Menu Monday Jan 4-10

Raise your hand if you hate meal planning.


Or is it the grocery shopping that you hate more?


What works best is having a flexible meal plan for a week.  What happens if your SO works late and misses dinner, or one of the kids has sports or an event at school?  Try to plan 3 solid meals with room to move them around and then have staple meals that you can throw in as needed.


I try to grocery shop every 2 weeks with a stop in between for milk or bread.  I have found that when I plan the week we spend less money and aren't tempted to just get take out.

Buy perishable fruits and veggies during the large grocery trip and use within the first week.  When keeping things on hand, frozen vegetables are better than canned.  Stock up when there is a sale and you will have plenty of veggies for the weeks you don't grocery shop.


Be sure to click the hyperlinks for recipes.  Not all are mine and I am sure to link to the appropriate site(s).


My menu for this week I have planned:

Monday:
Spaghetti and Homemade Turkey Meatballs and Roasted Brussel Spouts (Recipe for meatballs to come...)

*I often roast brussel sprouts in the winter and do something similar to this recipe.  I linked it for you to use and modify as you wish verses typing up something similar.

Tuesday:
Crock Pot Beef Tips and Gravy (Recipe)

Wednesday:
Baked Marinated Garlic Chicken, Yellow Rice, and Asparagus

Thursday:
Leftovers - Mix it up with whatever is left over.  Make hash with leftover beef tips or make fried rice with leftover rice and chicken.  Be creative or just eat them the same way they were.

Friday:
Homemade Pizza - buy pizza dough, cheese, and sauce and keep in the freezer until ready to use (thaw overnight the night before) - top with peppers, onions, or any other fave toppings.

Saturday:
Grill night - Filet and Ribeye, Baked Sweet Potatoes, Grilled Zucchini

Sunday:
Roasted Turkey Breast (before you think this is crazy and an all day cooking event - I use Shadybrook Farms marinated turkey breasts), Cranberry Relish, Rosemary Roasted Baby Potatoes

*Erin's Note: Amy will be doing all the food-stuff on our blog. She is an amazing, trained culinary professional, having attended school in NYC. Cooking is her passion. But being a working mom with a husband who is away a lot, and having a BFF (me) who is not so great at cooking, she's all about making easy, good meals. She gets it. Trust me.