Had in kitchen: Oatmeal, butter, whole wheat spaghetti, salt/pepper/olive oil, scallions, red wine vinegar, honey, garlic, parsley, few slices sourdough bread
Bought: Whole Grain Elbow Pasta, San Marzano Canned Whole Tomatoes, 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, 2 apples, 1 bunch basil, 1 bag red cabbage, 1 pint grape tomatoes, premade guacamole, 2 limes, 1 red onion, 1 pint raspberries, 2 peaches, mini balls fresh mozzarella, cream cheese, sharp cheddar cheese, corn tortillas
Spent: $44.39 (aka $8.88/day for 3 meals per day)
Daily Breakfast: PB&J Oatmeal
Comments from Claire: After eating Bran Flakes for two weeks I took my own advice and upped my breakfast game! Okay, not by a lot, but a little. I made oatmeal and added peanut butter and smashed raspberries to make a PB&J version! It was tasty and filling.
MONDAY
Lunch: Leftover Tomato Sauce and Spaghetti
Dinner: Peach, Mozzarella and Tomato Salad
Comments from Claire: I saw this on The Feed Feed’s Instagram page, and knew I HAD to make it. I’m in an apartment so I used a grill pan, which worked great. Also, don’t worry if your peaches aren’t super ripe – the heat from the grill will really bring out the juices so they’ll be nice and sweet and syrupy. I was impressed by how delicious this was, since was so fast to put together and required minimal ingredients.
TUESDAY
Lunch: Leftover Salad
Dinner: Weeknight Creamy Mac n’ Cheese and Purple Slaw
Claire’s Quips: Again, I saw this on Instagram – NY Times Cooking this time – and had to make it. It was an easy weeknight version of home-style mac ‘n cheese, as promised. I also liked how when I microwaved it the next day, it still maintained its creaminess (didn’t get all dried out like microwaving other versions normally do). I credit the cream cheese! Since I bought the cabbage to make a slaw for the tacos, I had it as a side for this meal to. It was: purple cabbage, lime juice, red wine vinegar, olive oil, scallions, parsley, basil, and minced garlic.
WEDNESDAY
Lunch: Leftovers
Dinner: Guacamole Chicken Salad on Sourdough
Comments from Claire: Wow, I found this recipe on Instagram too! There’s my theme for the week. This one was by The College Nutritionist, and it was quite tasty. Just cubed chicken, diced apples, sliced scallions, and guacamole. Really tasty and I loved a version of chicken salad without mayo. I ate it on some sourdough toast I had from the week before (which I kept in the fridge so it wouldn’t get moldy).
THURSDAY
Lunch: Tacos
Dinner: Out to Eat
FRIDAY
Lunch: Leftovers
Dinner: Spicy Lime Chicken Tacos
Comments from Claire: It’s a good week when you end it with tacos! When I cooked my chicken earlier in the week, I shredded it and mixed it with lime juice, sriracha and honey, and saved it in the fridge for these tacos. I then heated the tortillas, shredded some leftover cheddar directly onto them so it melted, and then topped with the chicken (heated), the slaw, and leftover guac. Yum!
See you next week! To see what I’m eating in the meantime, follow me on Instagram or Twitter @ClaireLeaden