Empty Fridge + Hunger = ?

What do you do when you have an empty fridge and a rumbly tummy?

The only way I’m able to keep on schedule with my cooking is by planning ahead. One afternoon per weekend is spent grocery shopping and prepping the week’s meals. I take stock of what perishables I have, I make a meal plan for the week and I get down to the business of feeding my household! This is a wonderful cost and time effective way of living, but it does mean I have to carve out time for shopping and planning. What do I do when that time just isn’t available? Well my friends, I’m still working on it.

I went to Las Vegas last weekend for my big sister’s 30th birthday. It was great fun but after three days of partying and eating out, I was very ready to get home and have a freshly prepared meal that wasn’t salted within an inch of it’s life (they do this in Vegas to make you drink more – diabolical!) Unfortunately, we got home on Monday night and my fridge was barren. I swear, I could hear crickets in the silence of my kitchen it was so empty. So I sucked it up and ordered in.

I’m not against ordering in for dinner – we probably do it once a week or so. Living in San Francisco means we have a lot of good and cheap options for dinner, and I think as long as it doesn’t happen all the time it’s totally acceptable to have dinner delivered. But I was busy and my fridge stayed empty this week so we kept ordering in again and again. By Friday night, I’d reached my limit. I needed fresh food from my own kitchen! I sent Daniel to the little grocery store down the street and admonished him to bring me back something green and yummy.

The makings of greatness

He returned with fifteen dollars worth of out of season organic heirloom tomatoes, a ten dollar ball of fresh, local mozzarella and a big bouquet of basil. This is not a cost effective way of solving problems but…I have no regrets and my tummy isn’t rumbling anymore.