Knowing what you’re going to make for dinner each week, even if it’s just a few nights, can help you save time and money and avoid decision fatigue. This week’s plan includes a taco casserole, an Asian noodle dish, mini pizzas, and white bean chili.
Want to save this post?
Enter your email below and get it sent straight to your inbox. Plus, I’ll send you budget recipes and money-saving tips every week!
When you’re cooking for a family, it pays to “ask the eaters” and keep a running favorite meals list. In this way you can track what the family enjoys and make sure that you spend grocery money on the winner dinners.
Recently a reader asked me what recipes all my kids liked.
That question gave me pause. There’s a myth floating about that homeschoolers are cookie cutter versions of each other. This is very much a myth.
Six kids. Same gene pool. Same teacher for their entire lives. –> Six very different people with varying preferences and personalities!
It was a fun challenge to round up a week of dinners that all six FishKids enjoy. I put them together in a meal plan that you can double each night and freeze half for later. Remember that’s the easiest way to make freezer meals!
This Week’s Recipes
This week’s meal plan includes 4 main dishes that can be frozen. With just four meals planned, you freedom in the week to enjoy leftovers, go out to eat, or be spontaneous with your meal plan. Feel free to mix and match the recipes as they suit you best.
I highly recommend that you double each recipe and freeze that second batch for another night!
You can click their names to read the full posts and grab the recipes.
- Dinner 1: Lawnmower Taco Casserole Recipe
- Dinner 2: Peanut Butter Chicken Noodles
- Dinner 3: Easy Mini Pizza Recipe
- Dinner 4: Best Ever White Bean Chicken Chili
Save with the Good Cheap Eats System
As you know by now, you’ll do more with your money if you PLAN SHOP COOK in smart ways. We call it the Good Cheap Eats System.
- Plan frugal meals. We’ve taken care of this for you! All these recipes are budget-friendly, using typically affordable ingredients. Build the rest of your meals based on frugal ingredients and you will stretch your dollar further.
- Make a plan for leftovers. This is leftover ingredients as well as leftover prepped food. Scroll down for specific tips on what to do with the leftovers from this week.
- Shop the kitchen. Compare the shopping list with what you already have on hand. Avoid buying duplicates wherever possible. Consult our list of ingredient swaps so that you can use what you have.
- Shop the store with the best prices. What store you choose will make a difference in what you pay. Compare prices so you know what’s the best fit for you this week.
- Scan the sales and clearance. You can save a bundle buying a few extras of the items you regularly use when you see them on sale.
- Cook meals you love. Not only does homemade taste better, but it’s usually cheaper, too. I’ve developed recipes that make it easy to make homemade so you can save yourself more money.
- Cook extra to freeze. Anytime you can freeze extra prepped food or ingredients for another time, you’re saving yourself effort as well as cash and avoiding food waste. All the meals in this plan can be frozen.
Grocery List for These Family Favorite Meals
If you’re making a second batch to freeze, be sure to double the servings when you click Shopping List!
Meal Prep Tips
- Shred the cheeses for the casserole, pizza, and the chili at the same time, if you don’t buy them already shredded. Remember you can freeze cheese if you won’t use it all this week.
- Prep a big batch of Homemade Taco Seasoning and use it throughout the week to season vegetables, meats, and other dinner recipes. The Easy Homemade Pizza Sauce can be made in advance.
- Cook the chicken for the chili ahead of time to incorporate into your meals. If you make extra you can work those proteins into other dishes or freeze them for later.
- Be sure to make double batches of any meal components that you prep ahead so that you can make double batches of each dinner recipe.
Freezing Tips
Remember the easiest way to fill the freezer is to simply double dinner each night and freeze the second half. Follow these tips for each recipe:
Lawnmower Taco: prepare the double batch of meat sauce in a large pot and assemble two 9×13-inch casseroles. Bake one and chill the other in the fridge. Once the second is very cold, wrap, label, and freeze it for another time.
Peanut Butter Chicken Noodles: prepare the double batch of chicken and vegetables in a large pan. Remove half and package to freeze. Chill in the fridge before labeling and freezing. Cook only 1 batch of the noodles to serve the first night. Cook the second batch of noodles on the night of freezing. It’s not advised to freeze noodles; they get soggy.
Mini Pizzas: make a double batch of dough and prepare double the number of pizzas. You can freeze the pizzas baked or unbaked, according to the recipe.
White Bean Chili: make a double batch of chili in two pots or one large pot. Serve half and store the second half in a freezer-safe container. Chill in the fridge until very cold before transferring to the freezer.
Which recipes do you love?
Be sure to leave starred reviews on the recipes so we know what you love. This helps us build better meal plans for you! Click on the recipe name and choose the number of stars you want to award the recipe.
Show us your meals!
Be sure to snap a photo of your meals this week and share on social media with the tag @goodcheapeatsblog. We love it when you share your creations with friends and family!
Leave a Reply