Everyone’s gotta eat, and, if you’re ‘mom’, then you’re probably planning it, shopping for it, and cooking it. But I find that, every so often, I can’t seem to put together a grocery list. I love to eat great food! My mom always tries out new recipes, and I definitely inherited that need for new flavors from her. Still, when I get in these funks, I can’t seem to remember anything I’ve eaten ever. And judging by the things I’ve heard from other mamas, I’m definitely not alone.
These hardships with mean planning can last a few days, or even a few weeks (I’ve noticed I can’t seem to get it together enough to cook in November the last 2 years. Weird, I know.) Sometimes, I’ll feel like I have a decent menu rotation down, but after a month or two, I realize I’ve just be using the same recipes, and I get so tired of making them that they’re removed from my rotation, and I’m left with no meal plan at all.
But have no fear!
I have created an ENTIRE MONTH (5 weeks) of planned meals. Yes, you heard that right: a monthly meal plan. My hope in creating it was that it would keep enough variety to use over and over again.
For ease and routine, I have certain days of the week for certain kinds of food: Soup Sunday, Meatless Monday, Chicken on Tuesday, Sandwiches or Tofu of Wednesday, Noodles on Thursday, with Friday being a bit of a shake-up, and Chicken again for Saturday.
This particular menu follows the food goals for my house: I rarely cook beef or pork, and I try to limit dairy (lactose intolerant), and get plenty of veg in. It’s just something to be mindful of.
When it comes to using the menu, absolutely feel free to replace, say soup night with beef, if you’d rather. Or swap out one of the chicken dishes for one of your favourites. In fact, I would highly recommend taking one day of the week, and making it a ‘free day’—where you can cook one of your own favourite meals, or just plan on going out, if you’d rather. But, if you want to stay in, and don’t want to have to think about meal prep hardly at all, then this is the menu for you!
I have created a Pinterest board for this monthly menu plan, where you can find the recipes sorted by week—easy peasy! I also have a couple of sub-boards there for a few types of food, in case you want to swap out one of the specific recipes for a different one I really like. Since I love to cook, I have a L O T of recipe boards, which you can peruse.
Definitely check out my sandwich board, as I left that option open to your own tastes (maybe you want a club, maybe you want a caprese; it’s up to you!). My chicken board has lots of good recipes, too. The tomato and wild rice soups are non-recipe specific, so just use one I’ve pinned, or use a tried-and-true one you enjoy.
I will post recipes/ideas for roasted veg, and Sagey chicken below, but first:
Our favourite ‘veg of choice’:
- asparagus – preheat oven to 425. Break off the ends, and lay flat on a baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil, and garlic salt. Bake for 12-15 minutes.
- frozen peas – I’m lame, and often put them frozen in the bottom of the bowl, and allow the rest of the meal to heat them up. You could also put them in a pan with butter and herbs until they’re heated through.
- broccoli – Heat sesame oil in a pan, and add broccoli until it’s a little charred. It will be sweet and delicious. Alternatively, Broil in oven with olive oil and parmesan.
Our favourite ‘grain of choice’:
- sushi rice – delicious with just about everything, and simple to make.
- cous cous – you can get different seasonings, and it takes no time at all to cook.
- grits – add a cheese of your choice, and it’s a fantastic companion to a savory dish.
- orzo – tiny rice-shaped pasta that is yummy with butter and herbs. I love it with roasted veg.
RECIPES:
Roasted Vegetables
This meal is cost-effective, and versatile. We might do onions, sweet potato, and peppers one week, then onions, zucchini, and asparagus the next.
i n g r e d i e n t s
Vegetables of your choice (feel free to shake it up from week to week), like sweet potato, peppers, onions, squash, or broccoli
Seasoning : salt, pepper, season salt, garlic salt, paprika, etc.
extras: herbs; bacon. Cheese (feta, or parmesan) for serving.
r e c i p e
Preheat oven to 425.
Slice vegetables according to taste (I like mine thin), and lay flat on a baking tray or two. Drizzle with olive oil, and add seasoning to create the flavor profile. If you like, top with ‘extras’.
Pop in oven for 30-45 minutes, or until it reaches your desired level of doneness. Switch pans halfway through cook-time, if need-be.
As your vegetables near the end of their cook-time, make your grain of choice.
Top with cheese of choice, if you’d like, and serve immediately.
Sagey Chicken + Sweet Potatoes
This is a dish I created myself, so it’s mostly just guesstimated. It’s simple, and super yummy.
i n g r e d i e n t s
1 lb chicken thighs
Sweet potatoes
Fresh Sage
Dried powdered sage
2 cloves (1 tsp minced) Garlic
r e c i p e
Pre-heat oven to 400.
Slice or cut your sweet potato, and lay it in a single layer on a baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with dried sage. Go ahead and stick it in the oven, once it’s preheated.
Next, get your chicken in a bowl. Drizzle with just enough olive oil to coat the chicken, but not so much that it’ll sit in in on the tray. Add garlic, a little pepper, and some salt. Rip up a handful of sage, and toss it all together.
Lay the chicken flat on a baking tray, and put in the oven. Cook for 25-35 minutes.
When both tray are done, plate up, and enjoy the crispy sage!
