My Favorite Way to Simplify Meal Planning

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Deciding what to eat throughout the day can be very time consuming if you donโ€™t plan ahead.  It can also get expensive if you end up going out to eat more than cooking at home.  Cooking is not one of my favorite things, but I have grown a slight fondness for it lately.  This is because my meal planning process has allowed me to save time with a simple strategy that I will share with you.  I call it Meal Remixing.

Meal Remixing is when you have staple meals, but make them slightly different by changing the ingredients or preparation. When remixing meals, itโ€™s important to know your crowd favorites.  For example, my family loves noodle and rice dishes, so I make these types of meals using different ingredients two or three times a month.



Hereโ€™s how I remix noodle and rice dishes:

  • Change the carb

    • Use different noodles (soba noodles, ramen noodles, rice noodles, etc.)

    • Use different rice and prep options (brown rice, white rice, cauliflower rice, fried rice, steamed rice, etc.)

  • Change the protein- Shrimp, chicken, beef, fish, tofu, etc.

  • Change the veggies- Plenty of options!

  • Change the sauce- Teriyaki, peanut sauce, curry sauce, etc.

Another staple in my home is pasta.  Pasta is one of those things that people tend to learn how to make at an early age.  I remember helping my Mom make spaghetti when I was very young, then making it in Home Economics in middle school.  It also helps that itโ€™s a simple meal to make.

Hereโ€™s how I remix pasta:

  • Change the noodles- Spaghetti, penne, bowtie, elbow, linguini, lasagne, etc.

  • Change the sauce- Tomato, alfredo, pesto

  • Change the protein- Salmon, chicken, shrimp, beef

  • Change the preparation- Stovetop, oven baked, InstantPot, etc.

  • Extras- Change the type of cheese garnish used, and add veggies

The last staple meal in my household is Tacos/Burritos.  You can do so many things to make a taco different, so itโ€™s hard to get bored with them.


Hereโ€™s how I remix tacos:

  • Change the shells- Hard, soft, corn, nachos

  • Change the protein- Beef, chicken, fish, beans

  • Change the preparation- Stovetop, baked (enchilada), burrito bowl

  • Extras- Change the type of cheese used, add different veggies, use different taco sauces, etc.

As you can see, thinking about different ways to remix a staple meal in your household will instantly create variety, so your family should not get bored eating โ€œthe same thingโ€.  Also, if you know your staple meals, meal planning for the week should be a smooth process.  I hope this gives you some ideas on how to remix your meals.

Do you meal plan using a strategy similar to my Meal Remixing or any other strategy?  I would love to hear about it.  Let me know in the comments!

5 Ways to Use Canva for Your Business or Blog in 2023

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Simplicity and ease are things I enjoy in my life, so when it comes to business, this is also a huge factor in my decision making. One of my all time favorite programs to use for business is still Canva (here are some previous posts on things I love about Canva).  Over the years, they continue to add so many useful features, so I would like to share with you 5 ways to use Canva in 2023 for your business or blog that I plan to use more often.


1/ Canva Timer

Itโ€™s a new year and you may want to get a better grip on your time.  The Canva timer is a great way to help out!  You can set a timer to keep track of how long you are working on a project, or to allocate a certain amount of time for focused work.  This is great when you want to stick to a specific time to work, and it will keep you on task so you donโ€™t lose track of time.  This is important when you are trying to be more intentional with how your time is spent.  This feature is currently only available on the desktop version.

 
 

2/ Canva Docs

You now have the option to create a word processing document in Canva!  Itโ€™s like Microsoft Word and Google Docs on overdrive.  Here are some helpful features in Canva Docs:

  • Add visuals like videos, charts, and graphs to your docs.  You can also incorporate designs that you have created in Canva for a seamless import to your document.

  • You can share and comment in docs in real-time, so collaboration is easy.

  • Use Magic write when you canโ€™t quite seem to put your thoughts into the right words. Magic Write is an AI powered writing partner which helps you along while writing copy in docs.  Itโ€™s important to generate your own content, but there are times when you want to say something and find it hard to put it into the right words.  This is where Magic Write can help!  Itโ€™s like when you need to phone a friend to help you get your thoughts together.  If you enter a phrase, Magic Write will provide copy that can get you going and you can build further on it.  You get 25 magic writes per month on the free plan, and 75 on paid plans.

  • The insights section of a doc is helpful, especially the Read Time.  This will give an approximate time that it will take to read your document.  This is helpful to know because you may need to add or remove content depending how long or short of a read you want for your audience.

3/ Mind Maps

These are great for the visual planning of things such as monthly, quarterly, or annual planning, project planning, launch planning, brand partnership planning, etc.  Putting visuals to a plan gives it more context and can be easier to follow. Since Canva has templates, you can choose a layout that is ideal for what you are planning (the time-saving option), or create your own layout (still a great option!).

4/ Create Video Content (Reels, TikTok, YouTube, etc.)

Video content is still a huge factor for businesses and will continue to hold true in 2023. Canva makes it easy to create professional video content quickly.  You can incorporate your brand colors, add audio, and edit all in one place. I love a good all-in-one tool because it makes a process so much easier and faster to complete, so this built-in editor is golden.

5/ Social Ad Break Slide

When working with brands, itโ€™s important to be transparent about it.  A great way to transition into sponsored content on your stories is by incorporating an Ad Break slide.  This slide kindly informs your audience of upcoming sponsored content and encourages engagement by asking to like and visit links.

If you do not create sponsored content, you can create a slide for the end of your Reels/TikToks to promote your own profile.  Since Reels/TikToks are often viewed by people that donโ€™t follow you, adding a slide to the end of your videos showing your handle and an image of you can encourage new profile visits and followers.

This is the image I use at the end of my Reels when I want to encourage engagement:

Do you use any of these features in Canva?  Also, what are some of your favorite things about Canva?  Let me know in the comments below!