Meal planning is like eating well and exercisingwe all know we should do it, but we (well, most of us) have a hard time doing it consistently. Years ago I was on a kick where I would plan all of our meals a month at a time in a spreadsheet, complete with weekly shopping lists and notations about the events and other committments we had planned for the month. While it did save us money and we did eat better in terms of getting more fruits and vegetables and wasting less food, this spreadsheet eventually became an exhausting task. Plus, I realized I was sticking to tried-and-true basics rather than exploring new recipes and cookbooks, simply because it made filling out the sheet faster. I eventually got menu-block (the lesser-known cousin of writer's block) so badly that I ground to a halt and abandoned the system altogether. So my first tip: smaller chunks are often best! I've found it's a lot more manageable to plan on a weekly or bi-weekly basis. But I still follow some basic steps:

Check Your Calendar

There's no point in planning (and shopping for) seven dinners if you're going to be out of the house for three evenings that week. Check your calendar for meetings, dinner parties, school events and other business that will keep you away from the stove; instead of cooking every night, you may want to plan to make a large pot of soup or casseroles that you can freeze and reheat on demand.

Inventory Your Pantry and Freezer

I am definitely guilty of buying, say, a whole bag of black rice for one recipe and then forgetting about it (andtrue storyforgetting the recipe that I originally bought it for). Using what you already have on hand keeps your stock fresher, lowers your food costs, and gives you the chance to get creative. Hey, you haven't lived until you've made a big pasta dish out of random quantities of penne, rotini and wagon wheel pasta. The internet makes it easy to Google several seemingly unrelated ingredients and finding interesting recipes.

Choose Your RecipesWisely

Okay, now we're getting down to the nitty gritty: picking your recipes. Look through your cookbooks, ask the people you live with for inspiration, go on the Internet, consider what's in season. My general rule of thumb per week is 2-3 choices for breakfast (like a muffin, hot cereal and egg quesadilla) that we can alternate, 4-5 recipes for dinner, and sandwiches or dinner leftovers for lunch. I used to pick 7 recipes for dinner, but that ended up being a ridiculous amount of leftovers. Once you get used to planning and cooking, you can refine your approach accordingly. One trick I like is to try to pick several recipes that share similar ingredients. This is a wonderful way to reduce food waste, and you can still get a lot of different flavors in the week. For example, cilantro is fantastic in Mexican and Asian recipes, or even just tossed into a simple bean soup.

Don't Forget the Ultra-Easy Meals

There will be nights when you won't have time to cook a complicated meal. There will be nights when, quite frankly, you won't want to cook at all. Remember to keep a few things on hand that are super-simple, like grilled cheese and tomato soup, couscous or a quick option like our Vegi Soup Mix. Breakfast for dinner can also be a welcome respite with the right pancake mix!

Make a Plan of Action

Do you have time to cook every day, or do you prefer to cook on the weekend and thaw/reheat as needed? This is when it's crucial to check your calendar, as you don't want a fridge full of perishables and no time to cook. Are there things that require extra time to cook, or need to go into the slowcooker in the morning? Things like dry beans can easily fit into a busy week with a bit of planning. Can you repurpose dinner leftovers into an entirely different meal? Recently I grilled chicken breast and served it alongside pasta with butter and cheese and sauteed zucchini. After dinner, I chopped up the remaining chicken and put it in a casserole dish with the leftover pasta and veggies, covering everything with a simple tomato sauce and grated parmesan. It was a quick and easy meal for the babysitter to reheat the next evening, and I tricked my variety-loving daughter into eating essentially the same thing two days in a row.

Um . . . Go Grocery Shopping?

Okay, this step is a no-brainer. But there are a few ways to streamline or save money if you have the time. Take a minute to go through your local grocery stores' recent flyers and coupons. Write out a grocery listan actual grocery listpreferably digitally. Not only will this keep you on track at the store (fewer impulse purchases!), but as you go forward, you can review those lists and look for patterns. How much milk do you typically go through in a month? How about oatmeal or butter? It's a great way to either change your eating habits if you spot something disturbing (wait . . . how much butter?) or at least know what kinds of coupons you'd best benefit from. Of course, schlepping it to the store and walking down the aisles isn't your only option. You can order online, order ahead and pick up your groceries at the store, or even get them delivered to your door. We live in the future!

Go Forth and Meal Plan

Here's a short collection of the recipes that have caught my eye recently: Breakfast Blueberry Lemon Curd Sweet Rolls Black Sesame Morning Glory Muffins Blue Island Smoothie Bowl Almond Poppy Seed Cassava Muffins Scrambled Egg Muffins Lunch Sweet Roll Cubano Sliders Farro Nioise Salad Easy Potato Soup 13 Bean Chili Cheesy Heirloom Tomato Cornbread Dinner Vegan Fettuccine Alfredo Steamed Pork Buns (Char Siu Bao) Burmese Tofu with Cilantro Lime Stir Fried Vegetables Gluten Free Heirloom Tomato Tart Gluten Free Vegetable Pot Pie Also, we just published an incredible Back to School Survival Guide, chock-full of recipes for breakfast, lunch and snacks, that you can download for free! Do you have any meal planning tricks to share? Put them in the comments below!