July Printable Menu

It's July! Summer is almost over! I'm kidding…it just feels that way to me. This month I've got my grill on (not like a “grill” on my teeth; that would be weird. I mean like a for-real grill out in the back yard. Maybe I'll just say, “I've got my barbecue on” instead), I've got crockpot meals to keep my kitchen cool, and I've planned easier meals for Mondays because I hate Mondays. 

Kidding again. Kind of. 

If this menu doesn't float your boat, I have many others you could choose from. You could say I have a plethora of THM-friendly (and gluten-free!) free menus available here, so feel free to check those out!

Here are your notes (these are important!), and below these notes you’ll find access to the free printable downloads:

• If you’re interested in eating a healthy, frugal diet but you don’t know what the “S and E” letters next to the meal names are, don’t worry! Anyone can benefit from this healthy menu. Those letters are for the Trim Healthy Mama diet (which I highly recommend!), and if you’re interested, you can learn more about it in the Trim Healthy Mama book or with one of my free resources. 
• You can make any of the recipes gluten-free by omitting the few gluten-containing items, like low-carb tortillas. 
• MOST IMPORTANT if you follow Trim Healthy Mama: The clickable recipe links in the menu may not be THM-friendly as written. PLEASE make sure you read the weekly instructions that make each recipe THM-compliant.
• If there’s no clickable recipe link, that means it’s super simple and you can make it to your liking. If, for example, you don’t know how long to cook chicken thighs, you can just season them to your liking and cook them the way you normally do, or search for instructions online. But I try to include some instruction with each meal idea to make it simple. Lots of the breakfasts for this month are pretty easy, like scrambled eggs, and don’t include instructions.
• As always, please note that my menu planning system includes repeating breakfasts, lunches, and snacks throughout the month for simplicity. That means there are lists of breakfasts, lunches, and a handful of snacks included on this menu. My kids and I enjoy the routine of knowing that on Monday we will be eating a certain thing for breakfast and a certain thing for lunch – it definitely saves time in the kitchen!
• Some of the dinners filled us up, but it just might be us – feel free to add a side salad or round out your meals as desired.
• Remember that THM is SO ADAPTABLE! You may need to swap out E for S, or S for E, or switch things up during the week. Don’t be afraid to mix up your fuel types and keep your body guessing!
• This menu and the shopping lists that go with it feed a family of 6.  If you have bigger kids, or big eaters, you may want to add more protein, rice, and veggies to your shopping list. It doesn’t hurt the recipes to add an extra chicken breast or 1/2 lb of ground beef to make a meal stretch, and you can always add extra rice or veggies or salads as side dishes for the kids. When money’s tight, I’ll grab a bag of potatoes and give the kids a baked potato lunch when I’m eating a salad, or serve them as dinner sides that I avoid.
• If you have a smaller family you may want to make the meals as directed but freeze half (if it’s freezable), or just eat the leftovers for lunch.
•  You can check out my Resources Page to see where I buy my favorites if you need any specialty ingredients, but there aren't many used in this menu. 

  One reader contacted me and said that the chicken and mushroom recipe in week 3 isn't opening correctly, and if that's the case for you you can find the link here:

  Chicken and Mushroom Recipe

  I have double-checked the download and it did open for me and many others, so hopefully it was just a glitch for that one person. 🙂