Why does it seem like every single day I’m asking “What can I cook for dinner tonight?” Whatever I choose, one of the kids will inevitably say “Ugh, I hate that!” And if I’m honest, it doesn’t sound that great to me either. So I end up making grilled cheese sandwiches again. Or I get a hot and ready pizza because it’s not any cheaper to make dinner myself.
I love cooking for my family, it’s deciding what to cook that’s the real challenge. There is a better way. It starts with a guided brainstorming session and a plan. Then you won’t dread the question that we all have to answer every single night: “What’s for dinner?”
Find Some Good Cookbooks
I wanted to make a list of go-to dinners that are easy to make that most of my family won’t complain about. Many people find recipes online, but I hate how long it takes to scroll through all the sites and stories about your grandma and all the variations and I just can’t. When I do find one I like, I can never remember which one I actually ended up using, so I can’t find it when I want to make it again.
I prefer a cookbook with real pages I can thumb through to get inspired. There’s something about a well-loved page smeared with soy sauce or butter stains because I’ve come back again and again to this tried and true recipe. I found that most of the recipes I love came mainly from two cookbooks.
Real Simple is great because it’s divided by season and the title is not wrong, they’re easy and delicious recipes. It has beautiful pictures, so it's very easy to get inspired. They are a bit on the gourmet side, but nothing too weird.
Natasha’s Kitchen was recommended to me by a friend and I’ve been eyeing it for a while. Her website has a bunch of recipes I’d like to try, so let me know what you think.
Make a Recipe Bank
For my brainstorming session, it helped me to think in terms of protein. I wanted to find five recipes that used four different proteins: beef, chicken, pork, and seafood/other. Then I tried to think of categories like Mexican, Asian, Italian, etc. My family likes to eat flavorful foods from lots of different cultures. But if your family enjoys more traditional all-American recipes, no judgment here. I want you to find something that gets you excited and that you would look forward to eating.
Having 20 recipes is a great starting point. My recipe bank is always a work in progress. Sometimes I find a new recipe I want to try, so I add to it. Sometimes meals don’t go as well as I hoped they would, so I cross them off. I have my recipe bank printed on my fridge so I can mark it off when I make each dish. Once all the recipes are marked off, I start over.
Leftovers Are Key
The next secret is making a plan to only cook three nights a week. Leftovers are a girl's best friend because you get a delicious home-cooked meal without the work. If your family isn’t into leftovers, just encourage them to give it a try, it’s not going to kill them to eat the same thing two days in a row. It will save you time and money too.
Some nights are busier than others, so even if you cook two nights in a row, just plan to have leftovers the next two nights. But definitely plan to cook enough food that your whole family can eat the same meal for two nights. For example, I work late on Wednesday nights, so we usually have leftovers that night.
My Meal Plan For The Week
Make a Plan For The Week
I like to plan on the weekend, so my week starts on Monday. Then I go grocery shopping for the week all at once. If you cook three times a week your 20 recipes will get you through almost 7 weeks. If you only have recipes you love, you’ll always be excited to cook. This has been a game-changer for me.
Fill out the contact form with "meal plan" as the message and I'll send you a free PDF. You can print the Weekly Meal Plan, laminate or frame it to use it again and again. There's also a Recipe Bank you can print and fill up with all your favorite recipes. I hope these tools will inspire you and help you stay organized. Drop a comment with some of your go-to dinners that your family loves.
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