Hands down, the easiest time I have making my monthly meal plan is when I have meals that we didn’t make the previous month. Most of the family was down with the flu over Christmas break, so I didn’t get to using all of the meals that were planned out for December, so some of the meals below are rollovers. I figured why waste a good meal idea!
But this month, I’m going to try cooking with an Instant Pot. I’ve been eyeballing one for a year or so now. And with my hectic schedule this year, I can really appreciate them. But whats always held me back is the space. We don’t have a large amount of space in our house, so storing another appliance was always what kept me from getting one.
So the plan is to start dipping my toes into the instant pot world this month, so some of these meals may change if I can find an alternative. If not, there’s always next month!
Beyond basing our meals off our schedule for the month, here are some other things to consider while reviewing our monthly meal plan:
I plan only our dinners. Unless it’s noted, sides consist of a fruit or veggie, possibly a grain, and is based on what I have in my fridge and pantry. You can check out my 30+ frugal pantry staples to see what I always have on hand without going over budget.
We try to have one big meal each week, and it’s usually a roast. Throughout the rest of the week I use the leftovers as ingredients for the week’s remaining meals. For instance, a roast beef then becomes ingredients for beef stroganoff, beef quesadillas, vegetable beef soup and so on.
Breakfasts are usually oatmeal, cereal, toast or bagel with peanut butter and fruit, cottage cheese and fruit, or yogurt with granola. It may seem limited and boring, but keeping breakfast choices as simple as possible makes it much easier during our hectic morning routine. Hubs is out the door at 6:30 and kids are on the bus at 7.
Lunches are packed each day for Hubs and the kids, while I currently eat at home. Lunches are either sandwiches, salads, chicken nuggets, mac and cheese, or leftovers as the main course. It’s served with a fruit/veg, yogurt or cheese, a drink and a “treat” {gummies, chips, etc}. Snacks, such as crackers, pretzels and Nilla cookies, are also divided out at home and sent to school in smaller snack containers. While packing lunches every day does raise our grocery bill a little bit, it saves us well over $250 every month, making it well worth it. To see what supplies I rely on for our packed lunches, you can check out my 7 must haves for packed lunches.
I don’t stock pile shop –we just don’t have the pantry space– but I do shop for weekly sales, mostly for snack items like crackers, pretzels, and so on. While this may not be the best of healthiest option for snacks, and I far prefer fruit for their snacks, I have found that dry snacks are by far the easiest when divvying out snacks. And they’re also is the least messy/sticky in the classrooms and backpacks.
During the summer and fall, I preserve what I am able to grow and get cheap from local you-pick farms and farmer’s markets. It helps me keep what we eat fresh and local, but also limits our preservative and additive intake {I have allergies to multiple things, including preservatives, and my middle gets migraines with certain food additives like MSG}.
Shepherd’s Pie
French Toast
Swedish Meatballs
Pizza x2
Roast Chicken x2
Salisbury Steaks, Mashed Potatoes & Green Beans
Fajitas
Chicken & Wild Rice Soup
Taco Ring
Tuna Noodles
Roast Beef, Potatoes & Corn
Beef Barley Soup
Chicken & Rice
Birthday Dinner {don’t know if this will be in or out, Lady Bug has yet to decide}
Meatball Subs
Chicken Corn Chowder
Steaks & Baked Potatoes {Hubs’ birthday dinner in}
Homemade Chicken Nuggets
Patty Melts & Fries
Pancakes
Chicken Parm
Chicken & Stars Soup
Stuffed Shells
Holiday Meatballs
Cheese Steaks & Fries
Out
Leftovers x2
Don’t forget to follow me on Pinterest, where I have a whole board dedicated to meal planning, as well as boards for soups, chicken recipes, and so on.
What’s on your meal plan for the month? Let me know in the comments below! I’m always looking for new meal ideas.
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