Summer Giveaway Week: Win 1 of 3 One-Year Subscriptions to Plan to Eat

Summer Giveaway Week: Win 1 of 3 One-Year Subscriptions to Plan to Eat

A few months ago, I decided to update my paper-and-pen ways and try online planning again, with an old favorite, Plan to Eat.

Now, it needs to be said that I’m a lazy Plan to Eat user. I don’t make use of all of its MANY features and tools, but I use it in a really simple manner, sticking to the Recipe and Planner components, not the Shopping Lists (which I know many people find extremely useful).

Nonetheless, my planning has begun to go a lot faster than it used to when I used pen and paper. I could previously spend anywhere from 30-60 minutes doing my planning, but the last few times I’ve planned have been more like 20-30 minutes. When you know that meal planning will take a minimum of your time, it’s all the more motivating to do it regularly.

I was trying to figure out exactly what made Plan to Eat faster, and this is what I came up with:

  • I can see my previous menus (if you use the Month view, not the Week view). This allows me to take any meals that didn’t get made (because we had leftovers, or ended up going out somewhere, etc.) and just drag and drop them straight into my new week.
  • I can take a regular breakfast schedule and double it in one minute. To do this, just go to the previous week and hover over the breakfast item. You will see two small boxes, one with a “-” and one with a “+”. Click the “+” and that breakfast meal is doubled. Go along and double all of your breakfasts (30 seconds) then drag the extra ones straight down to the new week’s menu (another 30 seconds).
  • When I add recipes during the week, or sometimes I take 10 minutes to add several when I’m feeling inspired, I can stick things that I know I want to make soon into my Queue. This is a fancy word for “meals I want to make”. When I start a new menu plan, I check my Queue first and add those to my plan right away. This fills up at least one or two spots in my plan with no thinking on my end.
  • There are a lot of recipes that I have access to, between the Plan to Eat blog recipes (169 at present) and my 15 other friends (with whom I can share recipes). I can currently search through over 2000 recipes, based on tags, categories, etc. If I’m trying to fill a gap in my menu, instead of getting completely sidetracked by Pinterest or some other such dangerous place where time ceases to exist, I can just search these recipes and usually find something suitable.

(Want to be my friend on Plan to Eat? I’m “keeperofthehome” and you can request to share recipes with me. The more, the merrier!)

meal planner monitor

They keep making it better

Additionally, there are some new features, as Plan to Eat continues to listen to its users and make things even better than they already are!

To stay updated on new features and changes to the system, as well as find whole food recipes on the Plan to Eat blog, check out their Facebook page. I’ve noticed that they’re very interactive with those who leave comments and ask questions, whether it’s a feature that has you confused or simply something you would like to see them add or change, they really want to hear from their users.

Want to give it a try for free? Plan to Eat also offers a free 30 day trial!

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201 Comments

  1. My goal for this year: plan more than just dinners! Our breakfasts and lunches have gotten veeerrrry dull (and messy! oatmeal and 1-yr-olds….. :P). I need to round things out some more!

  2. Plan to Eat has looked great and yet, for some reason, we haven’t taken the jump to using it yet. Excited for this chance!

  3. My recent goal has been planning out weekly menus that use up the ingredients I buy instead of lots of random things, thus a more expensive grocery bill as well as more wasted food. I’d love to see if this helps.

  4. My current goal is to plan lunches since my 13 month old is eating more food these days!

  5. I always seem to do well with meal planning until we hit a vacation or sickness or changes of some sort. Then I fall off it again. I think having it all online would make it easier to keep track of previous menus so I can pull from them if I know it’s going to be a busy week!

  6. I meal plan… but it sounds like Plan to Eat would really help me cut down the time it takes me. I love the idea of the Queue and that you can just drag meals that don’t get made to the next week!

  7. I would LOVE to spend less time meal planning! We’re about to build a house and anything that gets us more organized would be awesome!

  8. Saving time would be of great benefit…I meal plan, but it does take a while. Great giveaway!

  9. I’ve been meal planning consistently for about 6 months and my newest goal (since a new little one is on the way) is shave as much off our grocery bill as possible!

  10. I really enjoyed the using Plan to Eat when I tried it. Just haven’t made the jump to purchase a subscription! Definitely need to get better at meal planning!

  11. I could so use this!! I have a 3 month who is a marathon nurser and I spend 6-8 hours a day nursing. It’d be great to meal plan while I nurse!

  12. I’m hoping to get better at planning to use the things we have either stocked in our (3!) deep freezers or fresh from the garden. I hate letting things go to waste, but often forget to use them in the scramble for dinner.

  13. I would love to use Plan to Eat because I think it would speed up my meal planning to have all of my recipes in one place (especially the internet recipes!).

  14. I kind of do the same stuff on paper. I have a menu in a sheet protector and give hubby the menu and dry erase marker, he picks the meals and I take that and my recipe binder and make my shopping list. I would like to put a little more effort into our meals though and maybe this program will give me that boost to try more.

  15. I hand write everything out right now. All my meal planning. And I don’t just plan the basic meals. SInce I homeschool, I plan Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, 2 snacks a day. And I have homemade freezer food on hand. My don’t eat sandwiches everyday, I make homemade burritos, pigs in a blanket, pot pies, breakfast burritos, pancakes, etc and freeze them for their meals.
    It takes a lot of prep work to plan it all out.
    I would love an easier or quicker way of doing it.

  16. I would love to win this! I am doing daycare for my 3 grandchildren this fall, ages 3, 2 and 6 months, and I know I need to be very organized. This would help a lot!

  17. I would love to win this! In the fall, I am going to start daycare for my grandchildren, ages 3,2, and 6 months. I need all the help I can get!

  18. I think this would be great for me. I’ve been hit and miss with making a meal plan and when I do it is handwritten. Then I go back and forth to the computer to find/write or print recipes that I’m using or would like to try.
    Thanks for the chance to win!

  19. We have been struggling with meals for a long time. We don’t have an established system and have struggled with planning on Google calendar or on paper or on a whiteboard and none of it seems to work. I can’t for the life of me remember what we used to do/eat before it became such a struggle. I can remember the crap we ate before we had kids but I don’t want to eat that way again, so we have the added challenge of keeping things healthy. I like that I would be able to view previous menus, edit multiples (which is great for breakfasts where we usually eat the same thing), and create a shopping list.

  20. As a type 2 and having at least one daughter who is becoming insulin resistant I’d like to try this and see if it will help us get back on track with healthy eating and maybe get off my meds.

  21. I need to be more intentional about consistently planning meals so I think this would be a great help.

  22. I think PTE would be very helpful to me in finding new recipes – my daughter and I have been transitioning to real food over time but hubby was living away from home for work, and now that we’re together again he’s a bit shell-shocked by some of our meals. Access to shared recipes would be great encouragement for me in finding real foods we can all agree on!

  23. I’d love to have a place where I can keep all my recipes in one place! I usually plan by week but I would love to be able to do 2 or 4 weeks at a time.

  24. I’ve been on and off mealplanning for about 2 years now. Sometimes it goes better sometimes not at all! I’d love to try out Plan to Eat and see if this is something that could be helpful to me!

  25. Meal planning takes me a very long time, so I would love to see if this could shorten the process.

  26. I have really been struggling with meal planning. I hope to be able to plan out a month of meals to cut back on trips to the grocery store. With 3 littles grocery shopping can be exhausting.

  27. I have recipes all over the place, and this tool would be a great way to put them all in one spot.

  28. I have always struggled with meal planning and “shopping with a purpose.” I never end up with the ingrediants I need but always with several items I really don’t need. I end up wasting time, money and energy! It’s time to stop the waste and Plan to Eat is the perfect beginning.

  29. I used to be great, but now, more often than not, we go without a list and just see what looks good. That’s a recipe for disaster, I know. It would be great to get back on track!

  30. My main planning goal is that I HAVE to start doing it again! When I got pregnant, planning went out the window. We have not eaten nearly as well since, and I hate it. Plan to Eat would help me soooo much!

  31. I pay for this monthly and it is worth every penny – it has literally changed my life to be able to meal plan this way! I’d love to win a whole year!!

  32. I am not good at all planing meals and I end up at the grocery store every-other day spending way more then I need to. We are a picky family who has a neg. thing for freezer to table meat… I could use some help.

  33. I use so many online recipes that this might help me organize those and get home from the store without missing something.

  34. I really want to shorten the amount of time I spend planning. Plan to eat sounds like a great way to do that

  35. I would love to win a one year plan to eat subscription because I know I really need help with planning meals so I subscribed to plan to eat but can’t seem to figure out how to use it yet. Adding another year would be a tremendous help!

  36. Our goals include incorporating more whole foods, canning from our garden and someday make ahead freezer meals.

  37. My household has increased by two adults for a total of 6 people, so my planning HAS to be better.

  38. I need to plan for breakfast and lunch better. Too often, I’m scrambling at the last minute to feed my kids lunch.

  39. I would hope that Plan to Eat would get me more on track with planning regularly. My husband might even end up with something more interesting than leftovers for lunch.

  40. I do not meal plan and work a full-time job, so you know what my nights look like, trying to put together a real food nourishing meal! I need help!!

  41. We’ve just moved to Alaska and shopping is very limited, plus we live far from town, so I need to be much more detailed in my planning.

  42. Now that I am getting 90% of my recipes online, Plan to Eat looks great for storing and organizing them. I also love the idea of a shopping list being generated from your meal plan.

  43. I do all my meal planning on paper, and it’s hard to keep my husband updated on changes/grocery shopping needs/etc. A web tool would be SO perfect for us!

  44. I would like to get better at planning meals around our busy after-school activity schedule when school starts back in the fall.

  45. I’ve just started menu planning by the month instead of weekly and I’ve found it is simpler in the long run to do so. I think Plan to Eat would streamline it even more, since I’ve just been using a spread sheet like form, and this would incorporate the shopping lists too 😉

  46. I have tried (and failed….miserably) to put meal planning into our lives. I hear so many amazing benefits of it and I would really love to put it into practice on a daily basis. I really need some help with it and this sounds like the perfect thing! Thanks for this opportunity!

  47. I currently use an excel spreadsheet, but I don’t store past menus. That feature would be helpful, as I come to a halt when trying to replace a meal. If only it could inventory my pantry and refrigerator for me!!!

  48. My youngest has dairy and egg allergies so I have been cutting back on those in our menu plans{substitutes for him}…but we may have to go gluten free now :). I am fine with getting df, ef and gf foods on the table for dinner…but breakfast and lunch are really hard. This year I am trying to plan breakfasts and lunches that are safe for my youngest, but also tasty :).

  49. I currently “meal plan” day by day and have been wanting to at least meal plan for 2-3 days but it just takes so much time! Plan to Eat would help me expedite the planning process because I don’t like to sit and plan things.

  50. I would love to win one of these great memberships! I am headed into my last semester of my master’s degree and that means I will be working at an internship everyday. I have not worked full time since before my kiddo was born 6 years ago. I am a bit nervous about making it all work!

  51. I would love to plan breakfast and lunch as well as dinner when I get back into meal planning. I can’t wait to use Plan to Eat, even if I don’t win the subscritption, when we move into our own house in July!

  52. I’m really interested in this program, since menu planning is a big “chore” for me with three little ones right now. Would love to win this!

  53. My meal planning goals for this year include streamlining the planning to save time, repeating favorite meals to save time, and looking for ways to lower our grocery bill my planning wisely.

  54. I am trying to start meal planning, but don’t keep it going very long! Time to get serious, and maybe this website could help!

  55. Seriously. I’ve GOT to do something! While I do love to have a plan, I end up straying away because I’m just not organized to get to the plan. Thanks you!!

  56. I am such a sporadic meal planner, but the week goes SO much more smoothly when I do. I think Plan to Eat could really help me plan consistently.

  57. Menu planning is always something I put off until the last minute. It sounds like plan to eat would be a huge timesaver for me.

  58. I want to try planning our breakfast and/or lunches along with our dinners so I’m not scrambling around trying to throw something together.

  59. I’m really hoping if I win this program it will help me to “use what I store”. I’m way into canning and really need to use up all of the yummy things I have.

  60. My daughter is a multi-instrumental musician. That means lots of running to practice, lessons, and music camps! It also means, “oops, what’s for dinner?” I need a plan! This would be a big jump in the RIGHT direction – that way, when I bring my food “from afar”, I’ll actually know what to do with it. thanks so much!!

  61. In all my 25 years of marriage I have never planned meals. Now that I am basically only cooking for two, and am working outside the home, I would like to give this concept a try.

  62. We have our first baby in November, so my goal is keep up meal planning and healthy eating throughout the remainder of my pregnancy, and to continue in those first few weeks!

  63. Wow! talk about a helper outer for a stay at home mommy of three! With a busy schedule and three little ones, something like this would definitely make things a little bit easier around here 🙂

  64. I believe plan to eat would assist me and my family in learning to ‘eat to live’ verses the ‘live to eat’ mode we have been stuck in for generations! I appreciate your website very much.

  65. My goal is to actually plan meals. I recently started a new job, so planning meals is going to be a necessity!

  66. I would love to be a better meal planner, and in fact, I’m trying hard to be because I desperately want to quit my job to stay home with my new baby, and all the eating out we do has to stop!

  67. My goals are to eat healthily for as little money as possible – right now my food budget is about $200 a month for my husband and I.

  68. Right now I plan with pen and paper and I find it takes way too long. I think this would be a great way to speed up the process!

  69. Would love to speed up my menu planning. It used to take me about two hours to do. It is getting better. Maybe this would help!

  70. I’m hoping plan to eat works for me, because I don’t like the other meal plans that pick meals for you. I like that you can plan your own meals.
    One other thing- I’ve noticed that my inbox is exploding with junk mail since I’ve used a few of these rafflecopter giveaways 🙁 Are they taking the emails of the people who enter your giveaways?

  71. I love the idea of online meal planning. I am just starting to meal plan. It can be really overwhelming, and I forget what I’ve planned, or where the recipes are. I currently have a jar of pimentoes I bought this week, and I have no idea what I planned to use it for! Clearly I need a little help. =D

  72. I’m planning bento style lunches everyday for the kids. It’s really cut down on complaining about what’s served!

  73. I spend way to much time making grocery lists and prepping items, so it would be wonderful to use a tool like this that can help me get organized! Thanks 🙂

  74. I think this would be great for me because I have such a hard time menu planning!! I get frustrated and only wind up with a few days most of the time, eventually throwing the whole thing out. I need help!! lol

  75. My meal planning goal for this year is to actually plan meals. 🙂 I keep trying to start, but I just can’t seem to get it going for more than a week or two at a time. Maybe Plan to Eat could help get me started.

  76. I have been planning meals since the start of the year and have found I am a lot more relaxed at the end off the day. I have just been writing it on my calendar but would loveto use plan to eat as I love using computer tools for my planning.

  77. I meal plan on a piece of paper. Then sometimes I lose it. Opps. This would make my meal planning awesome!

  78. Our meals would be so much more healthy and there would be so much less waste in the house if I could wrap my head around and kick my rear in gear on the planning issue.

  79. Anything that cuts meal planning time down is gold in my book! Going to try the 30 day trial & hope I win the year! 🙂

  80. I just started meal planning, and already, it has helped immensely with the grocery bill and the stress level. I still do the paper/pen method, though, and would love a chance for the membership to do things electronically. 🙂

  81. I love meal planning but I always just write it down in a notebook, then either lose my paper or it gets crumpled, washed, or torn! I need a better system!

  82. Have never heard of this site, but it would make my meal planning easier. I like the idea of seeing last months plan while planning into the future. Will be checking it out.

  83. It takes me forever to do it the pen-and-paper way – this looks perfect, particularly since we’re expecting another baby in a month!

  84. I’ve been wanting to get a meal plan for my family. I know it will help us make healthier choices and save money!

  85. I have been in such a mealtime rut lately, especially at dinner. And, with the kids home and wanting bigger lunches, I am using all my dinner ideas at lunch! I need new recipes!

  86. Why do I need it? honestly, I don’t plan on paper or anywhere but my head. And sometimes standing in front of my fridge. So I would like to plan better with these goals in mind: more balanced meals, more sanity, less repetition and less waste.

  87. Meal planning can be so addicting! I love having a plan and being able to know what new recipes I’m going to be adding to my old stand bys.

  88. Plan to Eat is my dream to organizing and managing my meal planning. I have resorted to seasonal menu planning to ensure that I do not forget anything on my grocery list- and I would LOVE to be able to utilize the shopping list feature. I think it might help me to have my own “eating from the pantry and freezer challenge”. I am already using so many skills from your book!!

  89. It’s a blessing that my wife is gifted in this area. When I “meal plan”, we end up with a lot of….well…unplanned meals. 🙂

  90. I have a hard time with meal planning. Since we’re new to healthier eating, I mostly mix up some sprouted beans or brown rice, toss on some sort of meat, and steam veggies. Perhaps Plan To Eat would help me out!

  91. I have been wanting and planning on trying Plan to Eat. I am trying to get my food budget under control, still eat better, and have a plan on the nights we get home late.

  92. I need help in improving my meal planning. I do it somewhat, but have much room for improvement. Busy, like everyone, homeschooling with large family and just life!

  93. Wow–this couldn’t have come at a more perfect time!! I am a new SAHM and am STRUGGLING with my menu planning…I have all of these great ambitions to plan my monthly or even weekly menu and sit down & get frustrated and “leave it for later!” Very cool giveaways this week!!

  94. I NEED some motivation to menu plan…and I think seeing other’s plans/recipes via Plan to Eat would help immensely!

  95. I can always use help with meal planning – I think I have several binders and documents on my comuter of meal plans. It would be nice to have it in one convienent spot.

  96. I have been so unsure if this would really help or not, so it would be great to win and have a risk-free trial!

  97. This would be awesome! I have 2 littles & a pastor for a husband…like everyone else, I’m busy :0) I have a Home Management Notebook that helps keep me organized, but meal planning is one area that sometimes falls by the wayside, despite my best efforts. I paper/pencil plan right now, too, I would love a tool to make this easier & quicker! :0)

  98. My meal planning goal for this year is to actually PLAN AHEAD. I know things go better when I write them down ahead of time, but doing it on paper is so frustrating and takes so much effort.

    My secondary goal is to make sure I’m PLANNING fruit and vegetables into all our meals & snacks. Especially when I’m not actively planning, it’s easy to fall back on “meals” that are just starch and some protein.

  99. I would love to win this because I am gluten-free, and I find we tend to end up eating the same few meals over and over, because they are gluten-free and familiar and easy. Need to mix it up a bit!

  100. My meal planning goal is to make big batches of healthy meals to freeze and use so I have more time to spend with the family instead of hours in the kitchen.

  101. I just signed up for my first 30 day trial with Plan to Eat, so I’m thrilled to see your post and learn some of the tricks and tools!

  102. Meal planning is something that makes the week run so much more smoothly, but is also something I dread! It seems to take forever. I usually get about 3 or 4 days planned and call it good because it’s too hard! I think Plan to Eat would be a great way to make it more fun and easy!

  103. I currently am more of a spontanious cook which can lead to wasted food so I would like to give meal planning a try.

  104. I plan my meals each Sunday and shop on Monday but i am bored with the meals we have. My goal is to try at least one new meal per week. Top priority is health and of course taste!

  105. I need ideas for dinner otherwise we end up in a rut. Also it would be nice to be able to use freezer items up

  106. I’ve tried other on-line menu planners before and they never do everything I want them to do. I continually compare them to what Plan to Eat does. I would love a free subscription. I think it would help my family eat healthier by planning meals instead of grabbing junk food – especially important since I was just diagnosed with gestational diabetes!

  107. I want to get better at actually making the meals I plan instead of deciding last minute it doesn’t sound so good as something else, and I need to work better at remembering to thaw meat the day before.

  108. My meal planning goal for this year is to plan out 5 dinner ideas per week. We eat the same thing for breakfast usually. And we work at schools, so we eat school lunch (Korean school lunch is WAY better than American school lunch… just saying). That just leaves me with dinner

  109. I currently plan my menus on paper. While it works for me, I’ve found that keeping track on the computer would be so much more beneficial since all my other organising stuff is on the computer!

  110. I try to plan out my meals on Sat or Sun, but don’t always make it past a couple of days. I have yet to coordinate the meal plan with the shopping and inevitably about 50% of the time it becomes day to day. Would love to have a couple of weeks of whole food meals planned out!

  111. We are adding a third baby this year, and I really think this would be a great fit for us in helping me be more efficient and organized at feeding my family healthy, real, food! Thanks so much!

  112. Planning for the family is complicated by two part-time jobs, two part-time students, one full-time job, one toddler and two housemates. Who will even be home for dinner? We definitely need a meal-planning help and I think this might be it!

  113. Am new to your blog and have joined at the right time 🙂 Love your summer giveaways and love your thoughts, ideas, opinions! Thanks.

  114. When I have a meal plan, I cut our grocery bill. Need to stay on top of this in order to budget well! Particularly will be helpful for breakfast and lunch, as we’ve transitioned to real food there are less grab and go options at home.

  115. This is awesome! I have been experimenting with some meal planning websites, but it does not seem to do the trick…

  116. I think the membership would be great for me because I have zero creativity! I love being given options of things that I know work instead of having to come up with things myself.

  117. I am terrible at planning meals, and when I do I find it hard to stick to them. I need to create the habit of meal planning and sticking to it so I know what I need at the grocery store to make it easier staying on budget.

  118. My goal is to keep up with planning by the month (which is really planning two weeks and then repeating them to complete the month). I like that I’m not having to do it every week and it simplifies grocery trips (1 large trip/month and several “refill” smaller trips on a bi-weekly basis). This would be a great tool!

  119. I’ve tried E-Mealz, but it wasn’t as versatile as this sounds. It sounds like you’re able to custom fit the eating plan for your family’s needs, which is great! I still haven’t mastered meal planning, and it does take me a while (doing it pen and paper now) to even decide what to fix. Being pregnant makes it difficult too, since a lot of times nothing sounds good. Now that our first little one is on the way, I really need to learn to master meal planning! I’m trying to be a good time steward.

  120. I find that meal planning helps me to be more organized, a faster shopper which saves me time and it saves us a ton of money!!! I want those three things to be more prevalent in our home! 🙂

  121. I am making a commitment to my hubby to be wiser with our income at the grocery store! I think meal planning is definitely going to help me succeed with that!

  122. I’ve tried the 30 day trial but can’t afford the actual subscription, so I know that plan to eat would work great for me. I have a disability that makes staying on top of the house a challenge, so anything that makes it easier is a winner.

  123. This giveaway is perfect, I have been trying to lose weight for years and haven’t been able to. I need to learn how to plan my meals and eat right, that is my biggest challenge. God bless you fro this giveaway and thanks

  124. As I work full time plus have a 20 month old and husband I really want to have a better plan to get cheap dinners on the table quickly at the end of the day.

  125. It would help so much to be more organized, truly have a plan – and I like that you can link up recipes that are found online!

  126. Wow, I have been meal planning for years but truly sometimes I dread it because it takes so much time even though it does save us money. This would be amazing to help me. I love the fact it keeps records of your last menus. How wonderful!

  127. I’ve been very curious about Plan to Eat. And every time you write about it, I’m just one step closer. 🙂

  128. I would love to win a Membership to Plan to Eat.
    I just don’t seem to have much time to plan our meals, and only too often I am spending hours in the kitchen, preparing the same list of meals that work for us. Help please!!

  129. We are trying to make the move to real food, while cutting our grocery budget (especially eating out!!!). Plan to Eat would definitely help with these goals.

  130. My biggest goal this year with meal planning is to stick with the meal plan I make and dont eat out if we have something planned.

  131. I have been wanting to do this for a very long time. Hopefully I will will and that will kickstart my menu planning! Thanks for the opportunity!

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