Menu Plan 1-30-11 to 2-5-11

Here is what I came up with.  My grocery list is still long [for me] but that is bound to happen since I did not order my produce through the delivery service this week.

• Broccoli Macaroni & Cheese
• Mexican Soup (leftovers)
• Veggie Burgers, Steamed Spinach & Red Dill Potatoes (we had this the other day and are craving it again)
• Spaghetti, Garlic Bread and Salad (I think this is notorious for being a cheap meal!)
• Potato Soup & Broccoli (again, leftovers)
• BBQ Chicken Packets & French Bread
• Dinner with my Parents

I am going to make a guess and see how close to it I get... based off of my list I think I will spend $65.00.  I know.  Not "that" cheap.  Ugh…. well, as always the majority is in produce.  I am going to be buying off of the EWG's Dirty Dozen list.  So if it's on that list it will be organic!   I think that, that is going to help… otherwise our milk & cheese will remain organic- I do not need to buy any meat this week.

I will let you all know how it goes in my Week 4 video of "Living Organic on a Budget"  Hopefully it's less than what I am thinking it will be!  (=

Oh and did you want to see any of the above?

My Cheap Week Challenge

Well if you watched Week 3 of "Living Organic On a Budget" then you know that this coming week I was planning to challenge myself to a super cheap week of groceries.  And if you watched my Random vlog then you know that our dog, Cannon, is going to be having surgery next week. 

Everything Happens For a Reason.

I live and breathe this statement and looky here-a huge reason why.  ALSO my husband has been working a ton (not by choice) and again- folks, we found our "reason"!

So now I HAVE to see how low we can go this coming week!  I am going to skip out of my produce delivery, allow $15 for milk and see what we have.  It should be interesting.  I am not going to cut corners or quality but I am going to go cheap-cheap-cheap! 

With all of that said, tomorrow shall be interesting as far as my menu plan goes. 

(gotta say, it will be nice having my freezer cleaned out a bit!)

Meal "Planning"

Last night I needed to roast my chicken.  I didn't feel like it.  Yes, I wanted to roast the chicken, but I didn't want the 'Roasted Chicken & Veggies' dinner I had planned on.  So I mixed it up- I roasted the chicken like you would a turkey (I made a video- it'll probably be up tomorrow), whipped up some gravy (also did a video), baked some potatoes, warmed up some dinner rolls and steamed some artichokes- it was PERFECT!  A great spin… I still used my ingredients but changed them up. 

So the point of this little story is that even though it's a "Meal Plan" you are not bound to the plan- you can change it up, you can tailor it, and have fun with it!

The videos from this mini-feast that you will see are:

1. A different way to roast a chicken (without veggies)
2. How to make homemade gravy
3. Now What?  (how to store & use all of the extra chicken for future meals)

My Week 3 weekly video is currently saving (it's been saving for 2.5 hours… it's about half way done)  So you may see it Thursday!  lol (-;

11-23-2011 to 11-29-2011 Menu Plan

This week was easy to plan as I only had to plan 5 meals.  The menu is slightly tailored around my husband as next week is his birthday week!  One night we will be going out for my husbands birthday and the other is (as always) at my parents house.  With that said here is our menu:

Roasted Chicken & Veggies

White Chicken Chili Enchiladas (my husband begged to have them again next week)

Homemade Pizza & Salad

Creamy Chicken Soup & biscuits

Sloppy Joes, Potato wedges & salad

Dinner OUT

Dinner at my Parents house

What do you guys want to see broken out?  The pizza, the Homemade Sloppy Joes or the Soup?  Just let me know and I will make a recipe video on it next week.

Happy eating!

This is the requested recipe for the soup I made for dinner last night.  Of course I put my own spin on it!

• Here is my video, with my super adorable helper!!!:  Homemade Vegetable Soup
• Here is the recipe that I got my main idea from:  Garden Vegetable Soup by Alton Brown 

Even my husband who admitted that he was NOT excited about it liked it!  Which is always a good thing... he is brutally honest!  -scary at times- but a good thing! 

I will have the Enchiladas up [most likely] tomorrow as we plan to have them for dinner tonight.  That recipe was the most requested for the week!

Fridays

When Deacon was born my Mom decided that she 'needed' some "grandbaby" time each week.  I loved the idea… in fact I wish she could watch him the 3 days a week my husband and I are both at work (we have different days off).  But she too works.  Shortly after his birth she negotiated taking Fridays as a half day so she could take him from noon on. 

Each Friday I go and pick Deacon up from his daycare, nurse him and meet my mom for lunch if time permits.  She takes him home from there and they do their thing until I get off work and pick him up.  This is also the time that I get to visit with my parents each week (well, up until this last Sunday- we have made it a standing [early] morning date in the hills for target practice- my parents are finally going to get to spend some time with my husband again).  We take advantage of that time by having dinner together.  My parents are out of this world cooks!  ahhhhhhh their food is simply amazing!  In fact, I worry about making anything for them (outside of baked goods) because they are outstanding chefs (-:  My husband works late (he gets home at about 8:30) on Fridays so I bring him home a plate.

This is why I only plan and make 6 meals a week!  Deacon and my parents have an amazing bond, they do all sorts of fun things (he even has his own room there!) and I get an amazing dinner.  Plus, best of all, Deacon only has to go to daycare 2 1/2 days a week- best of both worlds if you ask me.  I still hate the idea of taking him to "daycare" but it's not all that bad- there are some perks!!!  I feel so blessed with it all!

1-16-11 to 1-22-11 Meal Plan

Here is next week's menu... I am shopping for it tomorrow. If you watch my videos TMI ALERT then you know that AF is in town (grrrr).  I am currently blaming her for my desire to eat nothing but crap food (although as I type this I am eating carrot sticks-yay me)!  So I think this week's menu may cause a slight uptick in our weekly grocery bill.  As you know I stay as far away as possible from processed foods… I prefer to make things from scratch (it's fun, healthier & cheaper).  There are however times, like today, when I want it all!  The worse the better… ahhh… lol but I was good.  I settled on just ONE processed item for the week and since last week we had none I figure that one can of cream of ?? soup in two week's time isn't all that bad.  I am however hoping there is an organic version... of something like this, especially chicken, that I can substitute.

• Chicken Fettuccini Alfredo (I am going to make Olive Garden's Alfredo Sauce) & Salad
• Vegetable Soup & Bread
• White Chicken Chili Enchiladas & Salad
• Veggie Burgers, Red Dill Potatoes & Artichokes
• A spin off of Anna Duggar's Chicken Spaghetti & Salad  (this is the evil meal that has my beloved can of soup… I am going to be ditching the Velveeta for some good old organic cheddar cheese sauce- extra thick)
• Deluxe Salads & Garlic Bread

So now that you have read our menu for the next week what do you want to see?  I already provided the recipes for two of the meals… everything else I will create.  If you read my previous post I want to record one recipe a week so I am asking you, my lovely blogger friends, what should I record this week?

Thanks for your help!  Happy eating!