Aug 29 | Menu Planning
Well, we’re easing into this whole menu planning thing again, right? Good, because last week’s menu nearly went out the window with unplanned dinner options. We were invited to some friend’s for dinner one night, my Mother in Law took us out another night, and my husband was gone one night for soccer so I invited us over to my parents for dinner. 😉
So on this week’s menu, you’ll see a few repeats from last week because I still have the ingredients on hand to make the meals we skipped. Let’s hope we do better, but I find there are at least one or two unplanned events that happen on a regular basis!
Here’s the plan for August 29 – September 4, 2016:
Breakfasts:
Lunches:
- Leftovers
- Chicken noodle soup (in the freezer)
- Grilled Cheese
- I’m doing the PowerBowl Challenge from Healthy Habits Happy Moms, Sienna will eat the above mentioned.
Dinner:
Monday: Cashew Chicken (from Good Cheap Eats Dinner in 30 Minutes), steamed veggies
Tuesday: Perogies and Sausage, peas & corn
Wednesday: Snack party plate (crackers, cheese, fruit, veggies, scrambled eggs)
Thursday: Chicken Skewers with Peanut sauce, tossed salad, corn
Friday: Pizza (either this dough recipe or on Pita bread with pepperoni or ham)
Saturday: Out to Eat
Sunday: Dinner at my parents
I’d love to know, what’s on your menu this week?
Aug 22 | Menu Planning
Well, wouldn’t you know it, but actually having a written down menu plan actually gets dinner on the table? My husband was quite pleased he had some decent meals with leftovers to take for lunch the next day! I think I went into survival/lazy mode after baby Adelyn was born. That worked for a bit because I had a whole bunch of freezer meals to go through. However, the supply ended and I just didn’t get back into menu planning. I’m feeling much more sane now that I know what we will be eating everyday.
One dinner from last week didn’t get made because my husband ended up having last minute plans and took Sienna with him so I made a smoothie for myself.
Here’s the plan for August 22 – 28 2016:
Breakfasts:
Lunches:
- Leftovers
- Chicken noodle soup (in the freezer)
- Grilled Cheese
- I’m doing the PowerBowl Challenge from Healthy Habits Happy Moms, Sienna will eat the above mentioned.
Dinner:
Monday: Cashew Chicken (from Good Cheap Eats Dinner in 30 Minutes), steamed veggies
Tuesday: Sausage and potato bake
Wednesday: Fettucinne Alfredo, Caesar salad
Thursday: Chicken Skewers with Peanut sauce, tossed salad, corn
Friday: Pizza (either this dough recipe or on Pita bread with pepperoni or ham)
Saturday: Out to Eat
Sunday: Dinner at my parents
I’d love to know, what’s on your menu this week?
Aug 15 | Menu Planning
You know when you go on and on about how good something is because it saves you money and makes things run smoother? Menu planning is one of those things that I think makes life a whole lot easier. And well, there hasn’t been much menu planning going on around these parts lately. I can blame the new baby and make all sorts of excuses, but really, meal time is a mess around here! Leftovers are being thrown away far too often, we’re eating out more often than we should be and there’s just a general “blah” feeling around dinner time.
Since so many of you mentioned in the recent Simply Frugal survey that you would like to see menu plans again, I thought I’d start doing them again. I used to post our weekly menu plans each Monday back in the “olden days” of Simply Frugal. Time to revive them!
It actually brings me to a happy place when I plan out our menus. I’m saving money because I’m telling our grocery money where to go instead of spending too much on a whole lot of “nothing”. Plus, there’s a lot less scrambling around 5pm because I’ve already got dinner under control.
I’m embarrassed to admit, but I’ve even put our menu planning on autopilot and I still can’t seem to get it together to have one of those meals prepared.
Enough I say! Time to get meal time under control again. Starting today and each following Monday you will see a weekly menu plan from me featuring easy, frugal meals.
Here’s the plan for August 15 – 21, 2016:
Breakfasts:
Lunches:
- Leftovers
- Egg sandwiches
- Grilled Cheese
Dinner:
Monday: Pesto pasta with carrots
Tuesday: Chicken Skewers with Peanut sauce, tossed salad, corn
Wednesday: Hamburgers, watermelon/cantaloupe
Thursday: Tacos
Friday: Pizza (either this dough recipe or on Pita bread with pepperoni or ham)
Saturday: Out to Eat
Sunday: Snack Party Plate (fruit, crackers, cheese, veggies, back bacon)
I’d love to know, what’s on your menu this week?
Feb 29 | Menu Planning
Having a planned menu each week is a lifesaver for me. I find that on the weeks I fail to plan, we eat out more often or I’m grabbing something super simple from the freezer (Pizza? Premade appies?). This results in higher than normal spending and not so healthy eating. (Though, I’m all about giving myself grace and being mostly okay with weeks like that when it’s not our normal.) So, this week:
I’m Wondering: What are your menu planning challenges? What keeps you from implementing or succeeding at menu planning in your home?
Feb 8 | Menu Planning
As I’ve mentioned before, February is fill the freezer month in anticipation of the new babe due to arrive next month. While I’ve compiled a list of meals to make, I’d love to know what others enjoy freezing (and eating)!
I’m Wondering: What are your favourite tried and true freezer meals? What are some things that always turn out and taste great after they’ve been frozen for a while?
Feb 3 | Menu Planning
The time is quickly approaching for our new baby’s arrival! Baby is due to arrive around the middle of March so I’ve dubbed the month of February as “Fill the Freezer February”. Clever, right? 😛 Last month during the January Declutterathon, I made a bit of room in our freezers so I can fill it up with plenty of freezer meals to keep us well nourished for a while.
Preparing meals isn’t one of my favourite things to do at the best of times, so I know I have to make it as easy as possible for myself once the baby is born. I want to avoid as much eating out as possible but I also want well rounded meals.
So today, I present to you, Fill the Freezer February with my Ultimate Before Baby Freezer Cooking List! My plan of attack is to make the meals I have picked throughout the entire month of February. I want to avoid a big one day cooking session because my body is just not handling extra standing as well these days. Once I create the meal, I will do a post for you with a photo and the recipe. How does that sound?
Whether or not you have a new addition arriving in your family, I’d love for you to join me. After all, in the long run, freezer cooking can be a great money and time saver.
If you’d like to join me, today I will provide my list of meals and snacks I plan on making plus, a free downloadable Ultimate Freezer Cooking pack. The pack includes a grocery list, recipes and labels!
Here’s what I have planned to fill my freezer. All recipes will be included in the Freezer cooking Pack unless otherwise noted:
Breakfasts
- Waffles (1 batch)
- French Toast (1 loaf)
- Maple Oatmeal packets
Lunches:
- Chicken Noodle Soup (2 containers)
- Cream of chicken soup (1 container)
- Hamburger soup (1 container)
Dinners:
Snacks:
That list should give us over 30 meals, taking care of breakfast, lunch and dinner for a while. Plus, there are quite a few snacks. Since I am not making everything in one day, I didn’t have a budget in mind, because I will pick things up while they are on sale with my regular grocery shopping.
Get the downloadable Ultimate Freezer Cooking pack here.
Also, I bought a set of these Hands-Free baggy racks. They are so handy!! The best purchase you can make if you want to up your freezer cooking game.
I’d love to know what your favourite freezer meals are. Let me know in the comments!
