winter Archives - Eat at Home

Real Life and Meal Plans – And a New Weekly Meal Plan Feature!

April 7, 2013 by Tiffany

I’m so excited about this new feature of the Weekly Meal Plans. Last week, I mentioned that I accidentally threw away my grocery list, which had the menu on it. This week, I was able to print off our new Display Menu and hang it on the fridge.

I can’t even tell you how many times I checked the Display Menu to see what I should be cooking for dinner that night. It’s so handy and beats looking it up on the computer (not that doing that is hard or anything, but…).

Last Sunday, we celebrated Easter. I have a fantastic pineapple dessert recipe that I’m going to share with you tomorrow. It was a great way to top off our Easter dinner. Along with all those peanut butter eggs – yum!

We had to do our egg hunt inside this time, since it was raining. My mom says that if it rains on Easter Sunday, it will rain 7 Sundays in a row after that. It was looking like rain earlier, but it’s been sunny most of the day. Here’s hoping she’s wrong about that!

Yes, that’s a little plastic cupcake instead of an egg. Cute, huh? And if you look closely, you can see our basketball goal hanging on the front door. We’re classy like that.

On Monday, I put meatballs in the slow cooker. I served them on garlic bread like open face meatball sandwiches. So good!

On Tuesday, my son had soccer practice and the others were in and out around dinner time. I pulled a quick meal together of chicken tenders in the skillet and broccoli. Not on the plan, but I had all the ingredients in the fridge.

Wednesday, the boys had youth group. Somehow, I’d gathered nearly 3 dozen eggs in my fridge (not from hens, just the grocery). I decided to make an easy dinner of French toast and bacon, that would also use up the stale bread in the bread drawer. Quick and easy.

Thursday is a busy day for us. The kids all have classes and I also help at one of the homeschool groups. I almost always load up the slow cooker with dinner so it’s ready and waiting when we get home. This time, I tried a new idea for Teriyaki pork chops. Recipe coming soon. It was a hit and easy too.

Friday night brought more soccer practice. I pulled together Chicken Tortilla Soup for dinner, but opted to cook it on the stove top instead of in the slow cooker.

Yesterday was grocery day again. I printed off this week’s Traditional Menu. I like to shop as fast as I can, and having that list ready to print and shop makes it all easier.

Last night, we went out to dinner with friends. It’s so good to have time to catch up. We left all the kids at home with pizza. If you’ve got little ones and still have to line up a baby sitter, hang on! It won’t be long before you can leave them on their own for a while.

Here’s a sneak peek at the menus for this week. If you want the complete grocery list, side dishes, cooking tips and all delivered to your inbox, check out the Weekly Meal Plans page.

All Slow Cooker Menu

Traditional Menu

Filed under: Menus, Slow cooker menu, winter Tagged with grocery list, menu, weekly meal plans1 Comment

Meal Planning and Real Life – Weekly Plans for April 1

March 31, 2013 by Tiffany

I promised myself that I was going to take more photos this week to share with you. But all I have to share is this fork. Kind of makes you wonder what we were eating, doesn’t it? This is the second demolished fork we’ve had lately. Does anyone else go through spurts of breaking silverware?

Since our week looked like a bunch of big kids flopped around the house running fevers and coughing, I thought I’d spare you photos of that.

We are finally over the virus-turned-bronchitis that hit all the kids. Fingers crossed that we all stay healthy!

Last Saturday, I shopped with the Slow Cooker Plan for March 18. I’m a little out of order, but I’m not going to worry about it.

And even though it was the Slow Cooker Plan, I chose to make several of the meals on the stove or in the oven instead.

Last Saturday, we had one kid mostly better and two who were still sick. My oldest son had a soccer game, so I put dinner in the crockpot. I used a meal that I hadn’t gotten to from the week before – Ham and Loaded Potato Casserole.

Sunday morning, our oldest woke up sick. I put Garlic Chicken with More Garlic in the oven to bake. I hadn’t gotten up early enough to cook it in the crockpot. Jim and I went to church without the kids. It was kind of strange to go to church just the two of us. So different than when the kids were little and someone had to stay home with the sick ones.

I did make Chocolate Cobbler for dessert on Sunday. Warm, chocolate dessert makes everyone feel better!

Somewhere along the way, I accidentally threw away my grocery list with the menu on it. (Very soon, I’ve got a new feature coming for the Weekly Meal Plan Service that will solve this problem. Look for more info next week!)

I thought that Chicken ala King was on the plan, but looking back now, I see that it wasn’t. Regardless, we had a stove top version for dinner on Monday night. Monday also brought doctor visits for both boys and our oldest girl, who had all progressed to bronchitis.

On Tuesday, the kids laid around sick and I joined them with a migraine. We ended up ordering pizza for dinner. We had planned to have a fun pizza night on Saturday, but with everyone sick we decided to skip it. So pizza on this night was less about the fun and more about just having dinner. We capped the day off with a round of IV antibiotics for our oldest son, who was getting worse instead of better.

We did do a lot of TV watching this week. If you’ve got Netflix, check out Thou Shalt Laugh.

It’s on instant watch right now and there’s a second one, as well. They are both very funny. My favorite comedian on these shows is Taylor Mason. Have you ever heard of him? I hadn’t, but now I’m a huge fan. He is talented and hysterical!

Wednesday, I made Mel’s Diner Chili. I had browned out the hamburger on Saturday as soon as I got home from the store. I knew that having the burger cooked and frozen would come in handy. It did! I made the chili on the stove and had it ready, start to finish in about 20 minutes.

On Thursday, I was rummaging in the pantry for the ingredients for Chicken Enchilada Soup, when I spied a can of coconut milk and my mind went to Chicken Curry instead. I had the idea to use peach/pineapple/chipotle salsa in it instead of regular, but I wasn’t sure if that would be good. So I asked on Facebook:

A bunch of readers said go for it. So I did and it was awesome! (On a side note, do you like the conversation style comments that Facebook rolled out this week? I do, but they are in a wacky order that’s hard to keep up with.)

Friday night we all made our own little pizzas from fixings I had bought for lunches/snacks.

This week, I’m hoping for sunny weather and a healthy family! I wish the same for you too.

Here’s a sneak peek at the menus for this week. If you want the complete grocery list, side dishes, cooking tips and all delivered to your inbox, check out the Weekly Meal Plans page.

All Slow Cooker Plan

Traditional Plan

Penne Gorgonzola with Grilled Chicken
Prime Time Meatloaf
Rotisserie chicken
Honey Cashew Pork Sir Fry
Slow Cooker Breakfast Casserole
French Bread Pizza
Strawberry Chocolate Chip Cake with Strawberry Icing

I’d love to know how meal planning goes in your house. Let me know in the comments.

Filed under: Menus, winter Tagged with meal plans, Menus, real lifeLeave a Comment

Meal Planning and Real Life – Sharing a little of my week and Meal Plans for March 25

March 24, 2013 by Tiffany

Today, I’ve decided to change things up a little bit and share a little bit of my week and how the Meal Plans work out in real life for us.

Last Saturday, I printed off the Traditional Plan for March 25. I was a week ahead of the schedule. I guess I’m ready for March to be over!

Jim has been gone for 3 weeks on a business trip. He gets back on Saturday (I’m writing this on Friday, so I can have some family time with no blog work this weekend.) I am soooo ready to have him home again!

Whenever he is gone, I end up making pancakes for dinner. I’m happy to report that in three weeks, we only had pancakes twice. Current favorite: Peanut Butter Pancakes.

No, those weren’t on the Meal Plan.

Here’s the thing about using a Meal Plan – you can use it as it’s listed, making every meal on the plan. That works some weeks. Or, you can switch thing out and change things, using the plan as guideline. Here’s how I used my plan that way this week. [Read more...]

Filed under: Menus, winter Tagged with meal plan, Menus13 Comments

Weekly Meal Plans for Your Family – March 18

March 17, 2013 by Tiffany

There’s so much to love about the meal plans this week!

The Slow Cooker Plan has one of my favorite soups, one of my favorite chicken recipes and goodness-in-a-tortilla Pork Carnitas. Not to mention, Chocolate Cobbler for dessert. Yum!

The Traditional Plan has one of my favorite enchilada recipes, a vegetarian dish and more. Plus chocolate cookies for dessert. Scrumptious!

Make this your easiest month of cooking ever, by subscribing to the Weekly Meal Plans. You’ll get complete grocery lists for both Traditional and Slow Cooker Plans. You even get to choose to print the 3-4 serving versions or 6-8 serving versions.

I love being able to put dinner on the table and not have to plan and wonder what we’re having each night. So easy!

At just $4 per month, it’s a no-brainer way to save time.

Receive your first set of Weekly Meal Plans the same day you sign up!

Here’s what’s on the plans this week and when you subscribe, you’ll also get suggested side dishes as well.

All Slow Cooker Plan

Traditional Plan

Filed under: Menus, Slow cooker menu, winter Tagged with Crockpot, meal plan, menuLeave a Comment

Slow Cooker and Traditional Weekly Meal Plans – week of March 10

March 10, 2013 by Tiffany

There was such a good response to the new Small version of the Weekly Meal Plans that serve just 3-4 people! Last week, we introduced this new option, doubling the number of Meal Plans you get when you subscribe to the weekly service. At just $4 per mont, it’s a steal!

I shopped with the Traditional Plan this week and we had Pork Burgers for dinner. It was nice enough on Saturday to grill them outside!

Keep reading, if you’d like a sneak peek at this week’s menus.

Do you want to save an hour a week in planning time? Get the Weekly Meal Plans and Grocery List sent to your inbox! Get all the info by clicking here.

By subscribing to the Weekly Meal Plans you’ll get:

4 Meal Plans each week – All Slow Cooker and Traditional with both 3-4 serving and 6-8 serving options for each
6 dinners and 1 dessert for each
Side dish suggestions
Complete grocery list for each plan
Printable recipes
Cooking tips and timing tricks
Delivered to your inbox each week for just $4 per month

Receive your first set of Weekly Meal Plans the same day you sign up!

Here’s what’s on the plans this week and when you subscribe, you’ll also get suggested side dishes as well.

All Slow Cooker Plan

Traditional Plan

Filed under: Menus, Slow cooker menu, winter Tagged with Crockpot, meal plans, menu, slow cookerLeave a Comment

New 3-4 Serving Size Weekly Meal Plans!

March 3, 2013 by Tiffany

Brand new on this week’s Meal Plans – new 3-4 serving sizes!

I’m really excited about this addition to the Weekly Meal Plans. We’ve added a 3-4 serving size plan for both the Traditional and the All Slow Cooker Plans. This means that each week, you’ll receive 4 plans to choose from!

The new smaller serving plans are the same recipes, only adjusted to feed a smaller family. We didn’t just cut the ingredients in half. Instead, we made adjustments so that you won’t have half cans of ingredients left over. Where that wasn’t possible, we’ve given instructions for freezing or storing extra ingredients for the next time.

In the case of slow cooker recipes, it’s also best to use the right size crockpot. Use a 5-6 quart slow cooker for the 6-8 serving size plans. Use a 4-5 quart slow cooker for the 3-4 serving size plans. This will help prevent overcooking your dinners.

If you have a smaller family or a family with very young kids who don’t eat much, you’re going to love the new 3-4 serving option!

Want to get the Weekly Meal Plans and Grocery List sent to your inbox? Get all the info by clicking here.

By subscribing to the Weekly Meal Plans you’ll get:

4 Meal Plans each week – All Slow Cooker and Traditional with both 3-4 serving and 6-8 serving options for each
6 dinners and 1 dessert for each
Side dish suggestions
Complete grocery list for each plan
Printable recipes
Cooking tips and timing tricks
Delivered to your inbox each week for just $4 per month

Receive your first set of Weekly Meal Plans the same day you sign up!

Here’s a sneak peek at what’s on the Meal Plans this week.

All Slow Cooker

Traditional Plan

Filed under: Menus, Slow cooker menu, winter Tagged with Crockpot, meal plans, menu, slow cooker2 Comments

Slow Cooker and Traditional Weekly Meal Plans for the week of Feb. 24

February 24, 2013 by Tiffany

This post has the sneak peek at this week’s menu. I’ve listed the main dishes below for the All Slow Cooker and Traditional versions of the Weekly Plans. If you subscribe to the service, you’ll get side dish suggestions and the complete grocery list ready to print.

I’m super excited about an addition to the plans that’s coming next week. You’re going to love it, especially if you’re cooking for just 2-4 people. I tell you all about it next week.

Want to get the Weekly Meal Plans and Grocery List sent to your inbox? Get all the info by clicking here.

By subscribing to the Weekly Meal Plans you’ll get:

2 Meal Plans each week – All Slow Cooker and Traditional
6 dinners and 1 dessert for each
Side dish suggestions
Complete grocery list for each plan
Printable recipes
Cooking tips and timing tricks
Delivered to your inbox each week for just $4 per month

Receive your first set of Weekly Meal Plans the same day you sign up!

All Slow Cooker Plan

Salsa Verde Steak

Honey Dijon Pork Chops and Apples

Mediterranean Chicken

Zesty Chicken with Couscous

Spicy Chicken Soup

Bramble Beans

Peach Crisp in the Slow Cooker

Traditional Plan

Zesty Chicken with Couscous in the Slow Cooker

Italian Chicken and Rice Casserole

Tony’s Tilapia

South of the Border Skillet

Tortellini Meatball Soup

Scrambled Egg-wiches

Peach Crisp in the Slow Cooker

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Traditional and All Slow Cooker Weekly Meal Plans – Week of Feb. 18

February 17, 2013 by Tiffany

On Friday, I printed off the grocery list for the Traditional Plan for this week. Less than two hours later, I had run to the bank, the pharmacy and shopped for all the groceries. I love not having to labor of meal planning and list making!

And we were all set for a quick, fun meal on Friday night of Gina’s Club Sandwiches. Perfect for family game night!

If you’d like to skip the planning and get right to the shopping, subscribe to the Weekly Meal Plans and have the menus and grocery sent to your inbox each week. At just $4 per month, it’s the best deal out there for saving time. Saving at least an hour each week in planning time, plus having quick-to-fix dinners planned out for such a small price is a no-brainer! I don’t know any other way to buy myself an hour for just $1.

Scroll down to see the main dishes for each menu below. If you sign up to get the Meal Plans delivered to you, you’ll also receive side dish suggestions and recipes. And, of course, the complete grocery list for each plan and printable recipes.

Want to get the Weekly Meal Plans and Grocery List sent to your inbox? Get all the info by clicking here.

By subscribing to the Weekly Meal Plans you’ll get:

2 Meal Plans each week – All Slow Cooker and Traditional
6 dinners and 1 dessert for each
Side dish suggestions
Complete grocery list for each plan
Printable recipes
Cooking tips and timing tricks
Delivered to your inbox each week for just $4 per month

Receive your first set of Weekly Meal Plans the same day you sign up!

All Slow Cooker

Brown Sugar Chicken and Sweet Potatoes
Pulled Pork on sandwiches
Chicken Fiesta with Black Beans
Italian Chicken and Tomatoes
Pumpkin Black Bean Chicken Chili
Cube Steaks with Gravy
Chocolate Chip Pecan Banana Bars

Traditional

Cube Steaks with Gravy in the Slow Cooker
Fish Tacos with Chipotle Dressing
Gina’s Club Sandwiches
Easy Jambalaya
Ham and Swiss Scalloped Potatoes
Pesto and Crushed Tomato Shells
Chocolate Chip Pecan Banana Bars

Filed under: Menus, Slow cooker menu, winter Tagged with meal plans, slow cookerLeave a Comment

Weekly Meal Plans – All Slow Cooker and Traditional – Feb. 10 (and a shopping story)

February 10, 2013 by Tiffany

That photo shows what last Saturday morning looked like here. I know it’s nothing compared to what New England got hit with this weekend, but this is Kentucky. For us, that’s plenty enough snow.

You’ll notice that this photo was taken from the passenger side of the car. I had Jim drive me to the store, because I hate driving on snow.

Jim doesn’t go grocery shopping very often and it’s usually interesting when he does. This time, he took some lady’s cart while we were in the freezer section. He wheeled it part way down the aisle before she tracked him down. He said every time we passed her in the aisles after that, she would hold tight to the handle of her cart and look straight ahead. I guess she thought he was a real cart thief!

The few times Jim has done the grocery shopping by himself was when I was sick or out of town. He prints off one of the Weekly Meal Plan grocery lists and hits the store. I’ve even sent our oldest son grocery shopping with a Weekly Meal Plan list. The shopping list makes it easy for them to get everything we need.

If you’re looking for a way to make meal planning and grocery shopping easier, subscribe to the Weekly Meal Plans. It really does simplify the planning and grocery shopping process. And the meals are easy to make too.