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My boys start school this week and as a full-time working mother, I need to rely heavily on meal planning to make sure the family is well nourished. Time management is key when juggling work and family and nothing saves me more time than meal planning.
I’m sharing my meal plan using some of my favorite participating Labels for Education® products! The Labels for Education® program is a fun and easy program where families can earn stuff for their school by collecting UPCs and Beverage/Sauce Caps from over 2,500 participating products. Learn more about this awesome program by visiting the Labels for Education® website and encourage passion for education!
7 Day Back to School Meal Plan & Recipes
DAY ONE:
Appetizer: Green Salad
Entree: Easy Rotini Pasta with Garlic Bread
Ingredients:
Prego Traditional Italian Sauce
1 lb lean ground beef
1/4 diced onions
1 can whole black olives
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
6 cups cooked Rotini
garlic salt to taste
Italian seasoning to taste
Cook Rotini per package instructions in a large pot. Drain water but do not rinse. Return pasta to pot.
Cook ground beef in a large skillet. Once beef is cooked, add onions, olives and mushrooms salt and Italian seasoning to taste. Cook on low for 5 minutes.
Add the beef mixture to the pasta, add Prego and Parmesan cheese.
Stir and simmer for 10 minutes.
Serve with fresh green salad and garlic bread.
Back to School Tip: Save even more time and double the recipe for both kid and parent lunches!
Easy Ritoni w/ Mushrooms
Easy Ritoni Pasta with Ground Beef, Mushrooms and Olives.
Ingredients
- 1 large jar Prego Traditional Recipe Italian Sauce
- 2 cans sliced Mushrooms or 1 /2 cup fresh mushrooms
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 1/4 diced onions
- 1 can whole black olives
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 6 cups cooked Ritoni
- garlic salt to taste
- Italian seasoning to taste
Instructions
- Cook Ritoni per package instructions in a large pot. Drain water but do not rinse. Return pasta to pot.
- Cook ground beef in a large skillet.
- Once beef is cooked, add onions, olives and mushrooms salt and Italian seasoning to taste.
- Cook on low for 5 minutes.
- Add the beef mixture to the pasta, add Prego and Parmesan cheese. Stir and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Serve with fresh green salad and garlic bread.
DAY TWO:
Appetizer: Green Salad
Entree: Easy Cheesy Chicken & Mushroom Casserole
Ingredients:
1 can Swanson Chicken Breast
1 can Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup (1o 1/2 oz.)
1 cup crushed Pepperidge Farms Goldfish Crackers
1 package of Egg Noodles
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cup frozen peas
2 cans sliced mushrooms
Cook Egg Noodles in a large pot per the package instructions. Once cooked, drain but do not rinse. Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and stir, saving some of the crushed Goldfish crackers for the topping. Transfer casserole in a buttered casserole dish. Sprinkle remaining Goldfish on top and cover the dish with foil.
Bake in oven at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until peas are hot.
Serve with a fresh green salad and enjoy!
DAY THREE:
Appetizer: Green Salad
Entree: Chili Cheese Baked Potatoes
Ingredients:
1 can Campbell’s Chili Beef & Bean Roadhouse
Large Baking Potatoes
Diced Onions
Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Wash the potatoes thoroughly and prick several times with a fork. Then wrap the potatoes in foil and cook in the crock pot for 4-5 hours. These are perfect for days your kids have practice, recitals or other extra-curricular activities. I often place extra large potatoes in the crock pot on low before work, and they are perfect when I get home in the evening. No water needed!
Warm up the chili in the microwave or on the stove top and simply add all the ingredients to the potato. Serve with a fresh green salad. Super Easy and Cheesy!
Back to School Tip: I always keep cooked potatoes on hand so my boys can warm them up in the microwave after school. It’s the perfect snack!
DAY FOUR:
Entree: Steak Fajitas (you can choose to either use a coffee rub per the recipe, or just cumin, salt and pepper to taste)
Dessert: Not So Fried Ice Cream
DAY FIVE:
Entree: Easy Barbecue Chicken Sandwiches
Ingredients:
2 cans Swanson Chicken Breast
1 cup of your favorite Barbecue Sauce
Hamburger Buns
Directions:
Combine barbecue sauce and chicken breast in a microwave safe dish and microwave for 1 minute. Spoon chicken on a hamburger bun and enjoy!
Back to School Tip: My boys also make these easy bbq sandwiches after school to hold them over until dinner time.
Dessert: Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches
DAY SIX:
Appetizer: Goldfish Cracker Crusted Cheese Balls
Entree: Puff Pastry Pizza
DAY SEVEN:
Entree: Chicken Salad
Ingredients:
2 cans Swanson Chicken Breast
1/2 cup Mayo
2 tbs Relish
1/4 cup diced Onions
1/2 diced Celery
Salt & Pepper to taste
Combine ingredients in a medium bowl. Serve on a bed of fresh greens and enjoy!
Back to School Tip: This is also great for kid lunches! Just pack the lettuce separately so it doesn’t wilt.
Dessert: Strawberry Chiffon Pie
Printable Meal Plan & Shopping List
Ready to get started? Print out the Meal Plan & Shopping List below and head on over to Target where you can find many of the participating Labels for Education products! See the whole list HERE. Be sure to save your labels and enter in the Grand Stand for Schools $1 Million Giveaway!
You can find Pepperidge Farm Goldfish Crackers in the Snack Aisle.
Target also carries a large variety of Campbell’s and Swanson soups and broths, perfect for cooking!
Download the MEAL PLAN & SHOPPING LIST
LABELS FOR EDUCATION
What better way to combine passion for education and good food than with the Campbells’s Label for Education® program?
When I was a child, my Abuelita always emphasized the importance of finishing school and receiving a good education. She was born in 1925 to an immigrant farmer and after her mother passed away she took care of the family. She worked from the moment she woke up at 4:30 a.m. in the morning until well into the late night. She once told me that when she was a child, she would have to wake up early to cook breakfast for the farm workers her father employed before she went to school. This included making a batch of fresh tortillas every morning and packing lunches (usually papas con chorizo burritos) for dozens of workers. When she was in 8th grade, she had to quit school so she could help the family business. She even drove the work trucks and tractors during the war. She later married and started her own family while working at the local olive processing plant. She was a latin woman of passion and never did anything half way. She loved, worked (in and out of the home) and as the wife of a minister, praised God with her whole heart – day in and day out.
One of her passions was education. She always encouraged me to continue school. When I spent my summer or winter break with her, she’d help me with my school projects and always took me to the library. Of her four children, my Dad was the oldest and first in the family to attend college. She always emphasized the importance of education to her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. She always said, “Stay in School!” My Dad shared the same passion for work and always encouraged me to learn. Through my Abuelita, I shared my Dad’s drive and passion. I since have passed down these passions to my children with the hopes that they too become great contributors to society. I’m happy to report that they are well on their way and are full of dreams and aspirations that would make my Abuelita and my Daddy proud!
GET INVOLVED
Being involved in your child’s education is key to their academic success. How involved are you in your child’s school? Looking for ways to be more active? Here are a few suggestions:
- Promote the Labels for Education Program at Your School
- Join the PTA
- Volunteer as a Room Mother
- Coordinate a Class Party
- Volunteer to Read to the Students at Circle Time (Pre-k and Kindergarten)
- Donate Books for Reading Time
- Volunteer to Chaparone at School Events
Do you have any ideas on how to get more involved at your child’s school? I’d love to hear from you!
Also, don’t forget to check out more participantIng products at the Labels For Education website. I’d love to hear your favorite!
I hope my Back To School 7 Day Meal Plan, Recipes and Tips are helpful as you prepare your children for Back To School!
Thank you for visiting and Happy Cooking!
17 comments
I am a huge fan of meal planning and meal prep…makes life so much easier! Especially as everyone is heading back to school…and these recipes look so yummy!
Thank you!!!
This is such a great post! All of these meals are so much better than the usual PB&J, that’s for sure! And that Chili Cheese Baked Potato looks so good! Thank you for including a menu and shopping list, that will definitely come in handy!
Thank you!
Mmmm…everything looks delicious, and the cheesy chicken and mushroom casserole looks especially good!
I am a SAHM (and freelance writer) and I feel like I’m always scrounging for time. I don’t know how you working mamas do it, but boy do I applaud you! 🙂
Thank you Vashelle!
I don’t know if my son’s school actively participates in Labels for Education. But I think they are very worth it.
Great ideas to get involved Michelle!! Thanks #Client
Thank you!
I realy need to do a meal plan! These all look so good!
Thank you Debra!
You are one savvy mom. I need to get my menu game on!
Thanks Jessica!
These look great. They seem pretty easy to make too!
A meal plan is definitely a time saver and a huge help. Thanks for sharing some meal ideas 🙂
Thanks Blanca!
I need to start meal planning when school starts. It would really help.