8 meals, 1 mess.

When Cheryl and I talk about how we survived the "early years" with young kids, we fondly remember our meal swaps. The two of us and two other trusted girlfriends would do a frozen meal swap about once a month. We would each choose a different recipe and make a super large batch of it so that is could be divided into eight 9x9 cake pans. We'd share them around so that each mom took home 2 of each of the 4 different dishes. One big mess, 8 delicious meals.

If you're looking for a way to save time, money & mess in the kitchen, and have a few like-minded cooks in your circle of friends, we dare you to give it a try.

Sunday Planning Ritual

It's one of the little moments I look forward to on a weekend. (Maybe be I should get out more.)

A comfy spot on the couch,

A leisurely stroll through the grocery store flyers,

A fresh page in my note book

A big cuppa English Breakfast Tea, sweet and creamy.

I go through each store's flyer, jot down any super deals on stuff we need/use, and try to plan my meals accordingly. (I recently went on a mission to "eat through" our freezer so that I could defrost it and start over in the shopping/meals department. It's kinda nice to have a clean slate!)

I'm finding it's a good way to save money (who's with me on the small victories??), add a little variety to our menu, and plan ahead so I can cut down on the trips to the grocery store.

For example, this week, this is what I found on sale...

I only write down what I know we need or go through a lot of. (Personally, I only REALLY stockpile if it's an AMAZING deal.) And then see how I can work those deals into the menu...so I know this week we'll have:

-Pork Roast w/ cauliflower side (cheese sauce, of course--the cauliflower is just a means to an end.)

-Pasta Carbonara (Love it when bacon is on sale... I cook a whole package on a pampered chef bar pan and freeze it to use when we need it. One mess, lots of baconny possibilities

-Soup and BLTs (Does anyone else have childhood flashbacks to Habitant Pea Soup?)

Might be worth a try if you're trying to cut down on the grocery bill and get a bit of a nerdy high from list making :-)