What a terrific task to assign your virtual assistant: having them create and plan your meals. Recently, a client assigned this task to us and, the more I think about it, the more I’m appreciating just how smart it is because it will save that client a considerable amount of time and money.
We created an Excel document that breaks down the menu for the week – breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We took his dietary preferences into account when creating this menu. He also asked to create a menu that would have leftovers and we integrated the leftovers from his dinners into his lunch menu.
The second page of this document is a printable shopping list including all the ingredients he will need to prepare each meal. These items are grouped by category (meat, vegetables, fruit, frozen, etc.) so it is convenient for him at the grocery store.
Finally, printable recipes for all meals are included.
This is such a great task! By having a shopping list of all the items he needs for the meals for one week, he will be sure to get only what he needs – reducing wasted food and costs. By knowing exactly what he needs, he can get in and get out without browsing or trying to remember what he needs.
When it’s time to cook, he’ll have the recipe and all the ingredients he needs right there at his finger tips.
What really impressed upon me that this was a great use was just seeing how time-consuming it was to actually do this. Most people don’t have an extra 2-3 hours to spend each week creating a meal plan, ingredient list, and gathering recipes. But, by having your VA do it, you can enjoy the benefits.
