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Home » Crystal Paine » This Week’s Menu Plan

This Week’s Menu Plan

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Impromptu brownie-making today — I think more brownie batter ended up getting eaten than actually made it into the pan, but we had a lot of fun regardless. 🙂

Breakfasts
Pancakes, scrambled eggs, strawberries
Spinach Oven Omelet, 1-Minute Berry “Ice Cream”
Oatmeal Raisin Muffins, scrambled eggs, fruit
Cinnamon Roll Biscuits (using Homemade Baking Mix — these were a huge hit last week. I’ll share the recipe on Thursday.), fruit
Freezer-Friendly Baked Oatmeal, fruit
Blueberry Streusel Muffins, hard-boiled eggs
Cereal

Lunches
Lunch at extended family’s house for Father’s Day
PB&J Sushi, apple slices, carrot sticks
Lunch out for a birthday celebration
Corn Dog Muffins, pear slices, peas
Leftovers x 2
Egg salad sandwiches, frozen veggies, fruit smoothies

Snacks
Watermelon Frosties
Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothies
Popcorn
Fruit/Veggies

Dinners
Southwest Rollups, steamed veggies, fruit salad
Italian Pasta Bake, Homemade French Bread, edemame, watermelon
Steak on the grill, steamed veggies, Homemade French Bread
Asian Barbecue Chicken, rice, steamed veggies, fruit salad
Beef Hot Dogs, corn, Seasoned Baked Potato Wedges, watermelon
Build-Your-Own Haystacks, fruit
Dinner Out

Freezer-Cooking-In-An-Hour Plan (I’ll share pictures/details on how this goes on Thursday!)
Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge
Whole-Wheat Blueberry Streusel Muffins
Taco Meat

What’s on your menu this week? Feel free to leave a link to your plan in the comments!

Reader Interactions

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  1. Liz says

    Can you please explain how to make the “Build-your-own Haystacks”? I had a school friend who raved about them. We were supposed to make them together, then school ended and I moved away. We never got the chance! My son is kind of a picky eater, and this sounds like something he’d be into.

    Thanks!!
    Liz

    • Crystal says

      It’s just taco meat with beans layered with fritos, chopped tomatoes, lettuce, cheese — and any other taco fixings you like.

  2. Amanda says

    I really enjoyed this post and it helped me get over my menu planning block I have had tonight. Menu Planning is so tedious for me but I know I need to do it. I started looking at the Sale fliers and trying to make a meal plan off what is for sale but I didn’t get very far b/c I felt overwhelmed and like the deals weren’t all that great. I have pulled a few of your ideas for this week 🙂 Thanks so much!

  3. Busy Mom in AL says

    Hi. I was trying to find a place on Crystal’s blog to post an idea that we have used in our home that I thought might save some money for her readers. Instead of bibs for messy (“fun”) meals we have started using children’s t-shirts. We buy a pack (6 shirts or so) and take a permanent marker and draw a heart or other cute baby-themed object on the front so we can keep it seperate in the laundry. One says “Be-Be” which is what she calls herself! I store them in the kitchen and when the baby gets put in her chair we grab her “eating shirt!” Crystal, thanks for letting me share!

  6. Dawn@OneFaithfulMom says

    Silas looks so adorable in his own little apron!!
    And about the eggs, my kids always ask, “Are these store eggs or real eggs?” They know they can eat raw “real” eggs but not storebought! LOL!!

  7. Maggie says

    After a weirdly scheduled week and a week out of town, I’m finally back to cooking dinner in my kitchen every night. We’ve got alot of meatless meals this week–bean and cheese enchiladas with mexican rice, cheesy veggie calzones, a BIG salad night, turkey burgers with roasted red potatoes and corn on the cob, and cheese ravioli and salad. I LOVE summer time cooking because my grocery bill always goes way down because we eat way less meat and lots of more in season fresh produce.

  8. Crystal says

    I am getting ready to make the Southwest Rollups (as soon as my chicken is done baking) and I have a portioning question. The recipe calls for 16 tortillas but you say to only scoop 1/8 of the filling into the tortilla. Does the recipe make enough for all 16 or do I need to only use 8 tortillas?

  9. Monica says

    I’ve been using a meal plan for the past few months now… life is so much better now. No more guessing what to cook. The kids and hubby don’t ask anymore, “what’s for dinner?”. They read it and wait patiently. Thank you Crystal for suggesting that we plan our meals for the week. =)

  11. Heather says

    For the corn dog muffins – I know you made them ahead and froze – are you going to heat them up a little before serving? Just curious. I think my boys would enjoy these but I wondering about heating them up before serving???

  12. Toni says

    Crystal,
    How do you decide what you’ll do for your weekly 1 hour freezer prep? Do you decide first, and plan the for ingredients as you plan your shopping trip? Do you decide based on what is on sale that week? I’d like to do this as well, but other than making an extra of what I’m already cooking for dinner that week, I want to be as practical as possible regarding what I plan. TIA.
    Blessings,
    Toni

    • Crystal says

      I typically decide based upon what I already have on hand and what’s on sale. Occasionally, I’ll throw in something just because I really want to make it know I can wing it in the grocery budget.

      This week: I bought blueberries a few weeks ago when they were on sale and have them in the freezer, so I wanted to make the muffins. I also am making Taco Meat because ground beef is on sale this week at Dillon’s. And I already had everything on hand for the fudge.

      I also keep a running list of recipes I want to try (as I find them) on my Pinterest page. I go there when I’m making my menu to get ideas:
      http://pinterest.com/crystal_paine/

  13. Tina says

    I love the aprons your girls are wearing! My daughter (age 6) was just begging for one of her own-did you buy these or were they made for you? (I know you are sewing challenged-so am !)

  14. Lisa says

    I found a fabulous homemade goldfish cracker recipe that we made yesterday. (I can’t eat cheese, but my kids said it was fabulous!)

    We made those, your butterhorn rolls, your whole wheat cookies, breakfast burritos, hamburger buns, yogurt,, and pound cake yesterday.

    Other than starch, I have no menu plan. 🙂

    (I have a post about it on my blog.)

  15. Jenni says

    Crystal-I love your site!! Thank you for all you do! I did want to say just be careful when eating anything with raw eggs (batter, dough, etc.). I got salmonella poisoning from doing that a couple of years ago and ended up in the hospital. I wouldn’t want anyone to go through what I did. 🙂

    • Crystal says

      Thanks so much! We use farm-fresh chicken eggs and I’ve heard those are okay to eat raw (not that we do a lot of it, though!).

  16. Crystal says

    The Easy Italian Pasta…do you cook your noodles before freezing? I found that cooking and freezing the wheat noodles makes them taste more grainy and chewy. I am sure I am not over cooking them. Any suggestions? Thank you for your site!

  17. Danielle says

    I have to agree with the other comments that you’re such an encouragement.
    I just read above also that you were feeling overwhelmed by your to-to list. Overwhelmed describes perfectly how this week has felt so far- and it’s only Tuesday! 🙂 We had two very unexpected things happen financially over the past few days, and not feeling worried and overwhelmed is a struggle right now. I just keep remembering that post where you wrote that sometimes you and your husband only had $16 to get groceries for the week, but you made it. I just keep telling myself, “If they did it, then so can we”- over and over. Thanks for taking the time to share those stories of how God sustained you through those times. I’ve really needed it the past few days.

    Love the pic of your little ones! They’re precious!

    • Crystal says

      Thank you, Danielle!

      I’m so sorry you’re having a hard week. Email me if you need some specific encouragement. Also, I’d like to send you a little something, can you email me your mailing address?

  19. Mandi says

    We tried the fudge and liked it a lot. It does have a bit of a strong coconut flavor (which we like) and maybe a little light on peanut butter flavor. And it melts easily, so messy kid hands afterwards!

    I will definitely be making it again.

  22. Carrie @ My Favorite Finds says

    I’m back on the menu planning after a week at Disney. It was fly by the seat of my pants last week when we got back, and I realized how much I missed menu planning and the simplicity it gives. Your Brown Sugar Biscuit Twists are becoming a huge favorite in our house. I can’t wait for the Cinnamon Roll Biscuit Recipe. And, I love the shoulder pose of your daughter in the picture. So cute! Here’s our menu this week. Have a great week!
    http://myfavoritefinds.blogspot.com/2011/06/menu-plan-week-of-june-19.html

  28. Joy Y. says

    Hello all,
    Here is our healthy version of strawberry ice cream–for breakfast! Very fast, healthy, and frugal! Plus the kids love it…..oh, and I threw in our blueberry version as well.

    Strawberry-banana ice cream:
    http://vimandvigor.typepad.com/vim-and-vigor/2010/11/my-entry.html

    Blueberry banana ice cream:
    http://vimandvigor.typepad.com/vim-and-vigor/2010/04/nutr.html

    Even if you don’t like banana so much, you will probably enjoy this. When bananas are frozen and whipped up they have a creamy, smooth consistency (surprise!), and there flavor tones way down. Plus, what kid doesn’t want ice cream for breakfast???

    Blessings,

    Joy
    http://www.vimandvigor.typepad.com

  32. Carey says

    Hi Crystal! I am new to your site and I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoy your blog. You always bring such freshness and inspiration to my day. I appreciate all your couponing/ shopping advice and meal ideas, I have been very blessed by your site and feel thankful the Lord led me to your site! I just wanted to thank you. Have a great day Crystal!! 🙂

    • Becky says

      I totally agree with Carey!! I feel like I know you (which is a tribute to your great style of writing on here), and you are such a blessing and encouragement to me … and therefore also to my family. I will admit to a wee bit of envy seeing Silas “helping” with the brownies; my same-age little guy doesn’t seem capable of that just yet. 🙂
      Thank you, Crystal, for an amazing blog. I appreciate you so much.

  34. Heather says

    Love the variety & cannot wait to try a few of these on my family this week too. Have one question though…What are Haystacks from your “Build-Your-Own Haystacks” entry in your menu? Thanks! 😉

    • Crystal says

      I’m going to try and post this recipe sometime soon as many people have asked me the same thing in past weeks. It’s a family favorite!

  36. Erin says

    We tried the peanut butter fudge recipe for father’s day! Eveyone loved it, but we did top the all off with white chocolate mosels to sweeten them up! We used butter since that’s all we had on hand.

  39. em says

    You are like super mom-wife! I am jealous of all you do, thanks for sharing your menus, freezer cooking, coupon deals and everything else! I really appreciate it!!!

    • Crystal says

      Nah, I’m not super mom. In fact, yesterday I was feeling completely overwhelmed with my to-do list. I pared it down some and got a good night’s rest and that helped tremendously!

  40. Amanda says

    I tried the peanut butter fudge recipe last week, and it’s wonderful! Thank you for sharing.Tried it w/ the liners in the muffin tins and it worked well, then got curious and plucky about finding a way to do it without liners, so I tried freezing small portions in an ice cube tray. Once frozen completely, they popped right out when pressure was applied to one end of the fudge “cube.” I think I’ll do it all that way next time.

  41. Michelle says

    I made the healthy homemade fudge last week and I didn’t really care for it. I made the homemade peanut butter that was on the same blog as the fudge recipe. I am assuming if I tried again and made it with peanut butter I have that is store bought, it may taste better. I love peanut butter and chocolate together. Hope you enjoy it when you make it. It would be interesting to know how yours turns out.

  42. Kelly says

    Hey Crystal! I made the Healthy Homemade Fudge for the first time last week, and I just wanted to tell you what I would change if I make it again. 🙂 It has a very strong coconut oil taste, so next time I’ll do half butter and half coconut oil. Also, it’s waaaay better after it sits in the fridge for a day or so. We let it sit for an hour and then tried it and my hubs, little girl, and I all thought it was gross! LOL The next day, we all loved it 🙂
    Just wanted to let you know. 🙂

    • Amanda says

      Good idea re: mixing 1/2 butter with 1/2 coconut oil. I tried it with butter, then later with coconut oil… I think you’re right! Although both versions were lovely, I think a mixture would be great. Thanks for sharing the idea!

    • Tracy says

      There are 2 types of coconut oil. The virgin tastes like coconut I believe, and the pressed is tasteless supposedly. Maybe if you switched kinds of oil?

      • Kelly says

        I didn’t think of that, Tracy! I only have a free jar I got from Tropical Traditions – guess it’s not the tasteless kind.

  43. Michelle @ Simplify, Live, Love says

    Love the picture of your children! So sweet. I’m also making taco meat for the freezer this week – I add beans (black, chili, kidney or whatever I have on hand) to hamburger meat to “stretch” it. I make a huge batch one night for dinner and then freeze the extra. I have to make sure to portion it out ahead of time, though…or too much gets eaten! 🙂

    And thanks for the idea of egg salad sandwiches. I often forget about that, but it’s a favorite around here too.

    My menu is here: http://simplifylivelove.blogspot.com/2011/06/june-menu-part-4-and-some-freezer.html

  44. Frugal Momma @ Live Joyfully says

    Crystal, your little ones are so precious. That impromptu brownie making is definitely a memory maker!!!

    This week we are getting into more “summery” foods. Today we had Penne in Tomato Cream Sauce (not so summery), but delicious nonetheless. I’m also doing Black Bean and Cheese Burritos and Chicken Caesar Salad Wraps (Romaine and Chicken smothered in homemade Caesar dressing, and wrapped in a thin crispy homemade pizza crust. The rest of the menu is here: http://www.savemoneylivejoyfully.com/2011/06/weekly-menu-june-19-25.html

    We freeze taco meat often…makes for a quick and easy meal when we’re busy. It works great.