An Autumn Weekday Meal Plan
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I grew up in a household with weekly planned meals. My mom was incredible at managing our household economy. Today, I live much the same way. I cook meals from scratch. With a meal plan, we can save so much money and eat more healthier at home.
I believe family meals are blessed rituals and are becoming a lost tradition. So much happens at the family table: connection, fellowship, thankfulness to God, and a sense of belonging.
I’ve decided to occasionally share my weekly meal plans here to inspire and give you new ideas.
What I Buy in Bulk -The Family Larder
Larder: a room or large cupboard for storing food.
Month to month, I don’t have to buy as many groceries with a well-stocked larder. I purchase some items in bulk to save money from Azure Standard. Buying in bulk does require thoughtful storage options. I use a lot of glass jars and BPA-free food storage buckets from Azure.
- raw honey
- maple syrup
- 50 lbs old-fashioned oats
- frozen fruit
- grass-fed beef (and soup bones) 1 whole beef per year (K&K Beef)
- pastured chickens
- 50 lbs cane sugar
- 10 lbs baking soda
- baking powder
- European butter
- raisins
- brown sugar
- chocolate chips
- 10 lbs granola with flax
- einkorn flour
- sea salt
- 10 lbs raw white cheddar
- 25 lbs rice
- dried celery leaves (used mainly for bone broth)
- onions
- carrots
- cashews, pecans, almonds, walnuts
- whole buckwheat
- cornmeal
- dried beans
- popcorn kernels
- coconut oil, avocado oil, olive oil
- whole garlic
- tea/coffee
Herbs I Grow
Once you know what food your family likes to eat, grow those herbs and those foods in a garden. Even the smallest space can become an edible landscape. I love to look at the layout of formal gardens from years ago. When we travel, I always take pictures of formal gardens. Colonial Williamsburg has some of the most beautiful (and thoughtfully placed) kitchen gardens I’ve seen.
Kitchen Herbs
These herbs should be grown close to your home for ease of use. To save space, I removed the decorative landscape and replaced it with herbs right out my door. Some of these herbs are for tea blends that we make. This is the list of what I grew in 2023:
- German Chamomile
- Lemon Balm
- Lavender ( multi-use, the queen in my gardens)
- Borage ( used for cough/colds in tea)
- Sage
- Peppermint
- Spearmint
- Feverfew
- Echinacea
- Catnip ( powerful herb, multi-use. I make toys for my cats with dried Catnip)
- Bee Balm
- Horehound
- English Thyme
- Rosemary
- Oregano
- Cilantro
- Rosehips
- Calendula
- Wild Violets (Wild Violets are infused with olive oil to make a balm)
Once you have an established herb garden, you will save money drying or preserving what you’ve grown. Additionally, your food tastes better and has potent health benefits. No matter where I live, I would sincerely miss not having an herb garden. 💜
Meal Plan-Week of 11/13/23 -Pantry Menu
This is our plan for Monday-Friday. We spend most days at home until Friday afternoon. I hardly ever buy pre-packaged food unless it’s for a lunch away from home. I know how to make many of these meals without a written recipe, but I will try to update this post with the recipes this week. I make sourdough bread with Einkorn flour weekly. We mostly drink tea/water/milk/coffee/homemade lemonade. The only juice I buy is organic lemon juice concentrate.
Our days revolve around mealtimes, and it sets a tone for a rhythmical home life. My children have a meal clean-up rotation that works well so I’m not cooking everything and cleaning everything-although every night, I check my kitchen before I go to sleep.
(Note: I modify all these meals because I (Jennifer) don’t eat flour or sugar or drink milk. I generally drink lemon water with Cayenne pepper throughout the day. I love hot, spicy drinks that I can feel in my mouth as I can take a lot of heat. Cayenne pepper is great for your skin and provides your body a huge variety of vitamins and minerals. Benefits of Cayenne Pepper. The recipe I use is- Lemonade Good Girl Moonshine-the basic recipe plus Cayenne pepper. )
Monday
Breakfast-Blueberry/ Vanilla oatmeal, milk
Lunch-Raw cheddar, sourdough bread, raw vegetables/lemonade
Supper-Chicken and Dumplings, bread, fruit, coffee/tea/lemonade
Snack/Dessert-Banana bread. ( I was recently given a lot of ripe bananas and need to use them up!)
Tuesday
Breakfast-Scrambled eggs, fruit, milk
Lunch- Baked potatoes with chives we grow year-round, raw vegetables/lemonade
Supper- Enchiladas, rice and beans, lemonade/tea/coffee
Snack/Dessert-Oatmeal cookies
Wednesday
Breakfast- Granola, yogurt, fruit, milk
Lunch-Barley soup, sourdough bread/lemonade
Supper-Chicken Curry, green beans, bread, milk/coffee/tea
Snack/dessert-popcorn/chocolate pudding
Thursday
Breakfast-Bagels, fruit, milk
Lunch-Minestrone soup, bread/lemonade
Supper-Cottage pie, greens, bread, bread, milk/coffee/tea
Snack/dessert-Depression Era Water pie This recipe from the Depression era is very quick to make with pantry items.
Friday
Breakfast-Oatmeal with raisins, brown sugar, milk
Lunch and Dinner- We are out most of the day on Fridays, and I finally get a short break from cooking!
Download our free planning sheets.
