Family Feasts for $75 a Week Review

I am very excited!  I believe I have found a new favorite cook book, yay meee!  I was blessed with a copy of Family Feast for $75 a Week, which was written by blogger mom Mary Ostyn, to review.

So far we have tried several of the recipes in this cookbook and they have ALL been WINNERS!  That is no small feat considering how picky my lovely little crew is. 

I love that Mary is a mom just like me, well almost like me - she has 6 more kids than I do.  I feel like the more kids you have the better cook you are : )  Being a stay home mom of many Mary has learned many tricks to pinch pennies and cut hundreds from her food bill each month.   

In the begin of Family Feasts, Mary shares her frugal wisdom, as well as many of her kitchen secrets to cut down on food costs and time spent in the kitchen.  I especially like her chapter on Menu Planning! 

Here are the chapters in Family Feasts for $75 a Month:

1. What Would You Do with an Extra $100 a Month?
2. Come Shopping with Me?
3. Guerrilla Shopping
4. Efficient Cooking, Good Eating
5. Breakfast & Lunch
6. Casseroles & Oven Meals
7. Stir-fries & Skillet Meals
8. Perfect Pasta
9. Soups, Stews & Chili's
10. Sides & Salads
11. Breads, Muffins & Desserts
12. Entertaining on a Budget
13. The Homemade Pantry
14. Metric Charts

Now for the mouth watering part of my little review, here are the recipes that we have already had and LOVED:

• Eggy Breakfast Muffins - The Lil Chef made these.  She doubled them so that some could be eaten and some frozen to eat later.
• Easy Pizza Rolls - These were pretty amazing!  Have you ever had cream cheese and pepperoni together?  If not, you are totally missing out.  I promise!
• Chicken Pot Pie with Cheesie Biscuit Topping - I think the title alone says it all!
• Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore - As you know, anything with slow cooker is right up my alley.  This was a yummy little comfort food dinner that everyone enjoyed.
• Chili Corn Pone Pie - I frequently write in my cookbooks because I can and because I am forgetful.  I will always write yuck next a recipe that is, well yucky.  Next to this recipe I have written, "Excellent1 Enjoyed by Everyone!" 
• Mexican Tortilla Skillet - This might be my new favorite meal ever!  It is totally company worthy and it's super easy.  It reminds me of the Taco Bake but much better!
• Baked Ziti Casserole - YUM-MEE!

Mouth watering yet??  Mine is : )  We have several other recipes on our Menu Plan for the week that I am sure will just add to my love for this cookbook. 

You can get your own fabulous copy of Family Feasts for $75 a Week right from Amazon, which is currently on sale for around $11.50 (with free super saver shipping I might add). 

I can given a free copy of Family Feast for $75 a Week for review purposes only.  I was not compensated in any way for my opinions.  The opinions expressed in this review are truly mine. 

30 Meals in One Day Review & GIVEAWAY!

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! 

TOS Crew: E-Mealz Review

I cook.  I cook because I like to and because the people that live here with me like to eat.  Since I am cooking several meals a day I decided many years ago that I would be a meal planner, I think it is just easier to come up with a dinner plan before 5pm each day.  I also feel like meal planning helps to save money (hypothetically anyway), since I go shopping armed with a list of the things we NEED. 

BUT sometimes I get so tired of coming up with new recipes and meal ideas.  Have you ever thought how much easier meal planning would be if someone else would just come up with the plan and hand it over?  I know I have.  There is this company called e-Mealz and that is pretty much what they do.  Not only to they give you the meal ideas, they also give you the recipes and shopping list.  I know some of you who have not been faithful with meal planning are probably starting to sweat nervously at this point because you know now you are with out excuse : )  But don't worry, e-Mealz has done the work for you. 

It's easy as 1,2,3! Choose a Plan, Print and Go Shopping, Cook and Enjoy!

e-Mealz offers 28 different meal plans that you can choose from

So whether you shop at Aldi's, Walmart or somewhere else, e-Mealz has a plan for you.  Not only do they have regular meal plans for families then even have plans for those that are using portion control with their meals, and those that eat gluten free.  e-Mealz pretty much has a meal plan for everyone.  The only thing I didn't see is an option for those with egg or peanut allergies. 

Okay, let's talk food.  I am sure you guys are wondering what the food is like.  Here is a run down of some of the dinner recipes that I received on the Any-Store Family Meal Plan:

• Brunswick Beef Stew (which is a crock pot recipe, so that is major bonus!), Simple Slaw and French Bread
• BBQ Chicken Packets - these are made in tin foil and thrown in the oven.  Simple, simple, simple!!
• Creamy Pesto Ravioli and Tomato Salad Toss
• Parmesan Crusted Chicken, Lemon Butter Broccoli and Herb Pasta
• Easy Cheeseburger Pie, Skillet Corn, Celery Sticks & Ranch Dip
• Chicken & Cannelloni Soup with Cornbread Muffins
• Hamburger Pizzas and Broccoli n’ Dip
• Pesto Pepperoni Wraps, Chips and Sliced Pears
• Beef Hash and Steamed Broccoli
• Mexican Casserole, Tortilla Chips and Garden Salad

Mouth watering yet?? Not only do you get a nice variety of good meals each week but you also get a variety in the type of meals.  For instance each week's meal plan is peppered with crock pot meals, one dish meals, easy meals and even company favorites!  Did you also notice that they no only give you main dishes but sides too!

Here is a sample menu.  You can also view samples of all the e-Mealz Menu Plans here.

The recipes may sound difficult and time consuming but I assure you they really aren't.  For the most part these meals are made fairly quickly, in my opinion.  One great thing about e-Mealz plans is that they are created by moms just like you and me, they get that we are busy because they are busy too!

Let's talk price.  e-Mealz is also super reasonable, each meal plan is only $5.00 per month, which breaks down to only $1.25 per week.  I think $1.25 a week is well worth the many benefits you would get from using e-Mealz.  It would save you time by meal planning for you, save you money by having a plan when you shop and not having to always order out.  Just imagine, you could be feeding you family good home cooked, healthier meals during the week and keep your sanity at the same time!  Wouldn't it be wonderful to actually have an answer when your family asks, "what's for dinner?" 

I love this product and think it is well worth $5.00 per month.  Whtether you are new to meal planning or you are a veteran, I know you will love e-Mealz.  Great meals, great price and less stress, what's not to love?

We were given a subscription to e-Mealz at no charge for review purposes only.  I was not paid in any way and the opinions expressed here are mine.