Meal Planning

Meal planning is one of those simple pleasures that can easily be missed. To find that simple enjoyment, only takes a little extra thought, care, and time. Suddenly a last-minute scramble to think up a grocery list turns into an opportunity to create a menu to look forward to. Over at The Maple Press, some tips and tricks have proven to make the entire weekly experience much more fulfilling. Today each of those tips and tricks will be shared, and tomorrow, the first installment of meal plans by The Maple Press will be published, featuring a menu planned for the week of February 20-26.

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Time

The trick to planning meals in an enjoyable way is to set aside some time in advance (weekly, every few weeks, monthly) to sit down with a notebook or notes app, maybe a favorite drink to sip on, and a calendar. Take note of any upcoming holidays or events that meals would need to be planned around. It also helps to have a furry friend napping nearby.

Seasonal

A great tip for creating an enjoyable meal planning experience is to have a list of what produce is in season each month. This not only helps provide some ideas, but it's a way to ensure a continual variety of meals throughout the year. Get the most out of each season by incorporating those seasonal items into as many dishes as possible.

Inspiration

The next tip is to have an overflowing source of inspiration to pull from. Getting stuck in a rut of the same dishes week after week is not only depressing but is far from healthy. Bodies need variety, and thanks to the internet, it's not hard to find something to inspire a menu filled with different dishes. The Maple Press finds inspiration from...

- Pinterest: This is the absolute best source of food inspiration. Saving and organizing photos and recipes is a breeze, and searching for something couldn't be easier. The feature used most often is the ability to search "your Pins" for recipes previously saved. Looking for all the delicious rhubarb recipes you've saved? Go to your profile, and type in "rhubarb" in the search bar on the top that shows, "Search your Pins". Then voilà! All the rhubarb recipes you've saved are displayed.

- Instagram: Another great source for inspiring dishes is Instagram, and with their option to save posts, it's easy to go back and find photos or recipes that sparked some interest.

- Food52: From inspiring articles to well-tested recipes, Food52 has so much to offer. It's also a great place to find top-quality items to help prepare amazing meals, from handy appliances and cutting boards to aprons and cookbooks.

- Cookbooks: Nothing can replace the experience of paging through a collection of cookbooks. There is simplicity in the practice and the timeless value of printed recipes, stories, and heritage that are stored inside the binding will never cease to inspire.

Consistent Breakfast

While variety is key in creating healthy and exciting meals, there is value in keeping a consistent breakfast. Something satiating to look forward to each morning, like a warm baguette with butter and jam, paired with some juice, coffee, or tea. It's healthy and always exciting, yet simple, and leaves more time to plan lunches and dinners that emanate variety. If the grocery budget is more limited, a consistent lunch is also a great option, possibly switching between two lunch options throughout the week to save funds.

Go-To's

Well within the vein of variety, a list of go-to cuisines or dishes is incredibly helpful. This is another place Food52 shines, offering a helpful search option within the "Recipes" section of that site that allows users to filter based on cuisine (which is an impressive list of... all cuisines ever, from what it looks like), or dish type. The Maple Press go-to's are:

CUISINE

• Asian

• French

• Italian

• Mediterranean

• Mexican

• New England

DISH TYPE

• Breakfast

• Pasta

• Pie

• Salad

• Sandwich

• Soup

Protein

Another trick to preparing enjoyable meals that offer variety, flavor, and nutrients is to look at the protein. It can be easy to fall into the rut of serving the same protein again and again, without branching out into the vast options available. Choosing one night each week for fish, another for chicken, one for pork, turkey, and even a meatless night. Possibly preparing red meat once a month to keep things affordable and healthy.

Simple

The last, and possibly most important tip for creating an enjoyable meal planning experience is to keep it simple. It can be far too easy to fall into the trap of over-analyzing the menu, which ultimately takes the enjoyment right out. The above-mentioned tips and tricks can all work together to keep things simple. The outcome is the opportunity to nurture a love for cooking, creating, and eating. The Maple Press has found that looking for dishes that offer variety, highlight vegetables, and consist of mostly real, unprocessed foods is highly effective in providing satiating nutrients to enjoy a healthy life.

Until next time,

The Maple Press