Meal Planning Help

Sounds like you need Robin Miller!

Go to www.foodnetwork.com and click on the TV tab at the top. Then click on Today's Schedule on the left-hand side and scroll down to the Robin Miller show for that day. She is good at stringing meals together.

D.,
The only suggestion that I could make it so get on the interenet and go to foodnetwork.com. When you get there go to easy meals and go to the bottom, right had side of the screen. Click on Quick Fix Meals with Robin Miller. She will give you a shopping list and 3 meals that you can use the left overs from each to prepare the next days meals. Hopefully this will help you. Good luck!

I always look for the sales on chicken and beef. Most of the time they don't come wrap up good enough so I wrap each one by it's self that way I can thraw out what I need for that day. I also have a made a 4 week or monthly dinner menu. Maybe you have more than one kid. I only have a 20 mth old right now so it's easy. Do you have certain meals that you cook all the time? The menu thing I have a I just start it over each month that way we don't have the same thing every week. Hope I helped. I can sent the menu and you can pick stuff on it that you would like to try. T.

I understand what you mean about leftovers, I tend to cook way too much, and so much of it ends up going back -- so now if the leftovers don't get eaten the next day - I put them in the freezer (labeled w/ the date) right away to save for a quick meal in the future.

Here is a great resource for menu planning:
http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/menuplanning.htm

there are also a lot of ideas and frugal recipes on that site. I've been going to hillbillyhousewife for years, although it does have a new format b/c of it's new owner.

also on that site you can get a blank menu form:
http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/weeklymenuplan.pdf

We're a family of 7 on a tight budget due to closing our Home Remodeling Business and waiting for dh first full paycheck from his new job - so we understand money being tough! I search the internet for menu plans to get ideas, and make sure to use similar ingredients in my cooking to minimize waste. Like if I buy potatoes, we'll have mashed potatoes on day, then perhaps potato soup 2 days later, etc.

When you plan your menu, write down every ingredient you'll need for those items (even if you think you have it), then first check your pantry/fridge, and whatever you don't have, write down on your grocery list. Don't stray from your list.

Prepare meals on realistic days also. For example, don't plan on cooking lasagna on a day that you know you'll work late because realisticaly you won't have time for it.

You can also try some freezer cooking sessions (cooking in bulk using similar ingredients and freezing them to defrost later for a meal). Here are some great links for that:
http://snider.mardox.com/plans.htm

http://busycooks.about.com/od/makeaheadrecipes/Make_Ahead...

http://www.christysclipart.com/oamc2.html

And here is great site for meal planning, what to do w/ tons of chicken, beans, menu planning, etc, etc, etc:

http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/recipes.htm

It can take some time to fall into a comfortable and realistic routine for your schedule, but it can be done :)

I also agree that going to the grocery store every other day is unrealistic. I have a friend who grocery shops every day b/c she wants "fresh" food, and I keep telling her that the meat & veggies she bought today were there yesterday and the day before also - so quit wasting gas and adding to the pollution problem!

Set a realistic goal for yourself so you don't feel like you've "failed". Start out w/ planning one week, and when that goes well, move to two weeks, etc, etc.

Good luck to you!!

Hello D.,

Just read your question and can relate!! I am a WAHM and have learned over the past few years how to plan weekly menus, shop frugally at the grocery store, and minimize food waste. Please feel free to check out my website, http://www.homemakerscottage.com, for some healthy, quick and frugal recipes! I also have several recipe ebooks on meal planning, make-ahead mixes, etc. Hope you find something inspiring to help you out!

You mentioned tight finances (again, boy can I relate!)... I thought I share about a company I recently joined and am working for from home. It's called Work At Home United and I am absolutely loving it! It's very family and eco-friendly, the incentives are great, and there are no hidden fees, penalties, or gimmicks. I am a busy mommy (3 children ages 4 and under!) so I HAD to have something flexible and user-friedly- Work At Home United is both!

If you would like to hear a brief overview of the company (risk free, absolutely no obligation to join up) just email me (____@____.com) or give me a call ###-###-####).

Blessings to you and your family!

K. Howard
http://www.workathomeunited.com/homemaker

Why throw out your leftovers? I save them and eat them for breakfast or lunch the next day. Reheating covered by aluminum in a toaster oven (adding some liquid if necessary) is how I do. You can do this with mashed potatoes or rice (although those do fine on the cooktop). Microwaving tends to ruin the taste of real food and thus might be why folks don't eat leftovers. Also, I save any leftover veggies in baggies in the freezer and then just toss those in the pot when I make a chicken soup (which is also very easy).

I made a whole chicken last nite and will eat the leftovers for lunch on my salad and have cold chicken for dinner, which is nice during the summer, so I just need to cook some asparagus. I will also likely use the chicken to make some stir-fry/noodles for my boys. If you want to save money, look for the meats on sale and stock up in your freezer. YOu really need to first figure out what your family will eat and then find some recipes. Also, the the newest Joy of Cooking cookbook has suggestions for make-ahead meals (cook for a day - eat for a week list and also a list of 30 minute meals) and lots of good info on meal planning. YOu should keep on hand all the dried, canned and frozen items that you regularly use - you can shop for these once a month or look for them on sale (grocery sale ads come out on Wednesday). Here's an article on how to organize your pantry (really your first step in organizing your meals):
http://www.organizedhome.com/organized-pantry-beginner-gu...

I always write on my shopping list as soon as I am close to running out of something and I rarely have to make a trip for one ingredient (also Joy has a list of substitutes).

If you stock your pantry properly, you should just have to shop for the dry stuff once a month and then shop at least weekly for the fresh stuff. For example, I went to Sprouts on Tuesday and bought fresh fish (just put some lemon juice on it and bake for 20 minutes or I will add some ground nuts like almond or pecan), a whole chicken and some ground turkey - that's enough for almost a week. I'll likely dig into the freezer over the weekend and pull out some buffalo or turkey burgers. I just buy veggies based on the specials and keep things like green beans, frozen peas and mixed veggies in the freezer for backup when I don't have fresh.

Another example of what I do is to cook up some ground buffalo or turkey and then divide. You can use this for Tacos (usually I'll do that the nite I cook it) and then put the rest in the freezer for chili or some sort of stovetop casserole (mix with rice, canned tomatoes (and rotel if your family likes spices) or during the summer a nice taco salad.

It will take you a few months of looking for recipes for your family and sticking to an approach that works for you before you'll recognize the time and money savings. I have found that I typically cannot repeat a recipe more than once every two weeks for favorites, once a month for things not everyone likes.

This is a very helpful website. It makes it easy by giving you weekly meal plans, grocery lists and ways to use your time and food more efficiently. I hope you find it helpful!

http://www.menus4moms.com/

Hi D.,

You've got a lot to read through, so I'll try to be brief.

I belong to an organic food co-op (http://yourhealthsource.org/). They have delivery sites throughout the metroplex. Food comes every other Tuesday.

There is a list sent out 10 days before delivery stating what food you will get. I print out that list on a Friday or Saturday night when my hubby and I are going to watch a movie. I get out my cookbooks and find recipes that will use up most of the ingredients. I look for about 10 recipes for 2 weeks, which allows for leftovers, salads, or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for a dinner or two. I make a list of recipes to post on the fridge (stating what book and page number) and a shopping list.

This has worked fabulously for me and my family. Since food comes every other week, like it or not, we have to use up what's in our fridge! Our bodies and our budgets have become healthier in the 2 years that I have been part of the co-op.

As for finding good cookbooks: try your library! They keep loads of them. If you find one there that you want to purchase, look at Half-Price Books. It's a great place for cookbooks. I especially find that "healthy" cookbooks make their way to Half Price Books. Another great way to cook and use the co-op is to look for cookbooks that are organized by season.

Peace and Joy,
M. Sheehan
http://onenaturalmother.blogspot.com/

D.,

I know all too well about money being tight! I am a singlemom of a 12 year old boy. He likes to eat. I stretch my dollars with a WONDERFUL program called Angelfood Ministries. There are no qualifications and for $30.00 a month you get $70.00 worth of food and they do the shopping! I would encourage you to check out their website: angelfoodministries.com and find one near you... best thing I ever did. I know that wasn't exactly what you were asking for, but I do hope it helps.

Sincerely,
Tish

I see you've gotten lots of great ideas. I agree with the writing down of the ingredients on a shopping list when you do your meal plans. I usually go to www.allrecipes.com for ideas. When you join (its free) you can use the option of letting the site make a grocery list from the recipes you select. You can also change the serving size and it adjusts all the ingredient portions to fit.

Wow, a month is tight considering anything you can't freeze or have in the pantry will go bad. I have to buy a weeks worth at a time, and it's tough because I have 5 kids, 4 of whom are school aged and out for the summer now, and they'll eat everything up in 2 days if I don't watch them. I still have to run every other day to the store for more milk and bread!
I'd say buy beans, red beans and rice mix, hamburger and tuna and chicken helpers, canned veggies,cake mixes, frozen veggies, hamburger patties, fries, and your meats all that you can keep in the freezer. Then, make out a meal plan. I do that for a week, but it could work for a month.
For instance, Monday's Dinner:red beans and rice with sliced up smoked sausage and cornbread(all inexpensive). Tuesday, hamburger helper with canned greenbeans or frozen, Wednesday: chicken enchilada helper with spanish rice and refried beans, Thursday, Spagetti, with garlic bread(can buy made and frozen in a box), and corn. Friday:(this day I don't cook a big meal)but you can do frozen pizza's, manwhiches or chili dogs, frito pie(canned chili on top of fritos with shredded cheese and salsa if you like), or any other meal. I'm always on a budget($100 week grocery budget for family of 7), but I figure things out and the kids never know. I usually coordinate a salad, or the veggie kits you get frozen with pasta, or mashed potatoes or something with every main dish, and atleast once or twice a week a cheap cake mix and frosting, brownies or cookies, or even a watermelon sliced up. If you make beans one day, the next take the leftovers and add some chopped up tomatoes, cilantro and 'tomate sopa'(chicken'tomatoe bouillion found on the mexican aisle) and re-heat togethero make a great bean side dish to go with a mexican dinner like enchiladas or taco's, etc. I grew up on pinto beans mixed with navy beans and cornbread as a meal once a week, spagetti was another one we had often. I never felt deprived! You could make a pot roast one day with baby carrots, onions, celery and Lipton onion soup mix. Then, take the leftovers the next day and make beef stew by adding some more baby carrots, potatoes and one of the stew powder mixes in the envelopes, or more onion soup and some Worceshire sauce. If you have chicken left over after roasting one, God bless you-I'd need 2 for one meal! But, you can use the leftover chicken and make chicken and dumplings the next day. It goes great with mashed potatoes and salad(with italian dressing-yum)! You just put the leftover chicken in a pot covered with water, add chicken boullion, salt and pepper and take flour, some of the warm liquid from the pot and some baking powder and mix and roll and cut into squares and drop into the water while boiling with the chicken, then after they are plump, remove from heat-add some milk, and butter and voila! Can cut up the chicken and cook in a little oil with onions, bell peppers and Worceshire sauce and serve over white rice. Or add some egg noodles to the cut up chicken and a can of condensed chicken soup, or mix the chicken with white rice and a can of the cond. soup and salt and pepper and bake a little bit, or chicken salad, or chicken enchiladas, or shred it and cook it with a pack of that Old El Paso Taco seasoning and serve with warmed tortillas and sour cream, cheese and salsa, the possibilities are endess! Oh yes, and I have a easy lasagna recipe that is huge enough to freeze half for another meal. :-)

Hi D., I am one of those moms that roasts a chicken and makes additional meals out of it the rest of the week LOL! You could make the following out of leftover chicken...chicken pot pie- you could use frozen pie crust or make your own, mix the chicken with a bag of frozen veggies and a can or two of cream of chicken soup and bake it, or you could make chicken tacos, chicken soup, or chicken and dumplings-with biscuits out of the can or from scratch, you could make chicken enchiladas with cheese. Lots of things you can do with leftover beef or chicken. Go to www.allrecipes.com for recipes.
You can also freeze leftovers and thaw them at a later date, if there is not enough for a full meal for the family, have it for yourself or the kids for lunch. Good Luck!

try www.savingdinner.com

I'm assuming you mean you throw out your leftovers after a few days, not the next day. There may be a website somewhere that can give you an idea of creative ways to "recycle" leftovers into "different" meals. Also, we tried Super Suppers (www.supersuppers.com) - if you have the freezer space, it's a place where you make the food fresh from prepared ingredients - you assemble the recipes yourself, so you learn a little about making such a meal yourself, but you save a LOT of prep time. Very tasty and works out to about $3/serving. You take it home, freeze it, then reheat when you're ready to eat. It's like fresh cooked meals with no prep. Good luck!

As a Homemade Gourmet distributor, I can give you great solutions and help you have as many meals in your freezer as you want and give you meal plans for the left overs. It truly is the best thing happening right now. Go to www.homemadegourmet.com and check out how we can help you have 4 meals in 4 minutes in your freezer. If you're interested further, feel free to contact me personally at ____@____.com Hope this helps you. T. C. #2758

I also hate shopping all the time and prefer to do it once a week (or less if possible, but there are those ever necessary things to restock on like bread, milk, fresh fruits and veggies...) I recently started a menu (on my computer) where I plan my meals. I just type in what I want to make for dinner that week into each day (and it helps me sometimes by letting me go back and see what we've had in the past to get some good meal ideas. I also like trying out a new recipe every week or two, just for kicks. It has to be something simple because I generally am running around like crazy. Better Homes and Gardens sends out weekly recipes that I've gotten some good new recipes from.

After my meals for the week are planned (sometimes further if I can manage it) I make a list of everything I need to complete those meals. I add to the list things we will need for breakfast and lunch that we may be low on and take it to the store.

I generally use my leftovers for lunches, or sometimes, if I have enough leftover of a particular meal (or a couple of meals) we'll move the meals on the menu around a little and make room for a leftover night.

One of my favorite things to do for meals (generally when it's cooler) is to get a broiler chicken and cook it up. Then you can make a couple different meals out of it - chicken pot pie, chicken noodle soup, rice/chicken casserole, & chicken enchiladas are the ones we usually do. Another thing I do is buy ground turkey in 1 lb. rolls and use that for my meals. I've found it's cheaper than buying even the bulk ground beef, and much easier to take home and pop in the freezer, and it's about the right amount for making dinner for our family. There also isn't enough difference in the taste to notice the difference.

Another fun thing to do, is if you make tacos and have left over meat (we usually do) we just throw it on top of a salad and make a taco salad or get a bunch of chips and top it with meat, refried beans (if there are any) and cheese and broil it in the oven and we have nachos. To that you can add chopped tomato, lettuce, sour cream, whatever you like on your nachos...

If you want any of my recipes, just email me separate and I'll give them to you.

Hello D., I see you received lots of tips which you can use.

I do want to let you know that as a new online family business we will be carrying cookbooks that you may be interested in which includes a Master Meal planning for an entire month.

Sue Gregg is famous for easy to follow recipes which are nutritious for the entire family.

Here is the listing.

SUE GREGG COOKBOOKS

Sue Gregg Cookbook: Meals in Minutes
From Freezer to Table: Five o’clock has past. Long ago you breakfasted a husband, let the dog out, chauffeured the kids, splotched your best blouse, crashed the computer, answered a home equity loan phone solicitation, skipped lunch, napped the baby but not you, were called and begged by your old boss to fill in tomorrow at the office, heaped up two shopping carts at the supermarket, forgot to return your mother-in-law’s call, picked up toys, and let the dog back in. You are tired, tired, tired. Five-thirty approaches. You haven’t even begun to think about dinner. The pitter-patter of small feet approaches. Heavier footsteps will follow. What to have? Call for pizza? Again? Out for dinner? Not with your tribe on your budget. You know it is futile to check the cupboards, and the pantry is hopeless. Where to go for inspiration? The refrigerator? You open the door and stare at the shelves. They stare back. You need a plan!

What would it be like to have a freezer full of “use me” dishes waiting for the times when you’re too busy, too late, and too tired?

Now you can prepare freezer dishes once a week or once a month or just increase your recipe on any given day and freeze the extra. Double, triple, or quadruple recipes for large families. Single? Divide into smaller portions. With a freezer full of twenty-six Meals in Minutes recipes you can manage convenience and control costs without compromising low fat-high fiber nutritional standards. By six you can still say, “Dinner’s ready!” PRICE: $8.95

Sue Gregg Cookbook: Main Dishes
Main Dishes: With 140 complete menus, Main Dishes is an American style cookbook combining nutritional quality and appetizing taste without the health food shock! A cookbook that eases meat ‘n potatoes, biscuits ‘n gravy, dumplings ‘n chicken, and even fries ‘n burgers diehards into some higher fiber/lower fat fare with a little California Lite on the side.

Appetites are satisfied with quality ingredient alternatives to refined flours, sugar and hydrogenated shortening. Costs are controlled with low budget menu plans along with a printed cost analysis of each recipe and menu.

Vegetarian alternatives. Considerations for allergies and special diets. Exchange values for diabetics and weight watchers. Nutritional analysis for each recipe and menu. Sue Gregg’s Main Dishes shows you how to eat better, one recipe at a time.
Spiral-Bound with plastic cover sheets, 286 pages, 3rd Edition. PRICE: $19.95

Sue Gregg Cookbook: Breakfasts
Breakfast with Blender Batter Baking & Allergy Alternatives: From Dairyless Shakes to Wheatless Coffee Cake.

Recipes & menus that balance convenience and cost, nutrional value and appetite appeal. Enjoy fresh whole grain waffles and pancakes even if you don’t own a grain mill yet. Recipes so versatile that you can choose from buckwheat, barley, corn, oats, millet, rice, rye, kamut grain, spelt, and varieties of wheat.

Muffin, coffee cake & crepe batters ready to pour in five minutes. Made possible with blender batter baking recipes.

Spiral-Bound with plastic cover sheets, 300 pages, 3rd Edition. PRICE: $19.95

Sue Gregg Cookbook: An Introduction to Whole Grain Baking
An Intro to Whole Grain Baking: This new cookbook from Sue Gregg teaches you the basics of whole grain baking by two methods: Both with the conventional approach, and with the “Two-Step Process” that utilizes the techniques of soaking, sprouting and fermenting to unlock grain’s nutritional potential. An important purpose of this introduction is teaching how to adapt the process to all whole grain recipes, whether found in Sue’s cookbooks, or others. This book provides the basics you need for real proficiency.

Use with Curriculum, or Without: The next book listed below on this Web page, is Sue’s curriculum for teaching High Schooler’s baking, at home. This “Intro” book stands on its own, or you can use it with the High School curriculum, for which it serves as the instructional text book.

PowerPoint CD Included: With the Introduction to Whole Grain Baking book, you receive Sue’s Whole Grain Baking CD (shown at left) with over 30 step by step demonstrations that show you clearly how to prepare the recipes in the book. The close up color photos will bring the recipe steps to life. The slide format allows you to proceed at your own pace, and even go back and review as you wish. Even without the High School curriculum shown below, this Intro book serves as an excellent introductory cookbook in baking, for all ages. Book measures 5-1/2” x 8-1/2”.

Spiral-Bound with plastic cover sheets, 173 pages. Also includes CD. PRICE: $22.95

Sue Gregg Cookbook: Curriculum for Baking with Whole Grains
A Comprehensive One-Semester Course for families of High School students. You’ll master 16 basic whole grain recipes for waffles, pancakes, coffee cakes, crepes, cornbread, muffins, scones, biscuits, tortillas, quick loaf breads, cinnamon rolls and sour dough. Introduces blender batter baking, fresh flour quick breads, and whole grain yeast breads. Balances academic research and practical applications. Emphasizes a Biblical creator/creation perspective, nutritional value, convenience, taste appeal, cost control, and research. Lessons are structured and sequential, but there are also opportunities for creative activities, bonus projects, and serving others.

Included: This set incudes the 284 page Student Notebook and the Test and Answer Keys CD. Both are illustrated at left. Notebook measures 8-1/2” x 11”. Spiral-Bound with plastic cover sheets, 284 pages, 2nd Edition. Also includes CD.

Required: This curriculum also requires the use of the book An Introduction to Whole Grain Baking, available above and that book is not included with this set. (We list and price this set separately in case you already have the Whole Grain Baking book.) PRICE: $39.95

Sue Gregg Cookbook: Lunches & Snacks
Lunches & Snacks with lessons for children: Capture children’s curiosity about food and food preparation at the opportune moments. Beginning reader-ready lessons help young cooks understand the “why” as they practice the “how,” from set up to clean up.

Recipes written by the numbers help avoid confusion. Nutrition questions for discussion highlight the value of key ingredients. Help your children discover how to satisfy appetites with quality alternatives to refined flours, sugar and hydrogenated shortening. This cookbook applies the philosophy parents understand well — If they make it, they’ll eat it!

Spiral-Bound with plastic cover sheets, 180 pages, 3rd Edition. PRICE: 13.95

Sue Gregg Cookbook: Cooking with Children Curriculum CD: Available with or without Cookbook
Now recipes come alive to children before kitchen activities begin. They can view step-by-step recipe photo demonstrations on the computer. This speeds the learning process because parents do not have to master the recipe and then model it for the child. Parents and children can learn together! For ages 3 to 13.

This set helps parents tap into in-built interests and channel opportunities for children to learn to serve as well as to be served. Take a little extra time once or twice a week to teach a new recipe. Then let the young cooks repeat the recipes on their own. Practice builds competence. Competence builds confidence. By age 13 they’ll be doing the cooking for you!

Choose: Choose either the “book + CD” (the first Buy Button below), or, if you already own the Lunches & Snacks cookbook, you can purchase the CD alone (the second Buy Button below.) Note: This book is also available without the CD. See the book above.

PRICE: Set of Lunches & Snacks + CWC/CD $23.90

CD Cooking w/Children: $9.95

Sue Gregg Cookbook: Soups & Muffins
Soups & Muffins with menu combinations: Muffins…so versatile they enhance any meal. Soups that serve as light appetizers or satisfying main dishes. Together they combine for heart warming lunches or hearty dinners.

Save nutrients with soup stock. Get whole grain high fiber with low fat. Versatile recipes with allergy alternatives. Enjoy flavors without nutritional negatives. Combine cost control with convenience.

Spiral-Bound with plastic cover sheets, 104 pages, 3rd edition. PRICE: 8.95

Sue Gregg Cookbook: Desserts
Desserts: with low fat & allergy alternatives. From “no fat” Angel food cake and “fat free” oatmeal cookies to three minute refreshing Fruit Shrub, these recipes balance nutritional value and convenience.

Here is a cookbook that preserves appetite appeal in chocolate chip cookies and German chocolate cake without resorting to nutritional negatives. No hydrogenated fats, refined flour or sugar.

Allergy alternatives for chocolate, milk, eggs, wheat and corn make desserts a pleasure for everyone.

With one third of the recipes calculating at 30% or less fat (by calorie count), you can cut back on the fat without losing the yum!

Spiral-Bound with plastic cover sheets, 171 pages, 2nd Edition. PRICE: $12.95

Sue Gregg Cookbook: Master Index Menu Planner
Here’s a reference book that answers questions: Which cookbook was the Applesauce Muffin recipe in? What is Kamut? Is is pronounced Kam-Ut or Ku-moot? Where can I find recipes that avoid my allergy? How much sugar is there in that recipe? Why can’t I find the perfect diet? How can I make the best use of leftovers? Where do I get started with menu planning? Which recipes freeze well? When should solids be introduced to my baby? Where can I find a curriculum for teaching healthy cooking? How can I make my yeast breads rise higher? This is the book that… Helps you find answers by referencing the resources in all of Sue Gregg’s Cookbooks with an Ingredient Index, a Subject Index, and a Recipe Index.

Shows you how to incorporate your favorite family recipes along with Eating Better Cookbook recipes into monthly menu plans. Researches the baby books to answer questions mothers have about feeding babies and children wholefoods. Addresses concerns cooks have about improving taste and appetite appeal without sacrificing nutritional quality. Shows you how to manage to maximize convenience and save time and money. Spiral-Bound with plastic cover sheets, 281 pages, 3rd Edition. PRICE: $12.95

You can email me if you see any of the books that interest you. We can talk about shipping costs which are very reasonable.

Blessings
C.

Inspiring the Wellness In You!
www.pebblecrossing.com

Ok this takes ALOT of planning but should work and might help with making sure you eat what you need to at the same time (calroies, carbs, fat, protein)

checkout www.sparkpeople.com It is a totally free website were you can log in your food (and even workouts). Its purpose is for weightloss but you can also program it for just healthy living if weightloss is not a goal of yours. I plan out my week's meals then go scroll down the bottom of the page and click on 'grocery list'. You can have it list up tp 7 days and add how many people it will be for. You can print off a list with exactly how much you need (3 apples, 2 cups of yogurt, 8 3oz chicken breasts etc) It really helps me.

You might want to try the 5-in-a-bag (or something like that) section in Everyday Food Magazine. It includes a grocery list and 5 healthy recipes. These recipes often use leftovers (meat, vegetables) from the previous night, so there's very little wasted.

While I appreciate where the pp is coming from, I completely disagree about shopping every other day. It isn't cost- or time-effective. Shopping once a week has saved me tons of money (and time). I use on-line recipe sources to get recipes that coordinate with food I already have or will be buying for another recipe. If doing it yourself is overwhelming (which for the longest time it was to me) try savingdinner.com. She has a variety of different menus to choose from and I believe you can choose menus for a different number of people (resulting in less leftovers). It does cost but not much and you can get free sample menus to see if you like it - and the best part is it comes with a weekly grocery list already made out!

Whatever you end up doing, good luck!

I agree with Mary B for ideas. You can also sit down on a weekend and plan out your meals for the month. This way you can take the left over meat or veggies from one meal and use them later that week or the next in something. Then when you go to the store you shop for the items you will need - not on the list you don't buy it. If you buy your lunch out at work, make something from the meal for the next day's lunch and that way you will eat up the left overs. My husband doesn't like left overs and when the kids were little we would eat them the next day for lunch and I would make a new meal for that night. Just take a few months to try and it and you will be okay. Throwing food out just because you don't know how to fix it is not right, grab the cookbook and explore. So it doesn't come out right the firt time, there is always a second and a third. You get the picture. Enjoy and you may be the new Emmeril. The other S.

Sometimes I make a pot of pinto beans (served as a soup) and then make chili with white rice, then hot dogs with chili a couple days later.

You can always freeze things and use later. I've learned to use less the next time I make something. There are always recipes for casseroles and soups that require things that are all ready cooked.

When you buy meat always look at the $ per lb and separate it when you get home. There's always more work on your part to save money.

I have two recipes for cooked rice. #1 2 cups of cooked rice, 1 can of cream of chicken soup, 1 can of cheese whiz, and broccoli (how ever much you want or have). Mix together and bake at 350 for about 30 minutes. and then take any left over rice and put it in a pot add milk to cover rice and sugar to taste, and over cook it then add cinnamon to taste and serve for breakfast or dessert.

I usually Google the left over ingredients and tweak a recipe to suite my taste. WIC has a lot of ideas.

I have a family of 3. Huge pantry and a freezer. I keep both the pantry and freezer well stocked. We can easily go 6 months right now and all I would need from the grocery would be fresh veggies, milk, bread and fruit.

I do not make a lot of food at a time because we do not eat leftovers. We eat small portions. 1 nice sized steak (always from Hirsch's and they average about a pound) along with a small salad and side dish is plenty for our family. I keep frozen veggies in the freezer and cook a little at a time. In the summer we love sliced tomatoes with cucumbers, cucumbers in vinegarette with onion and tomato.

I make casseroles, etc in the winter time and I freeze half for later use.

Hope that helps.

Look into Dream Dinners. You choose meals and put them together all at once to freeze. Because I don't buy the extra ingredients for specific recipes and then waste - I found I am SAVING money at the grocery store. It's lean protein based entrees, often with sides as well. I go once a month and make meals for the month. You'll have to have room in your freezer but most of them are in a 1 gallon freezer bag and they store nicely. Check it out. I go to the one in NRH next to the Target between Precinct Line and Davis. Stacey Harris is the owner and she'll be glad to set you up for a free sample session so you can see how it works. J.

D.,

I know what you are going through. I would be happy to share with you how Homemade Gourmet's 4 Meals in 4 Minutes Meal Plans can help you be the hero of the kitchen! You will save money and make great tasting meals that your family will be begging for more. We specialize in exactly what you are wanting to do...making one meal and then using the leftovers to make another meal or two. 4 Meals in 4 Minutes has saved me! I won't go into too much detail here (because of posting limitations), but if you want to learn more please contact me at: ____@____.com or visit my website at www.homemadegourmet.com/gfitch

Good luck,

G.

D.,

Personally, we don't like a lot of frozen and leftover food. It lacks the nutrients and taste of fresh food. That's why it doesn't get eaten and is thrown out in our house. I prefer to avoid wasting as well.

To eat well AND avoid waste, I find there is no way around it other than to shop frequently - usually every other day. This is an older tradition, like in Europe where they shop daily from local small shops - bakery, produce, butcher, etc. I can stock dry and canned goods (which I don't keep a lot of anyway). But veggies and fresh meat or fish must be purchased every other day or so. Buying for two days is mentally manageable. Perhaps you can do 3 days if you are really good. Too much more and it goes bad. However, this is more time consuming and may not work for a working mom, if you don't have time to stop by the store on your way home. It might only take 15 minutes, but this still may not work for you. Some people get really good with a slow cooker, so at least they have dinner ready when they get home.

Good luck.

Hi D.,
Boy, you got some long answers. I was tired just reading them. But here's one more. I also make dinner menus and have found them a huge money saver when I shop. I had the same problem with leftovers but I started making every Sunday on my menu "leftover" night. It allowed me one night a week I didn't have to cook and helped eliminate the waist issue. It seemed obvious after I did it - but sure took me long enough to figure it out! ha

Good luck,
D.

You've received lots of great advice. My only question to you is why you're trashing the leftovers? We refrigerate leftovers from home and restaurants alike and make new meals by heating them up! That alone will save you lots!

Deidre,
I no longer have small children but I remember when things were tight and I tried this and it worked. I made a meal plan of what I would cook every day for that week including what items were required. I then checked in the pantry to see what I did have in stock. I bought only those items I needed to cook the 7 meals. I saved so much money it was amazing. The key is to stick to the meal plan, do not deviate and don't buy anything else you see in the store that you think you might need but is not on the list.

The way I think you save using this method is that you are cooking meals you know your family will eat now and again at a future time so you will use the left over items from the recipes. Also adjust the recipes to your family size.

Hope this helps. Let me know if it works.
A.