Weekly Meal Plan and Grocery List for 5 Healthy Dinners #1
One of my least favorite things to do each week is plan the weekly menu for dinner. Although I don’t enjoy it, it’s necessary and super helpful once completed.
Before I go grocery shopping, I always plan out 5 meals for the week (sometimes more) and ensure that at least 2 of those meals will provide leftovers. That way, I’ll have a full week of dinners ready to make and I won’t have to spend time trying to think up what to make for dinner in the middle of the week. I have my meal plan and ingredients ready to go. It really does save me so much time and stress in the week, but that doesn’t mean I love taking the time to search for dinner ideas and plan out the week’s menu.
That’s why I decided to start creating a dinner meal plan and grocery list here on the blog for you all so at least one of us doesn’t have to take the time to do the planning. If I know that I’m not only planning out my weekly dinners for my family but also helping you by creating a healthy (ish) dinner meal plan and grocery list for you to use, I’ll feel much better about completing the task.
Below, you’ll find 5 meals with a link to the recipe or description on how I make the meal, as well as a complete grocery list to purchase all the ingredients needed for these meals.
On the Menu:
(5 dinners – have leftovers 2 nights this week)
- Veggie Pasta Salad
- Turkey Burgers and Pasta Salad
- Spicy Tuna Guacamole Bowls
- Chicken and Spinach Quesadillas
- Mexican Stuffed Bell Peppers
Veggie Pasta Salad –
There’s no recipe for this one since I kind of created it myself (not super creative, but super easy to make and delicious!). All you have to do is boil a 16oz box of pasta of your choice (I like bow-ties), while simultaneously steaming broccoli florets and stir-frying chopped veggies of your choice. I like bell peppers, zucchini, and summer squash. Once the veggies are cooked, add all of them with the pasta to either a skillet or a sauce pan, doesn’t matter which one. Then add your favorite balsamic dressing, mix until the pasta and veggies are evenly coated, and enjoy! It’s so simple, full of colorful veggies, and tastes delicious!
Turkey Burgers and Pasta Salad –
I don’t have a recipe for the turkey burgs since I always just cook them in a skillet, slap them on a bun, and add my favorite toppings (tomato, avocado, lettuce, mustard, and ketchup). We buy our turkey burgers from Costco and they last forever in the freezer. They are perfect for a simple, quick meal on a busy evening.
For the pasta salad, click here for the recipe I used.
I realized upon beginning to cook this recipe that we forgot to buy macaroni noodles, so I used what we had on hand, which happened to be fettuccini noodles. I just snapped them into smaller pieces before cooking. Not quite as good as macaroni noodles, but it worked. 🙂
Spicy Tuna Guacamole Bowls – Click here for the recipe from Budget Bytes
Creamy Chicken and Spinach Quesadillas – Click here for the recipe from Budget Bytes
Mexican Stuffed Bell Peppers – Click here for the recipe from Eat Yourself Skinny
Find the Complete Grocery List for the Meals Below:
You can copy and paste the grocery list and save it in the notes section of your phone (that’s what I do), print it out to use at the store, or use it however else you desire.
Produce:
-1 sweet onion
-1 white onion
-1 green pepper
-6 Bell Peppers (any color)
-2 medium sized carrots
-tomato, onion, pickles, etc (for the turkey burgers)
-2 cups fresh spinach
-1 medium cucumber
-1 small container guacamole (or avocados and make your own guac)
-1/4 bunch cilantro
-2 cloves garlic
-veggies of your choice for the pasta salad dinner (1st recipe). I personally use a couple handfuls of broccoli florets, 1 red bell pepper, 1 zuchinni, and 1 summer squash.
Meat:
-Turkey Burgers (enough to feed your family – I buy mine frozen from Costco to last for many meals)
-1 boneless skinless chicken breast
-1 lb lean ground turkey
Dairy:
-Shredded Monterey Jack Cheese (1.5 cup needed for 2 recipes)
-1/2 cup sour cream
Dry Goods:
-2 cups Marconi noodles
-1/2 box bowtie pasta
-1/8 cup granulated sugar
-hamburger buns
-4 flour tortillas (8 inch)
-2 1/4 cups uncooked brown rice
Frozen Goods:
-frozen mixed veggies (for the summer veggie pasta salad – I use carrots, peppers, broccoli, and onion mix)
-1 cup frozen shelled edamame
-1 cup frozen corn (or fresh)
Cans/Jars:
-about 1 cup of your favorite balsamic dressing ( you can do less or more dressing depending on how much pasta/veggies you cooked)
-1 can diced tomatoes (15 oz)
-1 can black beans (15 oz)
-1 jar salsa (1.5 cups needed for recipe)
-pickled relish
-1/2 cup mayonnaise
-2 cans chunk light tuna in water (5 oz each)
Nuts/Seeds:
-sesame seeds (only need 1 tbsp)
Condiments/Dressing:
-1 tbsp yellow mustard
-sriracha hot sauce
Oils/Vinegars:
-1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
-1 tbsp cooking oil
-1 tbsp olive oil
Spices/Seasoning:
-cumin
-chili powder
-garlic powder
-dried oregano
-salt
-pepper
And That’s a Wrap!
I sincerely hope I’ve saved you time and a headache from planning out your dinner meals for the week. I know if someone planned out my dinner meals and grocery list for me for the week I’d be super happy. 🙂 Simply bookmark this blog post, use the grocery list to shop for the items, and come back to my blog post to find the recipes for your meals each night this week. Let me know in the comments below if you enjoy this meal plan and would like to see more in the future. Also, if you have any suggestions on types of dinners you’d like to see on the meal plan, I’d love to know that as well.
If you liked this post, would you please take 10 seconds or less to share it?
Blogs are built one small share at a time, so your share means a lot and contributes to the growth of Write Your Story. Thank you so much for your support!
Ways to share:
-Pin It! (using one of the images at the top or bottom of this post)
-Share to the platform of your choice using the share buttons below! Thank you!
Let’s be friends! Follow me on YouTube & Instagram & Facebook
Like this post? Please give it a pin!
Frugal Living Resources That I Love:
Ibotta:
Ibotta is my favorite cash back app that I use on my phone to earn cash back whenever I go shopping.
It includes my favorite stores, like Amazon, Target, Costco, Fred Meyer, and Walmart. All you have to do is add items from your recent shopping trip on the app, scan your receipt, and earn instant cash back!
Use my referral link here to download the FREE app and earn your first $10, my treat!
Ebates:
Ebates is my favorite whenever I’m online shopping because I earn cash back from online purchases.
For example, if Ebates is offering 10% cash back for shopping at Target and my order total is $100, I’ll get $10 cash back. Amazing right?!
The easiest way to use Ebates is by downloading their cash back button (after you sign up for free with Ebates and earn your first $10 just for using my link.) Simply click the Ebates cash back button that will pop up on the store website, make your purchase, and Ebates will deposit your cash back into your Ebates account! It would be crazy NOT to use it and earn money back on all your online shopping.
MyPoints:
MyPoints is my favorite way to earn Amazon gift cards and AMC movie theater gift cards in my spare time while watching a show or movie. MyPoints is an online rewards program that gives you points for taking surveys, reading e-mails, shopping, doing web searches, and more.
Once you earn a certain amount of points, you can redeem them for a gift card of your choice to over 75 merchants. They also offer free access to coupons to hundreds of different merchants daily.
I’ve already earned 3 $25 AMC gift cards and a $50 Amazon gift card just by using MyPoints while watching Netflix. Sign up for free and start earning free gift cards here.
