Today begins the marathon cooking day for my "month of meals" plan I spoke about a few posts ago.
Let me start by saying, the most important step you must take is PLANNING!! I brainstormed and recalled meals that my family really likes, I wrote down several meals on a sheet of paper. It all looked so overwhelming at first, but then I figured that I don't have to make a different meal each night. My family enjoys eating things more frequently so why not make those dishes 2 or 3 times. I know it's all common sense but really, when you undertake a mission like this common sense seems to hide in a corner for a minute. (at least mine did anyway because I felt overwhelmed). I whittled my list down and realized not all the meals need to be completely done and frozen. In the time it would take to boil some pasta or make some rice...a meal can be complete if the meat is marinated, cooked already etc....So the also helped to ease the pressure.
Next thing I did was to clean out the refrigerator, freezer and cupboards. Taking inventory of what we have and what we need to make certain recipes. As I thought about the things I would be making I tried to keep a running list of items we would need more of.
Next up...grocery shopping. I stuck to a list. I did have help with the shopping as my husband loves to shop. :) It took us almost 2 hours from start to finish, methodically going through the store and getting only the items in the quantities I had listed. (I figured quantities by how I made single meals and either doubled or tripled them).
We made sure to buy lots of freezer bags, quart and gallon sizes. We also bought a couple of great covered Pyrex casserole dishes that can go right into the freezer. On many of the sites I researched I found they used either aluminum pans or containers. I think the Pyrex dishes will pay for themselves in no time, and they are versatile enough for what we need. (and we found a size that will fit nicely into our freezer.) :)
When we got home from shopping I put a big pork butt roast into our biggest slow cooker with just some liquid smoke on it and put it on low and let it cook while we slept. That will be the base of quite a few meals....How easy was that??? :)
We awoke this morning to the smell of pork roast all yummy and cooked in the slow cooker. We will let that cool and shred it up for meals....bag it and tag it is going to be the saying of the day!! LOL
I took a break to blog about the progress so far. I have chopped all the peppers and onion we will need for all the dishes, and have even thrown together two huge bags of Vegetarian chili w/ kidney beans & black beans. They are already in the freezer!! :)
I will be putting up the recipes later on with quantities and also some pictures of things as I progress through the day. On that note....back to work. Break time is over.
If you are going to do this...My advice is put on some music that motivates you, have fun with it...and think of all the wonderful, homemade, healthy meals you will have completed for yourself and your family.
4 Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant 5or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. 7It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. I Corinthians 13:4-7
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