Share your January 2014 Meal Plans!
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Tonight we're doing grilled pork chops, saute baby Bok choy and rice pilaf.
Hard to meal plan for the week since BIL's girls are staying with us so lots of opinion to consider....
Haha BIL's girls not my DH. I didn't suddenly become a step-mom.
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Ok, here we go, a few disclosures before we begin:
Tues/Thurs are my long commute days, so we have prearranged to eat dinner at my parents house. I cook a larger meal on Sunday and plan leftovers for Monday. I have left Staurdays as TBD because we usually have people over, so let's see how it works out this month. I pick any of these dinners on any day of the month.
1 out
2 dinner at my parents (abbreviation DMP)
3 Noodle bowls
4 TBD
5 Green Chile Pork Tacos
6 leftovers
7 DMP
8 Grilled panini, baked sweet potato fries
9 DMP
10 Pizza
11 TBD
12 Stuffed flank steak, roasted root veggies
13 leftovers
14 DMP
15 Channa Masala with Naan
16 DMP
17 Veggie and bean soup
18 TBD
19 Baked whole chicken, brussels sprouts, rice
20 Leftovers
21 DMP
22Shrimp pasta
23 DMP
24 Pizza
25 TBD
26 pork tenderloin with mexican spices, black bean salad, cheddar polenta
27 leftovers
28 DMP
29 Pan seared chicken, orzo, string beans
30 DMP
31 Chicken cutlets, salad -
@looch: Thanks for starting this! I have only done this weeks so far but we are having:
(most of these will be served with steamed veggies or a salad-- I hate veggies so I never get too elaborate)Mon- Baked lemon pasta made with tortellini http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/05/baked-lemon-pasta/
Tues- Raclette (similar to fondue)
Wed- Stone crabs with potato dish maybe dauphinoise
Thursday- just me so probably left overs
Friday- Crockpot pulled pork (recipe is new to me) http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/12/03/recipe-best-pulled-pork-crock-pot/#more-12711
Saturday- out to dinner
Sunday-Ham and Cheese Pretzel Calzones (I will freeze some for the future too)
http://www.tablespoon.com/recipes/ham-cheddar-stuffed-pretzel-calzones/133a0bcc-2f68-4601-bce6-7228d834c976?_szp=109926&_szi=23 -
@Cole: tell me how you do your raclette...with the grill, or with the large wheel of cheese? And where do you find the cheese you use?
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@looch: Wow, you are on top of things! I realize looking over my own plan that we are going to wind up adjusting because several dishes will make plenty of leftovers but at least we have a plan to start with. It is smart of you to just plan on leftovers.
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@looch: We have a grill for it and Trader Joe's and Whole Foods both sell raclette cheese so I grab it from one of those two places. The stuff from WF is better but the TJ is presliced which makes it a really simple meal since it is just opening packages then.
We have done it with cheddar too which is far from traditional but super delicious!
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@Cole: Thanks for the heads up! I totally forgot about raclette and fondue (which is kind of a sin because my husband is Swiss). I wanted to get a raclette grill, but I had no idea where to get the cheese in the states, so I've been holding off until now!
Those pretzel calzones are on my list of recipes to try!
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I only plan for a week at a time.
S- hot dogs, potato salad, veggies and dip, chips
M- steak, steamed broccoli, Lima beans
T- salad with grilled chicken and oranges
W- stuffed bell peppers, sautéed green beans
Th- baked salmon, brussel sprouts, peas
F- spaghettiI spent $110 at the grocery store this week for all the meals. That included a bottle of champagne for NYE and a few household items.
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I tend to shop and meal plan in two-week batches, and rely a lot on leftovers. I don't decide ahead of time which night I make which - it all depends on what happens during the day and how much I feel like cooking when I get home. Here goes:
Vegetarian chili + cornbread (made 6 servings last night and will eat for lunch a few times this week)
Lemon pasta with sausage and arugula
Chicken picatta with wild rice and salad
Whole roast chicken with salad/vegetable and rice pilaf
Arugula salads with leftover chicken, shaved parmesan, and cranberries
Homemade pizza or calzones with sausage, red bell pepper, and spinach
Chicken fajitas (uses leftover ingredients from the chili)
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We use a meal plan service and the meal plan comes out weekly (the Friday before the week). I also have access to two years' archives, so if the particular week doesn't appeal to me, I can flip back and see what was planned a year or two ago. We usually eat leftovers for lunch the next day.
This weeks:
M - Foil wrapped chicken and veggies with rice
T - Mexican Shrimp with bean salsa
W - Sausage Radish Bake with sweet potatoes
Th - Chicken Broccoli with soft noodles
F - Mushroom ChiliThe estimated cost for this week's dinners is $76.50
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M - Chicken and wild rice stew, salad (slow cooker)
T - Going to friend's house for NYE, bringing a kale Brussels sprouts salad (it is REALLY good!) and a dessert
W - Salmon, Israeli cous cous with carrots and roasted kale chips
Th - BBQ pulled pork, sandwiches and baked beans (both slow cooker) and roasted broccoli
F - Quinoa cakes, roasted Brussels sprouts and carrots
S - DH and I are leaving LO (7 months) for the first time overnight while we stay in a B&B-romantic dinner out! -
@looch: you are on it! Tell me more about your noodle bowls? Brothy? Meat?
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@autumnlove: I have to be, with this ridic schedule. If I don't meal plan, we eat crap!
For the noodle bowls, I typically do brothy. I use home made chicken stock, cook udon or soba noodles in them, with a few baby bok choy, sliced scallions and some kind of protein (I like pork a lot). Sometimes I season with just Hoisin sauce, which I know is the equivalent of ketchup but I don't have a good Asian supermarket very close to me.
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@looch: It sounds really good!
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@maybebaby: Ohhh! Do you have the kale and brussels sprouts recipe? That sound amazing!
We only plan a week out at a time, so here's this week's plan:
M - Homemade pizza
T - Going to SILs for NYE
W - Chicken lentil soup
T - Black bean and butternut squash enchiladas
F - Eat out
S - Pork chops, tater tots, broccoli
S - One pot pasta with ground turkey -
I only plan for a week at time as well:
M-Flank steak with garlic potatoes and Brussels sprouts
T-Chicken Pot Pie
W- Out to dinner we do this every year on New Yeats
day!
TH-Spaghetti with vodka sauce and turkey meatballs
F-Chicken Caesar Salad
S-Eggplant roast with rice
S-TBD MIL's birthday
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@fussygal: one pot pasta?? I am curious
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@FaithFertility: It's so yummy and easy. Anything that only dirties one pot is A-OK in my book!
http://camillestyles.com/food-2/in-the-kitchen-with-lisa-thiele/
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This thread is seriously inspiring! I may have to try this out!
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My goal tomorrow is to meal plan for the month!
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@looch: Wow! That's amazing! I've only been able to plan a week in advance....which I haven't done since last December.
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@fussygal: my LO loves one pot pasta!
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@autumnlove: The flavors meld together so well - YUM!
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@fussygal: that looks awesome!
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I usually do 1 week at a time!
Tonight (NYE): beef stew with sweet potatoes in the crock pot
1/1: crock pot balsamic chicken, sweet potatoes (gotta use 'em up)
1/2: cheese tortellini soup with spinach and Italian sausage (using frozen tortellini and precooked light sausage)
1/3 Fri: probably take out (this is usually our take out night)
1/4: red beans and rice with sausage (crock pot!)
1/5: Italian oven baked chicken
Mon 1/6: leftovers from the weekend (back to work!)... gotta plan for next week!
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I also do a weekly plan:
Monday: Crispy onion chicken with zucchini and squash
Tuesday (NYE): Shrimp cocktail, filet mignon, seared scallops, mashed potatoes, and asparagus
Wednesday: Chicken & brown rice with broccoli
Thursday: Turkey meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and broccoli
Friday: Going out to eat
Saturday: Spaghetti
Sunday: Pot roast -
@Grace: I actually can do up to 6 weeks in advance, I have a "system" I devised when I was still on maternity leave. The only reason why I don't use that system now is because it involves a 6 week rolling plan that changes the main category every day.
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@fussygal: YES! Seriously, I am obsessed with it and every time I bring it to a party people ask for the recipe. Let me know if you make it! http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Kale-Brussels-Sprout-Salad-368295
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Love this thread! Making it a goal to get better at meal planning healthy meals. Easy usually wins though, need to work on that!
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@TemperanceBrennan: can you tell me more about this meal planning service that you're using?
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@looch: We ate noodle bowls for lunch! I forgot the bok choy!
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@looch:
It's called The Fresh 20. http://www.thefresh20.com/
It's $5/month, less if you buy a year at a time, and they offer half off on Black Friday (when I joined in 2012). You get a log-in to their page and print PDFs of the meal plans each week.The idea is that you only have to buy 20 fresh ingredients each week and you use up almost everything you purchase. There is also a list of "pantry staples" like spices, whole wheat flour, olive oil, that aren't counted in the 20 ingredients for the week.
It focuses on mostly clean eating and no pre-packaged foods. The meals are really balanced and she lists the nutrition information for everything.
There two different meal plans to choose from: classic (what I have), and vegetarian (with vegan modification suggestions) The classic usually has four meat-centered meals and one veggie meal per week. They also have 16-week one time purchase plans for dairy-free, gluten-free, and kosher.
She adds a "prep guide" so if you have time before the week to prep food (chop veggies, make marinades, etc) it makes cooking dinner faster. On average, meals take us about 30-40 minutes to make. She purposefully plans faster meals on certain days of the week, so you can change around the schedule based on your needs.
I would say 90% of the meals we make are fantastic and we've never had a bad meal.
Sorry to go on and on, I just really love that we don't have to think about what to make for dinner anymore. I don't work for them or anything, just a happy customer.
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@TemperanceBrennan: Thanks for the reply! I have to admit, it appeals to me on the knowing what to eat and no waste fronts.
Cooking isn't a huge deal for me, it's knowing what to buy at the store, then organizing the prep work. I hate to admit this, but I am not a big fan of the crockpot for things other than pulled pork or soup (saucy meat doesn't appeal to me, I have to force it down) and I feel like the weeknight meals have potential to fall into canned soup territory (which is fine once in a while, YKWIM).
I am going to look more into the service, so thanks again.
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@looch: It was the same reasons for us. I like to cook and DH is enjoying learning how to cook more. It's also fun to just be in the kitchen together. I'm not much of a crock pot person either (unless it is meatballs or queso for football sunday).
We also wanted to broaden our palates and learn how to cook different food because we would fall in the rut of making the same foods over and over again.
The savings in wasted food more than covers the fee for the meal plan and I like how it is a small start-up business run by a woman, her husband, and 5 or 6 other employees.
If you want to wall me, I can send you a example week. -
How's everyone doing with their plans vs actual so far?
I am SHOCKED that we're actually sticking to our plan and I have the ingredients for the next dinners in the house, which is usually one of my biggest challenges.
The only thing I forgot to do was to get the ingredients together for the no knead bread, which is a bummer, because tonight we are supposed to have grilled panini! Oh well, I have some bread in the freezer we can use.
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@fussygal: made that one pot past last night and it was soo yummy! Thanks for the recipe!
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@MrsH: Oh so glad you liked it! I haven't made it in a while and should probably do it soon
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@maybebaby: I actually forgot that I made the salad, too. I had it for lunch for a few days (DH won't touch brussels sprouts!) and it was sooo good. I added in some dried cranberries, too. Yum!
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