Today, we moved our oldest daughter back to college to begin her junior year. It was also Meet the Teacher Night for our youngest daughter who is a high school freshman. There have been dentist appointments, rehearsals, practices, and workouts almost every evening. We are living at full speed over here. If you’re a busy family with kids in the full swing of back to school, maybe you’re in the same boat.
One of the first things to go out the window for me when the calendar picks up can easily be dinner. After all, who wants to cook a big meal after a long day like that? But your wallet and your waistline can’t afford for you to hit the drive through every night of the week. Here are some tried and true Back to School Meal tips to help you prepare for the week ahead.
Compose Your Meal Encyclopedia
When I was a kid, I LOVED the world book because it had ALL the facts. When it comes to meal planning, you need a concentrated study, too. That’s why you should create a Meal Encyclopedia of your own. Quickly brainstorm all of the meals you regularly prepare and your family loves. Note: Don’t toss those “I’d love to make it someday” recipes on the list. These are your tried and true crowd pleasers.
You can choose to collect this information in a notebook with a pencil. Or, you can create a Note on your phone. If you’re like me, this info is likely to land in a Google Doc where I can easily share the information with others who might be curious. Having this large list will help you lean into what’s easiest and non-thinking. You may want to ask your family which meals they enjoy, too. Odds are good you’ve forgotten some family favs.
Get Some Inspiration
Sometimes you just want to try out a new recipe or idea for meals. And it can feel overwhelming to know where to begin. I’m loving Budget Bytes right now. The website, e-mail, and social media channels are all free. There is a one time purchase app ($4.99 I believe) that I invested in last year which I’ve loved. It’s basically social media for recipes that you can scroll and then save into your own cookbooks. I set up categories like breakfast, desserts, side dishes, and no one will eat this but me. Speaking of, be sure you choose recipes your family will actually eat, not the ones you hope they eat.
Don’t forget that I also have over 10 ALDI $50 Meal Plans on my site, just waiting for you to check them out. Here are a few of my favorites. Obviously food prices have fluctuated since these plans were written. However, you’ll still be able to economically prepare most of these meals.
- $50 ALDI Back to School Meal Plan
- 8 ALDI Freezer Meals for $50
- ALDI Meal Plan: 7 Dinners for Less than $50
- $50 Crockpot ALDI Meal Plan
Consider Your Calendar
Before you begin assigning meals to days of the week, it’s smart to remember what you’ve got going on. Is there a meet? Practice? Meet the Teacher Night? You want your meal plan to fit your family’s flow. On many nights of the week, you might not have time to do much more than toss together sandwiches. Nights with more margin could allow you a little more time and space to put together a more involved meal. Before you write down which meals you’ll have when, be sure you know where you’ll need to be.
Always Begin With What You Have
I know I say this again and again with so many different money saving concepts, but it’s most true with meal planning. If you let food go to waste under your own nose, you’re letting money go to waste, too. So before you shop or even prepare a grocery list, before you plan any meals at all, sweep through the fridge, freezer, pantry – anywhere you store food. Build your list and plan around those items.
Sunday Night Chop
While some have great success with cooking multiple meals and freezing them at the beginning of the week, it’s never been something I could successfully maintain long term. However, I regularly do partial meal prep each Sunday. This includes chopping up vegetables and preparing some side dishes and snacks. It takes about an hour of my time and I usually watch a favorite tv show or listen to a book or podcast while I’m working to make the time pass more quickly. Here are the items I usually chop:
- Strawberries
- Peppers
- Cucumbers
- Tomatoes
- Cheese
- Boiled eggs
- Lettuce
For fresh veggies and fruits that you chop, it’s a great idea to put a half sheet of paper towel (folded if necessary) inside of your airtight container to prolong the freshness.
Fix Breakfast
It’s been said breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but it just may be the most overlooked or forgotten as well. Planning for dinner is great, but beginning well is essential. In the past, we’ve fixed breakfast casseroles or even our own breakfast sandwiches to make the flow of the morning a bit easier. Right now, I’m loving quick and simple Overnight Oats (this is the recipe I use) that I can grab from the fridge as soon as I roll out of bed. Even if it’s as simple as setting out items the night before or setting your coffee pot to automatically brew in the morning, your day will begin better if you do a little advance work. And you’ll save money, too. Breakfast is typically one of the most affordable meals to prepare on your own.
Prepare Meal Elements
Again, you may not be able to prepare 7 entire meals a week in advance, but you may be able to pre-cook meats or even whip up a side dish or two to take some of the pressure off. I typically grill some chicken or brown ground meat that I can easily slip into other dishes throughout the week or that family members can use to prepare their own food on nights that I’m not cooking. From nachos to sandwiches to salads or omelets, you can take some of the leg work out by giving this a try this week. Bacon also is a great pre-cook meat and I usually bake ours in the oven to reduce the mess.
Take a deep breath. Pick up a pencil. And then get to work. You can do this and it doesn’t have to suck the life out of you either. Meal planning truly was one of the key components that made our family able to pay off both $127K in debt and our mortgage.
The practice’s impact reaches beyond your wallet though. When you’re able to sit down and enjoy a meal together as a family, you can open up and share the victories and frustrations of your day. What a gift!
My book is now available: Slaying the Debt Dragon: How One Family Conquered Their Money Monster and Found an Inspired Happily Ever After. You can also check out The Debt Free Devotional
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