Meal Planning: January 2017

If you've never tried meal planning, I highly recommend it. Not only does it help us avoid eating out and resorting to things like spaghetti or PB&J, it also makes grocery shopping simpler and staying within budget easier. I've been spending a decent bit of time the last few weeks putting together a plan of what all I want to bring to the blog in 2017, and sharing my meal plans and my grocery costs with you are two of those things!

If you have never meal planned before or want a quick explanation of how I do so, you can find that information under the Meal Plans tab at the top of the page. I've made some updates there recently that I hope you find useful. I'll also be linking this post (and future ones) there as well, so that you can easily find them all in one place.

Ranger was a big helper today while I was working on our meal plan :) For the first time in a looonng time, we don't have any house guests or family travels happening this month! I will be gone for 48 hours the first weekend to attend a Plexus training event and spend some time with my girl, Brittany Kirk. Other than that, we don't have any other commitments or plans that prevent us from cooking at home. Quite a few of the meals you see listed are ones that I have shared recipes for previously, but others you haven't seen yet, which means new recipes to come!

While I feel pretty well versed in meal planning and have been doing so for some time now, filling in this whole calendar with no conflicts was harder than I expected! A few of the meals we have planned (whole chicken, shredded pork, jambalaya) intentionally yield a good deal of leftovers or get repurposed into other meals (i.e. Crockpot Whole Chicken >> Shreaded Buffalo Chicken for the top of the sweet potatoes the next day). Because we have a tendency to often stretch things more than I orginally anticipate, I've intentionally left the last few days of the month blank. There is a high likelyhood that we will either bump some meals until later in the month as we go, or that I will have shredded chicken or pork that gets frozen and can fill in those gaps later. And as a reminder, we meal plan lunches and dinners in our home. We have a few different breakfasts we generally rotate between, so those ingredients are staples and don't really require advanced planning. Jason does take home cooked meals to work each evening as his dinner, so making sure I have something to send him is part of my wifely duties 😜 I, on the other hand, will eat the same dinner as him if there were enough leftovers/I prepared myself a portion in advance also, or I can easily throw together a soup, salad, or stirfry for myself on a whim. So here it is, January 2017: 

I hope you find this info to be helpful and I can't wait to share some of these new recipes with you this month. If you have any questions, please drop me a comment below! 

Budget Bootcamp: Intro and Getting Set For Success!

While we aren't truly starting this series quite yet, there are a few tidbits I wanted to share with you now to set us up for the best success.  I am THRILLED that so many of you have expressed interest in following along, and there is still time to join if you'd like to do so! We will be using the posts here on the blog for the majority of the content, and our closed Facebook group for a place to communicate with one another as we go. Today, I want to cover some basics and create a solid foundation to work from over the course of this series. When it comes to budgets, it's important to recognize that what works for one person, might not be another person's cup of tea. And that is A-OKAY. Throughout the course of this program I'll be sharing different templates, resources, and styles so that you can pick what suits you best. Our private Facebook group is a great place to ask questions, share other ideas you've seen in the past, encourage and support one another. If you haven't been added to this page yet, please drop me a comment below so I can do so for you!

So let's get started. Here's three basic areas we need to cover before diving in.

What is a budget?
You've heard that word, and you've most likely used it a few times yourself. But really, what does having a budget mean? A budget, in the simplest terms possible, means balancing your expenses in relation to your income, and knowing where your money is going. Creating a budget doesn't have to be overly complicated. The goal here is to be aware of where our paychecks get used or saved each month, and make sure what is spent is spent intentionally and responsibly.

Why do I need one?
Think about a CEO or founder of a company. Big company, small company... doesn't matter. Do you think they have to know where the money is going? Without a budget to show where they are spending money and where they are earning it, they wouldn't be in business very long. Same for you and your household. You are the CEO of your family, and if you are spending more than you are making, that's a slippery slope. By being more mindful of where we spend our money and how much we are putting into savings, we better prepare ourselves for the future. Want to take a fabulous family vacation? Want to buy or build your dream home? Want to pay off debt or save for retirement? All those things are much more attainable with a budget.

Where do I even start?
My goal is to provide you with the knowledge, tips, tools, resources, and inspiration you need to successfully maintain your budget in 2017 and beyond. I've had so many people tell me that they REALLY need or want to budget, yet they have no idea where to begin. By breaking things down into small, manageable concepts and tasks, we will work together to make a realistic budget, custom to YOU or your household, and give you the confidence you need to stay on top of it. Each of us is uniquely different. Our goals, needs, wants, incomes and expenses are different. So with that said, the more personal you make your budget, the more realistic it will be and the more benefits you will experience.


So are you ready?? Beginning January 1st, I want you to get and KEEP every.single.receipt for every purchase you make this month. Find a mason jar, envelope, basket... some sort of place to keep them. All of them. If you have a spouse or other member of your household who's spending impacts your budget, those receipts are important too! Put all your receipts in the vessel of your choice and just leave them there. We will deal with them later, but for now, just start collecting :)

Recipe: Beer Chili

Just like that, 2016 is coming to a close. The holidays were here and gone in what felt like no time at all. We traveled to Casey and were fortunate enough to have nine different celebrations with dozens and dozens and dozens of our friends and loved ones. I hope all of you were able to enjoy making some new memories and embracing the reason for the season also.

Prior to leaving town for almost a whole week, I was on a mission to use up anything and everything perishable and therefore create the least waste possible (of the food form that is) before heading out. I planned meals strategically to avoid buying any more groceries, and I got a little creative to use up what we had on hand. While the ingredients in this meal were creatively combined and resulted in a delicious dish, the creativity in the naming of this recipe has fallen a little short. Like, I can't come up with a decent name to save my life on this one and am hoping you all will throw me a few recommendations here, short.

It was the week before Christmas and I was realizing I had some random odds and ends that needed used up, so I did what I do best in the kitchen - winged it. While I contemplated not sharing this recipe with you at all, because, well, the odds of you having all these same things lying around are slim, it was good enough that I actually would go buy all these ingredients again in the future to remake it. Or I'll use this as a starting block for a series of "What on Earth is she making that stuff into?" Who knows. I just know it was tasty, it freezes well, it's great as leftovers, and it accomplished the goal of cleaning out the fridge. Win. Win. Win. Win. And I had my fearless kitchen helpers underfoot to "help", one of which is pictured below.

So until one of you word geniuses come up with a clever name for me, this will simply be referred to as Beer Chili. Feel free to modify based on whatever it may be you are trying to use up in your kitchen. Personally, I would've added more produce, such as carrots, celery, and maybe even sweet potatoes, if I had them on hand. I've listed out the instructions for what I actually did, but have noted below a few other alternatives, should you choose to prepare in a different fashion. For example, I used dried beans that I cooked in the Instant Pot (tutorial here!) versus canned beans, simply because that's what I had in the house. If the instant pot wasn't busy cooking beans, I very easily could have cooked the whole chili in there instead of in the Crockpot, or you could do it on the stove top also. Totally up to you. Cooking is part science experiment, right? Have fun. 

Beer Chili

Prep Time: 30 minutes                 Total Time:   4 hours              Serves:   8-10

Instructions:

1. In a large saute pan, brown the ground beef until cooked through. Strain or use paper towels to remove the excess grease when cooking is complete, then transfer the beef to a large Crockpot.
2. While the beef is cooking, use another large saute pan to cook the diced bacon until crispy, then transfer to a plate with paper towels to drain of excess grease.
3. Once the bacon has been removed, use the same pan to cook the diced onion in the bacon grease. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion has taken on a nice caramelized color. 
4. As the onion cooks, you can add your bacon, veggies, spices and beans to the Crockpot. Once the onion is finished caramelizing, add it in and top with the tomato juice and beer.
5. Stir to combine all the ingredients. Cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 8. Serve with your favorite toppings or sides. 

And as promised, a few variations. 

• If cooking on the stove top, follow steps 1-4 but place all ingredients in a large stock pot with a lid. Stir to combine, then simmer for 45 minutes - 1 hour, checking periodically. 
• If cooking in the Instant Pot, follow steps 1-4 but place all ingredients in the Instant Pot as you go. I would only add half of the tomato juice prior to cooking (as it may be too full once under pressure) and cook on the Bean/Chili function, which is pre-programmed for 30 minutes. Once the pressure has naturally released, evaluate whether to add more tomato juice (thinning the consistency) or keep as is. 

Print this recipe here :)