Customer Reviews

Once-A-Month Cooking Family Favorites: More Great Recipes That Save You Time and Money from the Inventors of the Ultimate Do-Ahead Dinnertime Method

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I originally bought this book for one or two recipes that was inside of it. My husband saw the Title and practically begged me to give it a go since this month (October) is our busiest month (I work a full time job, own another business and volunteer at a haunted house 4 nights a week) and he HATES cooking for just him and my daughter. SO, we started reading the "directions" on how to cook Once A Month - MAN! Let me tell you how super simple they have made everything!! Not only do they give you the shopping list, a staples list, AND several plans to choose from, they also tell you what ORDER to prepare them in! We decided to start with the two week plan just to see if it was for us!

This past weekend, my husband and I spent 1/2 the day TOGETHER in the kitchen, cooking as a TEAM and were able to turn out 14 meals!! We had a BLAST and even my 6 year old daughter got to help! So many new recipes (so far all have been truly amazing)- it was like discovering our kitchen all over again!

SO EASY - nothing complicated about preparation or cooking any of the foods - all basic skills and ingredients, save for a few spices that have now been incorporated to our cabinets.

We've really enjoyed being able to rush home after all of our crazy schedules and being able to have dinner on the table quickly instead of trying to figure out what to eat or where to grab something. I am definitely converting over to the OAMC club!

Wow! I purchased the original OAMC book by the same authors several years ago, and almost didn't buy this one because I thought it would just be a re-hash of the same recipes. Man, was I wrong! Great recipes that have variety and spice, but not so "out there" ingredients-wise that your younger kids will turn up their noses...and several meal plans to choose from. I prepared "cycle A" two days after I received this book and will do "cycle B" in October. Also plan on buying several more copies for Christmas gifts.

Cooking once a month has allowed me and my family to save a lot of money on groceries. Having everything pretty much ready to go for dinners and lunches has a been wonderful. But most precious of all has been the saving of my sanity on days when traffic has been horrible and I've been to tired to want to cook something. It's amazing how wonderful dinner is when you pull it out of the freezer, heat everything back up, and serve it to a chorus of MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM.

I have the original OAMC book, and received this in a contest. I like the first book, but some of the recipes weren't things I could get my husband to eat (he's a mean-n-potatoes guy). This one has TONS of recipes that are simple and yummy - not only will he eat them, but now that I have to work late evenings, I know that he can make them as well!

I recommend this book to all of my friends and family who are interested in OAMC - it's so easy and well put together, anyone can follow and save themselves time and money!

I bought this cookbook when pregnant with my second. I thought I'd get some meals in the freezer before he arrived and it would save some sanity in the beginning. I never got around to it, but a little bit after going back to work, I was finding it difficult and stressful to get dinner on the table in a timely fashion each night. So, I waited until we really needed to go shopping (I suggest doing this as some stuff is cooked and frozen, and other meals are prepared and frozen and defrosting and re-freezing is a no-no). The lists are already in the book, from the items you will likely have on hand, to the things you'll need to get, to the types of storage containers you'll need! It also maps out your prep/cook order for each cycle. i.e. chop 5 onions, slice two...while browning meat, prepare X, etc. I found it really useful. I looked into other bulk cooking books, but it seemed as though you had to pick your meals, compile a list, figure out the prep order, etc (too much work for me!) I will say, though, it's not for the faint of heart! It was EXHAUSTING to do, and I've only done 14 meal cycles. I was wiped at the end of the day, but the payoff of being able to pop something in the oven when I got home is great. Even if the cooking time may be 45 minutes, I don't have to do any of the prep, so I get that time back to spend with my boys. So far, we've liked all of the recipes, even my picky 5 year old is eating them (a feat in itself!) Some of the recipes even leave us with enough as leftovers for lunch the next day. I would highly recommend and am planning to cook this way more often!

I can recommend this book for anyone who wishes to be free of the wretched cycle of "what to cook for dinner that I can have fast"! Granted the process of making a month's worth of meals on cooking day is not fast, but for 20 plus days you are off the hook at dinner. Recipes are easy to follow and prepare. My family has enjoyed the meals and it has given us all something new to try. I could customize some of the recipes to fit our needs (two teenage boys eat a lot). Sometimes by adding a bit extra, I had enough to pack lunches for two with the leftovers. Love it!

I purchased this cookbook and did the 2 week Summer Cycle with a friend. We shopped together and cooked 14 meals for 2 families (28 meals total). The cooking day went by so fast and we had a blast cooking and still have fun comparing likes and dislikes of each recipe. It is great to come home and have dinner planned and ready within minutes. We are planning to cook another 14 meals (2 week cycle) at the end of the month for next month. While my family doesn't like ALL the recipes, we are making notes on how to tailor the meals to our family tastes next time. Several of the recipes made more than 4 servings so it has lasted longer than 2 weeks. I know that I have saved money just in the 2 weeks that I tried (Summer Cycle). ***The website [...] has printable menues and shopping lists for timesaving tools AND a one week sampler.

This was my first OAMC book (paperback edition) and I immediately did the first month. There are some real winners, but some recipes were bland or just plain gross. A few had a real "canned" flavor, due to being prepared with canned foods, of course. But still it is an EXCELLENT first book for OAMC. The shopping list is there. The complete organizing and preparation method is there. You just have to actually do it. I completed it on two different afternoons, not one big day and that helped alot for me.

Recipes with large volumes of sour cream tended to separate and curdle. I wouldn't use those recipes again. But we have found some new family favorite recipes, that we'll use again and again.

Throw on some tunes and go for it. It's not hard; just time consuming.

I wasn't sure what to expect as we are not really casserole people. I was so pleased to see that there weren't many recipes that called for cream of ___ soup! Food, some simple and some super flavorful. We like that! I wish there were nutrition values with each recipe, but that is my only complaint. We run a guest house and often find ourselves talking or doing random things. This takes the prep-work out of dinner. We can even invite those who are staying at the house!

I have tried the 30 day cooking method for 2 months now. In February completing the 1st 30 day cycle. I adjusted the plan to eliminate a few recipes I was sure my family would not like and ended up with at least 17 meals in the freezer. It was surprising how easily they went together although I was very tired at the end of the day. I was a little nervous about trying so many new recipes at one time but they have all been delicious! It has been such a relief not having to prepare meals when I get home from work. I would highly recommend this book. It also has allowed me to look at my favorite recipes in a new way and I plan to incorporate them into the system as well.