What is a better way to start of the week than photos of our weekly grocery shopping trip?!
I have received a few requests for photos/descriptions of my weekly grocery shopping trips. To me, pantry staples are just as important as what you buy each week at the grocery store, so it is only fair that I talk about them together!
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Pantry Staples
First, let’s talk about what I keep in my pantry at all times. I like to keep my nuts, dried fruits, flours and other stuff in mason jars.
I have a lot! But, I only buy them once a month, maybe once every 2 months! Some items run out more quickly than others, but these are good staples to have on hand, especially if you are going to be making your own breakfast, lunch and dinner every single day (or at least most days!).
By keeping these things around, you can whip up a quick and delicious dinner any day without having to run out to the store mid-way through cooking.
Grains – Quinoa, Brown Rice, Bulgar
These 3 grains are great to keep on hand. They can be used as the base of any stirfry, in soups, as breakfast cereals, or just eaten plain.
Beans – Chickpeas, Lentils, Black Beans
Sometimes I buy other beans in my normal weekly grocery shopping trips when I am in the mood for a change! I love beans, but my husband does not, so a little goes a long way with us. I buy my beans dried and cook them myself in my slow cooker – see recipe here.
Nuts/Seeds – Flaxseeds, Walnuts, Pecans, Chia Seeds, Almonds, Pepitas, Sunflower Seeds, Cashews Hemp Seeds
Nuts and seeds pack a healthy punch, so we keep a lot around. I only fill the smaller mason jars with nuts, since they can go rancid if kept too long, but mine have never stayed around long enough to go bad. 🙂 I use my nuts to make my own nut butters, use as salad toppers, mix them in my smoothies, grind them into flour for baked goods and veggie burgers, and just to eat as snacks. You can pick and choose which nuts to keep in your pantry!
Dried Fruit – Apricots, Bananas, Pineapple
Dried fruit can be added to cereal, backed goods, salads and eaten as snacks. I usually have dried bananas, apricots and mangoes, the others vary depending on what I am feeling. Trader Joes has great prices on dried fruit – just make sure you get the kind with no added sugar!
Oats – Steel Cut, Rolled, Scottish
Steel cut oats are my favorite for breakfast, while rolled are great in pancakes, cookies, veggie burgers, etc!
Spices – a wide variety
Spices are very important for cooking to give a dish the flavors that you want to satisfy your palate. Spices can make or break a dish! We keep a wide variety of spices around so that we can make a variety of different things. Always make sure you have a good salt!
Oils/Vinegars – Olive Oil, Grapeseed Oil, Coconut Oil, Coconut Aminos, Apple Cider Vinegar, Coconut Vinegar
For everyday cooking and baking, I keep olive oil, grapeseed oil, coconut oil, coconut aminos, apple cider and coconut vinegar on hand. Most things can be made with these!
Baking Supplies – Flours, Sugars, Oils
You don’t need to keep this many supplies on hand. A simple whole wheat flour, natural cane sugar and healthy oil would be enough, but I love to bake and I love to try new things, so I keep a variety of flours, sugars and oils on hand.
EXTRAS – Nut Butters, Chocolate, Coconut
These are just some things that are good to have on hand– nut butters, unsweetened coconut and cacao powder (I buy the last 2 in bulk!). I love love love coconut and chocolate, so they are always around.
Other good staples (which I am out of!) include: diced tomatoes, veggie broth, tomato paste, canned soup and pasta.
Supplements – Maca, Spirulina, Hemp Protein Powder
Just some things I love. I mostly use them in my smoothies. Maca is a natural energy booster, spirulina is a mix of different greens and protein powder gives you extra protein after a tough workout to restore your muscles.
In the Fridge
We keep a variety of staples in our fridge. Everything from ketchup, mustard and pickles to jams and nut butters, to dairy and protein powders, to fresh produce!
In the Freezer
The freezer is mostly made up of frozen fruit (for smoothies), frozen veggies (for in a pinch meals) and other things that I make and freeze – applesauce, pesto, burgers, etc.
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Weekly Grocery Shopping Trip
Now, on to my weekly shopping trip…
From June through October, we belong to a CSA where we pick up all of our vegetables for the week. Therefore, I do not buy any veggies at the grocery store, unless I need something extra for some reason.
Here is a normal CSA box that we would receive. This is from Week 1 where we mostly received greens, but check out my other posts each week here to see lots of different veggies!
A lof of greens and other veggies to get us through the week!
Do to our box, my grocery trip for those 5 months is much lighter than normal. Come the late fall and winter, I will be buying my produce at the store too (and it normally is about the same amount as seen above).
In the cart?
- yogurt
- frozen fruit
- bananas
- apples, berries, or other fruit
- eggs
- milk
- almond milk or hemp milk
- spinach (I use it in my smoothies!)
- meat for the husband
That’s it!
The only other thing that I buy once in awhile is cereal, but normally I prefer to make my own granola out of the oats, nuts and dried fruit I have in my pantry.
Between our CSA and our Pantry, we don’t need anything else! I try not to buy a lot of packaged snacks because I would prefer to eat a homemade trail mix, granola bar or other freshly made snack.
I used to plan all of our meals, then shop. Now, with my well stocked pantry and my CSA, I can create basically anything I want with what I have on hand, plus the veggies and my small weekly grocery shop!
With a pantry full of grains/beans/nuts/seeds/spices and a fridge full of fruits and veggies, you really can make anything that you want!
Have fun with your food. 🙂
Filed under: CSA, Eating Laps, Product Reviews | Tagged: CSA, pantry staples, weekly grocery shop | 5 Comments »
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