Menu Plan Monday – May 4 Edition

I can’t believe it’s time for Menu Plan Monday already!  Where did last week go?

Anyway… here’s my Menu Plan Monday for the week:

Monday – steak, stuffed pasta shells, salad

Tuesday – spicy beef sandwiches, french fries

Wednesday – leftovers! we (still) have tons of stuff in the freezer, so it will be a buffet leftover night

Thursday – salad, grilled chicken breasts, fresh green beans

Friday – pizza (still haven’t gotten the Papa Murphy’s we’ve been craving)

Saturday – ribs on the grill, corn on the cob, baked beans

Sunday – meatloaf, mashed potatoes, green beans, rolls (my favorite Sunday night dinner)

For more menu planning ideas, head over to Meal Plan Monday. Have a great week!

Make Meal Planning Fun

Meal planning can help you save time, money and energy, but sometimes it’s hard to come up with a fresh new meal plan each week.

One way to keep the meals fresh and fun is to get the kids involved.  Ask your kids what some of their top choices are for dinner for the week and choose one or two.  Your kids will be happy because they’re getting some of their favorites and you’re happy because you’ve got some dinner ideas for the week.

Another idea to make meal planning fun is to have theme nights or theme dinners.  Have a Mexican night one week with all the fixin’s for a taco bar or burrito bar, and have a Chinese “take-in” night the next week where you prepare your own stir fry at home.  You can make these nights even more fun by decorating or using fun plates for your theme nights, or including entertainment such as a movie or book that fits your theme for the night.

Although the point of meal planning is to make dinner easy, it helps to shake things up and plan some fun in your menus as well.  Have fun!

Menu Plan Monday – April 27 Edition

Here’s my Menu Plan Monday for the week…

Hubby has been itching to do some grilling, so I’ll let him cook a couple of nights this week

Here’s the menu plan for this week:

Monday – tacos, spanish rice and refried beans

Tuesday – chicken on the grill, will probably do a whole chicken and have mashed potatoes, green beans and some type of bread to go with

Wednesday – leftovers!  we have tons of stuff in the freezer, so it will be a buffet leftover night

Thursday – steak (got on sale last week and froze several), potatoe casserole, salad

Friday – pizza (from Papa Murphy’s – didn’t get it last week, so going to try again this week)

Saturday – ribs on the grill

Sunday – not sure yet, will probably do meatloaf or maybe spicy beef sandwiches from the slow cooker

For more menu planning ideas, head over to Meal Plan Monday. Have a great week!

Tired of Mealtime Frustration?

Menu Plan Monday

Here’s my Menu Plan Monday for the week…

Now that tax season is over, I’m looking forward to really cooking again (did a lot of carry out and easy menus during tax season).

Anyway, here’s the menu for this week:

Monday – shake-n-bake pork chops, au gratin potatoes, green beans, rolls

Tuesday – chicken thighs on the grill, baked potato, home made mac-n-cheese, salad

Wednesday – will use leftover chicken from Tuesday to make chicken tacos or chicken enchiladas

Thursday – steak (got on sale last week and froze several), home made mashed potatoes potatoes, fancy green beans (with bacon and onion)

Friday – pizza (hubby’s been craving Papa Murphy’s)

Saturday – stuffed pasta shells, salad and garlic bread (yum!)

Sunday – dh is smoking some ribs on the big green egg (a ceramic grill that he can’t live without)

For more menu plans, head over to Meal Plan Monday.  Have a great week!

Meal Planning Made Tax Season Almost Bearable

Those of you who know me know that I am a tax professional who prepares taxes for individuals and small businesses.  This tax season was one of the longest, toughest tax seasons I’ve had in a long time…

But, this was the first year that I was doing meal planning on a regular basis, and oh my goodness, was it a huge help!

Getting dinner prepared was no big deal this tax season because I already knew what I was going to make and I had everything on hand to do it.  Hubby even helped by getting dinner ready a few times!

I have to say we cheated and ordered out a few times, but even that was planned ahead of time, so it was no big deal.

I knew meal planning was a life saver before, but this tax season has me convinced about the benefits of meal planning all over again.  Whew!

3 Planning Lists to Organize Your Meals

3 Planning Lists to Organize Your Meals
By O Quinn

With just three checklists you can bring your meal scrambling days to an end and serve your family nutritious delicious dinners.

1. Grocery Shopping List:

With a grocery shopping list you are less likely to stray and buy things that might catch your eye. Grocery shopping lists keep you on task and that saves you money.  You won’t buy what is not on your list. Your grocery list should sit in a prominent place all week. A place where all the members of your family can see it and access. As you notice things needing to be replaced add to the list. When you get to your menu planning ingredients add them to the list.

2. Pantry List:

With a pantry list you know what ingredients you have in the house. If you have guests drop by or need to make a last minute meal knowing what you have on hand saves a lot of time and trouble.  To use a pantry list have a chart of the food items you use on a regular basis in your home. Have a slot next to those items. In each slot mark how many of that item you have on hand. If none then you know you need to add that item to your grocery list.

3. Meal Planning List:

Meal planning saves time and money. With a meal planning list you don’t have to think about dinner, just do it. Your groceries have already been purchased from your time and money saving grocery list so you know what you’re eating for dinner. Just follow the recipe and you have a great home cooked meal your family will love.  To use a meal planning list get a piece of paper.  List your days of the week in a column and then make three more columns next to that.  The three columns are for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Use each column to write in what recipe you will serve on that day at that time.  Some people omit the breakfast and lunch because the dinner hour is the big worry. That’s okay too. On the day you will be serving your meal refer to the list and you will know if you need to thaw any meats or prepare any items in advance.

For complete checklists for home and life visit Household Notes and
for information on organizing your home visit Homemaking Organized.

The Advantages of Planning Your Meals Ahead

By O Quinn

Do you come home from the office tired and wishing you didn’t have to think about dinner? Are you home all day with little ones and the last thing you want to do when they go down for a nap is get busy in the kitchen? Do you open the fridge ready to come up with a good meal only to find you need to run to the grocery store because you’re out of an ingredient. or two?

There is a remedy for all of this. By planning your meals in advance you can eliminate the last minute rush, the stress of indecision, and free up more time for your family.

Plan your menu:  Plan your meals at least a week in advance.   Browse your local grocery store circular for what is on sale.  Poll your family members for a favorite dish they would like to have or subscribe to a meal planning menu mailer and have the recipes come to you.

Organize your Preparation:  Now just because you have the recipes and even the ingredients don’t think you can just sit back and all will be done.  To maximize this meal planning you should do a little reading ahead and maybe even a little before hand preparation.  Chop onions and freeze them.  See which meats need to be marinated. Maybe you can make a crust or bread dough on a slow day instead of waiting until the day you will serve the dish.

Keep track of favorites:  A great meal feels like a pat on the back.  Make sure you make note of which recipes are keepers.  Have a meal planning notebook that you write them into or type them into your recipe software.  This will help you with meal planning in the future.   After a while all you will have are winning meals!

O Quinn is a work at home mom likes to find ways to automate and simplify the homemaking process while still obtaining excellent results. Visit Meal Planning for more information on planning your dinners in advance.

Menu Plan Monday

Here’s my Menu Plan Monday for the week…

I started a new job this week, so this week’s menu is going to be super easy while I get used to my new schedule.

Monday – chicken enchilada casserole (will post recipe soon)

Tuesday – shake-n-bake pork chops, au gratin potatoes, green beans, rolls

Wednesday – leftovers

Thursday – steak (got on sale last week and froze several), baked potatoes

Friday – pizza

Saturday – Chili or red beans and rice, something slow cooked for sure

Sunday – I’m sure dh will want to grill, so probably chicken or ribs

For more menu plans, head over to Meal Plan Monday.  Have a great week!

Menu Plan Monday – Feb 2

Here’s my Menu Plan Monday for the week…

Our fridge is pretty stocked, even without going to the grocery store last week, so I’m going to try to use up items we already have for this week’s menu.

Monday – pasta sausage bake (dh bought some Italian sausage for the super bowl, but we didn’t use it, so I’m going to try a new recipe instead)

Tuesday – mexican style chicken breasts, spanish rice, salad (didn’t make this last week, so it’s on the menu again this week)

Wednesday – pork chops and three-cheese potatoes

Thursday – tilapia, mac & cheese, salad

Friday – chili dogs and french fries

Saturday – red beans and rice (another dish from last week that I didn’t get around to, but I’m craving it now!)

Sunday – ??? will probably grill chicken or steak

For more menu plans, head over to Meal Plan Monday.  Have a great week!

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