Menu Plan Monday April 19

When working on my menu for the week last night I got stuck. I was at a loss for what to make this week. It seemed to me that we had been eating the same few meals over and over, so I went back to my trusty stand-by – a MONTH long menu plan. How can that be easier to do than a one WEEK plan you ask? It just is. This is how I do it.

On a piece of paper (or a handy dandy spreadsheet) come up with a few categories and assign one per day. For example, Monday and Thursday evenings I teach gymnastics so in order to prevent the urge to hit the drive thru, those nights have to be well planned out. Here are my categories:

• Monday = Quick and easy such as pasta, soup/sandwich, or slow cooker
• Tuesday = Family favorites
• Wednesday = Crazy sports night, planned dinner out – choose from healthier choices like Subway or Noodles and Co.
• Thursday = Slow cooker night
• Friday = “Build it yourself ” night where the base of the dish is selected but the kids can customize it like “top your own pizzas”, “build your own quesadillas” etc. It is a great way to use up left overs and get the kids involved.

Once I had my categories I asked the family for 3 or 4 suggestions in each category. I had the next four weeks of menus planned in about 20 minutes!!

On the menu this week:

• Monday – Meatball subs – I will put pre-made meatballs in the slow cooker with marinara sauce, then the family can put the meatballs and some mozzarella on Hoagie rolls. Will serve Tossed Salad on the side.
• Tuesday – Asparagus and Lemon Linguine (made from Noodles & Co. at home recipe) and Tossed Salad (I am so glad this family is into salad right now!)
• Wednesday -Crazy Sports Night – most likely will pick up Chick Fil A
• Thursday – Spiced Shredded Beef Brisket (from Family Circle) in slow cooker served over Hoagie rolls or brown rice and steamed veggies
• Friday – Build your own pizza night – will put out leftover meatballs, beef brisket, pepperoni and a variety of raw veggies for them to choose from

Need more inspiration? Check out my Menu Plan Monday archives or head over to Laura’s at Organizing Junkie for links to hundreds of menus this week.

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