Mar 14 2008
Planning Your Vegetarian Menus Ahead of Time Saves You Time and Money
It happens to everyone at some point: it’s nearly dinner time, you have a hungry family waiting for some food, but you have no idea what to cook. If your family is vegetarian, it can be difficult to just throw together a healthy and tasty meal on short notice. One way to avoid this type of problem is to make vegetarian menus ahead of time.
Vegetarian menus can be as simple or as complex as you want them to be. Your vegetarian menus can revolve around a few staple foods or meals that your family loves, or you can vow to try a new food or new meal every week. The important thing is to plan ahead to let your vegetarian menus eliminate those days when you just can’t decide what to make.
When making up your vegetarian menus, decide how far ahead you’d like them to go. Do you want vegetarian menus to plan out every meal for a month? Or do you only want them to cover a week in advance so that you know what to shop for and can adjust the menu for what you have on hand every week?
Get your family’s input when you are making up your vegetarian menus. They will no doubt have some helpful advice for you regarding what type of meals they’d like to see on the menu. If your family has a favorite meal (or two or three), try to incorporate their tastes into your vegetarian menus. Even if it means making vegetarian tacos once a week, your family will thank you for the effort you put in to make them happy.
Saving Money and Reducing Waste
Vegetarian menus are not only helpful for avoiding the creative dinner block; they are also great for helping you save money. When you plan your vegetarian menus out ahead of time, you always know what you need at the grocery store for the following week (or however long your menu covers). You can plan your shopping to take advantage of sales, and you can also be sure to buy only the food you need. You’ll reduce food waste and always be on top of your family’s grocery budget.
In order to be accurate, your vegetarian menus should include all of the meals and snacks your family will eat at home. Don’t forget to add in a treat once in a while! Even when you’re being frugal and planning ahead, you deserve to take an evening to treat yourself to a glass of wine or a slice of cake after dinner.
Holiday Menus
(NC)—Try making this delicious Homegrown Ontario Pulled Pork simple slow cooker recipe this holiday season and see the difference a little planning makes. Great as an appetizer served on a crostini, this savoury morsel will save you time in the kitchen while impressing your guests. More delicious appetizer recipes can be found online at [...]
(NC)—Adding new flavour to traditional foods can be fun and be a great way to get family members to try new foods. Indian flavoured products are becoming widely available and provide a great opportunity to create mouthwatering recipes for the whole family. This shrimp korma recipe is a quick and easy one for the entire [...]
(NC)—Mulligatawny soup originally became popular with the British stationed in India (employees of the East India Company) during Colonial Times. When they returned home, they brought the recipe back with them to England, and to other members of the Commonwealth. In fact Mulligatawny is the Anglicized name of two words for “pepper water,” molegoo (pepper) [...]
(NC)—Here are two easy ways to bring some excitement to your next children’s party – Wacky Waikiki or Purple Razzle Dazzle Shakes. For dozens more delicious treats to thrill your child, visit www.homebasics.ca.
Wacky Waikiki Shake
2 large ripe bananas, peeled and quartered
1 can frozen pineapple or pineapple-orange juice concentrate, thawed (6 oz)
1/2 cup milk
4 scoops Breyers [...]
Savor the Flavor Every Day, Every Way
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Skyrocketing gas prices and escalating grocery costs have put getting more for a dollar top-of-mind for many consumers. Many Americans are tailoring their grocery shopping lists to ensure they get more bang for their buck. That means purchasing items that provide the best nutritional punch for their value.
Luxury items like prepackaged or single serve meals [...]
Blueberries are most abundant and least expensive in the summer, making it an ideal time to get your fill of these little blue gems. Stock the fridge and freezer with blueberries to make meals, snacks and desserts that are easy on the cook. Blueberries never need to be peeled, pitted, stemmed or chopped –just a [...]