Planning your meals and using your meal plan to make a grocery list are a top tip for saving money on food. By planning your meals and using a list when you shop, you know exactly what you need to buy and are less likely to buy items you don’t need.

However, sometimes meal planning can seem overwhelming because you just don’t know what to make or you’re worried your family won’t like what you make and then the food (and money!) will be wasted. One solution to help with both of these concerns is to create a list of Family Favorite Recipes. By writing down recipes or meal ideas your family likes, when you sit down to do your meal planning, you will have a list of ideas to choose from and you will know that they are foods your family will eat.

We have recently added two Family Favorite Recipe sheets to our Spend Smart. Eat Smart. website. One is divided by different categories including breakfast, side, main dish, salad, soup, and snack. The other is divided by protein type including beef, pork, fish, poultry, venison, and vegetarian. After adding your favorite recipes, keep the list handy so when you are ready to plan your meals, you can use it for some inspiration.

Some of my family’s favorite recipes are Oatmeal Pancakes, Quick Pad Thai, Mexican Chicken Soup, Quick Black Bean Salsa, and  Energy Bites. Are any of these on your list of family favorites?