I generally believe that it is a good idea for me to wait at least 24 hours before writing about my Once A Month Cooking BIG DAYS! Even I, the author of Once A Month Mom, in the 6th hour of the day found myself asking Cortney, “Remind me why we do this again?” Folks, it is a TIRING day! No matter how you look at it. I even tried when I was creating this menu to make things a bit easier hoping it wouldn’t take as much time. Well, I made an effort. Cortney and I had our cooking day yesterday and overall it went smoothly. There were definitely a few bumps along the way but I am convinced that this is God’s way of making sure we have blogging material! So here is a bit of a recap of how our day went.
I started off the day not being able to find my bright orange apron! People! I. Need. My. Apron. I have questioned all suspect parties and no new clues have turned up. The last I recall, it actually got washed (I remember folding it) but for the life of me I can’t remember where I “put” it. It is probably in the same place that the socks go. I am hoping to find it soon (or that some great Etsy seller will donate one to a brainless mama).
Cortney learned her lesson last time and read the instructions herself. I finished the chopping (I had done all of the chopping except the carrots and potatoes). I then proceeded to run the garbage disposal (I really need to look into composting instead) the onion, potato, and carrot peels. HALT! (Insert record scratching). Our first major problem. My garbage disposal decided to spray water and swish the water around hopelessly. GREAT! I called my plumbers, my husband and my father, the first said he had no clue, the second didn’t answer his phone. Every 15 minutes or so I would go the sink and try. It really just looked like a tornado in the sink, but no movement. After about an hour and a half (and a mountain of dishes piling) I got an idea and went and got the bathroom plunger! Wala! It WORKED! YAY! I actually fixed my own sink! AMAZING! I was so proud. However, I was quickly brought back to reality by the mountain of dishes and food surrounding me and got back to work. Â I would say that most of the rest of the day went without incident. It was just long. I LOVED the new labels. I am just hoping that they hold out throughout the month. I also made a few changes and added helpful hints to the instructions and menu recipes. I have indicated the changes below.
4 Crock Pots
I originally thought that we would be able to do these soups in 2 crock pots. Having done these soups yesterday there is NO WAY to get all of those ingredients in 2 crock pots. You will need to use 4 crock pots and split the ingredients between the crock pots. I have made this adjustment to the instructions and to the recipes. (I borrowed a few from friends to make this change).
Electric Griddle
It can be a real time (and sweat) saver to use an electric griddle for the pancakes. I borrowed one from a family member. This way the person making pancakes isn’t standing over the hot stove while the other items are baking. You can also use a skillet or pan griddle, it would just be convenient if you could use an electric griddle.
Chop Ahead of Time
I make this suggestion in the instructions but it is optional. It really does save a lot of time to do the chopping the night or day before. I had chopped all of the ingredients that were taking up a lot of room in my refrigerator. For example, stalks of celery, once they were chopped I had much more room to place other items.
Please note that you either need to chop the potatoes the day of or make sure that you submerge them in water before putting them in the refrigerator, otherwise they will brown.
Missing Ingredient
I never did find Wheat Germ for the Baked Chicken Fingers. I didn’t worry about it. I just followed the recipe without it. They turned out fine!
Shrimp & Salmon Bagging
To make this process quick and easy I labeled the bags and then portioned the FROZEN salmon or shrimp into the bags directly. I then mixed whatever sauce I was making and poured it into a LARGE measuring cup (4 cups or larger). I then figured out how much should go in each and poured the liquid mixture over the seafood, sealed, and froze. It made things quicker and easier than mixing in the seafood.
Foil on Baking Sheets
Using foil under the Baked Chicken Fingers will save you at least 10 minutes worth of clean up when you are done!
Deep Dishes
If you haven’t purchased your baking pans I would recommend deep dishes for the Farmer’s Casserole and Shepherd’s Pie. We made the ones we had work but it was “tight”. So do yourself a favor and splurge on the deep dish type!
Oh yea, and don’t forget the vegetables in the Shepherd’s Pie like I did! I better remember to mention this because if I don’t, Cortney will! She just snickers when I manage to screw up my own menu! 🙂 I am sure I deserve it! Enjoy!