TRADITIONAL January 2012 OAMM Menu (OAMC, Once A Month Cooking, Freezer Cooking)
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Sausage and Pepper Penne
Happy New Year and welcome to the January ”all stars” traditional menu! After polling you, this menu was created with reader favorite recipes in mind.
Due to the fact that this is a seasonal menu, you may find that some of the produce items are out of season in January. Feel free to make substitutions or to ask us about potential substitutions. We didn’t want to eliminate All Star recipes based on season, after all, you think they are the BEST!
**There are also Mini-Menus coming for this menu theme! There will be a 5-Day Menu released January 5th and a 10-Day Menu released January 10th! Stay tuned!
Breakfasts
- Cinnamon Swirl Bread
- Green Monster Smoothies**
Breakfast Cookies
- Breakfast Cookies
Lunches
Dinners
- **Indicates meals that require NO COOKING on your OAMC BIG DAY!
Recipe Cards
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Grocery List
OAMM Members Only!
Grocery List
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Instructions
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Instructions
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Labels
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Labels
OAMM Members Only!Want access to customizable recipe cards and grocery lists, step-by-step instructions and labels complete with freezing directions and serving amount alterations so you don't have to do it all yourself? Become a Member!
Already a member? Sign In!
Pinterest:
Are you a person that likes to see the menus visually? Perhaps you should check out the January 2012 Traditional Menu via Pinterest to see the yummy goodness you will be cooking up on this menu. Not sure what Pinterest is all about, check out what Once A Month Mom has to say about it.
Facebook Fan Party:
OAMM Facebook Fan Page Party – January 15th 2011, 9:00 pm – 9:30 pm EST – We will be able to chat via video AND messaging during the event through FACEBOOK! How cool is that? We will be talking about the current month’s menus, answer your burning questions about freezer cooking and have fun getting to know one another. You can also see other past recordings from that tab as well.
Instructions for viewing live-stream:
- Go to the Once A Month Mom Facebook Fan Page.
- Click on the “FB Fan Night” Tab on the left side margin.
- Hit “view live recording” – If I am live streaming it will show you what is happening in progress. If I am not live streaming at the time, you will have the option to click through other videos that I have recorded in the past.
- Enjoy!
Test Cooks
Each month we have some wonderful volunteers who “test” out the menu prior to publication. They do an amazing job of helping to eliminate confusion and mistakes. They may not catch everything but they sure do catch A LOT! Here is a little bit about this month’s test cook:
- Tricia Kolstø is a working mom with two loving daughters and a great husband. She likes to cook, crochet, and scrapbook.
Get Started
Are you new to Once A Month Mom or once a month cooking (oamc) in general? If so, you might want to spend a few minutes (or hours) on the Get Started Series. If you are in a real hurry to catch on we have written some simple steps for getting started. Welcome!
What do you think of January 2012’s menu?
If you are feeling abundantly blessed and generous feel free to donate. :) But don’t feel guilty if you aren’t able. And don’t forget you can always go back and use January 2010′s, or January 2011‘s menus if you are looking for something different!
WOW! I am so excited that I found this…you are amazing!!! Thank you so much!!! This adds to my great start of a more organized 2012!!
Any thoughts on freezing the Ranch Chicken Parmesan on a cookie sheet then wrapping & bagging? I don’t have room in my freezer for a dozen baking dishes, even if I owned a dozen baking dishes…
Also I’m thinking the Mexican Shepherd’s Pie could be frozen in 2 bags- meat mixture & veggie mixture- then the cornbread added just before baking…
That’s what I did with my Ranch chicken and it did just fine. So tasty and moist when we finally had it.
Can’t wait to attempt my first month of freezer cooking! I was wondering if I could use Jiffy corn muffin mix in the Mexican Shepherd’s Pie? Does it freeze just as well?
It is going to freeze just the same, so yes. Just make sure to follow the directions for making it (egg, water) and ignore all the cornbread topping ingredients here.
A friend and i just made the October menu last week and we were dying to see the new menu! So excited that it’s up, and it looks great! Now I don’t want to have to wait another month to make up these yummy-looking recipes! :) Thanks for doing this; it was a great experience! We did it in the home ec kitchen at school (we are teachers), and we are going to expand it to some of our other friends and make it a cooking party!
Oh I am SO JEALOUS you were able to use the Home Ec kitchen! What a great idea -so much space and dishes. Thank you for the compliments too!
I’m trying to decide whether to do the traditional menu or diet menu since I’m trying to lose weight so I’m wondering if nutritional values are available for the traditional menu. Of course the traditional menu looks better to me than the diet menu so I’d like to be able to use the traditional menu. Thanks! I LOVE your site!
Hi Stefanie!
We don’t currently add the nutritional values to the traditional menu, but here is a good resource for figuring it out: http://caloriecount.about.com/cc/recipe_analysis.php
Hope that helps!
We pick an choose from the different menus.
Thanks for your quick reply! I’ll check it out!
I’ve been wondering about freezing smoothies, so glad to see one here (especially a green one, yum!) But I have kind of a supplementary question. Has anyone tried just prepping the ingredients and tossing in a freezer bag to blend when desired? For me this would be easier than waiting for it to thaw out. Thanks in advance for any feedback!!
Yes, we have done it both ways, whichever is easiest for you. We tend to list it this way most often because many of our readers want to grab and go in the morning instead of dirtying the blender.
I made these yesterady and my 4 year old was asking for the green things this morning. I took one out and it was pretty slushy just from my mashing it up. I cut a corner off of it and he sucked it out like a yogurt thingy. I also squeezed one into a glass and used a straw. This one got slushy pretty quick!
I JUST made these (I did it tonite so the kiddos wouldn’t know that they contain spinach). They are delicious!!! Thanks for the recipe. So excited to do another “Big Cook” tomorrow!
Just noticed equation for ingredient quantities is not checking out on breakfast cookies recipe card
Can you be more specific about how many servings you set your cards too and what seems to be off so that I can take a closer look?
Hoping some of the pros on here can help me. I am starting a new job outside the home and dh will get home with the kids before me, so oamc seems like a good option.
I have 8-10whole chickens in my freezer I would like to use for this months menu, any tips on how to do that?
If it was me, I’d probably cooking the chicken(s) and then use them in place of cooked chicken in recipes.
Great, thanks! I was thinking of using 4 chickens, do you think that’s enough? I’ve rarely dealt with the whole chicken before, but these were free :). I usually dump them in the crockpot, but I guess I’ll have to use the oven to cook that many a once.
We are feeding 3.5-4 people. We’re a family of 4, but my daughter does not always eat a lot.
My new work hours are pretty crazy on some days and I won’t be home until after 7, so having dinner ready in advance is going to be a must! DH has been spoiled all these years and is not too good in the kitchen, lol.
Four chickens will probably give you quite a lot of meat (see this post: http://onceamonthmom.com/sliced-diced-chicken/) but what you don’t use in your recipes you can always freeze. I love having cooked chicken in the freezer to add to a salad, casserole, etc.
I just found your blog and I am in AWE!! I am just starting freezer meals and was just browsing the web for some good ideas on how to get started. Your site is AMAZING! Thank you for all the time and hard work you put into it. I’m so eager to get cooking and try these out.
Love this menu! Quick question-the grocery list calls for coleslaw but I can’t find this in any of the recipies. Thanks
The coleslaw mix is in the Chicken Fried Rice. :)
I may be missing something, but there aren’t enough recipes for an entire month and the instructions don’t say to freeze seperately for multiple nights. I’ve never done the once a month cooking technique so I was looking for someone to spell it out for me until I got the hang of it (ex. have meal A on Tuesday, meal D on Wednesday, leftovers on Thursday etc.). Does anybody have any suggestions for a total newb? Thanks!
Hi Bonnie,
Each menu will yield you approximately 6-10 breakfasts, 8 lunches and 16 dinners. Throughout the month you will be eating each entree 2 times. It’s not enough to feed you for EVERY meal during the month, but it should be enough to get you most of the way. We figure you will eat out, eat with friends, or cook a fresh meal on occasion. If you are willing to eat the same meals up to 4 times each month (lunches and dinners) you can double the number of people that you are cooking for and you will get the quantities needed for each. You would do this on the yellow box on the recipe cards.
We don’t set a schedule for meals, because everyone’s schedule is different.
Hope that helps!!
I always make 4 meals of each, and save some for next month. This allows me to not make items that I know my family will not eat out of each set, and still have enough.
I use a meal planner and just made OAMM freezer meal recipe. I then plan when I am going to cook all the meals, then add the OAMM to days of the week I want easy meals and the other recipes when I know I will have more time to cook. That way my whole month of meals are planned.
p.s. Thanks for this site it is wonderful!
You are most welcome! And that is a great idea!
So I am reviewing the recipes, and the cinnamon swirl bread looks like a LOT of work! Is there another, easier recipe that might be similar to substitute in its place?
I am subbing the vanilla cinnamon pancakes in place of the cinnamon swirl bread. I think it will be a good sub!
I am in love with your site…I have tried freezer cooking in the past, but I would run out of ideas before I had enough meals! All of the recipes for this month are things that I would eat :) I am on a strict budget and have stocked up on meats that are in my freezer. My question is: for the meals (ex: Ranch Chicken Parmesean) how would I use my chicken breast in my freezer? Would I thaw them and then refreeze??? Obviously, the recipes that call for cooked chicken are doable, but I was hoping to not buy any more chicken until I used what was in my freezer. Any help would be greatly appreciate :)
Actually, the USDA indicates that as long as you SLOWLY thaw the chicken you have frozen you can refreeze it – see this post for more details – http://onceamonthmom.com/get-started-how-to-thaw-frozen-meals/
Thank you so much! I am looking forward to making my meals this weekend, and since I already have the meat it won’t cost that much!
This is my first time trying this and I have to say that I’m so impressed! I prepped the meals over two days, mostly due to poor planning on my part, and it was very easy. Everything I was able to sample, such as the sloppy joes, has tasted great! The one thing I haven’t made yet is the bread – I’m a little confused by the directions. The first part of the directions says to mix in large bowl, or 2 if using full menu. I’m unclear what full menu means and if that changes the amounts at all. I entered 4 people to cook for, if that has any relevance. Thanks!
Sorry those directions needed to be changed a little bit. The parts you divide into depends on how many servings you are cooking for. If you are cooking for 4 people then you will be making 2 loaves, 8 people, 4 loaves. Less than 4 people then you will likely be okay with 1 loaf. Sorry for the confusion.
Thanks, that makes sense.
So I was wondering about the cinnamon swirl bread. I was reading over the recipe and found that it said to divide into 2 and then (4) was next to it. So do I divide the dough 2 or 4 times?? Sorry, but I a just a lttle confused:(
For the French Dip sandwiches, what kind of beef roast do i need to get? Do I get pot roast beef? there are so many different cuts of beef that I want to make sure and get the right one!
Since it will be cooking in the Crockpot and will be super tender, an inexpensive cut works just fine.
Super excited to find this site. It will be my first time trying this and I think it might actually save my life! I am due with our 4th child in less than a month. So, let me first say… Thank You!!! My question is… I am unable to find egg custard mix anywhere! is there any substitutes? I have tried researching but have been unsuccessful.
You can use vanilla pudding mix and get similar results, custard mix is hard to find.
Awesome! thank you :)
Thank you, Tricia! I searched everywhere tonight and could not find it! :)
You are my hero! I just did half the cooking for this, on a weeknight, after the kids in bed. 2.5 hours and I was halfway done with a months worth of cooking. I have to admit, I made a mess transferring the sloppy joes to the baggie… and I’m not ashamed to admit I ate the mess off the counter with my hands. OMGoodness…. best sloppy joes EVER! Thank you so much for all the hard work you put into the menu and shopping lists. It was a breeze to get everything I needed and get going on the cooking. My friends are all jealous that I have all these meals ready to go in my freezer. Blessings to you!
LOVE this! Thanks so much for your feedback.
The best way to transfer sauces, soups, and things like sloppy joes into freezer bags, is to put the bag into a pitcher and fold the top of the bag down over the rim of the pitcher. That way, the bag stays upright and the zip threads won’t get dirty.
Maybe this is a silly question, but what is coleslaw mix and where do i find it in the store?
It’s in the bagged salad section at the grocery store, and it’s a mix of shredded cabbage and usually carrots. You can shred your own cabbage if you prefer, the bagged just saves time.
Just printed up everything I need….Off to the grocery store tomorrow…going to spend my day on Monday (day off) cooking…I can’t wait!!!!
So excited to try this! I have a baby due this month and having all these meals stocked up will be a major timesaver in the beginning and definately when I go back to work. Thanks!
Trying the January traditional menu for the first time and very excited – we used to frequent a meal assemby kitchen a few years ago but it closed.
Question re: the quantity of pineapple needed for the full traditional menu. I entered “4″ as the number of people cooking for. The shopping list and prep list cited 4 medium pineapples needed for 12 cups chopped. However, the only recipe I am seeing pineapple used for is for the Green Monster smoothies, and that calls for 4 cups. Does this mean I have 3 pineapples more than I need?
I’m sorry, yes you are right. Usually this gets caught in the test phase but didn’t this time. :( Need some pineapple recipes? I’ll make the change to help out those that cook from here on out.
Made my meals this weekend and am in heaven. Has freed me up so much! I homeschool and work part time and my kids are involved in several evening activities. Thanks for getting me out of my rut. I facebook’ed my experience and have inspired many others to give it a try. We’ve loved all the recipes so far! Thank you!
Thank you for sharing your experience with others and telling our story. We love testimonies like yours! Welcome!
I held off on making the January recipes since I did the test cooking for the February recipes! So I set a reminder for myself to come over to OAMM to download all of the Tradition and Toddler Menu details to get ready for my February OAM cooking! Thank you to all of the OAMM team for making my life so much easier, adding great variety and new ideas to our meals, and saving me sooooo much $$$$ each month!!!
I see “flash freeze” in some of the recipes. I’m new to OAMC and do not know what is meant by it. Thanks for the help. Enjoying the experience!
Hope