30 Days of Crockpot Meals

I'm always looking for new ways to save time, therefore making my crockpot the most used appliance in my kitchen. I saw a few posts about crockpot cooking for a month, but always thought that it was way out of reach. The reason I was using it, I thought, was because I didn't have time to cook, so how the heck would I be able to make 30 meals? Well, I made good use of my Christmas vacation from work. I made 30 meals in about 11 hours, and MAN has it already saved me more time than that! Here's what I made:

• Butternut Squash, Pear, and Sweet Potato Stew (2)
• Sweet Potato Chorizo Stew 
• Turkey Gumbo (2)
• Tuscan Pork Stew (2)
• White Bean Chicken Chili (2)
• Apple Chicken Stew 
• Teriyaki Chicken (2)
• BBQ Chicken (2)
• Vegetable Beef Soup (2)
• Sausage Spaghetti Sauce (2)
• Goulash (2)
• Jambalaya
• Citrus Fish (2)
• Beef Stroganoff (2)
• Beans and Greens Soup (2)
• Chicken Cacciatore (2)
• Texas Chili 

Ok, looks overwhelming right? It was! Looks expensive right? It wasn't! I spent $375 on everything I needed for the monthly cooking, plus some other odds and ends for around the house. That means less than $100 a week on lunch and dinner since each meal made around 4 servings. I also had some extra ingredients, so next time around I'll be spending even less. 

The best part was, the only thing I precooked was ground meats. The rest I just threw in freezer bags and froze. I used coconut oil for any sauteeing to keep the healthy theme going. I replaced ground beef with turkey where I felt that it wouldn't make a difference. The average calorie intake per serving of these meals is around 300, and they're filling. 

SO! If you can find a day to make 30 meals, DO IT! It's been SO awesome to come home from work to dinner ready in the crockpot!