I did the same thing recently. I get so tired of food waste.
DH was highly offended one night this week...can't even remember what night (maybe Monday?) that I made cornbread. He asked what I was making and I said, "Cornbread." He said, "And?" I said, "Cornbread!" I heated up leftover soup to go with my cornbread. I don't know what he ate that night, but it wasn't cornbread or soup.
I'll post a menu plan for next week after I think about it more.
I look at meal planning with the same philosophy as being frugal with other household purchases --
reuse, repurpose, recycle, only I do it with food. And what you describe is why, when I menu plan, I plan for 3 meals a day. It also helps me to make the most of my grocery budget and insure that I have everything I need on hand, so there's
no excuse for
"I don't have what I need to make dinner, so I'll just grab something from the drive thru."
I was used to cooking meals that would serve 4 (household of 3 + a friend of DD often joined us), then became empty nesters, and shortly after, my DH passed suddenly. Learning to cook to compliment my household (and reduced budget; widows pension was 50% of what DH was getting) was a new learning experience and, for the most part, I've mastered cutting a recipe down to 2 servings -- one for dinner, and the other for lunch the next day or to make something for lunch from the leftovers.
Here's my process, in case anyone can glean a few tips that will help:
- I start by making my dinner plan for the week, penciling in any planned dinners out with my widows group or others.
- Then, I move on to lunch. I look at what my expected leftovers will be (even from meals out, knowing I'll bring a doggie bag home). For the next day's lunch, will I want just plain leftovers? Or can I craft something else from it?
-- I can't do much with re-crafting manicotti, so today will be just plain leftovers, probably reheated in the microwave. If I'm ambitious, I'll put some bagged salad on the plate and tell myself it's a healthy lunch (well, it IS healthier than a Big Mac and fries, right?).
-- If I'm making a half-recipe of pot roast and potatoes for Sunday dinner, I might plan BBQ beef sliders and oven browned potatoes for lunch on Monday. Or, I'll make chicken salad from leftover chicken breast, or make a soup or stew from the leftovers, aggregating leftover vegetables and supplementing with what I have in the crisper drawer or freezer.
-- And, I also consider what else I could do if I have a larger amount left over. For me to cook a turkey breast, I know I'll have a LOT left over, so I'll plan for turkey sandwiches, turkey a'la king, or "poultry" pot pie for later in the week.
-- If it turns out that there are no leftovers? There's always grilled cheese or PB&J for lunch.
- Lastly, I'll look at my lunches and dinners and pencil in my breakfasts, based on where I may need to cut back to balance some calories. Sometimes, even my dinner plans impact breakfast -- biscuits from chicken a'la king get repurposed in breakfast sandwiches (or, vice versa -- make biscuits for breakfast, knowing that a'la king is on the dinner menu within the next day or two) -- unfortunately you can't buy just 2 biscuits in either the refrigerator section or bakery, so there will always be leftover biscuits; boiled eggs for breakfast, I'll make sure I "over boil" some for use egg salad for lunch, deviled eggs for a Sunday dinner, or sliced and on a lunch-time chef's salad using leftover turkey or chicken. If I'm boiling water for 2 eggs, why not boil a couple of more, since I know where and when I'll use them?
- As I make my menu, I'll review recipe ingredients, check my pantry, and add needed items to my grocery list. This year, I'm finding myself shopping only about every two weeks, and it tends to be for bread, produce, and dairy. Most other ingredients are in my pantry or freezer.
It's become somewhat of a game for me, like putting together a puzzle of the week's meals. It helps me build my grocery list, keeps me on a healthier track so I'm not relying entirely on carbs (muffins or donuts from Dunkin') for breakfast and drive thru meals for lunch and/or dinner, and it lets me spend less time in the kitchen pondering "what's for lunch" or "what's for dinner" only to find that the meat I need is still in the freezer. My budget thanks me, too, since there's less food waste and far less penicillin growing in my refrigerator.