My Favourite Collections


NOTE: This is where the meal plans and recipes you save end up. You can edit and organize these how you like.

Need Help?
See the Training Videos HERE

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Old Favourites
See the Old Favourites list here.

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164 Comments

  • A FEW WEEKS AGO YOU HAD A WORKSHOP OR COOKBOOK ON HOW TO USE SEASONINGS OR SPICES. I CAN’T FIND IT ON THE SITE – HELP!

  • Hi Jules,
    I made the Broccoli couscous recipe tonight. I add some beetroot shoots, chilli and cauliflower, I also had some beef jerky needed using up in the fridge, through it all together and put some cheese on top. May be a little too much chilli for me so I added some Greek yoghurt on mine, delicious.

  • what are the southern and northern hemisphers about?What do I need to know about each one and why to choose?

    Thank you!

    • It’s just for the different seasons Sally – so in the Northern hemisphere like the USA it’s Spring at the moment and in the Southern hemisphere like here in Australia it’s Autumn (Fall).

      So just choose the one that suits your season 🙂

      Glad you asked!

  • I like this weeks menu. I am going to go for it and cook these recipes all this week.
    Thank you Jules!

  • Hi Jules

    Is the new Meal plan the same as before the new group joined?

    Also I have studies the Meal Plan Videos several times and have a question-when I save the page to My Collections, does every recipe on the page get saved or can I choose the ones I would like to save from the page?Thanks!

    • Hi Ellen

      The meal plans contain different recipes every week – but the general format is the same. – Is that what you were asking?

      So when you save a meal plan to your collections all the recipes get saved. Then you can delete the ones you don’t want (or add in other recipes if you want).

      Let me know if you need more help with this 🙂

    • Sorry Sharon!

      It’s working for me – I tried on 2 different browsers – would you mind trying again?

  • Hi, I’ve noticed that when I go to print the recipes for the week, I’ve lost the ability to specify US Customary for the measurements. How can I change from metric to US Customary when I go to print them? Thanks, Sharon

    • So sorry Sharon – I’ve lost the ability to print the US measurements as well – leave it with me – will have to check it out with my tech guy.

      In the mean time, I’m afraid you’ll have to print the recipe individually if you want US measurements. Sorry

      Jx

  • Hi Jules, me again, I just asked how to save a recipe to my collection, and was browsing the next week’s recipes and noticed “Save to my Inbox”, so I did that, then was able to add it with the little + sign. So, problem solved! The first recipe I tried was the Tandoori Cauliflower and it was great, so it is in my “Good Recipes” now. Thanks for all you do!

  • Hi Jules, Although I did it once, now I’m not able to drag and drop. I can pick up and twirl around but how do I drop? I’ve created a file called my recipes and have not been able to add anything more since the first time. Thanks.

    • Glad you asked Gay

      You can use the drag and drop to reoganize and more recipes that are already in your collection – but to add new recipes you need to click on the ‘add item’ button and it will bring up a popup which gives you options of adding recipes from a specific collection, or searching recipes – you can also add notes here as well.

      If you can’t see the ‘add item’ it’s probably because you’ve hit the ‘remove items’ button – if you can see little rubbish bin icons it means you’re in removing mode – so you just need to click on ‘stop removing items’ (the button will be under the list of recipes). And then you should see the ‘add item’ option again.

      Does that help?
      Jx

  • Hi Jules, The Tandoori Cauliflower got my husband’s attention. Since we’re snowbound, I substituted every ingredient and I also made a few mistakes. This recipe forgave me and was a success!!! I want to save it in a separate place than the things I haven’t tried yet (the rest of the week plan) and make copious notes, also add pictures because it’s a beautiful dish. Is this possible and how? Thanks for wonderful help in the kitchen. Gay.

    • Fantastic for substituting Gay!

      Yes you can create your own collection of ‘recipes cooked’ or ‘recipes tried’ or ‘recipes to cook again’ – and then you can save both recipe and add notes to the collection –

      Just click on the ‘edit collections’ link above (it’s not that big) and then choose ‘add collection’ to create your own custom one.

      Let me know if you need more detailed instructions
      Jx

  • Hi Jules! I tried the Almond Crusted Fish for the first time today.I modified the recipe and left out the chilli peppers.I added some dukkah spice to the almond meal.

    The fish was beautiful and my husband enjoyed it also. Thanks

  • Hi Jules! The meal planning has been wonderful. Next week is week 4. I’ve modified some recipes to use what I have on hand, but every meal was planned and on purpose! The creamy almond cabbage soup and broccoli with tuna sauce were surprise favorites. My husband continues enjoy and have seconds! A note to those who say they do not enjoy cooking and / or cleaning up: try this! Review your plan a few times per week so you can get familiar with the recipes. Most will take no more than 1/2 hour to prepare. Everything is delicious. Clean up is a breeze and doesn’t make me angry. No stress here. And, I’ve lost 8.5 pounds! Sorry for the lengthy post, but I’m pretty excited.

    • I’m excited for you to Jessica!

      Thanks for reporting back – I always love reading success stories.

      Would you mind if I used your comment in my marketing?

      Keep up the excellent work!
      Jx

    • I’m looking forward to trying your meatloaf, Jules. Am super excited about some small victories: have mean meal planning and trying one new recipe each week since the January kickstarter class. This week was the 1st week I was able to meal plan on Thursday, the day I chose and want to plan! Am pleasantly surprised how little time – roughly 30 minutes – it takes me each week using your simple system. Your wildcard idea has been a game changer! Also becoming way more comfortable with editing the plans. This week I was able to customize a template (including adding a note for wildcard night) for a Fri – Thurs week that will match up perfectly with planning Thurs PM for the week ahead. Thanks, Jules!

  • I made the roast cauli with meatballs and tahini sauce tonight. I rarely eat lamb or tahini but enjoyed the combination in this dish. Roasted cauliflower is my new favorite! I’ve roasted broccoli before, but this is a first time (but not last!) for cauliflower.

  • Hi Jules, I’m planning to make this (fish) Lentils, mushroom and feta with olive lemon salsa for dinner tonight. I cook vegetarian because my husband is veg, altho I’m not.
    Looking forward to eating with you, Jules.
    Lisa

  • Hi Jules, I used your recipe for Spanish chicken with chickpeas but turned it into a stew (with extra tomato) as I had lots of chicken that needed cooking. It worked well and I’ll try it as given next time!

    • Thanks for sharing Trish – you could have cooked the chicken in 2 batches if you wanted to get more browning 🙂

    • Sorry Anita!

      There are 2 ways to save recipes – old favourites and new favourites.

      To save to the new favourite collections – click on the ‘add to inbox’ next to the recipe title and little square thumbnail picture of the recipe. – It will then show up in your ‘inbox’ collection on the my new favourites page – this page.

      If you click on the ‘Add to my Old Favourite Recipes’ at the very bottom of the recipe page it will turn up in the my old favourites list over here https://simplemealplans.mystagingwebsite.com/old-favourites/

      Apologies for having the 2 systems and being confusing – but I have members who have been with me for a long time and they like having the old system 🙂

      Did you find it?

  • Hello Jules, happy new year everybody. Just listened to an interview with Tim Spector, author of The Diet Myth and Spoonfed, lots of sound stuff. All the best, Patricia ??

  • Hi Jules, I made the Spanish Chicken with Chickpeas a couple of days ago, but keep forgetting to tell you that comments aren’t open there. I added a couple of chopped zucchini and a chopped capsicum, which made the pan a bit crowded, but it all cooked down in the end. I didn’t bother with the almonds, but felt that it could have done with a bit of cheese over the top. Good.

    • Thanks for letting me know Mark – it’s one of those older recipes that has the comment bug. Yes some feta or a Spanish cheese would be a good addition.

  • I made the broccoli bacon bowl. I used fresh broccoli because that is what I had. It was delicious. The lemon really brought out the flavors. Next time I would use frozen broccoli because even with so few ingredients I still felt like I had a big mess to clean up.
    Thank you!

  • just started what is amount of 100g of nuts or parmesean cheese
    how do you print recipes for instance hummus

    • Welcome Patricia!

      100g is 3,5 oz – each recipe has the measurements in metric AND Us measurements- there is an option to choose US measurements below the ingredients list – click on that link and it will convert everything for you.

      And to print recipes you can use the print button next to the little square photo of the recipe (above the ingredients) or click on the ‘print friendly’ button below the recipe.

      Does that help?

  • Just joined and starting to browse through menus, recipes, etc. Can you tell me what baking paper is? Not familiar with the term. And if I want to save recipes to my inbox, how do I then retrieve them? Thanks! Looking forward to some new adventures — Linda from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

    • oh wow welcome from Puerto Vallarta Linda! I travelled there years ago – amazing food.

      Baking paper is also called baking parchment or parchment paper – do either of those sound familiar?

      And once you save a recipe to your inbox – go to the my new favourites page. There will be a collection called ‘inbox’ and you’ll find the recipe in there.

      And check out the training video if you need more help https://simplemealplans.mystagingwebsite.com/help/

  • Hi Jules,

    Just joined the membership last night. I get to know you from the Simplicity Space – you had an interview with Courtney Carver. It was lovely and thanks for the free cookbook. I have tried out the broccoli soup last night and it was delicious. Happy Holidays to you and your family – Ann from Toronto Canada.

  • Hi Jules,
    I have just finished watching your Masterclass on how to prepare for Christmas dinner. What great tips to keep it simple. To this day I am using the ideas that you gave me during our video chats.
    I have come to terms with my autoimmune disease (Myasthenia Gravis) and retired (unfortunately) from my job as a teacher aide earlier this year (what a year) .
    This has been a year for implementing all I have learnt about eating well, making it easier and focussing on what I can to do help myself be at my best.
    Food is great medicine. One thing I have learnt and that is the value of green. Whether it be eating as green (love my green veg) and as clean as possible but looking after our environment as well.
    Thanks Jules, I never slipped away, just took a sabbatical. Loving everything you are doing and have done.
    Long time between conversations, Di

    • Oh so lovely to hear from you Di!

      So glad you’re still using the ideas I gave you during our coaching.

      And love the idea of the value of green 🙂

      Take care
      Jx

  • this week’s meal plans #507 and #508 for Nov 7th are exactly the same for Northern & Southern Hemisphere. Is that correct?

    • Well spotted Joan! This is the first time I’ve done it but decided to keep it simple this week – Autumn and Spring have a lot of similarities 🙂

  • I have some feedback for the ’SMP’ website.

    It would be a good idea if you asked your members (A) what general cuisine any member would like to cook and eat from regularly.

    Once a member finishes with (A) customers are provided with a more grannula set of choices around what food groups they want to eat or avoid.

    Lastly, you could drill-down whatever ingredients you will eat, and which

    • Apologies for not completing my previous feedback as I accidentally touched ’send’.

      Completing my last sentence, which should have read, ’Lastly, you could drill-down whatever ingredients you will eat, and which ingredients you will not eat, by selecting or rejecting individual food items.

      For example, (A) for me would be a low or moderate I Ketogenic diet, for someone else it could be high carbohydrate or high protein.

      These broad choices could be extended to any national cuisine for people who are interested in a particular cuisine.

      (B) for me would be mostly determined by the ketogenic diet and further restricted if I or others had any food allergies.

      (C) would be a list of individual foods under categories such as beef, poultry, legumes, fruits, dairy etc.

      The point of doing all of this is to bring the entire resources of the SMP website to more closely cater to the desires and choices that every individual makes for themselves in cooking and eating food.

      I got a lot of ideas from your recent meal preference list you introduced a couple of weeks ago.

      I also got this idea from an email from the United States from a business called ’MyDiabetes’, who’s web address is, https://www.mydiabetes.com/.

      Placing a food order with them is out of the question because the country I reside in isn’t the United States.

      However, I was curious about how they got new customers to register with them, and I saw their three-step method of getting their customers to select what they want to eat, and what they do not want to eat, all from a link from their email to their website.

      Starting with comprehensive questions about cuisines, to what food groups you want to include or exclude, to eventually telling them that you do not want to eat particular items such as oranges, bananas, or nuts, but are happy to eat strawberries, blackberries and avocados, for example.

      They then use all of these likes, dislikes, or food choices including several health-related matters such as calculating your BMI, how much exercise you do, do you fast and what method, do you want to lose weight, how much weight do you want to lose, what is your desired body weight as a goal to work towards etc.

      I hope all of this may help you and your team to determine if the SMP website can be made to cater more to the individual variations of all of your members, and that more members may appreciate that they increasingly become a particular focus or aim of the SMP site. Thank you.

  • Green Goddess Soup is very similar to Broccoli & Pesto Bowls from last week’s meal plan. Fortunately my pick from this week’s challenge (Shakshuka) will fill in that hole, and I also wanted to revisit my old standard of Tuna Pilaf, so still plenty to cook.

  • I tried listening to the videos and did not fare very well with them because of my hearing issues. I cannot figure out how to delete recipes from the list. I have been so stressed that I managed to miss the first 3 days as they happened, and that’s just made trying to deal with the site worse. Help, please!

    • Never mind, Jules. I figured out the delete. But I’m not quite there with adding items, because I’m not sure where them from…

      • Glad you got the delete Susan

        Did you save the go-to meals collection to ‘my favourite collections’?

        You can add recipes either from a specific collection that you’ve saved.

        Or from your inbox.

        Or you can search by recipe name and add from there.

        Does that help? No probs if I doesn’t. Happy to keep workshopping with you to get it working for you.

    • So sorry you had problems hearing the videos Susan.

      We don’t want to stress you out!

      I’ve added written instructions for the actions for each day of the challenge on the challenge page.

      Would you mind having a look and letting me know if they make sense.

      And if they don’t – don’t let it stress you out. Just let me know and I’ll think of something else.

      Thanks for your patience Susan!

  • Dear Jules,

    I am lost. I could only favour recepies in ‚my old favourites‘ but don‘t know how to transfer them into the new ones…

    Thanks for a hint in advance and for all the delicious work,
    Petra

    • Try clicking on Add to My Inbox just above the second instance of the recipe title, then go to the collection that you want to add it to in your new favourites, and click on Add Item. The default selection list will be the recipes in your inbox. Drag and drop the recipe into the new collection. N.B. this only works if your mouse pointer is over the grey rectangle with the equals sign to the left of the recipe title. Hope this helps.

      • Thanks for the excellent explanation Mark!

        Somehow I missed Petra’s message yesterday.

        I’ll create a video to help as well.

  • Could you post a link to the challenge page from your last email? When I click the link in the email it brings me to the log in page for the site. From there I do not see a link to the challenge page. Or can you tell me where to find it once I am logged in. Thanks.

  • hello! i think that changing the # of servings doesn’t work when you print the shopping list in US Customary system. (i’m sorry we even use the customary system, metric is obviously better haha)

    • Yes metric is better Elizabeth!

      Sorry you had problems with the # servings.

      I just tested it out and it worked for me.

      2 thoughts that could be causing problems –

      1. Make sure you choose the ‘regenerate the shopping list‘ after you change the number of serves so it calculates properly.
      To check the # servings for each recipe that have been used for the shopping list tick the ‘collection’ check box at the top of the print page and look at the number of servings next to each recipe. If it’s not right – go back to the collection, refresh the page and then regenerate the shopping list.

      2. The other problem could be because for some recipes I include the US measurements for the original recipe in the notes section next to the ingredient. So you can see the US measurements without having to switch to the US measurements view. So when you change # servings, the amount in the US measurements view will recalculate but the amount in the notes stays constant.

      Do you think either of these could be causing the problem? Or something else?

      Am sure we can fix it for you!
      Jx

  • I finally cooked our first meal from the plan. I picked the ? and goat cheese soup and it worked out well. I’d never used the stick blender. Pretty cool ? might try making cashew spiced butter, the next time I make the salmon and ? with spiced butter.

  • I got logged in, but everything i click on, I get “sorry, your membership level doesn’t allow this.” Meal plans, favorites. To this point, I haven’t been able to see a single recipe.

    • So sorry Lucy – there was a problem with your membership on my end – have fixed things so you shouldn’t have any more problems

      Sorry again
      Jx

  • Something is very wrong. I’ve paid the membership, but can never get past this point, which is not helpful at all. I would really appreciate it ? if you and your tech team could resolve this issue for me, so my husband and myself might start eating and feeling better. He’s just recovering from open heart surgery. I’m trying to do the best I can for both of us. Please do help, if you would.

    Thank you,
    Ellen Ball
    Evanston, Illinois
    USA

  • Is there any way to edit a Note or Custom Recipe once it’s in the collection? Or is the only way to delete/add new? (If not, can I add that as a feature request?) 🙂 Also, how do you “save” once you add a new recipe to a collection? Sometimes I navigate away and then my changes are lost. Thanks!!

    • I’ve already asked my developer for the ability to edit notes Elizabeth – great minds 🙂

      And I’ve had the same problem navigating away and it telling me that my changes are lost. But when I reload the collections page and open the collection again the changes are saved – will see what I can do to make this less clunky – thanks for asking!

      If you want to edit a custom recipe – just email me and I can do it on the back end. Also best to add custom recipe via the submit your recipes form rather than in the collections because they don’t save for future use if you add to a specific collection.

      So glad you’re playing around with all the features!

  • I created a shopping list and saved it, but now the page doesn’t want me to leave, even though the “Save Shopping List” button is greyed out.
    “This page is asking you to confirm that you want to leave – data you entered may not have been saved.”
    If I ignore this message and come back, then the amended list is still there, but I still get the message when I try to leave.

    • Yes I’ve been getting this too Mark – thanks for letting me know it’s not just me! Will have to dig deeper to see what’s going on with it.

  • You mentioned experimenting with ‘nacho’ recipes, I found one that me and my husband love. Take mini-peppers, cut them in half, bake @325 for 10 mins. Add a teaspoon of cream cheese, teaspoon of cheddar cheese, a sprinkling of bacon bits, a little hot sauce. Bake 10 more mins. Serve!

  • I’m having difficulty commenting in most other places on this site – ‘You are not allowed to view comments on this post.’

    Could your tech person look into this? Thanks.

  • I saved my collection then upped the serving size to 3 which when I click on my meal plan for this week does seem to have saved, however when I generate the shopping list, it reverts to 2 and only shows ingredient amounts in the shopping list for 2. Am I doing something wrong?

    • So sorry Tara!

      There was a problem with the meal planning software that was causing errors like this.

      Would you be able to try again?

      Just make sure you choose the ‘regenerate shopping list’ option to get the calculations for the correct number of serves.

      Sorry it’s not easier first time 🙂

      Let me know how you get on.
      Jx

  • Greetings, Jules! Love the new meal plans site! Lots of information that is easy to manipulate.

    Noticed that the US customary link doesn’t work. Doesn’t convert measurements to ounces, etc.

    I am using my iPhone with iOS13.

    Can’t wait to try new recipes this week.

    • Excellent Ken!

      Sorry the measurement link isn’t working on your phone – I just checked and it’s not working on my phone either! Will get my developer to look into it. It is working for recipes on Stonesoup though so I think it’s to do with a software update. aah technology!

  • Hi Jules, I am very curious about your Simple Meal Plans website address ending with ‘.to’ What is ‘.to’ short for? Thanks.

    • It’s short for Tonga I think John. I like the idea of going to the website – and keeping the url super simple! PS> I made your avocado flat bread on the weekend – Baked in the oven and they were good but needed some more experimenting. Thank you for the idea!

      • Thanks for trying the recipe on the weekend. Any alterations that you think will improve the recipe for everyone, is OK by me.

  • dear jules
    i don’t get my mails with my mealplans any longer
    maybe it’s because i canceled interweaves
    can you please change my emailadress and send the mealplans to birgit.brabetz@icloud.com
    thank you so much
    i miss my mealplans very hard
    lg birgit

  • Made “Livvie’s I-Can’t-Believe-It’s-Not-Chicken Stew” today. Changed spinach to half Kale and Arugula and some summer squash from my garden. Added can of tomato and a tiny bit of cream. It was very good. Did need a ton of seasoning, so I added some old bay spice for chicken and a little chicken stock. Very very yummy!

    Now, if I can find time to understand he new meal plan content, I would love to get started! Thanks for your help!

  • Hi Jules,
    I’m having trouble selecting recipes as favourites. I’ve tried touching the star symbol on the recipe and it won’t register. I was trying to to favourite the Burgers with My int & Almond Salsa recipe.
    Cheers,
    Jan.

    • Sorry you had problems Jan!

      The star symbol on the recipe is to rate the recipe out of 5.

      To add save the recipe as a favourite you need to click on the ‘add to inbox’ icon (next to the print icon) near the recipe title.

      It will then get saved to your recipe inbox collection and you can use it from there.

      Does that help?
      Jx

      Sorry it’s a bit confusing,

      • Jules, does that work if it’s one of the meal plan recipes? I’ve been trying to save the ones I am trying on their own in my inbox, but nothing is happening. The checkbox is selected for the individual recipe, but it’s not showing up on its own, only in a meal plan. The problem is trying to go back and find one without having to click on every meal plan. Colleen

  • I like the new format. I took some getting used to, but now I don’t want it any other way. I’m starting to build up a collection of favorites to put into my meal plans. Keep up the good work Jules

    • So glad you’ve enjoying it Jeroen!

      If you think of anything that would make it easier to use – I’m all ears 🙂

    • You can do it Patricia! Let me know if there are any specific things you are struggling with. I can make a special training video for you if you need extra help. It will be worth the learning curve I promise 🙂

  • hi jules! i’m trying out the new features with collections and i’m having some trouble. i removed some recipes from the collection and added a few new ones, but when i click on the “shopping list” it seems to only generate based on the original meal plan – it doesn’t account for my changes. the same happens if i even just change the # servings for existing recipe within the original meal plan. is there a “save” button i’m missing or anything like that?

    also, is there any way to get the variations to show up if i add new recipes? it helps if they show so that i can edit the shopping list more easily (on the same page).

    thanks!!

    • so glad you’re trying the new format Elizabeth! Sorry you’ve had problems.

      Here’s what you need to do.

      1. Save the meal plan to your collections (which I assume you’ve done).
      2. Edit the meal plan as you like. Add / remove things.
      3. Click on shopping list. This will generate the standard list based on the original plan.
      4. Click on regenerate shopping list – it will then ask which units you want to use and if you want to include ingredient notes (choose yes to this).
      5. It will then update the shopping list with your choices.
      6. Save your new shopping list. Then you can edit or share it.

      Sorry this is a bit clunky – will see what I can do to make it generate the shopping list from your changes first.

      And with the variation notes – I add them in manually so if you want to include a different recipe, you’ll need to look at that recipe page to see the variations. Will add to my list for future versions 🙂

      Does that help?

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