My Fall Menu Plan
Fall Meals
Goodbye Grill, Hello Slow Simmer
There’s something about October in Minnesota.
The air turns sharp, the evenings come sooner, and suddenly everyone is ready to be in the house again.
The grill gets tucked away, the crockpot comes out, and the kitchen smells like onions and butter and something slow simmering on the stove.
For many years now, I’ve changed my menu plan with the seasons, partly out of practicality and partly out of reverence.
Summer calls us outdoors—bare feet, grilled suppers, cold salads, and icy glasses of milk straight from the bulk tank. But fall calls us indoors again.
When the days get shorter, our food gets heartier. I start planning soups, stews, roasts, hotdishes, and all the things that warm you from the inside out. Meals that make the whole house smell like home.
That’s why, every year around this time, I switch to my Fall Menu Plan.
It’s not fancy or complicated—it’s just steady. A rhythm that keeps our family well-fed and me sane. Every day has its own pattern:
Mondays are for simple starts—oatmeal in the morning, easy dinners like leftovers or sandwiches, and a hearty supper from the pork or goat meat in the freezer. I like to use Monday evenings for a bit of prep and to thaw ground beef for the next day.
Tuesdays are a ground beef day—hotdish or something baked and bubbling in the oven.
Wednesdays are often a little looser— I make sure to thaw chicken for Thursday, and after the afternoon chores, Matt goes to the chiropractor while the kids and I head to Awana and Youth Group, so we often eat out or snack.
Thursdays are chicken nights—Wild Rice Soup, Chicken Divan, often something with cream and comfort.
Fridays belong to beef cuts or organ meats, maybe a good stir fry or something rich like Stroganoff.
Saturday noon meals are for ground beef again—meatloaf, meatballs, maybe hamburger gravy over creamy mashed potatoes. Supper features my canned garden tomatoes - Pizza, Spaghetti, Tomato Soup, Chili Cheese Fries. I make pancakes or waffles in the morning, and make sure I brown meat for Sunday’s soup if I need to.
Sundays are my favorite. Breakfast will be eggbake or toast, and I start a soup in the crockpot for after church. Supper is simple—mac and cheese, popcorn, or nachos while we rest and recharge for the week ahead.
There’s a peace that comes with knowing what’s for supper before the day even begins.
We have 2 whole beef in our freezers, along with 2 goats, 2 hogs, a few turkeys, and a lot of chicken. I take an inventory, and figure out how many times a week we can eat each type, or cut, of meat to make it last the whole year.
Then I think of our weekly rhythms and schedule. Which kinds of meals are going to work best on which days of the week?
After that, I list our favorite meals under each day, so I don’t have to pull out cookbooks or open up Pinterest when I’m planning, because I don’t know about you, but Pinterest always succeeds in distracting me.
I keep a laminated spreadsheet with all of this information on my clipboard and it makes meal planning so simple.
Keeping healthy, hearty meals on our table is one of the ways I love and serve my husband and children.
This fall, as you plan your own meals, I hope you feel the same steady joy that comes from feeding the people you love with care. Homemaking isn’t glamorous, but it’s sacred work.
And as Proverbs 31:27 reminds me:
“She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness.”
So here’s to slow simmering, to warm kitchens, to family gathered close.
To setting the table with the vintage dishes, lighting candles, and giving thanks for all we’ve been given.