Meal planning help.

[Wisconsin Beth]

Ok, I'm in the midst of taking over grocery shopping from DH. I'm trying to meal plan and check cupboards/freezer/coupons while making the grocery list. Here's my problem - I'm blanking out on meals. I'd like to get a list of meals so that I can rotate though them.

So here's what I've got:
1. burgers and fries
2. tacos
3. casseroles
4. fajitas
5. chix breast w/ starch
6. chili since it's fall
7. roast chix/turkey
8. chix quesadillas (using leftover chix)
9. spaghetti.
10. stir fries.

I know I used to have more meals in my brain than this. And I'm not sure how well these will go over with my kids - ages 3.5 and not quite 2. I thought I fed them better but in looking back over the last 6 months or so, DH and I have both taken the easy way out and they've eaten pretty lousily lately. And I'm not willing to turn dinner into a battleground so the backup is going to be pb&j or bread/toast w/ butter and jelly.

[saveinla]

mac and cheese and some veggies - added in and on the side.

[Wisconsin Beth]

Sept 26, 2011 14:59:25 GMT -5 saveinla said:

mac and cheese and some veggies - added in and on the side.

they love to eat frozen peas so that's been part of dinner lately. There's not a lot of veggie being served to them (or me) at dinner and I need to work on that too. I tend to focus on a main and a starch and skip the veggies.

[saveinla]

Beth,

Try sauteeing some green beans with a little garlic salt and see if they will eat it. You can try with the frozen or fresh ones.

Do they like soup - if they do then you can also try soup and grilled cheese and it's a great way to add veggies.

[Wisconsin Beth]

I haven't really tried them on soup. DS is still figuring out how to use a spoon and I'm afraid of the mess, stupid as it sounds.

[sarcasticgirl]

I'm trying to do something similar... our grocery budget has just gotten out of control. mostly because we just moved aug. 1st and with all the work around the house, i've been too tired to cook. so it's been easy pre-made stuff... or take out. Generally, i'm a cook from scratch kind of girl.

I've been big on a few slow cooker meals. I, personally, hate the crock pot meals that call for packages of seasoning or cans of soup. so whatever i throw in there is from scratch. Since fall is here, i made some pork roast over the weekend. since it's just DH and I, we got dinner and a few lunches from it.
Pulled pork is great in the slow cooker, as is BBQ chicken.
I also put together some large chicken pot pies (i make the filling and then use pre made pie crust on top)
Soup is a staple in our house in the fall. (tomato soup and grilled cheese! YUM!)
lasagnas, all different kinds, sometimes i throw in winter squash, butternut... mmmmm, or spinach or zucchini. also, roasting tomatoes and making sauce from scratch has been soooo yummy.

Other filling and inexpensive meals great for fall:
risotto
gnocchi

or consider different grains. something like cous cous is super quick and easy and takes on whatever flavor you give it.

I'll be adding in some of these meals a couple times a week with our normal rotation of meals... grilled chicken , chicken wraps or quesadillas, grilled pork tenderloin, fish... all served with veggies and sometimes potatoes or a grain like couscous or rice.

for kids... have you tried making chicken tenders/chicken nuggets at home? it's pretty easy, and if you let them help, they're more likely to eat them!

[chiver78]

Sept 26, 2011 14:59:25 GMT -5 saveinla said:

mac and cheese and some veggies - added in and on the side.

I toss veggies in my mac 'n cheese all the time. hell, I even get my dad to eat spinach (he swears he hates it) when I make my parmesan sauce!

mixes that usually go over well from my kitchen:
spinach/parmesan
broccoli/cheddar-mozzarella
fajita veggies/pepper jack <- with or without grilled chicken

have fun with it - and honestly, just it being mac 'n cheese will probably make your kids more open to trying out new veggies.

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

I proccessed some frozen spinach and threw it into my beef enchiladas. The recipe called for spinach but I decided to make it more of a puree that would blend throughout rather than strings of it going thru the filling.

It worked really well, with the taco seasoning and cheese you barely noticed the spinach beyond it's green color. If I could get my DH to eat it you should probably be able to get kids to eat it.

[muttleynfelix]

For veggies - we get bags of mixed veggies and then cook enough in the microwave for DS for a couple meals at a time. I second the mac n cheese with veggies, you can also throw in some ham or turkey sausage.

Some of our favorite crock pot meals: Italian Pork Chops (pork chops in the crock pot a bottle of italian dressing, potatoes, carrots and onions), beef stew, swiss steak, cranberry pork chops, italian beef (slightly different than the pork chops).

Oh a variation on the typical quesadilla, you can put apples in with chicken.

ETA: I started doing this in May because I was being horrible about repeating meals: I write down everything I make for the month. Then at the beginning of each month I make a list of meals I plan on cooking that month. Then before i do my grocery shopping for the week I pick however many I am going to cook (usually 3, left overs take care of the other 3 and pizza works for the last night). By keeping a lists, I typically don't repeat any meals in a month and I try not repeat meals more than 2 months in a row.

[chiver78]

Sept 26, 2011 15:45:28 GMT -5 muttleynfelix said:

Oh a variation on the typical quesadilla, you can put apples in with chicken.

what kind of cheese do you pair this with? that's an interesting combo. I sometimes put apple and onion in my chicken or tuna salad, but never thought to add apple to a quesadilla. thanks for the tip!

re: quesadillas - I like black beans in mine. I'll cook up a can of 'em, following the recipe on the Goya can. I live alone, so it stretches to a week's worth of meals and fixins. after the first meal, the leftovers go into quesadillas, omelets, etc.

[dakota4600]

Pork Chops or pork roasts
Salmon or other fish
Enchilada
Pizza (either make the crust or buy Boboli)

I've actually eliminated most starches from dinner (Unless it is pasta or tacos.) I do a salad, meat and a frozen veggie.

Our menu this week
Sesame Chicken with broccoli
Herbed Pork Roast with Carrots
Italian roasted chicken breasts with peas or green beans
Pasta & Meatballs

Sign up for the Cooking light recipe of the day. I get tons of ideas from there. I aim for one new recipe a week (sesame chicken), one quick easy recipe (pasta & meatballs) and one with a lot of leftovers (Pork Roast).

[muttleynfelix]

Ummm... I've got to look at the recipe. I think I've just been using Colby-Jack, but for some reason I think the recipe is actually a half cup of mozerrella and half cup of cheddar. The recipe also includes corn. It is really really good.

Oh and Beth - DS's favorite meal is Mexican Chicken and Rice. On nights I make something like that, I'll cut up the chicken, onions and peppers before I go to bed the night before. Then I can throw them in the skillet when I get home and it takes less than 30 minutes until we can eat. If you give me your email address, I have all my favorites in a word document because I give them away a cookbook to my friends and family members who are getting married.

[Wisconsin Beth]

Yeah, half of the problem is walking in the back door and one (or both) of them immediately starts in with wanting to eat.

Tonight is chix. quesadillas since I roasted a whole chicken yesterday.

[sheilaincali]

We make a whole chicken once every couple of weeks (I get them direct from a farmer friend). We have the whole chicken on Sunday. Monday will be a mexican chicken rice dish (that we invented using chicken, blackbeans, can of tomatoes, rice and seasonings), Tuesday will be chicken and dumplings. Or we will do a shoulder roast on Sunday and then have burrito bowls with the left overs the next meal and pulled pork sandwiches the third meal. We try to get multiple meals out of our big Sunday meal. Turkey- we will make one and then have turkey pot pie, turkey commercials (turkey on bread with mashed potatos and gravy), etc.

This week we didn't have Sunday dinner at our house (Dad's bday) so we are having
Monday; Beef Stew
Tuesday: Grilled BBQ chicken
Wednesday: Pork Chops (on the grill)
Thursday: Brats with Mac and Cheese (nice brats from the meat department)
Friday: Skillet Lasagna

Not very exciting but we have a green veggie with every meal and there is always enough for DH and I to each have lunch the next day.

[constanz22]

Some of my favorite cookbooks for easy, good recipes are the Taste of Home cookbooks. Love them! The Casseroles, Slow Cooker and Soups one is my FAVORITE. I use it all the time. The recipes tend to be "normal" ingredients, easy to follow and prepare and yummy!

Some of my favorite crock pot meals:
Beef tips and mushrooms. Put beef tips (or any cut up steak/roast) in crock pot, add a small can of mushrooms and envelope of onion soup mix. Serve over rice or noodles. If you want a creamy sauce, you can add some cream cheese 20 minutes before serving.

Salsa chicken. Put boneless, skinless chicken breasts in crock pot. Top with 1 cup salsa, 1 cup black beans and 1 cup corn (frozen or can). 20 minutes before serving, add a half block of cream cheese. You can shred it and serve it over rice or noodles, and leftovers are great wrapped in a tortilla or over nacho chips.

What about meatloaf? I have a great crock pot meatloaf recipe if you're interested too.

[muttleynfelix]

sroo - PM me your email address and I will send it to you.

[muttleynfelix]

Sept 26, 2011 15:56:15 GMT -5 muttleynfelix said:

Ummm... I've got to look at the recipe. I think I've just been using Colby-Jack, but for some reason I think the recipe is actually a half cup of mozerrella and half cup of cheddar. The recipe also includes corn. It is really really good.

The recipe does call for 1/2 cup mozerrella and 1/2 cup of cheddar. FYI.

[marvholly]

Additional entree ideas (trying to keep reasonably priced)
burgers
hot dogs/polish
grilled cheese (w/ham or bacon?)
pot roast
beef or chicken stew
Tuna salad
salmon salad
salmon patties
lasagne (red meat or white veggie)
Fake crab w/pasta
breakfast for dinner

In the soup group I also do a meal in a bowl of beef, vegetable barley, lentil and clam chowder. I can be REAL happy w/ a dinner of baked onion soup, salad and garlic bread.

[yogiii]

This is a little more summery but how about pasta salad? It's also a good option to bring to work and I often give it to DS without the dressing as a finger food. I think most of the other stuff we cook has already been suggested, and I'm blanking right now, I'll try to think of more stuff through the day

frozen tortellini or just plain pasta
white kidney beans or another kind you like
assorted veggies for us typically cukes, cherry tomatoes, chives, green and orange pepper, steamed broccoli
mozzarella cheese
olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper and oregano for a dressing

Something the kids might like is english muffin pizza (might be good for days they are picky). Just spread some sauce on and sprinkle the top with mozzarella cheese, add topping if you want to or not. We cook them in the toaster oven.

[Wisconsin Beth]

Thanks everyone. Keep them coming. Mutt, I've printed out your list. I have a ginormous crock pot recipe list. I'm willing to attach it here, if anyone's interested. I need to go back and look at it for myself.

[singlemomky]

Sept 26, 2011 16:07:01 GMT -5 Wisconsin Beth said:

Yeah, half of the problem is walking in the back door and one (or both) of them immediately starts in with wanting to eat.

How about having a small snack - some fruit or veggies or a slice of cheese handy for the kiddos to eat while you are making dinner? My DS who is 7 expects dinner to magically appear on the table when we walk through the door so if I know it is going to be another 30-40 minutes I give him a little snack. Enough to let me get dinner finished but not so much that he doesn't want to eat.

[Wisconsin Beth]

Sept 27, 2011 8:18:20 GMT -5 singlemomky said:

Sept 26, 2011 16:07:01 GMT -5 Wisconsin Beth said:

Yeah, half of the problem is walking in the back door and one (or both) of them immediately starts in with wanting to eat.

How about having a small snack - some fruit or veggies or a slice of cheese handy for the kiddos to eat while you are making dinner? My DS who is 7 expects dinner to magically appear on the table when we walk through the door so if I know it is going to be another 30-40 minutes I give him a little snack. Enough to let me get dinner finished but not so much that he doesn't want to eat.

We usually end up giving them cheese. Both my kids are cheese hounds.

[saveinla]

Sept 27, 2011 10:00:22 GMT -5 Wisconsin Beth said:

Sept 27, 2011 8:18:20 GMT -5 singlemomky said:

How about having a small snack - some fruit or veggies or a slice of cheese handy for the kiddos to eat while you are making dinner? My DS who is 7 expects dinner to magically appear on the table when we walk through the door so if I know it is going to be another 30-40 minutes I give him a little snack. Enough to let me get dinner finished but not so much that he doesn't want to eat.

We usually end up giving them cheese. Both my kids are cheese hounds.

carrots with ranch dressing or celery with PB would also be great snacks. We also had grapes or sliced apples, bananas, peaches - depending on what time dinner was going to be ready.

[Tiny]

Don't forget you can mix up your 'pastas' - use the same sauce - just change the pasta shape: rotinni, penne, elbows, Wacky Pasta, whatever. You can make it alittle more elegant (use the same sauce) by making tortelli or gnocchi.
Also look for frozen Ravioli. The tortelli/gnocchi/ravioli will be alittle bit more expensive than just pasta - but it might be worth the couple extra bucks expense to shake things up every 3 or 4th time 'spagetti' comes up in your rotation.

Don't forget you can make garlic bread - out of just about any bread or bun, some butter/spread, and garlic powder (at it's most basic) toast it up and you've got something different. (I like to use butter and crushed garlic mixed together with some parm cheese on anything from hamburger buns, to a slice of whole wheat bread). Be creative with your odds and ends!.

[muttleynfelix]

Sept 27, 2011 14:04:25 GMT -5 @celtophile said:

Okay, now I get it. The first three letters of the word are F A G, as in pasta e f a g ioli.

Good grief.

Guess I'd better be careful who I serve that to.

[NomoreDramaQ1015]

so when I wrote the Italian word for beans, it came up as homosexualioli.

#rofl#

[Becks]

Sept 27, 2011 14:40:36 GMT -5 NomoreDramaQ1015 said:

so when I wrote the Italian word for beans, it came up as homosexualioli.

Whatever, I love that soup! I have yet to make it at home but now I'll get it on my list for this winter.

[Firefly]

OK here is what I have been doing lately. I would stir fry chicken and some fresh or frozen vegetables with a bit of tomato sauce so its almost like a stew. I put it in the freezer and after would eat that with either steamed rice or pita bread. I also keep pasta sauce in the fridge and pre cooked meet balls. For dinner I make pasta and microwave the meetballs and the sauce together.

[chiver78]

Sept 27, 2011 21:27:34 GMT -5 Becks said:

Sept 27, 2011 14:40:36 GMT -5 NomoreDramaQ1015 said:

so when I wrote the Italian word for beans, it came up as homosexualioli.

Whatever, I love that soup! I have yet to make it at home but now I'll get it on my list for this winter.

oy. it's a word filter on this whole site, that wasn't necessary for this particular sub-board. sorry for the confusion.

[Wisconsin Beth]

chive, Out of curiosity, can you mods adjust the filters for 1 board? Or does proboards start with a basic filter and you can build up from that but not remove that basic filter?