I'm taking a new approach to menu planning this year. A neighbor of mine prompted me to start planning my meals on a monthly basis instead of a weekly basis. This sounds little intimidating, but once I did January's, I was convinced. Yes, sitting down initially to plan out a month's worth of meals, it does take some time and research to find recipes. But on the weekly basis, it's so easy. All I do is prep the month's list of meals and then each week I refer to that list and pick what I want to make that week and I can easily make my grocery lists based on that list. So far, I've been planning out 25 meals a month. This way, I can allow for unexpected dinner invitations, planned events and nights when I just don't feel like cooking. In January, I tried quite a few new recipes...some I loved, some not so much...and we ate at home a lot more, which I love.
I'm also trying to work on prepping food in a smarter way. My husband and I like to work out at the gym during the week and normally don't get home until around 6 or 6:30. Because of this, dinner time can be super hectic and stressful. I'm trying to plan out recipes that can be easily prepped early during the day, that way when we get home I can easily pull dinner together. For example, I've deemed Tuesdays "Crock Pot Tuesdays." Tuesdays are crazy. My older daughter has school, then dance, then we hit the gym, so I'm not home a whole lot on Tuesdays. Putting dinner in the crock pot that is ready for us when we get home is so nice! I'm still trying to figure this aspect out, and it's something I want to focus on for February. More prep!
How do you plan out your meals at home? What works or doesn't work for you?
What works for us? CROCK-POT!!! So in love with mine! My favorite recipe right now is a pack (about 2 lbs) of chicken, a packet of taco seasoning, and a 16 oz jar of salsa. Throw it all in your crock pot, I usually do about 8 hrs on low. When it's all cooked shred the chicken and serve as tacos!
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