Wednesday, 10 December 2008

• How To Master Menu Planning and Grocery Shopping Part 1

  Guest post from TheSecreLifeofKat

  

  Photo by carlosluis

  It happened everyday at 4:30pm. At the peak of my exhaustion from the day, when all I wanted to do was crawl into my bed and take a nap, instead I had to answer that dreaded question that rings in the halls of homes across America…

  “What’s for dinner?”

  At this point I’d put my hands to my cheeks and scream, Macaulay Culkin style, then I’d pray for divine inspiration and desperately search the cabinets, hoping to be surprised by a fully cooked gourmet meal.

  A few months ago, I got tired of my Daily Dinner Freakout and I decided to get organized. Here is the method I use now that has allowed me to save money, get dinner on the table by 5:30pm most nights of the week, and have a blast at the grocery store.

  None of it is rocket science (although I do have a couple ideas that I think you’ll love). All it takes is a bit of planning.

  1. Select recipes for the week.
  I keep it simple. Not being a big cook and having 3 small kids, it’s not realistic for me to make 5-6 big meals a week. So for now, I just plan 3 full meals. The other nights we eat leftovers, sandwiches or cereal (we LOVE cereal). And 1 night a week we go out for dinner.

  Know your limits and be realistic. Don’t plan according to what you think you should do. Plan according to what you can do....then stretch yourself a bit at a time.

  Here are the meals that I plan to make this week (the recipes are at the end of this post):

  - Honey Glazed Chicken
  - Fish Tacos
  - Chicken Pasta Salad

  2. Assign the Meals.
  This has been a key step for me. I used to just list out meals I wanted to make but I never decided which day to make each one. As a result, I often wasted ingredients because I never got around to making at least one recipe because it didn’t really fit into the schedule for that week.

  So now, I look at all our commitments and activities for the week and assign each meal to a day that is appropriate for the amount of time that we have to prepare dinner, eat dinner or clean up after dinner.

  For example, on Wednesdays we have a small group Bible study and dinner time is pretty rushed as we try to get out the door in time. So on Wednesdays, I assign a meal that’s easy to transport (if necessary) and requires very little clean up.

  I even decide on which days we’ll eat leftovers and go out to eat.

  Now obviously, this isn’t all set in stone, but when things get busy and crazy having it all written down makes it SO much less hectic.

  3. Shop the Pantry
  Once I select my meals, I use my recipe program to make the shopping list.  I print the list out and then I “shop the pantry.” This prevents me from buying another bottle of honey only to come home and find that I already have a collection of 5 honey bottles in the pantry.

  This is especially important for produce and perishable items that will just go to waste if I buy too much.
  

  That’s it for Part 1 of this series. If you have any tips on meal planning, please share them in the comments.

  Click here to read Part 2 of this post. In part 2, I’ll show you how to get crazy organized with your shopping list (so you don’t have to go back to aisle 5 seven times because you forgot the ....). I’ll also share how I made grocery shopping the highlight of my week. Stay tuned…

  Recipes

  Here are the recipes mentioned earlier.

  Fish Tacos
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  Ingredients:

  1/2 cup sour cream
  1/2 cup mayonnaise
  1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
  1 package Taco Seasoning Mix
  4 medium tilapia fillets, cut into 1-inch pieces
  2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  2 tablespoons lemon juice
  1 package Corn Tortillas
  3 cups shredded cabbage
  1 lime
  1 tomato, chopped

  Directions:

  1. COMBINE sour cream, mayonnaise, cilantro and 2 tablespoons seasoning mix in small bowl. Mix with some of the cabbage.
  2. COMBINE cod, vegetable oil, lemon juice and remaining seasoning mix in medium bowl; pour into large skillet.
  3. Cook, stirring constantly, over medium-high heat for 4 to 5 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with fork.
  4. FILL taco shells with fish mixture. Top with tomato and sour cream mixture, lime juice and taco sauce.

  Honey Glazed Chicken
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  Serving Size: 4

  Ingredients:

  1 Teaspoon Salt
  1/4 Cup Butter
  6 Tablespoons Honey
  3 Tablespoons Mustard
  2 Teaspoons curry powder
  4 pieces boneless skinless chicken breasts

  Directions:

  1. Salt chicken and set aside.
  2. Put butter in 9 x 13 pan and melt in 375 degree preheated oven.
  3. Melt.
  4. Add honey, mustard and curry powder.
  5. Place chicken in sauce, turning evenly to coat.
  6. Arrange in one layer and return to oven.
  7. Bake 45 minutes, turning often.

  Notes:

  This is particularly yummy with mashed potatoes and green bean casserole.
  1/4 cup mustard 1/2 cup honey

  Jen’s Chicken Salad
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  Ingredients:

  16 ounces bag of rotini
  1 small granny smith apple
  2 tablespoons sweet relish
  1/2 cup cheese , grated
  12 1/2 ounces chicken, canned
  1/2 cup mayonaisse

  Directions:

  1. Cook noodles and let cool.
  2. Dice apple
  3. Mix all ingredients together.
  4. Chill for 1 hour.

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