A Week of Easy Aldi Meals for Busy Fall Nights

It’s the middle of September, and for the most part, we’ve settled into our back-to-school routine. But settling into a routine definitely doesn’t mean things have slowed down around here!

We’re officially in the thick of all of our fall activities — football, dance, church activities, and everything else that seems to find its way onto the calendar this time of year. Most evenings, someone needs to be somewhere, which means dinner needs to be quick, easy, and something I know my family will actually eat.

You know there’s nothing I love more than having dinner planned ahead of time. Because I hate looking into the fridge at 5 p.m. and trying to figure out what to feed everyone with the pressure of getting the kids fed & out the door for an activity.

That’s why I sit down at the beginning of every week and spend about 15 minutes planning our dinners. Nope, I don’t plan breakfast or lunch the same way. I usually ask the kids for a few ideas, and we repeat 2-3 ideas all week long. Right now it’s bagels, Greek yogurt, and frozen waffles for breakfast and for lunch I’ve been getting deli meats, cheese and crackers. They either make a sandwich or a little homemade lunchable. The boys usually eat hot lunch.

Before I meal plan dinners, I always look at our calendar first so I know which nights are going to be extra crazy, and then I pull out my meal planner and look back at old meal plans for ideas (it’s why I love that my meal planner is sprial bound). I also share our meal plans here on the website too, so I can go back through those whenever I need a little inspiration.

Grab My Meal Planner on Amazon Here

If meal planning is one of those things you know would make your week easier but you struggle to actually do it, this is the meal planner I use every week. It gives me one place to plan our meals, keep track of what we love, and get all of those dinner ideas out of my head and onto paper.

This week, I made a trip to Aldi to grab what we needed, planned around some food we already had at home, and came up with seven simple family dinners. I always go to Costco once a month to stock up on a lot of meat, so you’ll see some of those meats in the photos too!

I always say it doesn’t have to be fancy to feed your family, and this meal plan is proof. Just budget-friendly meals my kids will actually eat that work with our busy fall schedule.

Grab My Meal Planner on Amazon Here

Our Aldi Meal Plan This Week

Here’s what we’re having:

Sunday: Smoked BBQ Ribs + Mac & Cheese
Monday: Pulled Pork Sandwiches + Coleslaw
Tuesday: Pesto Shrimp Goat Cheese Pasta + Salad + Garlic Bread
Wednesday: Sheet Pan Pulled Pork Nachos
Thursday: BBQ Meatballs + Rice + Air-Fried Broccoli
Friday: Chicken & Wild Rice Soup
Saturday: Supernatural Casserole

One thing that made this week easier was that Scott offered to smoke some meat on Sunday. I am always happy to support a hobby that results in someone else cooking dinner!

He made barbecue ribs along with an entire smoked pork roast. That gave us our bigger Sunday dinner plus enough shredded pork to turn into a couple more easy meals during the week.

Anytime I can cook once and get multiple meals out of it, I consider that a win.

Sunday: Smoked BBQ Ribs + Mac & Cheese

We typically have a bigger meal on Sundays, and this week Scott smoked barbecue ribs.

Now, my kids cannot agree on which boxed macaroni and cheese is superior, so naturally I made both macaroni and cheese and shells and cheese. And yes, both came from a box because that’s how they prefer them.

Since I eat dairy-free, I made myself some French fries instead. We added some raw veggies and fruit to the table and called it a day.

This is also your reminder that a family dinner doesn’t have to mean everyone has the exact same thing on their plate. Sometimes making one simple swap is all it takes to make dinner work for everyone.

Monday: Pulled Pork Sandwiches + Easy Coleslaw

Monday’s dinner was basically ready to go thanks to Sunday’s cooking.

We took that smoked pork roast, shredded it, and then I put it in a slow cooker on low to warm for a few hours. Before the JV football game, we made pulled pork sandwiches using some leftover buns we already had in the fridge.

I served the sandwiches with chips and whipped up a quick coleslaw with a vinaigrette dressing. I love putting the coleslaw right on top of my pulled pork sandwich because it adds a little crunch and freshness to all that smoky barbecue flavor.

This is exactly why I love planning meals that build on each other. Sunday’s cooking did most of the work for Monday, which is especially nice when the week starts out busy.

Tuesday: Pesto Shrimp Goat Cheese Pasta

This pasta is an absolute favorite with my kids, and I really need to get the full recipe up on the blog because we make it all the time.

For their version, I put a log of Aldi herb and garlic goat cheese in a baking dish along with about half a jar of pesto, a dry pint of tomatoes, a heaping teaspoon of jarred garlic, and a generous drizzle of olive oil.

I bake everything at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes.

While that’s baking, I cook the pasta and shrimp separately. Once the goat cheese and tomato dish comes out of the oven, I add the drained pasta and shrimp and stir everything together.

The warm goat cheese melts into the pesto and olive oil and creates the creamiest sauce. It is SO good.

We serve it with salad and garlic bread, and my kids are very happy campers.

Because I eat gluten-free and dairy-free, I make a slightly different version for myself rather than making an entirely separate dinner. In a separate pan, I add tomatoes, garlic, onions, and olive oil. Then I add shrimp and serve it with gluten-free pasta.

Same basic dinner, just tweaked enough that everyone can eat it.

That has become one of my biggest strategies for feeding our family. I don’t want to cook two completely different meals every night, but I’m more than happy to pull out a second pan or leave one ingredient out of part of a dish if it means we’re all essentially eating the same dinner.

Wednesday: Easy Sheet Pan Pulled Pork Nachos

Wednesday nights are crazy around here, so this is not the night I’m trying a new recipe or spending an hour in the kitchen.

We’re using that smoked pork one more time and making pulled pork nachos.

I spread tortilla chips on a sheet pan, top them with the leftover pulled pork and cheese, and pop the whole thing in the oven until everything is warm and the cheese is melted.

Then I put out guacamole, salsa, and sour cream on the side and let everyone add whatever they like.

It’s quick, everyone loves it, and most importantly, I can get it on the table before we’re running out the door again.

[PHOTO: ALDI PULLED PORK NACHO INGREDIENTS]

And yes, if you’re keeping track, that means there are two Mexican-inspired meals on our meal plan this week.

I used to think every dinner on my meal plan needed to be completely different. If we were having something Mexican-inspired one night, surely we couldn’t have another Mexican-style meal a couple of nights later.

But you know who does not care about that?

My family.

They LOVE Mexican food.

I’ve finally let go of the idea that I need to create seven perfectly varied meals every week. If my family loves tacos, nachos, casseroles, and all the chips-and-salsa-type meals, why am I making meal planning harder on myself just for the sake of variety?

Meal planning is supposed to make my life easier—not give me another imaginary rule to follow.

So yes, we’re having pulled pork nachos on Wednesday and Supernatural Casserole later in the week. No one is complaining, everyone will eat it, and I’m calling that a win.

Thursday: Slow Cooker BBQ Meatballs + Rice

I signed up to bring food for the football team on Thursday so it’s going to feed both them and my family.

Enter: barbecue meatballs.

I grabbed five bags of frozen meatballs at Aldi, put them in the slow cooker with barbecue sauce and about a cup of water, and let them cook on low for about eight hours. It really doesn’t get much easier than that. I will take most of those to the football players, but I will save some for my family to eat too!

Since most of the prepackaged meatballs I find contain gluten, I make a small batch for myself using about a pound of ground beef, gluten-free panko, garlic powder, and seasonings. I bake those in the oven for about 30 minutes and toss them with barbecue sauce when they’re done.

We’ll serve the meatballs with rice and air-fried broccoli for an easy dinner.

That’s what I mean when I talk about planning meals around your calendar. Instead of making dinner and figuring out something separate to take to football, I can make one thing work for both.

Friday: Chicken & Wild Rice Soup

By Friday, a cozy pot of soup sounds pretty perfect, and my Chicken & Wild Rice Soup is a family favorite.

This recipe is in my Simple Purposeful Kitchen cookbook, and it’s one we come back to again and again.

I also have a really easy trick for making this dinner work for my dairy-free diet. Right before adding the cream, I scoop about two cups of soup out of the pot for myself. Then I add the cream to the rest for the kids.

Again, I’m not making two dinners. I’m just making one little adjustment along the way so everyone gets a meal they enjoy. I serve this up with warmed sourdough bread. I wrap it in tin foil and warm it in a 350-degree oven; that little touch makes it taste like fresh bread without the effort. You’re welcome!

Saturday: Super Nacho Casserole

Last but definitely not least is our Super Nacho Casserole. You can check out the full recipe here.

This one is already on the website, and it’s such a versatile recipe. It’s great served as a warm dip if you’re heading to a football party, but it absolutely works as dinner, too.

It has layers of refried beans, taco-seasoned ground beef, shredded cheese, green chilies, and taco sauce.

I just leave about one-quarter of the pan without cheese so I can enjoy it, too.

Serve it with tortilla chips and whatever taco toppings your family loves, and dinner is done.

Meal Planning Doesn’t Have to Be Complicated

And there you have it. Seven dinners at home during one of those busy fall weeks when it feels like we’re constantly coming and going. There’s nothing particularly fancy about these meals, and that’s the point.

I’m giving us permission to use leftovers intentionally. It’s ok to open boxes of mac and cheese and cook frozen Aldi meatballs for the football players. I can attest they love simple over fancy too. And if you can cook one pork roast and turn it into multiple dinners, that’s a win. And when I need to make something work with the way I eat, I’ve learned I can tweak one part of the meal instead of cooking an entirely separate dinner.

Most importantly, I’m going into the week knowing what we’re having. Hallelujah! What a hug to my future self!

Those 15 minutes I spend with my meal planner at the beginning of the week save me from that 5 p.m. panic of standing in front of the refrigerator wondering what in the world I’m going to feed everyone before we have to run out the door.

If you’re in the thick of football practices, dance classes, church activities, homework, and everything else that comes with fall, I hope this gives you a few easy Aldi dinner ideas to add to your own meal plan.

And if the hardest part for you is simply getting all of those meals planned in the first place, you can grab the meal planner I use right here.

You don’t need seven brand-new recipes or complicated dinners to feed your family well.

Sometimes you just need a plan and a few meals you already know everyone will eat.

Looking for more easy dinner ideas? You can browse all of my weekly meal plans here, or start with my Simple 7-Day Aldi Meal Plan and last month’s Back-to-School Aldi Meal Plan.