Easy Weekly Meal Plan #1

Every Sunday afternoon, I take 15 minutes to evaluate the weeks activities, what’s in the freezer and pantry and what I need from the grocery store. I write a list of what I think the meal plan will be. Here is this week’s meal plan as an example:

I usually have my freezer stocked with crockpot kits and pre-assembled casseroles that are ready to go in the oven. This week, the meal plan looks like this:

Skillet Ham Steak

Salisbury Steak Crockpot Style

Firecracker Casserole

Sloppy Joes

White Chicken Chili

Chicken Spaghetti

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 $56.07, assuming you have the staple spices at home. There will also likely be enough for one night of leftovers for dinner and maybe even a complete chicken spaghetti to package and freeze for another meal. Yep, you can feed your entire family this menu for the cost of one restaurant meal out! All prices are from Wal-Mart Online Grocery app as of November 2019.

GROCERY LIST PER RECIPE

Skillet Ham Steak – $10.00
2 Ham Steaks ($7.00)
1 frozen bag of broccoli ($1.00)
2 boxes of Mac & Cheese ($2.00)

Crockpot Salisbury Steak – $9.82
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef ($4.44) ($2.96 per pound)
1 (10.5 ounce) can cream of mushroom soup ($.50)
1 (10.5 ounce total) can of french onion soup ($.76)
1 packet of dry onion soup mix ($.75) (2 pack is $1.50)
sliced mushrooms (optional – fresh or canned) ($1.48 fresh or $.87 can)
2 packs of Idahoan Instant mashed potatoes ($2.00)
1 (14.5 ounce) can of cut green beans, drained ($.50)

Firecracker Casserole – $9.90
1.5 lbs. lean ground beef ($4.44) ($2.96 per pound)
1 cup chopped onion ($.75)
1 can ranch style beans (regular or jalapeno), undrained ($.84)
1 can Ro-Tel tomatoes ($.98)
1 can cream of mushroom soup ($.50)
8 corn tortillas (broken up) – ($.65) ($1.78 for 30 count)
6 oz. shredded cheddar cheese ($1.74)

Sloppy Joes – $7.55
1.5 pound ground beef (or turkey) ($4.44) ($2.96 per pound)
1/2 small onion, diced ($.78)
8 ounces tomato sauce ($.46)
Hamburger buns ($.87)
Chips ($1.00)

White Chicken Chili – $6.93
1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast ($2.67) – $1.78 per pound
2 cups chicken broth ($.50)
1 small can of green chiles ($.76)
2 cans great northern beans, drained and rinsed ($2.00) – $1.00 each
1 15 oz can of corn, drained ($.50)
1/4 cup sour cream ($.50) – $1.47 per container, only need a scoop

Chicken Spaghetti – $11.87
1 1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts ($2.67) – $1.78 per pound
16 oz block Velveeta cheese, regular or mexican ($4.98)
1 can(s) Rotel tomatoes, regular or hot ($.98)
1 lb spaghetti pasta ($.88)
1 can(s) cream of chicken soup, undiluted ($.50)
1 can(s) cream of mushroom soup, undiluted ($.50)
1 medium onion, chopped ($.78)
1 bell pepper, red or green, chopped ($.58)

THINGS YOU LIKELY ALREADY HAVE IN YOUR PANTRY

1 and half stick butter
6 Tablespoon all purpose flour
1 cup ketchup
4 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon mustard powder
4 Tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup milk
1 chicken bouillon cube
4 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspon prepared mustard (like what you put on a sandwich)
2 cloves of garlic or tablespoons of chopped garlic from a jar
salt and pepper to taste

1. Print all of the recipes from the links above and label the ziplock bags / tin foil accordingly.
   
2. Set up your kitchen work zone. Place the labeled ziplock bag, the casserole dish, can goods, spices, etc. by each recipe.
   
3. Brown and drain the hamburger meat. Divide it up and put it in the ziplock bags for the Salisbury Steak and Sloppy Joes. Leave the remainder in a bowl for when we assemble the Firecracker casserole.
   
4. Dump the ingredients called for in the Salisbury Steak and Sloppy Joes into the ziplock bags. Seal them and lay them flat. These two recipes are done and ready to go into the freezer.
   
5. For the Chicken Chili and the Chicken Spaghetti, dice the veggies, dump the canned goods and spices in the ziplock bag per the recipes. Lay these flat and they too are now ready for the freezer.
   
6. For the Firecracker Casserole, assemble per the printed instructions. Place the foil over the casserole dish and pop it in the freezer.
   
7. Toss the ham steaks and broccoli in the freezer and the macaroni and cheese in the pantry. This one by far is the easiest meal for freezer prep day!
   
   There you have it! An entire weeks worth of meals all prepared and ready to go in very little time.

You can do it! I’m a working mom too. All of this was cooked and served for dinner after work and running to multiple kid activities each night. This is possible through the use of freezer crockpot kits and pre-assembled frozen casseroles ready for the oven. It’s just a dump and go and our dinner is on the table in about 15 minutes after getting home. The photographs were taken right before we sat down for our nightly family meal. We even had left overs too!

Check out this one – it’s another example of a great meal plan.

If you like these recipes, please be sure to click on the menu button and explore all of the different recipes or click the link below (organized by meat or recipe type)

RECIPES

You may also like some of my other meal plans, for example:

Easy Weekly Meal Plan #3

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