Ok I know there’s a saying about the “best laid plans…” but I’m in a frazzled state and can’t quite remember it right now. For accountability’s sake, I was fully planning to menu plan on Thursday, grocery shop over the weekend and share our family’s menu plan with you today. The menu plan is pretty much done, grocery shopping hasn’t happened yet and my farm box that needs to be ordered by 2:00pm was finalized at 1:53, just under the wire. BUT, I do know what I’m planning to fix this week so I’m really in a good place just having that step done. I plan to do a marathon grocery run tonight after work (I know, menu planning is supposed to eliminate Crazy Stacy from popping into the grocery store at 5:30pm, but baby steps ok?) So here is the plan:
Monday: Pork Chops (just seasoned and cooked up in a skillet, nothing fancy) and sautéed zucchini. I have zucchini in the fridge that needs to be cooked TODAY, but I need to grab pork chops.
Tuesday: Leftover Day. Will there be leftover pork chops? Maybe. If not, there’s always salad (my go to) or canned soup and grilled cheese. As I make more soups, I’ll stash some away so we can move away from the cans.
Wednesday: Crockpot Day. French Dips. This is one of the easiest recipes ever: Put a tri tip or ball tip in the crock pot, fill it with water to cover the meat, add two packets of au jus and leave on high for 8 hours. When I get home, I separate the meat with a fork, put it on rolls to make a sandwiches, and serve with the juice for dipping. It could not possibly be easier. I know I have au jus in the spice cupboard, but I need to grab a ball tip and fresh rolls.
Thursday: Lasagna. I’ll pick up a frozen lasagna and garlic bread tonight and be good to go.
Friday: Mama’s night off. We’ll probably have leftovers unless I can talk my love into a date night.
Saturday: I plan to cook but I didn’t get as far as figuring out what yet. Let’s just say TBD.
Sunday: My crockpot will be serving chili. I’ll shop for the ground turkey on Saturday, but I have everything else on hand.
You can tell I’m relying pretty heavily on “convenience foods” this week. Ideally, I’d like to move away from this and make more from scratch, like the lasagna and maybe the au jus. But I’m not going to beat myself up over it. Right now, I’m going to pat myself on the back for having a plan to start with. It’s a huge relief to know the answer to the “What’s for dinner?” question before it’s even asked. As a matter of fact, I put the menu on our calendar so maybe no one will even ask.
I’m also planning to do a Costco run and put together a bunch of freezer meals in the near future. This will make crock pot day even easier. I’ve allowed myself to play on Pinterest and get a stash of new recipes together. I’ve also found some soup recipes that look yummy but seem a little more complicated than “dump in the crockpot and go” so I’ve pinned them under Sunday Soups. I can use my football watching Sundays to get a few pots of soup together and freeze leftovers. If you want to see the recipes I’m plotting to use, jump over to my Pinterest.
How is your menu planning coming? Are you a whiz? Do you have any secrets to share? Or do you want to jump in with me and wing it? Please leave feedback in the comments.
stacystark.net 