S/O Weekly Menu and Shopping List

calindi

Basically, every week I write a menu to ensure we're eating healthy well balanced meals throughout the week.  Then I shop exclusively for those items for the menu so I don't waste food or money.

This week's menu looks like this (each item has a clicky to a recipe similar to the one I use):

Monday

Turkey pot pie (already have most of the ingredients from leftovers - Lindsey gave me the idea!)

Quiche Lorraine (for breakfasts for the week)

 

Tuesday

Chicken Piccata (I add sauteed mushrooms and artichoke hearts)

Quinoa Lentil Salad

 

Wednesday

Chicken Tikka Masala

 

Thursday

Chicken Alfredo (can't find a recipe - basically: bacon, broccoli, peas, grilled chicken over penne with an alfredo sauce)

Gazpacho

 

Friday

Tacos (meat, lettuce, diced onions, tomatoes and shredded sharp cheddar cheese on hand fried corn tortilla shells - it's healthier if you use whole wheat flour tortillas)

 

Then I write the ingredients for each item underneath it.  I cross out whichever items I already have (in this case, turkey, gravy, flour, quinoa, broccoli, peas, corn, penne, alfredo sauce, corn tortillas, and vegetable oil, as well as numerous spices).  Then I organize it by section in the grocery store (produce, dairy, deli, meats, canned/dried, frozen, etc.) so it's easier when I shop.  Then I add any normal items we need, like bread, deli meats, condiments, fruits, etc.

 

Butter (2 boxes)

Eggs

Light cream

Yogurt

 

Swiss cheese

Sliced turkey (for sandwiches for BF)

 

Celery

Mushrooms

Lemon

Cilantro

Green onions

Limes

Tomatoes

Cucumber

Lettuce

Tomatoes

 

Bananas

Apples

 

Bacon

Chicken breast (2x)

Ground beef

 

Capers

Lentils

 

Bread

Peanut Butter

 

 

Ta-dah!  That's what we'll be eating this week.  As well as oatmeal for breakfast, which I also already have.  That list should cost around $70 here.

 

EDITED to fix stupid links.

loves2shop4shoes

Will you marry me?

No, but seriously...you're amazing.

Elle1036

This is perfect!  Thanks!

deburnin

BF and I do this too! It's sooo helpful knowing what we're making each night. We lay our list out with five categories: Veggies/Fruit, Grain, Meat, Dairy, and Other. The most expensive weeks are when we have to buy meat. This weeks grocery bill was $55. When we buy a lot of meat it's usually about $80. We also buy generic everything, unless we dislike the taste of the generic after buying it once.

calindi

I don't typically buy generic - I like name brand milk, butter, deli meats, cheese, sour cream, cereal, etc.  But I make balanced decisions based on quality to value.

My BF also eats enough for 3 people, no joke, so this would likely be less expensive for people with less hefty appetites.  And while I can go without meat, it won't fill him up unless there is meat in there - he'll keep craving more food.

Have the menu also has an additional side benefit - BF knows what we're having for dinner each night, so there's no last minute requests for whatever he's craving.  It's like it's written in stone or something.

MissOwl

SO and I totally need to do that. Thanks for the inspiration pooh

motoLyn

Cate you rock, FI and I have outlines for the week on what we eat but its usually set in stone the  night before.  Like last night was salmon with an apply cranberry salad.  Tonight is lemon chicken with a salad and tomorrow will probably be pepper beef with you guessed it a salad.  Its salad week for us  to cleanse the body from the Thanksgiving binge fest we had.  Though we have been talking of a taco night, perhaps next week.  We go grocery shopping at the warehouse market is. Cosco once a month and our bill is usually $80 to 150 cause of the meats, milk, eggs, bread and pantry items that we can buy in bulk cause we go through them quick.  Otherwise its $5-10 a week for add on at the Trader Joe by our house.

Wrkn925

Wow.  I don't know what I'm having for dinner any night.

I really admire your attention span and organizational skills.

I don't think I could ever get this good.

StarGazingHiker

Cate... you are amazing! We try to have a tentative outline of what we're going to eat... but this is so wonderfully organized and amazing! You've completely inspired me... Thanks!!

CvilleClaire

I started doing the same about a year ago and it has made my life so much smoother.  We used to both come home and do the "what do you want" thing and inevitably, we'd spend too much making salads at Whole Foods or going out.  We ate well, but we ate expensively.

Isn't it so nice to have a plan?  We spend far less at the grocery store these days...and we don't take as long to shop.

babybchbum

I totally need to do this. I go shopping 2-3xs a week because of crap I forgot to get

bsidebella

I do that too, and FI thinks I'm obsessive but he's the type of person who goes down every aisle and throws things in the shopping cart because he wants it, then they sit in the fridge or go bad.

Because he works 6 days a week and doesn't come home until after 8pm, I won't make dinner every single night. I make three "big" meals and then the rest of the week we forage - pick at a rotisserie chicken or burgers from the freezer or leftovers.

By the way, your groceries are cheap, cate! A list like that would cost me about $100.

nottheonlydreamer44

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_not-engaged-yet_weekly-menu-shopping-list?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special Topic Wedding BoardsForum:136Discussion:eeb1223a-6408-4fe8-978c-801a6e52e8e7Post:ef9a8004-606b-4ee8-91c7-b8b450d4a0ee">Re: S/O Weekly Menu and Shopping List</a>:
[QUOTE]Wow.  I don't know what I'm having for dinner any night. I really admire your attention span and organizational skills. I don't think I could ever get this good.
Posted by Wrkn925[/QUOTE]

Ditto this. I am so all over the place I would not have the attention span to throw a list together like this. Go Cate!!

We go shopping twice a month and don't eat out much anymore - but I am not a recipe person. We go meat, veggie, carb pretty much every night with some wiggle room in-between. I guess I have a mental list going on but we keep our grocery budget at $200 for the month so I don't think we're doing too bad!

calindi

Best laid plans of mice and men...

He ate most of the rest of the turkey today while I was at work, so there goes the turkey pot pie.  Switching the order around, so tonight is chicken piccata and gazpacho.  Tomorrow will be chicken alfredo and quiche lorraine.  Wednesday will be tikka masala.  And that means I'll have to come up with something else for Thursday.

I'm making a smaller turkey pot pie with what's left tonight, but it'll go in the freezer for him when he's in need of food during studying.

jacquiroxx

Uhhhhmmm, can you do this every week so I don't have to think anymore?  Kthanks!

Beads921

Damn, you are organized woman! I tried to do this for a few weeks, and while it definitely cut the grocery bill, it was just too hard because our schedules change so often and so fast. I did learn to shop smarter in doing that though, so it's still better than it was before.

Hazel_B

I used to do this, but I can't get my act together these days.

Cate, you are inspiring me to get back on track.

MLekathLEEN

Dang girl!! You're amazing.

I think we need this to be a weekly thread. Please and Thank You

[Deleted User]

I used to work in a supermarket and I used to do this with attention to sales and coupons! I would save a fortune!

When I'm living on my own I'll start doing it, again!

oceana919

Can we spin this off into a thread where we do this weekly? I don't want to threadjack, but I do pretty much the same thing you do (plotting out meals and basing our shopping list off that), but I'd love to see other people's menus/shopping lists for new ideas...

calindi

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/special-topic-wedding-boards_not-engaged-yet_weekly-menu-shopping-list?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Special%20Topic%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:136Discussion:eeb1223a-6408-4fe8-978c-801a6e52e8e7Post:dfc65d48-766b-43d4-86b9-f9d3a01f39bd">Re: S/O Weekly Menu and Shopping List</a>:
[QUOTE]Can we spin this off into a thread where we do this weekly? I don't want to threadjack, but I do pretty much the same thing you do (plotting out meals and basing our shopping list off that), but I'd love to see other people's menus/shopping lists for new ideas...
Posted by oceana919[/QUOTE]

I think that's a fantastic idea, and I'd love to see other people's recipes and shopping lists!

That way if someone's feeling super lazy, they can just grab someone else's list entirely.  Otherwise, we can end up swapping recipes to try some good stuff.