What to do with a pantry of odds and ends and a box of Veggies

Chia Seeds in Lemonade - not a favorite way to get Omega 3

Cooking Light

Tomato Basil soup

Spicy Black Bean cakes with Spicy Sour Cream

Beat Chips - a bit more burnt than anything

Orange glazed Salmon with Asparagus and Jasmine rice

Salad with Broccoli, radishes, oranges, & black beans

Corn tortillas with black beans and rice

Tomato Basil soup & a grilled cheese sandwich

March was a tight month, we've been living like kings on beans and rice.  I'm pretty sure that my first menu did not give away our precarious position (Pork with Swiss chard, Orange Roughy with Fennel, Red Beans & rice with chicken, Spaghetti, and red bean soup).  The difficulty came when I ran out of diced tomatoes, rice, sugar, vanilla, and chicken.  These things are integral to many of the dishes I make, and so I was very glad when we were able to get to Costco to replenish these supplies.

It is precisely for moments like these that I like to have a closet filled with non-perishable goodies, and a freezer filled with meat & veggies. I'm very fond of dried beans now, they last forever, and are cheaper than canned beans, and do not have the Issue with BPA being in the cans since they are dried.  I'll post more on them later. 

I have to mention this, since I do have a picture of my meal with asparagus posted.  I'm not a fan of this particular veggie, my family grew them in our back yard and they became more of a weed than anything else.  My mom seemed to pick them when they were smaller, darker, and softer or she just cooked them until they were mush.  Green mush covered in a sort of cheese sauce, eww.  I'm slowly learning to appreciate the bright green crunchy delight that this veggie can be, and I'm thinking it was worth keeping them a part of my delivery.  I cooked them on the stove, but took them off and put them in an ice bath once I thought they might over cook.  It kept them bright green, and they kept that snap to them.  It also helped that when I melted the cheese over them it did not make them go soft but just warmed them back up.