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Meal Planning Ideas:
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3-Night Plan Example

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The first thing to figure out when planning meals for the week is your schedule. Planning for and buying meal ingredients that will just sit there because you don't have time to prepare them is a complete waste of time and money. Only bite off what you can chew (pun intended). If you consider yourself a novice at meal planning, try some of the low and medium-effort solutions. So you're free on Tuesday night but will be eating on the run on Wednesday and Thursday? Let's try this one as an example.

On Tuesday night, grill or roast a substantial amount (3 days' worth) of
veggies and chicken. Have them in pasta Tuesday night, and use them in alternate dishes (sandwiches or salads) that take 5-10 minutes to prep on the next two nights. Getting multiple meals out of a single cooking session is the way to go for busy people.

Is that all the planning you can handle this week? That's fine. (In addition to these 3 meals, lets throw in some carrots and celery sticks.) As you get better at it you can take on the full weeks. In the meantime, try smaller chunks of time.

Okay, so your plan includes these 3 meals (and a snack):

1. Grilled chicken and veggies with pasta
2. Whole wheat sandwiches with grilled chicken, veggies, and mozzarella.
3. Arrugula with parmesan, calamata olives, grilled chicken and veggies, with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
4. (We're also throwing in some snacks of carrot and celery sticks for good measure.)

Now, for the shopping list (items appear in the order I would find them in my favorite store):

• Arrugula
• Carrots
• Celery
• Other Vegetables (eggplant, zucchini, summer squash, red peppers, portabello mushrooms, etc.)
• Lemon (for marinade)
• Fresh rosemary (for marinade)
• Whole wheat sub rolls
• Mozzarella
• Parmesan
• Calamata olives
• Balsamic vinegar
• Olive oil
• Pasta (whole wheat penne)
• Chicken breasts

Ok, we're back from the store. First things first. As soon as you get home, wash and cut the carrots and celery, and place in 3 small plastic containers or sandwich bags in the fridge. 3 snacks down!

The bulk of your prepping is done on the first night. Here is what I would suggest. Scrape the "fins" off the bottom of the portabello mushroom caps, cut the rest of the veggies in fairly thick slabs (maybe 1/2 inch thick), then trim the gristle and fat off the chicken breasts and cut in half. Marinate the chicken and veggies (separately)in a marinade of olive oil, juice of one lemon, fresh rosemary, salt and pepper.

While the chicken and veggies are marinating, bring a pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Grill the chicken and veggies until done, then place on a platter and cover with foil. Cook the pasta.

As soon as the pasta is done, combine it with the chicken and veggies, and toss in a little olive oil. There's your meal for Night One.

Now let's move on to Night Two. On the second night, split open a whole wheat sub roll, placed sliced mozzarella inside, then top with reheated chicken and veggies. In less than 5 minutes you've got vegetables, protein, and a serving of whole grains. There's your meal for Night Two.

Night Three. On the third night, place the arugula, parmesan, calamata olives, chicken and veggies (cold) into a bowl with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper. Stir, then place in individual plates. Done. Less than 10 minutes, and you've got a terrific salad.

Meal planning doesn't need to be complicated. You just need to make sure it doesn't get boring. It is just a matter of taking the time to do the planning and breaking it down into small steps. Congratulations - you just cooked once and made 3 different and very healthy meals from scratch!

© 2008 Paul Gagne, All Rights Reserved