Meal planning is an absolute must for busy moms raising a family of healthy little eaters. By planning your dinner for the week in advance you can be sure to include everyone’s favorite dishes, avoid excess trips to the grocery store, maximize ingredients and make the most of leftovers. Planning meals in advance also saves both time and money.
Begin by making a list of meals you’re family enjoys. You can get ideas from asking family members for suggestions, flipping through cookbooks, even by looking through your grocery stores weekly advertisement for inspiration from ingredients that are on sale.
An example of a week’s worth of dinners that uses the same ingredients to achieve different results is as follows, and it’s easier than you think!
Sunday:
– Honey Grilled Chicken Breasts: -Brush chicken with a mixture of honey, olive oil, salt and pepper. Grill, bake or broil until cooked completely through. Be sure to cook even for two meals.
– Oven Roasted Potatoes: Sprinkle 1 lbs. cubed potatoes with a little oil, salt, pepper and rosemary and bake in an oven safe dish for about 45 minutes, until the inside is soft and the outside is crispy. Save half for leftovers.
– Summer Salad: Fresh Romaine lettuce, sliced tomatoes and cucumbers, broccoli florets and lemon juice, sprinkled with a little of your favorite dressing.
Monday:
Roast Beef: In an ovenproof dish, pour a can of beef brother over a roast seasoned with salt, pepper and fresh garlic. Bake until cooked to desired wellness and allow juice to redistribute before slicing to serve. Be sure to cook enough chicken for two meals.
Mashed Roasted Potatoes: Using a hand-held potato masher or a fork, mash up the heated leftover potatoes from last night’s dinner and mix in a little milk and butter until it reaches desired consistency.
Honey Glazed Carrots: Slice fresh, raw carrot into coin-sized cubes. Sprinkle with a little honey and apple juice, then season with salt and pepper, baking for about 20 minutes until soft and caramelized.
Tuesday:
Spaghetti with Turkey Meatballs: Make meatballs using your favorite recipe and substitute ground turkey for the beef. Turkey is much leaner, and has less fat, than beef and the taste is just as delicious. Serve cooked meatballs with boiled spaghetti and your favorite tomato sauce.
– Summer Salad: Fresh Romaine lettuce, sliced tomatoes and cucumbers, broccoli florets and lemon juice, sprinkled with a little of your favorite dressing.
Wednesday:
Sweet and Tangy Grilled Chicken Wraps: Using leftover Chicken from Sunday’s dinner, heat through with some additional honey and also some lemon juice. Using soft tortilla wraps, combine chicken, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers and cooked bacon into a deliciously light meal.
Homemade French Fries: Slice washed potatoes, with skin on, into think strips. In a large bowl, toss them with oil, salt, pepper and garlic powder. Spread onto a baking sheet and bake at high heat for about an hour, or until browned and crispy.
Thursday:
Stovetop Beef Stew: Cube leftover beef from Monday’s dinner and add it to a large saucepan. Pour a can of beef broth over top and begin to cook over medium-low heat. Add some chopped fresh carrots, a few cubed potatoes and a can of peas and corn. Heat until veggies are tender and beef is heated through.
Friday:
Turkey Burgers with Bacon: Season the ground turkey with salt and pepper, and the grill seasoning of your choice. Then grill or pan fry until cooked through. Serve with crispy bacon, lettuce, and tomato along with cheese if you prefer.
Pasta Salad: Break spaghetti in half and cook until al dente. Toss noodles with oil and vinegar, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, chopped tomatoes and carrots, olives and other favorite veggies.
Saturday:
BLTs with the works: Using leftover ingredients from the week, make Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato sandwiches with a kick. You can add leftover grille chicken, cucumber, salad dressing, or whatever else you may have leftovers.
Sandwiches are great way to use up what’s left in the fridge and BLTs would be a perfect end to a week of great meals. Salads and soups are also a great way to use up vegetables before they spoil, and fruit can be baked into breads, muffins, cookies and pies before it goes bad as well. It’s important to remember to maximize your ingredients by coming up a plan that includes recipes that use a small variety of ingredients to create a wide variety of meals.
