Well it took a little bit, but we finally have a meal plan for this coming week. I think we picked out some good stuff. There’s a few new meals, a few things we have made before, and, of course, a St. Patrick’s Day feast. here’s what we have to look forward to this coming week:

Monday: Braised Short Ribs with Mashed Potatoes (this is a slow cooker meal, and promises to be delicious)

Tuesday: Spaghetti and Meatballs (which I have made before on the meal plan)

Wednesday: Chicken Stir Fry with White Rice (which I have also before on the plan, but I may mix this one up a bit with ingredients)

Thursday: Cream of Broccoli Soup (this is our meat-free meal of the week this week)

Friday:Artichokes with Potatoes, Garlic, Olives and Shrimp (this is our seafood meal of the week)

Saturday: It’s St. Patrick’s Day, so of course we’ll be having Corned Beef, Cabbage, Boiled Potatoes, Irish Soda Bread, and I’ll also be making a Grasshopper Pie, Irish Coffee and some Black and Tans. It should be quite a feast!

Sunday: We are planning Breakfast for Dinner, using leftover corned beef to make Corned Beef Hash, along with Eggs and Pancakes.

It promises to be quite a good week for meals. I didn’t have to do too much shopping this week for food since we already have all the makings for the stir fry, the spaghetti and meatballs and the broccoli soup. I did have to buy the short ribs, the artichokes and the shrimp, and of course the corned beef and cabbage, but that was pretty much it. We are trying to be better about using what we have on hand in the pantry, cabinets,freezer and refrigerator to cut back on the food bill each week. It has worked well so far, and sticking to the meal plan menu makes that easier because we tend to buy only what we need and nothing more. If you want to start your own meal plan, you can use the same planner I use, which is right here:family_meal_planner

Tomorrow will be the Braised Short Ribs meal in the slow cooker. It tastes and smells delicious and it’s not a tough meal to make, so check back in tomorrow to see what’s in it and what it’s all about. If you have any questions, comments or recipes you might like to see, please let me know.  Hopefully everyone had a great weekend and enjoy your meal this evening!