WHOLE FOODS September 2011 OAMM Menu (OAMC, Freezer Cooking, Bulk Cooking, Power Cooking)
The seasons they are a changing! And so begins my FAVORITE season, Fall! Once A Month Cooking really comes in handy for our family in these next few months, not because it’s time for school, but my husband hunts big game and is gone almost every weekend. Which leaves me not wanting to cook a larger meal for just me and the little guy when we’re worn out from a long day. In comes Once A Month Mom to the rescue! We’ve got hearty meals to get us through the work week and through the weekend without Daddy.
This month’s menu takes advantage of the end of summer produce still lingering at the markets and your gardens. As well as the beginning of the fall flavors such as maple, pumpkin and sweet potatoes. I hope you enjoy eating it as much I had putting it together.
I hope you enjoy these meals as much as our early readers/cooks have. If you are new and not sure how to get started, read here. And there are several other helpful links under the Helpful Hints/Resources section below to help you on your cooking journey. Good luck!
Menu
- Included below are the menu items that we will be preparing as part of our Once A Month Cooking (OAMC) BIG DAY. In the printable WHOLE FOODS September 2011 Recipe Cards the menu items are intended to feed one person for a month. You can insert the number of people are cooking for on the first tab to automatically make recipe adjustments to feed multiple people for a month. For more information on how the Whole Foods OAMM Menu works, click here.
- View the printable WHOLE FOODS September 2011 Recipe Cards.
- Having trouble using the Recipe Cards or YELLOW BOX? See this post!
Breakfasts
- Zucchini Muffins
Zucchini Muffins
- Oatmeal Pancakes with Blackberry Syrup
- Maple Walnut Buckwheat Scones
Lunches
- Mushroom and Black Bean Chili
- Mexican Pork and Sweet Potato Stew
- Quinoa Salad with Pears and Chickpeas
Dinners
- Macaroni and Cheese
- Tilapia Packets
- Corn and Chile Quesadillas
- Pork Tenderloin w Mango Salsa and Blackberry Syrup
- Mary Jos Meatball Sub Casserole
- Pan Seared Beef Tenderloin
Pork Tenderloin w Mango Salsa and Blackberry Syrup
Add Ons
**Indicates meals that require NO COOKING on your OAMC BIG DAY!
Grocery List
- Included in this spreadsheet you will find a listing of all the items you will need to complete your WHOLE FOODS September 2011 OAMC BIG DAY. For more instructions on how to use this, go here.
- WHOLE FOODS September 2011 OAMM Grocery List
Instructions
- These are the step-by-step instructions you will need to quickly and efficiently approach your OAMC BIG DAY!
- WHOLE FOODS September 2011 OAMM Instructions
Labels
Sample Label
These customized labels are designed specifically for the WHOLE FOODS September 2011 Once A Month Mom Menu. They contain the name of the dish and serving instructions for preparing the dish on your serving day. They make preparation of the dishes hassle free and staying to your eating plan a cinch.
These labels are designed to be printed on Avery 8163
Pinterest:
Are you a person that likes to see the menus visually? Perhaps you should check out the September 2011 Whole Foods 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 – September 18th 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 “Stickam” Tab on the left side margain.
- 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 cooks:
- Mary Mendoza –
I am a 51 year old nurse in a shelter care facility for people with dementia. My husband has end stage renal disease and my son has moved back home to help care for him. I truly love once a month mom as I can cook in one weekend and then always have a good meal in the freezer-as my husband needs more care-not having to do daily meal planning and cooking is a life saver. It helps me take better care of myself in this difficult time.
Helpful Hints/Resources
- Saving and Printing the OAMM Menus Using Google Docs
- Creating Your Own OAMC Menu Series
- Preparing For A Successful OAMC Day
- Adapting The Menu for YOUR Family
- Making the Menu Healthier
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- Shopping For Your Cooking Day
- Final Shopping Trip For Your OAMC Day
- Choosing The Right Containers
What do you think of WHOLE FOODS August 2011’s menu?
If you are feeling abundantly blessed and generous feel free to donate. :) But don’t feel guilty if you aren’t able.
I’ve been stalking your site for quite a while, and I think I’m ready to do the oam thing…just a quick question…is there anywhere on the site, or each menu, that has an average cost for the meals? I realize all areas will be different, but it would be much easier to decide which items from the whole foods menu I want to cook if there’s a cost sheet somewhere. thanks!!
Sabrina we don’t have it anywhere on the site but the WF menu averages about $200-250 for four servings, and the other menus are about $150-200 for four servings.
The recipe card for the oatmeal pancakes says to cook the oatmeal according to package directions. (The original recipe doesn’t say this.) The directions on my package call for four times as much water as the recipe. I messed up and had to make a second batch of drier oatmeal.
Please clarify on the recipe card that we should use the amount of water in the recipe and NOT follow package directions.
I’ll check the cards. Our test cooks did not have trouble with the recipe so that’s why I kept it as is.
When I used the amount of water in the recipe (half as much water as oats), it made a very dry “oatmeal”, but the pancakes turned out great.
This is my first time to do any Once a Month Mom cooking and I’m really excited about the recipes. I just finished cooking, assembling and freezing everything and I wanted to see if anyone else had trouble with the quantities. I plugged in 3 servings into the grocery list and bought everything. I then plugged 3 servings into the recipe cards and I have SO much stuff leftover that I’m really disappointed. Obviously I can freeze chopped onions – but sliced mushrooms, shredded zucchini, and herbs? I’m not sure I can use them up before they go bad. Has anyone else had trouble with the quantities? I really want to like OAMM because it (supposedly) makes once a month cooking so simple!
Laura – I’ll have to take a look at the cards, however our test cooks did not have any issues. I’m sorry to hear about your extras. You can freeze the zucchini for sure. The herbs you can try or chop very finely and freeze in ice cube trays. Then you can use them in soups, stews or sauces.
Awesome – thanks for the suggestions. And, I froze the salad so hopefully it will turn out great!
Thanks for you quick reply.
I second that; I have lots of ingredients left over.
One specific example: For four people, the shopping list includes 8 medium zucchini. The muffins use 2.67 cups or about three zucchini. The chili uses .8 medium zucchini. Half the zucchini is left over.
I made stock with some of the things that I had leftover and already chopped.
Okay – another quick questions. I’m just finishing up the Quinoa salad – has anyone tried freezing this? I’ve just never frozen spinach, pears, or quinoa and wanted to make sure that it was going to thaw out and be edible. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated! I’m so excited to have meals done!
Our test cooks made it and had no issues that I know of!
The shopping list and the prep sheet calls for 2 bunches of basil, but I can’t find basil in any of the recipes…. am I missing something? Thanks!
Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We have looked into these cards and recipes and responded by making needed changes to all documents. They should be accurate now. Again, we are sorry for any inconvenience.
Okay, this is my first time doing this and I’ve just about finished my chopping prep and like some other posters, I have also noticed huge descrepencies in the quantities I purchased, what is on the prep sheet and what is in the actual recipes… I think there is a bug in the spreadsheet. I highly recommend anyone just working this through for the first time take the time to sanity check the quant before buying and embarking on this months journey.
Thank you for mentioning this. Along with other reader feedback we have looked into this and found some things that we and the test cooks missed. Thank you so much for letting us know. They are all fixed now!
The shopping list includes basil, measured in bunches and listed in the produce category – clearly fresh basil. But there’s no fresh basil in any of the recipes. (The marinara sauce does call for a small amount of dried basil.)
See responses above, this is fixed now. Thanks!
just finished making this months menu. I can’t believe how nice it feels to have this behind me. the only item I’m not in love with is the buckwheat maple scones.. they taste fine, but I feel like they need a little something… anyone have any good suggestions for either icings or spreads to go with these? I’ve tried to look at the original recipe, but my anti-virus software is diverting me because the site is “a known” threat.
Hmm, not sure why that is happening on that website but yikes. Anyone have suggestions?
I would love some suggestions too. I thought they were a little dry and bland, but then again I’ve never had much success making scones!
I haven’t made the scones personally. The original blogger did say that she cut them in half and put a little butter and cherry jam on them.
yes, cutting them in half and putting some kind of cream cheese or jam on them actually make them very scrupmptious!
Hi!
I am so excited to try this month’s recipes. I also have a question about the quinoa salad recipe. I’ve always heard freezing fresh lettuce or spinach breaks down the cell structure, and when defrosted, you have one soggy salad. Did I miss something with the recipe? Is there a work-around, possibly make and freeze the dressed quinoa then add fresh spinach and pears when you’re ready to eat that meal?
Laura – I personally have not tried this recipe but I think you could be okay. Or you could just use fresh lettuce and put the frozen toppings on top later.
Just ate the quinoa salad today. I followed the directions and froze everything because I was afraid my spinach would go bad before I ate it. It was all pretty soggy – the spinach and the pears anyways. I wish I would have NOT frozen those and just bought them fresh this week. Everything else probably would have been okay. Just thought I’d let you know.
I’m sorry to hear that Laura! I thought it would work just fine. Notes for next time!
I agree with not adding the spinach and the pear until you actually thaw and toss the salad… it is really good fresh, not so great frozen/thawed, but I think if you left out the spinach and pear or apple until you actually eat it you’ll do much better.
[...] pancakes (originally found on Once a Month Mom’s Whole Foods Menu, for September), sack lunch (cheese sticks, applesauce crushers, juice box, carrot sticks, crackers), dinner out [...]
Hello, I’m sure this question has been answered a few times before but, I was wondering…if I don’t want to make some of the recipes…for example the scones or the mexican pork stew…is there a way to delete it off the excel spreedsheet so it doesn’t show up on the grocery list??? Thank you
Sorry Carmen not yet but we are working towards that in the future!
These recipes look great. I’m interested in trying OAM but I’m wondering how the portions are. My 3 kids are athletes and eat huge quantities of food and my husband is a runner and eats a lot too. Can someone give me feedback on the portion sizes? TIA.
They are “average” size so if you have big eaters I would count them as 2 people the first time you do it just be sure. Which sounds like you might be cooking for 9! You will likely need to change 8×8 pans to 9×13 pans (2 8×8′s = 1 9×13) too. You still see savings and sanity time helps.
love your site, trying to figure out if this will work for me. I was looking at the 2011 meal plans but cannot find a monthly menu, just the recipes. where can I find the whole month planned out? Or do I have to do that? THanks
Elke, we do not plan the whole month for you. See this post as to why http://onceamonthmom.com/ive-got-some-serious-questions-about-this-once-a-month-cooking-thing/