Let me just start off by saying this is my absolute favorite product that I have reviewed, ever! I have used other meal planning systems before, which I have liked, but
30 Meals in One Day happens to be my favorite!
Now that I have your attention let me tell you about the
Dinner is Ready Book and Software Combo set that we got to review, it included the 30 Meals in One Day Dinner Cookbook and the Dinners Software.
Th cookbook teaches you how to cook 30 meals in one day to stock your freezer. It includes 150 freezer friendly recipes, great tips on how to cut down on your time and how to be more efficient in bulk cooking.
The software, which was the WOW factor for me, is A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.!! Not only does it include the recipes from the cookbook, it is a menu/shopping list planner that allows you to add your own recipes, creates menus, shopping lists and freezer labels. Pure genius!
The recipes are very family friendly and simple to make. We have already found several favorites that I have made several times. Let me share some of the recipes that have made it on to our favorites list so far:
- Almost Ravioli
- Beef and Broccoli
- Cowboy Barbecue - everyone loves this one! The Hubs requests this one weekly, no kiddin'!
- Biscuit Beef Bake
- Slow Cooked Goulash
- Chicken & Biscuits
- Vegetable Beef Soup
- Basic Meatballs
- Chicken Tortellini Soup
30 Meals in One Day has some
sample recipes on their website, like Honey Lime Chicken, Bird's Nest Pie, Barbecued Ribs, Oven Stew if you would like to check them out.
I love the flexibility of 30 Meals in One Day. I have a hard time standing in my kitchen for a really long time, not cause I am lazy it's just because our house is build on concrete. So it is very hard on my legs and I am just too stubborn to run around my house in shoes all day {smile}. I really liked that the book made me feel comfortable enough to come up with a plan that worked for me. I decided to try making 14 meals instead of 30. I actually did in on a whim, well kinda.
I had made my menu, printed my shopping list and shopped. My plan was to cook the next day but when I had come home from the grocery store I just decided to make my meals. It was about 7pm, the kids were getting read y to go to bed so the time seemed right. I just started cooking all my meat before I put all my groceries that I wasn't using away. Then I went to it. It went alot faster than I thought it would, I think I had finished cooking and cleaning up by 10pm or so. It was a huge blessing to have all those meals ready to heat up because that particular week we were really busy.
One of the things about 30 Meals in One Day that is really flexible and oh so helpful is how the software categorizes the meals. You can sort them alphabetically, by meal and by type. I really love to sort them by type! Let me explain what I mean, all the recipes fit into one the following categories Assemble, Slow Cooker, Oven, or Stove Top. This simplifies things for me because on the days that we are running and coming home around dinner time, I like to have dinner waiting for us in my handy dandy crock pot! So when I am planning my meals it is really easy to find the perfect type of meal for a particular day. And, if I don't find something that suits my fancy for the week, I can add in my own recipe from another cookbook.
Another thing that I really appreciated and thought was worth mentioning was the recipes them self. They are easy to follow and easily modified. Say for instance someone has a food allergy or just a dislike, you can very simply go into the recipe and edit it. You can also modify amounts of foods that the recipe calls for depending on the serving size that you want.
I think this would be a huge blessing to any family. Especially homeschoolers and working mamas who are always tight on time. Can you imagine taking 15-30 minutes a month and planning out your meals for the month? Even doing it a week at a time would be a huge burden removed.
The 30 Meals in One Day would make a great gift for the up coming holidays. In my humble opinion, every mama should have this set in her stocking this year. Just saying : ) Did I mention how reasonable priced the book and software combo package is?
Right now it is on sale for $31.95, that includes the software program on cd or by download and a hard copy of the cookbook.
Not only do they have cookbooks and software for dinner meals but they also have them for lunch and sides. (scroll down). I would like to get these too! I get tired of the same old stuff for lunch.
You can purchase the cookbook or the software if you would prefer to not have them both, but I recommend having both of them.
30 Meals in One Day is offer a FREE Dinner is Ready Cookbook to one of my readers! The contest will run until November 14, 2011. It's really easy to enter! Just let me know how you currently plan your meals, even if it's as you are walking the grocery store isles. Please don't forget to leave me your email addres so that I can contact you if you are the winner!
Thanks for entering and happy meal planning!
We received the 30 Meals in One Day Book and Software Combo set free for review purposes only. We were not compensated in anyway for our opinions, we really do love this product!
