I need your help!
I have been asked to teach a class next week at a women’s enrichment meeting on meal planning, quick and easy meals, etc.
To tell you the truth I have fallen off the meal planning wagon this summer and I’m having a hard time getting back on!
I have tried so many things over the years – once a month cooking, dinner groups, Dream Dinners, etc.
I’d love to hear what you do to help make meal planning and dinner time easier! Please leave a comment below and let me know your ideas!
I’m a mom of 5 kids, ages 1-12. When I’m on my game I like to make double batch (or triple) dinners and freeze the extras. For example I’ll make 3 enchilada casseroles and freeze 2 & serve one for dinner that night. I pull out the frozen meals on busy days.
I also like things like a chicken or turkey roast and leftovers put into salads, sandwiches, etc. for the next 2 days’ meals.
When I buy chicken breasts I’ll put a bunch in a freezer zip-loc with teriyaki sauce, so it’s ready to go.
I’d love to hear what you come up with for your class! Sounds like a fun one.
http://www.simplemom.net and http://www.orgjunkie.com
Are great resources when it comes to meal planning. I need to be better about doing this too!
Ashley
I vary between planning for a week and planning for a whole month if I’m feeling ambitious. I tend to do a pasta on Monday and a take-out night on Friday, so I have those two as my anchors. With our schedule, I go for easier meals during the week more time consuming meals on the weekend. I have used the following as resources for ideas (hope the links work!)
http://familyfun.go.com/recipes/meal-planner/index.html?CMP=NL_Wkdr
http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/EverydayDinner/ShoppingListSplashPage&sa_campaign=internalad/EverydayHomePage/ShoppingListSplashPage/All_Shopping_List_Page
One thing I do to speed up my dinner prep is to cook the entire 5 or 10 lbs of hamburger when I get home from the store. I will then divide it into 1lb packages and stick it in the freezer. Then I have hamburger ready to add sauces and/or seasonings to and it speeds up dinner prep.
Leigh Anne, I print out a month-long calendar from my computer to use for dinner planning. I do plan dinners on a weekly basis. I start by filling in the ‘known’ evening plans and events. I keep a list (on excel) of (for instance) Fall Dinners. I have entrees separated by chicken, fish, beef, meatless, etc., also salads, sides, soups, breads etc. Next to the particular entree or side or whatever, I record where the recipe can be found, i.e., which cookbook and page number, recipe box—you get the idea. This way I have a lot of ideas at my fingertips without having to rack my brain.
The reason I have the list separated out by seasons is that it seems that we like to eat ‘different’ foods at ‘different’ times. My summer dinner list is very different from my winter dinner list LOL.
So I just check my Dinner list, figure out what sounds good, making sure we have variety and balance, and that it works with our schedule—then I fill in the days on my monthly calendar. From that I make a shopping list (I try to shop once/week, it cuts down on my impulse buying).
Rereading this, it seems confusing. If you have questions, just ask!
Linda
p.s. As was already mentioned, I also double up when I am prepping dinner—make several lasagnas, freezing 2 and cooking one; buy a package of 3 flank steaks at costco, marinating and freezing 2 and cooking one, etc.
I have been trying e-mealz.com and am liking it. They have it already all planned out for a week and includes a shopping list DIVIDED BY SECTION IN THE GROCERY STORE! I have been doing it for 2 weeks. You can get online and see some samples. Otherwise the services costs just 1.25 per week. I think I will do it for a few months and then just repeat the meals. They have been simple and easy to prepare. They are not gourmet but most of them are a 4/5 on my scale.
I use another online menu planner savingdinner.com My family eats it. I love that is comes with shopping lists and I’m set for the week. I switch out things (like tofu) that I can’t eat (really!) and mix up the weeks every once in a while to add back in things I really like.
I also do the ground beef trick, that way when I’m running short on time, all I need to do is defrost and reheat the meat, add the seasonings (italian, mexican, etc.) and dinner is 80% done!
I run a daycare out of my house, so I already have to plan our lunches in advance, so I take an extra couple minutes to plan our dinners. Sometimes I make a double batch for dinner and instantly freeze the leftovers to eat another night.
My sister, mother and I get together once a year and premake about 14 dinners to freeze (enchiladas, artichoke chicken, lasagna, meatloaf, meatballs, etc.) so those are easy when time is a factor.
Oh- regarding my dinner planning, I only plan out one week at a time and only 4 dinners…because I’ve found that if I go out too far, our schedules get out of line or we’re not in the mood for the item I have listed, etc. But I try to make sure I have at least one fish, one chicken and one steak dinner a week.
We recently made a list of things we haven’t eaten in a while- I’m looking forward to making those next week!!
I was in a class like this in the past and the most helpful thing I found was this great menu and grocery list handout. It helps me keep track of what I have on hand and what I need to get. I have also taken several of Robin Miller’s recipes (foodnetwork.com) and they work great. We especially like the ground turkey – starts out as meatballs, then gyros and finally soup! She has some great tips!
I’m seconding April’s post and really suggesting that you go to SavingDinner.com and check out the style and approach to what they do there. I think that in this day and age, there are several reasons why this site is so popular and hugely embraced. 1) Leanne is a registered dietician and nutritionist, giving her great credibility 2) the grocery lists are even included so that the guess work is taken out of things for people that perhaps WEREN’T mentored well growing up! 3) the food is delicious and many people don’t love to cook OR they have experienced failure and are afraid to step out again. It’s a no-brainer, guarantees success and is easy and convenient. Again, check it out! ;0)
I haven’t read the other responses, but I did see simplemom.net on there & that’s a great resource for meal planning ideas.
Speaking as a mom of only 1 small child & really only cooking for 2 adults, meal planning is quite simple for me. I used to meal plan once a week, grabbing from a “master list” of meals I knew hubbs liked (he’s a bit picky), as well as trying a new meal a few times a month. But, that eventually became a drag for me.
The last few months I’ve been meal planning for TWO weeks at a time & have found it to be much less of a drag as well as a $$-saver. We have been stretching meals out at least once a week so that one meal is eaten 2 nights in a row (yes, I know, it’s called “leftovers”). There are weeks I do that twice in a week, which means I’m cooking much less!!
But it’s saving us $$ in another way: I take my 2-week grocery list to the store & am able to purchase 2 weeks worth of dry groceries & if something isn’t on sale that first week, it usually is the next time I’m at the store.
There really are countless ways to meal plan. It’s really going to depend on what works for the individual. Some people love using “delicious” for keeping all their online meals in one spot. Others, like me, like seeing it in hard copy & digging through cookbooks & recipes. Others use online mealplanners; For me, having the week’s dinners (written down on a yellow piece of paper) in front of me every day allows me to switch things up when the unexpected visitor pops over or it’s so flipping hot that the idea of cooking reeks of takeout!!
Hi Leigh Anne!
I find surfing websites to be very time-consuming so we have a master list of “entrees” we like. On our good organized weeks, we select 4 things from the list for the week (knowing there will be leftovers twice and take-out Friday). Then we make a grocery list adding rice/pasta and vegetables and try to only go once! We regularly run out of milk though, so we end up going again for a couple of items. I find just KNOWING what to fix is the biggest burden lifter, and then knowing that we have everything we need is bonus.
My secret? I bought the book, The 6 O’Clock Scramble. It is full of recipes that are fast, healthy and kid friendly. I just pick out 6 or 7 recipes for the week, write down all my ingredients and then buy all the necessary ingredients. My husband and son have loved all the recipes that I have made from it. Here is the website for some ideas….http://thescramble.com/
Good luck with your talk!
I have a computer program – Master Cook – that contains all of my recipes plus hundreds more. On it I can post weekly menus from the recipes and it spews out grocery list from which I can delete things I already have on hand, print it and a hard copy of the recipes for the week. My other great time saver is ordering groceries from Safeway on-line. They are delivered to my kitchen, sorted by the things that go in the refrigerator and/or pantry. I store meat and poultry by serving size in microwaveable bags for easy defrost.
WOW there are some great ideas on here! I sat down a few weeks ago with my husband and we picked 7 categories: one for each day of the week. Each week when I plan what to make for the following week’s dinners, I either choose from my tried-and-true recipes, or try something new in that category (my “new recipes to try” are in folders with these same category names). In the event that I haven’t had time to really plan the week before, I choose one “Fall-back” recipe that we always have the ingredients for to eat that particular night:
Rice Sunday (Fallback is Stir Fry with Broccoli)
Pasta Monday (Fallback: Spaghetti)
Crockpot Tuesday (Beef Stew)
Mexican Wednesday (Soft Taco Bar)
Easy Oven Thursday (Frozen Pizza)
Grill Friday (Hamburgers)
Chicken Saturday (Baked Chicken Breast)
I also make 1-2 extra servings each time to eat for lunches the next day. I know it’s nothing fancy… but it’s been working pretty well for us so far!
My last child just left home for a mission!! My other 5 children are happily married and live throughout the US. Over the last 30 plus years I have tried countless ‘meal plans’. I love to cook and have always enjoyed the challenge of ‘grocery shopping’.
Different things have worked at different stages of my life. I don’t care for leftovers (luckily my husband loves them for lunch) and I don’t like frozen food. I am amazed at people that can make a menu a month in advance. How do I know what I want to eat two weeks from now!! Some people eat to live–I live to eat!
But I do know that a well stocked pantry is essential. I buy on sale and shop from my pantry. I try and have menus a few days out. I like to do some of the prep work for dinner the night before or after breakfast. If I make a salad or chop veggies it ensures a homecooked meal! I’m not a breakfast eater but I love breakfast food for dinner! I love to wander the isles of a grocery store–but not at 5 P.M. I like to read cooking magazines and blogs and am always ready to try something new–I get bored easily. I knew a lady that cooked a big pot of chili, spagetti or stew on Monday and ate it all week! I would have a difficult time with that kind of ‘meal planning’, but it worked for her!
I think cooking is a creative outlet–but I don’t mind eating at Macaroni Grill either!
I love roll-over meals. Something I can make one day, and then use the left-overs in something totally different the next day. So you’re really just making the most of your food and your time, and not just eating “left overs”. Like on my blog I have a recipe for asian bbq chicken, and then I turn the left-overs into a really good pizza. Or roasting a chicken one night and having it in soup the next…you get the idea!
I just recently started menu planning so I’ve been trying lots of new recipes from your site and the Food Network and Pioneer Woman. We used to do a lot of carryout because I wasn’t organized and didn’t plan in advance. On Sunday, I create a plan for the week and even print it out on a pretty template found at Heavenly Homemakers. I hang it on the fridge so the whole family can see it. I have a 5 year old and a 10 year old so I get them involved by letting them pick out one meal for the week that I will cook. They love “picking their meal” and I’m guaranteed they will like dinner at least once that week
I also try to spread it out and only do one pasta dish a week, one rice a week, beef only once, etc.
My greatest resource in meal planning is a very cool website called
http://www.yourhomebasedmom.com
You don’t need any help from me. You already know what to do! Have fun teaching the class! and thank you.
My daughter posted on her blog that she was having trouble coming up with good meals and healthy side dishes and asked if any of her friends or family were interested in submitting a week of menus and then she’d compile them and share with the group. Depending on the number of people that wanted to join in, each person would end up with several weeks of menus while only having to think up a single week. A menu co-op!
I read a book once that suggested making certain types of dishes on designated nights. For example: pasta on Mondays, soup and salad on Tuesdays, Family Fun on Fridays (burgers,homemade pizza, exc.)… you get the idea. This at least gives you a starting piont for what to come up with.
Hope this helps.
Oh, I am so in the same boat as you. I was doing meal planning in the beginning of the year but then summer and things just got in the way and again I am back to “I don’t know what is for Dinner?” every day which can get very stressful. So if you get any suggestions and have any advice please post on your blog.
I am interested in meal planning, but we are a family of 2 adults and one 11 month old. Where can I find good and easy recipes for two?