Simplifying Meals
Change your lifestyle and attitude towards food, and everything will fall into place.
Don't buy into the advertisements on tv. Don't let kids fall victim to the sugary food ads and fast foods ads on tv. Don't get sucked into the latest diet trend, food fad, recipe books or tv shows, or healthy eating plan. Food is very simple. We have just made it more than it is.
Eat Real Food. That's it!
read more on my HEALTH page
Now that we have that, you aren't going to listen to what others are trying to sell you or convince you to do to lose weight, let's talk about actually planning meals for the family.
Breakfast:
Somehow, we have come to believe we need to make something different each morning, and find Pinterest worthy recipes to serve our family. It is a waste of time and money. I used to serve something different everyday. Then, I came to realize how financially wasteful it is. Not to mention the time I wasted in planning preparation of these meals. And how have we come to believe that a quick bowl of sugar, I mean, kids cereal is acceptable breakfast for growing and learning kids? If we really want our children to succeed and stop with crazy behavior, we as parents need to stop buying that stuff.
What does your family like to eat? (besides sugary cereals!) For us, it is eggs and toast, oatmeal, pancakes. If we are being very frugal and financially wise one week, we will eat a variety of oatmeals. Our favorite add ins: cinnamon and apples/ blueberries/ strawberries/ PB and banana/ Chocolate chips and banana/peaches. We switch it up with whatever we have on hand/available.
Grocery list for breakfasts: Old fashioned Oats($2 will last a few weeks), eggs(cost is rising so we will not buy often- $5), flour ($3 for a few weeks worth)
Lunch:
Again, there are too many Pinterest filled ideas for fancy cute lunches for our kids. Okay, I'm one of them. I love it. But seriously, we only have to pick a few things for our kids lunches a week then be creative about it.(or not at all) Just keep it simple and no processed foods!
Why do we have to waste/spend money on illness causing fast food? We don't need to do that! We can serve leftovers, soups, beans and rice. Buying too many choices is not financially wise. Prepare ahead of time. Set aside time with your kids to plan and prepare their lunches. Set aside time on the weekend with your spouse to make your lunches. We also prepare Pinto Beans and Rice for the week. Sometimes we will put aside extra soups we have made. Once a week we will make a huge salad to have throughout the week for lunch and dinners, so I count that money towards dinners.
Adult lunches: leftovers, soups, beans($2) and rice($2)
Kids School Lunches: leftovers, turkey sandwich($5), PBJ($4), veggies($3), homemade granola bars($4), nuts($5), fruits($5) = $26.00 ( so much harder to keep simple & frugal)
Snacks:
Americans have come to believe we need to snack. We don't. It's really simple. We are hungry mostly because we haven't been eating the right kinds of food. And when we do eat, we over eat. When you change your lifestyle to a more active and healthy one, you will not need to snack. But, with that being said, we can still have a healthy snack. To make it simple, choose fruits, vegetables and nuts. And air popped popcorn on occasion. Save all the cookies, brownies, cakes, pies, yogurts, ice cream for very special occasions! I like to keep a bowl of fresh fruit on the kitchen table and some cut up veggies in the fridge.
Snacks: Apples($4), bananas($4), oranges ($4), nuts($4), celery ($2), carrots($2), popcorn($2)
Dinners:
Planning meals for the week saves a ton of time and money. I have spent hours and days on planning meals for my family. Then, I thought of something new. With me and 7 males in the family, we can throw down some food. Oh, those teenage boys!! Things had to change financially because our grocery bill was getting expensive. And I wasted too much time on planning. So, I thought about our favorite foods and we are sticking with that. Sometimes, I'll plan something new. Otherwise, no guessing and no hours of planning. We will only grocery shop for the basics and make meals from freezer and pantry / Costco and Aldi, sometimes Wal-mart. We do not buy junk food, but very rarely. It's killing us all from heart disease, diabetes, cancers, and more illnesses. It's such a waste of money!
Single/Couple/Small Family-
This is really so very simple. Only make 3-4 meals per week. Eat the leftovers every other day; or switch up the leftovers at the end of the week. Maybe some don't like the repetitive meals, but overall this is the best system.
Weekly Menu-
- A Soup -ex: Potato Soup, Chili, Beef Veggie Soup, Minestrone, Broccoli and Cheese, etc...
- A Vegetarian meal/Salad- ex: Pinto Beans and cornbread, Black beans and rice, Chipotle Style bowl, Southwestern Couscous Salad, Huge green salad with fruits and nuts, Cauliflower Tacos, etc...
- Meal with an animal protein-chicken/beef/fish - ex: spaghetti, burgers, baked chicken, salmon, roasted or steamed veggies,etc...
{{{ Larger families might keep the same concept, just make larger batches, or change it up a little different }}}
I have a basic weekly plan that I do every once and a while-
Sunday- Big Breakfast or crockpot meal (ex: pancakes and eggs/beef or pork roast or whole chicken)
Monday- Beef (ex: burgers, tacos, spaghetti, chili)
Tuesday- Chicken/Fish (ex: baked chicken with steamed vegetables/ Baked Salmon with sweet potato and steamed veggie)
Wednesday- Soup (ex:chili, potato soup, beef stew, taco Soup, veggie soup)
Thursday- Beans/Vegetarian/Salad (ex: pinto beans & cornbread, Mexican beans and rice/ Cauliflower tacos/ chicken salad, egg salad, lettuce salad with a protein)
Friday- Pizza (ex: Costco pizza, cauliflower pizza crust/homemade, very rarely take out/ I know, not healthy, but we love pizza)
Saturday- Simple/sandwiches/grill/leftovers (ex: BLT's, nachos, hot dogs *gasp*, baked potatoes)
{{{ Sometimes I will switch up the days based on our schedule. If we are busy, it's a quick frozen pizza night! Some weeks we might not have chicken or beef at all. I'm very flexible with what we have. }}}
Basic Grocery List:
- grass fed beef
- organic chicken
- assortment of beans(pinto, black beans, 15 Bean Soup, etc...)
- salmon
- brown rice
- oats
- quinoa
- sweet potatoes/potatoes
- peanut butter
- romaine lettuce
- grass fed cheese
- grass fed butter
- broccoli
- cauliflower
- green beans
- carrots
- other assorted vegetables
- crushed tomatoes
- mixed vegetables, frozen
- apples
- bananas
- oranges
- berries
- other fruits
- milk
- eggs
- bell peppers
- mushrooms
- nuts (pistachios, cashews, walnuts, pecans)
- assortment of herbs and spices
- chicken broth
- flours
- cornbread
- coffee
- teas
- chocolate chips