I have decided I need to use inventory from the freezer and have September be a mostly no shopping month*. Naturally the exceptions will be produce, bread and eggs, but I even have a pretty decent stock of frozen veggies and fruits to use in various ways.
Instead of doing weekly meal plans, I thought I would just plan for the month. I am sure a lot of the side dish options will change, but at least I have some idea of the directions I want to go. I am only planning 25 meals for September because I know we will do takeout at least every Friday night, plus my birthday is in September and I never cook on my birthday. I am also having to include the meals for Monday and Tuesday because I always start my meal plans on Monday and they can't help that they were the tail end of August.
You also might even notice a couple of Game Day meals, because it is a tradition we must honor!
Roll, Tide, Roll!
These are the 27 meals I have planned, in no order at all.
1. Spaghetti with meat sauce, tossed salad (frozen meat sauce)
2. Hamburgers with fixings, corn, cream cheese and jalapeño side dish (frozen patties, frozen veggies)
3. Bbq ribs, caulitato salad, baked beans (Labor Day meal will buy the ribs already cooked)
4. Veggie meal, cornbread TBD based on produce stand and garden availability
5. Veggie meal, cornbread TBD based on produce stand and garden availability
6. Hamburgers with fixings (frozen patties)
7. Taco salad (frozen taco seasoned ground chuck)
8. Taco salad (frozen taco seasoned ground chuck)
9. Chopped salad with chicken (frozen cooked and seasoned chicken)
10. Pizza, tossed salad (frozen mini pizza crusts, frozen pepperoni)
11. Grilled chicken, brussels sprouts, garlic bread (frozen boneless, skinless chicken thighs)
12. Stuffed bell peppers, hash browns, coleslaw, green beans (frozen uncooked ground chuck)
13. Fajita baked chicken (thanks Belinda) (frozen boneless, skinless chicken breasts)
14. Grilled steak, tossed salad, (frozen steak)
15. Garden salad, grilled cheese sandwich (lots of cheeses in the fridge)
16. Buffalo chicken, celery sticks, crudités with dip, fruit (frozen chicken tenders)
17. Butter chicken, rice, green vegetable (frozen boneless skinless thighs)
18. Peruvian chicken, mashed potatoes, green vegetable (Frozen boneless skinless thighs)
19. Cedar planked salmon, mashed potatoes, some green veggie (frozen salmon)
20. BLT, cucumber onion and tomato salad (frozen cooked bacon)
21. Grilled lamb chops, rice pilaf, green beans, side salad ( frozen rack of lamb)
22. Lamb leftovers
23. Corned beef, cabbage, potatoes (frozen corned beef)
24. Corned beef leftovers
25. Philly cheesesteak casserole, salad (frozen browned ground chuck)
26. Philly cheesesteak casserole leftovers
27. Soup and cornbread (frozen chicken broth)
I will copy and paste this list when I do my weekly meal roundup and we can see how closely I actually came to the monthly menu.
Do I honestly believe I will stick with this plan totally? No, but I honestly think I will use the frozen items mentioned in some form or fashion during the month. It looks like with the uptick in Covid cases we are not going to be going anywhere so I might as well commit to cooking from the freezer. (And cleaning. I guess I could commit to cleaning too, but I really hate to overcommit myself!)
Have a great week staying on plan, going off plan or with no plan at all!
*This is not being done so much as a budget thing, but my freezer is stocked to the max. However; if ThePig has some spectacular meat buys in September, I will do some stock up buying. I just don't know where I will put it!
Your meals sound great! My 14 y.o tried cheesesteak for the first time this weekend, & is a fan. The dude is super picky, so it's a big win to add something to his list. Maybe I'll add that to next week's menu!
ReplyDeleteI had a picky eater until he went off to college, then the culinary world opened up to him, but he still will not touch a tomato.
DeleteThe cheesesteak casserole is keto so it might work for your entire family.
You’re welcome for #13. :)
ReplyDeleteYour menu looks so good and all stuff we would eat here. We are having salmon patties tonight, so I won’t have to defrost any meat for that.
They’ve closed schools here for the week due to COVID, so we are not going anywhere either. Good time to plan to do things as you’ve said. I hope you have a great week, Anne.
I think you for the recipe. It sounds delicious! I hope you have a great week also.
DeleteSounds like a nice variety of meals, and I'm impressed that you have a freezer filled with good things.
ReplyDeleteMy freezer is filled to the gills!
DeleteGood luck - and have fun.
ReplyDeleteLove your comment about committing to the cleaning being an over commitment.
Well I just don't want to overcommit and I have a feeling is I let anything go it might be the house (especially since housework is always last on my list, behind reading and whatever else )
DeleteI need to try this when I return from my trip. Especially since going to the store is my least favorite things to do. Lol.
ReplyDeleteYep, I need to run pick up a couple of things right now and I am doing everything in my power to keep from getting in the car and going.
DeleteI fail when I over commit. You have some really good meals ahead and I like that you have intentionally thought about leftovers. How long do you have DIL and Sone 3 with you?
ReplyDeleteThey left Saturday morning but they were here for 9 absolutely wonderful days!
DeleteI laughed loud and long about not overcommitting by adding cleaning. When my children were one and three, I remember reading while I cooked. Now that my glasses are correct, I am reading like I did a few years ago, but actually not so long. My freezer is stuffed. I am thawing, cooking, and refreezing cooked meat in portions. My goal for cooking is to get a chicken or pieces, cooked, meat pulled from the bone and frozen for the day I feel it is fallish and make chicken and dumplings following my mother's recipe, not the ones online.
ReplyDeleteI m still putting meat in the freezer when it is a good buy. I need to buy vegetables frozen to put in there for times I run out of fresh and don't want to go to the store or certain vegetables are not in season.
Have you read A Painted House?
I have read A Painted House,but I read it long ago.
DeleteYou're making me super hungry! We were at Grandview today, and now I'm kicking myself for not taking Tom up on his offer for lunch.
ReplyDeleteI never turn down a lunch. There are a lot fo good restaurants on 280
DeleteI used to get a magazine that would include a monthly meal plan and I loved the idea. But, I could never plan that far ahead for some reason! I struggle with even a weekly menu plans! But, I took out a piece of beef and a smoked sausage from the freezer for at least the first part of this week's meals. We'll probably have chicken, later in the week.
ReplyDeleteI sat in front of the freezer with a pen in my hand to do a quick inventory. I quickly realized I needed to use a lot of it before I can even move enough stuff around to do a full inventory. I just need to be intentional with using the frozen foods.
DeleteWe did some freezer rearranging yesterday since they are filling up with the summer's produce. Now we have a better idea what we have and will try to have freezer meals, also.
ReplyDeleteIt is funny how the freezer rearranging inspires, isn't it? Mine is overfilled with summer's fruits and vegetables. Now I have to do some serious using of the tail end of last years storage.
DeleteGreat variety of meals, and some great ideas for me to steal. ;)
ReplyDeleteSince I got rid of the big freezer and use only the fridge, I don't tend to keep as much stuff. And yet the freezer fills up anyway.
Steal away! I really don't know what I would do without my big freezer. Shop more intentionally maybe?
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