I haven't been posting meal plans lately because well, my plans have been concocted on a daily basis.
Mostly they have been daily "what can we throw together today" plans, not weekly well thought-out plans.
Yeah, I could post a weekly plan but it would look something like....
Sunday--meat TBA, veg TBA, carb TBA
Monday--meat TBA, veg TBA, carb TBA
Tuesday--carb sub for meat TBA, veg TBA
You see what I mean?lol
Since I've been trying to eat down what is here already, here's how I've been creating my meals.
I'm not scouring the grocery ads and planning meals and buying specific foods.
I've gone to the freezer each morning and dug out a hunk of animal protein I already have here. Then I figure out what treatment to give it(roast, grill, saute, etc.), what sauce it needs(if any from the stockpiled items), and then I pop my head back into the freezer around noon and find a veggie to go with the hunk of protein du jour, either as a side dish or to throw into a casserole treatment. I'll head into the stockpile about an hour before dinner time and grab a carb item(rice, taters, rolls, pasta, etc.).
And Voila!.....it's dinner.
I guess I've been operating in 1950's housewife mode because this is what she must have done each day.
And if she didn't have a hunk of something frozen(and since freezers were sketchy things back then and not temperature reliable she probably didn't keep much frozen on hand), she went to the store to pick up something fresh every day or so.
If I lack something I have Hubs stop on the way home and pick it up but mostly I try to make-do with what is here.
Not very creative or labor intensive but it's sort of homemade and it's frugal.
At least it isn't fast food or tv dinners.lol
This have been working on many levels for us lately.
Hubs has been getting home at different times each evening.
#2 son has had various Band rehearsals so he's been home at irregular hours and not on solid food for the next few days after his Orthodontic visit.
Daughter often doesn't eat here and I never know from one day to the next or even 3 hours ahead if she will be dining at Chez Sluggy or not.
So doing a pre-set weekly plan hasn't been a good fit for us this past month.
So this 1st week in May, the Meal Plan is going to so something like this....
Sunday....leftovers DONE
Monday....Teriyaki Barbecue chicken thighs, mac and cheese, brussel sprouts DONE
Tuesday....whatever I feel like eating(no one else will be eating here this evening but me)
Wednesday.....another last minute meal thrown together from what is on hand and/or leftovers(possibly 2 eating home this evening, but most likely just me again)
Thursday....Ravioli, Tossed Salad
Friday....leftovers or Soup & Sandwich
Saturday....Burritos and Chili
Next month, after #1 son(who is on a strange eating schedule as well)gets home from college, I think I am going to go with a weekly plan where I will cook large meals 2 or 3 days of the week only. This will give us a dinner for that day plus I'll cook extra so we can eat off of the leftovers for a day or even two more.
For example, a large pot of chili, which can last for 3 dinners or more......a large pot of Pork Ragu which can see us through 3-4 meals.......a large pan of Chicken Enchiladas which can stretch out to 2-3 meals...these would be good choices and keep me out of the kitchen for long stretches. 8-))
Ok, this has turned into a rambling stream of half ideas with no point to it all so I'll stop now.
The point to take away from this is that you shouldn't come looking for Meal Plans here anytime soon.
If you can find a better more frugal point to this please let me know! ;-)
Sluggy
