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Imagine if you could get your family dinners for the week cooked on Sunday afternoon and share the shopping, prep time and clean-up with your girlfriends. Our Book Club Moms did it, and it has made for a number of relaxing nights this week in our kitchens!
Getting Ready
After discussing food allergies and preferences, we each selected one of our family favorite recipes and purchased the ingredients for all six participants. We also communicated what kids of pans were needed to transport/cook the meals (e.g. my Turkey Meatloaf required a loaf pan). The hostess provided vegetable oil, olive oil, dried spices, and cooking utensils. Not knowing how long it would take, we gave ourselves 3 hours. Our respective husbands were thrilled to be left home to watch football, while our kids played and wandered in the kitchen to help/snack.
Prep Time
For the first half hour, everyone set up stations for assembling their dishes. Measuring spoons, cups, spices and whisks were all lined up while music played and we snacked on chips and guacamole, fruit and brownies. With aprons on and hair tied back, we went around each station for special instructions. Some had prepped more than others; some recipes required substitutions, etc. Then, we each selected a station and started assembling our meals. After two and a half hours, we were all wrapped up and ready to go with a clean kitchen (thank god, because it was MY kitchen). If it had taken a few more minutes, and we would have broken open the wine, which probably would have been counterproductive.
Satisfied Customers
In the end, each person departed with six meals to be consumed or frozen for the week. The trickiest part was deciding which one to eat Sunday evening! Throughout the week, we sent congratulatory emails to each other sharing our stories of positive familial feedback and reveling in a week of no cooking.
Our Take-home Menu
Turkey Meatloaf with Cauliflower Fritters and Asian Coleslaw
Marinated Flank Steak
Lemon Chicken with Orzo
Chicken Curry
Cheeseburger Muffins and Apple Turnovers
Mexican Lasagne.
Lessons learned
At times we realized that it would be great to have one sous chef that was not preparing her own meals (we could do it for her), who fetched and cleaned as we went along. Maybe next time …
Recruit some frugal friends and give it a try!
Julie Arnheim
Co-Founder, Rubbingnickels.com
a friend
