One of the best apps for meal planning, as well as organizing my recipes, has been Trello. I have spent a lot of time trying out different programs and cellphone apps to help with meal planning and, by far, this one is great!
Trello has allowed me to pull together all the recipes I have spread across Pinterest, books, magazines and websites into one central location. It allows me to make meal plans as well as create shopping lists. I can access it across all my devices…..laptop, tablet and cell phone.
How many times have you (or a family member) forgotten the shopping list at home? Well you will never have that problem again with Trello! Your shopping list can be accessed easily through the cellphone app.
Trello – one of the best apps for meal planning
What is Trello and why do I think it’s one of the best apps for meal planning?
Trello is basically an digital bulletin board that you fill with lists and cards. Picture a bulletin board that you stick Post It notes on. Only it’s digital. That about sums it up.
But Trello is so much more than a digital Post It note holder. Trello is the ultimate organization tool!
You aren’t only limited to using it for meal planning. You can use it to plan, track and organize so many things. Use it to organize home/school/work projects, keep track of tasks, plan parties/gatherings, create to do lists and so much more. I have tried lots of planning/organizational/meal plan apps and this one is my favorite! Not just for it’s simplicity but because I don’t get stuck with lots of added things (or recipes) that I don’t use or want.
If this is the first time you’ve ever heard about Trello the head on over and check it out. While you are there sign up for an account. It’s free and it only takes a few minutes to do. Follow the instructions and sign up using your email or a Google account.
You can access Trello from your laptop, tablet or cellphone. This gives me multiple options for working on it. But having it as an app on my cellphone means I can take my recipes and shopping list EVERYWHERE I go! While I use Trello on my laptop I often consult my saved recipes on my cellphone when cooking.
Down load the app to your cellphone and begin setting up an account. Trello looks and functions the same across all the devices.
Here’s my one of my Trello boards as seen from my laptop:
Here’s the same Trello board as seen from my cellphone:
The only difference is the size of the lists/columns. You can see more of them on your cellphone.
As soon as you sign up you can begin creating your board. Give it a name to indicate it is for meal planning. I have a variety of meal related boards. Some of them are for specific recipes (keto recipes) and others are for general meal planning.
Once you have a board you can start creating lists and adding in cards.
For meal planning you can create lists in a variety of topics depending upon your meal planning style.
Create lists by type of recipe (chicken recipes, InstaPot recipes, family favorite recipes, etc). Once you have a list you can then create cards that will hold the individual recipes.
Where To Find Recipes For Trello
The easiest answer is everywhere! If you have a recipe it can be added in Trello.
Pinterest is a great source of recipes. Sure you can make boards on Pinterest to hold your recipes. But let’s face it. After a while you have probably saved hundreds if not thousands of pins for recipes that you will make some day. Finding a favorite hidden in your boards means lots of scrolling and searching.
Trello can help you organize the Pinterest recipes you actually use and make them easier to find too!
I can add notes to my Trello card about any changes I made to the recipe. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve switched out ingredients or added something different to a recipe. Then I tell myself that I will certainly remember what I did the next time I make it only to discover, after months have passed, that I have no idea what I did that everyone loved. With Trello I can add my notes right into the card while I’m making it. Now I never forget that secret ingredient that was added to a dish that everyone loved.
Pinterest also can’t quickly build a shopping list from the recipes you want to use. But Trello can! More to come on this.
Websites are a great recipe resource. Typically I save the website link in the Trello card description area. I add in a picture of the meal under Attachments and then use a handy Trello trick to create an ingredients list which is used to build my shopping list. For the actual cooking directions I will visit the website.
Why you may ask?
Well, I think of it as my thank you to the website owner for taking the time and effort to create and put the recipe online. As a website owner myself I can tell you it takes more time than you think to create, photograph and write each recipe that you see online. Six to eight hours is not unusual. In order to keep writing new content we depend on viewers to come to our sites. I continue to go back to the site for the cooking instructions as a way of supporting the owner. I hope you will continue to support the sites you enjoy by doing the same.
Steal My Trello Board
Well you don’t actually have to steal it because I’m going to give it to you. You will be able to copy this board to your personal Trello account and access the keto recipes I have on it.
To save this Trello board to your account:
Once you are signed into to Trello here’s how to copy these boards.
Log into Trello.
Once you are logged in come back and click on the link above to go to the Trello board.
Go to the top right corner on Trello where is says “Show Menu“
Click on the button and it will open up another box showing the following:
Click on the word “More” and it will open up some additional options:
Now click on “Copy board” and it will again open some new options for you:
In the Title bar you will enter in the title of your own copy of the board. Make sure that the “Keep cards” and the “Keep Template cards” check boxes are checked. You want to copy everything from the board over.
The meal planning board will be automatically set up for a team but you can update it to be private. If you set it for public it will mean that it can show up in Google searches and others will be able to see your board and any work you are doing no the board. I always set all my boards, except those I’m sharing, to private.
When you are done click the green “Create” tab at the very bottom of the page. This will create a copy of this Trello board on your Trello account. It will take a few seconds to copy. When it is done making the copy Trello will open to that board and you can begin looking through it and working on it.
To see your new Trello board when you sign into your account:
When you sign into Trello this is how you will find your new boards.
Go to the Boards tab at the top of the screen (or click on the little House shaped icon) and find your list of boards. Click on the board you want to view and it will open it up so you can begin working on it.
You can add new cards, lists and your own ideas once you are on the board.
Once you have your board made I would love to see how you use it. Feel free to send me your experience and feedback to remakemyplate@gmail.com I’d love to hear if you use other apps for meal planning and how Trello compares.
You can play around with Trello and add more recipes to your version of the board. But, if you really want to turn Trello into your number one meal planning tool then you may be interested in this Trello course on Teachable.
The Ultimate Guide to Meal Planning With Trello
I walk you through using your Trello boards not just for keeping recipes but also for meal planning and creating your shopping list from your meal planning recipes (Trello can pull a list together in seconds!).
You get a variety of printables as well as three ready made Trello boards. Click here for more information about this Trello course.
Want to get new recipes sent directly to your inbox? Then subscribe to our newsletter (see below) and be the first to know when we post a new recipe as well as get weekly shopping, cooking and meal planning tips. Follow me on Pinterest where you can find links to our recipes as well as other recipes you and your family will enjoy.
This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our disclosure policy. If you click on the banner below you will be taken directly to my Etsy shop to see the digital items currently listed.
