Daisymommy's Menu Planning and Organization Tips

[daisymommy]

Stocking Your Kitchen

Produce
Fruit
Tomatoes
Onions
Garlic
Lettuce & salad greens
Potatoes
Carrots
Celery
Lemon and Lime juice

Breads and Cereals
Breakfast cereal
Bread
Bread crumbs

Canned Vegetables
Canned corn, green beans, mixed vegetables
Diced tomatoes
Tomato sauce & tomato paste
Mushrooms
Olives

Pasta, Rice and Beans
Pasta noodles
Rice
Beans (black, red/kidney, white)
Jars of pasta sauce

Canned Meats
Tuna
Chicken

Soup
Cream of chicken and mushroom soup (for desperate times!)
Broth: chicken, beef, vegetable

Ethnic
Salsa
Chopped green chilies
Refried beans
Enchilada sauce

Frozen
Frozen Chopped Onions
Frozen diced green peppers
Frozen red, yellow, green pepper stir fry mix (good for fajitas too!)
Frozen garlic bread

Fresh Meat/Poultry
Boneless, skinless, chicken breasts
Ground beef
Bacon
Deli meat

Beverages
Coffee and filters
Tea Bags
Hot Cocoa Mix
100% fruit juice

Refrigerator Case/ Dairy
Milk
Sour Cream
Cream cheese
Butter
Eggs
Orange juice
Yogurt
Shredded cheese
Shredded Parmesan Cheese

Baking Goods
Sugar
Flour
Salt
baking powder and baking soda
Canola Oil
Olive oil
Nonstick cooking spray
Bisquick/all-purpose baking mix

Condiments
White vinegar
Red wine vinegar
Soy sauce
Spice Packets (taco, chili)
BBQ sauce
Salad dressing
Worcestershire sauce
Basic Condiments: ketchup, mayo, mustard
Pickle relish

Household
Dish Soap: liquid and dishwasher
Household cleaners
Laundry: soap, bleach, softener & stain treatment

Paper and Plastic
Toilet Paper
Paper Towels
Napkins
Foil, Saran Wrap, Waxed Paper
Ziploc Bags in Various Sizes
Garbage Bags

[daisymommy]

Weekly Meal Planner

Monday: Pasta
Tuesday: Chicken or Turkey
Wednesday: Beef or Pork
Thursday: Soup
Friday: Pizza and a movie night
*Delivery or make your own, and rent a video
Saturday: Sub sandwiches for Lunch
"Family Favorite" for Dinner
Sunday: Crock-pot, or one dish skillet supper

Note: Family Favorites are things like hamburgers and fries, tacos, steak and cheese subs, more "casual style" food.

[daisymommy]

Toddler Meal Ideas

Breakfast
Oatmeal swirled with fruit
Pancakes or Waffles topped pureed fruit
Scrambled eggs
Yogurt swirled with fruit
Cottage cheese with yogurt
Toast or Bagel with butter or cream cheese
English muffin with melted cheese
Mini muffins
Fruit

Lunch
Grilled cheese
Sandwich with sun-butter & jelly
Soup (pull out noodles, veggies, meat)
Macaroni and Cheese
Nitrate-free turkey deli meat & cheese
Chicken nuggets
Cheese quesidilla
Fruit or soft cooked veggies

Dinner
Pasta: ravioli, Penne sliced into “o’s”, spaghetti, egg noodles,
Meatballs
Meatloaf
Diced chicken
Fish sticks
Baked potato with broccoli tops and cheese
Sweet potato: baked or oven fries
Mashed potato
Rice
Diced cooked veggies

Toddler Snack Ideas
Cheese
Dry cereal: Cheerios, chex, Kix
Mini rice cakes
Bread sticks
Graham crackers
Animal crackers
Arrow-root cookies
Veggie Stix
Veggie or Fruity Booty
Hummus on pita bread
Annie's Cheddar Bunnies or Goldfish
Yogurt
Fruit
Hummus and pita triangles

[daisymommy]

Let me start by saying these are our favorite foods that we BOTH like. DH was raised as a Southern boy, with down home cooking. I however love to try new things, and will eat "different things" that DH will not...boring! So, these meal ideas may not be very gourmet savy, but it's what we can compromise on. Enjoy! Oh! I forgot to add I haven't come up with Sunday's menus yet...

A Month's Worth of Fall/Winter Dinner Menus

Monday: Spaghetti, Parmesan bread, Green salad
Tuesday: Chinese stir-fry, egg rolls
Wednesday: Meatloaf, Baked Potato, Green beans
Thursday: Chicken Noodle Soup & Biscuits
Friday: Pizza and a Movie Night!
Saturday: Steak and Cheese Subs, French fries


Monday: Chicken Alfredo, Garlic bread, Green salad
Tuesday: Beef Pot Roast, veggies, Dinner rolls
Wednesday: Oven-fried Chicken, Red-skin potatoes, Corn
Thursday: Texas Chili & Corn muffins
Friday: Chicken Pot Pie with vegetables
Saturday: Pizza and a Movie Night!

Monday: Beef Stroganoff over egg noodles, green peas or green beans
Tuesday: Roast Chicken, rice, broccoli
Wednesday: Pork Chops, mashed potatoes, Cinnamon apples
Thursday: Chicken Tortilla Soup & Mexi-bread
Friday: Hamburgers and fries
Saturday: Pizza and a Movie Night!

Monday: Baked Ziti, Garlic bread, Green salad
Tuesday: Steak, Baked potato, Green beans
Wednesday: Chicken casserole w/broccoli, Bread
Thursday: Beefy Vegetable Stew & Dinner rolls
Friday: Chicken Enchiladas, Spanish rice, carrot sticks
Saturday: Pizza and a Movie Night!

Monday: Lasagna, garlic bread, green salad
Tuesday: Chicken fingers, redskin potatoes, corn
Wednesday: Steak fajitas, refried beans
Thursday: Baked potato soup, cheddar-garlic biscuits, green salad
Friday: Stuffed bell peppers
Saturday: Pizza and a Movie Night!

[daisymommy]

Dinner Menu Selections
(* denotes a seasonal food)

Pasta
Spaghetti
Fettuccini Alfredo
Lasagna
Ravioli
Baked Ziti
Pasta Primavera
Beef Stroganoff
Perogis

Chicken and Turkey
Oven Fried Chicken
Whole Roast Chicken
Chicken Pot Pie
Chicken Fingers
Chicken Parmesan
Grilled Chicken Breasts*
BBQ Chicken*
Roast Turkey Breast

Beef and Pork
Pot Roast*
Meatloaf*
Steak
Hamburgers or Sloppy Joes
Ham
Pork Chops
Pulled BBQ beef or pork*
BBQ Ribs*

Soups and Stews
Chicken Noodle or Tortellini
Baked Potato*
Beefy Vegetable*
Texas Chili
White Bean Chicken Chili
Chicken Tortilla Soup
Bean and Ham*
Broccoli Cheese

Family Favorites
Hamburgers
Perogis
Cheese steak subs
Homemade macaroni & cheese
Stuffed Bell Peppers
Mexican Food:
-Tacos -Quesadillas
-Burritos -Enchiladas (chicken or beef)
-Fajitas -Taco Salad
-Mexican Pizza

[daisymommy]

My Favorite Cookbooks:

If I could only have one Cookbook...
Rosemary Brown's Big Kitchen Instruction Book
Full of kitchen organizational tips, help with menu planning, grocery shopping advice, great recipes...like your mother in a book ;)

Edited to add my 2 new favorites:
Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything
The New Best Recipe Cookbook (Cook's Illustrated/America's Test Kitchen)

It's 6:00pm. Do you know what's for dinner? Use this book...
Desperation Dinners- by Beverly Mills & Alicia Ross
Southern Living Busy Mom's Weeknight Favorites

Clueless in the Kitchen? Do you burn water?
The Kitchen Survival Guide- by Lora Brady
Now You're Cooking by Elaine Corn

Frugal Cooking
Cheap. Fast. Good- by Beverly Mills & Alicia Ross
The $5 Dinner Mom- Erin Chase http://www.5dollardinners.com/about
Family Feasts for $75 a Week- Mary Ostyn

My Favorite Crockpot Cookbook
Make it Fast, Cook it Slow- by Stephanie O'Dea
http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2009...g-book-of.html

Make Ahead Meals/Freezer Cookbooks
Dream Dinners
Super Suppers
Dinner's in the Freezer
30 Day Gourmet http://www.30daygourmet.com/
Once a Month Cooking Family Favorites

A Years Worth of Dinners Pre-planned for You!
*These are cookbooks, but you can also pay for monthly menu mailers that come in your email. They are menu plans, recipes, and complete shopping lists.
Saving Dinner http://savingdinner.com/ (there is also a vegetarian book and a "basics" book if you are a beginner cook).
The Six-O-Clock Scramble AND The Six-O-Clock Scramble To the Rescue (Earth Friendly Edition) http://thescramble.com/

Yummy Dessert Cookbook:
The Cake Doctor- by Anne Byrn

[daisymommy]

Make It Easy on Yourself:

1)Use your crockpot Make it Fast, Cook it Slow : by Stephanie O'Dea
http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2009...g-book-of.html

2)Cook once, eat twice. Make dinners that generate leftovers for another meal. For example, roast a chicken tonight, save the remaining meat for chicken tortilla soup another night.

3)Prepare a step ahead. Make part (or all) of your meal during the day when your kids are napping, then add a final touch to the meal and pop it in the oven right before dinner time. For example: Make a lasagna in the morning, put it in the fridge all day to soften the noodles, and put it in the oven 45 minutes before dinner. Done!

4)Freezer Prep Examples: Buy ground beef when on sale, cook it all up, put 1 pound servings (about 2c.) into freezer bags, and freeze. Pull out a bag for chili, and dinner is on the table in less than 30 minutes! Cook up a family size pack of boneless skinless chicken breasts, dice the meat and freeze 1 or 2 cup portions in freezer bags. Pull some out and make chicken enchiladas for dinner in 30 minutes. Chop onions, peppers, and freeze as well.

5)Take advantage of pre-packaged dinner starters such as bagged salads, frozen garlic bread, chopped peppers and onions for fajitas, etc. Everything doesn't have to be from scratch...and no one has to know! When you have a baby, if 50% of your meal is fresh, you're doing good!

6)Collect quick and easy recipes, and recipes that have less than 10 ingredients. If it takes longer than 30 minutes to prepare, I won't make it. I don't mind if there is 20 minutes of hands on prep work to get it in the oven or pot, and then it has to cook for an hour unattended. But I don't want to have to be involved in the kitchen longer than 30 minutes.

7)Make casseroles and one dish skillet suppers. Add some bread and a salad and that's dinner! Plus, casseroles can almost always be made ahead of time and put in the oven 30 minutes before dinner. And no, I don't mean your grandma's tuna casserole :P There are very yummy things you can make now.

[daisymommy]

Organizing Your Week

Monday-
TO-DO: Make menu plan for the week, clean out fridge, go grocery shopping.
Dinner: Pasta, salad & French bread

Tuesday-
TO-DO: Laundry Day.
Dinner: Chicken or Turkey

Wednesday-
TO-DO: Run errands
Dinner: Beef or Pork

Thursday-
TO-DO: Business day: pay bills, make phone calls, etc.
Dinner: Soup with biscuits and rolls

Friday-
TO-DO: House cleaning
Dinner: Pizza night! Order, frozen, or make your own.

Saturday-
Lunch: Sub-sandwiches
Dinner: “Family Favorite” such as Mexican food or burgers & fries.

Sunday-
Lunch: Crock-pot, one skillet meal, or casserole
Dinner: Use up leftovers, toss what has not been eaten, and start over fresh for Monday.

[daisymommy]

Someone emailed me and asked what kind of daily routine I had to get everything done, and make dinner each night. I must say I don't feel like I ever get everything done that I want to. However, using this schedule really helps keep me on track.

I printed out a copy, put it into a clear plastic page protector, and hung it on the fridge. I use a dry erase marker to check things off throughout the day as they are done. Each night I wipe off the check marks for a fresh start in the morning.

In the 10:30-12:00 time slot you'll see a note saying "Daily Task". This is the chore I have designated for the day (see previous post), such as paying bills, making grocery list, etc. I do one load of laundry a day to stay caught up (no more Saturdays filled with doing 10 loads of dirty laundry!) and I have one day a week to catch up on any extra laundry or to iron (Tuesdays).

The 20 minutes of "Clean House" each day is for a quick swipe with the vacume, emptying the trash, wiping off counters, etc.
House cleaning day (Friday) is basic vacuming, dusting, wiping down the bathroom fixtures, and changing the sheets. Occasional Saturdays DH helps me with bigger projects like washing windows, cleaning shower stalls and tubs, washing floors. Things that are too difficult to do with just me and Josh here.

Good Luck creating a schedule that helps you! It's so worth it! :)

My Daily Routine

6:30 am Amy wakes up
• Shower and get dressed
• Make bed
• Start 1 load of laundry

7:30 am Wake Up Joshua
• Change, dress and feed Joshua
• Eat breakfast, and enjoy some wake up time together
• Unload dishwasher & put breakfast dishes in
• Make up fresh bottles
• Wash pots and pans from dinner

10:30-12:00: Joshua’s Naptime
• Decide what to have for dinner, take something out to thaw, or do dinner pre-work.
• Work on “Daily Task”

12:00 Noon: Eat lunch together
• Put wet laundry in dryer
• Get out of the house and enjoy some fresh air!

3:00pm-4:30pm: Joshua’s Naptime
• Mommy Break! (nap, read, craft project, etc.)
• Spend 20 minutes cleaning house
• Put away dry load of laundry

6:00pm: Start dinner
6:30pm: Eat dinner with family
• Clear dishes and run dishwasher

7:00pm: Wind down time for Joshua
7:30pm: Joshua’s Bedtime
• Quick Pickup! (15-20 minutes tops)
• Have wind-down time for yourself before bed

10:00pm: Go to Bed

[daisymommy]

A Month Of Summer Meals

Week #1
Monday: Lemon Linguini, French Bread, Caesar Salad
Tuesday: BBQ Beef Sandwiches, Coleslaw
Wednesday: Grilled Tuna, Tomato & Cucumber Salad
Thursday: Ranch Oven Fried Chicken, Rosemary Red Potatoes
Friday: Grilled Pork Loin, Wild Rice, Summer Fruit Salad
Saturday: Pizza and a Movie Night!
Sunday: Chicken Tortilla Soup, Mexi-bread

Week#2
Monday: Summer Vegetable Alfredo Pasta, Garlic Bread, Green Salad
Tuesday: Grilled Steak & Vegetables
Wednesday: Crab cake Sandwiches, Oven fries, Fruit salad
Thursday: Marinated Grilled Chicken Breasts, Italian Pasta Salad
Friday: BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches, Macaroni Salad
Saturday: Pizza and a Movie Night!
Sunday: Garden Vegetable Minestrone Soup, Hot Rolls

Week#3
Monday: Baked Ziti, Bruschetta, Green Salad
Tuesday: Grilled Burgers, Oven Fries
Wednesday: Cajun Shrimp & Scallops, Cous-cous
Thrusday: Saucy BBQ Chicken, Potato Salad
Friday: Grilled Pork chops, Corn, Watermelon
Saturday: Pizza and a Movie Night
Sunday: White Bean Chili, Corn Muffins

Week#4
Monday: Tomato & Basil Angel hair Pasta, Italian Bread, Green Salad
Tuesday: Steak Fajitas, Bean and Corn Salsa
Wednesday: Grilled Teriyaki Salmon, Strawberry Spinach Salad
Thursday: Beer Can Chicken on the grill, Roasted Potatoes and Veggies
Friday: : BBQ Pork Ribs, Corn on the Cob, Baked Beans
Saturday: Pizza and a Movie Night!
Sunday: Broccoli Cheddar Soup, Garlic cheddar biscuits