#grocery list
After living at my current residence for about seven months, I just went grocery shopping for a full week’s-worth of meals for the first time yesterday. With work, classes, wedding planning, etc. I not only neglected my little blog (which I am ok with) but also managed to forget all the good habits I created for myself:
1. enjoy preparing and cooking my own food - it makes the meal that much more satisfying when I’ve taken the care to make it myself
2. buy clean, whole foods, and plenty of fruits and veggies to snack on
3. shop for yummy healthy food that I can look forward to cooking up - and it doesn’t have to be elaborate (the real meat and potatoes of this post)
After years of eating pretty clean, exercising regularly, and being mindful of keeping my mind, body, and spirit healthy, I for some reason thought I had to change what I was doing to improve,
(Read: “wedding diet” was on my mind as was toxic)
I know what works for me and maybe I can switch things up a little bit, but I like what I eat on a daily basis AND it leaves me satisfied and nourished.
I posted my grocery list however long ago and haven’t strayed too much.
+BREAKFAST: oatmeal or poached egg on ezekiel bread
+ MORNING SNACK: vanilla almond milk latte
+ LUNCH: big salad of the week
+ AFTERNOON SNACK: apples, peanut butter, bananas, grapes, hummus, carrots
+ DINNER: soup or sweet potato scramble
And that’s basically it… but it works for me and it takes some decision making out of my day. I can come home from work and know there are a few things I can prepare that are healthy and nourishing instead of swinging by Trader Joe’s and picking up whatever they are selling as a free sample (they get me EVERY time!)
SPARKNOTES VERSION: find what works for you and stick to it. If you get bored add one or two new recipes for the week and then stick to your main staples. The body responds to changing things up but not if it’s adding stress to your life (ie meal planning?!) stock your fridge with yummy whole foods!
A while back a friend of mine asked me (very kindly and very clearly) to post about living on a budget - grocery shopping, eating healthy, minimize waste, etc. I still haven’t. But I’m hoping I can taylor this post later to fit his blog, because routine is such an important part of eating healthy, especially while living on a budget.
Routine doesn’t have to mean eating literally the same exact thing day after day, but being aware of what you like to eat and will eat is a good place to start for building a routine shopping list.
For example, using similar ingredients for multiple recipes throughout the week: banana oatmeal one day and peanut butter banana sandwich the next, or sweet potato fries one day and sweet potato egg scramble the next. The list literally goes on and on (as I posted a while back)
For now, it’s been best for me to stick to routine rather than seek out brand new recipes; I find it more fun and resourceful to come up with new recipes using ingredients I already have in the kitchen.
poached egg on toast literally every day of my life, unless I have oatmeal because I ran out of eggs
And coffee. I feel like this is a given with a title “ROUTINE ROUTINE” but to be extra clear, this is also part of my every day
In my fridge: eggs, Ezekiel bread, greek yogurt, hummus, carrots, kale, brussels sprouts, vanilla almond milk, marinara, peanut butter
In my pantry: granola, oats, pasta, cinnamon
On the counter: tomatoes, onion, sweet potato, bananas, apples
I can make about three different breakfasts, three different lunches, and three different dinners, knowing I will be able to use all my perishables in about a week without much going to waste. It also makes it much easier to meal plan more or less and whip up something quickly.
PROTEIN
- Tofu: Silken for smoothies and puddings; medium or firm for cooking.
- Tempeh: Soybean-based meat substitute.
- Seitan: Meat substitute made from wheat gluten; great texture, great protein.
- Frozen vegetable burgers: Making your own is better, but these are convenient in a pinch.
- Edamame: Fresh (frozen) soy beans are a great high-protein snack or side.
- Beans: Dried and home-cooked are cheap and the healthiest.
- Chickpeas: In addition to beans, because they're so versatile.
- Seeds: Sesame, sunflower, poppy, pumpkin, chia … all high in protein and healthy fats.
- Nuts: Because, protein.
- Nut butter: Because, peanut butter!
- Cashews: In addition to nuts, because they can be soaked and used in so many ways.
- Lentils: Super cheap, versatile, easy to make, delicious, and nutritious.
GRAINS
- Brown rice: Ditch the white for more nutritious brown.
- Quinoa: One of the few plant-based perfect proteins.
- Steel-cut oats: Good for breakfast.
- Whole grain grits: Because they’re filling and delicious.
- Whole-wheat couscous: More nutritious than regular.
- Multigrain pasta: Whole-wheat or legume mixes offer more nutrients and don’t all taste like cardboard.
- Sprouted bread and tortillas: Food for Life products are nutrient-rich and altogether lovely.
- Amaranth: Super cheap and nutritious.
COOKING
- Agar agar: Vegan substitute for gelatin.
- Nutritional yeast: A must for B12 and very palatable; used like Parmesan cheese.
- Miso paste: Excellent for adding umami to vegetables; great anchovy substitute.
- Vegetable broth: Go for organic, and watch the sodium.
- Tomato paste: Great (surprising) source of iron.
- Dried mushrooms: Like porcini, to add a meaty component to soups and stews.
- Sun-dried tomatoes: Fantastic for adding texture and flavor.
- Capers: Great for adding a punch of flavor.
BAKING
- Ener-G Egg Replacer
- Flax seeds: To make a viable egg substitute for baking.
- Chia seeds: For nutritious puddings and egg substitute.
- Vital wheat gluten: A great binder that also adds protein.
- Coconut oil: Great for replacing butter in some recipes.
- Vegetable shortening: Non-hydrogenated, like Spectrum.
- Agave syrup: Instead of honey.
- Maple syrup: Instead of honey.
- Blackstrap molasses: A fantastic source of iron.
- ¼ c Silken Tofu: Replaces 1 egg flavorlessly.
- 1 Mashed Banana: Replaces 1 egg, adds flavor and sweetens naturally.
- 3 tbsp Peanut Butter: Replaces 1 egg.
- ¼ c Applesauce: Replaces 1 egg.
CONDIMENTS
- Mayonnaise: Vegenaise tastes most like traditional mayo, Spectrum is a bit sweeter.
- Bragg Liquid Aminos: Liquid protein concentrate, delicious soy-sauce taste.
- Sriracha: Or other favorite hot sauces.
- Tahini: Sesame paste can be used as a condiment or in preparing Middle Eastern recipes.
- Kimchi: Great source of probiotics if you don’t like soy yogurt.
- Sauerkraut: A surprising source of health benefits.
- Seaweed: Adds fishy flavor to soups and cooking in general. Dulse is especially potent.
Found at the Rowley’s Bay beach in Door County, WI. Definitely the first paper I’ve found so far to mention leeches.
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Found this list at the bottom of the cooler at my cousin’s high school graduation party. Good on you, Natalie, congrats!
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Found by a friend in Topsail Beach, North Carolina. This list makes me long to eat icey pops and drink cocktails by the ocean. My question is, why the pencil sharpener? To better write long grocery lists? To sharpen board game pencils? Or eyebrow ones? For sketching portraits on the beach?
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You might have thought that you dropped your grocery list dropped off the map… I’m still picking up lists and prodding around trash all over town, but stashing them away for “later.” You know how that goes. This list snapped me out of it. Too good not to share! Found under a stack of chairs outside a bar in downtown champaign, IL on a sunny Saturday morning.
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Found this grocery list completely folded into a tiny square on the bottom of my cart and remembered @annebracken and @youdroppedyourgrocerylist - I live in Brazil, but during the summer Argentinians, Paraguayans and Uruguayans come enjoy the beaches up here. That’s why the list is in spanish. I would guess that the person who wrote it is from Argentina considering that they constantly use “crema de enjuague” to say hair conditioner instead of “acondicionador”.
Translating to english this list contains: - Salad: lettuce, tomato, rocket - Bread - Cheese - Honey - Juice - Water - Fruit (the cheapest one) - Milk - Cereal - Yogurt - Hair Conditioner - Tooth Paste - Sweetener
From Brazil, a found folded grocery list. Thank you, Yurig!
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I live on a busy street, one a lot of people walk down every day. So there’s lots of trash that shows up outside our house–usually flattened cigarette packs, empty cheetos bags, those little plastic grenade shaped juices. Today I found this. An answer to a question we don’t have…
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What does a 400 year old grocery list look like? http://fox17online.com/2017/02/03/400-year-old-shopping-list-found-under-floorboards-of-uk-home/
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I found this list at the grocery store across the street from campus. It was right under the little platform where you’d sign your check.
Most people cross items off their lists. It’s useful—you can actually see what’s left to get. Some people use this paper-ripping technique. That’s when you don’t have a pen with you.
But to actually erase as you go, that’s a lot of work! Is it to leave no trace? Is it to keep this list and fill in next week’s list in the blanks? We erase when we think we’ve made a mistake or don’t want to see the marks we’ve made on a piece of paper anymore. We erase things we intend to keep or at least anticipate seeing again. We erase things we don’t want anyone to read. I don’t think this list was discarded on purpose—I think this was a keeper, just lost.
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It’s safe to say I’ve never found tango shoes on a list before… Packing list? Shopping list? What is this person up to??
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Of the thousands of grocery lists and random scraps of paper I’ve found, just a handful of them have been mean-spirited or angry. Found this today by a bike rack. This message comes from one story in space and time, but it takes me right to a few moments in my life–like a freight train. We could imagine a million stories this comes from, all probably connected to our own. The things we say are always bigger and ripple wider than we imagine.
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HUGE shout out to my dear friend Crystal in San Diego who found her very first grocery list today… On my birthday! What a gift. And it’s a good one!
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