Menu Monday | The Simplest Tip for Easy Meal Planning

Menu Monday

 

Happy Monday! Did you squeeze your menu planning in over the weekend? I snuck mine in before we headed out for some friend fun. I’m glad I did! But, when I was menu planning, I discovered the super simple tip for making meal planning oh so easy.

I asked my husband what his schedule was for the week.

Duh.

You’re probably thinking “Silly Katie. You don’t do that already?” and obviously the answer to that is no. I generally have an idea of his schedule, but I don’t have access to his primary work calendar where he keeps appointments and meetings. The last few weeks I’ve gone to the effort of preparing elaborate meals, only to find out he’s not coming home until 8:00 pm. OR pack a lunch for him, and find out he actually doesn’t need a lunch.

Yesterday, he sat down for 5 minutes with me, looking at his calendar. I was able to then easily plug in easy dinners on nights when he was working late, and note to not make him lunch on Tuesday.

So simple. But makes menu planning so easy. When you know what’s going on for the week, you can plan smart.

On the menu this week is a favorite Indian cashew curry! I also pulled out a cookbook to try out. I grabbed The French Market Cookbook by Clotilde Dusoulier. It’s a French vegetarian cookbook, with recipes grouped by season. Looking forward to trying out the Mushroom + Chive Quiche with an Olive Oil tart dough.

Normally, by the end of the month I’m sharing my favorite new Pinterest recipes. But I didn’t get a chance to try anything new. Oops! But my friends over at Come Home for Comfort, Polka-Dotty Place and Wife Mommy Me are sharing theirs! So swing over and check it out!

Anyway, here’s this week’s menu:

Breakfasts:
Plain Greek Yogurt topped with Honey, Fruit + Granola
Breakfast Tacos with Black Beans, Feta + Pico de Gallo
Steel Cut Oatmeal

Lunches:
Making another batch of Harvest Roasted Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad to eat all week. I swapped out the quinoa for lentils and added diced apple and it was AMAZING!!

Dinners:
Tacos
Indian Cashew Curry
Mexican Lasagna (swapping noodles for tortillas)
Mushroom + Chive Quiche from The French Market Cookbook
Chili + Cornbread

Need more info for how I menu plan? Check this out!
Or read up on my favorite meal planning and grocery shopping hacks!

Need more ideas for dinner?
Follow my Pinterest board – it’s where I save all of my dinner ideas!

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7 comments

  1. Whitney says:

    I’m always sorry I didn’t check Paul’s work schedule before menu planning! You’re right, it makes it so much easier and way more successful. 🙂 This menu looks pretty tasty – especially mexican lasagna!

  2. Emily says:

    Mexican lasagna sounds good!! I haven’t made chili this year, either. I’m stuck on Trader Joe’s turkey chili, but every once in a while it’s nice to make homemade chili.
    Have a great week!

  3. Whitney Jordan says:

    Yummy Mexcian Lasagna!! I haven’t made that it in a long time. You’re so right that sharing schedules is so helpful when you’re meal planning and figuring out your schedule for the week. We’ve started having Sunday night calendar chats so we are both in the know on what the other is planning for the week ahead 🙂

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