How I've Simplified My Meal Planning for 2025

Good morning! It's Kait this time 😊

Remi asked me to share a bit of my New Year's kitchen goals today.

This year I really wanted to crack down on meal planning.

I’ve previously tried to write a basic menu for the week, but it just seemed like every Sunday I'd sit down to plan and couldn't think of meals to make.

I'd write down what came to mind and then forget to place my DP order so I could thaw meat for the week. It would turn into a nightly challenge of "what am I making for dinner?" When you've had a long day, that's just one more decision you don’t want to make.

But, when I diligently plan my menu for the week (and get my order in) I'm all set. It helps me grocery shop accordingly, which saves money and trips to the store.

When I have my plan for the week I also know exactly what I need from David's Pasture. (I have the DP freezers right outside my door but Remi still makes me put an order in. 🙃)

Another goal I've had this year is to simplify my menu.

Some people don't enjoy meal planning because they feel like they have to buy a bunch of ingredients for each meal. I don't like that either. I want to be able to utilize what I already have in the pantry and what I've grown in the garden.

So I decided to come up with a system.

Now I must admit, I kinda geek out on meal planning and view it as a strategy. 😂 You don’t have to get as detailed. I don't love going to the store so I grocery shop every 2 weeks and meal plan on a 2-week rotation; the 7 dinners I choose for this week will also be the 7 dinners I make next week.

One slow winter day I brainstormed enough meals for a month. Not all of these were fun “Pinterest” meals with a million ingredients. I have 2 meal categories: simple and fun.

Simple meals generally consist of a meat, a carb, and a veggie, and include ingredients on hand that can be used for several different meals. My simple meals include dishes like drumsticks and green beans, chili, or eggs and pancakes (yes, we are big breakfast-for-supper people. 😋)

Fun meals are less frequent and usually have extra ingredients. They're just there to mix things up a bit. An example of a fun meal is alfredo tortellini.

Remi could eat the same soup every day. Me? Not so much. I'll eat leftovers, but I enjoy variety.

Meal planning makes meal prep easier, too.

I am not so great at that. When I'm on top of it, I'll bake all my rolls for the week or make an egg casserole to have on hand for breakfasts.

Okay, I'll add one more thing. (Can you tell this is something I am passionate about? 😂)

Meal planning is also helpful for reaching health goals, especially if you are watching macros or wanting to include more of a certain food in your diet.

For example, I want to do a better job of eating fermented foods. I can quickly look at my menu for the week and notice “hmm, no ferments… let's add some kraut with the brats.” Or if I see that one day has a lot of carb heavy meals I can make a swap to balance it.

Thanks for coming to my TED talk on meal planning. 🤣 Hopefully this is all helpful and didn't just give you a headache

If I can be of any help, feel free to reach out!

Your farmer's wife,

Kaitlyn Kesten