Do you ever find yourself in a rut when it comes to planning dinner? Me, too! Sometimes you just need a fresh perspective. I have put together a whole month of cool weather dinner menus to help you with those “what’s for dinner blues”.
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30 Cool Weather Dinner Menus
I’ve divided these dinner menus in several categories. Let’s say you’ve got ground beef in the freezer and can’t decide what to do with it. Just scroll down to the ground beef category and see if something sounds good to you.
I’ve purposely kept these menus quite simple. I don’t know about you but about this time of year I’m getting tired of cooking (especially during this pandemic!) and until spring vegetables begin to make their appearance I just want to get something tasty on the table without a lot of thought or fuss.
I’ve included side dish suggestions with most of these but of course, these are just suggestions. Use what you have available or what your family likes. We don’t usually have dessert with our meals so I haven’t included those with each meal but I’ve got links to a few desserts later in this post.
When I plan my weekly menu I try to vary the meats over the course of the week as well as the type of starch and the vegetables. I aim for a good variety on a weekly basis. That’s the other reason I listed these by category. When writing out your weekly menu you can choose one dish each from poultry, beef, and pork categories, plus one or two meatless meals, one night of leftovers or soup and maybe one for takeout or “breakfast for dinner”. That will give you plenty of variety.
You could make a 14-day menu and just repeat it every two weeks. You could have “Taco Tuesday” every week. Or every Friday is pizza night. Kids tend to be especially fond of this sort of thing. It also means one less decision for you to make.
I’ve included links to some recipes while others – like hamburgers or pot roast – are pretty basic.
So grab a pen and paper and let’s get started!
Poultry…
- Lemon pepper chicken (Season chicken breasts with garlic salt and lemon pepper, bake at 325 until almost done, squeeze fresh lemon juice over them and finish cooking)
- baked potatoes
- green beans
- tossed green salad
- Chicken in Caramelized Onion and Apricot Cream Sauce
- mashed potatoes
- steamed broccoli
- tossed green salad
- turkey tenderloin (inexpensive and cooks pretty quickly)
- stuffing (make it easy on yourself and use Stove Top for this simple dinner)
- Brussel sprouts (Trim, cut in half and roast until tender and lightly browned. Toss in mixture of olive oil, balsamic vinegar and honey.)
- cranberry sauce (homemade or canned)
Beef…
- pot roast
- carrots, potatoes, onions (cooked with roast)
- biscuits
- salad
- Busy Day Swiss Steak ~ A Vintage Recipe
- rice
- steamed broccoli
- salad
- Beef and Beans ~ A Depression Era Recipe
- mashed potatoes
- mixed vegetables
- tossed green salad
Ground:
- Spaghetti (Easy Oven Spaghetti Sauce)
- steamed broccoli
- salad
- garlic toast
- tacos
- lettuce, tomato, green onions, cheese, sour cream, etc.
- chips and salsa
- Lasagna Roll-Ups
- tossed green salad
- garlic bread
- Tamale Casserole (substitute seasoned, cooked ground beef for the brisket)
- tossed green salad
- hamburgers with all the toppings
- french fries
- fresh fruit salad
Pork…
- sweet and sour pork chops (Season pork chops to taste, brush sweet and sour sauce over and bake until done)
- rice
- frozen mixed veggies (Asian style is great with this)
- fresh or canned pineapple
- Ham Steak
- Scalloped Potatoes
- peas
- cooked apples
- smothered pork chops
- rice
- corn
- baked apples
Meatless…
- Macaroni and Cheese with Caramelized Onions
- glazed carrots
- green salad or homemade coleslaw
- Lentil Tacos
- toppings – lettuce, tomato, cheese, sour cream, etc.
- chips and salsa
- Easy Tortilla Casserole
- green salad
- Rice and Bean Pie
- salad
- Sour Cream Green Chili Enchiladas
- seasoned rice
- salad
Instant Pot…
If you have an Instant Pot you can have dinner on the table quickly and with little fuss.
Pork Tenderloin in Cherry Cream Sauce
Soups…
I love a good soup on a chilly day. They smell delicious simmering away and all they need is a piece of crusty bread or cornbread alongside. Easy cleanup, too!
Cabbage Leek Diet Soup – Good choice if you’ve put on a few “pandemic pounds”
Homemade Tomato Soup – delicious served with grilled cheese sandwiches or cheese quesadillas
Corn Crab Bisque ~ New Orleans Style
Desserts…
When You Just Need Something Sweet ~ 17 Dessert Recipes
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For more help planning dinner menus…
Menu Planning Resources: Try These Tips!
How To Create a Weekly Menu Plan
Thank you for all these recipe links! I will check them out later when I have more time. I’ve actually been much better about planning weekly meals so far this year. I used to be more of a fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants dinner person, but with Covid and not shopping as often, it’s better to plan ahead. At least for me. I’ve been finding it enjoyable to sit down with my cookbooks, tons of printed out recipes, or sometimes looking at my Pinterest boards to find new recipes. It’s not that I’m lacking in that area; it’s that I lack motivation! 😉
I will let you in on a little secret. You know how I put our weekly menu on the sidebar of the blog and share it on the FB page each Monday? That’s partly where my motivation comes from. I’m much better about being accountable to others than I am to myself. 😉
I love when people post lists like these. Even if I won’t eat a lot of it, it can sometimes serve as inspiration for ideas for my own dinners.
I like the way some old magazines used to include a month of menus. We all get in a rut now and then and need some inspiration.