Coming up with dinner every.single.day. can be such a struggle. My weekly dinner plans are created to help you get one thing off your to-do list and have less stress at dinner time!
Visit the WEEKLY DINNER PLANNER archive for more meal planning ideas!
Table of Contents
Dinner Plan #35
Meal Prep Tips
These are some basic prep ideas you can do before the week starts to get ahead of the game! Do some, do them all, whatever works for you! I just barely make it to the grocery shopping part, so actual meal prep is a stretch for me personally …. but I hear it’s super-efficient 😬🤪
| Loaded Steak Salad Bowl | Make the dressing. Slice scallions. Grill & slice corn. |
| Chicken Meatballs with Peppers and Orzo | Prepare chicken meatballs (store up to 2 days raw; or cook and store.) Prepare sauce up to 2 days ahead. |
| Shrimp Lo Mein | Dice carrots, bell pepper, broccoli and onion. Prepare lo mein sauce (let cool then store in fridge; give it a good stir before using.) |
| Chicken Francese | Slice and juice lemon. Trim and cut chicken (up to 2 days ahead.) |
| French Bread Pizza | Shred cheeses if using block cheese. |
Recipe Links • Side Ideas • Helpful Tips
Loaded Steak Salad Bowl
from What’s Gaby Cooking
I love the idea of taking a heavy protein like steak and pairing it with a light refreshing salad. And this particular salad is extra delicious thanks to some buttery avocado, charred sweet corn, and a fresh and creamy Cilantro Lime Yogurt Dressing!
FYI:
- SUBSTITUTIONS:
- Chicken or shrimp can easily be subbed for steak if you prefer.
- If you can’t do the grilled corn, opt for frozen corn instead of canned so you still get that awesome crunch similar to fresh corn.
- Instead of cilantro, try the dressing with chives!
SIDE IDEAS:
- Corn chowder
- Roasted potatoes
- Tortilla chips with pico de gallo
Chicken Meatballs with Peppers and Orzo
from Pinch of Yum
When spaghetti and meatballs start to sound boring, switch it up with this stellar combo. Chicken meatballs in a simple tomato and pepper sauce served with creamy dreamy orzo. Yum!
FYI:
- DOUBLE IT UP This is actually a great freezer meal. Make a double batch of the meatballs with sauce and freeze half. Then all you do is reheat and make fresh orzo. Dinner done!
SIDE IDEAS:
Shrimp Lo Mein
from Mom’s Dish
Saucy, salty, and full of veggies. Shrimp Lo Mein is one of my FAVE dinners when I’m looking for something filling and comforting.
FYI:
- Make life easier with pre-cut veggies, or even a bag of frozen Asian veggies.
- Instead of bell peppers, I like to use snap peas.
- You can also add or sub strips of chicken or beef.
SIDE IDEAS:
Chicken Francese
from Jo Cooks
Juicy pan-friend chicken coated in a tangy, luscious lemon-butter sauce. Served over pasta, this is a “fancy” weeknight meal that’s easy enough to make in 30 minutes.
FYI:
- This recipe has a light lemon flavor (to me at least) so it’s great if you don’t like sauces that are too lemony. (Feel free to add a few more spoons of lemon juice though!)
- PRO-TIP: Buy Mini Wines. They say you shouldn’t cook with a wine you wouldn’t drink. But a lot of people don’t really drink wine and want the leftovers. So, buy mini wine bottles! They typically come in 4 packs and I’ll buy a red and a white to keep it in my pantry for cooking.
SIDE IDEAS:
- Pasta, drizzled with some of that lemon sauce (or just butter)
- Mashed potatoes
- Italian side salad
- Roasted broccoli or zucchini
French Bread Pizza
from The Seasoned Mom
Does French bread pizza remind you of your childhood? I haven’t had French bread pizza in ages, came across this recipe and smiled. We used to get the frozen ones all the time. Why not just make it yourself?! And so, we shall.
FYI:
- Make it a pizza bar! Set out small bowls of various toppings and let everyone make their own French bread pizza.
- Take note of the recommendation to use soft French bread, not a crusty french baguette.
SIDE IDEAS:
- Balsamic Tomatoes
- Caesar Salad
Hope this helps make dinner time less stressful for you this week! If you have questions or feedback let me know in the comments or email me, I’d love to hear from you 💜
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How To Use the Meal Plans
People are typically put off by commitment but if you give yourself a guideline with the flexibility and permission to make changes as needed, you’ll be more likely to stick to it. That’s why flexible meal plans work.
I give you 5 suggestions and you pick 3-5 meals for your week. Each week I scour through my collections of recipes from a variety of amazing food bloggers, recipe sites, cookbooks and personal recipes to thoughtfully create a weekly dinner plan that is easy and delicious. Pick 3-5 of them for your week based on what works for your schedule and include days for eating out, leftovers, etc.
Use the order of the meals as a guideline. You’ll notice dinners are not listed as Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, etc. and that’s on purpose. I don’t want you to feel restricted. That sense of “I HAVE to do this” is what makes people stop meal planning. Keep things flexible and be realistic with your expectations and schedule.
Make mindful adjustments. Sometimes, you need to consider foods (i.e. meats) that need to be used by certain days. For example, if you planned on making steak fajitas on Tuesday, but now it’s Tuesday and you can’t or don’t want to, think about your ingredients for a minute. Check your steak, if the date is good til tomorrow then just make sure you make that meal tomorrow. Otherwise, throw it in the freezer and plan to make it on Friday instead (just take it out the day before to thaw.) This will become second nature as you continue meal planning.
Grocery shop for the week. Get all your groceries for the week so you have everything on hand. This will save you so much time and extra money spent on impulse purchases.
