Once a Month Cooking

I absolutely LOVE the idea of Once a Month cooking. Spending one day cooking meals for entire month might seem like a lot…but think of the time saved after you’re done! Less cleanup means more family time, no more “what’s for dinner” rush or “what’s for dinner, mom’s sick” confusion…plus, you can often save money if you buy in bulk and plan well in advance.

As appealing as the concept is,  I admit I don’t have the time to figure out all the details. When I discovered Once a Month Mom, I was so excited! Finally, all the work was done for me.  The menu, the shopping list, the Instructions…everything I need! The menus are put up a month in advance along with a podcast explaining it all. The great thing is, the menus are designed to use things that will be on sale during your “shopping” month.

I got right to work. I have the recipes, instructions and shopping list all printed and in a binder. I just take the binder with me to the store, so I can check the list to see if I can find some good deals on what I need. And my mom is planning on coming down for the day to help me. I may even find somewhere for my 5 year old to play for the day so there are no distractions.

Mark your calendars and plan on cooking with me! December 2nd…I’ll be starting around 8:30am. I plan on posting my progress throughout the day so tune in. If you want to join me, here are some links that might be helpful:

• Once a Month Mom this is where you find what I’m doing
• Money Saving Mom a great post on freezing meals

New Recipes

Our zucchini plants…they are about twice as big now!

Having trouble using up all those zucchinis you are picking (or are mysteriously finding on your front porch)?  Here are a few of our favorites recipes:

Zucchini Bread

Zucchini Chocolate Chip Cookies

Steamed Zucchini w/ butter & garlic

And a few I’ll be trying soon:

Zucchini Fries

Zucchini “Apple” Pie

I’d love to hear about your favorite Zucchini Recipes!

Overnight Orange French Toast

This was served for brunch at a Ladies Overnighter this past weekend. It is delicious…I just had to come home and make it for my family!

*not my toast! I forgot to take a picture before we all devoured it this morning…I’ll try to remember next time and replace the picture with my own.

Ingredients:

• 8-10 thick slices of bread
• 6 eggs; beaten
• 3/4 cup OJ
• 1/2 cup half & half cream (I used kefir)
• 2 Tbls. sugar
• 1 teasp. vanilla
• 1/4 teasp. cinnamon
• dash of nutmeg
• 1/4 c. melted butter

Directions

• Combine eggs, juice, cream, sugar, vanilaa & spices in a large bowl.
• Dip bread into mixture and let soak for about 15 seconds
• Place on greased cookie sheet (with sides). Cover & refrigerate overnight.
• In the morning; remove wrapping and drizzle butter over the slices.
• Bake in a 325 oven for 35-40 minutes or until lightly browned.
• Serve with Maple Syrup or Powdered Sugar.

Menu Planning Monday

Ok…I guess I’ll TRY to get back into real menu planning this week! I was inspired by Crystal over at Money Saving Mom as she did a Eating from the Pantry challenge. Honestly, last week we would have starved if I had tried that, but I did some frugal shopping this week and after Wednesday I don’t plan on doing any kind of shopping for 2 weeks (this will be the first week this spring that I can make it to the farmers market for some fresh fruit & veggies). Ok…that’s a stretch…going without Milk isn’t an option here, so there will be at least one trip to pick up milk. Other than that, I plan on eating what we have on hand and saving the grocery budget. At least…this is my plan

Week 1:

Breakfast:

• Overnight Orange French Toast
• Oatmeal w/raisins
• Egg & Sausage Biscuits
• Waffles
• Grits w/cheese
• Fruit & yogurt

Lunch:

• Leftovers all week (except Monday & Sunday)
• PB & J Pinwheels, Baby Carrots & Raisin cookies
• Sunday – Crockpot Beef Soup ; homemade bread

Supper:

• Spaghetti & Meat Sauce ; Garlic Bread
• Pork Roast, Mashed Potatoes & Steamed Carrots
• Roast Chicken, Rice & Mixed Squash
• Tacos w/ homemade tortillas
• Sandwiches & Leftover Soup

Snacks:

• Popcorn & Green Smoothies
• Graham Crackers w/ peanut butter & apples
• Applesauce Muffins
• Yogurt & granola

*Friday & Saturday we’ll be attending a Missions Retreat called Wayumi. We’re very excited about going … our very good friends will be sharing about their work in Senegal and another missionary family will be sharing about their work in Bolivia.

Week 2:

Breakfast:

• Baked Oatmeal
• Omelets & Toast
• Pancakes & Sausage Gravy
• Scrambled Eggs w/ cheese & biscuits
• Muffins & Fruit
• Oatmeal w/ apples

Lunch:

• I’ll try to make enough to have leftovers every day this week

Supper:

• Meatloaf, Potatoes & Corn w/ homemade break
• Spaghetti Pie & garlic bread w/ salad
• Roast Chicken, Mac & Cheese, Green Beans
• Pork Chops, Rice Pilaf & Veggies
• Pizza & Salad
• Steak, Potatoes & veggies
• Crockpot White Chicken Chili, biscuits & salad

Snacks:

• Popcorn
• Muffins
• Apples w/ PB
• Yogurt & Granola
• Cold Cereal
• Saltines w/ pb or cheese slices

I think we can probably go longer…so let the countdown begin! Want to join me? Let us know what you come up with this week.

Visit OrgJunkie for more menu plans for the week!

Healthy Food Options

Sandy’s comment here prompted me to share some thoughts on canning and healthy food options. Thanks Sandy for the great comment!

I know what you mean about what is in and on our food being scary! Over the last year, our family has been replacing our normal purchases with organic foods as much as possible. There are many great resources on the internet to help you discover healthier, “greener” choices.

Obviously, growing and canning your own foods is a great option. A wonderful resource that I turn to every year is a little website called PaulNoll.com . This site has photos along with step-by-step instructions on canning a variety of foods.

As far as knowing how much you will need…this takes a little forethought. My suggestion would be to keep track of the veggies you eat for the month, mostly the amount, and convert that to pints or quarts. I realized two years ago that our growing family would eat 2 pints of veggies at a meal, so last year I did quarts instead. To give you an idea of our current family size – 2 adults, 3 children (ages 12-10-5). I like to push the veggies so I try to make extras.

My suggestion for meats is to find a local organic farmer. We go together with 3 other families to purchase beef & pork for the year and there are farms nearby that sell free-range chicken. You can also check your local grocer or farm market for organic meats. As always, I’m a big fan of supporting local farmers, so when possible find someone in your community that you could help when you do need to purchase fresh veggies and eggs. You can check out Local Harvest to find farms in your area as well as local CSAs.

Have a wonderful gardening season everyone!

Green Smoothies

I have to say, I was a bit skeptical when I first read about these Smoothies. We love kefir smoothies and have made many variations part of our snacks and breakfasts, but as far as adding spinach? I never thought my kids would go for it! I decided to give it a try on my son…the same son that won’t eat salad or any other green veggie. I was reading some comments over at Passionate Homemaking and someone mentioned they call it the “Incredible Hulk Smoothie” for their sons. Well…I got busy making one for my son. Here is what I used:

• 1 cup kefir
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 apple, peeled & cored
• 1 frozen banana
• 2 handfuls of fresh spinach
• 1 teaspoon raw sugar

Throw it all in a blender and blend until smooth.

Result? HE LOVES IT!!! He has NO idea that it has spinach in it, because you can’t taste it. He didn’t even ask what the green stuff was…all that matters is that it is yummy and will make him strong! The funny thing is…the only thing he knows of The Hulk is the pictures he sees in coloring books and jammies!!

Menu Update…

My husband recently admitted that he checks “the blog” to find out what we are having for supper each night, so I thought I’d better blog a change in our menu (love you babe!)…

Since I need to leave for an appointment as soon as Ben gets home I decided to go with Haystacks tonight and Hungarian Goulash tomorrow. And to answer the question “What is a Haystack?” here is the basic idea:

Ingredients:

• Taco Meat (ground beef or turkey with taco seasonings)
• Cooked Rice
• Corn Chips (we like to use scoops)
• Lettuce, tomatoes, salsa, shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, hot sauce, ranch dressing…whatever you normally put on tacos

Process of builiding your “stack on your plate (in this basic order):

• Small scoop of rice
• Small Scoop of cheese
• Small Scoop of meat
• Toppings
• Corn Chips around the edges

I say “small scoops” because by the time you have everything on your plate…it’s HUGE! I first learned about Haystacks at a Ladies Retreat for church. Needless to say, we had haystacks about once a week for about two months afterwards! It’s been ahwile since I’ve made them, but it’s perfect for a quick meal.

Let me know if you have tried haystacks and any variations your family enjoys!

Herbal Tea

I recently came across an article that I found most interesting. It was about Herbal Teas and their uses for healty living. Here is a list of the most common uses:

Chamomile : soothes digestive problems, has calming effects, helps relieve aches and pains of colds.

Dandelion: has a gentle laxative action, high inulin content helps regulate pancreatic function, detoxifying.

Echinacea – boosts immune system by increasing T-cell activity, may prevent or shorten duration of colds/flu.

Feverfew – useful for migraine and other headaches, inflammation and tension due to stress.

Ginger – for morning sickness and  motion sickness; improves digestion.

Hawthorn – rich in antioxidants, may lower blood pressure and serum cholesterol levels.

Lavender – mild antidepressant, releives stress and insomnia, also for headaches.

Lemon balm – supports nervous system, antiviral, has relaxing, antispasmodic effect on stomach.

Lemon Verbena – mild sedative, cooling blam, may help reduce fever and aid digestion

Licorice – relieves adrenal exhaustion, anti-inflammatory for respiratory ailments.

Milk Thistle – Powerful antioxidant, may protect against age-related diseases, supports gallbladder and kidneys.

Mint – Helps relieve cramps, indigeston, nausea and heartburn.

Nettle – In pregnancy, increases mother’s milk and helps relieve water retention.

Raspberry leaf – female tonic herb use pregnancy, tones pelvic muscle to encourage easy labor.

Rose Hips – antioxidant and disease fighter ri ch in flavonoids, improves body’s assimilation of vitamin C.

Valerian – used for stress, insomnia, anxiety and restlessness.

Yerba mate – eases stress and helps fight fatigue, has diuretic properties.

2/9 Menu

I know that I had posted a 2 week menu last week…but, I didn’t stick to week one AT ALL, so here is a new menu for this week

Monday

• Breakfast – cold cereal or oatmeal
• Lunch – PB & J , carrot sticks & milk
• Supper – Roast Chicken , Boiled potatoes & candied carrots

Tuesday

• Breakfast -  Omelets
• Lunch – Angel Hair Pasta w/ olive oil & spices
• Supper - Hungarian Goulash w/ noodles & green beans

Wednesday

• Breakfast – Oatmeal & fruit
• Lunch – Apple Slices w/ pb , carrot sticks & yogurt
• Supper – Beef Roast, Mashed Potatoes w/ gravy & mixed veggies

Thursday

• Breakfast – PB Toast & yogurt
• Lunch – Hard Boiled Eggs, toast & celery w/cream cheese
• Supper – Chicken Divan (using leftovers from Monday), Tossed Salad & Biscuits

Friday

• Breakfast – Breakfast burritos
• Lunch – PB & J , corn chips & fruit
• Supper – Beef Stew (using leftovers from Wednesday), salad & biscuits

Saturday

• Breakfast – Heart Shaped Pancakes w/ strawberries & whipped cream
• Lunch – leftovers
• Supper – Spanish Rice w/ tortillas & toppings

Sunday

• Breakfast – cold cereal
• Lunch – Chicken Salad Sandwiches, Four Bean Salad & veggies
• Supper – Lasagna, Salad & Garlic Bread sticks*

*I linked to my pizza crust recipe for the bread sticks ; here is how I make them:

Roll out dough as you would for pizza (except into a square). Use a pizza cutter and cut into 1 in. wide sticks. Brush with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic salt and parmesan cheese. Bake at 425 for about 10 minutes.

For more great Menus and recipes for the week check out Orgjunkie.com.

You still have until Saturday to enter the giveaway for Skoy cloths…and while you’re at it enter the Traditional Medicinal Giveaway.

Menu 1/19 – 1/25

Breakfasts

• Egg Casserole w/ fresh bread
• Oatmeal & fruit
• Cereal
• Fruit & yogurt
• Grits & fruit
• Muffins
• Pancakes & yogurt

Lunch

• Leftovers
• Mac & Cheese & baby carrots
• Grilled Cheese & tomato soup
• Yogurt & popcorn (Alex’s favorite)
• Hot Dog Casserole
• Crockpot Lasagna ( Sunday)

Supper

• Crockpot Pork Roast, Mashed Potaotes & butter corn
• Roast Chicken, Rice Pilaf & green beans
• Garden Chowder (modified version with fully cooked ham cubes), Salad & Bread
  
• Chicken Quasidellas w/ toppings
• Stromboli & salad
• Cheese Steak Salads & homemade fries
• Grilled Ham & Cheese Sandwiches & leftover chowder

Check out Organizing Junkie for more great menus for this week!