This week, I meal prepped using almost exclusively pantry items and ingredients already in my refrigerator.
I was looking to save some money this week, and one of the easiest ways to do that, in my opinion, is to shop your own shelves.
I’ve talked about shelf cooking before, and it really is an adventure for me.
Here’s what I made:
- Jamaican jerk tofu with rice/quinoa and canned vegetables (corn for A., green beans for me)
- Korean beef bowls with leftover 50/50 ground beef and lentils seasoned with a simple sauce and served with leftover roasted broccoli and more rice/quinoa.
- Steel cut oats (made simply with water and cinnamon). I ate mine with chopped apple and peanut butter several days and plain with just a little added cocoa powder and cacao nibs on the other days.
- Chili (made using some previously cooked and frozen lentils, some chopped celery I had frozen for use in soups, an 8-oz pack of tempeh that had gotten buried in the fridge, the remnants of a jar of sauce and a jar of salsa, and some pantry staples like black beans, corn, and tomato sauce).
- Served with leftover roasted potatoes and a homemade vegan macadamia nut and potato “cheeze” sauce one day.
- Served over pasta with more cheeze sauce for a couple meals for A.
- Served over plain rice for my kiddos with cheeze sauce and tortilla chips.
- Penne with sauce
- Breakfast for dinner (the splurge of the week since we had company): roasted potatoes with thawed kielbasa, a pancake berry cobbler using frozen berry blend, and hot water for tea!
Other menu items I made on the day of (rather than in advance) included frozen pizzas and good ol’ PBJ sandwiches. The kids also enjoyed some granola/snack bars and applesauce.
*Excuse the lack of photographs this week!