As I have gotten older and circumstances have changed in my life, I have spent more time in the kitchen making dinner. One of my favorite parts of cooking is meal planning. I like spending time each day or sometime during the week to decide what to make for dinner. The key is to have a well stocked pantry of food items and for me, living in more rural areas, having a well stocked freezer.
I did live in a few small towns for awhile but they were 6hrs further south than where I am now. I had access to major grocery stores as well as smaller markets even if they were 15-60minutes away. Living in the “country” I soon discovered having a well stocked freezer was not only easier, but cheaper, as you could buy meats in larger quantities & vacuum seal it into smaller portions.
As of last November I soon realized how much I was spoiled. Moving up to Almost Canada has made me miss my grocery stores even if they were a little ways away. The grocery stores up here are…how shall I say it…depressing. Everything is limited & everything is expensive. You go with a mindset of what to make and your key ingredients are not to be found. The grocery store 45minutes away is better, but still not very good. The one 2hrs away is better still, but once again, not the same. Seasonal cooking is definitely a concept I have to embrace as well as a constant lack of ingredients even in that season.
So once again I stocked my pantry with canned & boxed goods as well as stocking my freezer with meat portioned out & vacuum sealed.
I know one day the deep freeze will be stocked as well, although probably with fishing or hunting conquests. Having numerous supplies now at hand I proceed to go about planning dinners & lunches as needed. Sometimes on a day by day basis and sometimes for the whole week.
Meal planning still gives me enjoyment. I had some misgivings at first since everything was limited, but one has to look at it in a different light. You have to look at it like dieters do. It’s not what you can’t have but rather all the things you can have. With this mindset I set about to make dinners with leftovers if needed for easy lunches the next day all the while trying to vary what I make, use up items that need to be eaten, & try out new things. Some are huge hits & others need some tweaking but it’s fun to see what comes out of the kitchen.
Here is what I came up with for this past week as an example. I started my meal planning on Thursday last week to go through Thursday of this week. Friday is up in the air but I have a leftover prepped lasagna in the freezer for after a day of ice fishing on Saturday.
- Thursday: Spaghetti & Meatballs (also resulted in leftovers for Fri lunch)
- Friday: Meatball Sandwiches
- Saturday: Lasagna
- Sunday: Mustard Pork Roast w/apples & onions (recipe from my lovely which also produced lunch for Monday)
- Monday: Salmon & Spaghetti Squash Fritters w/zesty dipping sauce
- Tuesday: Chicken & Squash chausson/calzone
- Wednesday: Pork Chops w/zucchini, summer squash, & rutabaga (made in the slow cooker with onion soup mix & broth)
- Thursday: Skillet Chicken & Chile Rellenos w/corn & tomatoes served over rice
As part of this last weeks meal planning I was able to use some ground meat in the freezer & make numerous dishes out of it. Also, I cooked Salmon for the first time. I made up a recipe that I thought would go with a spaghetti squash fritter recipe I pulled up from the internet. The squash (and spinach) needed to be eaten so I based my meal around that item. A long time ago I learned that meals do not always need to be based around meat. Sometimes you pick a vegetable & then work your meal around that – like for the rellenos recipe. I had two poblano peppers that needed to be eaten & leftover roasted chicken from the chausson recipe, so I combined the two & used pantry items to supplement. In addition, I also try to vary the meat source used in the meals so as not to get sick of any one thing (I’m slowly getting my fishing guide to have some meatless dishes but he still prefers meat in every meal).
With all of these concepts & a well stocked pantry & freezer, I set about meal planning. It’s fun & it’s Zen for me. It relaxes me & excites me. I feel at peace in a way knowing that I will produce (hopefully) delicious meals for myself & others to eat. I also get excited when I try new things or come up with new recipes. Despite living in a small town with not much to choose from, none of that has changed.
