|
|
|
VEGAN FEAST SUBSCRIBERS' COOKING AND RECIPE FORUM>
Survey: Meals planning, what's your style?
Debbie
679 posts
Apr 22, 2005
8:39 AM
|
I had a discussion with a fellow subscriber about meals planning. What's your style? I just wonder what everyone else do.
I used to do this: just go to the market and figure out what I am going to cook or just buy whatever available in the market and then figure out what should I cook with it. I still do that SOMETIMES. But I do plan my meals now. It is HARD but I forced myself to do it. I usually pick up a cookbook or Bryanna's newsletter, read it, select some recipes and plan what I am going to cook and write down the ingredients I need to buy, into a list (after checking my pantry and fridge). Then, I go to the markets (can be more than 1) and bring the list with me. I make sure I have vegetables, protein, and starch in the menu.
The hard part is estimating how much time I have to cook all the things I want to cook in the menu. Sometimes I have time and sometimes I don't, depending on the week I am going through. I hate it when I planned to cook the meals and then something happened and didn't have time to cook it. Because then I have the ingredients in the fridge rottening away. It is hard I think because I am working a full time job. I think this is the hardest part in being the cook of the family. My husband refused to take this task because he doesn't like the menu planning at all. That's why he just eat whatever I cook and very thankful of it (he never complain of what I cook).
I wonder if you have tips you can recommend to make meals planning easier. After all, being a vegan, it is hard to just pick up something to eat on the way home.
----------
Debbie
Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all. ~ Harriet Van Horne
|
kourtney
53 posts
Apr 22, 2005
11:03 AM
|
I get an organic fruit and vegetable basket delivered once a week, so I tend to centre my meals around what comes in that. I keep a lot of stuff on hand -- for example, starches (potatoes, noodles, rice, flours) and proteins (tofu, peanut butter, frozen homemade veggie burgers/pepperoni/etc., canned beans, dried lentils). I usually decide what I'm going to make in the morning on days I cook (my boyfriend and I each cook 2 weekdays, and the 5th we go out or have leftovers) so I can take anything I need out of the freezer.
It's not a great system, but there are only two of us, so in a pinch we can eat baked beans, toast and raw veggies for dinner and there's no one to complain. We both work full-time, but we enjoy cooking so I we try not to eat too many prepared meals.
So, I don't really have any advice, other than to go easy on yourself and maybe only plan 4-5 meals per week. There will be days you don't feel like cooking and that's okay, but if you've committed yourself by buying fresh ingredients it'll stress you out more.
|
Debbie
680 posts
Apr 22, 2005
11:21 AM
|
Kourtney,
Wow, a delivery of fresh organic vegetables? How is that? I have never heard of it. I wonder if there is a service like that in Southern Calif?
----------
Debbie
Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all. ~ Harriet Van Horne
|
kourtney
54 posts
Apr 22, 2005
11:58 AM
|
I'm sure there are dozens of them in Southern California :)
I've had quite a good experience with the baskets. Occasionally, an item is not up to par (overripe, underripe -- like the occasional bunch of bananas that rots before it ripens -- or damaged) but it doesn't happen very often and when I call they send a replacement the next week. I hate calling to complain, but that's a separate issue ;)
I sometimes miss fruit and vegetable shopping, and I still go to the farmer's market sometimes, but I eat better when the fruits and vegetables show up once a week so I know I have to finish them in a week.
|
Val
81 posts
Apr 22, 2005
12:02 PM
|
I tend to cook my meals based on what I have in the refrigerator. I find that it's a bad system (for me) because I don't think we're eating all the nutrients we need, or all the necessary food groups, and our meals are not varied. I like having Bryanna's newsletter and cookbooks because I use them, but I look for recipes that call for the ingredients I already have.
I'm thinking about changing my system a little, and planning our meals for about 1 - 2 weeks in advance, and that way I'll be able to make sure we have a variety of meals as well as make them more healthful. I think my weekly grocery shopping should be based on what I want to cook, rather than what I feel like buying once I'm at the store. I do have a standard shopping list, but apart from that I rarely try anything else. So that's gotta change and I'm hoping that next weeek will be more planned and that we'll have better meals.
I too only cook for 2 people, and I enjoy cooking, but I think it'll be better for us to have well planned meals 5 days in the week and then eat out at the weekend, or get take out, etc.
----------
Val
Last Edited Val on 22-Apr-2005 12:10 PM
|
Val
82 posts
Apr 22, 2005
12:08 PM
|
Kourtney & Debbie,
I've looked into CSA (Community Supported Aggricuture) where they have organic produce delivered straight from farms to a set location, and you go pick up your stuff, but in my area they were a lot more expensive than going to the farmer's market, and you also had to take whatever they gave you (some weeks lots of potatoes and very little fruit and stuff like that). Kourtney, do you have that problem at all ? The place that I called told me that they have that happen sometimes. One more thing I didn't like was that you had to commit to 6 months. So I ended up just going to farmer's markets and getting my produce there.
----------
Val
|
kourtney
55 posts
Apr 22, 2005
1:01 PM
|
Val, it is more expensive, but not outrageously so compared to organics in the grocery store. Also, because I don't live in a big city, my options for buying organic produce are few -- the grocery store (they don't come in as often, so they're often old), a few health food stores (expensive and, again, they don't come in every day) and the occasional stand at the farmer's market that claims they don't spray but doesn't certify as organic. I really wouldn't like having to commit to 6 months -- I can cancel at any time and they'll give me back my $15 deposit on the reuseable basket they put the fruits and veggies in. I don't find the basket I get (called a blender basket, which means it contains everything, vs. local -- not an easy thing to stick to during Ontario winters; fruit -- just fruit; and wild -- just vegetables with no starch vegetables) heavy on the starches. Here's what I'm getting next week for $35 CDN:
Large Basket:
1 pt Mixed Sprouts (Shakespeare)
2 lbs Carrots (CA)
1 bch Baby Bok Choy (ON)
2.8 oz Sugar Snap Peas (MEX)
1 bch Red Radishes (CA)
1 bch Kale (CA)
1 hd Red Leaf Lettuce (CA)
1 bch Green Onions (CA)
1 Zucchini (MEX)
1 bch Broccoli (CA)
2 lbs Bananas (Ecuador)
2 Bartlett Pears (ARG)
3 Red Delicious Apples (WA)
2 Gala Apples (BC)
6 Valencia Oranges (CA)
1 Grapefruit (CA)
2 Kiwi Fruits (CA)
I don't drive, so the convenience of having the basket delivered is significant.
Last Edited kourtney on 22-Apr-2005 1:13 PM
|
cv
83 posts
Apr 22, 2005
1:48 PM
|
Hi Debbie,
For many years, I lived alone and, like Kourtney, arranged to get a weekly box of fresh produce from the farmers' market. Meal planning was then determined by a sort of refrigerator triage in which I was forced to eat whatever was most likely to go bad first or resign myself to tossing it into the compost. The advantage of this system was that I
never had to make any decisions about what to buy because someone else had already done that for me. I rarely bothered with recipes and mostly just made things up by throwing together whatever had to be eaten next.
After awhile, however, I tired of all this, and yearned to have more choice in what I bought and when. I also tired of living alone and eventually moved in with my partner, an omni, who, I admit, was a bit freaked out when I mentioned that I sometimes ate kale for breakfast.
So meal planning at all, much less for two who don't always eat the same things, has been quite a challenge. What we've been doing lately is sitting down together and and estimating how many meals we're likely to be sharing during the week and what we'd like to eat. Then we search the pantry, fridge, and freezer to see what ingredients we need
to add to our grocery list.
Though it frequently doesn't pan out the way we plan, it's definitely an improvement over winging it and, I think, has probably saved us some time, money, and aggravation.
It's only in the past year that I've attempted to follow recipes on occasion--thanks to Bryanna!--and only in the past few months that I've tried to incorporate one or two new recipes a week into our repertoire of "tried and trues."
I hope some of my rambling has been helpful to you, Debbie!
Good luck!
Catherine
|
Debbie
681 posts
Apr 22, 2005
2:13 PM
|
Wow, another one that ever signed up for delivery of organic fruits and vegetables! This is totally new to me. I searched the Internet and that kind of service from the organic farms are mostly in Northern California. I will ask Native Foods (the vegan restaurant) if they know such a service. After all, they use all organic veggies and fruits.
Kourtney, I like everything in that list in your basket. :-) I am sure I can make something out of them. Thanks for telling me about the weekly delivery. I grew up where the farmers didn't use pesticides so all the vegetables were organic. That was Indonesia back then, now, they probably use pesticides and lots of it. We also go to the market everyday so the ingredients are fresh.
Catherine, yes, I would be the one who eat kale for breakfast. :-) Too bad we are not roommates. I like kale because of Bryanna (following Bryanna's recipes). Now, I like sweet potatoes because of Bryanna too. In fact, that's what I had for breakfast this morning, just a baked sweet potato, a bit of Earth Balance on top and sprinkles of organic brown sugar. Yum!
----------
Debbie
Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all. ~ Harriet Van Horne
|
Val
83 posts
Apr 22, 2005
3:03 PM
|
Kourtney, it seems like the one you have is A LOT cheaper than what I found for SoCal. It was about $80 per week for 2 people, and I only spend about $40 - $50 per week (sometimes less if something good is on sale) on organic produce right now. The basket you get also seems to have a lot of great stuff (and a really good variety too!)
----------
Val
Last Edited Val on 22-Apr-2005 3:05 PM
|
Debbie
684 posts
Apr 22, 2005
4:03 PM
|
Yes, Kourtney, your basket is cheaper. But you are in Canada. My area is more expensive. I am going to Whole Foods and compare to my list. :-) whole Foods doesn't have everything organic. Some of their fruits and vegetables are called 'Conventionally grown'.
These are what I am going to get next week for $29.
Customized Produce Order:
4 Oranges, Valencia $0.69 / orange $2.76
2 Apples, Fuji $0.99 / apple $1.98
2 Bananas $0.59 / banana $1.18
2 Pears, Packham $0.99 / pear $1.98
2 Zucchini $0.69 / zucchini $1.38
1 Asparagus $ 4.99 / bunch $4.99
1 Carrots (bunched) $1.79 / bunch $1.79
1 Greens - Green Chard $1.99 / bunch $1.99
1 Greens - Kale $1.99 / bunch $1.99
1 Lettuce, Green Leaf $1.99 / head $1.99
1 Strawberries $3.99 / clamshell $3.99
1 Tomatoes, Roma - 1 Lb bag $2.99
----------
Debbie
Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all. ~ Harriet Van Horne
|
kourtney
56 posts
Apr 22, 2005
8:04 PM
|
It's too funny that the produce is cheaper here since all the items marked (CA) are from California!
|
Dori
223 posts
Apr 22, 2005
8:10 PM
|
I love the variety of produce you all have listed with the deliver to your door baskets. There is an active CSA in my area, but since we have a short growing season here (a little longer than Canada) it is only seasonal as the CSA supports only local growers. I am an organic whole grain bread baker for the CSA and purchasing a fresh loaf of country style organic seven grain bread is an option with the the CSA. I don't get their veggies because we grow ourselves on our own acreage. We're not certified organic (expensive to get the certification and primarily for large growers who can afford the paperwork), but I know what goes into my veggies and I know organic! We only grow for ourselves, friends and family though.
I do alot of canning, freezing, and have a root cellar. This forces me to cook seasnally and to prepare dishes with what I have on hand. Right now it's a real smorgasboard as we are using up the tail end of what i have stored and are preparing for the new garden crop we have in and are planting right now. I'm excited this year to eat of the strawberries and raspberries that we planted last year, it'll take a few years for the pear tree we planted last year to produce good. We also have an apple tree.
I try to meal plan each week according to my schedule. If I know I can't be in the kitchen long or am busy I do big crocks of soup and sandwiches or something from the freezer. Sometimes I get real tired of eating it before I can cook again, but then I get real hungry/inspired and cook up a storm again for the next kitchen absence.
I have to plan more now that I must follow a rotational style diet for my son and I have to shop for a few more things prepared things as I begin to teach him how to feed himself and live with food allergies (it's getting better, but it's challenging no matter what). The plan now is to rotate starches every four days with a rice day each two weeks. I must rotate proteins also - with regular doses of the few he is not allergic to along with generous portions of fruits and veggies (well, the ones he can eat safely). I actually write these things on the calendar so he can plan his meals according to his social life and can rotate around that. It's work!! The benefits in the long run are seeming worth it. According to the last allergy test, he has moved from a high allergy to a moderate reaction on two foods. We may not kick them completely, but rotation is seeming to help lessen the intensity.
----------
"To cook is to create. And to create well...is an act of integrity, and faith." - author unknown
|
|
|
