Oftentimes when life becomes challenging, one of the first things we become frustrated with is cooking. Have you stood in front of your open fridge or pantry and just sighed? I’ve been there! What do I have? What can I make? How long does it last? Etc. These are all common questions we ask ourselves when the going gets tough.
When money is tight and your budget is stretched thin, there are a couple suggestions I can offer for those hard days when you’re exhausted, and don’t feel like thinking about ANYTHING, much less cooking.
All it really takes is a few pantry staples, and whatever random ingredients you may have laying around. Get creative! Cooking is all about creativity and discovery.
9 Ways to Stretch Your Food:
- Pasta: So incredibly versatile, pasta can be eaten by itself with butter, with homemade Alfredo or marinara sauce, added to soups, or used as a base in casseroles. Dried pasta is very inexpensive and lasts forever.
- Flour: Flour is used to make breads, muffins, cakes, pancakes, tortillas, etc. A necessity in every pantry.
- Rice: We all know how diverse rice can be, and there are endless combinations to try. Start easy with spanish rice, chicken fried rice, or broccoli and cheese rice.
- Potatoes: Potatoes, also called tubers, have a long shelf life if stored properly in a cool dry place. Russets are good for plain ol’ loaded baked potatoes, also mashed potatoes. You can slice potatoes into fries, roast in the oven, grill on a hot grill, or add to soups. I have often made a loaded baked potato a main meal.
- Canned or dried beans: I love beans for all the ways to prepare them, as they provide a filling meal with little other ingredients. Dried beans are also very inexpensive and last forever. Some ways to use canned or dried beans are in chili, black bean burgers, soups, refried beans, my slowcooker ham and beans, etc
- Canned Chicken: If you’re not buying canned chicken, you’re missing out on a wonderful inexpensive resource and pantry staple. Highly versatile and a huge time saver, we make chicken salad, buffalo chicken dip, homemade chicken soup, and chicken casseroles with this.
- Eggs: Eggs are not just for breakfast. Hard boiled eggs are a great anytime snack, as well as deviled eggs, and also egg salad, quiches, and frittatas are always well liked.
- Oats: Oats are hearty and filling and super inexpensive. Stock up and try baked oatmeal for breakfast, quick oat balls for a snack, or make these delicious cookies for dessert.
- Frozen veggies: Just about every vegetable can be found in the freezer section of the grocery store, but we also freeze veggies from the farmer’s market. They are great to add into soups, casseroles, rice and pasta dishes, egg dishes, virtually anything. Frozen veggies are a must in every freezer.
I hope these suggestions help you navigate through stressful times. Do you have any others to suggest? Tell me in the comments! Blessings to you all!
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