The Tricycle Household tries really hard to eat healthy, home cooked meals most days of the week. In order to make this happen, it requires advance planning and preparation – even more so now that we’ve got Little Man around. I usually meal plan and grocery shop on Sundays so I’m ready for the rest of the week.
In the past I made my grocery list and meal plan on the back of an envelope (classy, right?), but I’ve started using a new app that I’m really digging called Food on the Table. It’s a free app available for both iOS and Android platforms, and you can also use it online. The app allows you to plan three meals a week for free, but if you want all features of the service, you’ll need to subscribe. It’s not cheap — but I did spring for a one year subscription because I liked the app so much. Subscriptions are as follows:
- Monthly – $9.95
- Quarterly – $26.95
- Semiyearly – $47.95
- Yearly – $69.95
You begin using the app by adding recipes to your cookbook. There’s a number of different ways to add recipes. You can import them from popular sites like AllRecipes.com and blogs like The Pioneer Woman, or you can add a personal recipe. When you enter a recipe by hand, you start with the title and then the app brings up suggested ingredients. For example, when I enter the title “Chocolate Cake,” the app brings up these suggested ingredients: chocolate chips, water, egg, milk, butter, sour cream, almond, and instant chocolate pudding mix. I just x-out the ingredients I don’t want and add any additional things the recipe calls for.
Adding a personal dish to my cookbook. The app suggests ingredients for chocolate cake.
Once I’ve added it to my cookbook, the app asks me if I’d like to also add it to my meal plan. If I say yes, it adds it to my meal plan and allows me to select a date.
When I add a recipe from my cookbook to my meal plan, it also automatically adds all the ingredients to my grocery list and categorizes them based on the section of the grocery store I’ll find the item. If I already have some of the ingredients on hand, I just delete them from the list.
Another cool feature of the app compares your grocery list to sales at local stores. If one of the items in my list is on sale, a note shows up on the shopping list telling you who has a sale and how much the item costs. I’d love to use this feature more, but in my area the only stores synced with the app are Aldi’s and Walmart, two places I don’t frequently shop.
Overall, the app has seriously improved my old envelope routine. Do you use technology to make your meal planning easier?
wonderful clementine / 24134 posts
I just tried out Pepper Plate which looks really similar but was free (and has a free app). Some great ladies on HB recommended it.
It doesn’t suggest ingredients or track sales but it does allow you to import from a bunch of major websites (like six sisters) or you can manually add (copy and paste).
GOLD / wonderful grape / 20289 posts
Very cool, I love the sale feature but I mainly shop at my local grocery store so I’d want to know the sales there. Also, I can’t have the phone out in the store to check things off my list or lo gets upset and wants it. I’m still doing old fashion paper lists.
honeydew / 7504 posts
I use Ziplist, which sounds pretty similar, but it’s free. I can add recipes by using a bookmarklet, similar to the Pin It button for Pinterest. It tracks sales at almost all our local stores, and even tracks coupons! It has a meal planner, too, but I don’t use that feature. Best part, though, is not only does it categorize my doing list. but it puts the list in order of the aisles of my store. It had actually made me enjoy grocery shopping, a task I used to hate!
cherry / 158 posts
Neat! I have been looking to update my pen-and-paper system as well. I just need to get my act together to input all the info…eek!
blogger / wonderful cherry / 21628 posts
That’s neat. I still write my meal plan and grocery list.
wonderful olive / 19353 posts
@littlebug: It arranges your grocery list by aisle?! That’s freakin badass yo!!
Like @Leialou:, I still hand write my meal plan and grocery list. Will have to look into some of the bees suggestions for these nifty apps though!
honeydew / 7504 posts
@Alivoo01: Yes! I had to arrange it initially (you do it on the website), but then it’s saved both online and on your app. I have my local Target in there, too!
coffee bean / 48 posts
I use Paprika. I believe there is a one-time fee to buy it, but no subscription cost beyond that. I have to say the meal planning and grocery list thing is definitely awesome! I have it on my iPad too, so I can actually use it more like a cookbook in the kitchen. But I sync to my iPhone to do the grocery shopping. I had no idea there were so many similar apps! Must…. resist… urge to try them all….
guest
I use a meal-planning service to take care of the research and stuff, so all I have to do it shop and cook. There are several out there, I use hautemealz.com, which is run by a group of chefs. Love the food, and actually having time to cook for my kids again.
It’s pretty cheap too, at $5/month…especially considering the time (and fast food money, lol) it saves me!
-BV
blogger / persimmon / 1398 posts
This looks really cool!! I love that it organizes your list into a store-friendly organization… something my pen and paper routine *doesn’t* do. I’ve been thinking about purchasing paprika because recipe management is more problematic than meal planning and shopping… but this is very intriguing as an option!
guest
Their customer service sucks!! And the app is horrible! DO NOT BUY THIS SERVICE! They advertise about talking your food preferences into consideration, but then there is no way to change your menu unless you want to pick it out yourself (part of the FREE service…) and they send you what ever they want. I am a vegetarian and they sent me 4 meal ideas with meat in them. I have sent 3 emails and called twice trying to resolve this issue, but haven’t heard anything back. I would not recommend this service to anybody, it’s a total rip-off!