Thursday, January 5, 2012
Crafts
I've been a very bad craft blogger! I haven't posted anything since this summer. I've been unemployed for the last several months and spent a lot of time going to interviews, updating my resume, and looking for jobs. Luckily, I have a job starting in a few weeks! Hopefully this means more craft posts in the near future!
Meal Plan
(*Skip the paragraphs preceding the meal plan if you have already been following my meal plans.)
Not in any regards do I consider myself a chef, food guru, or anything of the like. However, I have found something that works for myself and my husband. It all started once I became unemployed and was looking for avenues to amuse myself. I decided to scrutinize some of my frequent tasks and decide if I could improve their efficiency in any way . My old way of grocery shopping was going to the grocery store with maybe a meal or two in mind, but for the most part just grabbing some meat, some sides, and hoping for the best. This often resulted in my husband and I saying "What do you want to eat? I don't know, what do you want to eat?" One person might not feel like eating a certain side or making the decision, so making dinner got kind of annoying at times. I started to think about how cafeteria's usually post the meals that they will have for the week on a chalk board, calendar, or something like that. If you liked Taco Day and you knew it was on Thursday's.. you could plan not to pack a lunch that day. Long story short, I decided that whenever I would go shopping, I would plan out 14 meals in advance and print them out on a list for the fridge. We eat the meals in whatever order we wish and we just cross them off when we make them.
I wasn't sure if the meal plan was going to work out, it was just something to keep me busy. 5 months later I am still printing out my meal plans and posting them on the fridge! It may sound like a lot of time dedicated to meal planning, but it the long run, it saves me time on a daily basis. Not to mention that I also end up buying less food at the grocery store because I know what I am making for dinner. I plan on continuing my meal planning even as I get busier and start to have a family. I can plan the meals anytime that I want to before I go out shopping and then I don't have to think about what to eat again until our next meal plan.
Sometimes my meal plans are pretty simple, other times more demanding of time. They are often nothing special, but if they inspire someone else to make something different or become more organized with their meal planning, that is fine with me.
My Meals: My goal is to make most things from scratch. I try to avoid (for the most part) making frozen foods for dinner (other than frozen pizza and vegetables) to avoid the preservatives. I have at least 2 "easy meals" out of each 14, and possibly more if I am expecting a busy week. I usually list 14 meals out in each meal plan, but I will sometimes list less if I know that we are eating out one night or if I made something leftover from the last meal plan. Most often my meals include a meat, a vegatable, and another side to be well rounded!
I'm still learning...do you have any tips for me? Any healthier options to what I am making?
Not in any regards do I consider myself a chef, food guru, or anything of the like. However, I have found something that works for myself and my husband. It all started once I became unemployed and was looking for avenues to amuse myself. I decided to scrutinize some of my frequent tasks and decide if I could improve their efficiency in any way . My old way of grocery shopping was going to the grocery store with maybe a meal or two in mind, but for the most part just grabbing some meat, some sides, and hoping for the best. This often resulted in my husband and I saying "What do you want to eat? I don't know, what do you want to eat?" One person might not feel like eating a certain side or making the decision, so making dinner got kind of annoying at times. I started to think about how cafeteria's usually post the meals that they will have for the week on a chalk board, calendar, or something like that. If you liked Taco Day and you knew it was on Thursday's.. you could plan not to pack a lunch that day. Long story short, I decided that whenever I would go shopping, I would plan out 14 meals in advance and print them out on a list for the fridge. We eat the meals in whatever order we wish and we just cross them off when we make them.
I wasn't sure if the meal plan was going to work out, it was just something to keep me busy. 5 months later I am still printing out my meal plans and posting them on the fridge! It may sound like a lot of time dedicated to meal planning, but it the long run, it saves me time on a daily basis. Not to mention that I also end up buying less food at the grocery store because I know what I am making for dinner. I plan on continuing my meal planning even as I get busier and start to have a family. I can plan the meals anytime that I want to before I go out shopping and then I don't have to think about what to eat again until our next meal plan.
Sometimes my meal plans are pretty simple, other times more demanding of time. They are often nothing special, but if they inspire someone else to make something different or become more organized with their meal planning, that is fine with me.
My Meals: My goal is to make most things from scratch. I try to avoid (for the most part) making frozen foods for dinner (other than frozen pizza and vegetables) to avoid the preservatives. I have at least 2 "easy meals" out of each 14, and possibly more if I am expecting a busy week. I usually list 14 meals out in each meal plan, but I will sometimes list less if I know that we are eating out one night or if I made something leftover from the last meal plan. Most often my meals include a meat, a vegatable, and another side to be well rounded!
Meal Plan
- Skyline (plus spaghetti, onions, cheddar cheese, & oyster crackers on the side)
*The Skyline that we use comes frozen in a tub and has several servings of Skyline.
- BLTs (the usual, other than turkey bacon instead of regular bacon)
- DIY Pizza
*This time we will be using Kroger pizza dough (in a bag), Kroger Pizza Sauce, Onion, and Shredded Chicken
- Frozen Pizza
- Spaghetti, Homemade Garlic Bread
*Homemade Garlic Bread is made by taking a slice of bread, spreading butter on it and garlic powder, and it putting it in the oven at 200° until butter is melting and crispy
- Hillshire Farm Turkey Kielbasa, Green Beans, Macaroni & Cheese
- Taco Salad
*Salad is made of Lettuce, onion, and tomato, topped with cooked beef, shredded cheese (taco or cheddar), Catalina Dressing, Sour Cream, and Salsa
- Tortellini with Pesto, Salad
- French Onion Soup (A), Soup Of Choice (J), & Panini’s
- Steak, Baked Potatoes, & Broccoli
- Soft Tacos, Refried Beans
- Hot Dogs (with Buns), Cream Corn, Au Gratin Potatoes
- Hot Dogs (with Buns), Cottage Cheese, Home Made Fries
I'm still learning...do you have any tips for me? Any healthier options to what I am making?
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