Menu for the Week

Here is my menu for next week.  It's a mix between frugal and regular.  I enjoy cooking my family ethnic foods mainly because they are so good!  And many of them are so simple, really.  I stay away from "boxed" mixes as much as possible. Planning ahead a bit helps a lot so at the bottom of the menu is a list of extra preparations that need to be done and when to do them so I don't forget.  I try to do my kitchen work in the mornings and plan out what I'll need for that day's or the next day's meals. 

I make a few things from scratch and it is a little extra work, but it's so much less expensive than store bought.  Plus I love that I control the ingredients.  Preparing healthy food is vital to our family's health, and helps me be a good steward of the money that my husband works so hard to earn for our family. Some things I buy "premade" are natural applesauce, 100% orange juice, natural peanut butter, Breyers ice cream, real cheeses (not the processed stuff)...food that doesn't have strange ingredients and is as close to natural or homemade as I can get. I try to make my own muffins and bread (except during summer) cakes, soups, salads and sauces.


It doesn't take much time in the mornings to coordinate the baking, soaking, thawing, etc that needs to be done for the next days' (or that night's) meals.  That's what makes planning meals so important.  I can't say I've "arrived" when it comes to meal planning, but I'm improving.  And if for some reason I can't keep up with my plan on a given day, I try to have substitute meal ideas on the ready.  Sometimes I'll just whip up some pancakes or quesadillas for dinner in those cases because I usually have the ingredients for these handy and they are quick to prepare.  What is your menu for next week? 

       

                    Menu for the Week

	7am Breakfast	12pm Lunch	3pm Snack	6pm Dinner	Dessert
Monday	Cream of Wheat, banana, orange juice	Pea Soup cornbread Applesauce milk	Blueberry Muffin   Milk	American Green Salad Fish, Oven Fries Iced Tea	Chocolate cake
Tuesday	Scramble Eggs, muffins, Orange juice	Egg salad Sandwiches Cucumber slices	Graham Cracker milk	Mexican Enchiladas, refried beans and spanish rice	Fresh Fruit
Weds	Blueberry Oatmeal Orange Juice	Tuna fish Sandwiches Celery Sticks & fruit	Whole Milk Yogurt w/ granola	German Chicken schnitzel, Rot Kraut, mashed potatoes, lemon caper sauce	Homemade Raspberry Jello
Thursday	Toast with jam milk	Sliced Turkey Sandwiches with lettuce and tomato	Apple Slices with peanut butter	Mexican Tortilla Soup, salsa, sour cream, corn muffins	Scoop of Breyer’s  Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
Friday	Sweet boiled rice w/ milk, cinnamon & raisins	Burritos Beans, rice lettuce, tomato, sour cream	Cut veggies & Hummus	Italian Homemade Pizzas Milk	Mandarin orange
Saturday	Pancakes, eggs, milk, orange juice	Avocado, swiss and turkey sandwiches Celery sticks	Apple Slices with Peanut Butter	Asian Honey Sesame Chicken w/ zucchini Hot Rice	Lemon Cookies & Milk
Sunday	Dutch Waffles Bacon Orange Juice	Cheese, Peppers & Onion Quesadillas	Cut veggies & Hummus	Italian Spaghetti & Meatballs, Garlic Bread	Coffee Cake

Daily Preparations:

Sunday: Thaw fish for tomorrow night

Monday: Bake chocolate cake for next day's desset
Bake blueberry muffins for next morning’s breakfast;
 make pitcher of iced tea; soak pinto beans overnight; put frozen chicken breasts in fridge to thaw for Wednesday's dinner

Tuesday: make granola for next day's snack


Wednesday: Bake bread; prepare and chill jello for next day's dessert

Thursday: Make hummus and pizza dough; chill for next day

Friday: make ahead for tonight: poolish for pizza dough; homemade sauces for pizza


Saturday morning: bake lemon cookies and coffee cake for weekend desserts