For a number of reasons, I cook dinner almost every night. We are very lucky to be able to go out to eat about once a week, which is something we rarely did when I was growing up. Since I cook so often, there are a lot of things that are always in my cabinets and in my freezer, which is the topic for this week’s Tuesday Ten. (Well, the topic is actually what’s in your pantry and fridge, but I don’t have a pantry and my freezer has a couple of very important items in it!)
So, what do I have in my kitchen cabinets?
10. A jar of Classico Tomato Basil spaghetti sauce. I’m very picky about my sauce. It cannot have any sugar on the ingredient label! Trader Joe’s also has some good spaghetti sauce without sugar.
Of course, along with my spaghetti sauce, I also need a…
9. Box of spaghetti. Sadly, I’m not a big spaghetti fan, but the rest of my family is. When I am tired and don’t feel like cooking, spaghetti is my go-to meal because everyone likes it and it’s so easy to make that even my husband has made it. (He rarely cooks.)
Since spaghetti is my go-to meal, I also have a canister of…
8. Bread crumbs. Once I discovered that it’s not that hard to make homemade meatballs, I stopped buying frozen meatballs. If I’m feeling ambitious, I’ll mix some up to serve with our spaghetti. I make a really tasty spicy meatball, if I do say so myself!
I also use bread crumbs in meatloaf, which is why I always have…
7. A pound of ground beef in my freezer. Ground beef is so versatile and can be used for so many different meals. Another one of my favorite easy meals to throw together is chili. Chili is not as popular as spaghetti with my kids, but my husband and I love it. In my cabinet, there is always…
6. A can of chili beans, and also…
5. Cans of petite diced tomatoes. Not only do I use diced tomatoes in chili, but I also have a simple chicken dish I like to make. I heat up a couple tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet and throw in some minced garlic and chopped onions. If I have some green peppers and mushrooms, I throw them in, too. Then I brown some…
4. Skinless, boneless chicken breasts (which I always have in the freezer) in the skillet, and cover it all with diced tomatoes. When the chicken is cooked through, I serve it over…
3. Rice, which is another staple in my cabinet. I’ve been making more brown rice than white rice lately, and the family eats it up! Another recipe that I serve with rice uses…
2. A can of cream of celery soup. Remember how I said I was picky about my spaghetti sauce? Well, I’m also picky about my cream soups. I’m not a big fan of cream of mushroom, so I stick with cream of celery instead. Here’s another thing I do with chicken breasts; I lay 4 chicken breasts in a baking pan, place slices of cheddar cheese on top, combine a can of celery soup with a 1/4 cup of cooking sherry and pour it over the chicken. Top with croutons and dot with butter. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour and serve over rice or noodles. Yum!
1. Making dinner at home every night is important to our family. We save money by eating at home and not at a restaurant, and our meals are also healthier. Every evening, we spend time together as a family when we eat dinner. As important as dinner is, dessert is also important! I always have a bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips in my cabinet, because we need some sweetness to go along with our dinner. My daughters and I love to bake, although not necessarily at the same time!
I’m so pleased to be co-hosting Tuesday Ten for the month of June with Lisa of The Golden Spoons and Rabia from The Liebers!
I have everything but the celery soup in my house, too. I do have other soups thou if that counts 🙂
Janine Huldie recently posted…Let It Go – Elsa Style (An Announcement) + Huge Giveaway, Too!!
Oh, yes, other soups count! I always have some sort of chicken noodle soup for the kids, which they love too, especially Princess soup. My list could have been much longer than just 10 items!
Ginny Marie recently posted…A Peek into My Pantry {Tuesday Ten}
That recipe sounds yummy! I might have to try it. We eat dinner at home most nights during the week as well. I get frustrated by having to cook and come up with meal ideas, but I still believe that family time is important. And, we eat a lot of spaghetti, too!
Lisa @ The Golden Spoons recently posted…What’s in Your Fridge??? {Tuesday Ten Linkup}
Yes, coming up with ideas is very frustrating! It’s hard being in charge of dinner every night!
Ginny Marie recently posted…A Peek into My Pantry {Tuesday Ten}
Love shopping Trader Joe’s! The contents in my cupboards are about the same. And I’d love your recipe for the meatballs. 🙂
Jenny recently posted…Giant Spider Web
Trader Joe’s is a great place to shop! Here’s a link to the meatball recipe. I don’t use the pepper sauce, and I cut down on the crushed red pepper flakes, so that it’s not too spicy for my girls. http://allrecipes.com/recipe/meatball-nirvana/detail.aspx
Ginny Marie recently posted…A Peek into My Pantry {Tuesday Ten}
Your staples sound a lot like mine! I actually had to stop buying canned tomatoes though because I had bought so many and hadn’t used enough. I tend to go on binges with certain things at the store: Parmesan cheese, Garbanzo beans, tomatoes…
Rabia @TheLiebers recently posted…#TuesdayTen: Who Needs a Grocery List
Me, too! I have way to many chicken bouillon cubes right now…
Mmmm yum. I like how your food is all focused around 2-3 specific meals. In my fridge/pantry/freezer: Eros Pista – a paste made from Hungarian peppers, Mason jars filled with spices and baking options, frozen chicken from the local butcher & local farmers, a bag of onions because that’s a must at all times, oh and some Indian food packs – now that I remember I have them, I think that’ll be dinner!
What a good way to remember what there is to eat 🙂
I forgot about the onions! Yes, I always have a bag of onions, too!
You have a lot of what I have in my cabinet and freezer!
Kristina Walters @ Kris On Fitness recently posted…My Next New Year’s Goal – Ride For Roswell!
It’s very useful to have these things on hand!
Ginny Marie recently posted…A Peek into My Pantry {Tuesday Ten}
Well now you’re making me hungry. These are such great ingredients for casseroles and meals.
tamaralikecamera recently posted…Love is a Battlefield.
I love making casseroles, but my kids get sick of them! Sometimes I do need to just throw some pork chops on the grill to make them happy. 😉
Ginny Marie recently posted…A Peek into My Pantry {Tuesday Ten}
I’m so happy to meet another mom/family that cooks dinner almost every night. I just don’t think it happens that much, or maybe I know the wrong people ;). I used to hate cooking, and found it laborious. But after a few years, I am coming into my own (and still wanting to improve). I actually find it a joy and even interesting when I whip up whatevers from leftovers or re-make leftovers. What’s in my pantry? >> Spam, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, chicken breast.
lisacng @ expandng.com recently posted…17 channels
Sometimes I do think it would just be easier if we got take-out or went out to eat, but then I’m always happy that I managed to make dinner at home after all!
Ginny Marie recently posted…A Peek into My Pantry {Tuesday Ten}
I am a big fan of rice and there is NEVER a bad reason to keep ground beef. It makes miracles of nothing. Literally. Mention of those chocolate chips just made me think ganache. May need to make a grocery run.
Krissy P recently posted…Wordless Wednesday June 11, 2014
I have the same staples in my kitchen, except for the cream of celery soup. But I might buy some and try that recipe you shared. Yum!
another jennifer recently posted…Wordless Wednesday: Let it Go (Preschool Edition)