Planning Ahead for Dinner

     
My husband and I had a wonderful vacation with one of our daughters last week. Because of distance, we don't get to see each other very often, so we relished every moment. 

When we got home, it was definitely time to go grocery shopping! I decided to plan menus for three weeks this time. While my mind was engaged in this direction, why not plan for longer than a week?

Last night I baked a bunch of chicken breasts. We had make-your-own quesadillas last night. We'll have chicken chow mein tonight. And we'll have chicken cranberry salad and wraps later on. 

I cut up chicken while everyone else was doing their after-dinner chores. I froze the chicken for the latter two dishes, refrigerated the chicken for tonight, and I've just taken a big step out of three dinners! Oh, that feels good!

All it took was looking ahead to see what was on the menu and thinking strategically. We'll have steak a couple of times and use leftovers in beef fried rice and fajitas. 

What do you do to streamline dinnertime? I use my Hassle Free Dinners, my own family cookbook, the internet, and recipes from magazines as resources when planning menus. 


More on streamlining dinner:
Hassle Free Dinners
Three Steps to Planning Dinner (includes my family cookbook) 
Planning Dinner