Once A Month Meals

2-n-1 Back-to-School Instant Pot or Slow Cooker Meal Plan

Once a Month Meals — Fri, 21 Aug 2026 12:28:02 +0000

5 Dump and Go Recipes that Double to Make 10 Meals. (Put these together in less than 1 hour!)

Put these 10 Back to School meals together in under 1 hour! That is 10 meals, already prepared, assembled in 6 minutes per meal, straight into your freezer that last anywhere from 6-8 months. Trust us. This is worth both your time and money!

2 Meal Plans. The Same Recipes. 2 Different Cooking Methods. You Decide!

Both meal plans include the same set of recipes, and you prepare and assemble them in the exact same ways. However, they have different methods of cooking. Any one recipe can be made in either the Slow Cooker or the Instant Pot. You choose! See the full meal plans below!

See Instant POT Meal Plan » See Slow Cooker Meal Plan »

How To Cook This Meal Plan (and Fast!)

Receive access to ALL the cooking documents for these meal plans by becoming a Once A Month Meals Member today!*

With a membership*, your meal plan comes with:

A Grocery Shopping List organized by category for faster and easier shopping.
Prep Instructions to help you prepare all your ingredients ahead of time.
Step-by-step Cooking Day Instructions for fast and efficient freezer cooking.
Individual Recipe Cards with detailed cooking and freezing instructions.
Printable Labels for your freezer bags with thawing and reheating instructions.
A Thaw Sheet for a full list of your meal plan’s defrosting or reheating instructions.
*See a sample of our cooking documents here!

Adjust the Serving Size!

You can also adjust this meal plan to whatever serving size you need! Freezer Cook for 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10 and more (as well as anything in-between!)

*Paid membership and free membership vary in the level of their offerings. For more information on free vs paid membership click here.

Watch Us Make This Meal Plan LIVE

The post 2-n-1 Back-to-School Instant Pot or Slow Cooker Meal Plan appeared first on Once A Month Meals.

50 Easy Back-to-School Breakfast Recipes

Tricia — Thu, 20 Aug 2026 19:08:46 +0000

The impending school year is right around the corner and we are all feeling it. Hard. The impending doom of rushed school mornings trying to get lunches packed, the kids out the door, your spouse to work, and everyone to school on time is overwhelming when you just think about it. How about we take one item off your morning to-do list?

Easy Breakfasts ready to go out the door with you!

All recipes listed below are easy to assemble, and will keep in your freezer for weeks, and even months at a time. So take one part of the crazy out of your morning routine, and knock this upcoming school year out of the park!

Make a Meal Plan With These Recipes!

With membership*, you have access to all our recipes (including these!) and ALL our meal plans! You can customize one of our already curated meal plans, or create your own from scratch! You could even use this list to make a back to school breakfast meal plan!

You’re not locked into any one plan or meal plan type. As a member, you can save up to 12 customized meal plans at a time, and there is no limit to how many you can customize in a month.

*For more information on paid vs free membership check this out.

LEARN MORE

Make it Fresh!!

Make it the Night Before!!

Make from Frozen!!

More Back-to-School resources:

The post 50 Easy Back-to-School Breakfast Recipes appeared first on Once A Month Meals.

How to Freeze Peak Produce

Tricia — Thu, 20 Aug 2026 15:00:00 +0000

The summer heat means farmer’s markets, roadside stands, CSAs, backyard gardens, and even the grocery stores are full of the season’s best produce.

If you are blessed with more than you can eat before it spoils, let us teach you how to freeze peak produce.

Our grandmothers spent many hot hours canning seasonal produce, and this can still be a great way to preserve. However, freezing produce is less time consuming than canning, and produce frozen at the peak of freshness maintains its nutritional value better. You may have noticed that we make an effort to include seasonal produce on our monthly plans. This helps keep the price down as fruits and veggies are most affordable in peak season. Luckily, you get the best taste and best nutritional value at peak season too.

So, using our meal plans is a first step for using up extras from your garden, CSA, etc. But sometimes you need a targeted approach. For instance, if you take your kiddos apple picking and end up with a bushel or two, how do you store those? Maybe you score an unbeatable price on several flats of berries that need to be used up quickly. How do you ensure they don’t go to waste? There are a couple of different ways you can go about freezing produce. Be sure to check out our post on What You Can and Cannot Freeze before you get started.

Create a no-credit-card-needed OAMM membership account to explore and see if OAMM is the right fit for YOU!

You’ll be able to:

search the 13,500+ freezer recipe database with hundreds of filters available.
build and save for later use up to 3 meal plans of 5 recipes each.
favorite recipes you find and want to try later or have cooked and love.
view nutritional data of each recipe.

*For more information on paid vs free membership check this out.

1. Flash Freeze Individual Items

Flash freezing is the technique we get asked about the most! You can simply prep and freeze your bounty in appropriate portions and use them later to bake or create meals. If you have a large freezer and access to lots of produce, you may never have to visit the frozen food aisle again! This technique works quite well with most produce (think foods you would normally find in the freezer aisle), and even some you wouldn’t expect like tomatoes! With certain items, you may want to be careful to freeze them flat so that you don’t end up with a giant clump of unusable fruit. Check out our post on flash freezing for more details. Just don’t forget to label and date your produce so that you can keep track of what you have.

We have a few posts on individual fruits and veggies for your convenience:

2. Prep Items for Easy Meals

Bags of individual items are nice to have, but so are bags that are already mixed and ready to be turned into a quick meal. We focus a lot on freezing full meals around here, but batch cooking can also be a great tool for prepping in bulk items that you use frequently in your kitchen. Think about those quick family favorites or sauces and convenience items that you would rather make from scratch.

Veggies for Stock – Whenever I have extra carrots, celery, or onions (even if it is just an end or a half that I didn’t use), I throw it into a bag in the freezer labeled “stock.” Then the next time I make homemade chicken stock, I just throw it into the pot. Of course, you could also use them for vegetable stock too.
Stir Fry Mixes – Peppers, onions, carrots, broccoli, snow peas – whatever it is that you like in a stir fry you can throw it in. Add meat (or not), seasonings, and rice, and you have yourself a quick and healthy dinner.
Veggie Medley (for soups, casseroles, side dishes) – Again, think about the type of mixes you would purchase in the freezer aisle and simply create your own. You can also make bags of cooking aromatics for recipe starters.
Smoothie Bags – They make a delicious meal on the go or a snack, and you can pack all of the goodness of fresh produce into them ahead of time! Check out our recipes for Fruit and Yogurt Smoothie Bags or Green Smoothie Bags with Yogurt or make your own combo. You can also blend the smoothies on your prep day as is directed in most of our top 10 smoothie recipes.
Condiments and Sauces – You could buy them at the store, but they are always better from scratch. I am thinking specifically of preserving tomatoes (try Marinara a la Seaton, 5 Minute Homemade Salsa, or Homemade Salsa Verde) and herbs (i.e. Pesto Sauce or Flank Steak for Two).
Side Dishes – Our typical focus around here is the main meal, but extra produce is a great opportunity to freeze some side dishes to complete them. We have created several mini meal plans for only seasonal side dishes.

3. Freeze Full Meals

Of course, we can’t end this post without talking about turning your produce into delicious full meals that can be pulled from the freezer whenever you need them. Our plans are already centered around seasonal produce (especially the Real Food, Vegetarian, and Paleo meal plans), but with our MenuBuilder system, you can customize any plan to include the produce that you need to use up. You can search for recipes by an ingredient, but make sure you check out the following posts that highlight the best of each season.

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Summer Peak Produce Picks

Tricia — Thu, 20 Aug 2026 14:00:00 +0000

Welcome to our second installment of Summer Peak Produce Picks! Farmer’s Markets, CSA’s and co-ops will be in full swing if they aren’t already. In my area, I’m already seeing roadside stands popping up all over town with the local best.

Summer has some of the most popular offerings produce wise, so this summer peak produce list is rather long. But keep in mind that all of these recipes are freezable. Freezing in-season produce is one of the best ways to preserve the fresh taste and bountiful nutrition for another day. Beat the “winter tomato blues” (you know those colorless, tasteless, sponges that languish on the grocery shelf) by freezing a big batch of fresh from the garden tomato soup.

Flash freeze berries and stone fruits for baking when the temperatures drop again. But of course, live up the long days of summer by sampling some of these tasty treats right now. Smoothies, popsicles, summer salads, and veggies grilled to perfection – all these and more are on our list to enjoy this season.

Create a no-credit-card-needed OAMM membership account to explore and see if OAMM is the right fit for YOU!

You’ll be able to:

search the 13,500+ freezer recipe database with hundreds of filters available.
build and save for later use up to 3 meal plans of 5 recipes each.
favorite recipes you find and want to try later or have cooked and love.
view nutritional data of each recipe.

*For more information on paid vs free membership check this out.

Make the most of summer peak produce with this list of seasonal, freezable recipes!

Berries – Blueberries, Raspberries, Blackberries

Green Beans

Tomatoes

In recipes calling for canned tomatoes, substitute fresh tomatoes while you can!

Summer Squash and Zucchini

Corn

In recipes calling for canned or frozen corn, substitute fresh corn while you can! Leftover corn on the cob works well for most of these too.

Bell Peppers

Basil

Odds and Ends (Watermelon, Peaches, Eggplant, Okra)

The post Summer Peak Produce Picks appeared first on Once A Month Meals.

Fall Peak Produce Picks

Once a Month Meals — Thu, 20 Aug 2026 14:00:00 +0000

“You know, I really just don’t like fall.” Said no one ever! We could all use a drop in temperature (of course without them getting too low), nature takes on its most beautiful hues, and our taste buds all welcome the warm, spicy, sweet, and tangy flavors of fall produce. It is obvious that 99% of the world has gone absolutely crazy for pumpkin, but there are a wide variety of fall flavors that are just as tasty.

Use our Fall Peak Produce Picks list as you start to see new items appear at your farmer’s market and in your CSA boxes. Happy harvest!

Pro Tip: All of our meal plans are based on seasonal produce to save you money and give you the best flavor. However, you can use lists like this one to create custom meal plans based on what is freshest in your local market.

Apples

Hot Peppers (substitute fresh for canned this time of year!)

Pears

Sausage Pear Breakfast Casserole
Slow Cooker Balsamic Chicken with Pears and Mushrooms ( Instant Pot Version )
Cinnamon Pear Popovers
Pear Streusel Muffins or Pear Gorgonzola Walnut Pizza
Pear Pineapple Mini Gelatin Cups
Freezable Slow Cooker Pear Oatmeal Maple
Cinnamon Apple-Pear Sauce (can be served as baby food!)

Greens (Spinach, Kale, Collards)

Winter Squash

Pumpkin

Sweet Potato

Cranberries

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How to Pack School Lunches with Freezer Meals

Once a Month Meals — Thu, 20 Aug 2026 12:00:26 +0000

The “Mom New Year” is in full swing, and with it has come a torrent of questions about how to handle school lunches. Exacerbated mothers the world over are staring at brown paper bags and plastic boxes asking themselves yet again, “What do I pack TODAY for lunch?” It can be overwhelming, can’t it? With so many schools going to nut free lunch rooms the old stand by of peanut butter and jelly just won’t cut it. So what is a mom to do?

Did you know that you can pack school lunches with freezer meals? Come learn how!

Supplies to Pack School Lunches with Freezer Meals

Fancy lunch boxes and containers can make meals inviting and exciting, but they certainly aren’t a must. You really don’t need much other than the usual lunch box and some plastic baggies in order to pack school lunches with freezer meals.

Here are a few simple items that we have found helpful for packaging freezer meals for lunch:

Out of the Box Meal Ideas

First, you want to choose a “main dish” that is going to keep your child full throughout the day. Forget sandwiches! You can make lots of other handheld foods that are easy to freeze and pack in a lunch. If the meal is best enjoyed hot, you will want to warm up the meal in the morning and then pack it in a thermos or another type of warming container. If it is going to be enjoyed at room temperature, then you can pack it frozen and let it thaw (depending on your child’s lunch hour).

What is wrong with breakfast for lunch? What about pizza? Every kid loves pizza. Instead of reaching for a prepackaged, expensive meal in the grocery aisle (you know the ones), make your own! If your child has access to a microwave, even better.

Simple Side Items

Next, you need to complete the meal with some sides or snacks to round it out. These do not have to be junky, sugary, or prepackaged. You can make homemade treats on your cooking day and simply throw them into the lunch box in the morning. Hint: these can also double as after-school snacks!

Homemade Yogurt Tubes (these are great frozen or thawed!)
Homemade Applesauce
Gluten Free and Dairy Free Blueberry Breakfast Cookies or the traditional Breakfast Cookies (Kid Friendly)
No-Bake Chewy Granola Bars
Frozen Fruit Cups
Frozen Yogurt Fruit Cups
Pear Pineapple Mini Gelatin Cups
Ginger Yogurt Parfait with Cinnamon Pears

Additional Resources

This is just a “taste” of the freezer meals that work well in school lunches. Members can find more in MenuBuilder under the kid-friendly tag and create their own lunch meal plans. Here are some more posts and meal plans to get your creative juices flowing when it comes to packing school lunches.

Make a Meal Plan With These Recipes!

You’re not locked into any one meal plan type. You can save up to 12 customized meal plans at a time, and there is no limit to how many you can customize in a month.

LEARN MORE CREATE A CUSTOM MEal Plan

*For more information on paid vs free membership check this out.

**Disclosure: This is not a paid post; however, it does contain Amazon Affiliate links.

Create a no-credit-card-needed OAMM membership account to explore and see if OAMM is the right fit for YOU!

You’ll be able to:

search the 13,500+ freezer recipe database with hundreds of filters available.
build and save for later use up to 3 meal plans of 5 recipes each.
favorite recipes you find and want to try later or have cooked and love.
view nutritional data of each recipe.

*For more information on paid vs free membership check this out.

More Back-to-School resources:

The post How to Pack School Lunches with Freezer Meals appeared first on Once A Month Meals.

52 Easy Instant Pot Recipes for Back to School

Once a Month Meals — Wed, 19 Aug 2026 15:36:44 +0000

The Instant Pot (commonly known as the programmable pressure cooker) is our favorite kitchen appliance for getting dinner on the table fast. What better way to prepare yourself for back-to-school than to put together some easy Instant Pot meals for the freezer?!

These 52 easy Instant Pot dinners will have you and your family eating in no time!

All recipes listed below are:

easy to assemble
keep well in your freezer
are prepared in the Instant Pot (or other programmable pressure cooker)
and all when you’re ready to eat

Did we mention you cook these FROM FROZEN?!

We also have resources, tips, and Instant Pot Meal Plans to introduce you to freezer cooking with an Instant Pot!

Get started with an Instant Pot Meal Plan

Instant Pot Meal Plans come with:

Organized Grocery Shopping List
Prep Instructions
Step-by-step Cooking Instructions
Individual Recipe cards
Labels
Thaw sheet

ALL INSTANT POT MEal planS ALL INSTANT POT RECIPES

Learn how to create your own custom meal plan from these recipes using our Membership! Make your own Back to School Dinner Meal Plan to make this school year your best yet!

Create an Instant Pot Freezer Meal Plan!

As a member you can build your own Mini Freezer Meal Plan of your choice and get started with easy freezer meals!

If you’re a paid member you’ll receive recipes, grocery shopping list, prep instructions, recipe cards, labels, and more! If you’re a free member you’ll be able to build the meal plan and view the recipes, but not those valuable resources, so it’s definitely worth the upgrade!

Just remember, with a membership, you can always customize the recipes and serving size!

COOK A FREE MEal plan

Instant Pot Chorizo Chili via Once A Month Meals

Instant Pot SOUPS & STEWS Freezer Recipes

Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken via Once A Month Meals

Instant Pot CHICKEN Freezer Recipes

Instant Pot Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joe’s via Once A Month Meals

Instant Pot BEEF Freezer Recipes

Instant Pot Carnitas via Once A Month Meals

Instant Pot PORK Freezer Recipes

Instant Pot Veggie Taco Chili with Brown Rice via Once A Month Meals

Instant Pot VEGETARIAN Freezer Recipes

Want more Instant Pot recipes and inspiration? Here are another 50!!!

More Instant Pot resources:

Instant Pot friendly recipes and meal plans!

Get Instant Pot Recipes Instant Pot Meal Plans

You can cook the meal plan as is, or you can build your own custom meal plan.

The post 52 Easy Instant Pot Recipes for Back to School appeared first on Once A Month Meals.

15 Budget Friendly Meal Plans

Once a Month Meals — Wed, 19 Aug 2026 10:29:00 +0000

Monthly meal planning is one of THE best ways to stick to your family’s budget. Planning out your meals for the month, in advance, can make a world of difference for that budget! Especially if it’s strict!

Now, the catch is… building the meal plan and picking recipes. We know. Scouring the internet and Pinterest for recipes can be a daunting and overwhelming task. Then you have to make a shopping list, and figure out all the prep details for how you’re going to get it all done.

Well, friends, we’ve tried our best to make it easy for you!

15 Budget Friendly (and Freezer Friendly!) Monthly Meal Plans!

Learn how to create your own custom meal plan with these meal plans using our Membership.

As a Member*, each of these meal plans comes with:

Combined Grocery Shopping List organized by category for faster and easier shopping.
Prep Instructions to help you prepare all your ingredients ahead of time.
Step-by-step Cooking Day Instructions for fast and efficient freezer cooking.
Individual Recipe Cards with detailed cooking and freezing instructions.
Printable Labels for your freezer bags with thawing and reheating instructions.
A Thaw Sheet for a full list of your meal plan’s defrosting or reheating instructions.

Remember, EVERY meal plan of ours comes with ALL of these resources! Even the ones you customize and make your own!

*Keep in mind that there are limitations with free membership. See the join page for more details about the difference between paid/ free membership. Resources are for paid members only.

Create a no-credit-card-needed OAMM membership account to explore and see if OAMM is the right fit for YOU!

You’ll be able to:

search the 13,500+ freezer recipe database with hundreds of filters available.
build and save for later use up to 3 meal plans of 5 recipes each.
favorite recipes you find and want to try later or have cooked and love.

*For more information on paid vs free membership check this out.

Our tips for sticking to a budget friendly meal plan:

Double Up: Make the most of your time, money and energy by doubling your recipes to make 2 meals. When you’ve already gone to the store and purchased a whole head of cabbage for that one recipe, why not use all of it instead of half? Makes sense right? Well, in our meal plan resources and documents, we do that FOR YOU! When you pick your recipes or meal plans, we double all recipes so that you make it twice. So again, one less thing you have to think about!
Plan Once, Shop Once: The beauty of monthly meal planning is you only shop once for those meals, and that’s it! Yes, there are always those last minute items we all need, but you go once and get it done, then you’re not back for your big shopping trip until the next month. P.S. With paid membership, you get a grocery list, recipe cards, labels and more with all those meal plans.
Stick To Your List: Simply put, the fewer items you buy, the cheaper the bill. This can be a hard one for sure, but it’s so crucial to staying on budget. So print our list, stick to it, and benefit from it the whole month long!
Use Fewer Ingredient Recipes: The fewer the ingredients, the cheaper the meal. Simple, yet very effective! So be on the lookout for 4, 5, 6 ingredient recipes to help you build a meal plan.
Use Seasonal Ingredients: In-season produce is always a better deal at your local store, and will many times be on sale. Use that to your advantage and build a meal plan around those ingredients. That will many times be the key to a great meal plan! Fun fact: Our meal plans are labeled by season (Spring, Summer, Winter, Fall) to help you with those seasonal ingredients.
Use 1 Meat: Choosing one meat to stick to can really be a lifesaver to your budget. When you see ground beef or chicken on sale, stock up and make a meal plan for it! Be sure to look at some of the meal plans mentioned above.
Go Meatless: Going meatless, at least just once a week, can really make a dent in your monthly food budget. 4-5 meals, for 4 servings can really add up. Whether you make a meatless spaghetti sauce or vegetarian lasagna, going meatless can be delicious and healthy!

Things that tack on the $$:

Paleo and Real Food Recipes: These types of recipes always cost more because of the amount and quality of the ingredients used.
Organic and Local Ingredients: Obviously these are great options if you have the budget for them, but we don’t always have that ability! So in those cases, just purchase another more frugal option.
More Recipes: The more meals you make, the more you spend. Granted, buying and cooking in bulk can save you money in the long run! But just know it might cost more upfront.
More Servings: That might seem like a no brainer, but the more you make, the more it will cost! So just be conscious of the amounts you’re purchasing for!

Additional Resources:

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Freezer Friendly Back To School Recipes

Tricia — Tue, 18 Aug 2026 16:00:49 +0000

OAMM Founder, Tricia, shares her favorite freezer friendly back to school recipes as part of Back To School!

For more kid friendly, freezer friendly back to school recipes, you can search our Menu Builder database and build your own custom meal plans.

These 9 recipes are easy to make and super filling for kids of all ages! Perfect especially if you make them ahead of time and freeze them for later. Then you have options for when you need food for those moments on the go!

Homemade Pop Tarts – Yum! I am getting ready to make some more of these. I think it is high time I did more experimenting with flavors!
Toddler French Toast Sticks – I would think this one would be higher up on the list if I were gauging by the number of tweets or comments I get on recipes. However, it hasn’t been around as long as some of the others so I have no doubt that given time it will be working it’s way up the charts.
Fruity Breakfast Burritos – If you want to cut down on sugar and eliminate some of the mess you can do these without the cinnamon sugar, or wrap that part on the inside. Any way you look at it, they are a kid favorite!
Corn Dog Muffins – Now that Isaac is eating hot dogs, I think I am going to have to try these on him. He loves muffins too, this might just be the summer lunch solution we have been looking for.
Individual Mac and Cheese – A great snack on the go or at home! They heat up quickly and easily. It is a mac and cheese you can be proud to serve your kids!
Homemade Cheesy Rice – Add chicken to this if you feel it lacks protein, but it’s delicious any way you serve it!
Toddler Pizza Croissants – These will be gobbled up in minutes.
Ham and Potato Pockets – You might wish to omit the onions if your kids aren’t fans, but this is a great way to sneak a vegetable into their lunch. And they are super tasty too!
Toddler Mini Meatloaf – Again, single portions are awesome! And these sneak in a few vegetables too!

Make a Meal Plan With These Recipes!

With paid membership, you have access to all our recipes (including these!) and ALL our meal plans! You can customize one of our already curated meal plans, or create your own from scratch using our blank meal plan, My Freezer Meal Plan!

You’re not locked into any one plan or meal plan type. You can save 12 meal plans at a time, and there is no limit to how many you can customize in a month.

For more information on paid vs free membership check this out.

LEARN MORE CREATE A CUSTOM MEal Plan

More Back-to-School resources:

The post Freezer Friendly Back To School Recipes appeared first on Once A Month Meals.

31 Back to School Freezer Meals

Tricia — Sun, 09 Aug 2026 13:00:03 +0000

Our favorite Back to School freezer meals will keep lunch boxes fun and full of flavor.

School days are approaching! One of the most commonly asked questions we get around here is how to make the school lunch box more exciting and less mundane. We have answers! And all of them are easy to make ahead and freeze. Simply thaw or reheat for lunch! Who says your kids can’t eat well at school?

Breakfasts

Perfect for those on-the-go mornings or for kids that need to also take a breakfast to pre-school care.

Lunches

For meals that are served warm, invest in a well-insulated thermos. Heat the items in the morning and place them in the thermos to keep them warm and ready for lunch time. The Thermos brand hot/cold thermos claims to keep food warm for 5 hours or cold for 7 hours!

Snacks

Everyone needs a little pick-me-up after all that learning!

Make a Meal Plan With These Recipes!

Create your own back to school freezer meals plan using your Membership and the many kid-friendly recipes found in MenuBuilder.

You can use our Mini Meal Plan resources just as they are or use them as a starting point for your own custom meal plan.

You’re not locked into any one meal plan type. You can save up to 12 customized meal plans at a time, and there is no limit to how many you can customize in a month. Enjoy a back to school freezer meals plan today!

LEARN MORE CREATE A CUSTOM MEAL PLAN

*For more information on paid vs free membership check this out.

**Disclosure: This is not a paid post; however, it does contain Amazon Affiliate links.

More Back-to-School resources:

The post 31 Back to School Freezer Meals appeared first on Once A Month Meals.

50 Make Ahead, Freezer Friendly Meals for Baby Led Weaning (and First Foods!)

Once a Month Meals — Sun, 02 Aug 2026 12:31:48 +0000

Real, whole-food recipes for your baby or toddler that meet your Baby Led Weaning goals, and are easy to make and freeze ahead for those last-minute meals when you feel rushed!

What is Baby Led Weaning? (“BLW” for short)

Baby Led Weaning is a style of feeding infants and toddlers that allows them to feed themselves from the beginning. Food is many times prepared in thick, sliced, and finger-shaped pieces that they can hold easily themselves. The food is also soft, providing a low risk of choking. Generally, you will start with single-ingredient “first” foods and then move to mixed foods containing more than one ingredient.

Recommended first foods:**

Roasted sweet potato wedges
Steamed broccoli
Melon or mango slices
Banana
Avocado spears
Strips of meat like lamb, beef, or chicken for sucking

**These should all generally be soft and squishy with the exception of the meat, which infants will typically suck on versus actually chewing

Things you should avoid:

Anything too hard, sticky, or cut into a size that might cause choking
Too much added salt or sugar
Honey before age 1 (to avoid botulism)
Cow’s milk (or plant-based milk) as a beverage before age 1 (Breast milk or formula should be the primary beverage; small amounts of dairy, such as full-fat yogurt, in food is generally fine.)

Disclaimer:

Information and recipes related to baby-led weaning on our site should never be interpreted as medical or feeding advice. Always consult your child’s pediatrician, dietitian, or feeding therapist before introducing solids or making changes to your baby’s feeding routine.

Where to learn more about baby-led weaning:

If you’re thinking about doing baby-led weaning but aren’t sure where to start, here are a few resources recommended by our Registered Dietitian.

Feeding Littles – A dietitian and feeding therapist duo offering courses as well as great free Instagram content on baby-led weaning and toddler feeding
Born to Eat: Whole, Healthy Foods from Baby’s First Bite by Leslie Schilling, MA, RDN, and Wendy Jo Peterson, MS, RDN
Consult with a local Registered Dietitian or feeding therapist who is well versed in baby-led weaning

French Toast Squares by Once A Month Meals

These recipes are best for:

Families who have used baby-led weaning to safely introduce a variety of single-ingredient “first” foods and are now looking for meals safe for baby-led weaning that the whole family can eat –– kids and adults included!

These recipes are:

Simple and uncomplicated
Family-friendly
Kid-Approved
Fast to make
Easy to freeze for later
Keep well in the fridge or freezer
100% real, whole ingredients

Apple Carrot Muffins by Once A Month Meals

How do I freeze them?

If you want to make them for the fridge, follow the first recipe link given by some of our amazing recipe partners. If you want to make them for the freezer, click the links to “Our Freezer Friendly Version” so you can get step-by-step instructions on how to freeze them.

50 Make Ahead, Freezer Friendly Meals for Baby Led Weaning (and First Foods!)

Berry Delicious Blueberry Oatmeal Pancakes by Once A Month Meals

Breakfast

French Toast Squares by Once A Month Meals
Fluffy Whole Wheat Pancakes by Once A Month Meals
Banana Flax Pancakes by Once A Month Meals
Broccoli Cheese Breakfast Egg Muffins by Easy Peazy Meals | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Oatmeal Power Bites by TIDBITS | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Instant Pot Maple Cinnamon Oatmeal by TIDBITS | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Berry Delicious Blueberry Oatmeal Pancakes by Once A Month Meals
Green Supreme Smoothie by Once A Month Meals
Scrambled Egg Salsa Muffins by Savor and Savvy | Our Freezer Friendly Version

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Quinoa Muffins by Once A Month Meals

Snack

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Quinoa Muffins by Once A Month Meals
Slow Cooker Applesauce by Real Creative Real Organized | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Moist and Delicious Banana Blueberry Muffins by Once A Month Meals
Pizza Puff Appetizers by Confessions of an Overworked Mom | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Guacamole by Scratch to Basics | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Baked Sweet Potato Fries by Scratch to Basics | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Coconut Oatmeal Protein Cookies by Wondermom Wannabe | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Easy Carrot Bread by Creative Savings | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Banana and Zucchini Muffins by Pennies Into Pearls | Our Freezer Friendly Version

Homemade Cheesy Rice by Once A Month Meals

Side Dish

Oven Potato Wedges by Once A Month Meals
Homemade Cheesy Rice by Once A Month Meals
Caulitatoes by Traditional Cooking School | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Pumpkin Mac and Cheese by Hey Nutrition Lady | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Instant Pot Mashed Sweet Potatoes by A Mind Full Mom | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Oven Roasted Butternut Squash by Sustainable Cooks | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Instant Pot Basic Risotto by TIDBITS | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Twice Baked Potato Bites by So Very Blessed | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Instant Pot Corn Casserole by The Typical Mom | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Maple Cinnamon Apple Pearsauce by Once A Month Meals
Instant Pot Simple Side: Green Beans by Once A Month Meals
Instant Pot Seasoned Broccoli by Once A Month Meals

Healthy Fish Sticks by Once A Month Meals

Entree

Maple Mustard Grilled Salmon by Once A Month Meals
Paleo Avocado Tuna Salad by Cook Eat Paleo | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Paleo Salmon Cakes by Sustainable Cooks| Our Freezer Friendly Version
Healthy Fish Sticks by Once A Month Meals
Pineapple Ginger Flank Steak by Once A Month Meals
Baked Cheese-Filled Meatballs by Once A Month Meals
Baked Turkey and Spinach Meatballs by Once A Month Meals
BBQ Meatloaf by Once A Month Meals
Slow Cooker Balsamic Shredded Beef by Organize Yourself Skinny | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Instant Pot Shredded BBQ Cream Cheese Chicken by 365 Days of Slow Cooking | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Beyond Easy Pulled Pork by Sarah Fragoso| Our Freezer Friendly Version
Grilled Greek Chicken by Easy Peazy Mealz | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Instant Pot Maple Mustard Chicken by Once A Month Meals
Paleo Baked Lemon Chicken Tenders by Once A Month Meals
Slow Cooker Lemon Garlic Chicken and Rice by A Mind Full Mom | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Slow Cooker Turkey Bolognese Sauce by Cook Eat Paleo | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Panko Crusted Parsley and Dijon Tilapia by The Healthy Home Cook | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Granny’s Italian Beef by Once A Month Meals
Slow Cooker Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese by So Very Blessed | Our Freezer Friendly Version
Maple Balsamic BBQ Tofu by Vegan Dad | Our Freezer Friendly Version

Whether you are brand new to Baby Led Weaning or cooking real food & whole food meals, we want you to feel supported with the best resources and recipes to get your family started or to keep going.

We know you desire to:

Understand what’s inside your food
Control the ingredients you use within your meals
Have confidence in what you feed your family

Because of that, we want to continue giving you resources that not only help you eat real food but do it as a thriving parent. With that, here are some additional resources so you can continue your journey to making and eating whole foods for the long haul.

Instant Pot Simple Side: Green Beans by Once A Month Meals

Toddler & Family-Friendly Meal Plans

More Real Food, Kid-Friendly Recipes

Real food for everyone:

For the kids:

To Learn More About Making Freezer Meals

Do you know if your meal planning method is really working?

Are you still scrambling at 6 PM every day?
Are you struggling to make healthy meals?
Is it hard to stick to your diet when life gets hectic?
Are convenient food choices costing you?
Is your grocery budget constantly out of control?
Do you feel like daily cooking is a chore?

At Once A Month Meals, our mission is to provide resources and meal plans for families and teach them how to freeze meals ahead of time so that they never have to plan daily meals ever again. To that end, we have developed the leading meal planning software for batching and freezing your food that makes this process the fastest it’s ever been.

Since 2009 we have helped over 80,000 thousand families make freezer meals fast, effectively, and safely. Our hope is that every family will spend less time in the kitchen and more time doing what matters most to them.

As you establish making freezer meals as a habit, you will naturally want to start building a library of go-to freezer-friendly meals that you know your family will love. You’ll want them to be equally as easy, fast, efficient, budget-conscious, and family-friendly, right?

However, each family has unique food requirements and preferences, and finding recipes that are compliant, family-friendly, freeze well, and are delicious becomes challenging. Simply put, Once A Month Meals removes that challenge.

We make it incredibly convenient to find and choose recipes that fit your family’s food needs. With over 50 ways to filter 13,500+ freezable recipes, including special diets and allergens, there is a 100% chance you will find tons of recipes approved by a Registered Dietitian. Each recipe has also been individually tested by our dedicated group of test cooks for ease and complete freezability.

With all this at your fingertips, Once A Month Meals helps you break into the iron triangle of eating –– convenient, healthy, cost-effective meals –– for the long-term.

Create a free no-credit-card-needed membership, and learn how to make a custom plan that fits all your family’s needs. You’ll be able to see if OAMM is the right fit for you!

search the 13,500+ freezer recipe database with hundreds of filters available.
build and save for later use up to 3 meal plans of 5 recipes each.
favorite recipes you find and want to try later or have cooked and love.
view nutritional data of each recipe.

The post 50 Make Ahead, Freezer Friendly Meals for Baby Led Weaning (and First Foods!) appeared first on Once A Month Meals.

50 Freezable Burger Recipes

Tricia — Fri, 29 May 2026 15:30:03 +0000

Who doesn’t love a good hamburger (or veggie burger)? They’re fantastic year round, but especially hot summer months fresh off the grill.

Did you National Hamburger Day is in May? Regardless of the month or season, you never need an excuse to grab some burgers from the freezer, (but not the store-bought kind)!

We have a wide variety of freezable hamburger recipes including burgers, condiments, and kid’s favorites! If you are gluten free, grain free, or even vegetarian – we’ve got you covered too! There is no excuse not to enjoy a juicy burger! And there are so many reasons we love them hot off the grill: little cleanup up, no reason to heat the house, and who doesn’t love the smell and taste of a freshly grilled food?

50 Burger Recipes for the Freezer

Homemade Ketchup

Condiments for Burgers

Paleo Sun-dried Tomato and Spinach Burgers

Paleo Burgers

Buffalo Bleu Cheese Burgers

Traditional

Chili Lime Chicken Burgers

Gluten Free Dairy Free Burgers

Aloha Burgers

Vegetarian Burgers

Chipotle Cheddar Burgers

Whole Foods and Real Food Burgers

Bacon Cheeseburger Sliders

Kid-Friendly Burgers

Our Spring and Summer Grilling Meal Plans

All these meal plan resources and instructions seen in this image come with Once A Month Meals Membership!*

Build meal plans for FREE!

Create a no-credit-card-needed OAMM membership account to explore and see if OAMM is the right fit for YOU!

You’ll be able to:

search the 13,500+ freezer recipe database with hundreds of filters available.
build and save for later use up to 3 meal plans of 5 recipes each.
favorite recipes you find and want to try later or have cooked and love.

*For more information on paid vs free membership check this out.

Get started and Make a Meal Plan!

Our Meal Plans* come with:

Organized Grocery Shopping List
Prep Instructions
Step-by-step Cooking Instructions
Individual Recipe cards
Labels
Thaw sheet

*For more information on paid vs free membership check this out.

Learn how to create your own custom meal plan from these recipes using our Freezer Meal Planning Membership!

The containers above are 64 ounces and can be ordered off of Amazon. | The bags are Ziplock Quart Freezer Bags. | The instructions and labels come with Once A Month Meals Membership!

*For more information on paid vs free membership check this out.

The post 50 Freezable Burger Recipes appeared first on Once A Month Meals.

Best Backyard BBQ Tips

Once a Month Meals — Fri, 29 May 2026 14:00:00 +0000

Fire up the grill, invite the neighbors, and start sipping your favorite refreshing beverage under the shade of your favorite tree. It is time for a backyard BBQ, cookout, grilling, or whatever you call it where you’re from. Here are our favorite tips and recipes for serving hot off-the-grill goodness to your guests.

Backyard BBQ with Mini Meal Plans

Mini meal plans are a great way to stock the fridge with grill ready meals for the rest of the summer or for a large crowd. These grilling minis are also perfect for a group cooking session since they are primarily dump and go. You can also use our side dish mini and dessert minis to complement your main dishes.

Create a no-credit-card-needed OAMM membership account to explore and see if OAMM is the right fit for YOU!

You’ll be able to:

search the 13,500+ freezer recipe database with hundreds of filters available.
build and save for later use up to 3 meal plans of 5 recipes each.
favorite recipes you find and want to try later or have cooked and love.

*For more information on paid vs free membership check this out.

Freezer Burgers for the BBQ

Freeze Food on a Stick for the Grill

Tips, Tricks, and Party Ideas

Cut an onion in half and rub it over the hot grill grate with the tongs to clean and season the grill.
Use color coded cutting boards or this fancy grill station set to keep all of your food safe and sanitary.
Serve condiments in a muffin tin to avoid washing lots of little bowls. You can even put in festive liners to make clean up even easier.
Put a popsicle stick in wedges of watermelon for easy to serve and refreshing desserts or sides.
Set up yard games for kids and adults such as a sprinkler, kiddie pools, darts, corn hole, croquet, horseshoes, etc.
Keep costs down by hosting a BYOM (Bring Your Own Meat) cook out. You can set up a hot dog bar – you provide various condiments, toppings, buns, paper products, and drinks and have each guest bring a pack of dogs. Or you could have each guest cook a recipe from one of the grilling mini meal plans above and you provide, sides, desserts, etc. for everyone.
Don’t forget the OAMM trick to check the doneness of your meats!

FREE MEMBERSHIP

Create a no-credit-card-needed OAMM membership account to explore and see if OAMM is the right fit for YOU!

You’ll be able to:

search the 13,500+ freezer recipe database with hundreds of filters available.
build and save for later use up to 3 meal plans of 5 recipes each.
favorite recipes you find and want to try later or have cooked and love.

*For more information on paid vs free membership check this out.

The post Best Backyard BBQ Tips appeared first on Once A Month Meals.

10 Summer Smoothies to Refresh, Refuel, and Detox

Once a Month Meals — Thu, 28 May 2026 16:00:36 +0000

What’s not to love about smoothies? They are cool, refreshing, healthy, easy, portable, kid-friendly, and easy to freeze for later. Plus adding some greens, like mild baby spinach, is a great way to nourish and detoxify your body before the swimsuit season. Warm weather is heading our way FINALLY, so get out your blender and stock up on some frozen goodness.

Here are 10 of our favorite summer smoothies to help refresh, refuel, and detox.

1. Carrot Mango Grapefruit Smoothie

2. Raspberry Lemonade Smoothie

3. Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

4. Very Cherry Smoothie

5. Sweet and Sour Grapefruit Smoothie

6. Tangerine Dream Smoothie

7. Green Detox Smoothie

8. Paleo Strawberry Kale Coconut Smoothie

9. Wake Me Up Coffee Banana Smoothie

10. Raspberry Kiwi Smoothie

BONUS: Skinny Green Summer Smoothie

Pro Smoothie Tips!

Stock up on smoothies!

Stock the freezer with our Smoothie Recipe Collection so that you always have a quick meal or snack ready. Once A Month Meals members can create their own smoothie meal plan!

Make popsicles

Freeze any of these smoothies into a popsicle mold for a fun treat any time of the day like we did with our Orange Banana Smoothie Pops. Regan gave these molds to everyone at our Favorite Things party.

Add greens

Add a handful of greens to boost nutrition and help your body rid itself of toxins. I promise you won’t notice the taste, although it may change the color.

Make smoothie bags!

You can flash freeze ingredients and divide them into bags to be blended when you want to eat them, or you can blend all of your smoothies ahead of time and just thaw to eat.

Freeze flat!

Be sure to lay bags flat to freeze for easier storage.

Need a new blender?

If you are in the market for a new blender, our staff took home a Diamond Vortex 5-Speed Blender from Kitchen Aid at our Favorite Things party last fall – and we LOVE it.

The post 10 Summer Smoothies to Refresh, Refuel, and Detox appeared first on Once A Month Meals.

92 Summer Freezer Recipes

Tricia — Thu, 28 May 2026 14:00:43 +0000

We present you with 92 summer freezer recipes – one for each day of the season!

Freezer cooking gives you back time, but it can also help you take advantage of seasonal produce and on seasonal grocery sales. All of our meal plans are based on what you find on sale that month.

You can also use this list to create your own custom, seasonal meal plan using your Membership.

If you happened to stumble onto this post during the wrong season, check out our seasonal posts for Fall, Winter, or Spring!

Try a Freezer Meal Plan for FREE on us!

Receive a complimentary Mini Freezer Meal Plan of your choice and get started with easy freezer meals!

You’ll receive a freezer cooking meal plan with 3 recipes, plus a grocery shopping list, prep instructions, recipe cards, labels, and more!

Just remember, with a membership, you would be able to customize the recipes and serving size!