Friday Free for All- A Two Week Menu Plan

In light of the current situation of the Coronavirus (or COVID-19), today we are sharing a two-week menu plan and shopping list.

We plan out our blog calendar a month at a time so we don’t do three fashion posts in a row or something similar. So today’s post had been originally supposed to be about ‘Spring Break Fashion’.

Needless to say I have written and rewritten today’s post in the last 48 hours as the situation with the Coronavirus keeps changing, but certainly sharing ‘Spring Break Fashion’ seemed untimely and a bit tone-deaf as to what is going on in the world.

I have spent this week going back and forth, one minute thinking there is too much hype and panic and the next minute wiping down my counters, washing my hands for the 100th time, and being glued to the news. After reading many articles, I am of the belief that the one thing we can all do (like it or not) to help is to lower our risk of exposure by staying home– therefore lessening the number of COVID-19 cases to ensure most needy patients will continue to be able to get care in the coming weeks.

I am in high-risk category for this virus thanks to a whole bunch of immune-system deficiencies related to my recovery from lyme disease. More significantly,  my son last year had severe, almost fatal, respiratory issues caused by the flu so we have no choice but to take this coronavirus very, very seriously.  The emotional trauma of that is still fresh, so the current virus is definitely causing me anxiety so if I seem paranoid, well now you know our background.

Thankfully our self-imposed quarantine is not stressful for an extreme homebody like me. At this point our schools have decided not to close, but all social events have been cancelled or we are avoiding them. Fun times, but truly in this case we think it is better to be safe than sorry and stay home as much as we can.

In light of all this going on, I tried to think of what would be helpful to share today since it didn’t feel right to be talking about buying new clothes. I decided I’d do one major shopping trip (apparently everyone else did too as the line was to the back of the store!) and stock us up for about two weeks so we could avoid going out if we didn’t have to. I figured I’d share my menu plan with you as well as a printable shopping list if you are thinking about doing something similar (or just to make life easier!). You could even just order groceries online if you so choose to avoid crowds.

I tried to make this a basic, affordable menu to please both kids and adults. It’s nothing fancy and the recipes are all straight forward and easy to make. This should roughly serve a family of four for two weeks, you can double if you feed more than that or freeze leftovers for another night if you have less.

Here is the grocery list, the menu is below.

At the end of the printable list there is a space to add in other needs like household items, lunch and breakfast items and hygiene items like soap etc. The grocery list takes for granted you have basic items on hand like garlic, salt, etc.

Week One Menu Plan with Recipes

Saturday ~ Pork Carnitas w/ Rice ( I loosely use this recipe and serve on tortillas)

Sunday ~ Chicken, Bacon + Ranch with Broccoli (or frozen veggie)

No recipe needed–simply grill or cook chicken breasts in oven. Fry bacon and crumble. Top the cooked chicken with some ranch dressing, bacon pieces and a little cheddar cheese. We like this served with hash browns and broccoli.

Monday ~ Hamburgers with Fries or Salad

Create patties out of ground beef, grill or fry and serve on buns. Serve with fries or salad (or both!)

Tuesday ~ Baked Parmesan Chicken, my Mom made this for years when I was growing up), we like to serve this with green beans and brown rice.

Wednesday ~ Spaghetti with Ground Beef or Turkey and Salad

Cook your meat in a large pan, breaking up into bits. Add spaghetti sauce and heat until warm. Serve over cooked pasta, top with parmesan cheese if you like.

Thursday ~ Chicken Alfredo Pasta with Peas

Friday ~  Pizza with Fruit

Top frozen pizza dough with spaghetti sauce, mozzarella cheese and if you want, some pepperoni or peppers.

Week Two Menu Plan with Recipes

Saturday ~ Chicken Fajitas (or your favorite recipe, you can also use the remaining taco seasoning to flavor). Serve with grilled peppers, lettuce, cheese etc.

Sunday ~ Crockpot Lasagna with Salad

Monday ~ Buffalo Chicken Wraps with Fries or Fruit

I put (about) 3 chicken breasts in my slow cooker with buffalo sauce (can add a small amount of cream cheese too) and a 1/4 cup of water. Cook on high for one hour, then turn to low. Shred with a fork and serve on tortillas. Can add lettuce, red onion etc. and serve.

Tuesday ~ Quesadillas with Rice

I cook Mexican Chicken the same way as above. I put three large chicken breasts in my slow cooker in the AM. I add 1/2 packet of taco seasoning (Trader Joe’s is my favorite!), a can of Rotel Tomatoes and Green Chilis and a small amount of Cream Cheese.

Wednesday ~ BBQ Meatloaf with Easy Mac + Cheese

I use this easy recipe here but usually just substitute the Stove Top Stuffing Mix for breadcrumbs and seasoning. If you want convenience, the stuffing is included on the shopping list.

Thursday ~ Spaghetti with Ground Beef (or Turkey) and Salad

Friday ~ Breakfast for Dinner-—Combine Pancake mix according to directions, serve with bacon.

Again, here are the printable files:

I am slowly working on a meal planner to go with this post HERE, as so many of you asked for a copy of my “meal planning” book, so putting together this menu was good practice. I hope this is helpful, if you have questions or if I missed anything, please let me know in the comments.

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