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!