*This is part 2 of a series. To read part one “A Peek Inside our Refrigerator + ….
When I posted the above pic of a peek inside our refrigerator on Instagram, a friend of mine asked if I could tell her what I would make from what she saw in my refrigerator – as far as meals go.
I understood where she was coming from, looking at this makes it seem like all we eat is raw plants, and although a big chunk of our diet is plants, and at least half our dinner plate is salad, we do have cooked meals. I made some notes of what we planned on eating that week and will share it with you today!
In this second post I will share:
- What else is in the refrigerator that you may not be able to see.
- How foods in pantry and freezer are key to creating well-rounded meals.
- How only buying what you need for the week is key to an organized refrigerator.
- Meals we ate that week
- Snacks we ate that week
- Lunches we ate that week
- Breakfasts we ate that week
1. What You Can’t See
In the above pic, there is a bag of shredded cheese and some eggs. I go very easy on the cheese, using only about 1/3 of what most recipes call for, so one bag can often last 2 weeks. I do this for health reasons, not cost…but it does help the food budget to eliminate most animal products.
Our eggs are also local and organic. There is hummus from Trader Joes, we use it to dip pretzels, veggies and to top salads in place of salad dressing. There are a couple little containers of food from our local organic deli. I am the only one that eats these, usually for lunch.
There is almond milk behind that bottle of Kombucha, and our water filter pitcher. The only thing you can’t see is what is in our door, which really is just condiments + strawberry freezer jam, some date paste + some earth balance (butter substitute).
2. Foods In My Pantry
What you don’t see are my freezer and my pantry, and the foods in there are the key to making meals out of what you see in my refrigerator. Example, I have mason jars of cooked beans (made a large batch of Crockpot Refried Beans) in the freezer, and whole grain pasta in the pantry.
3. Only Buy What Is Needed
The week I took the picture, we only needed 5 meals, as 2 of the days I did not need to cook since we would not be home. Because I plan my meals out and write my grocery list according to those recipes and what we already have, I didn’t have anything in my refrigerator that we wouldn’t be eating within the week, other than condiments.
4. Meals for the week:
~My Go To Chili Recipe
~Crockpot Refried Bean Burritos
~Spaghetti (no meat)
~Breakfast for dinner (French Toast & Eggs & fruit salad)
~Garlic Veggie Pasta
I serve every dinner we have with a green salad loaded with veggies. I often make a cooked veggie side, too. I love to roast veggies, especially at the end of the week I love to throw any leftover cut up veggies onto a pan, and roast away. Click here for my post on everything you need to know about Roasting Vegetables.
5. Snacks For The Week
~pretzel thins dipped in hummus
~veggies dipped in hummus
~nuts
~Raw Raspberry Bliss Bars
~Streusel Topped Blueberry Muffins
~Smoothies
~baked potato (my oldest loves coming home from school and popping one in the microwave)
~popcorn
~wheat thin type crackers
6. Lunches For The Week
~I pack my girls’ lunch every week–it is the typical sandwich, fruit, vegetable, granola bar, crackers. It is usually a nut butter sandwich.
~I try to make my Todd a batch of soup at the beginning of each week, store in mason jars and freeze. These are his lunches for the week at work. French Lentil Soup is a favorite of ours.
~There is usually enough soup for me, too, or I visit the local health food store deli—I admit—way too often! They have the most beautiful pasta salads, quinoa salads & vegetable salads. Mmmmmmm.
~When we are all home together, my girls like to boil whole wheat pasta & melt some earth balance on it and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
7. Breakfasts For The Week
~oatmeal (these Freezer Steel Cut Oat Pucks make it very easy!)
~Chia Oats
~cereal (bran flakes, crispy rice)
~whole wheat English muffins & honey
~ Toad in a Hole 🙂
………………..
So there is a pretty typical week of food/eating in our home. I hope this gives you some good ideas on how to get your family to eat more plant food. It really is so much easier when a little bit of thought goes into what ends up in our grocery cart, and how it is displayed & stored once we get home. You all know how passionate I am about staying healthy, and an organized refrigerator really has been key to reaching that goal!
