Born to (Grocery) Shop

I love grocery shopping and don’t classify it as a “chore”; however, there are plenty of times when I’m short on time and end up having to rush one of my favourite activities.  For those times especially, I’m glad I have an organized shopping list to follow that helps me not forget anything and doesn’t having me running up and down the grocery aisles multiple times because I forgot something.  My grocery list plays double-duty as my weekly menu plan as well as any additional recipes I want to make.

I feel that feeding myself and my husband is the most important job in the world.  Making the right food choices keeps us healthy, energized, and fit.  I tackle this job by first deciding what we have for dinner every night and using the planner to note down what that meal will be.  I have a collection of cookbooks and recipe clippings I browse through to get inspired.  By choosing what recipes I plan to make, the next step is recording the ingredients I need to purchase on the grocery list.  While looking through the recipe books and clippings, I usually come across another few items that I’d like to make that will serve as a lunch item, snack, or treat.  I record these recipe names under the “To make” heading to be sure not to forget them.  Additionally, I include any reference information after the recipe name such as the name of the cookbook and page number, or if it’s a clipping I just put the word “loose” and keep it in a folder that has a home in my cookbook stand for just such items.  Sometimes I make a large quantity of something, portion it, and freeze it.  So for those busy days I can put one of these previously frozen dishes on the menu planner and put “freezer” next to it to remind me to leave it out to thaw for that day.  Lastly, I check cupboards, fridge, and freezer to add any staple items to the grocery list.  Then I have a good look at the meals for the week to make sure it’s well-balanced and has variety.  Now I’m good to go and know we have a yummy and well-thought out meal plan for the week ahead.

Attached is my grocery list and weekly menu planner form that I hope is useful for you too.  I print this double-sided so everything is together and after the groceries have been purchased, this print out lives in my cookbook stand, front and centre, so my plan is always visible because that way I’ll follow it.

DOCUMENT: Grocery List & Weekly Menu Planner