[Silvercrest79]

I came here to see if I was the only one who gets this. I try to make everything from scratch and I do good for a while, then I just get burned out.

It is so time consuming. I spend so many hours in the kitchen that I don't have the energy for anything else. I've been trying to think up a schedule that would work but I haven't figured one out yet.

What does everyone else do?

 

[caedmyn]

I'm going to try once a week cooking...my first time will be this week, so we'll see how it goes.

Have you tried doing easier things for a break every once in a while? Like, oatmeal (or oat groats/cracked oats) for breakfast, sandwiches for lunch (there are ever some fairly healthy store-bought breads out there), grilled chicken, veggies, and salad for dinner (if you're not vegetarian). Or I make casseroles for dinner that are easy--goulash, or macaroni "pizza", that sort of thing. It also helps me to do bigger batches of things to save time, like chop enough onions for several meals when I need some for one meal.

 

[babygrant]

I get the same way. Seems like I JUST finished making breakfast and I need to start making lunch already. Then it seems like I just finished making lunch and I need to start making dinner. Add a crawling clingy baby to the mix and you've got trouble.

 

[Attila the Honey]

yes, this is my biggest problem. I just get tired of every meal and snack feeling like a chore, and then I fall off the wagon in a huge way.

it's not just the cooking, but the figuring out what to cook and making sure everything is available (like beans are soaked if I want to use beans), then cooking, then cleaning.. some days it feels like as soon as I figure out one meal and get the work done it's time for the next meal and I am trapped in the kitchen for most of the day.

Ok,it's not really as bad as all that - it just feels that way sometimes!

 

[VikingKvinna]

Yup. I love to cook/plan meals/prepare food but sometimes I feel guilty that I am spending so much time in the kitchen. I think I do it as avoidance -- "Oh, I have to make dinner! I can't possibly vacuum today too!" But lately, in the heat, I've been slacking off. Using up the stuff in the freezer, not baking anything, living on easy meals, letting DP fend for himself, and buying some stuff (like bread, which in cooler times I like to make myself).

 

[annethcz]

I do most of my baking once a month. Yesterday I did a good chunk of my baking for the month of August. I made 12 dozen muffins and 12 loaves of bread, most of which are in the freezer now. Muffins are for breakfast or snacks, and we eat a fair number of sandwiches for lunch and dinner.

It doesn't solve the problem, but it helps to do it all at once and get it over with.

 

[holyhelianthus]

i am so right there with you! we're vegan so pretty much HAVE to cook from scratch! so it's like this giant weight. i'm going to start feezing pizza dough and bread dough. also, making muffins for the weeks and refridgerating the mix. i quit even trying to make vegetable stock! now i just buy it and add water to it. i have also reserved big time consuming meals for the weeknds when DH is home and there is some sort of order in the house and i'm not making sheppherd's pie whilst wearing Maybe in the sling and holding the 2 year old Lily on my hip.

:

 

[LoveBeads]

You are not alone. When I feel this way I give myself a major break and order pizza (I eat dairy). I may even do it for a few days, or make sandwiches for dinner or scrambled eggs.

Everyone needs to get the old batteries charged. After a few days off, I usually feel better about cooking.

Oh - I also try to triple my recipes and freeze them so I won't have to cook every single night.

 

[chiro_kristin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by LoveBeads You are not alone. When I feel this way I give myself a major break and order pizza (I eat dairy). I may even do it for a few days, or make sandwiches for dinner or scrambled eggs. Everyone needs to get the old batteries charged. After a few days off, I usually feel better about cooking. Oh - I also try to triple my recipes and freeze them so I won't have to cook every single night.

Amen to all of that.
But yes, I find that tripling recipes works really well for us.

 

[bright]

I tend to make a lot of easier-to-put-together recipes. Like omelettes, grilled veggies, yogourt smoothies. And I make large batches of the things that take longer, like three days worth of chili or soup, or enough veggie burgers to freeze.

 

[Attila the Honey]

Reading this I am coming to realize alot of my problem might be my lack of freezer space... if I had the space to freeze meals and dough then would definitely be less of a chore.