Pantry Planning
With the holidays coming up, and reviewing my Amazon order history, I decided that I wanted to do a no-spend November on Amazon. After getting through five days of no spending on Amazon (and now at TEN whole days of no Amazon orders! Seriously, it’s a record for me), I decided that I wanted to try for a low-spend November all around. I have talked in the past about my meal planning and how I manage to meal plan for two weeks, but I usually make it a habit to try at least one or two new recipes with each meal planning “cycle,” which usually includes produce or condiments that I don’t always keep on hand. I challenged myself to try to meal plan an entire two weeks based solely on items I keep in my pantry and freezer, which gives me a low-spend shopping list prior to the big shopping I’ll do for Thanksgiving! Read on for the meal plan I’ve come up with for the next two weeks and what my grocery list will look like for this shopping trip!
When hummus is life and you eat it by the spoonful.
Weekly - Hummus
I make hummus (almost) every week, using Chef Mike Solomonov’s recipe from his Zahav cookbook. There is a recipe for tahina sauce in there that you can make in large batches and freeze in smaller portions for making the most perfect, creamy hummus. This is not only going to be a part of one of my meals for this cycle, but it’s also perfect for snacking!! Hummus is loved by the whole family in this house, so it’s a great thing to always have on hand.
Saturday - Enchiladas
When I make enchiladas, there is always extra shredded meat leftover, so I freeze the extra for later. Saturday will be a low-effort, hearty meal. I always keep tortillas on hand for a quick wrap lunch, quesadillas, breakfast burritos, or in this case, enchiladas. I also always grab a few cans of enchilada sauce every time it’s on sale, and we always have plenty of shredded cheese on hand! I can easily make rice & beans from the pantry for a side dish.
Sunday - Pasta Carbonara
SUCH an easy dish to make, that is so delicious! We used bacon for a dish earlier this week, so I have half a pack to use up. Pasta is a staple in our pantry for a quick meal, not sure if I’ll use spaghetti or some other type. Some eggs, some parmesan, and a little pasta water, and it’s a delicious Sunday dinner!
Monday - Leftovers
Tuesday - Leftovers
I will be in the office these two days, and there will be plenty leftover from the enchiladas and Sunday pasta, so that will be lunches and dinner for Monday and Tuesday. And if I’m being honest, I will probably treat myself to lunch in the city one of these days - gotta treat ourselves sometimes!
Perfectly fried falafel.
Wednesday - Falafel Salad Bowls
Dried chickpeas are a staple in my pantry so the falafel will be easy, and I will already have made hummus to go with this. Thinly slice some red onion, open a jar of olives, roasted peppers, and/or artichokes and it’s a supper yummy meal. I will have to buy lettuce and feta cheese to go with this, but so far I am doing pretty good with the low-buy challenge.
Thursday - Red Curry Noodles
This is one of my favorites! I keep shrimp in the freezer, small jars of red curry and cans of coconut milk in the pantry, and soy sauce in the fridge. Add in some garlic and ground ginger, a bag of frozen pepper strips or stir fry veggies, and mix in the stir fry noodles towards the end, and it’s a super tasty meal! If you’re into spicy foods, you can add Thai red chili sauce or some gochujang to the mix for a little kick.
Friday - Defrosted Chili
As I’ve mentioned in my previous meal planning posts, I often double my soup, stew, and chili recipes and freeze half of the batch, so this is a quick and easy office day meal.
Burrito bowls are so easy & delicious!
Saturday - Burrito Bowls
This is almost an all-pantry meal; brown rice, a can of corn, a can of rotel, and a can of black beans. I can make a game-time decision whether I want to do shredded chicken, chorizo, or ground meat from my freezer, and we always have sour cream, salsa, and shredded cheese in the fridge.
Sunday - Skillet Sausage Tortellini
I keep frozen tortellini and bell peppers strips in our chest freezer, onions and garlic in the pantry, and I freeze smoked sausage every few weeks when it’s on sale. Add in a jar of pasta sauce from the pantry and some mozzarella (another item I will have to purchase) and it’s a delicious comfort meal for Sunday.
Monday - Leftovers
Tuesday - Leftovers
Wednesday - Leftovers
I don’t want to cook right before the holiday, so we will make whatever leftovers available work for us for these three days, especially since Wednesday night I’ll be prepping a lot of the food for Thanksgiving!
My Shopping List:
Milk
Eggs
Yogurt
Mozzarella cheese
Feta cheese
Carrots
Cucumbers
Lettuce
Grapes
Blueberries
Apples
Pears
Bananas
Bread
With the amount of leftovers after each meal, plus mixing and matching (make a taco bowl for lunch with leftover lettuce, make a falafel wrap with some lettuce, hummus, and a leftover tortilla, have a fried egg over chili for breakfast!), using other pantry items and buying some produce and necessities on the side (apples and peanut butter, oatmeal with blueberries and honey, banana muffins, hard boiled eggs with cheese and crackers, yogurt with honey & fruit), I really feel like we will be able to get a wide variety of meals and snacks out of this meal plan and shopping list.
It can seem daunting at times to do meal planning, but once you get the hang of it and have a trusty list of go-to meals and pantry staples, you will not only be able to meal plan for your life and schedule, but as evidenced here, you will also be able to go low-buy if you’re up for the challenge!
