Today’s tip goes hand in hand with menu planning.
I’d like to suggest that every menu planning family does things in this order to save some money:
- check the pantry and freezer to see what you need/ want to use up, which foods are approaching sell-by dates
- make your menu for the week ahead using a lot of those ingredients
- then add to your grocery shopping list
Source: pinchalittlesavealot.blogspot.com via Beth on Pinterest
We often get into the habit of buying things on a weekly basis without first checking if we actually need all those items.
I don’t do things as diligently as this suggests every week but at least once a month, I have a week where I force myself to get creative and use up everything. There is nothing that thrills me like an empty fridge and freezer.
It just so happens that this is that week.
Let’s see – we’ve had leftovers from a friend, other leftovers from hosting friends (I made fresh sides), a meatless pasta dish to use up lentils and tomatoes, etc. It’s huge fun to stretch your creativity!
Do you have a creative food week too? How do you make sure you get through all the food in your house?
Have you checked out my book, Live Organised, yet?
Oh, I can’t shop without a list! If I don’t have one, I usually end up with meat for 2 weeks and veggies for 2 days, or the opposite. This is a must for me since I was at the university!
Hanging my head in shame because I don’t usually shop with a list. I do though look and see what we have on hand right before I go grocery shopping though. I suppose I am completely backwards because after I do that I look at the calendar, and then plan our menus as I am grocery shopping with a thought on our activities for the upcoming week. I guess overall it’s all about simply having a plan that works for your family 🙂