Here we go! Meal plans!

My first 2 weeks worth of dinners!!! 

You'll notice a few things about me pretty quickly
1. I'm a sucker for Mexican
2. We eat a lot of beans (my toddler is picky all of a sudden....)
3. I don't plan 14 meals for 2 weeks, because we usually order pizza one night

4. I talk A LOT.



Meals

Dinners:
Roasted Vegetables and Sausage

            Our favorite is diced sweet potatoes, any green vegetable (give brussel sprouts a shot!)  and a Chicken Apple Sausage (we like Bruce Aidells brand) throw it all in a bowl, toss with olive oil,  salt, pepper and garlic powder, then place on a cookie sheet. Roast at 400* for about 40 minutes. Honestly though, I feel like you can roast just about anything and suddenly it’s kind of amazing. You can also use frozen vegetables just add about 10 minutes or so cooking time. (1 package sausages, 2 sweet potatoes, 1 bag of brussel sprouts or broccoli or whatever you like!)

Peanut Noodle Salad

            https://www.facebook.com/buzzfeedtasty/videos/1709366292649346/?business_id=10153286773125329
                        *see recipe below because this link is a video.

Taco Salad

            I brown about a pound of ground turkey and toss in a packet of low sodium taco seasoning. Throw in some black or pinto beans, fresh tomato, lettuce, crushed tortilla chips, corn, cheese and catalina dressing. Or whatever you enjoy in your tacos!  

Philly Cheesesteaks

            http://www.thelittlekitchen.net/cheesesteaks/print/
            I use roast beef instead of fancy, expensive cuts of meat! We’ve even used pre-packaged roast beef and it’s works just as well! I also like to use frozen peppers and onions because it’s easy, cheap and lasts longer than fresh stuff. I add a couple splashes of Worcestershire or soy sauce too.
                        *this is great mixed in with brown rice also.

Oven Fried Chicken

            http://life-in-the-lofthouse.com/oven-fried-chicken/

Spaghetti

            Easy. Just noodles and your favorite spaghetti sauce. I skip the meat on this but ground turkey is a great and inexpensive option if you prefer meat in yours. Just season the turkey a little since it's pretty bland. 

Breakfast Casserole

            http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/easy-cheesy-breakfast-casserole-recipe/

Burrito Bowls

            http://fitfoodiefinds.com/2013/03/copy-cat-cilantro-lime-brown-rice/
                        *I double the lime and cilantro for the rice. Once the rice is ready, I throw together either black or pinto beans, some sautéed peppers and onions, corn, salsa, lettuce, etc.

Jack o Lantern Grilled Cheese Tomato Soup

            http://diethood.com/jack-o-lantern-grilled-cheese-sandwiches/
                        *Papa Murphys also has jack o’lantern pizzas for $5 if you order ahead of time for Halloween!

Skirt Steak with Mushroom Gravy

            http://www.justapinch.com/recipes/shows-the-chew-recipes-grilled-skirt-steak-with-mushroom-gravy-michael-symon.html?utm_source=pinterest&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=share
                        *try this with German egg noodles –spetzle if you can find them!

Deconstructed Stuffed Peppers

            http://simplefood365.com/stuffed-peppers/

                        *I use all these ingredients but dice up the peppers and toss it all in a skillet because I ain't got time to stuff the actual peppers. Plus this takes like 20 minutes instead of 40! Also, you can choose to use fresh or frozen peppers. If you want the melty cheese on top, throw it in a casserole dish, top with cheese and broil until bubbly and brown. 

White Chicken Chili (crockpot)

            http://www.truelifekitchen.com/2014/01/crock-pot-cream-cheese-chicken-chile.html?m=1
                        *for a lighter version, you could omit the cream cheese. But, I mean, it’s cream cheese...

Cajun Shrimp Pasta

            I just throw this together sometimes when we are craving something kind of spicy. While my fettuccine noodles are boiling, I melt about 2 tbsp of  butter in sauce pan. Once melted, I toss in 2 tbsp of flour and whisk it until combined. Add in about 1 tbsp of Cajun seasoning (depending how spicy you want it) and cook until fragrant. Slowly add in about a cup of milk while whisking to keep it from clumping. Drain the pasta but reserve about a quarter of a cup of pasta water and return back to the pan it was cooking in. Dump your Cajun sauce over the pasta and some of the reserved water. Sautee your shrimp in butter or olive oil, a little salt and pepper until the shrimp is warm throughout. Toss it all together. I like to add steamed broccoli to this as well.

**Add quesadillas, salad with leftover oven fried chicken and refried beans for easy alternate meals on lazy days if you’d like.

**I don't plan specific sides, just grab what looks good at the time. 

***Actually typing up what we do is kind of strange so I apologize if this is too lengthy or too vague! Please let me know if you have any questions or if you have any feedback for me.

Breakfasts:

We eat a LOT of eggs. I plan on muffins, oatmeal and pancakes as well. We used to prepare frozen breakfast burritos that were a big hit, but burned ourselves out a little bit. I do highly recommend what I like to call the “3-2-1-1 biscuits.” 3 cups of Bisquick, 2 cups of shredded cheese, 1 cup of milk and 1 pound of cooked breakfast sausage. Roll into balls and bake at 350* for about 20 minutes. These freeze and heat up great but you may have to add a few drops of water to them when using the microwave. 

Lunches:

We typically have a lot of leftovers, sandwiches and salads.

Snacks:

Energy bites, greek yogurt and peanut butter, fruit.

http://www.blessthismessplease.com/2016/07/9-energy-bites-recipes.html
            *here is the link to a variety of energy bites to choose from. We’ve tried a few of them and really enjoyed the PB& J and Almond Joy the best so far! The kiddos even love them!

Desserts: 

Either dirt cups or pumpkin shaped Rice Krispy Treats for Halloween.
Cookies because sometimes you just need a cookie.

Groceries
Below are the groceries for the dinners only. You may have a lot of the ingredients already, but I included them all just in case! Don't forget about sides :) 

Produce:

2 sweet potatoes

Brussel sprouts (or a veggie for roasting)

Ginger

Garlic

Carrots

Cucumber

1 red bell pepper

4 bell peppers (or just get the frozen ones)

Green onion

Cilantro bundle

2 tomatoes

Head of lettuce (shredding your own is easy and a better value)

2 mushroom containers

2 limes

2 white onions

salad

Center of the store:

Peanut butter

Soy sauce

Rice wine vinegar

Sesame oil

Siracha-optional

Brown sugar

Flour

Peanuts

Catalina dressing

1 package ranch mix

Beef stock

Corn starch

Olive oil

Worcestershire sauce

Dried oregano

Cajun seasoning

Seasoning salt

Taco seasoning

Cumin

Chili powder

Onion powder

Linguine noodles

Fettuccine noodles

Spaghetti noodles

Spaghetti sauce

Brown rice

1 can Rotel

2 cans of black or pinto beans

Tomato soup

2 cans diced tomatoes

1 can corn (or frozen)

Tortilla chips

Tortillas

Hoagie rolls

Bread

Spaetzle noodles (optional)

Cold stuff:

Provolone slices

Block of cheese

Cream cheese

Plain greek yogurt (or sour cream)

Butter

Eggs

Milk

Frozen:

Peeled and cleaned shrimp (You can get 2 meals out of 1 bag, so we will use the other half next time)

Hashbrowns

Frozen peppers

Frozen chopped onion (optional, but you'll thank me later.) 

 Meat:

1lb breakfast sausage

1lb roast beef  (or whatever you like for philly cheesesteaks)

1lb skirt steak

1lb ground turkey

1lb ground beef

Just got home from our shopping trip! I got all we need for 2 weeks (breakfast, snacks, lunches and desserts of course) and went a little over budget... $166 was my total today but we did have to get laundry soap and coffee... so I'm calling it a 'win' anyway haha!

Good luck! Let me know how it goes!!!
Congratulations if you made it this far, this was a long p

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Peanut noodle salad:
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
2 Tbsp. Sriracha
1/4 cup water
1 Tbsp. ginger /minced
3 cloves garlic /minced
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 Box Whole Grain Linguine (or any pasta will do)
1 cup carrots /finely cut into matchsticks
2 cucumbers /shaved using vegetable peeler
1 red bell pepper /thinly sliced into strips
1 yellow bell pepper /thinly sliced into strips
1/2 cup green onion /sliced
1/4 cup cilantro /chopped
1/4 cup peanuts /chopped

Directions:
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook pasta according to instructions on the box. Drain and run cooked pasta under cold water to cool.

In a medium bowl, whisk together peanut butter, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil, Sriracha, water, minced ginger, minced garlic, and brown sugar.

Combine pasta with sliced vegetables. Pour the dressing over the pasta and vegetables and mix well. Cover and chill for at least one hour before serving. Garnish with chopped cilantro and peanuts. Enjoy!