Dairy Free Clam Chowder!

Our family has always made Clam Chowder on Christmas Eve.  It started as a tradition from my French grandparents, who made bouillabaisse - a fish stew- for the holiday.  My father, upon marrying my mother, could not stand the dish and they began their own tradition.

My mother's clam chowder is always delicious, but never the same!  She doesn't follow a recipe and plays around with the ingredients every year adding sweet potatoes, spicy ingredients and other touches as she feels like it.  Our chowder has been orange in the past!  So when we discovered that it was best for me not to consume dairy, she quickly discovered that she could save me a portion of her chowder before she added cream- her last step.

When I got married and left home, I began making my own chowder, but mine is completely non-dairy.  I like the idea that my mother's recipe is the base for mine, but that it can change and grow with each generation. 

Dairy Free Clam Chowder

Ingredients:

• 1 small leek, rinsed and chopped roughly
• 2 onions, peeled and roughly chopped
• 5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 6-8 strips of pepper bacon
• 3 cans of clams, drained
• 1 bottle of clam juice
• 3 carrots, chopped roughly
• 6 potatoes, peeled and chopped roughly
• 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire
• 1 tsp. Tabasco/ hot sauce
• 6 cups chicken broth (more if your potatoes are large or you add optional ingredients)
• a bunch of parsley chopped
• Optional ingredients:  Sweet potatoes, other fish, scallions, shallots, anything that sounds good to you!

1. In a large pot cook bacon then remove to drain.  Pour out all but 1 Tbsp of the grease.
2. Saute onions, garlic, and leeks until slightly soft.  Add carrots for about 1 minute.
3. Add clams, juice, potatoes, broth, Worcestershire, Tabasco, and any optional ingredients you desire.  Cook until all veggies are VERY soft.
4. Either mash by hand or blend the soup with a food processor until creamy.  Crush and stir in bacon and parsley.  
5. Serve with fresh bread and a delicious dessert!
6. Enjoy!

Make Ahead Apple Pie Filling

This Thanksgiving I volunteered to do the Thanksgiving baking for the family celebration.  Pies, cake and rolls, all my responsibility.  To quote the cashier at the grocery store "Wow!  You're ambitious!"  The truth is, I love baking!  There is nothing like kneading bread or whipping up some pie crust to get your frustrations and stress out at the end of a long day.  I was eager to make all of the pies.
That is until two things dawned upon me.
1.  I work full time and will be working the day before Thanksgiving.
2.  My husband's family, who we are celebrating with this year, is huge!

So tonight when I returned from work, I went in to Thanksgiving prep mode.  Lists made, shopping done, and I have plans made for 1 cake, 4 pies and a large batch of home made rolls.  Of course, I had to start prepping tonight!

Luckily, I remembered how my mother would make apple pie filling and freeze it ahead of time, sticking it in a crust and baking it when she needed it.  So that's what I did tonight.

Make Ahead Apple Pie Filling

Ingredients:

• 8-10 Granny Smith Apples, peeled and cored, sliced and diced
• 3 tsp. lemon juice
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. flour

1. Mix all ingredients together to coat apples in sugar and others.
2. Pour in to a Ziplock Freezer Bag and store in freezer until ready to use.
3. When ready to use, pour in to your favorite pie crust and dot with 2 Tbsp. butter.  
4. Cover and bake  at 425 for 10 minutes.
5. Lower the heat to 350 and bake for 30-40 minuted until done.
6. Enjoy!

 Tip:  For a nice golden crust, brush the top with milk before baking.

Cheryl's Corn Dip

Here's another wonderful recipe from my aunt-in-law.
She made this delicious dip for my husband and I as part of our rehearsal dinner.  It's simple and delicious, great for a game day treat!

Corn Dip

Ingredients

• 3 (11 oz) cans Mexican corn -drained
• 4 oz can diced chilies
• 3/4 cup mayo
• 5 green onions chopped
• 8 oz sour cream
• 1 jalapeno pepper chopped (or from a jar)
• 10 oz shredded cheddar cheese

1. Combine and chill.
2. Serve with tortilla chips.
3. Enjoy!

Fall is Here! Split Pea Soup!

Fall has always been on of my favorite times of year.  I love the beautiful colors, I loved heading back to school (this is the first fall since I was 2 that I haven't had school!), and I loved the warm filling fall foods!

One of my favorite fall foods is split pea soup.  When I was young I remember asking my mom what was for dinner one night.  Her answer was "split pea soup."  Joyfully I ran towards the kitchen as I screamed "Hooray!  Slit-see-poop!" and promptly slipped and displeasure behind the couch.  My mother, hearing my strange exclamation looked to see me and couldn't find me anywhere.   When I told my husband, he found my clumsiness hilarious, and slit-see-poop has been our family pet name for this warm favorite ever since!

So here is my recipe for one of my fall favorites.

Split Pea Soup

Ingredients

2 onions, chopped

3-4 carrots, sliced

3-4 stalks of celery, sliced

2 potatoes, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

olive oil

2 bay leaves

2 pounds dried split peas, washed and sorted

16 cups of water

salt and pepper

2 tsp. garlic powder

2 tsp. cumin

1. Heat oil over medium heat in a stock pot.  Add onions, carrots, garlic, and celery and saute until onions are soft.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil, keeping the lid on the pot.  Cook about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the peas and vegetables are quite soft.  Remove lid and let some of the water evaporate until it looks creamy like a typical pea soup.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Note: Don't be skimpy on the salt.  Both the peas and the potatoes with absorb the salt.  Add enough that it tastes good.  I probably added about a Tablespoon.
3. Serve with warm bread or cornbread.
4. Enjoy!

Note:  This recipe can be adapted to make curried split pea soup be omitting the bay leaves and other spices and adding 1 Tbsp. of curry powder.  This is also delicious!

Spice Challenge

I am often mocked for my immense spice cabinet.  Besides the cupboard full of my favorite seasonings, I have a counter top spice rack, and a few pots of fresh herbs.  However, this is never enough for me.  My husband laughs and his wallet groans every time I head for the baking and spice section in our local store.  Spices bring flavor and life to food.  Even simple ingredients come together to form an exciting culinary experience when spices are added.

My love affair with spices began as a young child.  I would often sneak into the kitchen and spend my time tasting and smelling my mom's various spices.  She'd laugh when she caught me with a palm full of cumin or a pinch of celery salt, stopping me quickly before I poured the cayenne pepper directly on to my tongue.  Through this experimentation I learned seasonings and I learned to play around with flavor, adding one for more zest and another for a stronger base, finding balance with food.  I am still finding new ways to mix my favorites every day.

My challenge to you is to learn your spice cabinet.  Spend time smelling and tasting the herbs and spices you have.  Research common uses for the ones you have never used, and go buy a new one.  Try to create your own taco seasoning or mix in some fun into that canned spaghetti sauce or soup.

Just maybe you'll discover a new favorite... but please, don't eat a mouthful of cayenne pepper.

Enjoy!

Kalua and Cabbage

I married into a Hawaiian family.  Ok, now those of you who know me will look at my blond haired, blue eyed, pale husband and say "No way, Rachel!"  But it's true!  Though the family may not be Hawaiian by blood, it is deeply ingrained in their family culture.  Along with this culture comes the food.  Kalua pig, poi, lomi lomi salmon, fresh pineapple, and lots of steamed rice grace the table at family gatherings, and I was quickly informed that I would need to learn some Hawaiian dishes.

By far, my husband's favorite is Kalua and Cabbage.  This salty dish is his constant request for special dinners, and I make it whenever I want to surprise him.  It is fairly simple and does not take much skill, just some time.  I will offer two different methods, one from my mother in law, and one from my husband's aunt.

Kalua Cabbage - Oven Method

Ingredients

• Pork Roast (shoulder, butt, or possibly loin, but I'd stick with one of the first two)
• Rock Salt 
• Liquid Smoke Seasoning
• Soy Sauce
• Cabbage, shredded (Chinese or simple green cabbage, I prefer the first)

1. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees.
2. Cut shallow slashes in the roast to create a diamond pattern on the top and bottom of the roast and place on a few large pieces of aluminum foil.  Pour on some liquid smoke and rock salt, rubbing to coat.  Wrap the roast in the foil sealing tightly.
3. Place the foil package on a broiling pan in the oven.  Fill the bottom of the broiling pan with water and replace as it cooks.
4. Cook 5 hours or until the meat shreds easily with a fork.  (Will vary based on size.)
5. Shred the meat with two forks and toss with a few tablespoons of soy sauce and your shredded cabbage in a wok until the cabbage wilts.

Kalua Cabbage- Crock Pot Method

Ingredients are the same as those listed above with the addition of chicken broth.

1.  Cut shallow slashed in roast in a diamond pattern and rub with rock salt and smoke seasoning.

2.  Place in a crock pot with about 2 inches of chicken broth.  

3.  Roast overnight or for the day (will probably take about 6 hours on high) until it shreds with a fork.

4.  Shred and follow instruction #5 from above.

5 Enjoy!  Great over rice and with some fresh pineapple and Hawaiian sweet rolls.

Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic

So this is another of the recipes I made over a year ago for a French final.  Poulet avec quarant gous d'ail.  Now I know my grandmother and my French teacher are going to cringe at my attempts at French spelling, alas, c'est la vie!

This is entirely from memory of a dish I made only once over a year ago.  I'm not sure why I haven't repeated it, it was amazing!  I have received a request for it however, and wanted to post it.  Maybe I'll make it sometime this week... hmm.

Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic

Ingredients

• Whole Chicken quartered and separated into pieces - many grocery stores sell them this way
• 4 heads of garlic
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1 bouquet garni - this is a bunch of herbs tied together with cooking twine, don't worry if you don't have twine, just bunch together: parsley, thyme, and bay leaves.  You can also add sage and rosemary if you want to play with the taste
• celery stalks
• salt
• pepper
• pastry crust- either buy a pre-made crust from the store or make a basic one with flour, oil, salt and water.  It does not have to be perfect!  The crust is used as a cooking tool, not as part of the meal.  It can also be forgotten if you are cooking in a Dutch over or some stoneware with a lid to seal in the juices.

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a casserole dish or Dutch oven arrange bouquet garni in the center with the celery stalks.
3. Toss chicken with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper, arrange around the garni.
4. Remove the loose hulls from the garlic and separate the cloves.  They do NOT need to be peeled as they will roast in their shells and can then be spread on fresh bread as a side for the chicken.
5. Tuck the cloves in around the chicken.
6. Cover the casserole with the crust if using, sealing the edges.  Do NOT vent the crust, it is being used to seal in moisture.  If you chose to forego the crust and use a lid, simply place the lid on your dish and place it in the oven.
7. Bake for an hour and a half.
8. Serve warm and break crust at the table.  It will smell amazing!
9. Enjoy!

Serve this with a vegetable side and fresh French Bread to eat with the roast garlic!

I hope you enjoy this dish, it was very popular with my French class.  I did get an A on that final! 

Meal Planning Challenge!

My husband and I are getting ready to move.

This means battening down the hatches, using up leftovers, and looking to reduce the amount of stuff we own down as little as possible - including our food!

Check out all of our boxes.  

So for these last couple of weeks I have challenged myself to get rid of as much of our food supply as humanly possible and to try to prepare all of our dinners with NO trips to the grocery store.  You heard me, I said NONE!

It came to mind that perhaps this is a good ritual for many people to go through.  It can reduce your food budget for a week, teach thrift skills, encourage you to try new recipes, and teach you to be less wasteful.  And... maybe I'm just a masochist, but I found it rather fun!

The Empty Your Cupboards Challenge!

Steps

• Inventory all of your food right down to the last bottle of ketchup.  Yes this takes time, yes it is a little annoying, but it will help you reduce waste and make it easier for you to plan.  Also, take this time to empty your cupboards, fridge, and freezer of all expired and old food.
• Prepare a Meal Planning Sheet.  This does not have to be pretty, or organized in any specific way. Simply write down the days you want to cover with this meal plan and leave space to write in your menu.  See mine below.

Not pretty, but it works.  See my calculations?  Hint: Do not try to multiply past midnight, it does not go well...

• Find Main Dish Ingredients on your Inventory.  Get creative with this.  Main dishes are not just meat!  Think outside the meat and carbs box.  Think of all of those things you intended to use for something or other and then never did.  Now Circle Them!
• Start with foods with a close expiration.  I had most of a rotisserie chicken left in my fridge.  Wonderful, but it needed to be used quickly!  Therefore the first few meals on my list involved this item.  First, I de-boned and shredded it all.  Half became terriyaki chicken.  They other half was seasoned to make chicken tacos.
• Look to the Freezer.  Freezer items should be used up second as they won't expire as quickly but are very difficult to transport during a move without going bad.  I had a lot of frozen veggies and some chicken nuggets.  
• Examine Your Cans.  These are the last items that need to go.  They can be transported pretty easily but also will not expire and can go to a food bank if not used up.  I had some black beans, tomato sauce, and a few other goodies.
• Check it Off!  As you figure out each meal, go through your inventory and check of every ingredient you will use.  For example I plan to make falafel in a few days.  This uses bulgar wheat, chickpeas, tahini, my remaining lime, leftover hummus, yeast, flour, and oil for the homemade pitas, and oil for frying the patties.  As I grabbed the recipe I checked all of the ingredients off of my list.  
• Make a Scramble.  On the last day of your meal plan, especially if your goal is to use it all, make a scramble.  This takes remaining ingredients such as potatoes, lunch meat, and frozen veggies and turns it into a meal.  To do this:  Toss everything you think will be good with eggs in a pan with a little oil, heat, beat your remaining eggs (I suggest 6-9) and add them to the mix, stir gently till cooked through.  Enjoy!  My scramble will have prosciutto, frozen hash brown potatoes, and leftover frozen veggies.
• Eat your Goodies!  We all have that bag of marshmallows, half a thing of sorbet, a bottle of wine that we have been saving for the right time.  Well this is it!  Use them!  But in moderation.  Share with your family members and friends, and if you overindulge, start packing some boxes to work up a sweat!
• Enjoy!  Even though you are being frugal, make delicious food when you can.  Our meal plan involves Terriyaki chicken, chicken tacos, carrot soup, sausage, kale and potato soup, gyros, pancakes and lots of our favorites.  It doesn't have to be bland just because you are using up leftovers.  Get creative and make it good.  If you have any questions on how to use something please make a comment, I relish a challenge!

Ok so I will go to the store before I leave, but only for a few staples like bread and milk which my husband lives on.  Other than that, I think it will be a successful experiment!  I'll post pictures of whatever is left at the end, and I hope that it isn't much!

Quick Crock Pot Tacos

Some days I am just too busy to cook, that is why I love my crock pot!  I use it for soup, chili, chicken, beef, and lots of random things.  Today I would like to share a quick post about one of the easiest and most delicious crock pot meals I love to throw together.  No prep, no mess, and a delicious dinner waiting when you get home!

Crock Pot Tacos


Ingredients:

• Beef roast of some sort
• 1 package taco seasoning (or see below to make your own)
• 1 jar of salsa

Instructions:

1. Place your roast in the crock pot.
2. Dump other ingredients on top.
3. Cook for 6-8 hours on high until tender (if you'll be gone longer turn it on a lower setting to avoid overcooking).
4. Shred and ...
5. Enjoy!

We eat this in tortillas often with some beans, avocado and other taco toppings.  It is so good!  Great for potlucks too!

Make your own Taco Seasoning:

Mix together:

• 2 T. cumin
• 1 t. Paprika
• 2 t. chili powder
• 1 t. salt
• 1 1/2 t. onion and garlic powder
• 1/2-1 t. cayenne pepper (the more you add the spicier it gets)

You can play around with this.  Sometimes I add cilantro, cinnamon, or coriander.  It is interesting to see what happens when you mix in flavors usually associated with sweets like cinnamon.  Have fun cooking, this is a great one to task your non-cooking family members with.  It is easy, and as long as they remember to plug in the crock pot and turn it on, they can't mess it up!

Tamale Pie

Tamale Pie

This is an easy an inexpensive dish that is always a hit.  However, the first time I made it was one of my biggest cooking flops ever, and one of the reasons that I like to cook by instinct rather that from a recipe.

The Tamale Pie Failure of 2009

In 2009 I was an undergraduate living with a bunch of women in a big, beautiful house.  This big, beautiful house had an even more amazing, big, beautiful kitchen, which I loved.  This house was designed as an intentional community for undergraduate women.  We were to live together as a family while attending school.  This meant sharing meals.  Thus, my introduction to Tamale Pie.  Every week, two of the women in the house would plan the meals for the week and everyone would be responsible for cooking for the house one night a week.  A fool proof plan.  We all knew how to cook, an those with more basic skills had more basic recipes.

Well one week I was assigned Tamale Pie.  I had never eaten Tamale Pie before, never seen it, never made it.  I had no idea what Tamale Pie was, but they assured me it was easy, and confident in my kitchen skills, I accepted the challenge.  How hard could it be?

Tamale Pie is a very basic dish. It is two main layers, the bottom usually consists of taco meat, beans, tomatoes, olives, and any other "Mexican" fillings.  The top is simply cornbread.  Simple and sweet, and delicious when done right.  However, my young student brain over thought the recipe.

I prepared the bottom layer wonderfully, browning and seasoning the meat, preparing the mix ins, it tasted great!  Then I read the instructions that read, "pour cornbread mix over the top and bake."  Ok I can do this, I thought, an quickly poured the dry cornbread mix straight out of the box and onto my delicious filling.   Somehow I thought that the cornbread mix would combine with the moisture from my filling and make some sort of delicious casserole.  IT DID NOT.  That night, being poor college women, we ate a crunchy taco flavored mixture of ingredients, and I was harangued for days about my ignorance.

Since that point, ashamed of my failure, I have set out to master Tamale Pie.  And, since I just heard from my husband that his co-workers were coveting his lunch, I think I have come pretty close.

Tamale Pie can be a basic dish made with typical fillings.  But, it can also be used as a dumping ground for leftovers.

Basic Tamale Pie


Ingredients:

• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 t. oil
• 1 T cumin
• 1 t. paprika
• 1 t. chili powder
• 1 t. garlic powder
• 1 t. onion powder
• cilantro, 1/2 a bunch chopped, or about 2 t. dried
• 1 can black or kidney beans
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• Olives- optional, I don't prefer olives... just ask my mother...
• 1 package of cornbread mix, AND the ingredients to prepare the cornbread.

1. Preheat the oven to 375.
2. Cook the onion in the olive oil over medium high heat until soft.  Add the ground beef and spices and cook until the beef is browned.
3. Add beans and tomatoes and mix.  Pour into a greased casserole dish.  
4. Mix the cornbread according to package instructions.  (That means add the egg, oil, milk, water, or any other ingredients the package tells you to add!  Do not make crunchy Tamale Pie!)
5. Pour the cornbread over the filling to create a second layer.  
6. Bake 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cornbread comes out clean.  
7. Enjoy!

This weekend I made savory Empanadas, a delicious South American treat.  The filling is a mixture of ground beef, raisins, hard boiled eggs, oregano, green olives (except the ones I made for myself), pine nuts, salt and pepper.  This is wrapped in a pastry shell and baked.  It really is delicious, but the point is, I had extra filling.  I used it as the basis for Tamale Pie with some added beans (no tomatoes this time) and it turned out amazingly!  I encourage you to try changing the recipe around.  Add new fillings like corn, maybe some fruit, and see what happens!  For a really simple dinner you could even just use a can of chili.

Enjoy! and God Bless!

London Broil and Steak Sandwiches

We don't have meat very often.  It's better for our budget and our waistlines to limit it.  However, sometimes we both get the craving for STEAK.  You know how it is, some days you just need some red meat.  For a long while I only used my Carnitas Steak Marinade, but the other day I remembered London Broil, a delicious cut that my mother made when I was young.

The best thing about London Broil is that it is a relatively inexpensive and large cut.  When it's just my Dear Hubby and I, one usually provides enough meat for dinner and steak sandwiches for lunch and dinner the next day.

This is a rollover meal which means that the second day, you use components of the first day's meal to make a second.  A great way to save money.  I do this with many cuts of meat and have even stretched roasted veggies into two days of meals.  These are wonderful in the meal planning process!

London Broil 

To make a great, flavorful, London Broil, marinades are the way to go!  They can be as simple as covering the meat in Italian dressing over night.  This is the marinade I have used the past few time I have made London Broil.

London Broil Marinade

• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 Tbsp Soy sauce (I used reduced sodium, more flavor, less sodium, healthier you!)
• 1 Tbsp Ketchup
• 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/2 tsp oregano

1. Mix together and pour over the meat in a bowl or Ziplock bag.  
2. Place in fridge overnight or for 5-6 hours.  If it is in a bowl, turn the meat a few times to ensure an even coating.

Cooking the London Broil

There are a few different methods for cooking the London Broil.  My mother used to grill it wrapped in aluminum foil.  I, however, do not own a grill at this time, so I broiled my meat.  I am looking for a crockpot recipe for this, if I don't find one, I may just have to experiment.  I think it would work well.

Broiling your meat.

Some tools I think are especially helpful in this process are: a meat thermometer, tongs or a meat fork for turning the meat, foil, a little extra time before dinner, and some snacks to keep the restless family at bay if it takes longer than you expect!

If you didn't catch what I was getting at there, cook times for this dish vary, it's not a quick one for a rushed evening.  Although with thinner cuts this process can simply take 7-8 minutes per side, thicker cuts can take upwards of an hour.  

1. Preheat the oven on the broil setting.
2. While the oven is preheating, lay out foil on your broil pan and envelope the meat in it.  This will provide more moisture, prevents charring for longer cook times, and makes for easier clean up.  This is not a mandatory step however, if you do not have foil it will turn out well simply placed on the broiling pan.
3. Put meat in the center of the preheated oven.  Remember to leave the oven ajar while broiling!  Check it in about 7 minutes and flip the meat over.  After 7 more minutes, check it with your meat thermometer.
4. Your meat thermometer should read at least 150 in the center for rare, 165 for medium, and 170 for well done.  I like my meat more well done than my husband, the beauty of this dish is that the outer edges of the meat will be cooked further than the inside.  I get my perfect medium well, and he can have his rare from the center.
5. If the meat is not at this temperature, continue to turn it every 7-10 minutes until it is.  Like I said, a thicker cut will take longer!
6. After it is finished, let the meat rest a moment so that the juices will settle (and it will cool enough that you don't burn yourself!) and cut it against the grain in thin strips.  
7. This is great paired with corn on the cob, brussel sprouts, potatoes, a salad, and could even be tossed in pasta.  Enjoy!

Day 2: Steak Sandwiches

These are a delicious way to use up any meat left over and can be made with sauteed mushrooms or caramelized onions as a special treat!

Warm up the steak in the oven on hoagies.  You may want to add mayo or other toppings according to taste.

One delicious option is chipotle mayo.

Chipotle Mayo

• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder

Combine and use as a delicious addition to sandwiches!

We enjoy our steak sandwiches with sauteed mushrooms and/or caramelized onions.  Both are simple to make, and taste amazing! (My first thought as I bit into my steak sandwich was, yum, I would enjoy a sauteed mushroom sandwich without the steak just as much!)

Sauteed Mushrooms

• 1 Tbsp margarine
• A package of slice mushrooms (you can slice your own, but come on, you are too busy!)
• salt to taste (roasted garlic salt can be really delicious!)

1. Melt the margarine in a large pan over medium high.  
2. Add the mushrooms stirring around to coat them in butter, sprinkle with a little salt.
3. Cook until they are soft and brown.
4. Serve on top of sandwiches or by themselves.
5. Enjoy!

Caramelized Onions

• 1 Tbsp Margarine
• An Onion sliced in thin strips (like you would for fajitas)

Follow the same instructions as for the mushrooms.  It will take a big longer but wait until the onions haver a nice golden color and are soft.  

Good Eating and God Bless!

Meal Planning

As I have posted already, I am a grad student.  This means that my dear hubby and I are on a limited budget.  Yeah, that can be a pain sometimes, but we've actually come to enjoy the budgeting process.  One of the biggest ways we save money is on food.  Every week I make a meal plan for the dinners we will have that week.  Then we go out and get what we need for those meals, and a couple of staples (bread, milk, cereal, eggs...) for the week.  Voila, a few minutes planning and shopping and we are finished!  My hubby likes to know what he is having any given night, so I also write up the menu and post it on our fridge.  I can't believe how much stress, time, and money this has saved!
We have been able to keep our meal budget down quite low ($15 one week but usually around $50), and yet we still eat really well.  (We even have money for treats most weeks!)  Here are the biggest tips I have learned for keeping the budget down and deciding on meal choices.

Meal Planning Checklist:

• Shop your cupboards! - This means going through your fridge and pantry every week at the beginning of  your planning session.  See what you have, and try to use it!  Chicken?  Try some fajitas.  Rice, fried is good!  Odd grains, lentils, and barley, make a soup!  
• Limit meats.  - No we are not vegetarians.  My dear husband and I like our meat, but we also realize we don't need it for every meal or every day.  Meat expensive!  The average American gets almost twice as much protein as they need for a healthy diet.  We have switched to alternative protein sources for the majority of out meals.  Sure we still have steak or chicken or sometime meaty a few times a week, but we also make meals composed around beans, quinoa, eggs, and other protein sources.  Try a good frittata for dinner!
• Rollover meals- These are dishes that have components that carry over to future meals.  This might be a roast that is pulled apart for tacos the next day or a chicken used for pot pie, soup, or another dish.  
• Love your leftovers! - I don't plan lunches when I am meal planning past the stage of having PBJ ingredients on hand and some healthy snacks (fruits and veggies).  What's for lunch then?  Leftovers!  When we finish a meal, I pack the leftover foods into tupperwares just the right size for a lunch.  It makes taking meals to work a snap.  My husband still usually brings a sandwich or two with his leftovers, but he has a hollow leg.  : )  
• Pasta - Pasta, the great diet buster.  Or not.  We eat pasta about once a week, sometimes more often. It is inexpensive, even the whole wheat varieties, it fills you up, and it can be made quickly.  The biggest problem with pasta is portion size and toppings.  A portion of pasta is about a cup of cooked noodles, or 2oz dry.  Get out of the marinara rut, add tuna, lemon, stir fried veggies, last nights leftovers.  Almost anything can be eaten over pasta.  Try out a pasta carbonara for a tasty treat.  I even tried edamame, soy sauce, and onion on my pasta today.  
• Get creative- Have breakfast for dinner, at the end of the week throw your leftovers together in a soup, try baking your own desserts and breads (not half as hard as you think!), change up your meats, try new veggies.

Make this a habit and you will be saving money and eating healthier.  (I get really proud when my cart is mostly fresh veggies.)  Have fun and come up with interesting ideas- use pintrest- I love it!

Enjoy!