Menu on Mondays - Dyanna Burak

This is going to be the irony. I am not going to figure out the whole week. That feels daunting to me. But what I am going to figure out is a plan.

I already have an idea of what this family eats. Whether it be a home cooked meal every single day or not, each week we probably will have chicken one night or pasta the other night. There is somewhat of a consistency. But I need two things-

flexibilty
and ideas

So this is my take on those “oh so cute” menu boards that the most amazing people in the world have and know exactly what is going to happen every night this coming week for dinner (they are brilliant; we should not be jealous; just be in awe and carry on).

I use a menu vinyl wall decal (so easy to put up or take down). I then prelabel 2 inch Post-it tabs with things we eat (just “food categories”). I write directly on the tabs with a sharpie (I do seven categories- chicken, fish, meat, pasta, Mexican, leftovers, and whatever). For some reason this feels like it is taking away the guesswork and feeding my two major needs- flexibility and ideas.

I just pick what I feel like making from the list of categories- based on what I have, or want to shop for, or amount of prep and cooking time I want to put in.

Sidenote- Did you notice the “whatever” category. This is the I don’t really care whatever the heck you all are going to do for food tonight. Please tell me I have my people out there that feel me!

If you want to keep your favorites on paper or maybe recipes you want to try- here is a cute way to organize them.

Okay, so I’m cooking chicken tonight. Then what?

For recipes I want to try, I keep them nearby. No fuss. My motto- I can’t spend too much time looking or I’m going to change my mind and it’s gonna be a “whatever” night.

Recipes- Where to get them or how to store them.

I will tear recipes out of magazines I want to try. I kinda am a believer that out of sight out of mind, so I usually get to my paper recipes first. And yes, I do have them in files according to my categories.
Online organized. I keep an online bookmark folder of recipes I want to try (you know the whole world of Pinterest and Allrecipes). I label it recipes. Within that, there are folders (pancakes, apps, main, sides, etc.).
On my pc organized (I keep the ones we love!). On my pc, I have the recipes that I have tried and we loved! So do what is best for you. Print them and throw them into a notebook. Or organize them into folders and keep them on your computer.

ONLINE ORGANIZED

: Go to your sidebar; add a bookmark folder; label it recipes and voila start saving your recipes you want to try later on.

: Might be nice to organize them into sub folders. My online ones are broad (I try to use them sooner or later or start deleting).

ON YOUR PC ORGANZIED

: I break down my faves into categories.

: I keep my favorite recipes in a folder on my pc in the sidebar in finder (easy and quick to get to).

I am hoping my photos will give you an idea of how to make a piece of life easier. Please comment if you want to throw questions my way or share what you do!

P.S. I am making a recipe I found online, a copycat of Olive Garden chicken and pasta. I have to be honest. Reviews online were mixed but the pic looked fab. I’m not worried. If the three men in my life complain, I know the dog won’t.