{"id":4098,"date":"2020-06-27T22:41:06","date_gmt":"2020-06-27T22:41:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/?p=4098"},"modified":"2020-10-30T16:10:19","modified_gmt":"2020-10-30T16:10:19","slug":"help-theres-nothing-in-the-frig-to-eat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/help-theres-nothing-in-the-frig-to-eat\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8220;Help!  There&#8217;s nothing in the frig to eat!&#8221;"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">Coming home f<span style=\"color: #333333;\">rom v<\/span>acation can be depressing,<\/h3>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\">but coming home to an empty frig makes it even worse.<\/h3>\n<p>A couple nights ago, I got back from a trip to help my daughter with a cross-country move.\u00a0 The flight home was fine and I got home as planned, at 7:30 p.m.\u00a0 I had planned to go to Chipotle&#8217;s, but after hauling in my luggage, feeding the cats, getting the mail and so on, I just didn&#8217;t feel like going back out again.\u00a0 So I decided to see if the frig might contain something to piece together for a meal.<\/p>\n<p>And there, on the frig door, was the starting spark I needed:\u00a0 a package of tempeh.\u00a0 I kept forgetting to use it before leaving, but it lasts for weeks (seriously!)<\/p>\n<p>Now for some vegetables.\u00a0 Checking the freezer I found a couple packages of chopped kale that would cook up fast.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, a quick sauce to tie the two together into a satisfying dish:\u00a0 The tempeh made me think of soy sauce, the kale led to tahini.\u00a0 Garlic and ginger were easy additions, a couple shakes of cayenne for some zing and some bone broth to blend it all together.<\/p>\n<p>I microwaved a potato on the side and in just 15 minutes, had a meal fit for a queen.<\/p>\n<p>Enjoying this quick meal I realized that it had been faster and far less hassle than getting in the car, driving to Chipotle&#8217;s, standing in line, ordering, paying and driving home.\u00a0 Plus it was a lot cheaper at $2.12!<\/p>\n<p>The secret for this easy goodness?\u00a0 <strong>A healthfully and helpfully stocked pantry<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Everything for this meal was just steps from the stove&#8211;no shopping trip needed.\u00a0 And because I used convenience staples, not much time was needed at the stove, either.<\/p>\n<p>Whether you have to make a trip somewhere or maybe you&#8217;re looking forward to a Covid-safe getaway, you don&#8217;t have to dread coming home to an empty frig.\u00a0 With just a little planning and shopping ahead, the pantry can be your ticket to a healthy and hassle-free re-entry.<\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"color: #4a750d;\"><strong>5 post-trip meal tips and ideas<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #4a750d;\">Tip 1:\u00a0 Freeze Ahead<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0 A week or so before you leave, plan to and make a good freeze-able meal (e.g., chili, stew, a casserole, soup.)\u00a0 Double and freeze the extras.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>First thing when you get home, start thawing\/re-heating in the microwave or on the stove as you unpack the car, check the mail, water the plants and so on.<\/li>\n<li>Better yet, if you have a pet-sitter visiting the house (or a friend), ask them to pop your freezer meal in the frig to thaw the night before you&#8217;re due home.<\/li>\n<li>And if your trip is just a few days, then right before you head out the door, put your freezer meal back in the frig to thaw.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong><span style=\"color: #4a750d;\">Tip 2:\u00a0 Freeze Ahead Option<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0 If you can&#8217;t make and freeze a whole meal, freeze at least some parts and pieces, like extra cooked brown rice, saut\u00e9ed chicken, baked sweet potatoes or tofu cubes.\u00a0 Saut\u00e9 with frozen veggies and top with a simple sauce for a quick meal.\u00a0 If I had frozen brown rice (as I usually do), it would have been a perfect side for my tempeh dish.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #4a750d;\"><strong><span style=\"color: #4a750d;\">Tip 3:\u00a0 Have Cabba<\/span>ge, Carrots and Onions on Hand<\/strong>\u00a0<\/span> The next time you shop before leaving on a trip, be sure to get these three long-lasting veggies.\u00a0 With them in my pantry, I&#8217;m always prepared to make a healthy, vegetable-rich meal, like:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Stir-fry with additional pantry staples eggs, tofu, cashews and soy sauce (served over brown rice you froze per Tip 2!)<\/li>\n<li>Egg-drop Soup with additional pantry staples broth, eggs, soy sauce and San-J Szechuan Sauce<\/li>\n<li>Skillet with additional pantry staples of potatoes, broth and spices, maybe some frozen red peppers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div draggable=\"false\"><strong><span style=\"color: #4a750d;\" draggable=\"false\">Tip 4: Go to Your \u201cGo-To\u201d Meal Idea Stash<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0 If you don\u2019t have already have one, now&#8217;s the time to build this invaluable piece of a fast and healthy kitchen.\u00a0 Go-to meal ideas are the kind of fast and flavorful dishes that are great for any busy night, but especially post-travel meal crises. Three to five ideas is plenty, and they are most helpful if they can be made entirely from the pantry to avoid having to make &#8220;a quick stop at the store.&#8221;<\/div>\n<div draggable=\"false\"><\/div>\n<div draggable=\"false\">As you get close to home, tick through your three to five ideas and decide on one so you\u2019re all set to start cooking when you get in the door.<\/div>\n<div draggable=\"false\">\n<ul>\n<li draggable=\"false\">Helpful Hint: Go-to recipes get used a lot so it\u2019s easy to get bored with them. Keep an eye out for a new replacement every couple months.<\/li>\n<li draggable=\"false\">Consider the <a title=\"\" href=\"http:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/recipe-tahini-kale-and-tempeh-skillet\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Tahini Kale and Tempeh Skillet <\/a>I made as a good starting or replacement entry in your Go-To Stash.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"color: #4a750d;\"><strong>Tip 5:\u00a0 Think Healthy Convenience<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0 Even if you don&#8217;t usually eat convenience foods, keep a couple in the pantry for emergencies.\u00a0 Just make sure they&#8217;re made with 100% real, whole foods with minimal processing.\u00a0 So nix highly processed and refined mac &#8216;n cheese in favor of things like:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A clean can of soup (like Amy&#8217;s) with added frozen veggies<\/li>\n<li>A microwaved potato topped by clean canned chili and cheese (which lasts a long time in the frig when unopened)<\/li>\n<li>Potato soup with pure potato flakes (like Bob&#8217;s Red Mill), onions and butter<\/li>\n<li>Whole wheat quesadillas with canned refried beans, salsa, sauteed onions and roasted canned red peppers<\/li>\n<li>Pasta with clean marinara, frozen chopped spinach, canned artichokes and quick-thawed frozen sausage links<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>And be sure to look at the <a href=\"http:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/recipe-tahini-kale-and-tempeh-skillet\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Tahini Kale and Tempeh Skillet<\/a> I made in the previous post.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/recipe-tahini-kale-and-tempeh-skillet\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-4082\" src=\"http:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Tahini-Kale-Tempeh-Skillet-1-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Happy Travels (and healthy meals when you return)!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Coming home from vacation can be depressing, but coming home to an empty frig makes it even worse. A couple nights ago, I got back from a trip to help my daughter with a cross-country move.\u00a0 The flight home was fine and I got home as planned, at 7:30 p.m.\u00a0 I had planned to go &#8230; <a title=\"&#8220;Help!  There&#8217;s nothing in the frig to eat!&#8221;\" class=\"read-more\" href=\"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/help-theres-nothing-in-the-frig-to-eat\/\">Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4099,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"generate_page_header":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[18,19],"tags":[740,197,738,322,739,741,655],"class_list":["post-4098","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-organize-your-kitchen-for-health","category-how-to-set-up-a-healthy-pantry","tag-cooking-from-the-pantry","tag-fast-meals","tag-go-to-recipes","tag-how-to-stock-a-pantry","tag-quick-and-easy-healthy-meals","tag-vacation-meals","tag-why-keep-a-pantry","masonry-post","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-50"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4098","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4098"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4098\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5420,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4098\/revisions\/5420"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4099"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4098"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4098"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cookhappylivehealthy.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4098"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}