Making My Meals & Meal Plans From The Pantry & Freezer In 2025

 

A few months ago I came up with the idea for a better way to make my meals using a lot of the tips and tricks I’ve used and been sharing on my blog for years and years.  To begin with I opened up a worksheet in Excel and I began to brainstorm a bunch of menus simply based on the foods I love to eat.  I made menus for six meals a day with a seventh day for flexibility, either to eat leftovers, go out to dinner with friends or simply have a change of mind.  Before I knew it I had a complete year’s worth of menus drafted.  Apparently I enjoy eating food!

 

I wanted to have a lot of variety in my menu plans, not only to stave off boredom, which is important, but also to allow myself to enjoy a lot of different tastes.  In doing this I’m also able to boost the nutrition in my meals because I’m better able to incorporate a lot of different foods into these meals.  I made Sunday meals more traditional American meals.  Monday – Asian, Tuesday – Mexican, Wednesday – Italian, Thursday – Soup & Salad, Friday – Diner Style (meals I’d like to order if I was going out) and Saturday – FREE (no plan in place so punt!).

 

Since retiring I’ve scaled back to typically making meals for at least two people so I’m going to continue doing this with the idea that I’ll always have a meal to share with someone and if not then I will use it to make a freezer meal.  Once I’ve done this for awhile I be able to fill up the freezer with a lot of different meals to pull out, thaw and reheat for quick and easy dinners when I’m busy or just don’t feel like cooking.

 

Once a week I cook all of my meals now for the week ahead, usually on Saturday or Sunday.  I’ve been practicing this for several weeks and so far it is working out very nicely.  I’m able to easily pull items from the deep freezer and pantry to make everything on the menu plan.  Fresh dairy and produce from the refrigerator completes the meals.  I’m able to easily stick to my shopping lists and budget too.

 

I am finding a lot of bonuses in doing this.  One - I always have a nutritionally complete meal at the ready so I’m less likely to eat poorly or skip a meal when I’m busy or tired from a long day.  That has been a bit of a problem for me at times.  Two – I’m able to eat a lot more of the meals I really enjoy eating and I don’t get stuck in a rut.  Three – I am able to incorporate better quality cuts of meat, more vegetables and far less processed foods.  Four – I am saving a lot of money and a ton of time.  I am spending less time in the kitchen cooking and cleaning up as well as about half the time I used to spend shopping for food.  Five – I’ll be putting away enough meals in my freezer that I’ll be able to take time off from all cooking duties multiple times a year.  My one year of menus may actually be a two year menu plan by the time all is said and done.

 

Boosting my health through good nutrition is very important to me.  Having a good solid plan outlined and easy to execute is going to pay off in volumes for me to achieve my goal.