JANUARY DINNER MENU!

In the midst of my big freezer cooking plans, I am also planning my January menu.  I do this on my calendar and then go grocery shopping.  I haven't done a "big shop" in a few weeks cause I hate shopping in december so this weekend is going to be a doozy.  This plan includes only dinner meals (the big family meal of the day).  Lunches and breakfasts are a completely different ballgame.  They are boring and I haven't found a good way to keep them simple and make them interesting....but I'm working on it.

One of the goals I have for 2015 is to remember recipes we like so I can make them again.  I am creating a home binder for this but I figure an online option won't hurt.....so this is January.  I've already put them in my calendar....but here is my list.  Links included to online recipes so I can find them again.

1. snacks (cheese, summer sausage, crackers, fruit) -This is my big freezer prep day with friends so I won't be cooking supper.

2. eat out - grocery shopping

3. taco chili (from the freezer)

4. salad bar (french dressing)

5. egg scramble

6. italian sausage (from the freezer)

7. date night/birthday night at awana

8. pancakes (L birthday dinner)

9. pork chops - sweet potatoes - roasted cauli and broccoli (I'll use the pork chop recipe here or here)

10. turkey dinner - mashed potatoes - green beans (this makes great leftovers for future meals)

11. crockpot chicken enchilada soup

12. turkey fried rice (using leftover turkey)

13. shepherds pie (using leftover mashed potatoes)

14. biscuits n gravy

15. chicken lickin (from the freezer)

16. pizza 

17. Ponderosa meal (this is what we call it when we empty the fridge of all leftovers and scavenge for dinner)

18. 

19.

20.

21. sloppy joe with fries

22. turkey pot pie (with leftover turkey)

23. ham n beans

24. cornish pasties  - I use a recipe with ground beef but this covers the basics and the history

25. fried fish - slaw - corn

26. 

27. nacho chicken (from the freezer)

28. pulled pork with leftover slaw

29

30

31

The days at the end of the month are intentionally not left fully filled in because there is always a meal or two (or five) that I didn't make ( made something else cause I always have some staples on hand or ate out or something else came up- so I plan to not follow things exactly).  So I sub it into a day later in the month.  Plus there are several meals that will be in the freezer that aren't on the menu.  I can use those in a pinch as well.   I will also hit the store midmonth to grab little things (milk, produce, stuff I forgot, etc).

In my pantry/fridge/freezer, I almost always have things for tuna burgers or tuna casserole, or hot dogs and in the winter chili and/or other soups.  I also have my canned veggies (green beans and corn) and meat from our deer, and pork.  I keep pasta, dry beans, rice, dry milk powder, and grains like oats and flour in bulk in the pantry.  We have egg chickens and buy eggs from a friend with more chickens than they need for eggs.  So although I do need to buy some things....I could go several weeks and we would not go hungry.  But we might not eat what we want.  Although there may be a time that we eat what we have because that's all we can get, we are not at that point so I do this so we have variety and enjoy our meals.


I'll try to report back at the end of the month and let you all know how it goes.