31 Days to Slash your Grocery Spending
Today is Day 5 and your assignment: Create back up meals
Life is really hectic. For me and for you. I keep telling my husband, “it’s the season of life we are in”, but it is exhausting and that cliche is no joke. Every night is a different activity for a different child.
Truthfully, I wouldn’t have it any other way. My kids are not bored and they are keeping up with their school work, in spite of their active lifestyle.
But this active life can wreck havoc on our evenings and my mental clarity. Some nights, activities or work might run later than planned, or I forgot to take food out of the freezer to thaw, or I just need to simplify dinner hour and I really just want to throw the meal plan out the window.
When I get in this lazy…let’s go with exhausted…mood, I have been known to call for take out, or pick up a pizza, or make an impulsive trip to the grocery store. And those unplanned expenses add up.
So to make life a little easier, I keep a few quick and easy dinner ideas on hand for those nights when our schedule is just too much.
Some of my back up meal ideas:
- Breakfast for dinner. I always have eggs on hand and usually bagels or English muffins in the freezer. This is my favorite go-to back up meal, although it’s not always my family’s first choice.
- Spaghetti – I always keep a box of pasta and a jar of sauce in the pantry, and I always have ground turkey or sausage and a bag of frozen vegetables in the freezer. THIS is my kids’ favorite choie, but not always my husband’s. It only takes about 20 minutes to pull together and that’s what I like about it.
- Soup, grilled cheese and fruit. Currently, I have several containers of leftover ham and bean soup in the freezer and I always have deli cheese on hand.I just thaw the soup in the microwave or stove top and whip up some grilled cheese sandwiches for a very easy dinner that usually pleases everyone!
- Frozen pizza. This is totally cheating, but when frozen pizzas are on sale, I usually stock up on a few, just for the purpose of having them for back ups. Add fruit as a side and dinner is easy, and no one complains.
Your assignment is to plan some basic back up meals of your own and put those ingredients on your next grocery list. Even if it’s a frozen pizza, keep a few things on hand for days when your family needs to eat, but you’re just not feeling the love for your kitchen.
Are you following along with the challenge? Tell us what treasures you discovered in your pantry and refrigerator in the comments.
To follow along all month, follow daily on Facebook. I’m also participating in the challenge and will be posting pictures during the month.
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