October Monthly Printable Menu Plan & Shopping List

Alright lovelies many of you have asked if I could share my full month of meal plans all in one post, rather then posting weekly ones. Well guess what? I am going to do you one better. Not only is this post, chock full of meal ideas, but I have included the recipes as well. I wanted to make it as easy as possible for all you guys and gals. Oh and did I mention this is all printable? Yep I kinda like you guys:) This is actually what my family will be eating this month as well. Feel free to break the list down into weeks or however it suits you. Just depends on how you do your shopping. If you are new to Once aMonth Shopping, then please check out my Where to Get Started Page. It is chock full of tips and tricks on beginning meal planning and how to cut your grocery budget in half. A must read.

Now There are 31 days in October. I have planned meals for 28 days. We will not use all of these meals, but I love to have a few just in case. This allows my month of shopping to overlap, so I am never going without a meal plan. I also have three days down as leftover days. The menu plan is listed first, broken up into weeks. The recipes follow below.

Note: I serve all my meals with a fruit or veggie and some sort of starch. I have only included plans for a main dish. You can check out my post here for side dish ideas.

1. PW Potato Skins
2. Chicken Ole
3. Taco Soup
4. Beef Stroganoff
5. Creamed Tuna and Peas
6. Hot Deli Ham Sandwiches
7. Crock-pot Stew
8. Chili Con Carne
9. Ultimate Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

10. Salsa Chicken Over Rice
11. Lemon Grilled Chicken
12. BBQ Chicken Sandwiches & Pineapple
13. Salisbury Steak and Peppers
14. Southwestern Chicken Salad Sandwich
15. Baked BBQ Chicken with Bacon
16. Beef Creole
17. Grilled Pork Chops
18. Carols Chicken
19. Thin Crust Pepperoni Pizza
20. Chicken Pot Pie
21. Crock-pot Whole Chicken
22. Mango Chicken with rice
23. Taco Night
24. Spaghetti Night with Itlaian Herb Bread
25. Leftover Night
26. Bean Burritos with Avocado Spread
27. Smothered Mozzarella Sandwiches
28. Hot Dogs with homemade hotdog buns
29. Leftover Night
30. Oven Turkey Meatballs
31. Leftover Night
    
    
    
    
    Beef Creole
    1 lb. ground turkey
    1/3 cup chopped onion
    1/4 tsp garlic salt
    1 medium green pepper, cut into thin strips
    2 cups celery diced
    1 (16 oz) can of tomatoes - undrained
    1 tsp chili powder
    2 tsp salt
    1/4 tsp pepper
    1 tbl flour
    1/4 cup water
    
    
    Brown turkey, onion, and garlic in a skillet. Drain. Add green pepper, celery, can of tomatoes, chili powder, salt, and pepper. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer, covered for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally  Blend in flour and water. Cook until thickened. Serve over rice.
    
    
    Carols Chicken
    
    
    4-6 chicken breast, boneless skinless
    1 cup flour tossed with 1 tbl seasoning salt
    1 can cream of chicken soup
    1 cup sour cream
    1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese shredded
    
    
    Toss chicken breasts in flour mixture. Brown chicken in oil for 1 minute per side. Place chicken in a baking dish. Combine soup and sour cream. Pour over chicken. Bake at 35' for 30 minutes. Remover and cover with cheese. Bake another 5 minutes.

Baked BBQ Chicken with Bacon

1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced and separated into rings

6 boneless, skinless chicken breast

1 cup BBQ sauce

6 bacon slices

PReheat oven to 350'. In a grased 9x13 baking pan, spread onions evenly. Lay chicken breast atop the onion rings. Brush BBQ sauce over chicken and top each piece with chopped bacon. Bake for 1 hour, basting with sauce twice while chicken is baking.

Southwestern Chicken Salad

1 cup of cooked shredded chicken

1 (15oz) can drained corn

1 (15 oz) can drained kidney beans

3 tbsp lime juice

2 tsp chili powder

cilantro

Toss chicken with lime juice and chili powder. Add beans and corn to chicken mixture. Add a few sprigs of cilantro. Serve on bread.

Salisbury Steak and Peppers

1 lb ground turkey

1 envelope of onion soup mix

1 egg

1/4 cup dried bread crumbs

1/4 tsp salt

2 tbl flour

1 1/2 cup water

1 large green pepper, cut into strips

1 small onion, sliced

Mix turkey, 2 tbl onion soup mix, egg, bread crumbs  and salt. Shape into 4 patties, set side. In shallow casserole dish, mix remaining ingredients. Stir in water. Add meat patties to dish. Place peppers and onions around meat. Cover and bake for 30 minutes at 350' or until meat is done. Stir veggies once during cooking. Enoy!

Chicken Ole

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 can green chile salsa

1 cup sour cream

1 tbsp. grated onions

12 tortillas

4 cups chopped chicken

3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

 1 can re-fried beans

1 can drained corn

Grease side of a crockpot. Combine soups, salsa, sour cream, beans, onions, and corn in a bowl. In crockpot arrange layers of tortillas and layers of soup mixture. Cover and cook 4-5 hours. Sprinkle with cheese before serving.

* To make this a meatless dinner, just add 1 more can of beans and forget the chicken.

Taco Soup

1 lb. ground turkey

1 onion chopped

1 pkg taco seasoning

1 (15oz) can diced tomatoes

1 (15 oz) can kidney beans - drained

1 (15oz) can of pinto beans- drained

1 can filled with water

Brown turkey in a skillet. Drain. Place turkey, taco seasoning, kidney beans, pinto beans, and water in a pot. Simmer for about 30 minutes. Serve hot with corn bread or tortilla chips. We like a dollop of sour cream as well!

Beef Stroganoff

1 lb ground turkey

1 jar of beef gravy

1 can mushrooms - drained

1 cup sour cream

egg noodles

Brown your turkey in a skillet. Drain. Add jar of beef gravy, 1 cup sour cream, and mushrooms. Mix well and simmer for 5 minutes. Serve over hot egg noodles.

Creamed Tuna and Peas

1 can of peas - drained

1 can of tuna - drained

 1/4 tsp pepper

2 cups milk

seasoning salt

1 cup flour 

1 cube margarine

Cook flour and margarine in a pot for one minute. Slowly add everything else while stirring with whisk. Cook until thickened. Serve over biscuits, bread, rolls, or rice

Crock-pot Stew

1 10 oz pkg of mixed veggies

1 4oz. can mushrooms - drained

2- 2 1/2  lb stew meat

1 pkg. onion soup mix

water to cover

place all ingredients in your crock-pot. Cover and cook on low heat for 8-110 hours or on high for 4 hours. Serve with rolls.

Chile Con Carne

1 can kidney beans - drained

1 lb ground turkey

1 onion - chopped

1 green pepper - chopped

1 clove garlic minced

1 16 oz can tomatoes, cut up

1 8 oz can tomato sauce

2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp dried basil, crushed

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

Cook ground turkey, onion, green pepper, and garlic until meat is browned. Drain off fat. Stir in un-drained tomatoes, kidney beans, tomato sauce, chili powder, basil, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat. Cover and simmer about 20 minutes longer. Serve with cornbread.

Lemon Grilled Chicken

2 tbsp. olive oil

1 lemon

1 garlic clove

1/4 tsp dried parsley

1/4 dried thyme

1/4 dried marjoram

1/4 tsp salt and pepper

4 chicken breast

Use a peeler to zest half the lemon. Place zest and juice from lemon in a medium bowl. Add other dried seasonings, oil,  and garlic. Stir well. This is your marinade  Put chicken and marinade in a bag and seal. Allow meat to sit in marinade 30 minutes- overnight in the fridge. The longer the better. Preheat your griddle and then cook chicken. Serve and enjoy!

Oven Turkey Meatballs

This recipe makes about 30-40 meatballs, depending on your size. I make this about every 2 months. I use some for dinner and then freeze the rest in freezer bags. These are great for a quick dinner.

3 beaten eggs

¼ cup milk

3 cups bread crumbs (try whole wheat)

½ finely chopped onion (I used onion powder)

2 stalks of celery

2 tsp seasoning salt

1 lbs. ground turkey

1 lb ground turkey sausage

Preheat oven to 375'. In alarge mixing bowl combine beaten eggs, milk, bread crumbs, chopped onion, and salt. Add ground turkey and mix well. Shape into 1 inch balls. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Eat right away or store for later in the month. If storing, allow them to cool completely. Place in freezer bags and store in your freezer.

These meatballs will be used twice this month.

Smothered Mozzarella Sandwiches

4 hero rolls, halved lengthwise

1 package (8 ounces) of mozzarella cheese, sliced

1 cup of pasta sauce, heated

Preheat oven to 450'. On baking sheet, arrange rolls. Place cheese on bottom half of rolls. Bake 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and rolls are lightly toasted. Evenly spoon sauce over cheese. Serve if desired, with additional heated sauce for dipping.

Taco Night

1 lb ground turkey

1 pkg taco seasoning

1 pkg tortillas

We use these taco fixings:

tomatoes

shredded cheddar cheese

lettuce

sour cream

salsa

Add your taco fixings to your grocery list.

I only added the ingredients to the meat portion to the grocery list.

Mango Chicken with Rice

4-5 chicken breast

1 jar mango salsa

rice

Place chicken in a crock-pot. Pour salsa over the top. Cook on low for 5-6 hours. Serve with rice and veggies.

Crockpot Whole Chicken

1 whole young chicken

1 cup water

Lawry's

poultry seasoning

creole seasoning

1 onion

4 whole carrots

4 stalks of celery

I like to serve it with stuffing and cranberry sauce

Clean your chicken and remove the neck. Place your chicken, breast side up, in a greased (cooking spray) crock-pot. Generously sprinkle with dry seasonings. Chop ½ of the onion and place around chicken. Place the other half inside the chicken. Cut up celery and carrots. Place around the chicken. Cook on low for 6-7 hours.

Thin Crust Pizza

2 ¼ tsp active dry yeast

1 tsp sugar

¾ cup hot water

1 ¾ cups flour

½ tsp salt

1 (14 ounce) jar of Pasta/pizza sauce

Place yeast, sugar, and water in a bowl. Mix well. Allow to sit for 8 minutes. Your yeast will begin to bubble and foam. Add your salt and flour. Mix well. Add additional tbl of flour if dough is too sticky. Flour your counter and knead for 3-5 minutes. Use a rolling pin to roll out your dough. Place on a pizza pan. I use a pan with holes throughout the bottom. Allows for a crispier crust. Add your sauce and toppings. Bake @ 500 for 8-12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool for 2-3 minutes and serve.

BBQ Chicken Sandwiches

4-5 boneless, skinless chicken breast

1 (17.5 oz) bottle of BBQ sauce

1 (20oz) can of pineapple chunks

Put everything in the crock-pot. Cook for 5-6 hours.

Serve on rolls or over rice.

Grilled Pork Chops

4-5 pork chops

Mrs. Dash low Sodium Garlic and Herb Seasonings

Generously sprinkle each pork chop with Mrs. Dash. Spray cooking spray onto a skillet. Fry your pork chops, about 7 minutes on each side, until cooked through. Serve with rice and veggies.

Here is a printable version of this menu plan + recipes. 

You can print it below or click HERE.

Here is a printable version of this month's grocery list. 

You can print it below or click HERE.

Remember to shop your pantry first!

Notes:

-For chicken, I buy mine in 3 lb bags at either Costco or Winco. I pay about $4.60 per bag. Each bag allows me to get about 3 meals out of it. I have not stated how much chicken you need. It is up to you on how it is packaged.

-Also a few recipes only use a little bit of chicken. I will use left over chicken from the whole young chicken. I will use this for one meal and use the left over meat in other meals in the month.

-When it comes to meat, I use ground turkey. It is much healthier. You can also replace that with ground beef if you wish.

-When it comes to seasoning packets, I either make my own or I buy them in bulk at Costco. I also purchase my tortillas there as well. They come in 2 packs. I freeze one and place the other in my fridge.

-Also all of my grains are whole wheat and my rice is brown rice. We just made the change, in an effort to eat healthier.

-All recipes are included or are linked in the menu plan. 

Don't forget to check out my new tabs for ready made 

mixes and my where to get started tab.Thanks so much!

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