30 Days of Dinners

So, I posted about my little notepad that I bought that helps you plan meals. I have loved this little thing and have already planned all of our dinners for the whole month of January. It has been nice because it has made me think about all the recipes I make and let me go through them and pick out a variety for each week. A variety of meats, casseroles, soups, etc. it has also made grocery shopping much easier and has helped me avoid the things that I don't need. Speaking of grocery shopping....one thing that I have done recently is the switch to organic milk. I have read lots of reasons to drink organic milk and most of them don't really matter to me..however...the expiration on organic is like twice as long. I bought milk last week and it is good until 2/21. Amazing! I used to throw milk away all the time because it would go bad before we would drink it all; even with my kids. I never throw it away anymore. So while it is more expensive, for my family there is less cost because of the lack of waste and it is healthier for you too! Just a tip.

I thought I would share some of the meals that we have ate recently or plan to eat for dinner. All of these are recipes I make quite often and I have modified them slightly to be less caloric in value. If you are interested in any of these recipes, let me know and I will try to post. Not going to promise that I will post them all but I might to a 30 days of eating soon. A picture, recipe and review of what we had for dinner for 30 days. What do you think? It will be a little work but if you guys want it, I will do it. Let me know. Kind of like a mini Julie & Julia. Hee hee :)

1) Southwestern Chicken & Rice

2) Hamburgers and baked french fries

3) Egg Noodle chicken & Veggie casserole

4) Pizza with Salad

5) Enchiladas

6) Chicken Stir Fry

7) Spaghetti w/meatballs

8) Potato Soup

9) Fish Tacos

10) Ritz Cracker Chicken Casserole

11) Tortelini Alfredo

12) Maple Salmon w/veggies

13) 12 Bean Soup

14) Chicken Sophia

15) Salsa Pork Chops

16) Tilapia Veracruz

17) Baked Ziti

18) Meatloaf w/ Sweet Potato

19) Stove Top Chicken Casserole

20) Black Bean Burritos

21) Chicken & Wild Rice Soup

22) Beef w/Broccoli & Rice

23) Chili (Taco Soup)

24) Zippy Chicken

25) Tostadas

26) Fettucini Alfredo w/Shrimp

27)White Bean Chili

28) Sloppy Joes

29) Beef Tacos w/spanish rice

30)Split Pea Soup

The best part about this all...when you look at those dinners...they don't sound like diet food. The one thing I have learned is that you can't go depriving yourself every day or live off lean cuisines. I eat the things I love. Modify the recipes to make them lower calorie and then practice portion control. Eating egg whites is not a life and you will not stick to it if that is what you have to do. But eating all of the delicious food above can be fun, easy, healthy and good for the whole family. Also, none of these recipes are hard, they can all be made relatively quickly, especially with a little preparation. Let me know if you want the recipes and detail.

Happy eating!!