From time to time a reader will call into question our menus. From time to time a reader will find a mistake or two (or six) on our menus. From time to time we get complaints about our menus. From time to time these things all happen at once and we get a *wee* bit defensive. There is good reason. It isn’t that we don’t like feedback that there are mistakes, in fact, we like to know so that we can correct them for other readers.
We also know that not every menu is going to make everyone happy. And we are well aware of the fact that we are human and make errors. It is mostly the accusatory or condescending comments that get under our skin (as is the case in almost any blogging world). Again. There is good reason. By the time that you see a Once A Month Meals menu it has been in production for over 3 months! Three months people! This also means when you see a new menu we are already working on the menu 3 months from now (so as you read this post in November know that we are already working on February menus)!
It isn’t that we don’t care about the current menu but that it has already gone through our “system” and our minds have moved ahead to the next few months. We most certainly go back and look over past menus but it is a constant and ongoing process. I thought it might be fun (and a bit informative) for you to see the time and energy that go into these menus. And so that you can use them with confidence knowing we have done our best to ensure minimum errors.
Let’s take a look at the November menu:
- The writers began looking for recipes for their November menus back in August and maybe even before.
- On September 1st recommendations for the November menu were made, submitted and approved.
- From September 1st to September 15th writers worked to create recipe cards, grocery lists, instructions and labels for each of the 6 menus.
- From September 15th to October 1st, Tricia, Owner and Editor at Once A Month Meals spends reviewing recipes and the OAMM Team begins to enter into Menu Builder.
- During the month of September Test Cook’s are secured for testing the November menu.
- On October 1st (the same day that the October menus went live), the November test cooks received their documents to “test” the menu. Test cooks usually provide feedback on cooking instructions, recipe directions and missing or inconsistent quantities. They have until October 15th to complete their testing. (Interested in being a test kitchen? Learn more and sign up here).
- From October 1st to October 15th feedback comes in from the November test cooks and OAMM Staff then updates any changes that need to be made.
- From October 15th to October 20th we finalize the recipes and begin preparing the post for publication on November 1st.
- November 1st – the menus are made public!
All the while we were also working on various stages of the September, October and January menus. Whew! It is a lot. And I won’t be shy about the fact that is a lot of balls to keep in the air at one time! Our writers have a lot going on and produce some amazing menus in a timely manner each month. Yes, occasionally we miss a thing or two. Yes, a test cook doesn’t always catch everything. Yes, we also get confused about which month is which from time to time. But YES we do care and want to produce a useable product.
If you see a mistake or an item that needs noted, please don’t hesitate to email us at info @ onceamonthmeals.com. You most certainly will be helping out your fellow readers with their cooking. And if you are interested in doing a menu yourself, you may consider checking out the Create Your Own series. This series outlines the various steps we go through when producing a menu for a given month.