Wednesday, December 29, 2021

My New Years Pantry

      I've got several goals that I'll check in on Friday about that have some sense of connection to my kitchen pantry. Both DH and I need a healthier diet. We're not spring ducklings any more and the food we put in our bodies needs to not just fill our tummy's but support optimal health. Sodium, trans fats, simple carbohydrates, and  processed foods need to minimized while plates filled with healthy vegetables, beans and legumes, and lean proteins become the core. I need to lose weight-a lot of weight. I need to lose more than 10% of my body weight, but I'm setting that as a goal. What goes on my plate will either hurt or hinder this effort. And of course, careful food buying and management will be an important component to efforts to test out and gear up for DH's retirement and us living on just my salary. The goal will be to defer tapping into DH's retirement and not count on Social security. I can trim away  convenience foods and ready meal type ingredients that cost more and are less quality and save some dollars in the budget. 

     I've got a slew of low cost meals but too many are reliant on cream soups (Sodium heavy) and their siblings to get the meals made quick. Quick, fast food, is often the enemy of a healthy diet unless its fruit and raw vegetables. I think to not rock my boat too much, what I need to do is look for substitutes to transform both less than healthy  dinner staples into both  healthier and cost efficient versions. I'm going to give it a go-taking versions from my beloved 1987 church cookbook, and altering with substitutes. I also will take you along as I cook more with my daughter, enjoying more plant based meals. I won't harp about veganism, just the general health and cost improvements I hope to achieve with incorporating 1-2 meals per week without meat, and without relying on  ready made meat free items. They are often very expensive, not filling, and give plant based eating a bad name as being unaffordable. 

     Here we go 2022. I may be entering the last 1/3rd of my life and I want it to be an active one. Good energy fueled by  clean food can't  be a bad thing and if it helps our financial goals, all the better.  

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A few quick substitutions and strategies

  • Flavored Béchamel Sauces instead of Cream of soups
  • Instapot cooked black black, kidney, pinto, and navy  beans and chick peas to avoid the added sodium in canned versions ( This means I need to figure the damn pot out)
  • Day old bread toasted and crumbled for toppings on casseroles or meat coatings, or as croutons for homemade soups and salads
  • Homemade veggie and chicken stock, frozen in flat zip lock bags for hot dish, stuffing and soup bases instead of buying broth
  • Cutting up more large carrots, celery cabbage and other veggies to eat with hummus or dip instead of  paying for precut-including baby carrots
  • More ground turkey instead of beef
  • More rice bowl meals where rice is the base, then vegetables, and meat is used more as a flavoring
      I'd like to experiment with some lentil recipe's, but to be honest, I'm very worried DH will think that has just gone too far. My daughter has a delicious lentil dal recipe though and maybe if we start using lentils as a base for side dishes, we can slowly cut back on meat. If you have other suggestions or your simple acts you do to avoid the more expensive and less healthy stuff, I'm all ears.


24 comments:

  1. Healthy eating is a wonderful goal Sam. I cook from scratch and once you get started it isn't that time consuming. Beware that once you get used to eating this way packaged food will not taste good at all. It may even make you sick.

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    1. I really just need to tweak, but the tweaking will depend on new habits. My daughter struggles with anything processed now.

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  2. Oh, I'm glad I found your blog when I did. I'm not good at meal planning and it usually revolves around a piece of meat, some starch and a veg or two.

    It's not only for health reasons that I need to reduce the meat and starch but the prices are going up continuously and I'm to save on my grocery bill too.

    Thanks for sharing this journey with us.

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    1. For me it's health first, budget second but they're pretty close. I've started already to see where I can trim in multiple ways.

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  3. Switching to a more plant based diet will be so healthy and even more affordable for both of you. I will be doing even more of it in the new year too. We can share ideas with each other.

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    1. More plant based options but still not vegetarian or vegan. I want to learn from others as well.

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  4. I've heard this is amazing and fools some meat-eaters. https://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/instant-pot-lentil-tacos/

    I consistently make all my "creams" making Bechamel with 1% milk. Add some nutritional yeast?

    Vegan gravy is really good. I made it for the vegetarian at Thanksgiving. https://www.noracooks.com/easy-vegan-gravy/?utm_campaign=yummly&utm_medium=yummly&utm_source=yummly

    I know you can do this! Even when working over 60h a week, I learned to make basic healthy meals in 30m or less.

    I'm looking forward to following your journey in '22 and trying some of the changes you make :-)

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    1. Thanks, Elle. These are tips and ideas I need to learn.

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  5. Oh it was good to read your comment about the need to work out how to use the instapot. I bought one and it is sitting snarling at me so I shall look forward to reading about your explorations.

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    1. I've had mine for two years! I scalded myself in first attempt and have scared myself from trying again.

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  6. We need to eat way better, too. And I'm so terrible at it....

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    1. Like Belinda said, we can learn and support each other.

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  7. I love lentils, but then we grow them here and they are free most of the year. Because you and I are very alike in body build, and heritage,try to eat like I eat. This is just a suggestion. I do not eat breakfast, I have a diet coke and you can drink coffee with real cream and sugar substitute if you want. Then have something at 11 or noon. Eggs, cheese, ww crackers, sugar free yogurt. If you get hungry in the afternoon have some cheese. Dinner should be meat, and low glycemic veggie and salad. You can have high fat dressing. But fill up on veggies, I mean eat like 2 cups you can even butter the hell out of them. I do love sweets and carbs but I try to be good most of the time and then I binge. It does keep my weight down so as not to aggravate my arthritis. I do think you are beautiful just the way you are.

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    1. We're all beautiful babes, aren't we just! But, like you, the knees feel anything extra, and I just want to feel better. I'm only 56. I should have decades before I creek so much.

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  8. I really do believe there's a lot of positives to veganism - but it's just so hard (or am I just making it harder)? But noble goals, and good luck!

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    1. I'm not aiming for veganism, just more plant based main dishes. I love a good pizza or burger.

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  9. I'll be interested in following your journey on this. Due to some food restrictions, I've learned to make a lot from scratch including bechamel sauce. It's very easy, and I add sharp cheddar to make a great cheese sauce! Once you start controlling salt and sugar, you won't like all the prepared foods anymore. I love beans and lentils, but my body can't tolerate them very often, so I am always on the search for other non- meat protein sources. I eat a lot of chicken now. Good luck to you, best, Celie.

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    1. I hear the taste for processed food will fade as more raw and natural food replaces it. I too sometimes struggle with the bean aftermath but hopefully if my body gets used to them, I'll tolerate them more successfully.

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    2. A Cuban chef I worked for told me to start at 1/4 cup of beans a day increase when the "after affects" stop. Drink water with the meal as it helps.

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    3. 1/4 cup dried or after they're cooked?

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  10. I eat boiled egg for breakfast, or cooked eggs and toast, a turkey and cheese sandwich for lunch with cut up carrots if I do not eat the carrots for a snack before. I eat them with salt. I usually eat beans, greens, and rice for supper four days a week. Cheap and easy. I cook dried beans in ny crockpot, and either use fresh collards or turnip greens or a can with hot sauce, and lots of Cajun spices on beans, greens, and rice. I am terrible about drinking a lot of diet mt see it Pepsi or coke when I have heavy court days though. I do need to cut back. Cindy in the South

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    1. All good suggestions. I shall look at new combinations of food.

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  11. Not sure it this well help the cream soup issue. This recipe equals one 10 3/4 oz. condensed cream soup. From The Tightwad Gazette 1, Amy Dacyczyn Pg. 210 of the mis and match seafood casserole.
    2 tbsp. margarine or butter melt in pan
    add 2 tbsp. celery (or shrimp, chicken, mushrooms etc) and stir.
    add 2 tbsp. flour and blend well (reminds me of making gravy)
    Add 1/3 cup of dried milk powder to 2/3 cup of veggie broth (chicken or in bad times just water)and blend
    Blend milk broth into pan stirring until smooth. Salt and pepper to taste

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    1. I remember reading that in one of her books. That recipe for her seafood casserole sort of became my tuna hotdish. So much better than the version I grew up eating.

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