ONE STEP AHEAD OF CHAOS

Part 2 of my series on menu planning, shopping and organization. I'll post every Monday until I run out of helpful ideas!

Now that the freezer is full, time to pull out the cookbooks and paper for lists. My mom had a small pantry which she carved out of a broom closet. On the door was a pad of paper and a pencil. If you took something out of the pantry, you had to put it on the list to be replaced. Death to you if she counted on a can of Cream of Mushroom soup and they were all gone and not on the list!! I think this is a great method. I keep a list in plain sight and if someone uses something up and doesn't put it on the list, then we may be out of it for a long time.

I plan at least 4 meals in advance. I go through the cook books, make a list of the meals and add needed items to the shopping list. Make sure sides are part of the planning. I post the meals on the frig on a post it, it helps reduce the "What's for dinner?" calls at work!

I also have 3 or so meals that I have as back-up. For instance, the Orange Chicken from Trader Joe's, I have one in the freezer to serve with rice and a veggie. I also make sure I have canned tomatoes and pasta. Tortillas and cheese can be used for many meals. I always have lots of chicken broth on hand.

I buy things like rice in bulk, both brown and white. I get things like rice and pasta sides when they are on sale and keep in the pantry to add to simple chicken breast meals. I buy the fresh tortellini and keep it in the freezer. Tortellini is great with sauce, but also in soup and added to a Caesar salad!

I usually need more fresh veggies and fruit mid-week, so I do an additional menu plan, and shop again.

More organization ideas next week!