Meal planning for Iron Deficiency Anaemia or just generally vitamin rich - any ideas?

[Lexilicious]

So, I've got low haemoglobin (I knew this already) but also low iron stores which are shown up in the pitiful shrunken red blood cells they saw on some recent tests. I am now on a prescription of really heavy iron tabs for a month, and the GP says once the tablets have got stores up to normal, I can keep it going with healthy eating, particularly around my period (heavy, which is how I have got into this state). Steak, Broccoli and Guinness - what a hardship!! Anaemia is really common in women (something like 1 in 10 will be diagnosed at some point) so I hope this could be helpful to others on the site.

DH agrees we should make this into a meal plan (he's quite keen to join in with the steak, broccoli and guinness), and also a food-shopping plan. But I am presently feeling uninspired and want to know if anyone has a ready made 7-day cyclical meal plan that I can use as a starting point.

my current notional meal plan goes:
Sunday: lunchtime Roast, make stock. teatime cheese on toast.
Weekdays: toast for breakfast, soup for lunch
Monday: roast leftovers curry/tomato-y sauce with pasta
Tuesday: Fish and rice
Wednesday: spag bol
Thursday: pizza (frozen basic one, add stuff like peppers, chorizo, olives, mushrooms)
Friday: veggie stir-fry/curry, noodles
Saturday: 'Freezer Surprise'

Fellow sufferer here.

Dried apricots for snacks.

Sauteed chicken livers once a week.
Steak once a week
2 mince dishes each week (mexican spicy beef, bolognese, cottage pie etc)

green leafy veg with every meal.

A glass of OJ helps you absorb iron, caffeine blocks you absorbing it.

Spatone in OJ every morning first thing.

Thanks wildstrawb. I'm pretty poor at snacking at all between meals, and hardly eat any fruit but I love my veg. Am not keen on liver... would liver pate do, in sandwiches?

Don't know what Spatone is, will investigate. GAAAHHH at the idea of losing out on my coffee!!

You can drink coffee, but just not one hour either side of an iron rich meal

I'm not keen on liver either but chicken livers are nice I think, I cook them with onions and marsala and herbs. Much milder and the texture is like pate rather than tough old boots.

Liver pate would be fine, especially if you make your own.

Chicken liver pate is dead easy, cheap and freezes well.

Iron absorption is greatly helped with vitamin C. Have some pills if you can't hack fruit, but do take it.

Red meat is better than white meat or fish too. It doesn't have to be steak, stewing beef is lovely in a casserole, served with leafy green veg of course.

I feel your pain....or the pain u will have in a few days of iron tablets . Be sure drink plenty fluids to keep your system on the move.

Spatone is an iron rich water. You can buy it in chemists but it is quite expensive for box of 10 or so sachets. Another good product is Floradix....It's a liquid iron supplement with extra vitamins. Very easy on the system compared with iron tablets. Might be good to
use when you have finished your prescription. It looks a bit like the Babybio stuff you put on plants:-o You will also get this in most chemists or health food stores.

Hope to get back to full health blood quickly.

i may be alone in this but i really recommend heart as a great meat and high in iron. it's so tasty - i tend to stew it with onions and winter vegetables. it's also very cheap as it's undervalued.
if you've not tried it before you'll find it's a very dense meat but a smoother texture than some livers.

cool tips thank you. not squeamish about offal, just hate the gritty texture of liver.

Have been to the supermarket this afternoon and now have some chicken livers to do something with. Tonight it's shepherd's pie and cabbage. Tomorrow a stew made of beef skirt, which I'm hoping that DH will make.