This post is part of my 20 Day Budget Challenge – How monthly menu plan printables will save you money!  Sign up for the full budget challenge here!

Other than clipping coupons, or cutting costs with these frugal habits, monthly menu planning is the best tool I’ve found to save both time and money in the kitchen.  Menu plans (or meal plans) are a bunch of recipes organized for you in such a way to that after a day of cooking, you’ll have your freezer full of dinners for the rest of the month.  All of the planning (which is the most time consuming part) is done for you.   If you are new to menu plans, then I want to let you know the pluses to using them:

These Monthly Menu Plan Printables will help you to:

– fill your freezer with a month’s worth of food
– cook once; eat multiple meals
– enjoy homemade, nutritious meals without stress
– save time, energy and money
– always know what’s for dinner

If you want to see an example of a free menu plan printable – then head over here where you can sign up to download one I specifically made for Wegmans shoppers (although it works for any store.)

I have had some requests for specific diets (like low carb, vegetarian, etc.) that my one meal plan did not fit.  Now I have a tool for you so that we can all make our OWN menu plan in just minutes!!!!!  I’m super excited about this resource because I seriously was just floored when I tried it myself and how easy it was!

Let me show you how this works – start by going over to My FreezEasy and create an account.

Once you click “Ready To Load Your Freezer?” you will be able to choose whether you want a monthly, quarterly or annual plan.  (You get 2 months for free if you sign up for the annual plan.)

Once your membership is set up, you will have access to 8 different monthly menu plans ready to go that you can just grab and print.  That means no selecting recipes and creating your own – you just print off what has already been made for the month.  Plus, you receive a new set of recipes and meal plans EVERY MONTH.

Basic Membership Includes Access to 8 New Meal Plans Each Month, and it covers just about any dietary concern or lifestyle choice:

• Traditional Plan – 10 meals: mix of different types of meals
• Gluten-Free Plan – 10 meals: completely gluten-free including sides
• Slow Cooker Plan – 10 meals: all freezer to slow cooker style
• Clean Eats Plan – 10 meals: all “clean ingredients”
• 20 Meals Plan – 20 meals: mix of different types of meals
• All Chicken Plan – 10 meals: all recipes using chicken breasts/chicken thighs, so you can get the chicken on sale and stock your freezer
• All Ground Beef Plan – 10 meals: all recipes using ground beef so you can get the ground beef on sale and stock your freezer
• All Pork Chops Plan – 10 meals: all recipes using pork chops or pork tenderloin so you can get the pork on sale and stock your freezer

There is also a Video Library that shows you how to put together the 8 different pre-made meal plans!  Erin is so great on camera – you’ll love having her as your teacher.  Just check out her intro video and you immediately know she’s a keeper.  😉

Not only do you have access to 8 different menu plans each month, you also have a choice to  CREATE YOUR OWN MENU PLAN.

That’s right – you get all the money savings, you get your free time back, you’ll still have your stress free dinners AND YOU GET FREEDOM OF CHOICE.

I personally eat mostly vegetarian, and there isn’t a vegetarian plan in the 8 I already get each month.  But that is ok, because it will take me about 5 mintues to pick out some vegetarian recipes and create my own vegetarian monthly menu plan printable.  Here is how I did it:

Find the Vegetarian option (its in the last row at the bottom.)

Now you will find a list of recipes. Choose 5 and drag them over to the right.  I chose Ravioli & Pesto Bake, Black Bean Soup, Slow Cooker Curried Chick Peas, Black Bean & Corn Enchiladas, and Pasta Puttanesca.

Then you create your meal plan – and then you have the option to download and print out your plan (including a shopping list), along with labels.

I just printed out my first 13 page menu plan – and this is what you get:

1.  The 5 recipes you selected
2. Complete Shopping List by Recipe
3. Complete Shopping List by Store Section/Category
4. Freezer Meal Prep Day Shopping List by Recipe
5. Freezer Meal Prep Day Shopping List by Store/Section/Category
6. Assembly Prep Instructions
7. Meal Assembly Instructions.

I just did all this in about 5 minutes.  SERIOUSLY!

If you aren’t into a vegetarian plan like me, – no problem!  You can create your own meal plans based on protein type, cooking method, or dietary preference.  This database is seriously amazing!

Now there will be no more wasting a whole meal because your husband hates curries or your youngest refuses to try anything with pineapple in it – this option lets you literally HAVE IT ALL, AND HAVE IT YOUR WAY!

 

OK Maura – this sounds AMAZING!!  BUT HOW MUCH IS IT?!

How’s just $12 a month sound??  Or even better – pay $97 for the whole year and you get 2 months for free.  That means you just pay $97 to get ALL OF YOUR MONTHLY MENUS PLANNED FOR YOU FOR A YEAR!!!  WOW!!!!

Seriously, – just pay the $12 just to try it for one month.  You will be blown. away.  It really is worth every penny.  Especially when just one meal plans can cost you between $2-$7 – you have access to create your own PLUS have access to 8 other meal plans each month!

 The Smart Phone App is also available!!  Search “MyFreezEasy” in the app store, download the app, & login!  You can create your monthly plan and e-mail it to yourself!

I’m making my first recipe from my menu plan tonight.  I’m planning a facebook live video later this week to tell you all about it. 🙂

If you still aren’t sure if you want to fork out $12 yet for a monthly membership, that is ok.  There are individual meal plan options that you can purchase for $7.  Just go to the main page and find the “Freezer Meal Plans” drop down and click on “This Month’s Freezer Meal Plans”

Scan down and find the meal plan you want and just purchase that one without a monthly membership!

Want me to spell this all out for you in a video?  Ok!  Watch this Facebook Live video where I explain how easy it is to use MyFreezEasy:

Still not sure if you want to pay for one of these yet?  That’s ok – you can also sign up for a FREE Freezer Cooking Workshop & Free Sample FreezEasy Meal Plan to try it out and see if this is for you!

I also have a FREE printable meal plan that I made that I’m giving away for free that you can also print and try and see if this meal planning thing truly helps you in the kitchen or not!  Just fill out the form below to get yours in your inbox!

Now if you are looking for the rest of the FREE 20 Day Budget Challenge information, just GO HERE to get all 20 days of material in your inbox, for FREE!

If you want to join us for the rest of the 20 Day Budget Challenge community and conversation, head over to our Budget Bootcamp Facebook Group and tell us about your experience using meal plans or even the MyFreezEasy App!