It’s week #5 of self-quaranting and I’ve been getting lots of questions about how to meal plan and shop.  So I’m posting a sample 2-week meal plan for a family of 4 along with tips for planning what to buy and using it most efficiently.  

• General tips:
  • First use items with shorter shelf lives (asparagus, fresh herbs) and/or that are bulkier (ribs, chard); save frozen items or long-lasting pantry items for last
  • Ignore “use by” dates – smell, look and taste to see if still good
  • Freeze fruit that’s starting to brown or veg that is starting to wilt. Use fruit in smoothies or banana bread. Veggies can later be thawed and cooked as usual (better cooked than raw after thawing).
  • Find one or two people to check-in with when you all go shopping to pick up the odd ingredient that you are missing.
• Breakfast:  I let everyone pick one or two items, then I also get coffee, orange juice and fruit. Example: David and I eat yogurt + granola, Libby has Rice Krispies + milk, Molly has fruit smoothies.
• Lunch:  Combination of leftovers, soup, sandwiches and “pantry/freezer” lunch. I assume we will have a few lunches of leftovers, plan to make 2 batches of soup which will last a few lunches, get lunch meat/cheese/bread for a few days of sandwiches and round it out with pantry/freezer items that last a long time (examples: canned tuna, prepared lentil/Indian packets and frozen goyza).
• Dinner
  • Day 1 – Roast Chard, White Beans & Sausage
  • Day 2 – Asian-Style Ribs, Potato Wedges, Salad
  • Day 3 – Rice with Slow-Roasted Tomatoes & Garlic + Feta + Chick Peas, Salad
  • Day 4 – Fish Tacos with Tomato-Avocado Salsa, Cuban Black Beans
  • Day 5 – BBQ Chicken, Coleslaw, Roasted Carrots (or Salad)
  • Day 6 – Big Salad (with leftover chicken, last of the salad, leftover Cuban Black Beans, veg which is going to expire, grains)
  • Day 7 – Turkey and White Bean Chili, Cornbread
  • Day 8 – Grilled Flank Steak, Squash, Twice-Baked Potatoes
  • Day 9 – Falafel, Hummus, Roasted Carrots
  • Day 10 – Baked Shrimp Scampi, Rice, Steamed Frozen Broccoli
  • Day 11 – Kimchi Fried Rice, Frozen Gyoza
  • Day 12 – Homemade Pizza (top with marinara, mozzarella and toppings such as sauteed onions, olives, sausage, potato, artichoke hearts)
  • Day 13 – Tortilla de Patatas (spanish omelette of egg, potato and onion), Chorizo (or other sausage), Artichoke Hearts
  • Day 14 – BBQ Roasted Salmon, Orzo Pea Feta Salad