The time has come for February cookin'! Let me tell you, January was awesome. The longest it took me to prepare for a meal was about 20 minutes. It was such a relief not worrying about what to cook, trying to make sure I had enough time to get it done, etc. So I've been pretty excited to get February's stuff rolling.

I'm not sure why it seemed a little more overwhelming this month. I pulled out some new recipes, so I'm sure that unfamiliarity had something to do with it. Last month I had the steps for getting everything done written down beforehand (cutting up vegetables all at one time, cooking ground beef all at once, etc.). But I can't seem to get a handle on the order this time. Oh well...not having the big cooking day until Monday, so maybe I'll get it figured out before then.

So...menu for February:

Suppers
Cheesy Chicken Pasta Stew
Cheesy Chicken Skillet
Italian Chicken
Chicken Quesadillas
Deconstructed Broccoli & Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts
BBQ Chicken
Chicken Stir Fry x 2
Chicken Tetrazzini
Chicken Cannelloni
Parmesan Garlic Chicken
Cheeseburger Pie
Chimichangas
Meatloaf
Tuna Noodle Casserole
Baked Ziti (Already done!!! :)
Taco Chili
Poppyseed Ham & Cheese Melts

Breakfast
Chocolate Chip Pancakes x 2 (Done!! :)
French Toast Sticks.

Sides
Crockpot Mac & Cheese x 2 (Done!! :)
Baked Corn Casserole x 2
Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes x 2

Desserts
Ice Cream Shop Pies: Toffee Bar Crunch & Oreo

Looking at the list right now, this seems like a daunting task. But so much of it can just be put together once you have the chicken (did you see how much chicken & cheese we eat?!?! That's insane...) and ground beef cooked. SOOOOO worth the weariness that comes at the end of the project.

On that note, if anyone has any great freezer cooking recipes, I would love to have them!! Okay...off to organize!

My New Love

Time is a precious commodity around our house, not to mention to utter exhaustion that hits just about the time I need to start supper. There are days when the thought of cooking is completely overwhelming and we end up just ordering out. So imagine my excitement when I came across this blog just after Thanksgiving.

The concept of freezer cooking or Once-a-Month-Cooking (OAMC) was completely foreign to me, but it sounded neat. The more I researched it, the better it sounded. So many advantages:

* Saves time - Being able to simply pitch it in the oven is the biggest attraction for me. Think about it - it's no harder to brown five lbs. of ground beef than it is one, but it takes SO much less time to do it all at once.

* Saves washing - SOOOO many less dishes to wash!! :)

* Saves money - Shop the sales (especially on meat) and plan what your going to make around that! Also, planned meals + less trips to the store + less impulse buying = saving LOTS of money!

One night shortly after reading about it, I decided to try to cook a small amount...and I was able to make four meals in about an hour and a half. I was happy with that, but ECSTATIC when I was able to pull meals from the freezer and shove them into the oven.

So I decided to plan a full day of freezer cooking! I made out a menu for the rest of the month (yes, the month!!!), went grocery shopping, and went to town cooking yesterday while Reuben watched the kids.

The beginning to the day with almost all supplies:


Progress (and mess) at the lunch break (which I forgot to eat...)




The fruits of my labor?? 15 full or partial meals!! 15!!

2 batches of Chicken Tetrazzini
Chicken Cannelloni
Stuffed Shells
Chicken Pot Pie
2 batches of BBQ Chicken for the Crock Pot
4 batches of individually seasoned ground beef for:
* Sloppy Joes
* Lasagna
* Chili Beans
* Reuben's specialty that we have named Good. Because it is :)
3 cups of cooked chicken for Poppyseed Chicken
2 extra cups of cooked chicken
2 Tuna Noodle Casseroles
2 batches of Chocolate Chip Pancakes

It seems like that would take FOREVER to do. But (excluding the Pancakes...I just did a double batch for breakfast), it only took 6 hours from start to finish (including getting ingredients together, washing dishes, packaging the food for the freezer, and putting everything up). And, at the worst, it will take about 15 minutes to prepare the meal for the night we eat it.

The end product:


Yummy Stuffed Shells:


Can't wait until I can employ her: