My family has recently moved. A pack-all-your-things-and-move-across-the-country type of move. There are several things that happen when you move: You lose all your good hunting grounds for allergen-free foods, your kitchen gadgets end up in boxes marked “office supplies – storage room”, and your routine is lost. It’s like discovering food allergies all over again!
One thing I have neglected on working on is The Meal Plan.
I have a love-hate relationship with plans in general, but I grudgingly admit that The Meal Plan has helped simplify dinner for me. When I don’t work on The Meal Plan, my days are filled with unpacking, trying to start up a business, juggling appointments of all kinds, playing with my toddler, getting the bigger kids to and from school and suddenly … the witching hour hits where everyone is hungry and cranky and I’m looking at my kitchen in amazement because there is nothing ready to eat.
The Meal Plan. 
There are many great things about having one. You know in advance what ingredients you need. You can buy in bulk to cook (or freeze) ahead which can save you money. You can start your dinner in the crockpot in the morning and let it simmer all day and be ready when you are. You can post it prominently so complainers can get it over with, and all others can eagerly anticipate the glorious mouthwatering food that you can create.
But seriously. The Meal Plan helps me because I am more like an absent-minded professor working on the big ideas of life, and having The Meal Plan charted out and in place is like having someone follow me around reminding me to pick up my socks.
Now I have many grand ideas about how to meal plan. Right now I’m working for a 2 week rotation. I’d love to expand it a little further, and possibly rotate seasonal meals through as well (potato salad in the summer time, for instance.)
I would love to hear what works for other people though. Especially in attempting to tame food allergy cooking. What works for bulk and batch cooking? Do you have a month’s worth of meals you can work with? Have you tried once-a-month cooking? Do tell!
Meanwhile, I’m going to keep looking for my crockpot. Maybe it’s in that box labeled “shed – tools”…
Food Allergies On Ice 