm starting with is when I make lasagna, I'll make 2 batches, one for tonight and one to freeze. I'm going to slowly build at first, and then go for the 6 hour cooking fest lol

After many, many years of making double batches, I'd like to offer a tip on freezing lasagna (and any casserole type dish that has cheese). Bake these only half way before freezing (this helps the cheeses to hold up better when you reheat it). Also, don't reheat it in the microwave - it makes the cheese go gummy. I freeze mine in a freezer-to-oven Tupperware that I got years ago and just shove it in the regular oven frozen for 25-30 minutes at 350 (like the frozen stuff you buy from the store).

I've also found that meatloaf freezes well both cooked & uncooked. I also make large batches of spaghetti sauce & soups - both can be lifesavers on those nights that no one wants to cook.

[Teah]

I do this all the time. I will spend 2 days cooking things like Calzones, lasagna, stuffed peppers, stuffed cabbage, etc...
I then seal them in single serving sizes with my Tilia Food saver so my kids and DH have lunches all month long. all they have to do is microwave.
Then for my dinners I usually start dinner in the crock pot the night before I want to serve it. Let it cook on low until dinner time the next night and it's perfect everytime. No slaving over a hot stove.....just drop it in the cooker and forget it.
Another thing I make once a month for DH is omlets. I stuff them with corned or roast beef hash and cheese, sometimes sausage and cheese...I seal them in 2s and he takes a package to work with him and eats his breakfast there.
And I do potatoes. I bake them....cut them in half, scoop out the potatoe and mash them, add bacon bits and spices and cheese, stuff the potatoe shell with it and seal them and freeze them.
To some this would be a bother but I do love to cook! From thanksgiving till christmas that's all I do is bake homemade goodies and freeze them to put them into goodie baskets for friends and family

[Darster]

I read that if you are fixing lasagna to freeze you don't need to pre-cook the lasagna noodles, just make sure the noodles are fully covered by sauce...then you freeze it. Then to serve, just thaw it out and cook 350 F for approx 20 mins or until bubbly.

If you want to precook the pastas, the book said it's a good idea to slightly UNDERcook the pasta, so it won't be all mushy and gummy from going through the thawing and cooking process.

I love the ideas y'all have posted, thanks!!!

[cata5]

I'm with lauseng. I make extras all the time and always buy in bulk. I don't think I could come up with enough uninterrupted time to spend a day cooking. PLUS, I just can't see myself doing it. I don't really enjoy cooking all that much.

Things I usually freeze are spaghetti sauce, chili, chicken soup, etc. More often, I freeze ingredients and that can help alot when you're trying to come up with a good meal in a short time. I chop onions and green peppers and bag separately to throw in a dish. I also cook ground beef and onions together and bag for another meal or two. Did you know that the flavor of onions and some seasonings are enhanced when frozen? So you'll want to adjust those...

I am a SAHM so I have more time to put a meal together, but it doesn't mean it's that much easier.LOL I love to use the slow cooker too. I always feel I'm ahead of the game when my dinner is in the slow cooker by 8 a.m.!

Darster- I think it's a good idea to start slow and build up. You may also want to experiment by freezing a portion of what you're making to see how it is when it's thawed and reheated. (before you make a big pan and discover it doesn't freeze well)

Teah- I'm curious about your omelets...they turn out pretty good? Do you use eggs or egg product?

[tkkmasky]

I don't really make complete meals ahead of time, except in the crock pot or when I freeze chili, homemade spaghetti sauce, etc. but what I do is buy family packs of ground beef and chicken breasts, brown the beef and grill the chicken, slice into strips, and package into meal size portions for use in tacos, fajitas, stir fry, sloppy joe, etc.

It's a big time saver, I've been doing it for a few years now.

[Ttulipss]

Wow! Some great ideas here! Dh is always surprised when I cook, so it would be nice to take my girls' naptime to cook ahead....my only dilemma right now is freezer space. Once we're in our new house, I'll have my big freezer out of storage and will have to put into work all of your tips!

Curious about how long these foods are good in the freezer? Do most of you try to finish up what you've cooked ahead within a few weeks or a month, or can some things last longer of that? What's your rule of thumb?

Also, Teah, curious too on the omelets. How do those come out?

We have one of those SnackMasters. Has anyone made anything in that and frozen it? I actually don't use it that often, but wonder if it would be helpful for cooking/freezing ahead for individual portions for the kids for different things.....

[Teah]

My DH says my omlets come out great! he says they are light and fluffy and not rubbery like expected they would be after being pan fried then microwaved for warming later.
I think the key to them is I use my thunderstick mixer to whip just the eggs, I don't add milk or anything *I know many people add milk to their eggs for omlets or scrambled but I find they come out lighter and fluffier if you don't*
If any of you try this let me know what ya think of them

[olliesmommy]

hard to believe but this actually works
dont add milk to your eggs for any omelets-it weighs down the egg, add a little water instead. i saw this on a cooking show and the chef said never use milk, only water.

my MIL gave me theses tips for what to do with the extras from the garden:

stop canning - freeze quartered tomatoes with skins on, then when making a pot of chili, soup, etc, just throw the tomatoes in and the skins will float to the top.

cut green peppers in half and clean, put in freezer bag, and pull out when needed

chopped several onions or peppers at once and freeze, when you need some, a quick blow with the back of a spoon or ladle will loosen enough for your dish.

shred lots of zuchini at once and freeze in the amount you need for your recipes (2 cups for bread, etc), label it, and in the winter you have fresh baked zuchini bread ( remember to drain the thawed zuchini)

[lauseng]

I was just doing some research for my newsletter and I came across this OAMC site that looks really good. Has an introduction to OAMC and several "plans" including a vegetarian plan and what you can do with 18 chickens. Complete with recipes.

Jackie

[Darster]

I found a good site for OAMC called busy cooks...

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If anyone needs to cook for 10 people, there's some good stuff on there for that, too!

[lauseng]

I can't believe I did that. I completely neglected to add the link I found.

Try this:

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Sorry guys! My mind's not here this morning.

Jackie

[Darster]

AWESOME Link, Jackie! Thanks!!!

[cata5]

I'm glad you mentioned the frugal moms site. I go there on occasion to remind myself how to be MORE frugal!!LOL Check out the forums and see how frugal some people are. They have some great ideas.