meal planning?
so, maybe i'm the last one on the planet, but i really think ryan & i need to start meal planning. way too many times we've been ready to cook and not had any idea what to make OR we bought things at the grocery only to let them go to waste. i loovvee cooking, but with our schedules, i can't go to the grocery every other day.
yesterday, i went through some cookbooks and planned out this week (phew), but i'm wondering if it'd be easier to do a whole month in one swoop and then have ingredient lists by week? (then repeat that month every month and hope no one minds having the same thing the third tuesday every month! :) i know y'all have some great advice out there, help! we're also joining this local co-op that looks a-mazing!
p.s. love how simple this image is (& we just decided to paint a tiny wall in our kitchen in chalkboard paint!)
yum Mon, October 25, 2010 at 3:04 PM
Reader Comments (9)
My trick is keeping a well-stocked kitchen and prepping meals on Sunday. Sundays, I aim to make bread and a dessert; I wash and cut up a head of lettuce for salads during the week; I also make a pot of soup/stew/chili. I put half of it in the freezer in meal-sized containers. By cooking meals where I can double the recipe and put half in the freezer for a later date, I can reduce the amount of time I have to spend cooking during the week and add variety (so we aren't eating leftovers).
Share your meals for the week!
(also, can't wait to see the chalkboard paint!)
i just love meal planning. taking a bit of time on a sunday makes the rest of the week simple & efficient. since getting married, i've loved doing the weekly plan. (even if some nights are super-simple!) i find we have less waste, less trips to the store, and even save money!
all of these are great comment! as you know, that was the "biggest adjustment" for us after getting married. once i discovered meal planning, my life became insanely easier. sometimes you will swap monday for wednesday or decide to do take out on tuesday so you cook friday instead but find whatever works best for you and hopefully it will make your life easier too!
we are joining a CSA too, so looking forward to hearing your experiences with it!
I've been planning our meals for over a year now and I have a love/ hate relationship with it.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE it because it takes most of the guess work out of what to make for dinner on any given night. I HATE HATE HATE it because sometimes I feel like we get into a rut of eating the same stuff over and over and I get bored (so does B).
I have done both weekly planning and monthly planning and can't tell you what I like better. Right now I plan weekly and go shopping on Sundays which seems to be working well so far.
Good luck! It has been a lifesaver for the most part!
Meal-planning = an essential part of my week and a simple joy. I too pick out a few recipes before I hit the grocery (which i try to limit to every 8 - 10 days) so that I'm prepared for the week. 1 or 2 soups, a couple of entrees, then go-to snack and lunch items. I've been really into making my healthy food options very accessible and convenient. For instance, chopping up bell peppers right after i get them and putting them in sealed containers so that I can grab a couple on the go. And we always chop up our lettuce and drain it immediately, putting it in sealed ziplock bags. That way, salads are quick and easy. I just love over-organizing my food. Thanks for sharing!
I don't attempt meal planning because I'm no where near cooking 4 or so nights a week (grrr, law school), which is the point at which economies of scale make it worthwhile, I think. But, when I do cook, I find it helpful to prepare things that can be "extended" into several, different meals. For example, make a big pot of marinara sauce and have spaghetti then make a lasagna to freeze. Roast a chicken (or two), and have roasted chicken and vegetables for dinner, shred the chicken for salads later in the week, and save the carcasses in the freezer for soup later.
i'm a med student, so i'm by far not cooking for two people or anything as intense as that. however, i'm big on eating healthy, quick meals to keep me fueled throughout the week. thats why i plan six varied meals (once a week we do a huge potluck dinner), using the same groups of food since i can't possibly eat a whole broccoli or bag of brussel sprouts in a day. i do groceries once a week since i brown bag lunches and eat one of two things for breakfast. i tend to do a lot of planning, list making and organizing in general though so this just comes naturally. if i may say so, it sounds like you and your husband will work out what works best for you in no time!
I think I'm the only person that reads this blog that is totally exhausted thinking about meal planning even though usually by the time my husband and I are both home, it's 7:30 or 8:00 and we are in the kitchen, starving, saying "What should we make?". My dream in life is that one day he will say...cereal.