Panko salmon, brown rice, sweet potato fries, and zucchini wedges.
On the first day of kindergarten, I was determined to be a super mom and make my dinner while Mazen was in school so we could relax and spend time together that afternoon. But since I’d had little working time the previous week, I was so behind on tasks that they took over my day and all that I had accomplished by 5:00 was taking the salmon out of the freezer to thaw in the fridge that morning. (Note: It was still partially frozen when I was ready to cook it.) It was a total dinnertime preparation fail, and if you missed it, you can see all the videos that I saved in Instagram Stories by clicking on the dinnertime circle in my Insta profile.
I think the combination of craving routines at the end of summer and having a baby on the way has me itching for a stricter schedule so that cooking, dinner, bath, and bedtime routine go as smoothly as possible. My goal is dinner at 6pm sharp, Mazen’s bath/shower around 6:45 and bedtime stories and tucking in (which is often a process) from 7-7:30ish. On this particular night, we didn’t sit down to dinner until 6:45 and he wasn’t in bed until 8.
Breakfasts and lunches have never been a problem for me. I have a bunch of regulars that I create in less than 10 minutes, and most are healthy and made from real food. I’m also usually eating lunch alone, so that means I’m only preparing something for myself.
Breakfasts: oatmeal, overnight oats, pancakes, eggs and toast, power toast, yogurt bowl, cereal, smoothies
Lunches: salads with protein, sandwich, leftovers, chips, fruit
But dinnertime is SO hit or miss.
Some weeks I have a perfectly prepped meal plan, a Blue Apron box, or winging it goes smoothly. Other weeks, especially those when I’m too busy on Sunday to really think through our week, I feel out of control. That’s what happened during the first week of school!
We all know the key to smooth dinners is to plan ahead. It’s remembering to do the planning that’s the hard part. The worst thing you can do is wait until 5:00 on the day of to decide what to make, especially if you’re starving, have kids, or an unpredictable work schedule.
In the past I’ve tried my own meal plan, meal plan services, buying staples and mixing and matching, and prepping everything in advance to a T (which I did a lot more when Mazen was young). While I do love services like Vie, Cook Smarts, and Blue Apron, I have found that for the long term I really want to have more control over my meals. I like doing those services here and there – it feels like someone else is cooking for you – but week after week, I want to choose the meals I make based on flexibility, cravings, seasonal foods, sales at the grocery store, produce that someone might share from their garden, or our schedule for the week.
Sunday prep days where you batch cook and/or freeze meals are another solution to the dinnertime conundrum. Sometimes I enjoy doing the Sunday prep and getting organized for the week, but other Sundays, especially if we have a day full of plans or are traveling, prep gets pushed to the weekdays and doesn’t really get done. I have experimented with Monday prep days, and those actually have gone quite well, but ultimately I don’t want to spend any long period of time making all the meals for the week. Also, while I love the idea of having every meal for the week prepared, there are a lot of meals that I just don’t think taste as good made in advance. Pre-cut veggies sort of lose their luster by Thursday/Friday and while some meals taste better days later, some are just best fresh. I’d rather do a little bit each day, perhaps in the mornings, than a huge block at once.
House Tweaking’s Chicken Marbella was a great make-ahead dinner we had this week!
Tons of you (100?!) responded to my stories with “Girl you are not alone!” (so glad to hear that) and lots of tips. A dozen people recommended an Instant Pot! I really hesitate to buy another kitchen appliance because I’m not sure that would really solve my problems and I’m also really working on minimalism (but that’s a topic for another day!) I believe you all that they are great, and maybe someday I will trade my Crockpot for one. A few recommended Prepear as a great meal planning app, as well as Dream Dinners.
I am looking for a solution the would satisfy the following:
- Me choosing the recipes
- Flexibility
- Doesn’t require a large weekly block of time for planning or prepping, but still involves some advance prep
Thus I’m thinking a combination of a monthly meal plan plus a themed day-of-the-week plus a really good bank of recipes is ultimately what I need to put together.
We sort of already to the day-of-the-week style planning. Often our weeks include:
- A dinner salad (usually on nights Mazen is with his dad)
- A fish, rice, veg dinner (possibly the most tedious one – that’s what I failed on the first day of KG)
- An Italian night (either homemade pizza, spaghetti, meatballs, or a Mona Lisa Pasta dish)
- A leftovers night (most often Thursdays when Thomas has volleyball)
- A dinner date for T and me (often Tuesdays; this might change drastically in October!)
- A weekend dinner out as a family at a restaurant, event, or sometimes hosted by us at home
- ??????
So we halfway have the foundation laid, but I think I just need to fine tune it a bit more. Perhaps #7 can be a soup! I also think the fish, rice, veg dinner could be a bit more specific. Perhaps this turns into “one sheet pan” night? I don’t want to go super basic with the themes because I think we would get bored of the same recipes each week, but by sticking to a theme, we can buy the staples and mix and match them as need be. I also think having 20-30 solid recipes in the bank that can be repeated monthly is much more reasonable for the palate boredom. This is basically what I do anyways!
So maybe our schedule gets revised to this:
Sundays (when we have more hands/time on deck): Rotisserie chicken with whole grain and veggie or Sheet Pan Meal, prepped after grocery store trip. (Anne just posted some great ones!)
Mondays: Italian with side salad (I could buy 4 Mona Lisa lasagna/zitis/raviolis at the beginning of each month, which are about $10 each and made from scratch, and this night would be super easy) and/or I could start making some of those great freezer meals before the baby comes and Monday could be freezer night!
Tuesday: Dinner date till baby comes, then maybe Taco Tuesday?
Wednesdays: Crockpot or soup
Thursday: Leftovers
Friday: Pizza night (either homemade or take-out in a pinch)
Saturday: Family events or a wild card meal (that we have all day make, like something special on the Big Green Egg)
With this plan, Sundays and Wednesdays would require morning prep time that I could plan for. By using Mona Lisa or quick Italian (like dry spaghetti, a pack of grass-fed beef, bagged spinach and jarred sauce), I could save prep time on Monday mornings. Tuesday/Thursdays would require little-to-no prep, at least for now.
With this plan in mind, please share your favorite one-pan dinners and crockpot soups! I will definitely do a follow-up post if we put this into action. I’m sure it will get tweaked! Also: What’s your favorite way to save recipes you come across on the ‘net? I have so many recipes saved to Pinterest boards and I forget about them when I need more!
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog says
Mmm, I agree, dinner time is sometimes a struggle with a full time job, especially since I have to work overtime most days! I don’t subscribe to a meal plan (they’re still fairly rare in Hong Kong), so I like to prep my meals in advance! 🙂
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
Laurie Gannon says
Although I don’t have children, I absolutely identify with everything in this post. I have a full-time job and a blog on the side. I love being efficient and love food even more. I do my best to meal plan and prep for workweek dinners but I still manage to fall short. I do enjoy Blue Apron and Sunbasket on occasion but the price per meal isn’t the most economical choice long-term.
It’s not easy but darn it…I’m going to keep trying (and may invest in an Insta-Pot myself).
Lucy says
Monthly planning and Costco shopping have made dinner planning WAY easier than it used to be. I look at my favorite blogs/Pinterest/cookbooks and make a monthly plan that I repeat 3 months in a row. Which at first seemed too repetitive but it really works. I buy almost all of our meat from Costco once/month too. I don’t have a crock pot but love a good pot roast in my Dutch oven in the winter 🙂
KathEats says
Love the idea of repeating 3 months!
Shana says
After having kids, I really wanted a solid meal plan so there were no decisions to make during the witching hour. I plan 4-5 meals per week knowing there will be leftovers or meals eaten out of the home, write down all of the meals on a piece of paper (which then doubles as my grocery list). Then during food prep on Sundays, I prepare food that won’t alter the quality of the meal (i.e. make sauces, chop veggies, cook and freeze grains, assemble casseroles). I write down how long the food prep took so then I can just pull a particular menu if I know I only have a certain amount of advance prep time (say a weekend full of activities and I don’t have extra time to spend in the kitchen). I also gave myself a lot of grace with two small children: I leaned on more expensive prepared foods knowing that I would have more time for cooking in a few months once the baby was out of the 4th trimester. You will find your groove! I still use pinterest to save all of my recipes and just make it part of my meal planning when I pull out the cookbooks.
RW says
With both my husband and I working full-time (and then some) outside of the house, we have no choice but to be on our meal plan game. I typically plan M-F (with Friday going out after a long work week), and then my husband will plan the weekend meals because he likes to cook and has more time to do so then. I’ll do all food shopping in between activities on Saturday and prep for M-R on Sunday. It’s our system and it works. That works best for us, but I realize people sometimes have more flexibility or are home more than we are, so it’s all so specific to each family’s needs and flexibility.
Liz says
This is NOT a criticism at all, just a comment/observation – I feel like a lot of families I know just don’t have room in the budget for 2-3 dinners out a week! We get take out or have a date night/family night out once a MONTH usually. We are a one income family though (by choice) so that’s just one of the sacrifices we make so I can stay home.
So that means 6-7 dinners a week at home to plan (leftovers one night usually). I do still use Pinterest to organize recipes, but I’ll admit it’s not the most efficient way. I have a “Made it and loved it” board that I refer to when planning, and then also “Recipes to try” and “Easy dinner ideas” for trying new meals. My kids are getting older (5 and almost 4) and when they were very young I was much, much better about meal planning and prepping early in the day. I’ve really slacked lately and am often trying to figure out what’s for dinner an hour before we need to eat! I will say that I love my Instant Pot, especially my mini 3qt for rice and veggies and other sides. One less pot to watch on the stove is wonderful. We can’t do meal order services because of food allergies, so I want to get better about planning again now that both kids are in school and we are busier.
KathEats says
Yes, I’m aware that we do eat out more than average (or maybe more than the average mom/blog reader) but it’s a priority of ours and I do carefully budget it so that if we’re nearing the end of the month and we’re out of money, do don’t go out.
I love your pinterest boards as one you made and loved and one to try – I’m going to do this! My boards are more themed and that’s harder to plan from in the spur of the moment.
Meghan says
I have “keeper” boards that I move/ copy recipes to. Works perfectly for me! Main dish keeper – appetizer keeper, etc.
Amanda says
My favorite sheet pan dinner is skin-on chicken thighs (not something we usually eat but great in this dish!), rubbed with olive oil and Lipton herb and vegetable soup mix (weird but SO GOOD!) plus vegs on the other side of the sheet – my faves are carrots, brussel sprouts, bell peppers.
Best crockpot soup is beef + farro…. sirloin steak thinly sliced, beef broth, pepperoncinis, whatever you like.
I think I have fall cooking on the brain!
Themed nights definitely make my meal planning faster, especially as you build up a repertoire for that night. We do:
Meatless Monday
Taco (Mexican) Tuesday (not always heavy tacos – sometimes this is brown rice bowls with corn and black beans)
Mediterranean Wednesday
Thursday protein + veg + grain (instead of a one-pot meal)
Friday pizza!
weekends we kind of wing
KathEats says
I like your themes : )
Emily says
Great links – love the chicken Marbella recipe (pretty sure I have almost everything on hand for that) and the sheet pan dinner ideas!! I don’t know why don’t do more of the latter – keep it simple! Chicken and veggies!
Hillary C says
Soups are a great idea and many freeze well too. I make this great Chicken and Rice (greek-style with lots of fresh parsley and lemon) soup and it makes a ton, we usually eat half and I freeze half to pull out when someone is sick or we need an easy dinner or lunch. Also, I will usually make this soup the night before and let it sit in the fridge overnight and then just reheat and add the rice, lemon and parsley the day we plan to eat it. It really gets better after a day of the flavors marrying!
Sweet Potato and Apple bisque or a curried butternut squash soup are also two fall staples that I make and that freeze well! You could make double-batches pre-baby, eat half now, freeze half, and then take the frozen soup out to thaw and reheat in the crock pot. Also there is a great White Bean and Mushroom soup I’ve made that’s really healthy & hearty (you puree half the white beans and it gives it a creamy texture w/o using any cream) and tastes great with some crusty bread or homemade croutons. I’ll send it to you on pinterest!
KathEats says
Got the Pinterest links! And that chicken and rice soup sounds awesome. I need to clean out my freezer (of all the ice cream 😉 ) and get some of those soup freezing containers! What do you freeze yours in? Ziplocks?
Hillary C says
Usually I freeze one portion servings in glass tupperware b/c we usually microwave the leftovers. If I was doing a big batch to freeze I might do a gallon ziplock! I would probably double-bag to be safe!! I’ll send you the Greek lemon soup recipe too but usually I just wing it at this point. Here is my loose recipe:
1 lemon
1 bag microwavable uncle ben’s brown rice
1 rotisserie chicken, meat pulled off the bone in little pieces
2-4 tablespoons of butter
2-3 tablespoons of flour
1-2 tablespoons of white wine
half of an big onion, chopped (you could sub a few cloves of garlic?)
few stalks diced celery
about a cup diced carrot
1 package italian dressing mix (dry)
6-8 cups of chicken broth (when i’m feeling really extra i boil the rotisserie chicken carcass to make the broth)
1 bunch parsley, leaves roughly chopped
1 cup of milk or some cream drizzled in at the end
Melt the butter in a soup pot. Sweat the celery/onions/carrots. Add a heavy splash of white wine and let it cook down. Add the flour and mix it well, cook until the roux is a golden brown. Add the chicken broth a little at a time mixing well until the roux is evenly mixed in. Then the chicken, then the packet of italian dressing mix. Add any other seasoning you like at this point. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Let the soup simmer for at least 20 minutes. Remove from heat and add the lemon juice and milk. This is the point where I’d freeze it or refrigerate.
When I’m ready to serve, I add the microwaved brown rice and fresh parsley. If you add the rice before refrigerating/freezing it absorbs a lot of the broth and gets kinda mushy. I’ve also made this w/ egg noodles instead of rice and I cook the egg noodles at the boiling broth stage (again only do this right before eating so the noodles don’t get mushy). I think you could also add chopped kale or other diced root veggies to up the veggie factor.
PS if you want I’ll make you a pot post baby! maybe on a survivor night 😉
KathEats says
Thank you it sounds great! And yes to post baby Survivor night meal!!
Rachel says
I often freeze my soups in mason jars.
Vicky says
We follow a weekly meal plan and have for years! Kids crave rhythm and routine more than we do, they just dont always say it. I love the flexibility of knowing the category but not the details. It allows me to be spontaneous if I want, allows me to shop for what’s on sale/seasonal, and helps me know what to put in my shopping cart when I’m too fried to plan. Our categories are (Monday to Sunday) pasta, Mexican, soup, chicken and potatoes, pizza, free for all (eat out, leftovers, dinner w friends, etc) and Sunday dinner. Have you read the book Simplicity Parenting? It really helped me in this area.
KathEats says
Writing that book down!
Melissa says
Its interesting tome to see how little cooking you actually do, as an RD! I am a full time working mom of three, but I work from home. I do cook in the afternoons as it makes the evening/practice routine easier. I know I’m very lucky to have my office just steps from my kitchen, so I try to take advantage of it. The instant pot is great, but I would use it more often were I NOT home all day. Its good at cooking frozen meat, but is very large to store.
KathEats says
I became an RD because I wanted to help others live their healthiest lives and had intended to do private practice weight loss coaching before stumbling into this platform. I am not a chef!!!
Melissa says
Oh I know your not a chef…I guess I always assumed your blog was intended to show healthy family eating, as at this point in your life you are cooking for a family. As an RD though I’m sure you. know how bad restaurant food generally is, health wise. The difference between fast food and restaurant food is negligible to the fast food winning (in terms of healthfulness) over average restaurant meals. For us it is intended to be more of a treat to the regular, which is home cooked meals. I’d assume few RD’s who do work in weight loss coaching would recommend 3 meals (or a lot more, adding in take out) in restaurants a week.
KathEats says
Well most of the time I am showing real meals at home. 3 meals / 21 is 15% of meals out, not all that much ratio-wise. And while restaurant meals can be high in salt, fat, etc. to assume they are all bad for you isn’t fair. Many of the restaurants we enjoy use local fresh ingredients and/or local, pastured meats. (Not all, but many.) We also do a lot of sharing to keep portion sizes small. I think as a RD it’s unrealistic to expect clients to eat all of their meals at home, so I’d rather show/teach how to make good choices in restaurants than to tell someone to never eat out.
Melissa says
Oh I don’t assume they are all bad for you. Just pointing out studies that aren’t about my opinion, but facts, on restaurants and health. I’m sure you make healthy choices there just like you do at home or at cake time! You could rebrand as the restaurant RD, if that is your focus now! Like all Mom’s we are trying to do what is best for our kids, and we all do it differently. I guess I don’t think of prepared sauce and premade pasta really as “cooking” and then one meal is leftovers and one a salad so you cook fish each week and some pasta or a pizza. Its just surprising, not a criticism. With three kids it seems like so much cooking. I have a hard time getting enough vegetables into my kids as they don’t like them for breakfast in any sort of measurable quantity, and while they will eat raw vegetables at lunch, it isn’t much simply given the time they are alloted. I really try to focus on well rounded, fresh meals at dinner to endure they are getting what they need. It sounds like you get almost more of that at restaurants, so your rations make sense!
Jennifer says
“Its just surprising, not a criticism.” <– way to be passive aggressive! Kath said 15% of meals are out – that is hardly a "new focus." It's not like she's eating out 100% of the time (or even 50%). You can get off your soap box now.
I'm a mom of four and we go out to eat twice a week – once as a date with a sitter and once with the whole family. I also cook with "premade pasta sauce" all the time because I am smart! I meal plan in a paper calendar and it works well for me, but we do have weeks when we struggle.
melissa says
The new focus commentwas just a reaction to Kath saying she likes to teach people to eat healthily at restaurants. I’m sorry if my experience or comment offended you.
Denise says
Which studies are you talking about? What sample size and where? I live in Montreal, Canada and we have access to amazing choice. It doesn’t even cross our minds to eat at chains because so many local and artisanal cuisine that is available. We also go out 2 to 3 times (very common in Montreal – it is a city of foodies) a week and doing very well and healthy as a family. Plenty of RDs here are also foodies and just like Kath love eating out and guiding people through healthy eating in the city. I hope doing your own sauce is a hobby. If we are talking necessity or shoulds, I personally prioritise other things over homemade sauce. The pressure on families, especially women is incredible.
Jen says
This definitely took me some time to figure out, especially after having kids. And especially now that my kids are a little older and in after-school activities.
I just basically sit down one day on the weekend and jot down 4-5 meals for the week while putting together my ClickList order (hooray Kroger). The time I used to spend grocery shopping (about an hour) is spent prepping as much as I can. We usually have some variation of tacos, a meat/veg/starch night (Skinnytaste bourbon chicken is so good we’ve had it a few weeks in a row), a casserole that I can usually prep most of and then just put it in the oven, and a crockpot meal. Breakfast for dinner is also an easy option. I just make sure I didn’t have eggs for breakfast that day. 🙂
This would actually be a fun thing for you to blog about! Start out Monday by sharing your meal plan for the week. Or maybe do some fun things like using up your pantry or prepping freezer meals for when baby comes, etc.
Meghan says
Your plan is pretty much mine too!
Bethany says
The InstaPot has saved some of our dinners! We have been doing some meal planning in an effort to not eat out all. the. time. but have run into “oops, we don’t have a can of beans…but here are dried ones.” Toss in InstaPot and they were ready when everything else was done so no lost time and no quick run to the grocery store. Thanks for sharing the meal planning conundrum as I’m still trying to get into a groove; I like the theme idea!
Jen says
I forgot to add…the Paprika app is awesome for saving recipes and combining them into a grocery list as well.
KathEats says
I will check it out!
Erin says
This isn’t really a one pan meal, but tacos/nachos are a go-to at our house! I’m vegetarian so I roast some chickpeas in the oven with taco seasoning and while they are roasting I quick cut up lettuce, tomatoes and black olives. Then we either have chips or tortillas. The kids love making their own tacos (or nachos – I let them choose!) and I usually just load up on the lettuce and make mine more of a salad. We always have tons of condiments (taco sauce, salsa, greek yogurt, etc. It comes together really fast and you could prep everything ahead of time if you wanted. Good luck! We eat pretty much the same things every week for my sanity! It’s not easy to find a balance between variety and sanity!!!!
Ellen says
I work in an office and have three teens, and I would say I do a combination of several of these strategies. Our game plan has changed many, many times as our kids have gotten older. Here are a few highlights:
1.) I plan around the busiest nights. As kids get older, their activities run later or start later. We might have someone who has to get picked up at 5:30, and someone who has to be at a practice on the other side of town at 6:30, and the 5:30 kid has to be picked up at 7. No major cooking will be done on those nights. So, let’s say Sunday and Tuesday are my calmest nights … I’ll plan two LARGE meals that require more cooking time. Let’s say roast chicken on Sunday, with roast potatoes, carrots, broccoli, etc. How about pork tenderloin on Tuesday, with baked sweet potatoes and a couple of veggie sides.
2.) I try to get as many leftovers as possible out of those meals. NOT EASY as kids get bigger. But if I have some decent leftovers, maybe I’ll make Wednesday quesadilla night. People can have just cheese, or chicken, or pork. I can heat up some black beans to make the quesadillas heartier. Super fast and everyone loves it.
3.) Sandwich night for a busy night. Grilled cheese, BLTs … heartier sandwiches, with fruit and chips. Another quick night. Let’s call this Monday.
4.) One (or more likely, two) pot meals. On a night where I have a little time, I might make pasta with grilled shrimp, or rice with chicken sausage, various veggies. Takes less than 30 minutes. Thursday.
5.) Friday. I don’t love having pizza on Friday, because the kids often eat it at school on Friday. You know what’s faster and healthier and we haven’t had it yet this week? Fish! Salmon on the grill, fish tacos, etc.
Then maybe pizza or burgers on Saturday.
KathEats says
I can’t imagine having two hungry teenagers quite yet! You are right about pizza on Friday because I think that’s what’s on the lunch menu Friday here too! Hmmm
Ellen says
A couple of other notes … yes, I plan on the back of my shopping list. I write down S-M-T-W-Th-F-Sa. I plan the “longer cooking” nights first, the “no time” nights second, then just fill in the blanks with the “less than 30 minute” meals.
That said, I don’t “prep” in the way that word is used now. Honestly, it doesn’t feel like it saves me that much time to chop everything up on a Sunday when it takes like 5 minutes in the moment.
Robin says
Ellen, I do the same thing with my grocery list (days of the week on back) and plan the same way (longer cooking on the nights I will have time and the “no time” nights second)! As my kiddos have gotten older, my biggest frustration has been being able to “plan” for their appetites. With a preteen in multiple sports and a teenager, there are nights they are famished and there are no leftovers to plan around.
Ellen says
Totally! There have been many times when I’ve planned one thing for dinner, then came home and found that they ate leftover that I was planning to turn into dinner! 😀
KathEats says
Haha!
Kerry Haslam says
Your insta story was so real— that was great. That’s been me so many times. With the kids school routine, I’m just trying to prep when they are home from school and having a snack. Me buzzing around the kitchen gives them a sense that dinner in on the way- a comforting feeling. I try to back up the time— prepping at 4:30 or so.
It’s a juggle!!! As for meal planning in advance— still working on it! But I do try to have an idea of what we will eat that night by 10am.
Rebecca says
I am a very loose meal planner but what tend to work best for me is on Friday or Saturday (before grocery shopping), I brainstorm 5 meal options for the week. I don’t specify days, because I like to have the flexibility of deciding what we are eating the day of (based on weather, busyness, etc). I also work from home 3 days/week so I can easily lightly prep something in the morning…But having the 5 options helps guide my shopping and takes away some of the mental work. We tend to eat leftovers on the other 2 nights.
On days I don’t have any kind of plan, I usually fall back on versatile dishes that can use any assortment of proteins/vegetables that I need to use up: Curry, soup, stir fry, etc. A summer favorite is to lightly sautee a bunch of vegetables with either chicken or chickpeas, add whole grain pasta and toss with either marinara or a homemade Alfredo! One pot dishes tend to be my go-to’s 🙂
Lucy says
Also have to recommend Melissa Clark’s cookbook: Dinner, Changing the Game. It’s excellent
Anna says
I need to work on this, I live on my own so I don’t feel like meal planning/cooking needs to be done since I’m not feeding anyone else. But then I end up eating a lot of bread and cheese and cereal for dinner (or takeout). I work from home, but teach lessons until 7:30 or 8pm and I most definitely don’t feel like cooking a whole meal by then. Planning a few meals out would definitely help me save money and eat healthier.
Prepping salad stuff saves time and I’m a big fan of crockpot meals and soups, I just need to coordinate my grocery shopping. 🙂 Favorite soups: Panera butternut squash, chili, green chicken chili, beef stew, chicken tortilla, black bean
Favorite crockpot: Mexican shredded beef or chicken, BBQ pulled chicken, roast
Judy says
I use Plan to Eat (plantoeat.com), which allows me to store recipes, make a meal plan and create a shopping list. I’m a recipe collector and this is where I store my recipes. When I’m ready to plan for the week, I search, click and drag to put meals on the calendar. There’s also a field where I can put a note, such as “steak” (if I’m not using a recipe), or “Dinner out” (if I don’t plan to cook.) The program is web-based but has an iOS app so it’s convenient at the grocery store or at work. It takes me about 30 minutes to plan meals for the week. The program creates a list of all the ingredients needed for the recipes I’ve chosen. I go through the shopping list and delete anything I don’t need to buy. This list is where I add items throughout the week that I need but aren’t for a specific recipe. There’s a free trial, if you’re interested. I second the recommendation of an instant pot, but don’t get rid of your crockpot.
KathEats says
This sounds cool!
Valerie says
I use Plan to Eat as well and it has been amazing – well worth the price you pay for it(they always have a Black Friday deal for an annual subscription). I plan not only a week at a time, but I drag and drop things over a whole month (not as a final plan) but as a framework. For example, our family really likes fish tacos, and so I drag and drop it once every three weeks or so. Plan to Eat also has a Prep note feature that you can use to remind yourself of what needs prepping for the next meal or next day, etc. This is a fantastic app.
Kelly says
The best thing we ever did was to make our own staple-foods cookbook – actually just a binder – with those plastic sheet protector things holding printouts of our favorite recipes. Jsut the ones we’d be willing to eat again and again. Whenever we find a new fav we add it. Having them all in one place makes it so easy! Each one has a note on it of how long (ish) it takes to make (so you know when to start it too!) , so then meal planning is jsut looking at the week ahead, figuring out, well, we need 2 big pot meals that have leftovers for lunches, then a fast/cold meal we can take to XYZ event, etc. Shopping is 1x week for just the meal ingredients & a few staple snacks (protein granola bars, yogurt, frozen fruit for the yogurt, dried fruit).
Staple meals – we make a sausage, kale, white bean & sundried tomato soup; a fast pasta with a box of penne, a shredded rotisserie chicken, a jar of pesto and some cherry tomatos & green beans; and if you’re home anyway meatloaf or roast chicken + roasted veg is the easiest thing in the world, thorw it in the oven & walk away for 1+ hours.
You’ll get the hang of it!
Emily says
I do this, too! When I find new recipes, I’ll print them out and make notes on them as I cook. If we liked the recipe, it goes in the recipe binder. If it wasn’t quite the hit, we recycle it.
I even have a binder set up that holds old recipe cards vs having them all in a box.
Bella says
I have four kids although they’re older now and I work full time and also have volunteer commitments. On nights when I’m too busy or tired I just announce that I’m not cooking and everyone gets their own dinner. There are usually leftovers or eggs and sometimes the kids buy themselves something at the corner deli. I really don’t worry about it. The three or four nights that I do cook, I usually make an effort so we have something delicious with leftovers.
KathEats says
My mom used to do this sometimes too. We called it “Eat what you want” nights. I loved making frozen mac and cheese as a teen : )
The Many Thoughts of a Reader says
In my busiest times I meal planned a month ahead and aimed for many nights of leftovers. I added all items to a grocery list I kept on the google doc we share but separated it by week so if it was on sale earlier in the month (meat or canned) I could buy ahead. Now I pretty much I go by the week. We have some things we love and our easy meals so I bust those out often during school nights. We love eggs and sweet potato hash. I prep the potatoes earlier in the day and then its like 20 minutes and dinner is ready later. Now that fall is coming I will be doing big pots of soup and then freezing leftovers to make for quick dinners later. I also will doing crockpot bbq chicken every few months and freeze leftovvers. Our easy go to’s are tacos, nachos, pizza, and spaghetti. I try to vary them with ingredients but they are always winners here.
Cheryl says
We meal plan a lot, but it’s currently more weather based (for bike ride days). We typically pack a picnic dinner for our bike rides that are salad based, roasted veggies, or easy sandwiches. We plan our meals, but never do “prep”. No insta-pot yet, but we do use our crock pot, even though James works from home now. Easy crock pot favorites are a pork shoulder to make BBQ (which is re-imagined on the leftovers), beef roast, and soups. An easy soup is frozen chicken breast, can of black beans, can of diced tomatoes, frozen corn, and taco spices like chili powder and cumin. We also have a large freezer and will freeze the leftovers for lunches for me, or dinners for a night we need a quick meal. Around thanksgiving, we buy multiple turkeys when they are on sale and use them through the year. One turkey will more than feed us for a whole week! It’s thawed and butchered, then we roast the breast separately, make broth to be used as a soup (with rice or cauliflower and some more turkey pieces), roast the wings and legs that James will eat, and use the other parts (back and thighs) to make “turkey bbq”. The breast is eaten as slices then chopped and used for turkey salad. And by multiple turkeys – we end up with at least 6 in the freezer after the holiday!
KathEats says
Great ideas!
Sara says
Plan To Eat is my favorite way to save recipes from the web into one place. I can put recipes from my collection onto a meal plan for the week and then it populates a shoppinglist, which I can pull up on my phone at the store. Super easy and flexible. My husband and I are in a pretty good grove right now with what works for us meal planning wise. But I think that’s about to get turned upside down with a little one on the way in March!
Denise says
I think meal planning is often overthinking dinner. I cook for our family of five 5-6 nights a week. Yes, there are days I think what should I make but as long as there’s a protein, carb, veggie in the house, it’s easy, and balanced. I use our bbq/smoker for a majority of the meats I cook and roast veggies in the oven. The carb could be anything from rice/sweet potatoes/pasta. There’s no reason you have to use a recipe every night either. It’s when using a recipe that takes the time. Just marinate (olive oil/soy/aminos/garlic/ginger/sesamee oil, etc) or sprinkle some spices on a meat. Maybe use 1 or 2 nights if you want to try something new. That’s usually when it becomes time consuming.
Bobbi says
I completely agree! I think people over think it, myself included. Not every night needs to be some grand production. I made BLTs last week, and had this internal dialogue for God only knows how long about what vegetable or side I should put with it. But then it occurred to me, this is basically just a salad on bread, ha! I’m doing to much! My family was happy and didn’t miss the side.
Bridget Babcock says
We do a weekly strifry or curry night and we love it! Fresh veggies when possible but frozen works for a meal in a pinch!
Andrea says
I’ve found that a good, easy + healthy one pan meal for me is a stir fry. You can use a bunch of fresh or frozen veggies you have on hand, any diced protein and cook it up with a simple sauce. Also great for leftovers to pair with a salad or rice or noodles.
Thai curry soup is my go to for the same reasons – I keep curry paste and coconut milk on hand and then you can add any protein/ veggies you have.
But I’m speaking from a no kids mind set, soooo ¯\_(?)_/¯
KathEats says
: )
Samantha says
Ahh Mona Lisa frozen meals are only 10 bucks? I need to try them!
We like to do a few chicken breasts in the crock pot with barbecue sauce- then shred it all up served with a homemade slaw! So easy and it makes great chicken nachos the next day!
KathEats says
They might be more like $12.95ish but considering they make them from scratch in their kitchen (noodles too!) I think that’s a great deal for the quality.
Jessica says
We’ve been really stuck in a rut lately with meals. We’re working on creating a list of meals we enjoy so that when we’re stumped, we can just pull a meal idea off the list and work with it. Kind of similar to a recipe box, but more generic. Like tacos, lasagna, pizza, breakfast, etc., so that we can have different varieties of each category.
Jenny Graber says
Like another commenter, I’ve put together a photo album with tested and well-loved recipes (the cards fit perfectly in the photo sleeves) It gives me a place to start when I’m feeling uninspired. We have a lot of allergies in our home so our choices are pretty limited. We have a weekly “Fry-day” tradition that my teenagers love. I make fries in the oven and grill (bun-less) burgers. I dislike cleaning the grill so I make sure on Fridays I also grill plenty of pork chops and chicken to use in other dishes throughout the week. It takes about an extra hour to prep and grill more meat, but saves way more than that for lunches and dinners on busy days.
Amy says
We do one chicken night (chicken salad, chicken parm, chicken with potatoes and veg…), one ground turkey night (tacos, mini meat loaves), one beans and grains with veg night (this turns to soup/casserole in the fall and winter), homemade pizza every other Friday, one-two leftover nights and one night at my parents house. It gives me a guideline but also enough wiggle room to mix it up every week. It’s simple and takes me 5 minutes to plan my meals for the week.I prep and cook veggies on Sundays and cook meat fresh throughout the week. It’s simple and takes me 5 minutes to plan my meals for the week.
KathEats says
This is the first I’ve seen on an ingredient night instead of a recipe theme – I like it! Seems like it would offer more creativity and diversity.
Meghan says
https://damndelicious.net/2015/07/10/honey-balsamic-chicken-breasts-and-veggies/
This is my favorite sheet pan meal, but I love many recipes from this site!
KathEats says
Thanks!
Kristen says
Anylist!! I downloaded it just as a grocery list app, but then upgraded to premium, which allows you to upload recipes from the internet, make meal plans, and integrate them into your grocery list. It’s so simple and seriously my most used app.
Good luck! I’m struggling with this, too and also recently came to a “theme night” conclusion. Can’t wait to hear how it goes!
KathEats says
I like simple!
Alycia says
Paprika is a great app, sounds similar to antilist. You either create recipes or download from the internet and then use them to create grocery lists. It would be a great place to keep your “month of meals”, ones you know are winners and then make grocery lists of 4-5 each week. I especially love that the shopping list combines ingredients from recipes. Example, if two recipes each call for 2 cloves of garlic your grocery list will say “4 cloves of garlic”
Sharon says
It’s all a balancing act isn’t it! Not only the planning,shopping and preparation but also taking into account working around kids likes/dislikes ( that are so changeable), everyone’s timetables and I think your own energy level. You get there in the end, and just remember there’s always toasted sandwichs! I have been finding some inspiration from skinnytaste ( chicken and broccoli stirfry, bang bang chicken to name a few recipes) and baby-mac.com.This is an Australian website but she has young children and a busy lifestyle. She has some great recipes and her blog makes great reading. Her Chorizo chicken is a good ‘sheet bake’ recipe. I have teenagers but they enjoy meals with wraps. Prepare your salad (lettuce type or undressed coleslaw) during the day. Cook your protein of choice, put out the dressings and sauces, hummus etc and let them make their own.
All the best Kath.
Bobbi says
You’ve gotten a lot of good feedback- I’ll just add my small two cents 🙂
I have two kids- 3 and 4.. I hate spending my whole weekend cleanining/cooking etc. So I make Wednesday night either rotisserie chicken and salad night or rice and beans night- something we can eat quickly so I can do some mid week laundry, quick clean the bathrooms, etc. It gives me time to do a few things so my weekend is less about chores and preparing to go back to work Monday, and more about being present with my kids. my kids even know that Wednesday night is pick up night, and they eat their dinners quickly and help pick up around the house, vacuum Etc.
kristina @ love & zest says
I’m going to try out your meal plan outline this week. dinner time is so tough for us! hubs gets home super late, I’m usually cooking all day/snacking and tired/not hungry and the boys need dinner early and are often in bed before dad gets home. I find that the instant pot is very helpful for us too and agree– when I plan dinner in the morning or at least mid afternoon dinner time is more streamlined
Emme says
You are definitely not alone! I think that I am lucky in that I am able to be home in the afternoons (after 3:30) and I love to cook and experience new cultures through feeding my family so experimenting in the kitchen is something that is fun for me and also I feel like a useful tool in exposing my little one (and big one lol) to new flavors and ingredients. We also live literally two blocks from a great grocer so it’s nkt that hard to pop out for fresh ingredients. So I usually base our meals on what we have and also “where” we want to go for dinner. We have broth, noodles and ginger? How about pick up some protein and some leafy greens and do Pho? We have canned tomatoes and rice? Let’s get some mushrooms and Parmesan and travel to Italy for a risotto. It sounds fussy but it’s teslly made me use leftover ingredients and try to be more creative with staples. Good luck! You’ll find your rhythm.
Liz says
A few months ago I began using Pocket to save my recipes, then using Zapier to Zap anything I tagged “recipe” in Pocket into an Airtable base. (It’s way easier than it sounds). This is awesome, because it’s still easy to tag recipes as I come across them online, but it’s much easier for me to quickly see the recipes I’ve saved when they’re all in a list/spreadsheet, and then I can make notes in the table after I try the recipes (like substitutions or “don’t make this again”). I’m also using Airtable for meal planning – I either link to the recipes within Airtable or just describe the dinner plan (like “Brazos night” – our version of copycat Brazos tacos). It’s been really helpful for me as I’m juggling a million things these days and will completely forget what I’d planned to cook if it’s not written down. Overall, this organizing really doesn’t take much time, and I end up feeling more on top of things. (Of course, it’s not uncommon for there to be changes mid-week, but hey – I tried!)
KathEats says
I think I’d need to see this workflow in action! And Brazos night sounds yummy 😉
Susan Roberts says
I struggle with meals and planning as well. I used to cook many recipes that used way too many ingredients and that is one thing I am trying to avoid (if I can). It just takes so much time and I want to do other things besides being in the kitchen forever. The exception is a soup or stew of course, but realistically I am avoiding too many ingredients and chopping a ton of things. I hope you can condense many of the above suggestions and your input as well – it could be a great “tool” for many of us. I just received an instant pot and hope that will help occasionally. Thanks and glad to hear many people are struggling with this topic too.
Susan Roberts says
Would love a “condensed” version of the suggestions you come up with. So many of us struggle with this and too much time in the kitchen! I’d love less ingredients and chopping so I can do other things I enjoy!
Jolene (www.everydayfoodie.ca) says
What do you do when Mazen gets home from school? Could you just make dinner from 4-5:30 while he plays? I’m just remembering when me and my siblings were kids. We’d always play after school until dinner time. Both my parents worked full time, but when they got home around 5:30 they started dinner, and we’d eat around 6 or 6:30 depending what we were having (spaghetti, lasagna, meat/rice/veg, meat/potatoes/veg, tacos, soup and buns, pizza and salad, etc.). They didn’t prep in the morning (other than taking meat out of the freezer), and used no pre-packaged foods. There are so many 30 minute meals on Food Network shows etc., that aren’t challenging to make, and are completely from scratch. I don’t know if families are just over-scheduled these days, but I’m not sure what happened to sit-down, regular family meals. It seems that so many families struggle with this now, when I don’t think that was the case when our generation was kids.
Katie says
We struggle with meal planning too. With three kids and a full time job, it’s often hard to get meals ready by 6pm. I think the rice cooker you have is great – and if you’re in the mood for simplicity, I would recommend marinating your source of protein (fish, chicken, steak, whatever) and then tossing it on the grill with some sliced veggies and serving rice on the side. However if you’re looking for a one-pot meal, I’d recommend this Chicken, tomato, and peas recipe. It’s delicious, easy, nutritious, and good for the budget.
In your dutch oven, combine:
An assortment of chicken thighs (bone in) and chicken drumsticks’
2 cans of San Marzano whole, peeled tomatoes
1 bag of frozen peas
About 4-5 chopped potatoes
1-2 chopped onions
1 bay leaf
Salt and pepper
I would sear the chicken lightly first and then simmer for about 2 hours. It’s delicious and goes great with a hearty bread.
Sara says
I tend to do the following:
Over the weekend, select three meals that I’d like to make. I am able to shop on Sunday and prep (if needed/if I feel like it). This leaves us with three home cooked meals and allows space for spontaneity, leftovers, whatever. This week’s line up includes: 1) goulash (eventual leftovers), 2) potstickers, chinese bbq pork, stir fried veggies and 3) bbq chicken salads. I have been craving potato soup so I already know that come Thursday (or so), I’ll make a grocery run to include that in the line up. Planning three meals a week works well for us and allows nutritious meals AND room for flexibility. Try it!
Megan says
A few thoughts on minimalism and the instant pot – it can also function as a crockpot AND a rice cooker. So, in theory, if you tried it you could combine two of your current appliances into one with additional functionality. I use pintrest to find recipes and keep a running list of our favorite meals on the reminders app on my iphone.
candice says
I don’t know when you last tried cook smarts, but it has gotten SO much better than in the beginning and much easier to sub out meals for ones you want/are craving. I constantly go back to them – the food is always so good!
KathEats says
Yes I totally need to incorporate some more Cook Smarts! I love the way their recipes are written.
Jenna says
First comment… love the blog! Just had to share about an app I adore called “Recipe Keeper” (red app) I use to save recipes from across the net. Try it out… seriously! You can import a recipe 99% of the time. When you’re on a recipe page you like, just press your share button and click on Recipe Keeper. I have tons of categories– it is almost like building a database of recipes.
Jenna