Food waste can really add up when on a tight budget. When I meal prep for the week I think about what food items I have on hand that need to be used. I check the fresh produce first. Most likely the produce guides me to what I will be cooking for the week. I also take into consideration the ingredients in all recipes I’m going to make. Some recipes call for the same ingredients which a great way to use up leftover food.
A couple of weeks ago I was making creamy cauliflower sauce. The recipe calls for boiling the cauliflower in vegetable broth until it’s soft. When the cauliflower was done, I didn’t want to just dump that vegetable broth. It still had a use and there was nothing wrong with it! Therefore I planned two additional recipes based on the vegetable broth I had strained from the cauliflower. I ended up making quinoa using the vegetable broth and I made chicken tortilla soup.
This is just one example on how to stretch your food budget just a little further. I do the same thing when I open a can of beans, vegetables, spaghetti sauce, etc. If the recipe doesn’t call for the whole jar or can, I plan an additional dish. Instead of tossing leftover ingredients, figure out a way to use them in other dishes. It takes a little planning and a little thinking, but in the long run it’s worth it!
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