Meal Planning: January 2010

As a very busy mom to three toddlers, cooking has never been my favorite activity. But I have recently found much more enjoyment in preparing delicious and nutritious meals by learning and implementing the idea of Freezer Cooking. If you would like to learn more about it, check out the great posts here and here.

(LittleMan & I preparing one of our four pans of lasagna to go into the freezer last month)

My freezer cooking efforts last month have seriously paid off. Dinner time is not stressful, since I have a variety of home cooked meals, already prepared to choose from if I have neither the time or energy to make something from scratch that particular day.

So here is my Master Plan for the month of January:

1. Sunshine Chicken, Brown Rice & a Veggie
2. Homemade Pizza
3. Turkey Wild Rice Soup & Bread
4. Baked Pork Chops, Brown Rice & a Veggie
5. Lasagna, Salad & Garlic Bread
6. Beef Roast with Potatoes & Carrots and Bread
7. Chicken Broccoli & Cheese Stromboli
8. Baked Chicken, Brown Rice & a Veggie
9. Homemade Pizza
10. Chili & Cornbread
11. Baked Pork Chops, Brown Rice & a Veggie
12. Enchilladas & Fresh Guacamole
13. Sunshine Chicken, Brown Rice & a Veggie
14. Phili-Cheese Steak Stromboli
15. Grilled Steak, Sweet Potato Fries & Homemade Mac n Cheese
16. Homemade Pizza
17. Zuppa Tuscana Soup & Bread
18. Baked Chicken, Brown Rice & a Veggie
19. Lasagna, Salad & Garlic Bread
20. Baked Pork Chops, Brown Rice & a Veggie
21. Chicken Broccoli & Cheese Stromboli
22. Grilled Steak, a Veggie & Homemade Mac n Cheese
23. Homemade Pizza
24. Turkey Wild Rice Soup & Bread
25. Baked Pork Chops, Brown Rice & a Veggie
26. Enchiladas & Fresh Guacamole
27. Sunshine Chicken, Brown Rice & a Veggie
28. Phili-Cheese Steak Stromboli
29. Baked Chicken, Brown Rice & a Veggie
30. Homemade Pizza
31. Chili & Cornbread


Some items are actually already done, I have the crusts and sauce prepared and in the freezer for a few of our Pizzas. We have Sunshine Chicken & Chili already prepped and frozen still from last month. Most of the makings for all of these meals are already in our freezers or pantry, so I plan on one more shopping day specific to this meal plan to fill in just a few gaps.

Right now, I am planning to tackle this list on January 1st. I'm looking forward to it!