We do our trip to the supermarket weekly to shop for supplies. This means having a ready list for the things to buy like toiletries, household items and all the ingredients we need for the meals we are to cook for the whole week. Having this list on hand makes the trip to the grocery faster and helps us keep a well-stocked pantry.

To come up with a complete grocery list, however, I need to prepare a weekly menu for the family. We may have a small family of three, but that will still be 3 meals a day for 7 days! I sometimes feel that menu planning is a daunting task. I need to make sure that what we will be eating this week was not part of what we had a few days back. I need to check out some new recipes to try so will not get bored week in and week out.

The My Great Food Launch and Cooking with Chef Aileen Anastacio

San Miguel Pure Foods (SMPFC) launched a consumer portal designed to provide food lovers and yes, homemakers, with new and interesting recipes that can be easily done at home. The My Great Food (MGF) website (www.mygreatfood.com) serves as a recipe hub for everyone who has a heart for cooking. With over a thousand tested recipes, one will never run out of menu ideas for everyday, plan meals for weekend potlucks and even for special occasions.

Together with fellow mommy bloggers, we had the first glimpse of the site and mobile app at Marmalade Kitchen at The Forum in BGC.

The My Great Food site has multiple features like menu planner and a personalized recipe page. My Great Food also comes in a mobile app which can be downloaded for free on the App Store and Google Play.

– Christine Jacob hosting the My Great Food Launch –

It has also has a cooking video gallery, perfect for those who wanted to see how the actual process should be done instead of just reading the steps on the recipe. Who doesn’t love video tutorials, anyway?

During the launch, Chef Aileen, welcomed us in her kitchen and taught us how to cook like a pro. She make it all seemed easy to cook Eggs Benedict with a foolproof Hollandaise and prepare an icy coffee dink.

– Chef Aileen Anastacio of the Marmalade Kitchen – 

– Eggs Benedict and the Iced Coffee Drink –

Trying out The My Great Food Site and App

Since I need to prepare the grocery list and the menu for the week, it’s time to put this site to a test. I created my account by logging into the website, www.mygreatfood.com.

– My Great Food User Profile –

Creating the weekly plan was a breeze. All you have to do is type in a category, whether bread, pasta, poultry, beef, or vegetables and the page will give you a lot of recipe choices.

– User-friendly interface of The My Great Food site makes searching and saving the menu in a breeze! –

By just clicking and dragging your choice of food into the calendar, it’s easier to make sure you are making healthy and balanced meals for the family.

Even if you are doing the recipe for the first time, the site will help you break your planned meal down into ingredient lists and will give you the procedures how to do it.

– This helpful list will make sure you will not miss out any of the ingredients for your meal-

You can also easily set theme days – Monday is Chicken and Pasta, Tuesday is Fish, Wednesday is Bread or Pizza and so on. This usually worked for us as our 3-year old son Gab wants to get involved in suggesting his favorite food.

The plan you have created is editable and can be copied to different plan for another week or occasion. It can also be printed out so you can have an easy reference when you need a summary to be posted on your refrigerator door.

 – My Great Food Weekly Menu View that can be printed for easy reference –

The site can serve as a meal journal as it will record things you’ve planned or cooked in the past. It’s a good way, better than scribbling them into sticky notes and pinning them on the refrigerator door, to remember things you used to cook, and still love.

– My Great Food Meal Plans as your online cooking journal –

As you sign up as members of MGF, you are in for receiving updates on special events, kitchen tips, recipe ideas, and latest trends in the food and dining scene. Now, this sounds more exciting!

With most of us using smart phones, we can easily access and connect to the app when we need cooking ideas.

– My Great Food Mobile App –

 I hope in the upcoming upgrades of the MGF mobile app, they can include a weekly menu at a glance view and a faster loading time.

All in all, I’m happy to have come across the My Great Food site and app. Whether you are a blue ribbon chef or just testing the waters, you can use the My Great Food to help you plan out a full menu. Menu planning has never been this simple. It now becomes just another quick and easy part of this busy mommy’s weekly routine.