Great Meal Idea!

I just wanted to share this with you all since it is such a great idea. In our MOPS meeting this last week we were discussing menu planning and how to make the most out of your time and money when it comes to cooking. A couple of good ideas were thrown around while we were sharing stories.

I am quite certain that most of the moms, both stay at home and working, are pretty tired and over it by the time dinner rolls around. If you are like me, I labor mostly over figuring out what to cook instead of the actual cooking, but dinner as a family is a very important ritual that I'm not willing to give up.

The first idea is one that will not necessarily save you money, but is fun and will save you time. This is the concept of meal assembly. There are several chains that have sprouted up in the last few years that offer this service. To name a few - Dream Dinners, Let's Dish and Super Suppers. You can go alone, with a group or just swing by and pick up an assembled meal that is fresh and ready to cook when you get home. If you choose to make it an outing with your girlfriends, mom or group, they have the ingredients ready for assembly when you arrive. You can drink some wine, have some conversation and when you are finished - viola! - dinner for a week. It does tend to be more expensive than shopping, chopping and assembling in your own home, but less expensive than eating out with the family. You can also consider splitting the meals with someone.

The other idea that was bandied about was the idea of meal co-op. This is when you and your friend decide to share the cooking responsibilities. She'll cook one night for her family and yours and you'll cook the next night. This is an excellent idea for maybe a couple of nights a week. I think it would work best with those meals that you can cook in bulk, then split. Another idea would be to cook several casseroles in those disposable pans and freeze them for the week.

Really, it's all about trying to give yourself a little break. I'm sure we could all use one - I know I could!