My Meal Planning Menu for Summer ☀️
Every season I swap my family’s meal rotation!
Here are our go-to dinners for staying nourished all summer long 🍴
I have mentioned before that we have a set meal rotation—meaning, week after week, we have pretty much the exact same menu. Most of my feedback was along the lines of: Don’t you get bored?!
Well, rest assured, friends, my seasonal menu swap has been underway for a while now. Today, I’m sharing all about our easy meal planning menu for the summertime!
Why I Use a Meal Planning Menu?
I am a big, big fan of meal prepping. I think it is a foundational piece to making healthy eating easier and more budget-friendly. Here are some of the top reasons we choose a meal rotation for planning dinners:
Budget- Have you ever tried a new recipe and none of your family really loved it? Or maybe you bought a couple of special ingredients for something… only to rarely use those ingredients again (like that cumin hanging out in my spice cabinet).. All of these things can really inflate your grocery budget.
Less eating out - another way this keeps our food budget in check is by limiting our eating out. One of the most common reasons we “just grab something” while we are out and about is that we do not have a plan for dinner. Instead, when I know what we are eating (and have most often started the prep that morning), we are not going to change plans and eat out.
Less Food Waste- When we are making and eating things that we all enjoy, we are not wasting food. I know the general amount my family will eat of a given meal, and if I make extra, we are all happy to eat it for leftovers the next day for lunch.
Simplify grocery shopping- When we stick to a meal rotation, I can pretty much order the exact same groceries week after week after week. I know exactly what my family needs, how much we will eat, and can save a pre-saved grocery list when ordering groceries. This saves us so much time every week— plus, it saves all the decision-making and planning. Speaking of…
Minimize decision fatigue- I am the type of person who gets really overwhelmed with all the decisions. I think it is why I gravitate towards minimalism and simplicity wherever possible. Knowing what we are generally having for dinner every night removes most of the decision-making from my afternoon.
In the summer, we tend to be a lot busier than in the winter. We are often out on the boat or visiting family, so we need a bit more flexibility. But we also really thrive on structure and routine. So, compared to the last meal rotation I shared, our summer time plan tends to be more of a theme than set recipes. I find that this gives us a bit more freedom to go off plan or try something new.
Our Meal Planning Menu for Summer
In the summer, we naturally gravitate towards lighter, more refreshing foods. This change in cravings helps us to stay hydrated, have better digestion, and meet our energetic demands. In the fall and winter, roasts and hearty stews are a go-to for my family. But in the summer, those are some of the last things I want! Another thing that influences our summer meal plan is our garden!
I love love love having a garden in the spring and summer. One day, I would love to have space for a huge garden with enough room for all the plants my heart could imagine. But for now, I make do with ~10 garden containers. We grow a variety of vegetables, including spinach, kale, cucumbers, squash, tomatoes, and peppers, which are all regular additions to our meals.
Our Meal Plan Menu
Some grass-fed ribeye steak and sautéed morels 🍄🟫 (shout out to my brother for sharing all the foraged mushrooms)
Monday: Steaks + a salad— My husband loves grilling over the summer! So this is usually his night to grill up some steaks. Also, I have been on the biggest corn kick this year. We opt for organic heirloom sweet corn from the co-op and local grass-fed steaks when we purchase meat in bulk. I will also throw together a salad from what we have picked from our garden, or have some fresh berries or fruit on the side!
Tuesday: Taco Tuesday! This stays pretty consistent year-round. Although most of the time in the summer I prefer taco salads. I love adding fresh salsa and cilantro from our garden!
Wednesday: Burger Night! Sometimes this is a burger bowl. Other times, it is a turkey burger with sliced pineapple and soy-free teriyaki sauce. Sometimes, I whip up some homemade sourdough buns. Sometimes, we do lettuce wraps. And I’ll usually do some baked homemade sweet potato fries to have as a side!
Thursday: Grill Night! Usually, chicken and veggies that we grill up in bulk. This allows us to have some pre-cooked food in the fridge for lunches throughout the week.
Friday: Fish! We have been loving light protein options like fish as part of our meal plan. We will either grill or bake up some of our own, or 1-2 times per month, get our favorite sushi 😍 (if you are looking for high-quality wild-caught fish to get delivered, we love this brand!)
Weekends: Like I said earlier, we enjoy having extra flexibility in the summer. Especially on the weekends! We are usually out doing something, getting together with family, or packing up a picnic and hanging out at the park. If that’s the case, we usually opt for some sourdough sandwiches and fresh fruit. Either way, it’s usually pretty simple!
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