Menu Planning Part 2

I thought it was time to update my menu planning post that I did here.   Several years later we are still planning our meals our week by week but some of our considerations have changed.

I will still sometimes do a big grocery trip all at once on the weekend, but now that we have grocery pick up there are more options for getting groceries on a weekday afternoon.  Also Dave has the flexibility to walk and pick up ingredients during the day if we need something, so I am able to plan our meals taking those things into consideration.

We are also busier now than we used to be so there are a few nights when E has something or we have work events when we have to plan for that.  If we have to be at soccer at 6:00 then dinner has be prepped in advance so we can eat quickly.  When only Dave or I will be home, we can't spend as much time cooking after the kids are home.  E can keep himself entertained but Q needs to eat almost as soon as he comes in the door.

Speaking of Q, since our regular practice is to eat all of our meals together, we have to pick things that work for little hands and mouths too.  He'll eat mostly everything in some form, but I am less inclined to serve him spicy curry, thin soups, or big leafy salads.  That being said, if he really won't eat what we are eating, he will always eat meatballs that we keep in the freezer, and a pouch of apple sauce.

Eating a soft taco

I also keep in mind food that we can use for my lunch and E's lunch as leftovers, like some extra pasta or soup, or a piece of chicken that can be used for a sandwich or quesadilla.  The only thing to keep in mind is we can't send thai noodles with peanut sauce to school ;)

We are also trying to add some plant based meals to our menu and that makes planning ahead even easier because cans of beans, dried lentils, and soy "meat" doesn't go bad like regular meat does, so we can easily buy those things in advance.

Here are some examples of some recent menus:

Sunday - Tacos
Monday - Chicken and Spinach Enchilada Soup (made in the slow cooker on Sunday and then warmed up for supper, I don't like when the slow cooker sits on warm for too long because it gets too mushy)
Tuesday - Roast Beef, Baked Potatoes, Carrots
Wednesday - Leftover roast beef
Thursday - Chick Pea and Red Lentil Curry with apple chutney
Friday - Leftover Chili (from the freezer)
Saturday -  Sausage Carbonera Pasta

Monday - Chicken Stir Fry
Tuesday - Salmon with cajun spice and rice
Wednesday - Homemade chicken strips and roasted sweet potato
Thursday - Turkey Meatball Subs
Friday - Pizza

Sunday - Chicken Wings and Nachos (it was Super Bowl!)
Monday - Orange Chicken Stir Fry
Tuesday - Salmon
Wednesday - Chicken Strips (from the week before when we made extra and froze them)
Thursday - Spaghetti and turkey meatballs
Friday - Homemade fish and chips


Happy cooking!