October Meal Plan
Meal Planning can be time consuming, especially when you aren’t used to it and haven’t gotten into a routine for planning. Sometimes it can be hard to plan for the right time of year and around seasonal produce. Next month I’ve got a great post for you on winter and summer meal planning, but in the meantime we wanted to also start posting monthly meal plans as a suggestion to get you started on your meal planning journey! This meal plan is a collection of 5 breakfast ideas, 5 lunch ideas, 10 supper ideas, and a few dessert ideas. It’s not a complete plan, you will need to supplement fruits and veggies and side dishes of course, but hopefully it will help get you started!
A few things before we get to the menu….
You can find a BIG list of additional recipes to add to your plan here in our Recipes From Scratch index.
You will also find lots of info on different styles of meal planning here.
And you can see my favorite method of meal planning here. It works great with a list of recipes like this!
Breakfast Ideas
Warm breakfasts are welcome this time of year, but it’s also nice to have things that can be made quickly or ahead of time to keep up with busy schedules. Here are some breakfast ideas that you can make in advance.
Banana Crumble Muffins
Oatmeal with Optional Add In’s
Greek Yogurt Pancakes/Waffles
Strawberry Apple Crepes
Breakfast Hashbrown Casserole
Lunch Ideas
Just like breakfasts, fast lunches are welcome this time of year as well! Many days we simply enjoy leftovers from the night before, but if you need a few lunch ideas to add to your menu, here are a few great ones to try this month.
Homemade Chicken Nuggets
25 Healthy Lunch Ideas
30 Minute Pizza
Chicken Pot Pie
Homemade Vegetable Soup
Dinner Ideas
Mmmm, it’s comfort food season! Many of these dinner ideas can be made in the slow cooker so you don’t have to spend your day prepping supper. Here are some of our favorite October dinner meals.
Simple Meatloaf
Cheesy Chicken Breasts
Stuffed Lasagna Rolls
Crockpot BBQ Meatballs
Amish Chicken Casserole
Goulash
Crockpot Chicken Noodle Soup
Turkey and Feta Quesadillas
Crockpot Shredded Beef
Cream of Potato Soup
Dessert Ideas
Pears and apples are in abundance this time of year so make sure to take advantage of the sales and use them in yummy desserts and snacks!
Pear Tart
Fruit Pizza Dessert
Simple Peach Cobbler
Toffee Chocolate Bars
Vanilla Cupcakes
Each week I also plan special nights (we have pizza night and steak/roast night) and I also have at least one leftover night to ensure that we are eating up all the food we are making and that nothing goes to waste. As I mentioned above, I use the Meal Planning Binder method for all my meal planning. It’s so easy!
What are you planning for meals this month? Is this monthly meal planning post helpful to you? What could make it more helpful?
Kim says
October 1, 2014 at 5:26 amYour blog is simply wonderful! I have gotten so much out of it from homesteading ideas to planning meals like this post (which is so awesome!). I for one am glad it’s time for soup! We do that a lot on the “Perry” Homestead as I call it! 🙂 Can’t wait to try your veggie soup recipe! 🙂 Have a great day and thanks again! 🙂 –Kim
Merissa says
October 1, 2014 at 8:36 amI hope you enjoy it Kim!
ashley says
October 1, 2014 at 5:53 amThis is a great idea! I have used quite a few of your recipes so thanks for those. I know i always get into the bad routine of making the same few meals over and over. We are a 5 person household so it is hard to find things that everyone likes.I know that i also have a crock pot meatball recipe we all like and that turns into 2 dinners.. spagetti and meatballs one night and meatball subs the next! Thanks for all the ideas!
Merissa says
October 1, 2014 at 8:36 amI love making meals like that…2 meals and you only have to work to make one! 🙂
Pamela says
October 1, 2014 at 4:25 pmI have been married 26 years and I have never really meal-planned. Not on paper. I think it is time I try this system. Perhaps I will do this after I finish the purge of household possessions and reorganizing.
Michelle Welch says
October 10, 2014 at 9:32 amI just love your blog. You are living my dream life!! I love your menu planning ideas. I look forward to sharing them with my daughters and my readers.
Adelina Priddis says
October 15, 2014 at 9:58 pmOh thank you for sharing your meal plan. I struggle with it, but know it could help me so much. Thanks for sharing on Weekend Bites
Rachel says
October 16, 2014 at 12:28 pmI have always done a weekly meal plan. It does take some time but I save more during the week when I don’t have to worry about it. This is a great resource for recipes when your trying to plan. Thanks for sharing on Merry Monday!
Amanda @ The Kolb Corner says
October 16, 2014 at 9:29 pmMeal planning is such an easy way to save money on groceries. I’ve never tried doing it for a whole month! Usually I’m lucky if I do a complete plan for the week lol. Thank you for sharing at Merry Monday!