Meal Plans on Monday

Are you stuck in a meal planning rut? Do you make the same two things for dinner each week OR, since you kids you might just make sandwiches or cereal or - Lord help my baby weight - order a pizza. Tell me I'm not the only one....

After perusing pinterest and a few other foodie sites yesterday, I decided it might be fun to start sharing my meal planning efforts here on the blog. I read a quote recently that says if you fail to plan, you're planning to fail - so let's make a plan together! Maybe you'd do the same and leave a link in the comments so that we can all get inspired by your meal plans too? I have three littles, so it can get a little bit complicated, but I also get huge joy out of cooking a homemade and semi-healthy dinner for my family. So the efforts will start here. 

Monday // 

{L} Toasted Cibatta Sandwiches This was suggested by Jen Hatmaker in one of Jamie Ivey's Happy Hour podcasts. On grocery store day she basically makes a sandwich bar for dinner. I usually do it for dinner, but today it's lunch. It always makes enough that I get to pack a "slice" in the kids' lunches on Tuesday. Win Win. 

{D} Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas + Salad + Chips and Homemade Salsa This makes enough to feed our family twice, especially if the hubby isn't home. So I usually make two pans and freeze one - or if I'm taking a meal to another family like I am this week, I use the extra pan for that.

Tuesday // 

{B} Cinnamon Rolls + Bacon It's Brady's birthday!

{L} Salad for me, Leftover sandwiches for kiddos

{D} Fine Arts Showcase + Birthday Dinner Out Woot!

Wednesday //

{L} Leftover Chicken Enchiladas for me + Charlotte 

{D} Fish Tacos with Rainbow Red Cabbage + Mango Slaw from Practical Paleo Cookbook Similar Slaw recipe here     I use organic frozen fish from Kroger and bake it in the oven or fry it in the skillet in a bit of olive oil and season it up with chili powder, salt and pepper

Thursday //

{L} Salad for me with leftover fish

{D} Ham & Cheese Gnocchi + Chopped Salad This is not at all semi-healthy but I've been wanting to try it forever and I think my kids would love it. Besides, food makes me seriously happy when it's cheesy, hot and yummy.

Friday // 

{B} Cinnamon Roll Ups + Fresh Fruit Cinnamon roll ups are one of the kiddos favorites for breakfast. Crescent rolls sprinkled with cinnamon + sugar and then rolled up and baked. Easy as pie.

{L} Leftovers from dinner + Salad 

{D} Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon + Creamy Polenta Jeff got me Julia Childs Mastering the Art of French Cooking for Christmas and it was my very favorite present. I haven't even cooked out of it much yet because, again - with the kids. I'm so looking forward to welcoming my hubby home from work with a meal that fills the house up with an amazing smell!

Saturday // 

{B} Bacon + Egg Quiche

{L} Leftovers

{D} Out

Sunday // 

{L} BBQ Chicken in the Crockpot - Make your own meal I love BBQ Chicken in the crockpot. I stick frozen chicken breasts {or tenders or thighs or whatever I have} in the crockpot on top of some sliced onions. Then I pour in a bottle of my favorite BBQ sauce + call it a day. The kids and I can eat off of this all week if we want. We make pizza, tacos, sandwiches, wraps, you name it. Nachos are some of my favorite things to make with this shredded BBQ Chicken. It's easy to stick in the crockpot before church. 

{D} Make your own Pizza. I like this recipe for dough - if I feel like making the dough. If not, I'll buy a boboli crust or frozen crust from Central Market. This week, I hope to bring back the chicken alfredo pizza that Jeff and I rocked weekly last year. 

So you might be saying "Wait, I thought her word for the year was c l e a n ..... and these meals aren't necessarily clean." Well... you're right. However, my goal toward clean this month is simply to make meals more than buy meals.... you feel me? More on my goals toward clean tomorrow. 

I hope that you find some meal inspiration here on the Little Branches Blog!! What are you planning this week?

*** if breakfast isn't listed, it is not because we won't be eating breakfast that day - so please don't call CPS. It's because we will just be pulling out something from our rotation of pop tarts, yogurt + granola, cereal or waffles. How do you like that for "clean"?