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After writing earlier this week about consumers turning to shopping lists to lower their grocery bills, readers and friends told me that the list works best when combined with a meal plan.

“I always find myself throwing out many things that I bought the week before,” one friend told me. “Maybe if I plan the meals better and only buy what I need for those, I'll cut my bill too.”

Menu planning is a simple way to offset the rising cost of food, but most families don’t take the time to do it. Even if your fridge is full of fresh groceries, when it’s 6 PM and you don’t have a recipe in mind, it’s easier to order takeout or buy a prepared meal for dinner.

Takeout and prepared foods are expensive and will take a bite out of any food budget. It also means that the healthy raw foods already purchased will likely go to waste. On top of that, I feel guilty when my family is eating pizza or burgers instead of lean proteins and vegetables.

Like many parents with a full-time job, I don’t have time to go to the grocery store or cook every day. The only way I can get through my week on a budget is by planning meals ahead.

Every Sunday morning, I write out a menu for the week. I list the meals we’ll have for dinner each night and then build my grocery list around it. This process helps me limit my trips to the store and the quantities I buy. It also guarantees I’ll use the produce and proteins and that my family will eat a nutritious meal I can feel good about.

Another money-saving tip many of my friends use is to review store flyers on the weekend and incorporate sale items into the week’s menu.

After my main grocery run on Sunday afternoon, I often cook a few of the meals that will either keep or freeze well, so that we can eat as soon as we come home at the end of a busy day. In addition to saving money, I save myself that painful hour before dinner when my hungry kids are sneaking into the pantry for crackers and pretzels.

I have a familiar rotation of meals that store well and that I know my kids will eat. Typical meals for us are meatballs, rice and green beans, or grilled salmon, couscous and broccoli. I often cook enough to take to work the next day, which keeps my husband and me from spending on lunchtime salads and sandwiches.

Sticking to the favourites works well for us, but if you prefer more variety in your menus, there are many good resources for meal ideas. For example, Wish.ca has a program called the “20-Minute Supper Club”. Sign up for a free membership and you'll receive a weekly email newsletter with four recipes that take no more than 20 minutes to cook, along with a matching grocery list.

Or you can order a 2009 calendar from Nicely Nourished which has a dinner suggestion for each night of the year, complete with recipes and shopping lists.

There are literally thousands of websites and blogs that offer menu plans and tips to help you save on your food budget. Some of my favourites are $5 Dinners, Cooking Manager and chef Rachael Ray’s website, which posts 10 recipes under $10 (U.S.) on the site every Monday.

At the end of a long week, I always feel great when I see empty shelves in my fridge. It’s a healthy sign that we’ve eaten our fruits and vegetables - and stuck to our budget.