Work Week Menus
by Tammy Paquin
It's been at least six years since I balanced working outside the home almost full-time and having two kids. Friends were always amazed that I managed homemade meals on the table each night. Becoming a stay home mom with three kids made meal planning a bit easier because I was home, BUT several of the lessons I learned as a work outside the home mom still apply. I'll give you a sample menu for one week to show how I would pull all these easy lessons together.
Fabulous Freezer Food: The Potato Plan
by Wanda A. Carter
I'm a bulk cooker and one of the types of sessions I do is potatoes. Many people are surprised by this because they assume that potatoes don't freeze successfully. I assumed the same thing at first but after years of experimenting I've found that they are one of the easiest and most versatile foods in my repertoire.
Confessions of a Once A Month Cooking Drop-Out
by Peg Baron
Okay, I admit it. I’m a Once-A-Month-Cooking drop-out. I tried to make a month’s worth of meals for the freezer, but I couldn’t come up with enough time or enough meals. Next I tried to make 2 weeks of meals for the freezer and stopped because I ran out of dishes, freezer bags, and patience. I had good intentions, but I’m just not that organized. Even though I flunked OAMC, my freezer is not empty. I do have a few tricks up my sleeve that I’d like to share.
Bulk Cooking: The Ham Plan
by Kim Tilley
Whether you are using up ham from a holiday meal or just found a great deal on it at the store, this bulk cooking plan will give you lots of ideas to use the leftovers.
Bulk Cooking: The Chicken Plan
by Kim Tilley
Kim Tilley describes how to use 18 whole chickens to create a variety of dishes for the freezer. Many of the recipes in the chicken plan could also be used with cooked fresh turkey, which goes on sale the day after Thanksgiving and the day after Christmas.
Bulk Cooking: The Hamburger Plan
by Kim Tilley
Found a great deal on ground beef? Put together an awesome selection of freezer meals with this Bulk Cooking Hamburger Plan by Kim Tilley of Frugal Moms. The plan includes basic preparation instructions as well as main dishes and secondary dishes with recipes.
The Well-stocked Pantry
by Mary Ann Kelley
Once you get in the habit of keeping a stocked pantry, you will find that your grocery bill decreases. It is not because you are buying less, but because you are paying less. If your pantry isn't stocked, you have to pay whatever the current price is for basic items, but with a stocked pantry you simply refresh your supply when you find the items on sale.
What's for Dinner, Mom?: Menu planning and cooking in bulk
by Stefanie Coutinho
We're all aware of the chaos that a lack of organization around mealtime can bring! Instead of dinner being a time when the family comes together, it can be a time of frustration. For Kathy Cottrell, a homeschooling mother of two teenage sons who lives in Scottsdale, Arizona, part of the solution has been planning and preparing meals in advance. For the past 15 years, she has planned two month's worth of menus, cooked the entrees and stocked her freezer with tasty dishes ready to re-heat and serve with ease.
Some Assembly Desired
by Jane Snow
For Lisa Donatelli of Cuyahoga Falls, nirvana is not a day at a spa, but dinner in the freezer... Donatelli spent one evening last week making dinner with four of her friends. They made 80 meals -- enough to stock their refrigerators and freezers with 16 dinners each.
Learn How To Plan Your Meals To Free Up Your Time
by Aurelia Williams
Meal planning and bulk cooking are both wonderful techniques you can utilize and modify to fit your families needs. The idea behind this is simple. The principle is that you cook and or prepare your meals ahead of time and then preserve them by either freezing or fridgerating them. Also, meal planning you can cook one large meal and get 2-3 other meals out of it! The key here is to make every meal you cook count!
Secrets of a Busy Cook
by Lynn Nelson
I love to cook! But I just don't have a lot of time for it and I suspect that those who hate to cook really have trouble. I want to provide wholesome and tasty meals Monday through Friday, but I don't want to spend all evening in the kitchen. In fact, 30 minutes is my maximum limit for week night meal preparation. I have developed a method of accomplishing this, which I will share with you here. This method actually involves a combination of several different techniques with which you are probably already familiar, so these are not really secrets. But I combine them in an organized manner that makes weekday cooking a breeze.
Freezer Cooking
by Maureen Wittmann
A combination of posts to message boards and discussion lists about bulk cooking.
What Foods Don't Freeze
by Deborah Taylor-Hough
One of the most common questions I hear from people who are interested in freezer-meal cooking is: "How do I know what will freeze well, and what won't?"
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