Back to School: Meal Plans

I know, I KNOW I am really not the best person to discuss this.  

Or, maybe the fact that I hate cooking makes me better at planning ahead.

I've done a variety of things to try to ease the monotony of making supper.

1.  Plan a week ahead.  On Sunday sit down and plan out what meal you'll make each day that week, taking into account the various activities you have and what groceries are available.  You can then add any needed items to your grocery list.

2.  Similarly, plan for a week in advance but keep the same plan week by week.  For example, every Monday is pasta, Tuesdays are a whole chicken, etc..  You can then vary the recipes but for the most part you will need the same main ingredients.

Find some free printables here.

3.  Make doubles.  Many meals you make are easy to double.  Lasagna for example is just as easy to make as a recipe of 2 pans as it is 1.  So on the days where you are already making a meal that's easy to double, do it and freeze the second meal for a day in the future when you don't have time to cook.

4.  Do a big cook.  There are all sorts of ways to cook ahead in bulk and freeze multiple meals.  I've done this with a group of women using a formal big cook recipe and I've also joined a couple friends and created our own recipes and plan.  Either way, it's fun to be together and nice to leave with a cooler full of meals!

5.  Join a freezer meal class.  Tomorrow I'll be heading to a fun, no stress Pampered Chef workshop where I'll leave with meals ready to freeze.  If you want to try one, click the link and ask to join!  Carla will also be offering Power Cooking in October.
Carla's Dinner's Done Freezer Meal Workshop Group

Happy Cooking!