Monthly Meal How-To

A few months ago, Jeff and I started making a monthly meal plan rather than a weekly meal plan. By doing so, we cut the amount we spend on food almost in half. Before the beginning of each month, we sit down with our calendar and plan our menu for the entire month. While this may seem daunting, it's really not. There are a few of our favorite meals that are repeated every month. Tuesdays are taco night, so one night each week is already planned. Jeff helps coach our church's youth basketball on Wednesday nights, so we have something that can be easily reheated those nights. I have school until 6pm on Mondays, so those are quick meals that are put together in little time. We also try at least 3 new recipes a month. I have a ridiculous number of cookbooks, so finding 3 or more new recipes is no problem, but you can find tons of recipes online.

Here is our February meal plan:

Saturday, 1st - Pizza
Sunday, 2nd - Superbowl/Jeff's birthday
Monday, 3rd - You're on your own
Tuesday, 4th - Tacos
Wednesday, 5th - Pancakes with buttermilk syrup
Thursday, 6th - Hawaiian haystacks
Friday, 7th - Chopped Challenge
Saturday, 8th - Chicken Salad
Sunday, 9th - Spaghetti with meat sauce
Monday, 10th - Chicken Satay
Tuesday, 11th - Fish tacos
Wednesday, 12th - Crock pot pot roast and rice
Thursday, 13th - Pork and broccoli stir fry
Friday, 14th - Valentine's Day date
Saturday, 15th - Spicy 50/50 burger
Sunday, 16th - Pulled pork
Monday, 17th - Pappardelle with creamy mushroom sauce
Tuesday, 18th - Tacos
Wednesday, 19th - Stuffed baked potatoes
Thursday, 20th - Turkey and avocado melt
Friday, 21st - Chopped challenege
Saturday, 22nd - Hamburgers
Sunday, 23rd - Breakfast
Monday, 24th - Sausage and potatoes
Tuesday, 25th - Fish tacos
Wednesday, 26th - Chicken and rice
Thursday, 27th - Tomato soup and grilled cheese
Friday, 28th - Penne with broccoli, cheddar and bacon

After the menu is planned, I go through each recipe and inventory my pantry to see what we need to buy. Then I make a list and we go on one big shopping trip at the beginning of the month. We buy everything that we can store for up to a month; meat, canned goods, dry goods, etc. Then we go every week or two weeks for things like milk and produce depending on need.

We save time and money by going to this monthly plan. I'll post some of the recipes as I make them, too. Happy eating!