If you think the idea of Google Calendar meal planning sounds complicated, you’re not the only one. Many people I’ve talked to look at me like I’m extremely type A when I mention that I use this approach, but it’s actually a lot easier than you think – and you can do it with minimal technical knowledge.

Here are my five tips for success.

1. Use the meal as an all-day event

I find that it works best to enter the dinner I have planned for that day as all-day event in Google Calendar using a bright colour. That makes it easier for me to see at a glance. It’s also useful for spotting days where I still need to come up with a meal idea. 

2. Take advantage of drag and drop

Whether you an avid Google Calendar meal planning fan, or not, no matter how carefully you plan your meals, life has a way of throwing curveballs at us. Maybe your daughter got a last-minute invitation to eat with a friend on the same night you were going to surprise her with that pasta she loves and you need to shift it to a different day, or perhaps you decided you’re not in the mood for leftover curry the next night and want to freeze it for future use. Scratching out meals and drawing arrows would make a mess on a paper calendar, but with Google Calendar, you can easily drag and drop meals around the calendar as your plans change. 

3. Use the notification function

One of the biggest advantages of using Google Calendar for meal planning is its built-in notification system. If you’ve ever rolled into the kitchen at 5pm to make dinner only to discover you forgot to thaw the frozen chicken you need for it, you’ll understand just how valuable this feature is. When you enter your meal as an event, you can use the notification pull-down menu in Event Details to set a reminder a day or two before to thaw the necessary ingredients.

4. Link to the recipe in the Notes section

I use the Notes section to link the recipe so I can access it easily, whether I want to make sure I have all the ingredients or I need to check how long it takes to make if my plans have changed and I’m getting home later than I expected. If I am making a recipe from The Dinner Plan, I will link to the recipe in Google Drive. If I’m trying a new recipe from a website, I’ll link directly to the recipe on the site. This is an extremely handy feature.

5. Add to it when inspiration strikes

Most of us meal plan on a weekly or biweekly basis, but don’t fall into the trap of thinking you should only add to the calendar when you’re sitting down to plan the upcoming week (or two weeks). Any time you see a recipe you want to try online or in a cookbook, choose a day in the future (beyond the week you have planned) when you think it might work and go ahead and add it in. Not only will you not forget to try it, but think of how pleased you’ll be when you sit down to plan that week’s meals and you already have one day accounted for!

When it comes to using a meal planning calendar online, Google Calendar is hard to beat. Whether you need a meal planning calendar monthly or weekly, it can adapt to your schedule and be shared easily with your family as needed. It really is the ideal solution!

Love,

Nakita xxx