Monthly Meal Planning: September
With seven weeks to go until we head off on honeymoon, it's safe to say Matt and I are counting the days until our departure! In order to not go completely stir crazy while we wait, I thought it could be fun to challenge ourselves to a monthly meal plan for the month of September. I have seen several videos on youtube of families planning out all of their meals each month in one go but these are mostly very large families where that level of planning and budgeting is a necessity. So, I wondered: what would a monthly meal plan look like for a smaller household?
This was also partially driven by the closure of our preferred local supermarket, which means we now have to get our groceries delivered. We still have a couple of smaller shops nearby so we can stock up on perishables but as a whole, we're now dependent on the delivery option since the selection in the smaller stores is much less consistent than our previous option.
As a household of two, we struggle to meet the 40 pound minimum for delivery when we shop just for a single week (and therefore would normally be incurring an extra charge). So, a month's worth of meals means we're well above that minimum and we save on delivery fees since we're only having them come out to us once rather than three or four times in the month.
Finally, I liked the idea of planning out our month so that the vast majority of our meals were homemade. We tend to do a good job of cooking at home but we do also succumb to the temptations of a takeaway when we're exhausted from a long week. Since we'll be eating out the whole time we're on honeymoon, we thought September would be a good time to focus on healthy eating.
How did we meal plan?
So, to get organized for the month, we sat down and planned out our breakfasts, lunches, and dinners for four weeks. First, we went through our fridge, freezer and cupboards to work out what we already had and what needed to be used up during September.
Next, we went down our list of favorite meals to get a good mix of affordable, easy and nutritious options.
Then, we laid them all out in the table below and then made a list of the ingredients we'd need for each meal.
Part of the process also involved moving meals around to make the most of ingredients - this meant we could space out our perishable purchases and also avoid food waste as much as possible.
Finally, we used the "special offers" section to help us determine where we could adjust our menu to take advantage of additional savings. For example, Tesco had an offer of 3 for 10 on some meat products so we decided to have the minted lamb kebabs and beef kebabs for our lunches and use a pack of sausages for dinner one week.
What did we buy?
Fruit: Braeburn Apples (6), Bananas (5), Lemons (8)
Vegetables: Tomatoes (6), Bell Peppers (9), Garlic, Red Onions (1kg), Potatoes (2.5kg), Mushrooms (300g), Red Cabbage (1), Broccoli (1), Green Beans (2 x 80g), Sliced Spring Greens (240g),
Dairy/Dairy Alternatives: Almond Milk (2), Greek Yogurt (3 x 500g), Grated Mozzarella (250g), Butter (250g)
Meat: Minted Lamb Kebabs (400g), Chicken Drumsticks (1kg), Chicken Breast (950g), Beef Kebabs (400g), Pepperoni (120g), Large Eggs (2 x 12), Pork Sausages (10), Bacon Lardons (2 x 180g)
Frozen: Leaf Spinach (900g), Cherries (480g), Strawberries and Blueberries (500g)
Cupboard: Porridge Oats (2kg), Ginger Puree (75g), Coconut Milk (2 x 400ml), Canned Tuna (4), Cream of Mushroom soup (1), Red Lentils (1kg), Wholegrain Bread (800g), Baked Beans (6), Canned Chopped Tomatoes (4), Canned Cannellini Beans (2), Sliced Black Olives (2), Green Olives (1), Long Grain and Wild Rice (3 x 500g), Light Mayonnaise (430ml), Mango Chutney (227g), Taco Seasoning (3 x 25g), Wholemeal Pittas (6), Chicken Stock Cubes (8 x 10g), Plain Flour (1.5kg)
Household: Fabric Freshener, Toilet Paper, Kitchen Sponges, Baking Paper
Total spent on our Tesco grocery delivery: £101.55
Additionally, I popped into our local Korean grocery store after work to get a few items for our Korean nights later in the month:
Scallion Pancakes - £5.49
Korean BBQ Dumplings - £3.89
Pork and Vegetable Dumplings - £5.39
So the total spent so far on groceries in September is: £116.32
Goals for the Month
One of the main goals is to see how much we save both in time and cash by buying most of our groceries all in one go. Additionally, we've planned all of our meals (including dining out with friends and treat meals) so a second goal will be to stick to the plan and avoid the temptation (and added cost) of takeaways and quick fixes.
In terms of meal prepping, another goal is to set up a system of prepping each week on Sundays. This includes making our breakfasts for the week plus lunches and dinners for at least three days. Our fridge isn't huge so we don't have the space to prep every single meal for a whole week so I think three days is a good compromise. I'm curious to see how much additional free time this system will give me in the evenings after work!
Finally, when it comes to blogging, my goal is to blog recipes three times a week (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) plus a weekly round up blog post on Sundays where I'll set out what we're having that week and any additional groceries we've had to pick up to keep up with our meal plan.
Week One
This week, we're having overnight oats for breakfast, quinoa bowls with the minted lamb kebabs and veggies (cucumber, bell pepper, and cabbage) for lunch and paprika lemon chicken drumsticks with roast potatoes and green beans for dinner.
Later in the week, our dinner's shift to two nights of baked potatoes with beans and cheese or tuna and then a homemade pizza night on Saturday.
Since this is our first week, we had everything we need for these recipes arrive in our grocery delivery so we're all set to go.
Wish us luck!
