Easy Weekly Meal Plan #3

Weekly Meal Plan #3

So after a week of being on vacation, I’m back into the meal planning routine. This is what our weekly meal plan looks like:

Tortilla Soup

Creole Stew

Spaghetti & Meatballs

Fish Filet, Mac & Cheese with Veggie

Mushroom Wine Chicken

Balsamic Chicken (Crockpot)

If you are going to prepare this meal plan from scratch, you will need the ingredients in the list below. You can make all 6 of these meals for $58.99, assuming you have the staple spices at home. There will also likely be enough for at least one or two leftover meals. Think no cooking for a weekend lunch or two!

Yep, you can feed your entire family a meal from this menu for a week the cost of just one family restaurant meal out! All prices are from Wal-Mart Online Grocery app as of November 2019.

TORTILLA SOUP – $12.94
2 chicken boneless skinless breasts ($3.56)
2 cans of Ro-Tel ($1.96)
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained ($.58)
1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained ($.58)
1 can corn, rinsed and drained ($.50)
1 onion, chopped ($.78)
2 cans low sodium chicken broth ($1.00)
Tortilla Chips ($1.00)
Shredded Cheese ($1.98)
Sour Cream ($1.00)

SPAGHETTI & MEATBALLS – $8.66
2 jars spaghetti sauce ($3.00 – $1.50 each)
½ of a 48oz family size bag of meatballs ($3.27 – $6.54 for entire bag)
16 oz. Spaghetti pasta ($.82)
Garlic Bread ($1.57)

CREOLE STEW – $12.33
2.5 pounds smoked kiboska sausage, sliced ($5.78)
2 cans cream of mushroom soup ($1.00)
1 onion, large slices ($.78)
1.5 pounds red potatoes, cubed ($3.77)
2 cups of baby carrots, sliced in half ($1.00)

FISH FILLET, MAC & CHEESE and CARROTS – $7.08
1 box Great Value Crispy Battered Fish Fillets ($3.08)
2 boxes Mac and Cheese ($2.00)
2 cans or a bag of frozen vegetables ($2.00)

MUSHROOM WINE CHICKEN, GREEN BEANS & EGG NOODLES – $10.68

2 pounds of chicken ($3.56)
2 cans mushroom soup ($1.00)
White Cooking Wine ($2.18)
1 package of mushrooms ($1.48)
Frozen green beans ($1.34)
Egg Noodles ($1.12)

BALSAMIC CHICKEN – $7.30
2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts ($3.56)
1 onion, sliced ($.78)
1 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes, drained ($.46)
½ cup chicken broth ($.50)
Rice A Roni Wild Rice ($1.00)
Broccoli ($1.00)

STAPLES & SPICES YOU PROBABLY ALREADY HAVE IN YOUR PANTRY
2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
½ cup balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 TbSP chile powder
1 Tbsp ground Cumin
1 Tbsp dried cilantro
1/4 cup of milk
2 tablespooons of Old Bay Seasoning

Okay, it’s time to get started with the meal prep for the week.

1. Print all of the recipes from the links above and label the ziplocks accordingly.
2. Set up your kitchen work zone. Place the labeled zip lock bag, the can goods, spices, etc . by each recipe.
3. For the Tortilla Soup, dump the ingredients into the ziplock bag, lay flat and put in the freezer. Or if you’re planning on making this one tomorrow, you can just put it into the fridge overnight.
4. For the spaghetti and meatballs, dump about ½ of the bag of frozen meatballs into the ziplock bag along with the two jars of sauce. Yep, it’s that easy! You may not even need to make a crockpot kit for this one since it’s so easy. But if you’re one to plan ahead then assemble and then lay the meatballs flat and put it in the freezer.
5. For the creole stew, slice up the sausage, dump the soup and spices and put it in a ziplock bag. It’s that easy. On the day you plan to make it, quickly chop up the veggies and dump them in the crockpot along with the preassembled kit.
6. For the Mushroom Wine Chicken, dump all of the ingredients into the ziplock bag, lay flat and put it in the freezer. Buy a package of egg noodles and a bag of frozen or fresh green beans. Again, this one is so easy you may not need to preassemble a crockpot kit. On the day you plan to make it you will need to cook the egg noodles on the stove and steam the green beans right before serving. Both of these are fast and easy steps!
7. For the Balsalmic Chicken, it’s the same thing. Dump the ingredients in the zip lock bag per the recipe, lay flat in the freezer and you’re kit is all ready to go! On the day you serve you will need to make a side dish of wild rice and steam a veggie.
8. The Fish Filet, Mac & Cheese and Veggie meal requires no prep. Just put the boxes in the freezer or pantry and you’ll quickly whip this meal up per the package instructions on the day you’re going to eat it.

There you have it! An entire week worth of meals all prepared and ready to go in very little time! You can also prep several of the meal plans all in one day and get a big batch of cooking / freezer prep done. Or another idea is to make two of each and stock your freezer to get ahead of the game.

If you like this week’s meal plan, you might also want to check out this one:

Easy Weekly Meal Plan #1