Meal Ideas

quirkymom33
Jan 4
3 min read

Updated: Feb 7

I don't define myself as a "Type A" personality, but I do love having a menu board prepared each week. On a day to day basis it may not be 100% accurate, but yes in the course of the week, we will more than likely have eaten all the meals up there. Maybe some meals lasted an extra day or two or plans were changed at the last minute, but once I have a plan, I have the groceries so it still gets made, even if it is a day or two later.

How do I make my menu? I start by looking in my fridge to see what HAS to be eaten soon. I check the freezer to see if anything has been in there too long or inspires me. I also check my calendar to see how much time I will have to make a meal that day (is it a crockpot kind of day). Once all that is determined then I start filling in the days with food.

For example if I have half a head of cabbage that needs eating, I will likely add stir fry, or cabbage role casserole to my menu or add it to soup.... if cabbage sits around here too long, then I am going to smell it coming out the other end of someone for longer than normal, so yep, that cabbage has got to get eaten.

After the obvious meals are chosen then I may look in a few cookbooks for ideas or search my cupboard for inspiration. I do have 2 different sections in my cupboard that sometimes help me decide. The first is a small bin that contains packages of sauces usually, but some seasoning packs as well. These are great in a pinch and add loads of flavour, but you have to watch the sodium and sugar content for sure. I tend to use 1 package in a huge dish, so my flavour can be a little watered down if I don't add extra spices to it. Otherwise, I would have to use 2 packages of sauce and that would have way too much sugar for me and too much sodium for my husband.

The second area I have is my Epicure meal packs. I don't sell Epicure, but my friend Jenn does if you want to order some. Epicure is great: it is a fair price, it is flavourful and makes an effort to be healthier than many products. I hosted a party and got many items on discount. The meal packs are easy to use, just read the back of the package to know what ingredients to buy and add them to the grocery list. Meals are made quickly and often in the microwave (I try to alter them for stovetop or oven myself, but it is handy for students without an oven)

Sometimes, after all that, I still have spaces to fill and so once upon a time I came up with a generic list of meal ideas. Eventually my goal will be to post some of my favorite recipes on this site, but for right now all I can offer you is a list that you can Google search and find on someone else's pretty website - ba, ha!