Welcome to Meal Plan Monday! I’ve posted meal plans and meal prep (particularly my love of meal planning and food prepping) countless times, but to be honest with you – since becoming a full time mom last year I haven’t had the same amount of free time to fully plan and prep meals as I have in the past. That said, I do still try to have a weekly plan in place for my family, particularly so I know what groceries to buy when I make my weekly trip to Wegmans. (Not that it helps, as I still somehow always end up leaving that store with $50 worth of extra stuff we don’t need!) Regardless of whether you meal prep or not, having a menu and sticking to it saves tons of time and money – and as you can see, we eat leftovers for the majority of our meals, so not sticking to the menu means a lot of last minute rushing around to find food. My only slight deviation is lunches for the young one – he’s not a huge leftover fan to begin with, and I’m not going to send him to elementary school with a lunch that requires a microwave. So as you can see I’ve added separate school lunches for him, in case you’re in the same boat! (Please note, the lunch includes an afternoon school snack as well).
I’m also only planning for Sunday night through Friday night, because weekends tend to be a free for all in my house.
In the future I’d like to start including the approximate cost of each week and a shopping plan. I did note which items can be made ahead of time in case you do want to prep on a weekend.
*Note: I’m feeding two adults and one elementary school age boy, so we try to make enough food for three, plus leftovers.*
BEAR FAMILY MEAL PLAN, WEEK ONE
Sunday Dinner: Hearty Pot Roast with Carrots and Potatoes
Monday:
B: scrambled eggs, chicken apple sausage (we prefer Aidells brand)
L: leftover pot roast/carrots/potatoes
L2: ham slice roll-ups, clementine, chips, granola bar, milk and apple juice
D: Turkey Taco Salads (turkey can be made ahead of time)
Tuesday:
B: Breakfast Fritatta over greens (Fritatta can (and should) be made ahead of time)
L: leftover taco salad
L2: little smokies sausages, apple slices, chips, granola bar, milk and apple juice
D: pan fried chicken thighs (boneless/skinless), seasoned rice, mixed vegetables (*20 minute meal!)
Wednesday:
B: Fritatta, greens, fruit
L: leftover chicken/rice/veg
L2: chicken thigh slices, mini apple, chips, granola bar, milk and apple juice
D: stuffed pepper soup (ground beef can be prepped ahead, recipe coming soon!)
Thursday:
B: overnight oats (made the night before, obviously!)
L: leftover stuffed pepper soup
L2: tuna snack, clementine, chips, granola bar, milk and apple juice
D: turkey meatballs over spaghetti squash and sauce (meatballs can be made ahead of time, bake spaghetti squash ahead of time *10 minute meal if prepped!)
Friday:
B: fritatta with greens or overnight oats
L: leftover spaghetti squash and meatballs
L2: individual plain meatballs, apple slices, chips, granola bar, fruit and milk
D: Homemade Pizza Night
Bear Family Strong 