Style, Recipes, Travel, Crafts & Household Tips
The easiest way to be successful in meal planning for your family is to always have certain items on hand. These tips for building the ultimate meal planning pantry and pantry inventory will help you to have a lot of things on hand when needed to supplement your recipe list for easy meal planning. If you purchase the items for your meal planning pantry when they are on sale you can really save as well. [Read more…]
If you are looking for quick healthy recipes, you will want to check out the 20 healthy Instant Pot recipes that are perfect for your busy life. These top easy healthy Instant Pot recipes are full of flavor and lots of different ingredients so you are sure to find a healthy Instant Pot idea your family will love.
It’s no secret that the Instant Pot is a chef’s new best friend for getting meals on the table in record time. It’s also a great appliance for helping you create healthy meals with little to no fuss, thanks to the benefits of pressurized cooking. This collection of healthy Instant Pot recipes is full of menu planning ideas from breakfast and the way through to dessert. You’ll find meal recipes for meat lovers as well as vegetarians. From soups to stews, from fajitas to meatballs and from lentils to veggies, you’ll find inspiration for healthy cooking for a range of dietary needs. With minimal prep, these mouth-watering recipes will practically make themselves allowing you to enjoy delicious and healthy meals in no time at all!
That all depends on the ingriendents you use. Instant pot recipes can be full of fat or full of healthy ingrentients. We rounded up the top healthy instant pot recipes that can make it so easy to eat healthy. cehck out these top rated healthy Instant Pot recipes.
There’s no need to add sugar to naturally sweet apples when you make this healthy pressure cooker version of applesauce. Just core the apples, slice them (leave the peels on) and place them in your Instant Pot. Add a little water, turn it on and come back in 10 minutes to an awesome batch of applesauce. So delicious!
Instant Pot Applesauce No Sugar Added by Detoxinista
This chicken noodle soup that’s full of healthy veggies is a recipe that every Instant Pot owner should master. Good news: it’s so easy! Sauté your carrots, celery, onion and garlic before adding the chicken, stock and seasonings. Noodles go in at the very end for a delicious and hearty soup that the whole family will love.
Instant Pot Chicken Noodle Soup by Taste And See
Forget boiling eggs on the stovetop and instead use your pressure cooker for the perfect hard boiled eggs – every time! You can even batch cook eggs for meal planning purposes so you always have them ready to go for the week. Plus, using your Instant Pot makes the eggs incredibly easy to peel. Awesome!
Instant Pot Hard Boiled Eggs by Recipes From A Pantry
Try these gluten free turkey meatballs for a change from beef. You can even cook these from frozen and they’ll still be tasty and tender. The turkey meatballs get cooked right in the sauce so all the seasoning and flavors are infused into the meat. They cook in about 10 minutes making this an easy dish to get on the table quickly.
Gluten Free Instant Pot Turkey Meatballs by Flippin Delicious
Give your Instant Pot 20 minutes to make this savory fajita dish full of spices, steak, peppers and onions. No fancy cooking skills are needed; just slice, dump, seal and cook and then come back to plate it up. You’ll love the tender beef and spicy veggies!
Instant Pot Steak Fajitas by Little Sunny Kitchen
Make this batch of healthy chili to feed a crowd or save the leftovers for another meal. Start with sautéing the turkey and onions before adding the rest of the ingredients The butternut squash cubes go in last, on top. Just 15 minute of high pressure renders you a delicious chili that’s family approved.
Butternut Squash Turkey Chili by Fit Mitten Kitchen
If you enjoy the flavors of egg rolls you’ll want to try this deconstructed version that comes together easily in your pressure cooker. Ground beef, cabbage, carrots, ginger, garlic, onion and riced cauliflower combine to make this egg roll in a bowl your new favorite go-to meal for busy nights!
Instant Pot Egg Roll In A Bowl by Awefilled Homemaker
The secret to this healthy cake is chocolate. That’s right! Flavonoids are the key ingredient in dark chocolate that make it a heart-healthy food. Make sure and choose dark chocolate that contains at least 70% cocoa. Oh, and this cake is also gluten-free, sugar-free, and dairy-free. Win-win!
Instant Pot Chocolate Pudding Cake by This Pilgrim Life
Dried red lentil are pressure cooked to tenderness with this zesty vegetarian soup full of beans and veggies in a spicy tomato sauce. Set out your favorite toppings while your Instant Pot cooks this Mexican-inspired soup to perfection. Serve to rave reviews!
Vegetarian Lentil Tortilla Soup by Peas And Crayons
Sauté your meat, onions and garlic in your Instant Pot before building your lasagna. Using a baking pan, layer your lasagna ingredients, minus the noodle layers. Add water to the bottom of your Instant Pot, set the pan on your pressure cooker bakeware sling and cook for 9 minutes. You’ll love the flavor and healthy no-pasta version of this lasagna!
Instant Pot No Noodle Lasagna by Low Carb Yum
If you love oatmeal you’ll want to use steel cut oats for a healthy meal. Your Instant Pot will pressure cook them to tender perfection. Learn how to use just water or a mix of water and milk for the ultimate flavor and best texture results. When cooked, just add your favorite toppings and enjoy!
Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats by A Mind Full Mom
Season these short ribs with a combo of butter, garlic, and fresh thyme for fall-off-the-bone goodness. Sear the short ribs, sauté the seasonings and then pressure cook for 35 minutes. It’s worth the time for these delectable ribs!
Garlic Butter Instant Pot Short Ribs by Delicious Little Bites
Using ground chicken, you can make this easy meal in under 20 minutes. Season the chicken with spices and add some veggies like diced zucchini to add a little more substance. Sauté and then add the liquid ingredients to infuse and cook the meat fully. Use butter lettuce for the perfect rollup vehicle. Savory!
Pressure Cooker Chicken Lettuce Wraps by Simply Recipes
For a protein-pack meal make these spice black beans which turn out tender every time thanks to your pressure cooker. There’s no need to pre-soak your beans. You’ll just sauté your veggies and spices before adding the dry beans and water or broth. Cook for 50 minutes and enjoy these spicy beans as is or use in other recipes throughout the week.
Mexican Black Beans In The Instant Pot by Piping Hot Curry
Give your Instant Pot 30 minutes to make you this delicious plant-based curry. A base of creamy coconut milk flavors the cauliflower and garbanzo beans. Spice it up with onions, garlic, ginger, garam masala and curry powder. Garnish with cashews, if desired. So tasty!
Cauliflower Tikka Masala by The Forked Spoon
Make this immune-boosting soup full of veggies like broccoli, carrots, celery and tomatoes. Beans, along with garlic, basil, and raw buckwheat groats fill out this healthy soup profile. Make a batch for today and stash some in your fridge for later.
Instant Pot Spring Vegetable Soup by Kitchen Of Youth
It only takes 5 ingredients to make this vegan dessert pudding. Dry rice with coconut milk and unsweetened coconut make the creamiest healthy pudding that kids as well as adults will enjoy. Top with fruit, if desired.
Instant Pot Coconut Rice Pudding by Simply Happy Foodie
Pressure cook frozen or fresh heart-healthy salmon in about 20 minutes! Full of omega-3 fatty acids, salmon is also a great source of protein. Just place your salmon fillets on a metal trivet, add a cup of water to the pot and let it work its magic.
Instant Pot Salmon by Detoxinista
No need to simmer this soup all day; just make this easy minestrone soup in your pressure cooker to deepen the flavor. Use kidney beans, cannellini beans and yummy veggies like carrots, green beans, celery, spinach and zucchini for a colorful, healthy and delicious meal.
Instant Pot Minestrone Soup by Life Made Sweeter
Chicken breasts with tangy lemon juice, zest and garlic get pressure-cooked to delicious tenderness. Remove your chicken and finish the meal with asparagus and artichoke hearts. There will be actual awesome sauce left over that you’ll want to spoon on to every delicious bite of this meal!
Instant Pot Lemon Chicken by Lexi’s Clean Kitchen
Need Meal Planning Help?
Learn How an Instant Pot can help with Meal Planning here
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Meal planning is something that everyone should use to help keep their grocery budget in check and their weeknights easier to manage. Meal planning is one of the most simple ways to save money. Money that you can then spend on other things that are important to you! You don’t have to feel overwhelmed by meal planning. There are tons of great tips out there for making your menu amazing, cheap, and something everyone in your family will love. These tips are a great beginning to an amazing meal planning routine for your kitchen. If you are looking for a meal plan template or printable meal planner, be sure to sign up for this how-to meal plan checklist including a weekly menu planning printable sheet. I also include a special offer for a meal planning book.
With back to school, I thought this would be a great time to think more about meal planning and how it can save you time, money and stress.
This list of tips includes links to our own posts with more details, as well as some basic concepts that work great for any menu type you choose.
Jump in with both feet and give meal planning a try using our tips above and in the listed articles we have created to break down some of the more difficult parts of meal planning for your family.
How to Create a Meal Planning Pantry
Meal Planning with an Instant Pot
How to Use a Crock Pot for Meal Planning
Meal Planning Tips with Picky Eaters
Meal Planning – Once a Month Meals
Restricted Diets & Food Allergies Meal Planning Tips
Sign up for our simple tips and meal planning checklist that will make meal planning easy!
Learn some easy meal planning tips when dealing with restricted diets and food allergies.
Sometimes we have a food intolerance or even food allergies that create issues when meal planning. Because this is more and more common, here are some tips to help you manage meal planning for restricted diets. This can be for food allergies, food intolerance, food aversion, or even dietary restrictions or health-related diets. These tips will make it easier for you to manage a meal plan that works for your family.
Meal planning for restricted diets doesn’t have to be impossible. In fact, it is often much easier to accommodate a dietary difference when you plan ahead than by having last-minute meals prepared each night. These tips will help you to keep everyone in your family safe, happy, and satisfied with the options available for dinner.
This list is a great resource for helping you keep a rotation of menu items on your list without eating the same thing over and over again. Making a master recipe list that is acceptable for diets but also pleasing to everyone will help you to remember those meals that you may have forgotten. As you try new recipes that work for everyone, add them to the list to rotate out the next month.
A master recipe list is also a great tool to help you know what items to keep in your pantry. This can easily give you a way to save more money when you notice sales on items that you use regularly. By purchasing when on sale and storing for future meal planning, you can cut back on grocery expenses in the long term.
Sign up for my Meal Planning Tips and you will receive a special offer on meal planning printables and printables to make your own Meal Planning Binder.
There are so many different dietary restrictions that could be at play, that it is hard for me to cover all of the tips for working them into and around your meal planning. There are basic tips, but a lot of things come down to you personally learning about proper substitutions for the things you can no longer have. With things like food intolerance, food allergies, gluten sensitivities, lactose intolerance, and even sensory or textural issues, it can be difficult to create easy menu plans that accommodate all diets.
Some great substitutions that work well for many diets:
Meal planning isn’t just about creating freezer meals or writing down a menu on your calendar. It also can include preparing foods in advance to use in simple meals throughout the week. The concept of batch cooking as part of your meal planning routine can be totally life changing in your kitchen. Instead of cooking exact recipes, you instead prepare ingredients so they only need to be added to your menu items. This is a great way to throw together meals that can include items everyone can enjoy, but also have the option of adding in other things that are against the diet for some.
The most popular ways to batch cook include preparing meats, starches like rice or potatoes, and select vegetables in advance then freezing or canning for future use. Instead of adding your menu items to a freezer container to be cooked in a slow cooker or in the oven, you would cook them in advance and separate into portions that can be added to fresh sides and starches to create a meal in a hurry.
Grill, roast, boil, broil, or bake things like chicken, pork, steak, or even ground meats with simple salt and pepper seasonings. Allow to cool then divide into portions suitable for a meal. Label and freeze. On the day you want to make something like tacos, quesadillas, or even a simple casserole, you grab a portion from the freezer, thaw, and add to your recipe.
My friend Alea even wrote two cookbooks that are great tools if you want to try prep ahead and simple batch cooking. I have them both and love them.
Families are busier now more than ever, and nobody understands that better than busy mom and food blogger Alea Milham. With Prep-Ahead Meals from Scratch, she brings a unique batch cooking concept that will streamline weeknight family meals like never before. She shows you how to use simple prep-ahead techniques to stock your refrigerator with precooked ingredients that can be combined with fresh produce to easily create wholesome meals. Leave prepackaged foods and take-out behind as you learn the many easy ways to cook ahead from scratch to save time and money during the busy week. Alea breaks down the classics into convenient weeknight dinners using fewer ingredients and smarter techniques.
This new recipe collection is bursting with fresh, time-saving ways to fuel your family and yourself. Ready to end the days of skipped breakfasts and takeout lunches? With Alea’s expert advice, you’ll have your fridge stocked with homemade grab-and-go meals, full of ingredients you can feel good about. Simple do-ahead techniques help you savor even the busiest weekday mornings.
Prep Ahead Breakfasts and Lunches
Instead of adding a new ingredient into a bunch of meals you are prepping in advance as freezer meals or for batch cooking use, make sure you test them out first. New ingredients don’t always work out as expected. That means you could potentially waste a lot of money in the process. Instead, do a small test run to make sure that your family likes the substitute.
If your meal planning routine includes freezer meals, it is really important to make sure you have all ingredients well labeled. We usually label freezer meals with the recipe name, directions for cooking, and portion amounts. If a restricted diet is in play, then labeling with all of your ingredients is even more important. Add a list of all ingredients to every package so you are able to easily tell if it is an acceptable meal for everyone to eat. There are many types of labels include chalkboard or dry erase labels that can be used over and over again so you aren’t wasting money on new labels every time you create meals for your freezer.
If your restricted diet issues with meal planning are about contamination because of allergies or severe food intolerance, then preparing meals in advance or batch prepping foods is vital to cutting back on your time in the kitchen. Creating a clean and safe prep area is the most important thing you can do. That means you need to prepare meals that are “clean” away from other meals or menu items. Simply create all restricted meals first, then do your other meals separately.
If your meal planning will include food for friends or family that are spending time with your family, then it can seem frustrating to you to include different foods for their diets. It isn’t always convenient, but planning ahead can make meal planning for any restricted diet easier to manage. Respecting others and their individual dietary needs is just part of being a good human being and friend. Check about allergies, aversions, and sensitivities when planning for guests, and do your best to provide them with yummy foods that are safe for them to eat.
If your restricted diet concerns are around flour or sugar, I am a huge fan of this no flour/ no sugar meal plan. Healthy food can be delicious. This meal plan features easy-to-prepare, hearty, healthy recipes for your family to enjoy. These meals are big on veggies and protein from whole foods that you can find in any supermarket. Enjoy a Salad of the Week, and an optional Easy Protein of the Week. No flour or artificial sugars added.
Check out all the meal plan options here
Meal planning for any dietary restriction doesn’t have to be frustrating. Simply use a few simple steps to make sure you are protecting those with food allergies and aversions while adapting existing recipes. Our tips will make this easier to manage no matter your budget.
Plus more articles on Meal Planning
Monthly Meal Planning And Prep
Meal Planning Pantry and Food Inventory
Meal Planning Made Easy with an Instant Pot
Meal Planning with Picky Eaters
These meal planning tools will help you be successful at meal planning for your family.
When you begin meal planning for your family, it’s important to have great tools on hand that keep this task easy and effective. Meal planning should be a way to save time, and most of all help you stick within your grocery budget easily. Adding in a few easy tools to your kitchen will help you to make sure you are staying on task with little frustration.
This is going to vary for every individual family. You need to check your calendar before you create your meal plan and have some way of posting the weekly family meal plan. You want to make sure that you plan meals that meet your schedule. You may want to make meals in the slow cooker or instant pot on nights you have little time. Some like to use a written or printed calendar with their menu each week. Others prefer to utilize something like a Google Calendar app, or even use a dry erase board to organize their weekly calendar. Whatever you choose, it needs to be functional for you and your family to stay on track. If you create meal plans but never use them, it is a waste of your time and money.
Wondering what I use? Sign up for my meal planning tips and you will even receive a special offer for meal planning printables to make your own meal planning and recipe binder.
If you are doing a large amount of freezer meals for your meal planning, you know you need detailed lists of ingredients. You will also need a detailed list of preparation needs. For each recipe, you’ll be preparing meats and vegetables in different ways. Making a detailed list that tells you how much meat should be chopped, braised, broiled, or grilled can help you to easily and effectively manage your meal plan and save time doing things over and over again. Doing all of a particular type of prep at one time will save you time and frustration in the long term.
You can learn more about turning your favorite recipes into freezer meals here.
Have you ever tried to cut multiple pieces of meat or vegetables with a dull knife? If so, you know how frustrating it can be to manage. Quality utensils are really important for meal planning as they will save you time and frustration. Grabbing a good set of knifes along with a sharpener is a must. You will also want sturdy wooden spoons, spatulas, and a ladle for assembling items, as well as cooking. I am a huge fan of this starter Henckels knife set made in Germany. The knives with the twins logo are higher quality and made in Germany not China.
I say boards because you really need to have at least one cutting board that is used ideally just for raw meat preparation. Having multiple cutting boards when meal planning will keep things safe, orderly, and sanitary. You want to have one that is used just for vegetables, one for meats, and possibly one clean cutting board to use for cutting things like breads, tortillas, or other items needed in recipes. These cutting boards look neat and even remind you what you are supposed to cut on them.
If you are doing a large meal planning event, you will definitely need to have measuring cups and spoons on hand. I much prefer glass measuring cups for liquids, but I love my stainless steel cups and spoons for dry ingredients. If you can afford two sets of each, it will be nice to have on hand so you don’t have to worry about washing a lot between uses when preparing multiple meals at once.
If freezer meals are a part of your meal planning system, then one tool I highly recommend is a Food Saver. This vacuum sealing system will help keep your meals tasting fresher for longer periods of time. This is important to those who may be taking advantage of meat sales, seasonal produce, or even just want to do a month or longer of meal prep at once. A Food Saver is a great investment that can keep food fresh much longer in your freezer.
If you prefer to use gallon Ziploc bags for your freezer meal preparation, freezer bag stands are a great investment. These little plastic stands allow you to hold your freezer bags upright while you fill them with ingredients. It keeps them clean and sanitary, and makes it a much faster process of preparation.
Whether you are meal planning for your freezer or just trying to keep up a weekly plan, a Crockpot is an ultimate helper. Being able to toss foods in before you go out for the day and come home to a fully prepared meal is a huge time saver and makes meal planning much more useful to busy families. They are also great for making things like homemade stock, homemade marinara sauce, and even cooking dried beans for use in all of your recipes. This makes your meal planning efforts even healthier and more budget-friendly. I also love my Instant Pot that makes cooking foods very quick and easy. Have an Instant Pot but not sure how to use it? This free Instant Pot Class can help. It even includes a free Instant Potmeal plan!
I recommend at least one large 5-6 quart Crockpot as well as one smaller 3-quart option. They are nice to use for parties and buffets to keep food to temperature, but also great for making side dishes and full meals.
Another alternative to using freezer bags are quality glass freezer storage containers. I love the Pyrex freezer containers that come in various sizes. They are ideal for stacking in a freezer, and even allow you to build things like casseroles that can be thawed, brought to room temperature, and then put directly into the oven saving you dishes needing to be washed. They can be pricey up front, but in comparison to the other vacuum seal or Ziploc storage bag options, they are cost-effective over the long term.
Aside from these tools for meal planning ease, you need to actually have meal plans your family will eat. Meal planning saves a ton of time and money, but not if you are feeding your family foods they won’t enjoy. You can build your own menu plan around family favorites, or invest in some of the many meal plan options online that fit your family needs. It’s not just about having tools in your kitchen, but about having meals that will fit your family and make your meal planning efforts worthwhile. If you are looking for meal plans already made for you, I personally am a huge fan of the Eat at Home Meal Plans. These include 4 different meal plans each week for one low price and they include freezer meals.
These are what I feel are the must-have tools for meal planning. Creating a functional meal plan for your family isn’t as hard as it sounds. It simply includes a bit of time up front and consistency in your daily routine to build a plan everyone will love and you will find saves you time and money in the long run.
Don’t forget to sign up to get more meal planning tips and a special offer for my meal planning and recipe binder printables.
Here are some easy and tasty Mexican recipes that will make any Cinco De Mayo special. We have rounded up everything from healthy salsa to slow cooker meals that are so easy to make. You will love this list of easy Cinco De Mayo recipes! [Read more…]
Are you wanting a month of meals ready to cook so you don’t have to stress week to week or day to day? This is the ultimate method for making weeknight meals easy for anyone in your family to manage. Moms tend to be in charge in the kitchen, but with busy work and family life schedules, it can be frustrating to spend hours a week in the kitchen. These tips will help you prepare a month of meals for your family in no time.
It all begins with the recipes. There are a ton of ways to go about preparing a month of meals, but the best place to start is by getting your recipes in order. Most often, this list includes just evening meals, but if you are also trying to include your breakfasts and lunches, you will want to plan ahead and add those recipes to your calendar as well.
These 20 freezer meal plans make it easy. These They include complete shopping lists and assembly instructions. Wondering how to make your favorite recipes into freezer recipes, I give tips on this here.
One great tip for making your recipe list even more cost effective for a month of meals, is to look at the sales at your grocery store for the week you will be shopping. While you want to use your favorite recipes, you may adjust your end grocer list some depending on sales. If chicken breast is much cheaper than chicken thighs you normally buy, you can easily make that substitute. Maybe green bell peppers are on sale in the summer. If so, you can easily add extra to your list to cut and freezer for other meals, or add stuffed peppers to your recipe list instead of another meal.
Once you know what you plan to have each day, you can then break down your recipes by ingredients. This takes a bit of time, but is a great way to make sure you don’t get in the middle of meal prep and find you missed an important ingredient when shopping. I recommend breaking down each recipe, then adding up like items once every recipe is listed to create your master list. If you are using meal plans provided by websites or blogs, you are likely to find this has already been completed for you.
As you create your grocery list from the ingredient lists of your recipes, make sure to double check your pantry, freezer, and refrigerator before adding items to the list. Use what you have on had first to save more money on your grocery budget for a month of meals in advance. What’s left on your ingredient list is your final shopping list.
Shop for ingredients to all recipes. Since preparing a month of meals will take a few hours, you’ll probably want to get groceries at least the day before. This will help you be well-rested and up to the task of shopping. When planning ahead like this, you can easily take advantage of sales on meats, produce, and other items needed for your menu plan.
Tips for making your shopping trip easier:
The best way to conquer preparing meals in advance is to get everything prepped before you begin cooking or assembling. If you are doing simple prepped meals that will be cooked after thawed, this process isn’t as time consuming. If you plan to cook meals ahead of time, it can be more time consuming, but well worth the result. Prepping things in advance can be broken down into two categories.
Tips for use in any freezer meal style you choose:
For freezer meals cooked and reheated later:
This is probably the most important part of preparing a month of meals ahead of time. Getting help to make the process go faster is a great idea. Have kids, your spouse, or a good friend there to help you seal containers, sort items,chop and dice ahead of time, or simply add labels to each recipe as you finish preparing it
For those who want to prepare a month of meals ahead of time, these tips will keep you on track and ready to conquer a few hours of hard work in the kitchen that will save you time and money in the long run.
Not sure about making a whole months of meals ahead? This book Prep-Ahead Meals From Scratch: Quick & Easy Batch Cooking Techniques and Recipes That Save You Time and Money is very helpful to get meals on the table quicker and give tips on how to pre-cook proteins.
If you want to try out just 10 freezer recipes that you can make in an hour, this freezer meal subscription service makes it easy.
There is nothing like a grilled meal and now that winter is over, it’s time to start the season by firing up your grills. Did you know the over 80% of “mature millennials” – millennials between 25-33 – rank grilling as one of their favorite summer activities? It is one of the good things of summer. But why wait until summer? People who love to grill can’t wait to grill – and these extreme grillers may even do it when it’s not quite time yet.
Former Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher helped Johnsonville grill and serve bratwursts at Sundays Chicago Polar Plunge on March 5, 2017, in Chicago. (Jean-Marc Giboux/AP Images for Johnsonville)
To kick off grilling season, Johnsonville sponsored the 2017 Chicago Polar Plunge, so shivering participants could warm up with piping hot Johnsonville #FirstBrats of the season, fresh off the burners of the Big Taste Grill. The Big Taste Grill is a 20-foot tall, 65-foot long grill, which cooks 2,500 brats an hour or 750 bratwurst at a time on its 40 square feet of grilling surface. Wow! That is a lot of brats!!! Former Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher helped Johnsonville grill and serve bratwursts at Sunday’s Chicago Polar Plunge on March 5, 2017, in Chicago.
Former Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher helped Johnsonville grill and serve bratwursts at Sundays Chicago Polar Plunge on March 5, 2017, in Chicago. (Jean-Marc Giboux/AP Images for Johnsonville)
The Plunge was hosted and benefits Special Olympics Chicago, which aligns directly with the charitable mission of the Big Taste Grill. If these extreme plungers were willing to jump in freezing water for a good cause, Johnsonville wanted to be a part of it, as they don’t let the weather get in the way of what they love – grilling brats.
Former Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher helped Johnsonville grill and serve bratwursts at Sundays Chicago Polar Plunge on March 5, 2017, in Chicago. (Jean-Marc Giboux/AP Images for Johnsonville)
You might have missed this fun event and not have quite as big of a grill but you can still start grilling some brats yourself and start grilling season! I personally love the Johnsonville Chicken sausages. YUM!
You also can enter to win the Johnsonville’s #FirstBrats Contest and the Grand Prize is snow removal or lawn care for a year, a value of $1,500. The Contest begins at 12:00 PM Eastern Time on March 8, 2017 and ends at 11:59:59 PM ET on May 15, 2017.
There are two (2) ways to enter:
Online: During the Contest Period, an entrant may visit www.FirstBratsContest.com, enter his/her email address, and follow the instructions to register by entering all information requested on the registration form. After an entrant has registered, he/she may follow the instructions to upload one (1) photo of his/her “first grill of the season”.
Social Media: During the Contest Period, an entrant may (a) log in to his/her Twitter or Instagram account, follow @Johnsonville on Twitter or @jvillesausage on Instagram (if he/she does not already), and post a Tweet/post that includes one (1) photo of his/her “first grill of the season” and the hashtag “#FirstBratsContest” or (b) log in to his/her Facebook account, visit Sponsor’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/johnsonville/, and post a comment responding to Sponsor’s Invitation Post that includes a photo of his/her “first grill of the season” and the hashtag “#FirstBratsContest.
Following the Contest period, all eligible entries received during the Contest period will be judged by a panel of qualified judges selected by Johnsonville. The judges will score the entries according to the following weighted criteria: creativity, photo quality and relevance to the Contest theme (e.g., entry captures the passion for grilling even if the weather is not ideal for grilling).
Limit one (1) prize per person
There is a limit of one (1) entry per entry method per person per calendar day during the Contest period (i.e., an entrant may receive one entry each via www.FirstBratsContest.com, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook) for a total of five (5) entries per day.
Official Contest rules can be found at www.FirstBratsContest.com.
Let the grilling season begin!
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Johnsonville. The opinions and text are all mine.
Instant Pot meals and recipes are all the rage these days, and using your Instant Pot for meal planning is a genius way of saving time, money, and energy in the kitchen. I finally just broke down and bought one myself. If you have invested in an Instant Pot or other pressure cooker for use in your kitchen, then you know how great it is to whip up a simple meal in minutes each night. They do have a bit of a learning curve, but the results are amazing!
Many individuals are finding that a pressure cooker like the Instant Pot is ideal for meal planning. Not only does it cook fast and easily, it makes healthy meals even easier to manage. Since fast, easy, and healthy are the most common things people request in recipes, the idea of using a pressure cooker for preparing meals is ideal. They are not like your grandma’s pressure cooker meant only for canning vegetables from her garden or fresh fruit jams and jellies. While many versions still do this and more, the Instant Pot itself is all about creating fast and delicious meals to feed your family.
I cannot say this enough. Your Instant Pot is unique depending on the model you have chosen. See the many different varieties of Instant Pots here. If you are using a pressure cooker and not the Instant Pot brand, that has even more unique characteristics. While they all operate in a similar manner, there are differences that can contribute to whether your meal turns out the way you think it should.
Pay attention to liquid recommendations for different types of cooking.
This is probably the biggest issue people have when using an Instant Pot for meal planning on a regular basis. You can’t just toss ingredients into your Instant Pot and expect the same result you had if you cooked it on the stove top or even in a slow cooker or oven. The liquid variations are vital to how the pressure cooking system works. You absolutely must follow guidelines set out by your particular versions manual. Once you learn more about how it works, and actually cook with it regularly you will be able to create your own recipes for the Instant Pot much easier. It just takes a little bit of practice to make the best Instant Pot Meals.
If you are used to browning and searing meats, you’ll immediately notice that while you can get some color on items cooked in your Instant Pot, it will never be the same as if you cook on your stove top or in your oven. Some recipes will recommend you remove from the Instant Pot and put into a dish to put in the oven and broil for a few minutes. Others will have you use the saute function on the Instant Pot. Using only one pot and having it done in minutes is the appeal, so, if the color of your food or the crunchy coating are a must, then understand you may have to accomplish this by removing the items from your pressure cooker and finishing them on your stove or in your oven. Otherwise, the food will be cooked through and taste great, it just won’t have the same appearance.
You may also notice that flavor won’t always be as strong on marinades or seasonings as you expect. The addition of liquid to your Instant Pot often means it is a little less strong in flavor. I, personally, find that creating things like beef or chicken dishes in freezer packets that include the marinade in advance help tremendously. This allows those flavors to soak into the meat for a much longer time, and as they thaw the day I plan to cook them, they increase the flavor even more. You will find that you may need to bump flavors up a bit to get a more distinctive flavor profile, but this also varies depending on the meal you are creating in your Instant Pot.
I have been collecting all kinds of Instant Pot Recipes here. Let me know in the comments your favorite Insatnt Pot recipe. I am looking for new recipes to try myself.
Additionally, you may to purchase some extra sealing rings and use one for sweet food and another for savoury food. This prevents the odors from transferring among your favorite foods.
If you cook a few thing in a row, you might also want an extra inner pot. Having a secondary inner pot makes it most convenient in preparing multiple types of food with your Instant Pot.
If you plan to use your instant pot as a slow cooker, you may also want a glass lid for your instant pot so you can check on the food while it is cooking.
For those that want to take meal planning with their Instant Pot a step further, you can take your recipes and create freezer packets so you have several meals ready to drop into the Instant Pot at any time. Freezer meals are a common idea in meal planning, and they work great with the Instant Pot. The only consideration would be the amount of liquid included, so you may need to adjust slightly for the right flavor and combination for your Instant Pot. Creating recipes and freezing them raw to be thawed and thrown into your Instant Pot when you get home after a busy day, takes even more time out of your evening meal preparation.
One big issue with regularly making Instant Pot meals is that you can’t just grab a second one to cook tomorrow night’s meal in if you haven’t done dishes. They are a bit too expensive for most to have more than one in their house. That said, you should always remove the food right away and soak to clean immediately. This will keep food from sticking or drying on, and give you the chance to easily rinse off and use the next night. This is, one of the most important thing for me to do after I use my Instant Pot. If I don’t clean it right away, and it isn’t ready for the next meal, I am much more likely to go off budget and grab take-out on the way home.
Meal planning with Instant Pot recipes is one of the latest and greatest ideas for meal planning. Not only does it make a huge difference in the time you spend in the kitchen, it can easily help you stay within your grocery budget.
Meal Planning for Picky Eaters
How Make a Meal Planning Pantry
Every family seems to have at least one picky eater that makes meal planning hard to manage. This doesn’t have to be the case. There are so many great ways to get around a picky eater and manage to have a wonderful menu that everyone will enjoy. Here are some great tips to manage picky eaters when meal planning. Thes meal planning tips with food for picky eaters will save both your budget and your sanity.
The battle of meal time with picky eaters is one moms and dads have been facing for centuries. Whether it is a dislike for vegetables or someone who doesn’t like anything on their plate touching, we have all faced at least one picky eater as parents. It doesn’t have to be a constant struggle a meal time. Especially not with meal planning in advance. Yes, you will have to occasionally make exceptions, but when you plan ahead, it makes things much easier to manage. Our tips will help make meal planning with picky eaters much simpler to manage.
We often get sucked into the idea of meal planning, and buy or download a ton of ideas from a website. There are many excellent menu plans out there that give you all of the details and grocery lists in one location, but not all work for your family and their preferences. One key thing to remember above all when meal planning is to slowly add new things. Start with one new recipe a month, and eventually increase to one per week if you find your family adapts well. This helps you prevent a lot of unhappy kids or adults at the dinner table, and prevents waste. If you are interested in trying a meal planning service, emeals is a great option. They have a free trial of their kid friendly meal plan so you can see whether your picky eater likes the recipes.
Getting the family involved in your meal planning is a key method of making sure you have fewer complaints and more empty plates. Sit down with your family on meal planning day and ask for their requests. Consider everything they suggest, and try to accommodate at least one meal per week from that list. It may seem repetitive, but at times that is better than frustration and wasted food.
Once you start putting new things on the menu, have your family make notes about whether they want to see it on the menu again. If the majority don’t like it, it won’t go back on the menu. If everyone likes it, then you can easily add it into your meal planning routine.
No, you don’t want to cave to their whims by giving them the same thing every night, but on the nights you know they may not enjoy the meal option, have something on hand in your pantry they can make for themselves. An occasional peanut butter and jelly sandwich or bowl of soup is okay. One option that works great in our house is to have ready made freezer breakfast burritos that include eggs, turkey sausage,salsa, and a bit of cheese in a whole wheat tortilla. Kids can pop one into the microwave and heat up on the nights we have things like fish or vegetarian meals they don’t care for as much.
While you may not want to have the same thing every single night, you can plan ahead for the nights when you know your picky eaters aren’t going to like the item added to the menu plan. Add a recipe they do enjoy the night before, and plan for a larger batch that will give them the option of leftovers. Things like soups, pasta dishes, tacos, and even hamburgers or sandwiches are great choices that most picky eaters enjoy and you can easily have enough on hand for that second meal if you want to add something out of the ordinary to your menu. Simply planning ahead like this can solve a problem and help your picky eaters feel like you are listening and care about their discomfort with certain foods. A great resource for batch cooking is the Prep Ahead Meals From Scratch cookbook. This cookbook has so many great ideas for how you can get homemade meals on the table in less time!
Talk to your picky eaters about substitutions that are similar but still pleasing. Things like adding vegetables to their pizza, or having one sandwich night each week where they can have peanut butter and jelly, but have to include a fruit or vegetable on the side. You can avoid arguments over having a salad for dinner if they will eat carrot sticks, cucumbers, or even cherry tomatoes. I will often make a chicken skillet meal where I pull out my daughter’s piece of chicken before I make the sauce. So easy and it does not require making a separate meal.
Yes, you don’t want to have a dozen different meals to make each night, but you can have some basic things on hand that are substitutes for items they don’t like. For those who don’t like the vegetable choice, you can keep one on hand that they do like and can fix for themselves.
Sometimes, picky eaters are more than just picky or going through a stage. There are many children and adults that have true sensory issues. There are more that simply do not like flavors or textures. As a parent, we need to teach our children respect for others, and that includes the person cooking their meals. However, we need to be understanding and listen to their issues with foods. Forcing someone to eat something they have legitimate issues with is not okay. There is a big difference between a child just preferring pizza every night, and a child who has a sensory disorder that cannot handle the textures of raw vegetables, or even a food allergy that causes discomfort. Be aware and work around those issues as you are able.
Meal planning around the needs of picky eaters isn’t as tough as you would imagine. It really just involves a bit of extra planning and a lot of communication. Learning what your picky eaters prefer is the key to making meal planning a success.
Looking for more meal planning resources? We have got them! Check them out here.
How to Use a Crock Pot for Meal Planning
Are you considering freezer meals as a great way to save time and money in the kitchen? If so, you may be wondering if you are stuck with using only specified freezer meals. The truth is, almost any recipe can be turned into a freezer meal with the right tips. [Read more…]
Using your Crockpot or slow cooker for meal planning is a great way to save time and money. Slow cooking foods is ideal for summer months when turning an oven on means heating up an already hot house. It also saves a ton of time for those busy moms who are juggling full-time work, kids, and various activities. Our tips for helping you on how to use your crockpot for meal planning are going to be revolutionary for your menu and budget. [Read more…]
Looking for fun and easyDisney Frozen Themes Food? Then you will love these Disney Frozen Blue Chocolate Pretzel wands! These are perfect food for a Disney Frozen birthday party or Disney Frozen viewing party. These would work well for a winter wonderland themed party too. [Read more…]
Looking for great easy Disney Frozen Themed food? Then look no further. Sven’s Snack Mix is perfect for a Disney Frozen
Looking to make some special Valentine’s menu ideas? Here are some cute kitchen tools to help.
For a Valentine’s day breakfast, you can use the Norpro 999R Silicone Egg Pancake Ring Heart, Red
Have you ever found yourself in the bakery section of the grocery store, trying to decide between the $2 French bread and the $5 artisan bread? I love the taste of the $5 bread with the fancy Italian name, but really the $2 bread is the one that is in my budget to serve with my family’s dinner that night. Even if we only had the fancy bread one night a week, that’s $20 out of our monthly grocery budget, just on bread. What if I told you that you could easily make artisan bread for less than $1 a loaf? [Read more…]
Buying lunch at school for kids can add up to a big expense, fast. But if you don’t plan a little bit they can be expensive and time consuming to prepare at home as well.
Here are some tips and ideas to make less expensive and easy school lunches for kids this year.
Buy your foods in quantity
Basic tips for keeping it healthy
Make it fun
And don’t beat yourself up for not having picture perfect lunchboxes every day, keep it easy to stay on track through the year.
Get more back to school tips and sale here.
There is a new HelloFresh Coupon code for $20 off that is valid through 7/15/13.
Do you ever get sick of grocery shopping and meal planning and wish that fresh ingredients and recipes would just show up at your doorstep? I know it sounds far fetched but I actually found a company that does just that! It is called HelloFresh. As I was researching the many meal planning options, I found HelloFresh and contacted them to see if I could complete a HelloFresh review for you. They supplied me a box and I was amazed by how much I liked it.
It is a new way to cook. Every week, you can pick the delicious recipes you want to try (except for under the veggie meal plan) and they will send you amazing recipes and all of the ingredients you need to prepare them. They take care of your meal planning and even do the shopping for you. It’s a revolution in your kitchen! With HelloFresh you save time, discover amazing food and provide a healthy diet to the people you love most. Say goodbye to fast food and ready meals heated up at the end of a busy day. Say hello to delicious home-cooked meals using fresh ingredients.
The recipes are created by world-class chefs who ensure that your meals are delicious and easy to prepare within 30 minutes. You don’t need fancy kitchen equipment and the beautiful step-by-step photo instructions will change the way you think about cooking!
It is obviously more expensive than meal planning and shopping yourself but you are paying for convenience. The classic box with proteins starts at $9.94 per serving including shipping when you buy the 6 person box. The 2 person 3 meal classic box is $69 or $11.50 per serving.
HelloFresh is offering Bargain Shopper Mom readers a HelloFresh coupon code of $20 off a box to try it out! This makes it a nice deal and almost cheaper than fast food. Just use the coupon code AHELLOSUMMERat checkout. The $20 HelloFresh coupon code is good through June 20, 2013.
When you compare the prices of the box vs going to a location where you prepare frozen meals, the price is fairly comparable plus you get all fresh ingredients!
The box off food showed up at my home last week. Everything was still cold and nicely packaged. (picture at top) Here is a picture of all the food once I pulled it out of the box.
All the items are labeled and in bags so you know which food goes which each recipe. I love that it comes with fresh herbs and vegetables. It also includes items that you just need a bit of like sesame oil. Normally, you would have to buy a whole jar which is pricey when you only need two tablespoons for a recipe.
This Soba Noodle salad with Chicken and Mango was so tasty. I would normally never prepare something like this so it was fun to try something new.
Here is a picture of all the ingredients for Carne Asada Tacos. Again, everything is included even fresh cilantro and hot sauce. The only think not included is olive oil and salt and pepper.
The recipes come on nice cards with very clear instructions on how to make the meals. There is a picture of the completed meal, all the ingredients and step by step pictures.
It is so easy to make you might get lucky like me and find your husband starting the meal when you come home from running errands. HelloFresh makes is so easy that anyone can prepare fresh delicious meals.
Here is everything all chopped, cooked and ready to be made into tacos. My whole family loved it. I actually just bought a bit more flank steak and it fed my family of 4 even though it was a two person box. There were plenty of tortillas, toppings and beans for everyone.
Overall, I was very pleased with HelloFresh. It was wonderful to have homemade fresh meals without all the meal planning and grocery shopping. It is a bit pricey but it is a great example of you get what you pay for. The ingredients are all fresh and high quality. The meals are easy to make and healthy plus they taste great. If meal planning and shopping is overwhelming for you, this would be a a great service to try especially with the $20 off coupon code. Remember the coupon code is only good though June 20, 2013 so don’t delay.
Disclosure: HelloFresh provided me a 2 person 3 meal classic box for this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
One of the highlights of my partnership with Savings.com is working with Erin from $5 Dinners. The meals she comes up with for just $5 are amazing! She has come out with a new cookbook that can give you some great meal inspiration plus right now the book is almost 40% off and just $10.98 at Amazon.
When I teach my grocery savings classes, I hear how many people have trouble with menu planning. I help people in the class but this new cookbook can add some more options to your meal planning list.
The $5 Dinner Mom One-Dish Dinners Cookbook
Having go to simple and frugal recipes that your family will love is imperative for your sanity and helps your bank account too. Why not spend less on food so y0u can spend more on what you want! Plus get rid of all that stress when you are trying to figure out what to have for dinner.
If you don’t have Erin’s other two cookbooks, you will want to check these out too.
All of these cookbook would make great gifts as well. It is never to early to start planning for the holidays.
If you have been looking to try a meal planning service, you want to get in on this deal. You can try it for for FREE!
Now through the end of February, you can get a completely FREE subscription to Food on My Table.
Food On My Table is an easy meal planning service that is based on sales at local grocery stores. With Food on the Table, you can do the following:
This basic plan normally costs $5 per month, but they are offering their basic plan completely free for LIFE! However, to get in on this deal, you must sign up by the end of Feb!!
Here’s how to get your free membership:
1. Head over to Food On My Table.
2. Enter your email address in the top right corner, and then right underneath that enter the promo code FEBFREE
3. Add your local stores and they will give you several recipes that you can make with what’s on sale!
This basic free meal plan includes 3 meals a week. If you want more you can upgrade to the premium version for a introductory rate of $5/month. If you just want the free membership, be careful when you are signing up. They will try to upsell you on their Premium membership, but you can just stick with the FREE one though if you don’t want to pay anything.
