Menu Planning Made Easy

What is menu planning?

Planning in advance what you will be cooking in a given period of time (week, 2 weeks, month, etc).

Benefits of menu planning:

• it's efficient: you can create your grocery list from the ingredients lists of your recipes. Gone are the days of staring blankly into the pantry or frantically rummaging through the refrigerator in search of what to eat or what to shop for.
• it's budget-friendly: Less food is wasted because you buy/use only what you need.
• you can have variety: You keep track of how often you eat what, so you can plan in new dishes or family favorites.
• it's healthier: Eating at home is healthier than eating out. You know exactly what goes into your meals, and can even alter the recipes to certain health needs or caloric requirements.

Creative Meal Planning Ideas

• dedicate each night of the week to a different type of food {soup, salads, crockpot, one-dish, ethnic food, seasonal favorite, etc}
• create a theme night once a week {a great resource for ideas can be found here}

Resources for menu planning

A Basic Guide to Meal Planning - simplemom.net - all you need to do to get started

7 Tips to Simplify Meal Planning - workitmom.com - basic guidelines to helping meal-planning run smoothly in your house

Family Nights - whittakerwoman.typepad.com - fun and creative ideas for making family nights special for everyone

Menu Planning Resources & Ideas - simplemom.net