Food shopping

 As people who have read my blog over the years will know, meal planning and cheap but nutritious meals have long been the way for us. 

This hasn't changed with our move to a new abode.

What has changed is the space I have for food preparation and storage. It's a challenge, but not a trial. 

I still have my spices in labelled jars that I top up at the wholesaler; but I have far fewer spices in total.

I have just one drawer for all the cutlery and cooking and preparation tools, and one cupboard for non-fridge veggies (onions, carrots, sweet potatoes, garlic).

Then one cupboard for jars, tins and packets. 

I do miss my huge larder, but we simply.don't.need that amount of space or that number of items for the two of us!

I still shop ahead - we are currently working through a nine-day meal plan - and shop just for these meals.

Having just written that, we always have the ingredients for an 'emergency meal', which is the food equivalent of the emergency fund. It's very handy if you've been called out on a "Quick,mum!" emergency (last minute babysitting for an accident/emergency trip, for example) and want a quick to make, easy to eat meal. (We don't use a microwave.) Our emergency go-to meal is a veggy chilli, so I always have a carton of chopped tomatoes and a tin of kidney beans in the cupboard. To this could be added veggy mince/leftover chopped veggies/veg sausages/other tinned beans, etc., and a meal on the table in about ten minutes.

So what's on this week's meal plan, and what did I buy to make these creations come to fruition? 

. Cooked breakfast (we have this as an evening meal, with veggie sausages, but with real bacon
. Quinoa with kidney beans and cumin
. Chickpea curry and poppadoms
. Beanburgers with sweet potato chips and roasted veg
. Butternut/carrot/lentil casserole
. Mushroom and barley risotto
. Quorn and barley stew
. Greek salad
. Salmon and steamed veg

I bought: (written so you can see what went into each dish)

Fruit
Soya milk
Smoked bacon, eggs, veggy sausages, baked beans, onion, mushrooms
Quinoa, kidney beans, onionChickpeas, onion, garlic, poppadoms, coconut cream
Kidney beans, sweet corn, onion, egg, sweet potatoes, courgette, carrot, leek
Butternut, carrot
Mushrooms, pearl barley, onion, garlic
Cubed Quorn pieces, pearl barley, onion, carrot, sweet potatoes, leek
Gem lettuce, feta, black olives, green beans, tomatoes, onion, beetroot
Two salmon pieces

I already have spices needed as well as olive and veg oil.
We drink tea, soda water and coffee (decaf-me).

I enjoy reading other people's shopping and cooking plans: how do your plans differ?