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Do you have a favorite meals list for Meal Planning?

post #1 of 9
Thread Starter 

Meal planning is a chore for me.  I get stuck at what to make for dinner every week.  I decided to make a list of the meals we like to eat.  I put it in an excel spreadsheet with a tab for each type of food.  I list the meals in a column so I can alphabetize and add to the list when I make something new.  The idea is to have an Italian, Mexican, American, Crockpot and Casserole type meal each week.  I got this idea from Cookie2.

 

Please share your meal and organzing ideas!

 

Meal list categories

American

 

BBQ Oven Chicken
Beef Roast
Chicken Noodle Soup
Chicken Pesto Sandwiches
Chicken Tenders
Chili
Grilled Chicken
Grilled Chicken Salad
Grilled Pork Chops
Ham Steaks
Hot Dogs
Meatloaf
Pork Roast
Salami Pasta Salad
Sirloin Stir Fry
Sloppy Joes
Steak
Turkey Burgers
White Chicken Chili

 

 

Asian

 

Egg Drop Soup
Fried Rice
Sweet and Sour Chicken

 

Breakfast for dinner

 

Farmer's Casserole
French Toast
Moms Egg Bake
Pancakes
Waffles

 

Casserole

 

Chicken and Rice 
Chicken Noodle
Franks & Beans
Ham & Noodle
Italian Chicken

 

Crockpot

 

Baked Potatoes
Chicken and Dumplings
Chicken Pot Pie
Creamy Crockpot Chicken
Green Beans
Stuffing
Vegetable Soup

 

Italian

 

Baked Ziti
Chicken Alfredo
Four Cheese Penne Pasta
Lasagna
Meatball Pitas
Pizza
Spaghetti
Tortellini

 

Mexican

 

Chicken Burritos
Taco Salad

Turkey Burritos

 

 Side dishes

 

Rice
Baked Beans
Baked Potatoes
Buttered Noodles
Cheddar Corn Spoon Bread
Cheesey Rice
Cream Cheese Corn
Garlic Bread
Macaroni and Cheese
Mashed Potatoes
Potatoes in microwave
Ranch Macaroni and Cheese
Stuffing
Tator Tots
post #2 of 9

This is a great idea because I have the SAME problem.  I can never think about what we are going to eat, then feel like we make the same thing all the time.  I'm going to try this as well.  Thanks for the idea!
 

post #3 of 9

I try to write it down on the calendar so I can look back and get ideas.  My family likes a lot fewer meals than yours does!

post #4 of 9

I have a master list in my household binder. Plus I keep my menus from previous months to look back on. A meal doesn't get put on the master list until it has been tried and accepted. 

post #5 of 9
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by swishina View Post

I try to write it down on the calendar so I can look back and get ideas.  My family likes a lot fewer meals than yours does!

 

dh likes all of these meals.  The girls like most of them. Some of the dishes the girls will eat a variation.  For beef or chicken burritos, I make everything separate, meat, cheese, rice, etc.. they might only eat the rice, cheese and tortilla.  When I make chicken pesto sandwiches, they eat plain grilled cheese.

post #6 of 9

I just have a binder with recipes in it.  Every weekend, I'll just go through them and match what we haven't had for awhile with what is on sale (or what I have in the freezer).  My family's preference changes so much, that a master list wouldn't work for me.

post #7 of 9

I don't have as extensive of a list, but I do plan my meals for the week with one from each category so we have some variety.  Sometimes I do the same kind of meals on the same days and give them catchy names, like for some reason we often have a mexican type meal on Tuesdays (Taco Tuesday) and I make breakfast for dinner for the kids and something different for dh and I on Wednesdays (Waffle Wednesday) and Fridays are usually early baths and dinner of homemade pizza, then popcorn and a movie (Friday Flicks). Easy meals have raw veggies and salad on the side and the kids always have fruit.

 

Each week I include: 

Mexican (tacos, tostadas, enchiladas) 

Italian (pasta and meatballs, cacciatore, ricotta gnocchi)

Meat, starch, vegetable (meatloaf, pork chops, bbq chicken, steak)

Fish, grain, vegetable

Easy (salmon or turkey burgers/BLTs with sweet potato fries, frozen raviolis, quiche with tator tots)

Breakfast (waffles/pancakes, sausage, eggs) for kids, something spicy like curry or take out for adults

Homemade pizza, salad, raw veggies

Hearty Soup (with pasta or rice, chicken or meatballs) or Casserole (tetrazzini, chicken and rice, stroganoff), I don't often make both of these in the same week because there would be too many leftovers


Edited by liamsmom - 7/31/12 at 4:22pm
post #8 of 9
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by liamsmom View Post

I don't have as extensive of a list, but I do plan my meals for the week with one from each category so we have some variety.  Sometimes I do the same kind of meals on the same days and give them catchy names, like for some reason we often have a mexican type meal on Tuesdays (Taco Tuesday) and I make breakfast for dinner for the kids and something different for dh and I on Wednesdays (Waffle Wednesday) and Fridays are usually early baths and dinner of homemade pizza, then popcorn and a movie (Friday Flicks). Easy meals have raw veggies and salad on the side and the kids always have fruit.

 

Each week I include: 

Mexican (tacos, tostadas, enchiladas) 

Italian (pasta and meatballs, cacciatore, ricotta gnocchi)

Meat, starch, vegetable (meatloaf, pork chops, bbq chicken, steak)

Fish, grain, vegetable

Easy (salmon or turkey burgers/BLTs with sweet potato fries, frozen raviolis, quiche with tator tots)

Breakfast (waffles/pancakes, sausage, eggs) for kids, something spicy like curry or take out for adults

Homemade pizza, salad, raw veggies

Hearty Soup (with pasta or rice, chicken or meatballs) or Casserole (tetrazzini, chicken and rice, stroganoff), I don't often make both of these in the same week because there would be too many leftovers

 

I do the same thing with waffles when dh is going to be home.  This evening he wasn't home so I just made myself a tuna melt.

 

I forgot the stroganoff recipe.  They like that, dd6 just eats the egg noodles plain.

 

I often get fish when we eat out because no one else eat it.

post #9 of 9

I do a variation of your idea, I do Meat on Mondays (which often turns out to be Meatless Mondays), Tuesday Chicken, Wednesday Pasta, Thursday Casserole or leftovers, Friday Easy, Saturday - leftovers or grilled, Sundays a more 'formal' meal for mid day dinner, and Whatever for Sunday night.

 

A lot of times I will check the 'what's for dinner' section of Mommysavers, see something that I make similar that sounds good.  I used to do a concrete meal plan but found out that many times I didn't feel like eating that, on that particular day.  Since I have a huge folder of recipes and a well stocked pantry and freezer, I usually have on hand what I need to make a particular dish.

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