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Savoring life in the Berkshires

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Get Started Menu Planning — with a Printable!

Published on October 7, 2015 By Emily. Updated on August 16, 2016

It’s no secret that menu planning is one of my favorite things.  It’s always on my agenda for the weekend and makes my whole week go more smoothly.  As a CSA member, I’ve found that weekly menu planning is the only way to ensure that I use up all the produce we get from the farm each week.  Brian and I are members of a variety of groups that meet in the evenings, so I use my plans to make sure there’s leftovers or easy meals on tap for busy nights.

My method of menu planning hasn’t changed much since I first wrote about it in 2010, though now I typically do all my planning in an afternoon instead of throughout the week.  In short, I check out what’s on the list of available vegetables from our CSA, scope out the supermarket circulars, and see what I need to use up that’s already on hand.  I use that information to generate a menu for the week and add to my shopping list whatever other ingredients I need to make those recipes.

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I’ve written a bunch about all the tools I use for menu planning: Evernote, Trello, and Google Drive, among others.  It recently occurred to me however, that all my talk of tools and technology and farms may be overwhelming to new menu planners.  I’m doing all this writing about menu plans, but I’m not making it as easy for you to use them as I want to be!

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So, I’ve created this printable to help you get started.  Even if you’re planning already, I’m finding this analog approach helps me create menus that are more mindful and useful.  Once filled out, this paper can be easily carried with you to the store or the farmers market and posted on your fridge to remind everyone in your home what the plan is.

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The top of this printable features 4 columns.  The first column is the one I’m finding the most useful – “food to use up”.  Here, list anything that you’re overrun with, or that’s about to spoil.  These foods should definitely be included in your menu plan for the next week!  The following three columns are for making shopping lists.  In my case, I used one for the CSA and two for local supermarkets, but you could use the columns for the farmer’s market, warehouse stores or specialty shops.

The bottom of the printable provides space to list what you’re planning to have for dinner each evening.  The space is totally open, so you can list meal ideas, cookbook pages numbers, or meetings or other events that you need to keep in mind.

Want to get this printable for free?  Sign up for my weekly email newsletter below!

Related Posts

Regaining Routine (CSA Menu Plan #47)
Finally (CSA Menu Plan #89)
Nothing Wrong with Favorites (CSA Menu Plan #42)
Happy Thanksgiving! (CSA Menu Plan #17)
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Filed Under: menu plans Tagged With: menu, printable

« Squash Season (CSA Menu Plan #40)
Beautiful Fall Foliage (CSA Menu Plan #41) »

Trackbacks

  1. Menu Planning is Like Lesson Planning + Printable says:
    October 7, 2015 at 8:24 pm

    […] […]

  2. Beautiful Fall Foliage (CSA Menu Plan #41) | Relishments says:
    October 12, 2015 at 7:45 pm

    […] […]

  3. At My Husband’s Request (CSA Menu Plan #43) | Relishments says:
    October 24, 2015 at 6:45 pm

    […] […]

  4. Hello NaNoWriMo (CSA Menu Plan #44) | Relishments says:
    November 15, 2015 at 2:27 pm

    […] […]

  5. Twice the Fun (CSA Menu Plan #45) | Relishments says:
    November 15, 2015 at 2:48 pm

    […] […]

  6. Tips and Tools for Meal Planning–2015 Edition | Relishments says:
    December 31, 2015 at 9:36 am

    […] My Menu Brainstorming Planning Printable […]

  7. Welcome, Winter (CSA Menu Plan #46) | Relishments says:
    January 2, 2016 at 10:14 am

    […] […]

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photo of EmilyWelcome to Relishments! Follow along with my adventures in cooking and eating in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts.

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I’m just a girl who loves to cook and eat. This site is not a source for nutritional information.

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Emily
Last week Brian and I finally got around to hiring Last week Brian and I finally got around to hiring a sitter for a rare night out. We went to dinner at @publicna and took advantage of the opportunity with drinks, appetizers and dessert.

Pictured:
- Citrus Braised Beef Tacos
- "Chicken and Waffles"
- House Fries with Garlic Aioli
- Fried Chickpeas
- Blood Orange Cheesecake
It was no surprise that Public was close to full on a Wednesday night - everything was so good. 

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#igers413_food #igers413 #BerkshireFoodies #InTheBerkshires #EatLocal #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #NorthAdams #NAmazing #PublicEatAndDrink
New year, new theme word! This year's word is "enr New year, new theme word!
This year's word is "enrich" and I'm really excited about it.

I've written more about this year's theme on the blog. Click in the link in my profile or follow the link below to read the post.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/my-2023-theme-word-enrich/
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#YearlyTheme #MyOneWord #2023 #enrich2023 #NewYearsResolution
It's not New Year's Eve without a Top 9 post. It's It's not New Year's Eve without a Top 9 post.
It's almost all #Berkshires content this year, which is great.
1. A pasta salad reel that took longer to create than the recipe took to make.
2. A reel from North Carolina where I could have watched birds all day.
3. The @thelazygenius book giveaway.
4.@plantconnector 
5. @berkshiremuseum 
6.@sculpture.now at @themountlenox 
7. @massmoca 
8. @mountainviewfarm413 
9. The #AshuwillticookRailTrail
New on the blog: My 2022 reflections on last year' New on the blog: My 2022 reflections on last year's theme word - resume. 

I was able to get back to many activities that were meaningful to me this year and I'm calling this theme a success. Follow the link below or click the link in my profile to read more.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/reflections-on-resuming-in-2022/
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#resume2022 #newyearsresolution #myoneword #yearlytheme
New on the blog: My Favorite Recipes of 2022. For New on the blog: My Favorite Recipes of 2022.

For the fourth year, I've recapped the best new (to me) recipes I made this year in the hope that they'll give you some new dishes to try. This year's list is short, but delicious. It includes @budgetbytes My Favorite Recipes of 2022
Published on December 30, 2022 By Emily. Updated on December 30, 2022

It’s hard to believe that 2022 is basically behind us. Though overall this year found me getting back to the person I want to be (post-babies and “post”-pandemic), I did not try nearly as many new recipes this year as I used to. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised to see that I’d made note of any new-to-me recipes I wanted to share in this post. This year’s list is short, but delicious. It includes recipes from @budgetbytes, @smittenkitchen and @howsweeteats.
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Read the post by visiting the link in my profile or 
https://www.relishments.com/blog/my-favorite-recipes-of-2022/
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#RecipeRoundUp #BestRecipes2022 #FavoriteRecipes
@coastalmainebotanicalgardens continues to be one @coastalmainebotanicalgardens continues to be one of the highlights of all my return trips to Boothbay and their annual Gardens Aglow event continues to impress. It was great to be back to walking the gardens instead of the pandemic drive through and there seemed to be more lights than ever.  I'm already looking forward to next year.
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#Boothbay #BoothbayMaine #CoastalMaineBotanicalGardens #GardensAglow #BotanicalGarden #MidcoastMaine
It has been a while, but there is finally a new CS It has been a while, but there is finally a new CSA menu plan on the blog! Visit the link below or in my profile to see how I plan to make use of some of the @mightyfoodfarm produce seen here.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/welcome-to-winter-farm-share-csa-menu-plan-148/
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#MightyFoodFarm #EatLocal #EatSeasonal #VermontGrown #CSApickup #CSAshare #KnowYourFarmerKnowYourFood #MenuPlanning #MealPlanning #igers413 #igers413_food #BerkshireFoodies
Fall in the Berkshires is always incredible, but t Fall in the Berkshires is always incredible, but this year we've had weather that has also been outstanding. The past 2 weekends have included time at Jaeschke Orchards, the Greylock Glen, and the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail as well as stopping to photograph any random foliage I see. 
Check out the last slide for video of some feathered friends we saw on a walk.
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#igers413 #InTheBerkshires #EatLocal #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #FallFoliage #FallColors #autumn #AshuwillticookRailTrail #JaeschkeOrchards #GreylockGlen
@freshgrassfestival continues to be one of my favo @freshgrassfestival continues to be one of my favorite events each year, and it doesn't hurt that it's just minutes away from home. Enjoying the festival with my kids is definitely a different experience than without, but it's still a good time. The weather was especially cooperative today which was great for all the laps I did around the @massmoca campus pushing a stroller. I'm already looking forward to next year.
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#igers413 #InTheBerkshires #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #NorthAdams #NAmazing #FreshGrass #FreshGrassFestival #MassMoCA #MusicFestival
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