food in general

I've been trying to reduce the amount of food we waste. Buy and cook smaller portions. Eat the leftovers. Just be plain old economical. We got take-out chinese food last weekend and most of it is still sitting in the fridge. The leftover rice was pretty good... but our entrees weren't that great the first time around and we've been avoiding reheating them. I think they've reached expiration but I feel sad about throwing out so much food.

Last night, for the first time ever I think, I made just enough stir-fry. We had plenty to eat and there wasn't any leftover except for the rice. I'd already planned to reheat the rice for tonight (which I'll be doing shortly.)

I made bread on Saturday so my focus is on sandwiches for lunch this week. Tuna salad, veggie, if there's leftover chicken tonight, then chicken. I'm anxious to use up my bread so I can try a homemade pita recipe. For some reason it's something I've been missing more than usual lately.

Today I bought just enough fresh produce to last for my lunch today, our dinner tonight, and lunch and dinner tomorrow. I like shopping for fruit and veggies every few days.

One of our wedding presents was a fantastic blender and I've been using it to make smoothies for afternoons snacks. Mangoes and peaches have been delicious lately in smoothies. And it's a good way to use up the fruit when it's at the point where it's almost too ripe to eat and if it sits for one more day it will definitely go bad.

Dinner tonight: Indian spice-rubbed chicken breasts on the grill, apple slaw (plain nonfat yogurt, grated apple, lime juice, cilantro), and the leftover rice. Easy, gluten-free, and Mike gets to grill.

Once I get myself in the practice of meal planning and smart shopping, then I'll be able to concentrate on Mike taking lunches to work. I can only eat so many leftovers myself. Mike has to eat up some of the slack.