Weekly Meal Plan - May 2020 Week 4

*Follow me on Instagram (@recipes.for.moms) and Facebook (@RecipesforMoms) to see posts & stories about our family's meals and grocery shopping.

Homemade Pizza

- A weekly staple in our house during cooler weather! We make the dough in the bread maker and everyone gets to choose their own toppings. Then we let the kids sit on the living room floor and we have a family movie night.

Herb & Citrus Chicken

- This is the second new recipe we'll be trying this week and also a recipe that I got from a friend. As the weather warms up, this seemed like another great fresh dish to try.

Spaghetti with Homemade Sauce

- This is definitely a family favorite and I frequently get this as a dinner idea when I ask my kids what they want for dinner the following week.

Italian Salad (A holdover from last week)

-This is another of our families favorite main dish salads because who can go wrong adding salami to anything?! I do love the fresh taste of this salad although I prefer black olives and I roast a fresh red pepper in the toaster oven. Homemade dressing are always good too and this salad has dressing recipe included.

Black Bean & Sweet Potato Quesadillas
- These quesadillas have become a family favorite and are a great meatless meal that is still full of protein and vitamins. The sweet potatoes are best when they're roasted as the recipes calls for but if you're in a hurry, you can also cook them in a instant pot.

Tacos

- My husband and daughter declared that every other Tuesday will now be Taco Tuesday in our house. So I'll be putting my homemade taco recipe to good use!

*Take-out from a Local Restaurant*

- We only eat out about once a month so we've been trying to support some local restaurants during this shutdown. Our restaurants are starting to open up for in-person dining again so we'll see how that goes!

If you make any of these meals, feel free to share your thoughts in the comments or post them to Facebook or Instagram and tag me. I will try to share my meal pics too (mostly on IG, @recipes.for.moms) if I can remember to snap a photo before the food is devoured.

Tacos

Makes: 6-8 tacos

1 lb. ground beef

1/2 c. onion, chopped

1/2 tsp. salt

1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/8 tsp. ground red pepper

1/4 tsp. chili powder

1/8 tsp. oregano

Corn tortillas

Taco toppings of your choice (lettuce, tomato, shredded cheese, cilantro, taco sauce, etc.)

In a large skillet, brown ground beef with onion and salt; drain fat. Add remaining ingredients to skillet (excluding tortillas and toppings) and simmer 15 minutes over low heat. While taco meat is cooking, heat a small amount of oil in a small skillet. When oil is hot, place one tortilla at a time into the skillet. When the first side is lightly browned, flip tortilla and lightly brown the second side. Repeat for all additional tortillas depending on how many tacos you plan to make.

Scoop 1/4 cup taco meat into each taco shell and top with your favorite taco toppings. Enjoy!

Notes: Tacos are a favorite in our house and lots of families make Taco Tuesday a traditional each week. What I love about this recipe is the tomato sauce because it helps hold the meat together in the taco shell and you lose less meat out the back of your taco. Plus by making your own taco seasoning, you know exactly what ingredients are in your dinner. If you prefer to have crispy taco shells that hold their shape then add more oil to your skillet and hold the tortilla in a traditional taco shell shape as it cooks in the oil. Then be sure to cook both sides of the tortilla.

Recipe from my mom, Kay.

Weekly Meal Plan - May 2020 Week 3

*Follow me on Instagram (@recipes.for.moms) and Facebook (@RecipesforMoms) to see posts & stories about our family's meals and grocery shopping.

Homemade Pizza

- A weekly staple in our house during cooler weather! We make the dough in the bread maker and everyone gets to choose their own toppings. Then we let the kids sit on the living room floor and we have a family movie night.

Hamburgers

- These got skipped last week in place of a fast freezer meal on a night I didn't feel like cooking. Do you ever have those? I'm thankful for backup meals on nights like that. But we will be grilling these up this week. Plus more fresh fruit is coming into season which means great prices and a perfect side dish.

Beans & Cornbread
- This southern/Texas staple comes from my husband's grandmother and one of our meatless meals for the week. It's the perfect meal when you need something to be ready when you get home from a long or late day. The slow cooker works for this meal but a pressure cooker (aka Instapot) really shines in getting this meal done quickly.

French Toast Foldovers

- We're trying something new with this recipe this week. It seems like a combination of french toast and grilled cheese. Maybe a bit like a Monte Cristo? We'll see how they turn out. Although every time I've mentioned the name of this meal, my kids expect syrup with it so it might need a new name!

Meatball Subs

- These subs are an easy go-to on a busy night. Frozen Italian meatballs are the base then mix them with a jar of your favorite tomato-based pasta sauce. I usually spice it up a bit by adding some extra Italian seasonings. I'll try to post the full recipe for these soon but the best part is toasting the sub rolls with garlic butter before you add the meatballs and top them with cheese.

Italian Salad

-This is another of our families favorite main dish salads because who can go wrong adding salami to anything?! I do love the fresh taste of this salad although I prefer black olives and I roast a fresh red pepper in the toaster oven. Homemade dressing are always good too and this salad has dressing recipe included.

Herb & Citrus Chicken

- This is the second new recipe we'll be trying this week and also a recipe that I got from a friend. As the weather warms up, this seemed like another great fresh dish to try.

If you make any of these meals, feel free to share your thoughts in the comments or post them to Facebook or Instagram and tag me. I will try to share my meal pics too (mostly on IG, @recipes.for.moms) if I can remember to snap a photo before the food is devoured.

Weekly Meal Plan - May 2020 Week 2

*Follow me on Instagram (@recipes.for.moms) and Facebook (@RecipesforMoms) to see posts & stories about our family's meals and grocery shopping.

Homemade Pizza

- A weekly staple in our house during cooler weather! We make the dough in the bread maker and everyone gets to choose their own toppings. Then we let the kids sit on the living room floor and we have a family movie night.

Tacos

- I thought I had my taco meat recipe posted but I guess I don't! One more new recipe to add to the "to-be-posted" list. And besides, who doesn't love tacos?

Hamburgers

- Springtime in the Rockies means we'll have to watch the weather to see which night this week is best for grilling. Yesterday it was 80 degrees and today it hailed!

Cheesy Penne with Broccoli

- Our meatless meal for the week plus it helps use up a very large head of broccoli that I have from last week. And it's a quick, easy prep meal!

Lasagna Soup

- This is a delicious tomato-based soup with Italian sausage and cheese - how can you go wrong? Sometimes we choose to make it with half ground beef, half Italian sausage so it's not too spicy. Using sweet Italian sausage is my favorite way to make it. The cheesy yum absolutely makes the soup.

BBQ Chicken

- Just like the hamburgers, we'll watch for good weather and serve the chicken with watermelon and maybe corn on the cob.

*Serious Texas BBQ* (take-out night)

- Hands-down our favorite local restaurant because have to tried their Texas Taco?! Support a local, small business for dinner this week if you can!

If you make any of these meals, feel free to share your thoughts in the comments or post them to Facebook or Instagram and tag me. I will try to share my meal pics too (mostly on IG, @recipes.for.moms) if I can remember to snap a photo before the food is devoured.

Grocery Pick-up

This is a very small portion of my recent grocery pickup order from Walmart

I might be in the minority but I am one of those people who actually enjoys grocery shopping. As a meal planner, I make my meal plan and corresponding grocery list the night before I shop. Then I can have a easy and efficient shopping trip while enjoying my time out of the house without kids.

BUT ... there are times (like these crazy days of COVID-19) that your available time is short, or you have a cranky toddler or you don't feel well or the weather is bad or you simply don't like to grocery shop. And in those times, grocery pick-up can be a lifesaver! Typically, I only use grocery pickup either from Walmart or our local City Market (a Kroger brand store) when life is crazy and I really need the extra time in my day. But with all the Corona virus "stuff" going on, I've found myself using it regularly in the last few months. Not only has it kept me from spending so much time in the store but it has also allowed me to grab my groceries quickly first thing in the morning (I usually choose the 8-9am pickup slot) so that I can get home and help get my kids started with school.

Here are a few tips I've found:
1. Download the app for the store you use most regularly for grocery pickup. Most stores have their own app so find it and keep it handy.
2. Know if your store has a minimum amount needed for grocery pickup or charges a pickup fee so that you're not surprised when you go to place your order.
3. This may take a few weeks to figure out but know how far out you need to place an order to reserve the pickup time slot that works best for you. Depending on demand or your particular store, it could be anywhere from 1-5 days.
4. With most pickup orders, you can edit/add to your order up until the day before or even a few hours before (find out for your particular store). This will allow you to put in an order several days before your pickup date (which you might need to do to reserve a time) with just your regular staples and then add to it later based on what your family needs and the following week's meal plan.
5. Know that there may be a few items that you cannot find within the grocery app. For me, I usually have 4-5 items that I have to go into the store to grab myself. If you have a baby or toddler with you, you may decide that you'd rather go without those items than wrestle the kids into the store. In these recent times, I have found that I can't put toilet paper on my pickup order but the toilet paper aisle is once again stocked to full capacity.
6. Lastly, there will be substitutions when the original item you ordered is not available. In my experience, the substitutions are usually acceptable but you can usually decline the subs if you're not happy. For instance, I've had cream of mushroom soup subbed when I order tomato soup and cabbage subbed for lettuce!

If you have a Walmart near you and haven't tried grocery pickup yet, you can use my affiliate link - http://r.wmt.co/v/stacy_1658  to get $10 off your first order (and I get $10 off too when you use my link!)

Let me know in the comments if you've used grocery pickup before and what you thought of it at your store. Share a tip you've found helpful to you!

This post contains affiliate links which means if you decide to use Walmart grocery pick-up using my link, I get a little bonus (and you do too!). There is no additional charge to you. If you have any questions, feel free to comment below!