Stretching your dollar... (part 4)

Meal Planning

I am a planner.  I have always been a planner--about everything.  I love lists.  I usually have lists for my lists... and sometimes even a list for that list.  I love being organized.  One thing I have always done is meal plan.  I'm not quite sure how you grocery shop or make your grocery list without a meal plan.  My mind just doesn't work like that.  I always sit down and write out what we will eat every night for the seven day period.  I also make a general plan of options for breakfasts and lunches.  We are flexible on this.  If we get asked over to a friend's house, or if we decide we want to go out to eat, we can sway from the plan.  However, if we are home every night, there is a plan.  This also helps me with staying on track with my healthy eating as well.

Here are some tips that I use for my meal planning.  I use these tips, so that they in turn help my grocery bill.

*I try to have at least one meatless meal a week.  I know, I know.  Guys don't generally like this.  However, it really does save on your budget.  Good meat is expensive--even when you are getting it on sale.  If you can eat one meal a week without it, you can really start to save.  If you are doing this, I recommend you try to replace the meat with some other protein.  Sometimes this works for me, and sometimes it doesn't.  I tend to do the meatless meals on Sunday nights, just because Sundays are more of a laid back day.  Again, this is flexible.  Here are some ideas for you--veggie and cheese omlet, pancakes, grilled cheese and tomato soup, anything made with black beans (tons of options there), anything made with quinoa, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches! :)

*Eat your leftovers.  I know.  This isn't popular either.  Trust me.  I'm with you on this.  I'm not a leftover fan either.  We eat them, but we have a rule.  We only eat the leftovers of a meal one time.  I then freeze all the rest.  For example, if I make a meal that has 8 servings, we will eat 2 servings the first night.  Then we eat 2 more servings another night that week.  That still leaves 4 servings though.  I take those four servings and freeze them into two separate meals.  We then have 2 meals waiting in the freezer for one of those nights where I might get home late and don't feel like cooking.  Don't let your food go to waste!!!

*Use your crock pot!  I try to use my crock pot at least one time a week.  I'm still collecting crock pot recipes that we like (and are good for me).  Crock pot meals tend to use less and get more.  Especially when it comes to your meats.  You can use a tougher (and cheaper) meat, and it will be tender when it's time to eat.  As opposed to paying a lot for a nicer cut of meat.  There are all sorts of things that can be made in the crock pot--soups, roasts, fillings for your tortillas, breakfasts, and many chicken meals.  Dust yours off today!

*Use tried and true recipes.  I'll admit.  This is a little hard for me.  I like to try new recipes all the time.  Unfortunately that can get costly.  When you are making a new recipe, you sometimes have to buy ingredients or spices that you don't have on hand.  These add up quickly.  If you are using a tried and true recipe, you know you will use the left over seasonings or ingredients again.  For example, one time I bought an entire jar of orange marmalade for a recipe someone gave me.  Guess what?  I didn't like the recipe and then I had a whole jar of orange marmalade that sat taking up room in my fridge until I eventually threw it out. Those kind of mistakes add up when it comes to your grocery bill.

*Limit your ingredients.  The first thing I look at in a recipe is the ingredients list.  I don't care what's in it, what the prep work is, or how long it takes... if it has a ton of different ingredients, I skip right over it.  I don't demand it has 5 or less ingredients or something like that, but I know what I'm going to have on hand or what I've never heard of before. 

Good luck!