Weeks of March 16, 2015 & 23rd

3/16/2015	Monday	Chicken fajitas
3/17/2015	Tuesday	Turkey Meatballs with jarred marinara sauce on homemade rolls
3/18/2015	Wednesday	BLTA
3/19/2015	Thursday	Chicken and Veggie Dumplings
3/20/2015	Friday	Vegetarian Chili	Cornbread & Carrot Sticks
3/21/2015	Saturday	Taco Salad with chili beans
3/22/2015	Sunday	Pancakes/ eggs	Fruit
3/23/2015	Monday	lasagna roll ups	Salad
3/24/2015	Tuesday	Grilled chicken and tomato angel hair pasta-- and broccoli
3/25/2015	Wednesday	Chicken Enchiladas with Salsa
3/26/2015	Thursday	leftovers
3/27/2015	Friday	Go out to eat

January 14- February 15th - One Month of Dinners

We want to save some money, so, I tightened the food budget again...and hopefully can keep it to $200 a month. To help with that, I made a meal plan for the month. (Planning is the best way to save money for me.) The plan below uses a lot of what I already have on hand in my pantry. It will be trickier as my pantry is depleated...but for now, we have some tastey homemade cheap wholesome meals! (FYI: It's easy to make your own cream of whatever (chicken, mushroom, etc) soups....and tastes better too. This is a great way to save money and know what's in your food.) Enjoy!

12: Homemade Chicken Nuggets, Mac & Cheese with Panko bread crumb topping, & Peas
13: Chicken Curry (coconut oil, chicken thighs, carrots, califlower, water chestnuts, onion, garlic, ginger powder, chicken stock, & curry powder) & Rice
14: Spaghetti (ground turkey, onions, garlic, mushrooms, celery, beef broth, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, seasonings: basil, oregano, rosemary, pepper, salt, sugar...) with Noodles
15: Palak Paneer (basically an Indian creamed spinach!)
16: Baked Turkey/ Black Beans -refried beans/ Cheese/ Green onion/ salsa Burritos with leftover homemade hot sauce
17: Crockpot Roast Chicken --turned into shredded BBQ chicken sandwiches on homemade rolls with a vinegerette based cabbage slaw (green cabbage, red cabbage, shredded carrot, canola oil, apple cider vinegar, sugar or honey, chipotle powder, salt, pepper, --maybe celery seed) [FYI: The coleslaw link is the base of the recipe, I just don't use mayo and yogurt--I replace with olive oil and apple cider vinegar--using a 1/3 ratio: vinegar/oil--and adjust as needed the lime juice.]
18: Channa Masala (Indian: chickpeas cooked in a tomato/cream sauce) & roti (Indian non-rising bread....oil, wheat flour, water dough)
19: Pesto on Pasta with Peas- served with marinated grilled Chicken Breasts (lemon juice, olive oil, paprika, salt, pepper)
20: Whole Wheat Pancakes with Peach Freezer Jam with creamy scrambled eggs (stir the whole time they cook over low heat, with some butter, salt, and pepper--and a splash of milk) & fresh fruit-- like bananas
21: Freezer Meal: "Hamburger" (really I used .25 lb gound beef and the rest was ground turkey) Soup and Cheesy Rolls with a green salad
22: Pizza with Turkey Pepperoni & olives
23: Crockpot cooked Pinto Beans with Rice
24: Crockpot Falafel with homemade pita bread (served with spiced sour cream or yogurt, cucumbers, tomato, lettuce, & feta)
25: Grilled Chicken Fajitas with homemade tortillas
26: Spaghetti (with ground turkey) & Rolls
27: Fried Rice (use day old rice for stick free rice) (Chicken, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, ginger powder or fresh, eggs, rice, low-sodium soy sauce...that's basically it)
28: Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches/Sliders (grilled chicken breasts-- dipped into mixture of half hot sauce/ half melted butter, then served on bread with sour cream, blue cheese (or feta), tomato, and onion)
29: Chili & Cornbread Muffins (use 3 Large eggs if don't have 2 XL, and instead of cupcake papers to line pan, grease up tin with cocnut oil for extra flaror and a beautiful shape)
30: Leftovers
31: Whole Wheat Pancakes and Eggs (use the creamy egg technique is link)
Feb 1: Cajun Chicken Pasta (chicken, peppers, onions, tomatoes cooked up with cajun seasoning, sauce made with cooking wine/ cream/ and cayanne pepper)
2: Thai Chicken Cabbage Salad (chicken, cabbage, carrot, green onion, sesame oil/ Seeds, rice vinegar, brown sugar or honey, ginger, garlic, salt, and maybe dry ramen noodles for crunch)
3: Hummus Platter with bread, cucumbers, tomato, feta, and maybe grilled chicken
4: Swedish Turkey Meatballs with Roasted Potatoes and Gravy...and veggies
5: Leftovers
6: Healthy Fettuccine "Alfredo"  (made with califlower) & Peas
7: Black Beans & Rice (with Pico de Gallo if I have produce on hand) Season cooked beans with some cumin and salt....top with some Challula Hot Sauce. Simple.
8: Turkey Sloppy Joes  (use half sugar) on homemade rolls and raw veggies-- with oven potato fries (cut, season with olive oil, salt, pepper, paprika, rosemary and roast)
9: Chicken Pot Pie (homemade savory pie crust, cooked chicken, peas, carrots, potatoes, in a chicken broth/milk roux based gravy)
10: Pigs in a blanket- turkey dogs wrapped in homemade pizza dough, fresh fruit, and carrot sticks
11: Hawaiian Haystacks- chicken gravy over rice & topped with wacky things like chowmein noodles, celery, green onions, toasted shredded coconut, pineapple, olives, cheddar cheese, etc.)
12: Baked Ziti (or Spaghetti), breadsticks, and green salad with sweet balsamic vinegerette (olive or canola oil, basamic vinegar, salt, sugar)
13: Whole Wheat Pancakes with sauted carmalized sliced apples, walnuts, and homemade whipped cream
14: Roasted Tomato Soup (cut tomatoes, onion, garlic and put on roasting pan, cover in olive oil, salt, basil and oregano-- and roast. Then puree in food processor, and then put in pot on stove to warm. Add cream) & Mini Grilled Cheese Sandwiches on homemade bread
15: Leftovers!

NOTE: If you don't want Whole Wheat Pancakes, use my husband's amazing buttermilk pancake recipe. So good!

September 28th, 2013 -- October 4th, 2013

28, Saturday- Chicken Noodle Soup

29, Sunday- Chicken Divan

30, Mon- Bean & Beef Burritos

1, Tues- Channa Masala (& Sagg)

2, Wed- Dumplings & Asian Chicken Salad

3, Thurs- Chicken Nuggets & Veggies

4, Fri- Spaghetti & Meatballs

March 16 – 22

Sat, 16: Turkey & Bean Burritos w/ homemade tortillas (guac., salsa)

Sun, 17: Beef Stew, French Bread

Mon, 18: Spinach, Ham, & Cheese Omelets & Fruit

Tues, 19: Spaghetti, Veggie Overload Chickpea Salad

Wed, 20: Swedish Meatballs, Asparagus, Salad, Corn

Thur, 21: Chicken Coconut Curry with Vegetables

Fri, 22: Cheese/Chicken/Rice Casserole & Cooked Vegetable

Jan 29th-- Feb 6th

Tues, 29: Pesto Chicken & Spinach Salad
Wed, 30: Bean chili/ cornbread
Thurs., 31: Taco Salad
Fri., 1: leftovers
Sat., 2:  Lentil Soup
Sun., 3: Pizza
M, 4: Chicken curry/ rice
Tu, 5: Burritos
W, 6: Spaghetti

Thanksgiving --for family of 3.5

My husband and I are doing Thanksgiving alone this year (not traveling to family). To help myself, I'm posting my meal online. 

Thanksgiving 2012

Turkey Breast cooked in Crock pot (but without the Lipton Soup Mixture-- instead with olive oil rubbed on skin and minimal seasoning -- salt, pepper) Put Onion inside cavity.

Apple and Onion Stuffing
Mashed Potatoes
Butter Nut Squash (but not pureed-- just mashed)
Broccoli (cooked in olive oil, butter, salt pepper, red pepper flakes in frying pan)
Corn Casserole
Rolls
Cranberry Sauce
Gravy
Lime Jello Thing-- with Cream Cheese and walnuts
Pecan Pie
Pumpkin Pie

November 5 - 18th

Mon., 5: English Muffin/ Egg/ Bacon/Cheese Sandwiches
Tues., 6: Grilled Cheese with apple slice inside & Raw Veggies
Wed., 7: Chicken Fajitas
Thurs., 8: Channa Masala
Fri., 9: Classic Pizza
Sat., 10: Chili
Sun., 11: Crock Pot Roast Chicken, mashed potatoes, peas

Mon., 12: Asian Lettuce Wraps 
Tues., 13: Crockpot BBQ Chicken, Salad, Corn
Wed., 14: Bean Burritos w/ homemade tortillas, & fruit
Thurs., 15: Crockpot Falafel Wraps with Tzaziki and Feta & Lemony Greek Pilafi
Fri., 16: Pizza
Sat., 17: Chicken Noodle Soup (w/ homemade noodles) and Rolls
Sun., 18: Swedish Meatballs, small whole boiled potatoes, salad (with Avocado  Feta, carrots, cucumber, green onion, broccoli)