06-07-2015 CJG
Day 19 of 50 Tips in 50 Days
Busy lives leave little time to organize and prepare well-rounded, nutritious meals every day of the week. Most times it’s not an issue with MAKING a meal, the hardest part is in DECIDING what the heck you want to make!
We went out to our organized friends, the ones that cook, and asked what tips they have to reduce the stress of having to come up with amazing meals 7 days a week.
1. It’s all in the planning! Write out the seven days of the week. Take note of days that you may not be home and extra busy days when you will want to make simple meals.
2. Decide what meals you think you want to have for each day. Pull out your favorite recipes or Google simple dishes for inspiration.
3. Next list out the ingredients you will need for each of those meals.
4. If you get local grocery store flyers, use the ingredients on sale to plans meals. Let’s say hamburger is on sale. You might want to have hamburgers one night and maybe beef tacos another night. Or just use your favorites; these will become the foundation of your meals for the week.
5. Check to see which ingredients you already have on hand.
6. Make a shopping list of everything you need for the 7 meals. You can include items for other meals, such as fresh fruit or oatmeal for breakfast and any basics you run out of like laundry soap, etc.
7. Head out to the store. Stick strictly to that shopping list – get nothing else. If you buy more than you can consume in a week your fridge just becomes a haven for expired food. You’ve heard it this because it’s TRUE, only shop the outer ring of the store, its where the less expensive and healthier foods are.
Some important tips to remember; thanks Dan Repetowski for the inside scoop!
· Always eat before you go shopping so you are not tempted.
· Pay attention to the weather, only use the oven when it’s cold outside, use the barbeque when it’s warmer or make large salads.
· If you make lasagna or Sheppard’s pie make a large one, portion it out and freeze part for later.
· Cook large amounts of protein on Sunday and use the leftovers the next day, for example roasted chicken on Sunday; Monday make fajitas or put on a salad.
· Feel free to change the menu items to different days if you’re just not feeling like what was planned.
· It’s perfectly acceptable to have breakfast at dinnertime! Great time saver!
· As an added bonus, look at the receipts from the grocery store when you’re done.
When you realize that is your food bill for the entire week, you’ll feel a lot better about your money
Any tips you’d like to share?
#mealplanning #groceryshopping #timesavers