Remember those cookbooks everyone bought you the first few years you were married? Prep as much as you can in advance. If you toss those peppers in a Ziploc along with the beef slices and some sauce, it will marinade as it freezes and thaws and you only have to clean the cutting board once.

I buy pre-chopped garlic. Also high on my list of faves are pre-chopped vegetables. Put the tired little person to bed and ask your partner to bring home a nice bottle of wine. Then you can enjoy that nice meal together. What you do after dinner is entirely up to you….

Julia Warrender is a wife, a mother, a communications professional and an all-around smartass. Skip to main content. A meal plan only works if it works for you. In this part of the article we will be reviewing common questions that working moms should consider when meal planning.

This will help you get this whole meal planning thing right! This is an important thing to look at because this is a major cost-saving measure and a huge food-saver.

If you have several lunch meetings in the coming week then there is no need to include yourself in the lunch serving sizes.

Little questions like this allow you to narrow down serving sizes for your recipes and what meals to skip entirely, helping you streamline your cooking time and your budget. Another important consideration that helps save money and time.

Leftovers can be eaten as is or repurposed for other things. If your family enjoys leftovers then a major timesaver is doubling a recipe so that your meal can double as two or sometimes three!

This saves time and money! This question can be a huge money-saver. Furthermore, reusing bulk items allows you to cook large servings that can be used as leftovers throughout the week, saving you time and money.

We all know that fresh fruits and vegetables are the healthiest food items that we can put in our body. However, fresh fruits and vegetables can be expensive and can go bad quickly, which is a waste of resources and money. A pro tip— produce that is in-season is more affordable, more nutritious, and more flavorful.

Shop in season! Doing a quick internet search to find which produce is in season in your local area, and then planning to use the in-season produce in multiple meals throughout the week is a huge money saver. In addition to the list above you will need a ton of produce on the side.

Skipping any of those macronutrients could result in poor digestion, poor nutritional quality, and meals that are not filling or satisfying. Carbohydrates have gotten a bad rap recently looking at you, Keto devotees! Carbohydrates also tend to be the bulk items that we can buy and use throughout the week rather than having to do a ton of prep work.

Examples of carbohydrates include bread, pasta, potatoes, grains, and most fruits. The recommended serving size for carbohydrates is ½ cup or roughly ¼ of the plate. For all you calorie counters out there, that equates to about 30g to 45g max of carbs per meal.

Make sure to include carbohydrates in every meal to increase the nutrition of the meal, while cutting down the cost of the meal and saving yourself some prep time. Healthy fats, like nut butters, avocado, hummus, cooking oils, and cheese, add flavor to a meal, along with a ton of nutrition and protein.

Healthy fats support growth and help your body absorb all the nutrients from nutrient-rich foods, like produce. It's important to always have your fruits and vegetables with a little bit of fat to make sure your body is always getting the full amount of nutrition that the produce can give.

Of all the macronutrients, protein tends to be the food item that requires the most prep work, since a good amount of food items high in protein need to be cooked to be consumed. We want to aim for around three to four ounces of protein per meal, which clocks in around 10 to 20g.

Examples of foods rich in protein include meat, eggs, dairy, nuts, and protein products, like bars and powders. There are definitely ways to cut down on meal prep with protein.

Options like rotisserie chicken, meat sliced at the deli counter, pre-hardboiled eggs, protein products like shakes and bars, smoked salmon, or frozen products can definitely make your life easier.

As described above, our bodies need all three macronutrients represented in each meal we eat to ensure optimal digestion and absorption. A nutritious and balanced meal is composed of a single serving each of fat, protein, and carbs and half a plate of produce.

Breakfast can be the most hectic meal of the day, especially for working moms. Having a healthy breakfast regulates your blood sugar and gives you a nutritious energy boost to start your day off on the right foot.

Making breakfast ahead of time can be a huge time-saver. Here are some breakfast ideas that you can make ahead of time. Set up a bunch of mason jars, fill them all at once with oats, dairy of choice, fruit of choice, and toppings of choice toppings can include protein powder, nut butter, sliced nuts, chia or flax seeds, cottage cheese , mix, seal, and store in the fridge up to a week.

In the morning, simply grab one of these oat-filled jars and a spoon and enjoy! E gg bakes are basically large egg casseroles that you cook in a large baking dish or in individual muffin tins. You can use whatever mix-ins you prefer different vegetables, cheeses, and meats , mix together, and bake in the oven.

One egg bake recipe can yield up to eight servings and you can keep it in the fridge for up to a week. Pro tip- once the egg bake is cooked and cooled, slice it and portion it in Tupperware for easier grab and go. S moothies are lovely but who wants to spend all the time chopping and slicing in the morning?

One pro-tip to make smoothies easier; prep smoothie bags ahead of time on the weekend and store in the freezer. Lay out seven bags, fill each one with a mix of berries, sliced unpeeled bananas, and other fruits of choice, and then store in the freezer.

In the morning, dump the freezer smoothie bag in the blender with your dairy of choice, a scoop of protein powder, and a scoop of nut butter and blend it all up.

Easy and breezy! Other meal items that can be prepped and frozen easily for breakfast include breakfast burritos, baked oatmeal, and healthy parfaits. Meal-planning component meals ahead of time allows you to use those bulk items with the fresh produce you purchased at the store in a quick and timely manner.

Having each component meal planned for the week takes the thinking out of the equation, ensuring that you have structure for the week. Not only can children learn valuable lessons about nutrition and basic cooking skills, but they also get to enjoy the result of their hard work.

Here are some tips for involving your kids in the kitchen:. Batch cooking is an efficient way to streamline your meal prep and save time in the kitchen. From prepping and planning your meals to cooking larger quantities of ingredients, this guide will offer step-by-step instructions to help you get started with batch cooking.

With batch cooking, you can save time and money while having delicious, nutritious meals all week long. That being said, batch cooking may not be the healthiest or even the most sustainable option out there since the food made often loses its nutritional value and taste over time if not consumed within the stipulated time and leads to food wastage.

Learn if Batch Cooking is the right fit for you , and how it compares against daily meal prep. The weekday rush often doesn't allow for experimenting with new recipes, so keeping things simple is a must.

You may have a job or multiple other responsibilities to attend to, and the same may apply to other family members.

In such a scenario, whipping up a brand-new recipe may not be the best idea. This can result in you losing tons of time and energy, and the recipe itself may not live up to your expectations. Instead, mix and match ingredients to prep easy recipes.

For example, you could serve breakfast foods for dinner, like eggs and yogurt. Or you could do a snack-style dinner with a variety of healthy offerings. This way, you can make sure everyone is fed without spending too much time in the kitchen. It automates the entire cooking process so all you have to do is load the prepped ingredients and let Nymble prepare you a meal while you go about your day as usual.

Besides, it updates you in real-time through app notifications when done. It lets you filter recipes based on preferences, diet, calories, and ingredients of choice, or even study detailed nutritional information for every recipe you cook. We recognized the need to automate the process of cooking in itself, since people are busier than ever before, and often resort to an unhealthy diet in the process.

But at the same time, we chose to empower users to make their own food decisions, by giving them the ability of customizing, curating, tracking and reviewing all meals made by the cooking robot. With Nymble in your kitchen , you can start your day by picking the recipes you'd like to try.

After that, all you have to do is set out a reasonable and time-efficient meal-prep routine. Once the veggies, herbs, spices and all the other ingredients are ready, all that's needful is for you to load them onto your cooking robot's assorted sections and tap 'cook' to begin the cooking process.

And in no more than 40 minutes, your meal will be hot and ready! Having this smart kitchen appliance makes your daily meal-planning process extremely efficient, but also gives you the gift of time which you can use to focus on more pressing responsibilities.

In conclusion, as busy moms and working professionals, finding the time for meal planning and preparation can seem like an impossible task.

But with the right tools and strategies, mealtime can be transformed into a stress-free and enjoyable experience. Embrace the meal planning solutions presented in this blog and take the first step towards a healthier and happier mealtime routine.

Say goodbye to fast food and hello to delicious home-cooked meals, all while managing your busy schedule. All Articles. User Stories. StarChef Stories. Our Food Philosophy.

Or you can download my Meal Planning for Busy Moms E-Book with all of the easy recipes that I use for meal planning as a working mom.

This will help you slowly build your weekly meals. Once you find one you like, save that recipe and start stocking those ingredients.

I typically plan meals with recipes now. There is something magical about making the same meals over and over. It sounds boring, but you get familiar with these recipes. I use the same ingredients over and over. The beauty of this method is that it can work for anybody and any diet.

If one of your goals is to eat healthier, choose 3 healthy meals to start with and follow this simple method. I personally now follow an extremely restrictive Paleo for Autoimmune diet AIP and have continued to use this same method of meal planning for working moms since my switch.

I just changed out my meals to include healthy options. So if you want to eat healthy food, choose healthy recipes. If you want me to put together a recipe ebook for healthy, easy meals let me know in the comments.

Well, there you have it. With a little bit of planning, you can plan meals for the upcoming week. Use this meal planning method for busy weeknights, especially if you have young kids and find yourself staggering through the door to no plan like me.

No charts, planners, or lists. Just simple meals and stocking ingredients. If you liked this post, share it with other busy moms who need help with meal planning. Acacia is a mom of two boys and a librarian.

She has worked as a teacher and teacher-librarian, as well as a parenting instructor. She loves learning, growing as a mom, and finding the perfect books for her kids. She writes about becoming a mom, navigating mom-life, and raising readers. Your email address will not be published. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Skip to content Pin 15 Share Email Shares A simple guide to meal planning for working moms. Learn how to plan meals for the entire week, grocery shop, and throw together a meal in less time than picking up take-out.

Meal planning as a working mom can feel like walking uphill with a toddler on your back. Table of Contents. Meal planning for busy moms can feel daunting! Are you a busy working mom or just a busy parent in general that finds it difficult to meal plan around your busy schedule? You are not alone! Here are my strategies for getting healthy food on the table on busy nights without going crazy.

It can feel like a full time job getting dinner on the table every single night. One way or another, the family has to eat. If we don't have strategies and plans to get dinner on the table even when time is crunched, we will find ourselves in the drive through eating fast food more often than we like.

I have made it my mission to help even busy families get healthy meals on the table with as little time spent in the kitchen as possible on busy weeknights. The first thing we need to do is to bust the myth that mean planning is hard. Meal planning does not have to be complicated.

In fact, especially for busy moms, I would recommend keeping it as simple as possible. Plan what you will eat that week. This does not mean that you have to pre-assign meals to each day of the week. It certainly can, but it doesn't have to.

You are essentially just deciding in advance what food to have in your house so you are prepared. Keeping a master list of meals that your whole family loves to eat is very helpful. Make this the bulk of your meal plan. Do not try to get fancy. This isn't the season, especially if you have picky eaters.

Stick to winners for the whole family if you want to keep your sanity. Create a shopping list based on your meal plan.

Make sure to check what you already have so you aren't wasting money on something you already have. Go grocery shopping and stick to your list.

If you are very busy, I love using grocery pick up like Instacart or Walmart grocery pick up. Instacart saves me an incredible amount of time every single week.

I "shop" while in my bed on Saturday night and on Sunday I pick up my food without having to step foot in the store. Now to get into the nitty gritty of step number one, here are some of my favorite tips for meal planning for busy moms! Pressure cookers have been around for many years.

It is certainly not a new thing, and it is a powerful tool to getting dinner on the table fast. I was always afraid of pressure cooking, but I have changed my mind since I got my new electric pressure cooker, the Instant Pot.

I have been absolutely amazed by how much this little baby cuts down on cooking time. Dry beans in minutes, shredded chicken in 15 minutes, soups and stews in no time, boiled eggs in 5 minutes, spaghetti squash in 8 minutes, and more. I was absolutely sold the day that I made a beef stew with partially frozen meat in 40 minutes.

If you have trouble remembering to meal plan, thaw meat, or throw something in the slow cooker before work, you will love the Instant Pot. An electric pressure cooker does take time to come to pressure though, so you wouldn't want to put a beef stew in if you have to leave in 30 minutes.

Our favorite Instant Pot meal is Instant Pot taco rice. There's nothing like getting to the end of the day and dinner is already done. You will feel like the hero of your home every time. The slow cooker is a favorite strategy of mine especially in the colder months.

Soups, stews, and shredded meats are awesome cooked in the slow cooker. Browse my recipe collection for ideas. I like to organize my grocery list by the type of item it is. It will also prevent you from having to make another trip across the store because you forgot something on your list!

Now that you have your list ready and organized, getting through the store should take you no time at all! It almost starts to become enjoyable. Well, almost. In fact, now that I have two kids and stay at home I usually do online grocery shopping. I still make my list, but rather than dragging my kids through the store I just hop on the Walmart App and order my food to be picked up the next day!

Then I can drive up, with my happy kids, have my groceries delivered to my car, and head home! It has made my life SO much easier! I usually use this time to also throw out any food that has gone bad. If you have a lazy day or and hour of your Sunday free, plan to use that time for meal prepping.

I have found that if I do this at the same time on the same day each week, I am more likely to get it done. For that reason, I usually get my groceries on Sunday and meal prep on Monday. Take a look at your menu for the week. What things can be cut up ahead of time? I usually cut up my veggies and sort them by meal.

Then I cut up a bunch of fruit and make a fruit salad or sort it by type. Sort out all of your meals. If there are veggies that can be mixed, store them together. When you cut up fruit for snacks, store them by serving size in containers or baggies.

If you are making lunches for the week go ahead and put it in one container that is easy to grab and go. All of the food is prepped and in containers by serving size so he can quickly grab lunch. This is one thing I have started doing for my husband to save him time.

It takes him a good chunk of time to prepare his lunch each night. So, adding this into my meal prep time is my act of service to him.

He appreciates it and I enjoy doing it! One is in the fridge for oranges, cheese sticks, grapes, etc.. and one is in the pantry. The kids can get in the fridge or pantry and grab a snack when they are hungry.

It saves me from searching or naming off all of the available snacks because they know right where they are!

Even my one year old knows where to find his snacks.