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Since eating with food allergies requires more cooking and baking from scratch, planning allergy free meals ahead of time can really be helpful. In the midst of days that seem to be filled with more work and not enough time, you can save yourself some stress with a little advance planning. In short, planning allergy free meals is a way to avoid that nagging question, "what's for dinner" each and every night. Are you sold? Great! Grab a calendar and let's get started!
Choose Your Main Dishes
To begin, choose a main dish that includes a source of protein like legumes, fish, poultry, pork or beef for each day on your calendar. Can't think of any? Read the Finding Allergy Free Recipes page for inspiration. Once you come up with 5-7 main dishes choose one for each day of the week that you want planned and write it on the calendar. Many people only plan for weeknights when they are working during the day and "wing it" on the weekends. Also, you might find that one day having leftovers works well.  Use USDA's My Pyramid as a guide for meal planning |
In addition to the main dish, include the following items on the calendar for each meal when planning allergy free meals:
- A grain such as rice, pasta, couscous, etc.
- A vegetable AND/OR
- A fruit
- A source of calcium such as milk or fortified non-dairy milk (like soy milk)
- You might also choose to include a bread including rolls, toast, biscuits, etc.
Some main dishes can combine many or all of these components into one dish. These "one pot wonders" are a great way to save time (and dishes!) If you're planning an allergy free meal like this for one of the days, don't worry about adding side dishes - they're already there! Are you wondering how many servings of each type of food you and your family should get in a day? Go to Mypyramid.gov for a customized food guide. Here are some more things to consider when planning allergy free meals:
- Appearance Counts
When planning your meals, consider the colors of the main dish and side dishes and try to vary them. This not only makes a meal more appealing but it also helps you to get a good balance of nutrients. Similar colors of fruits and vegetables, for example, often contain similar nutrients. For example, take a white plate, add a grilled chicken breast, mashed potatoes and a side of cauliflower and you have a meal that blends right into the plate. Compare that to a plate with a grilled chicken breast, green beans and baked sweet potato fries - which one would you rather eat based on appearance? - Double up
When you're planning allergy free meals for the coming week, consider a couple of meals that are made with some of the same ingredients. For instance, if you plan to have spaghetti with meat sauce on Monday and a casserole that calls for ground beef on Wednesday, you can brown 2 pounds of hamburger all at once and reserve half of it for your casserole on Wednesday. This goes for chopping veggies, too. You can freeze these "pre-prepped" ingredients if you won't be using them right away, too. You can also save some time by making double batches of a meal. I do this with spaghetti sauce all of the time. I make double the amount that I need and then freeze half of it for another meal in a couple of weeks. When I'm in a rush to make dinner and don't have a plan, I am always thankful for that frozen container of spaghetti sauce in the freezer! - Watch for Savings
Before you plan your week of meals, take out the grocery store circular and see what's on sale. This could serve as inspiration to help you come up with meals and can save you money, too.If you are a coupon clipper, take out your coupons when you're planning and see if you can use any of them for the meals you're planning on having. Food allergies can make eating more expensive so save money wherever you can! Looking for some savings? Click here for printable coupons.
Get Ready to Shop Now that you've planned your meals and gathered your coupons, it's time to make your grocery list. Try to list what you'll need in the order that you'd find it in the store. For instance, write down all produce first, then meat, then specialty foods, then frozen foods, then canned foods, etc. This will just save you time when you're at the store. When you're making your list, go through the meals that you have planned and write down everything that you don't already have to make those meals. Don't forget spices, oils, condiments, etc. and keep in mind amounts or sizes of ingredients that you'll need, too. Be specific if you must. For instance, if you're trying a new recipe and your list says "mushrooms" you might need to specify what type of mushrooms or, if using canned, the size of can required. Take short-cuts wherever you can. If you're making stir fry one night, look for pre-packaged stir fry veggies (if it comes with a sauce packet, be sure it is "safe" for you and your family). Use pre-minced garlic and other pre-chopped produce. Packaged herb blends and sauce mixes can add a lot of flavor to your meal and be a big time saver but, of course, always remember to check the label as they often contain hidden allergens.
Prep Early
If you shop on the weekend and have some time when you get home from the grocery store, start prepping for your week ahead. Chop onions, celery, carrots, etc. Keep meats that you will be using soon in the refrigerator so you don't need to thaw them later in the week. Taking these steps when you have some spare time can save you a lot of time at the end of a busy day.
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