Trying to Save $ By Eating Healthy & Cooking At Home

Every time i look at my account balance and try to figure out where all my moneys gone and why haven't i been able to save something, i end up going through my transactions and see that the majority of my purchases are food related.  Whether its grocery stores or eating out.  I need to remedy this, and the best way i can think is by starting to plan meals and actually cooking for more then one meal.
But this is hard when I've never been much of a cooker and also when i mostly cook from bags, boxes and cans.  I'm unfortunately one of those 'lets do it the easy way' "chefs".  and i really would like to break this habit.  My wallet and health are being affected, and i think it would also be another great way to calm myself from the days events.

Now, with that in mind, I need as much help as possible to find healthy alternatives that are also cheap.  Easy recipes that a beginner can do, ideas on food plans for the week, etc.  I honestly don't know how my mom used to plan out the weeks meals and actually cook them without ever changing her mind.  I mean, she used to have calendars posted on the fridge of what she would make for breakfast, what shed be preparing for my school lunch, options i could have for after school snack, and finally what was going to be for dinner.
Its sad that I used to tease her about this and hated being on a schedule like that, and now that's all I wish I had.  I need to discipline myself and gain some will power.  Have a dinner planned and if something happens that i don't get home with enough time to make the meal and eat before a halfway decent time (730 pm), then i need a backup option.

But enough of the what i would like(s)... I need to focus on the actual cooking part.  Maybe if I actually started cooking and having more confidence in my "chef" skills, then I'll be able to have more confidence in starting and sticking to a schedule.

With that being said, a lovely coworker hooked me on this site:

Budget Bytes
It is an amazing site with many recipes on it and a nice step by step blog journey, costs, etc.  I have quite a few recipes saved that i cannot wait to try and this weekend or the next, I'll be cooking for the week.  :)  Here are just a few samples of what I would love to try:

• Chocolate & Banana Baked Oatmeal
• Parsley Pesto Pasta (or Triple P)
• Spinach Artichoke Pasta (this is the one I'm SUPER excited about!!!!!!!)
• Her Top 10 Freezer Meals (will be perfect for me for work & all)
• Southwest Salad w/Taco Ranch Dressing

Those are just a few that are on my list to try. But those are ones that I'm pretty sure I'll like no matter what. So keep your fingers crossed for me.  I'll hopefully be posting my success (or hysterically not so successful) stories when i finally end up making them.

Now, are there any other websites, cookbooks, etc that can be recommended for healthier eating and beginning cookers?  I'm very open to trying new things and attempt cooking.  :)

~Spring~

PS: this isn't a healthy recipe, but it caught my eye and i CANNOT wait to try it... started salivating as soon as I saw it!! }:^)   So Not Healthy Yummy Gooey-ness!!