his coming weekend is another freezer cooking weekend for me. We have been in preparations for the past couple of days. I thought I’d give you a look into what my days look like in preparation and then actually doing the freezer cooking meals.
I always thought it was funny that they called it freezer cooking, since it sounds like I’m cooking with my freezer, which is in no way what I am doing. In fact, I actually like the term Once a Month Cooking, because unless you do it less frequently or more often, it is the correct term.
About three days prior to a OAMC session, I begin making a list of meals. In my freezer binder, where I keep my list of meals already in my freezer, I first check to see what I have on hand, when I plan to eat it, and how much more time is left until we really have to eat it. Anything that has to be eaten now, is made for dinner within the following week.
I have a huge list of recipes in my binder, and how I need to prepare them to make several of them. I choose what we want, usually allowing each child to select something that they want to have for dinner soon, and then I get to work making a list. The first list I prepare is a list of all of the ingredients I need for each recipe. I use a pencil so I can erase amounts as I go and replace them with the greater amounts when another recipe calls for it. For instance, if I needed one onion, as I am writing I would write down “1 onion”. If another recipe I had called for another half cup of onion, I would then erase the 1 and replace it with a 2.
After that list is made, I begin raiding my pantry and refrigerator. I mark off any items I already have on hand, because after all throughout the month I am purchasing things on sale with coupons at a fraction of their normal cost.
Now it’s time to start the whole list over.
Stay tuned later today for more on this, when I post Freezer Cooking Weekend Preparations (2) .