What’s for lunch? What’s for dinner?
These 2 questions bombard me like episodes of “Chopped”. And my answer most days is “I don’t know.”
So it’s time to finally attempt meal planning.
My mother never planned meals unless it was for holidays. Our meals were very basic, Midwestern, “Meat & Potato” type meals. (She never bought onions or peppers as long as I lived there.)
It is this no-planning method I have used for years. But now the 4 men in my home are craving different foods and recipes with flavor. I wish I would have taken culinary classes in my 20’s. I now live vicariously through the Food Network.
I have tried meal planning in the past but with no success. I didn’t stick with it long enough. Mainly, because our family lives in the moment and there were times we weren’t home at mealtimes.
I have scoured the Internet looking for websites that will help us, newbies, with meal planning for the first time. I hope they work for you as well if you are thinking about meal planning.
This is a perfect website to start off with when trying to plan healthy meals for your family. This website has many tips, a large library of recipes, and a book you can order too. Many of the recipes are healthier and easier on your waistline. You can also filter the recipe library by many different categories including nut and gluten-free recipes.
Not sure what to make for dinner? Head on over to Favorite Family Recipes for inspiration. This meal plan guide gives you links to recipes for each day of the week. There is even a search for recipes on the website too.
Wellness Mama’s Ultimate Meal planning guide takes you through all the ins and outs of how to plan meals in every season. The website also gives tips about the whole woman from beauty to health to organization to travel and more. There is even a podcast you can listen to on many different topics to have a healthy life and family.
Need to plan healthier meals for your family? Then look no further than the meal plans at Skinny Taste. There is an extensive weekly recipe guide for whatever healthy diet you are looking for. There are weekly guides for Vegetarian diets and for Weight loss. At the end of each weekly meal guide is a Google Doc and a printable grocery list.
Just like Skinny Taste, this website also has weekly meal plan ideas and a large library of recipes. Each weekly plan has links to each recipe and a printable shopping list. I plan on spending a lot of time at this site.
This is just a tiny fraction of the amazing websites available for families to be inspired, eat healthier, and enjoy mealtimes together. If the websites above do not work for you, just do a Google search or search Pinterest for ideas on how to tweak and amp up mealtimes in your home.
Are there any websites that are your “go-to” for recipes and meal prepping? Please comment what they are so we can all share.