Meal Planning Thread

[quirkycooking]

Hi all - just a quick menu plan this week - I'm a bit late!  Hope you all have a great New Year's Eve/Day - whenever you're celebrating! 

Wednesday:
(lunch) Spelt bread rolls (TMX) with salad (& probably tuna, again!)
(dinner) T-bone steak, baked potatoes & salad

Thursday:
(lunch) Vege pasta with gf noodles (TMX)
(dinner) Leek quiche with oat almond crust (TMX) & salad
Baking Breudher for New Year's!  Yum!

Friday (New Year's Day):
(breakfast) Breudher! (http://quirkycooking.blogspot.com/2008/12/breudher-dutch-new-years-cake.html)
(lunch) Baked potatoes with toppings (including mushroom sauce - TMX)
(New Year's Dinner with friends!) Homemade lasagne (dairy free) with homemade spelt lasagne noodles (sauces & pasta made in TMX), spelt garlic bread (TMX), greek salad, chocolate sorbet (http://quirkycooking.blogspot.com/2009/09/quick-chocolate-sorbet.html)

Saturday:
(lunch) leftovers (I hope!)
(dinner) Tuna mornay (df TMX) on brown rice (TMX)

Sunday:
(lunch) Roast chicken & veges
(dinner) Spelt rolls and leftovers

[judydawn]

You amaze me Jo, even at this time of year you can still put together a menu plan    I'm sure there are many out there like me, taking one day at a time at the moment.

[JulieO]

Yup and I'm one of them JD    It's the 3 monthly clean-out-the-freezer time again. Will be glad to get back to making up a menu again and cooking from there. 

[Thermomixer]

My grandmother would be rolling in her grave - we should have everything "sorted" for New Year (Hogmanay) - like cleaning and organising the freezer, but have also planned to do that at the weekend.

My plan is to plan - NY's resolution

[judydawn]

I wonder if I could make a New Year's Resolution to 'not fill the freezer so full so often' and stick with it - Nah, impossible

[quirkycooking]

Ha ha!  That's my plan, Thermomixer - I plan to plan too!  I've got to sit down today and plan my homeschooling schedule for next year... and I also need to clean out the fridge and freezer JO - better get started!!! 

[Babymaker]

Hope I can join in here, this weeks menu as follows

• Chicken & Ricotta Crepe Bake with Salad
  Bolognaise Pinwheel with Salad
  Spaghetti Carbonara with Salad
  Beef and Spinach with Veg and Mash
  Chicken Skewers with Satay Dipping Sauce and Rice with Salad
  Rigtoni with Pork Ragout and Salad
  Something Random/leftover

Deserts that I have planned include Lemon Lime Tart, Chocolate Ice Cream and the usual Custard, Sorbet, biscuits/slices/cakes, would also like to try the rice pudding. Also bread, yoghurt and some juices too *insert tummy rubbing smilie*

[Thermomixer]

Sounds good - you are certainly welcome to post here.

[quirkycooking]

I still haven't got my menu plan organized for this week (slack!) but I wanted to post this link to my friend's blog - she plans the menus for the WHOLE YEAR in January!!!  Have a look!
http://boswellbunch.com/simone/section/Blog/Entries/2010/1/11_Meal_Planning.html

[Thermomixer]

OMG - NOW I do feel totally inadequate !!!

[brazen20au]

yikes, no way!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i would be rebelling against that by the end of week one LOL

[cookie1]

OMG an entire month. There is no way I could do that. I wouldn't know who was going out, what the weather would be like and most importantly what I feel like cooking. That is organisation plus. All credit to her if it works for her.

[riv_mum]

Wow That is inspirational! Think i might actually give this one a go! (well for a month or so and see how it goes) I like the idea of having each day of the week dedicated to a meal type and it will definatly make grocery shopping a lot easier.

[Amanda]

I have tried to plan meals in the past, but it usually ends quite sadly.
It is too hard to predict who is going to be home, who has to be picked up late, what the weather is like, what I feel like cooking - etc, etc.
For example, planned to have crockpot ribs for dinner on  Sunday as  it was too hot to cook and we were all fed up with bbq.  3 hours into the 6 hour cooking time the power went out for 3 hours.  Ribs in fridge, finished cooking and ate them yesterday - no problem.
However ... I had planned to cook (and had defrosted) a turkey roll for last nights dinner  - now need to cook it tonight, but 2 of the 3 teenagers will be out and husband will be working late.  Aaargh!

See how quickly it all turns to ashes in my hands!

[judydawn]

Enjoy your quiet turkey roast all on your own tonight Amanda.  If I lived closer I'd pop in and share it with you    Meal plans definitely wouldn't work in your house with teenage kids coming and going.