Pepperplate

Well Hello Dear Readers!  
I have returned to Iowa where it is HOT HOT HOT outside!  It is so hard with a toddler in this heat because he wants to be outside and he doesn't care that the heat has reached dangerous temperatures.  I managed to come up with some sort of a solution...I set up his little pool on the deck so that he can play in the water and I can sit in the air conditioned house and watch him through the sliding glass door.  He has been happy with that arrangement and so have I.  With it being so hot, it is really  unpleasant to cook, or even eat for that matter.  I did manage to make a fabulous pasta salad last night, which I will blog about in a separate post.  This post is for me to share with you the most awesome app I have found to date!  
Let me first say that nobody asked me to write this post, this is not an advertisement, this is just me sharing with you something that I find to be a very helpful tool in meal planning.  Pepperplate is a web based app, that you can also get for your iPad (which is how I found it) that helps you plan meals, menus, shopping lists, and store your favorite recipes.  It is a FREE app!  I have started using it religiously!
Here's how it works, you go to www.pepperplate.com  and register to make your own account.  From there, you can import recipes from supported websites, or manually enter your favorite recipes where they will be saved on your account.  You can then plug your recipes into the meal planner, which will in turn make you a grocery list.  You can adjust your grocery list, add and delete items as you need them, and then you can print out your list!  Your account automatically syncs with your other devices (iPad, iPhone) where you have the app.  I then am able to use my Pepperplate on my iPad to access my recipes instead of wasting paper by printing them out.  I just set up my iPad on the counter in my kitchen and follow the recipe from there!  
The grocery list is very useful because it automatically separates your items by "store aisle."  It also has a list of the recipes on the sidebar.  If you want, you can have your list separated by recipe instead of aisle.  
You do not need to have an iPad to use Pepperplate.  Because the app is web based, you can access it right from your computer.  I highly encourage you to try Pepperplate, especially if you are just getting started at meal planning!
Until next time, happy and HEALTHY cooking and EATING!