During our 31 Days of Real Food Reality, I’ll be including my normal weekly menus as part of the series. Why? Because these menus are very much a part of my family’s real food reality. I want them to show you how simple it is to put together real food meals!
None of these meals cost a lot of money. None of these meals takes much time to prepare. I rebel against difficult-to-make recipes, knowing that while I love to cook, I really only love it when it is easy and fast. And delicious, of course. :)
Here’s another part of my Real Food Reality: I don’t always stick to my weekly menus. Sometimes what I have planned on Sunday doesn’t sound good by Thursday. Sometimes I forget to thaw the meat. Sometimes I just don’t feel like being tied down to a menu. And sometimes we have leftovers I wasn’t expecting, so we ditch the menu in order to clean out the fridge so that food doesn’t go to waste.
I consider my menu plans to be a guideline to follow…and that’s it. Feel free to use my menu plans to give you ideas, suggestions, and inspiration to make real food a reality for you!
These Raspberry Oatmeal Bars have become one of our favorite snack and breakfast foods.
I love that they can quickly be made anytime I have some spare minutes, then eaten when we need them.
They are perfect to make in the evening to serve for a ready-made breakfast!
Sunday, January 5
Instant oatmeal, fruit
Bacon cheeseburger casserole (from {Healthy} Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks eBook), tossed salad
Small group fellowship – Nacho Bar with all the fixins
Monday, January 6
Chocolate chocolate chip muffins, apples
Chicken noodle soup, carrots
Calico beans, tossed salad
Tuesday, January 7
Easy breakfast casserole, clementines
Cheeseburger macaroni, green beans
Creamy chicken and rice casserole, tossed salad, steamed broccoli
Wednesday, January 8
Cream cheese pumpkin muffins, applesauce
Homemade tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, carrots
Fiesta chicken, homemade tortillas, lettuce, tomatoes, avocados, olives
Thursday, January 9
Raspberry oatmeal bars, bananas
Easy noodle stir fry with broccoli and carrots
Barbecue brisket, baked potatoes, green beans, cream cheese corn
Friday, January 10
Homemade grape nuts cereal, blueberries
Calzones, apples
Chicken pot pie, tossed salad
Saturday, January 11
Homemade poptarts, pears
Leftovers
Sandwiches on the road
Tell us your thoughts on how menu planning fits in with your real food reality!
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Margaret D says
I plan 3 to 4 weeks at a time. We start with what we have on hand. We then make a grocery list of things we need to fill in. we shop every two weeks.
Lacey Vaughn Corbin says
Laura, You should know you are a blessing! You’re ideas are getting our family through this winter…and making it a pleasure to cook meals again. I was desperate for new ideas and desperate to save money doing it. You are an answer to prayers and truly a blessing to our home! Thank you so much for sharing.
Sincerely, Lacey
Kelli Tuter says
When you do sandwiches what bread do you use and what do you put on them? Thanks for sharing on this website it is a blessing to me!
Kristen from workingmommyblog says
I love your meal plans and they give me great ideas on what to feed my family! I agree with everyone else, you truly are a blessing to so many!!! Thanks so much and keep up the great work, I am loving the 31 days of real food…if I don’t have a meal plan then we tend not to eat real and go for real easy which is usually take out! and budget wise we can’t do that!
Lana says
I enjoy reading your menu plans each week. I plan for the entire month on a wall calendar. If I do not use a day I circle it and that day moves to the beginning of the next month. If I do not plan we do not eat out but tend to make less healthy choices. Menu plans are the number one thing that I need to be faithful to do for the running of our household.
Jodie Coher says
Love the raspberry oatmeal bars recipe!!!
So glad you posted that one!
Allison Morrison says
I made 12 Pumpkin Cream Cheese muffins then added choc chips to the remaining batter and made mini muffins for my boys :)
They were a hit with everyone! I’m planning to do the Raspberry bars (with Strawberry instead) for my husband lunch sweet next week. I love your recipes and have been using at least 2 per week the past few months. I’m meal planning 2 weeks in advance right now and love having access to your older weekly menu’s as well. Thanks for what you do!
Caroline Cynova says
I appreciate you offering these healthy meal ideas! Please keep them coming! May I add some food for thought? My question is: What do you use for a protein source with breakfast? Do you serve fresh (preferable raw! :) ) milk with your grain & fruit? My family cannot use grain for breakfast every day; it seems fine for the children but my husband and I cannot digest grains very easily. Husband cannot have ANY wheat. So we often serve egg/veggie dishes (omelets, frittatas, etc.) or breakfast smoothies/shakes. Probably many who avoid grains-or wheat in particular-do similar things to this more often than grain-free versions of the breakfast breads (at least those that don’t have much time to bake or money to buy the convenient alternatives in the health food stores).