This week I am going to help you make dinner, save time, save money, get organized and make dinner time meaningful and full of purpose once again. We are going to focus on how all of us, regardless of how busy you are can make great tasting, healthy meals for your family. Like all projects we start at the beginning. For the What’s For Dinner Solution we start by finding out what you have to work with and getting it all organized.
See what you have
Do you know what is in your pantry? Have you checked the back of the freezer lately? And what about that one drawer in the fridge you never open? Do you even know what spices wait for you in the cabinet?
Not all of us are culinary experts who easily plan menus. Make appropriate shopping lists and can whip up a gourmet meal for our family every night. Life is busy and hectic. We juggle managing a house, a career, husband’s career kids, games, play dates, doctor appointments, baseball practice and the list goes on and on. Not to mention we are not programmed to wake up and decide what we are going to prepare for dinner. If we do the thought is fleeting and before we know it 5 pm has arrived, the natives are restless and there is no plan.
So what do you do know?
First off you need to know what you have on hand.
Take the time to clean out and organize your recipes, pantry, cabinets, fridge and freezer.
Let’s start with the recipes.
Get them organized. If you have recipes cards or a folder with papers shoved inside buy some notebook dividers. Label them appropriately: Appetizers, salad, side dishes, main course: meats, pasta, desserts, breads, breakfast etc…
As you are organizing your recipes sort through them; will you make that again? Did the family like that dish? Does it fit within my diet plan (diabetes, allergy, healthy, no sugar etc.) There is no sense in keeping recipes that will not be used. It is just more clutter.
Now for the Pantry
Clean out expired products.
Sort by food likeness: baking products, canned goods, cereal, crackers and so on.
The fridge
Same steps from the pantry apply, like foods together. Condiments on one shelf, milk, creamers and juice on another. Use the produce drawers for the produce and deli drawer for your meats and cheeses.
Freezer
If you do not already start today and write the date on all foods you place in your freezer.
Make a list of what you have on your freezer so you can plan your meals accordingly. Stop buying food you already have.
All of the above will help you see what you have, how much you have and make your menu & list making easier. Not to mention you and the family will be able to quickly grab a great snack when needed.
Now it is your turn. Tell me in the comments below what you do to stay organized so you know what is on hand to eat. Any organizing tip you want tos hare with the other readers are great too.
Do you hit snooze several times, jump out of bed in a rush grab your ball cap while you slip your jeans on?
Do you get up early but spend most of your morning looking at your closet telling yourself you have nothing to wear?
Or do you lay out your clothes at night complete with your shoes and accessories you will wear?
No matter what category you fall into I am sure we could all use some inspiration to help manage our mornings.
Here are a few simple and elementary tips. I am sure a lot of you might remember your parents telling you some of these.
Prepare for your day at night. Make sure your purse, backpack, laptop bag are ready for you to just grab in the morning.
Refer to Breakfast on the Run and Lunch to go so you do not have to fuss over your meals for the next day.
Go to bed at a decent time. (Sleep is not just for princesses, our bodies need sleep time to grow and heal)
Set an alarm clock. If are a serial snooze button hitter place your alarm clock on the other side of your bed; this will require you get up and get your day going.
Open the blinds and curtains. Filling your room with daylight will help your body wake up. In just a few weeks we all will be setting our clocks ahead an hour and most of us will wake up to the sun.
Eat that yummy breakfast you planned the night before.
Do you know how long it takes you to get ready in the morning? If not, time yourself from the moment you get out of bed till you walk out the door. This will give you an idea of when you should wake up so you are not rushed.
Stay consistent with your waking time each day. This will train your body to naturally wake up on time. Even on days you don’t have to get up early, do. This will give you a wonderful break from your morning routine. You can spend time in the Word, sip your coffee, watch the news or just enjoy the quietness of the house while the natives sleep.
So what have I missed that you may do that will help another girlfriend out? I want to hear it all. My mornings get by me way too fast!
Tell me in the comments below what your tried and true strategies are for getting up and out the door in a snap. What makes your mornings easier?
Anyone who leaves a comment will be entered to win a $25 Starbucks gift card.
One winner will be chosen from all comments posted for the entire week.
Please, be sure to link to your blog or provide an email address so we can get in touch with you!
Another time saver is cook a few meals once a week or many meals once a month and put them in the freezer. Make sure you label them well and all you have to do is grab one out of the freezer in the morning and then pop it in the oven.
Life as a mom also has great recipes and she even points you to posts to help you get started if you have never done freezer cooking before.
Other quick tips can happen as soon as you unload your groceries. When you buy chicken before you place it into the icebox go ahead and prepare a few dinner options. Place desired amount of chicken in a gallon Ziploc bag and add a marinade then pop them into the freezer. As they thaw the chicken pieces will soak up the flavors and all you have to do it grill or bake.
Here are a few marinade options:
Italian dressing
Ranch dressing and 2 Tablespoons minced garlic
½ c Olive Oil, ½ c Lemon Juice and 3 T Italian Dressing
Barbecue sauce
Now all you need is a salad, veggies and/or fruit.
Did you know I was once a single mom? Yes, I had a time in my life where living on budget was more of a necessity than a plan and time was short each day; between, work, shuffling kids around, homework checks and doing the cleaning and cooking solo. On Monday Nicole Bean, a single mom, featured me on her blog 180 Degrees: Turning your life into a new direction She asked to interview me about the time in my life when I was a single mom. Go over and check that out, you will also find a great recipe as well!
Sharing time! What are your tried and tested tips for making dinner delicious, easy, and stress free.
Tell me all your great ideas in the comments below and you could be entered to win a $25 Starbucks gift card.
One winner will be chosen from all comments posted for the entire week.
Please, be sure to link to your blog or provide an email address so we can get in touch with you!
Now that you can conquer breakfast let’s focus on lunch. I find most people do not think about lunch. Grabbing take out or whipping through a drive thru takes no thought and is super easy but super hard on the hips and pocket book. Lunch is, well, kind of boring. Some eat alone, in front of their computer or have little time to eat due to work or feeding little ones and getting them down to nap.
For those who work you also must think about lunch when you are thinking about or handling breakfast. So how do you go about in a stress-less way while making it healthy at the same time?
For starters there are many things you can do at night to make your lunch a grab and go as you walk out the door.
Plan your lunches like you do your dinners and shop accordingly.
Grab some of those easy items at the store: snack packs of pretzels, carrots, fruit, nuts and cheeses.
Prepare your lunch while you make dinner. Make an extra serving or two so you and your husband have lunch the next day. If you want to trim your waist line or your bottom line then just take half of your regular portion and place it in a container for lunch as you are plating dinner.
Do the prep work before bed; the slicing, cutting, placing in bags, or putting leftovers in a container so you can reheat at the office.
Pack all the items you can in your lunch bag at night. Fill your water bottle and that will just leave you to grab only the refrigerator items in the morning.
You could also do all of the above on the weekend. Spends a few hours prepping and sorting foods to cut down on daily prep time.
Need more ideas or creative ideas for lunch? Here are a few more ideas, recipes and tips.
Are you a pro at lunch? Is it your favorite meal? What is your favorite thing to do for lunch and how do you make it easy?
Tell me all your great ideas in the comments below and you could be entered to win a $25 Starbucks gift card. One winner will be chosen from all comments posted for the entire week.
Please, be sure to link to your blog or provide an email address so we can get in touch with you!
Do you have breakfast on the go, or do you go without breakfast? How many of you skip breakfast? I am guessing most of us, or if you do not skip breakfast than you might fall into the eat the donut with your coffee as you walk into work or drive the kiddos around category. Let’s face it our mornings are rushed and tackling the days tasks can seem more important to us than sitting down to eat breakfast.
All this week we are going to be focusing on getting out the door in the morning and one of the best ways to do that is to have some Breakfast on the go ideas.
But,whether it’s sitting around the table, or breakfast on the go it’s so important! It provides the energy we need to start the day, it gets our metabolism going and we all want that to work right. Nobody likes putting on extra pounds or buying a larger size. So how do we start the day off on the right foot, make it quick, easy and healthy and stay on time?
Below are a few links to give you some ideas about breakfast on the go. Many can be made ahead or take little to no time at all to prepare.
If you have kids there is plenty you can do to set up the night before.
Before bed set the table with the bowls, spoons, napkins and cereal choices. Add any fruit or bread items needed…anything that does not live in the fridge.
Have a list in the kitchen of your current breakfast choices so you do not waste time hunting for food. I have a friend who types up breakfast choices for her kids and before she sends them to bed the kids initial what they want the next day. The list changes as her food choices change. This save several minutes each morning for everyone in the house.
Set your coffee pot at night so by the time you wake up you have hot, fresh coffee.
Use your Crock Pot for breakfast; it’s not just for dinner.
Go ahead and chop the fruit or peel it and place it in a Ziploc bag. If you are prepping apples toss with lemon juice to prevent browning.
Have breakfast on the go choices ready: cheese sticks, yogurts, nuts and homemade breads sliced and in a container as well so you can grab it on your way out the door.
Below are a few sites you can visit to get great crock pot breakfast on the go recipes.
You have to love this next list of breakfast ideas, if only the website address… “Dumb little man” But it is also good to get a man’s perspective as well as a lot of us are taking care of his needs too!
And be sure to head over to my Facebook Author Page to download our list of 30 On the Go Breakfast Ideas!
So let’s help each other out. I want to hear what tips and tricks you have to make breakfast simple and healthy and getting out the door on time with little stress.
Tell me all your great ideas in the comments below and you could be entered to win a $25 Starbucks gift card.
One winner will be chosen from all comments posted for the entire week.
Please, be sure to link to your blog or provide an email address so we can get in touch with you!
(We had some technical difficluties, but here is last Friday’s blog post – all winners will be announced this weekend!)
Project #5
Getting your kitchen to work for you.
What is your all time favorite kitchen gadget? I don’t know about you but I like to have and use anything that might make dinner prep quicker. Whether it is chopping, grating, mixing, stirring, cutting, mincing, shredding, baking, blending processing, kneading and so on….
Tell me in the comments below your favorite kitchen gadget and how it gets dinner on the table and you can win
Now for the Pantry
