Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Menu Plan: Clean out the pantry!

Ryan JAN12
That’s my love up there smiling. He puts up with me.
(You’ll see where I’m going in a minute…)
The past few months have been crazy hectic with us being out of town more than we were home. Hence the lack of posts & menu plans. Hockey season has been intense this year. Throw in caregiver arrangements for my Mother who lives a few hours away and the EE has been a glorified laundromat. We’re back now and my grand plans can recommence!
A while back there was a huge pantry/refrigerator/freezer purge and it was a great first step. The next step is removing boxes & bags from the kitchen. What do I mean by that? Convenience foods full of things we can’t pronounce and unnecessary ingredients. Prepared foods we can make from scratch in a frugal, timely and healthier manner.  The side effects for this step are simple, yet profound: intake of more fresh fruits & veggies, more accurate portions (3 people eating a box of pasta is not OK), less waste/recycling, save money (buying only what can be eaten in short order). At least that is what appears to be happening around here!
Step 3, transitioning to predominately organic or natural foods, is slowly happening with each grocery trip. I’m also looking into reducing the amount of gluten we regularly intake. I really want to make more of our bread at home, too.
The menu this week is about using up things as much as anything, so here are our options for supper:
~ cheddar brats, whole-grain chips, baked beans
~ 5 spice chicken & dumplings
~ minted lamb sausage & couscous
~ pepperoni tortilla pizzas
~ chicken alfredo gnocchi
~ pierogi, fried cabbage, fire roasted tomato & garlic sauce
~ We’re going to a pizza party one night, so that makes 7 meals!
Dinner usually consists of leftovers, fresh fruit & veggie plates, or sandwiches (egg, pb & j, grilled cheese). Breakfast options vary between cereal, yogurt with granola, grits, and oatmeal. Snacks tend to be things such as fruit, carrot sticks, tomatoes, crackers with pb or cheese, and a glass of milk.
Thanks for reading and being my conscience. accountability. friends!

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