OK, friends — I need HELP! I am bound and determined to:
A) get better at meal-planning, and B) cut our monthly grocery expenses!
So, here’s what I need from you:
- What’s your favorite go-to meal? I’m looking for family-friendly lunches and suppers. Healthy is a BIG plus.
- Do you have a favorite blog for easy, healthy meal ideas?
- I hate the idea of the whole couponing thing because I don’t want 382 bottles of shampoo for 43 cents! Most of those blogs completely overwhelm me. I just want to reduce my grocery bill! How do I start?
Please, leave me some suggestions or helpful links in my comment section — and feel free to promote your own blog or blog post if it applies! I’m sure others will benefit from them as well!
(PS – isn’t the retro apron in that clip art adorable!?!)
Wife, mom, grandma. Introvert who finds joy in good books, sunshine, and authentic conversation. Fitness enthusiast and personal trainer. Often seen with a steaming mug of tea in hand.
Looking for healthy recipes and ways to save money ………… you will love this blog. Well, I LOVE it anyways!
http://heavenlyhomemakers.com/
This is a BIG one for me too. I will try to be brief, but I will refer you to my blog where I am trying to get completely updated on my Cooking Group (this is a work in progress). This is a totally different way to do what you are trying to do. It has dramatically changed our lives! There are many groups like this out there, BUT they spend a whole lot more money and it takes them more time. This group has been around for 5 years & have gotten this down to a science. I’ve been… Read more »
On Mondays, the writer of this blog shares her weekly meal plan. Then about 400 others link their weekly meal plans. http://orgjunkie.com/
Jamie,
Meal planning is one of my least favorite things to do, too! In fact, it’s something I have vowed will be different this year! I’m looking forward to reading what others write.
Here are a few thoughts in the past from my more organized days : http://www.sarahjoyalbrecht.com/2008/02/23/how-to-cook-a-wolf/
This year, I’m finding that the kids’ tastes are maturing a little and I am actually beginning to enjoy cooking again. Just sayin’ 😉
Much love,
Sarah
@mrsalbrecht
I can’t wait til I get to that “kids tastes are maturing a little” phase! 🙂
I’ve started sharing some of our family favorite recipes and I link up to Org Junkie’s Menu Plan Monday and to A Southern Fairytale’s Mouthwatering Mondays
I haven’t shared a recipe in a few weeks as it’s been hectic but I plan to get back into the swing of it in a few weeks.
I am an avid freezer cook. I just can’t face cooking dinner from scratch every night, but I want home cooked meals for my family. Buying in bulk and making things like soups and stews stretch a buck. Plus, I have a rule that I don’t put anything in the freezer unless it is prepped to be a meal, or has been made into a thaw and bake/crockpot/grill/reheat meal. I have lots of recipes on the Recipes page of my blog, and can recommend some great books if that idea appeals to you. PS – I absolutely do not make… Read more »
I love, love, love Gina’s Skinny Taste (http://www.skinnytaste.com/) for healthy recipes that the whole family enjoys. Really. I’ve been doing Grocery University (http://groceryuniversity.com/) — I’ll probably post a review next week. Southern Savers (http://www.southernsavers.com/) is a great site for matching coupons with store sales for maximum savings. I only do the deals if it’s something that we’ll actually use — no gazillion bottles of shampoo for me. 😉
When I REALLY want to save money, I only plan about 4 days at a time and I make sure NOTHING is wasted or thrown out. The next few days planning comes from what is already in the fridge and needs using up. I then buy what I need to turn the ‘already have’s’ into meals… and then the leftovers of those items are the start of the next few days and so on. It is pretty intense and I can’t keep it up for too long but it’s great when I want to save some serious serious money. The… Read more »
I’ve just started looking at peoples blogs so I haven’t been recipe shopping yet and I don’t blog so I don’t have any on-line recipes of my own. But I have been menu planning for about 10 years and do a pretty good job of keeping our grocery bill under control. I menu and shop bi-weekly, I sit down with a stack of my own cookbooks (I get a monthly little diddy in the mail that I love so I have fresh recipes every month). If everyone is awake, I get family feedback on what they would like to have… Read more »
I have my Fruits, veggies and milk delivered to my house every Thursday. I know what I am getting on the Saturday prior and can add items I need. This has cut down on my grocery bill and trips to the store to maybe 1 a week.
I use http://www.menus4moms.com for my meal planning each week. They have a frugal menu option or a busy mom option. You can choose to pay $5 a month for new recipes or search their archive for past weekly plans. When you choose the weekly menu you would like, you print off not only the recipes with pictures but a complete shopping list of supplies you will need to make each meal. She also post a weekly list you can fill in for all meals and snacks to print out and hang on the fridge or whatever so that you will… Read more »
I’ve learned 3 things which have changed so much in our home: 1) Make meal plans from what’s in your pantry or freezer, NOT from some place in your brain or even from this weeks’ sales flyers. This frees you to shop each week ONLY on the sales! (A big “ah-ha!” moment for me!) 2) Freezer meals are awesome!! I’ve found a ton of recipes online that are “dump these 5 ingredients in a freezer bag and freeze. On meal day, thaw, put in a dish and bake.” You can make multiples easily and within half an hour have several… Read more »
I agree with what so many of the others have said! There are times I struggle with this too, but have also found that freezer meals are the perfect solution. You can buy in bulk/stock up on certain sale items at rock bottom prices and then make a bunch of meals around that. I just did that yesterday with ground beef! http://www.momendeavors.com/2011/01/quick-ground-beef-freezer-cooking.html As one of the other readers said, orgjunkie.com ‘s weekly linkup (Mondays) has tons of ideas–I’ve shared some of mine on my site too. I also like http://lifeasmom.com. She menu plans, freezer cooks & has some fantastic ideas!… Read more »
take your grocery list and sales fliers. go to http://www.hotcouponworld.com and use their database. type in an item and any coupons available for it will come up… some will be newspaper inserts, but some will be printables. That’s how I tell people get started and keep it simple.
I like couponmom.com. I don’t buy 3 or 4 newspapers, I just buy one or sometimes the double paper on Sunday. I cut for only what I use and pass the rest on to a friend, then I go to couponmom.com. I pick my favorite grocery store list and select only the deals that I want, then add to it anything I need. That has helped me keep my budget in check. I don’t buy things we don’t use or tons of one item just because it is on sale. The important thing is make it work for you. Here… Read more »
Y’all are AWESOME! Keep ’em coming, friends!
I need help in these areas too! Thanks for stopping by my blog! Blessings!
http://fortheloveofgrub.blogspot.com/
http://eatathomecooks.com/
http://penniesaplate.wordpress.com/
I also get a lot of ideas from the Sonlight forums daily ‘what’s for dinner’ thread.
I *hate* menu planning, but I know if I don’t do it we will eat out because our schedule is so crazy busy. I plan on Friday, try to stick with what we have at home for the most part, and then shop Friday night when my kids are out with friends in town. Generally, I made each of my teens pick at least one meal each week, sometimes I can get them to come up with more than one.
My favorite go-to site that is inexpensive and uses things I can afford to buy is the Hillybilly Housewife (sorry in a hurry, no time to link!). Especially the crockpot ideas. I’ve tried several recipes (like Rotisserie Chicken) and have kept them in my loop as they’ve been SUPER easy, cheap and delicious!
Hey Jamie. You know I love to talk food. And I have to have easy. I contribute to $5 Dinners once a month – we keep it cheap around here. Plus allergies to deal with!! A family of seven – the eldest a teen and everybody is eating more. So… I’ve learned a bit. (Both of Erin Chase’s cookbooks are wonderful and practical!! Just do a search on Amazon for $5 Dinner Mom) Batch cooking absolutely saves my sanity. Sticking a large amount of g. turkey, g. beef or chicken in the crock pot to cook. Then bagging it up… Read more »
Ok, my morning brain works a little better 🙂 Here’s the meal planning that Dave Ramsey recommends (easy, cheap and healthy). Grocery list included. http://habitsforahappyhome.wordpress.com/2011/01/07/new-meals-for-the-new-year/
And http://www.5dollardinners.com publishes a meal plan linking to archived recipes each Sunday night. It includes a grocery list as well.
P.S. – I adore the apron art!
Great blog..adding you today to my Blogroll!!! I’m a single mom of 3 and I’m always looking for healthy foods for my family that will last a few days. I love my crockpot – best investment ever…you can usually just throw in leftovers from the night before, a few veggies and a few items from your pantry and you have a quick soup or stew that will last at least 2 days. I will be posting a lot of my favs on my blog…be sure to check it out. My kids love when I do…chicken noodle soup with egg noodles,… Read more »
What great ideas people have shared! You posted a great question. It was only a year ago that I started a weekly menu and then shopping for the ingredients I needed, but it has been AWESOME to know ahead what I’ll be making each night, and of course planning some leftover nights (or a night out) too. I put my new meals in a recipe blog and now I go to the blog a lot for my menu planning, and the blogs of others who visit. I also love The Pioneer Woman http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/ Here’s a link to my blog http://traceyskitchen.blogspot.com/… Read more »
Hi Jamie ~ I just love this blog post of yours and all the great ideas you received! When I have the time – I like to use http://www.couponmom.com but, instead of buying Sunday papers I just order the coupons I need from a coupon clipping service – http://www.thecouponclippers.com/ . That way I just order what I need and shop as soon as they come in – normally in just a few days. I don’t bother “stocking up” on anything that has a short shelf life like yogurt, no matter how good a deal it is. I will stock up… Read more »
I post a weekly menu plan (and just started posting monthly meal plans) on my blog as well as lots of links to recipes and some recipes of my own. We are a family of four and eat mainly whole, nutritious foods on a budget. Hope you stop by and find some new ideas! God bless!
http://forfreeyatake.blogspot.com/search/label/menu%20plan
Julie (enJOYing Life)