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When creating your meal plan, split it up into seasons and use in-season produce for your meals. In fact, meal planning can make it easier to build your meals around what’s in season. Meal planning doesn’t mean you have to throw the towel in on seasonal cooking. Maybe taco Tuesday one week looks like traditional Mexican tacos, but the next Tuesday it’s a deconstructed taco bowl! You can have themed nights and variations in your meals. This can help your meal planning by giving you a jump start on ideas! Soupy Sunday, meatless Monday, taco Tuesday, etc. Usually, it’s just a couple of small tasks that I can do while I’m waiting for something to cook. This just means I pull out any meat that needs defrosted, soak grains, feed my sourdough starter, make the dough for a bread dish, etc. While I’m cooking dinner tonight, I’m prepping for dinner tomorrow. This is my number one meal planning tip for busy moms – plan for tomorrow while cooking tonight. plan for tomorrow’s dinner while making tonights dinner You never know when you’re going to have a child throw a tantrum of all tantrums and dinner just isn’t happening tonight! Or an infant who has a melt-down and refuses to be set down. I also keep quick rice packets and simmer packets in the pantry. I like to keep healthy frozen dinners like the Saffron Road brand in my freezer at all times. That leads me to my next tip – always have easy meals at the ready. I always cook way more than I need and freeze a few servings to use as an easy-button meal for those crazy weeks! 4. If you have the ingredients and the space in your pot/skillet, make a double batch and freeze the extras for a super quick meal down the road. Utilize leftovers for lunchesĬook once and eat twice by using your leftovers from dinner for lunches the next day. Doing this ensures you only have to chop the ingredients once and also avoids wasting food. For example, make tacos one night and a skillet hash the next which all use ground beef, bell peppers, onions, cilantro, etc. Save time and money by using similar ingredients for multiple dishes. I know how difficult planning dinner each and every night can be, especially with little ones but, with a little preparation, you can totally reset your meal planning routine! 1. Here are 18 practical tips to help you meal plan as a busy mom. Meal planning tips video meal planning tips for busy moms Pin it for later – meal planning for busy moms.
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