Hey Friends, if you’re like our family, getting back into the school routine has been a little rough. We we at our cabin right up until Labor Day. And then the first weekend, James had a craft fair for The Boxery. This last weekend was our first weekend “off.” I took advantage and did a full on Sunday meal planning and prep for the week.
Saturday, I began by planning out the meals for the week based on our schedules and what I thought I could do on Sunday. (I used my free meal planner.) Sunday morning, before church, I did the grocery shopping for the week. (See 5 Meal Planning Tips to find out why I shop Sunday mornings.)
The Menu and Our Schedule:
I used my meal planner (free!) and grocery list to reflect the following.
Sunday–dinner guests: smoked country ribs with Coleslaw, Chive Deviled Eggs and caprese salad
Monday–swim team @ 5:30: Smoked Italian Sausage, coleslaw, deviled eggs and caprese salad
Tuesday–faculty meeting (later getting home): grilled chicken, butternut squash and garden salad with homemade Russian Dressing
Wednesday–thankfully, nothing extra!: Baked Eggplant
Thursday–violin lesson @ 5:45: cheeseburgers with tomato slices, salad and tater puffs
Friday–swim team @ 5:30: bake at home pizza from the supermarket
Saturday–smoked venison roast
Sunday Meal Planning and Preparations
After church, I got right to business. I defrosted venison sausage to make Super Easy Venison Tomato Sauce. While that was defrosting, I put 18 eggs on the stove to boil for Chive Deviled Eggs. (The extras will go in a bowl in the refrigerator for a quick breakfast or after school snack.)
Once those were on the stove, I chopped onion and minced garlic for a double batch of sauce. One will be used to make the Baked Eggplant, the other will go in the freezer for a quick dinner on another evening.
While the stove was working, I continued dinner preparations for Sunday. I whipped up a batch of Coleslaw, made Chive Deviled Eggs with Sunshine and threw together some cut cherry tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and basil for caprese salad. In addition, I put chicken breasts in a zipper bag with some store bought marinade.
Next up, I peeled, sliced, salted, and eventually, roasted eggplant to assemble the Baked Eggplant which I covered with foil for later in the week.
James was in charge of smoking the country ribs. I am working on a whole big post about our new smoker, so more on that later.
Sunday Meal Planning makes Weekday Meals Easy
Monday, we unfortunately had a funeral to go to in the morning which allowed us the luxury of smoking some Italian sausage. If we hadn’t had that time available to us, we could have done this up ahead. I had it for lunch on Tuesday, and I actually think it was even better the second day. The rest of the meal was leftover from Sunday, so it was just serve and eat. This is perfect for a night we have to get out of the house early.
Tuesday night’s grilled chicken was amazing having sat in the marinade for a couple of days. The rest of of the meal was easy to get going. I cut the (small) butternut squash into four chuck which I started in the microwave (for 10 minutes) and then finished in the oven for another 20 minutes.
It is Wednesday afternoon as I finish up this post to go live tomorrow morning. The Baked Eggplant is sitting on the counter to come to room temperature before I put it in the oven. Having done all the work on Sunday has given me a few minutes to finish up this post before the kids get home. In the last 15 minutes, I’ll make some pasta to go with this one, although it is completely unnecessary.
Thursday we are having cheeseburgers which doesn’t require any preparations ahead. It’s another great meal to have on a night we need to be done early for an extracurricular activity. We don’t normally have beef in our house, but I am a believer in buying meat that is marked down for quick use and this was a deal I couldn’t pass up. (We usually have plenty of room in the freezer, so it’s a great deal for our family!)
Friday, I treat myself. We get a bake-at-home pizza from the supermarket. I stop on my way home from work and throw it in the oven when I get home, so that we can get out to swim team. (Oh and The Boy started this week: he looks like he’s drowning, but he’s already improve so much in just three practices. I can’t wait to see how he does on Friday.)
Conclusion
Sunday Meal Planning and preparation is a great way to make you week go more smoothly. This is not something I manage every week, but when I do, it is a blessing throughout our busy weekdays. Tune in to see what we do in the coming weeks!
I would love to hear your meal planning questions and tricks.
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