Clean Out the Pantry Challenge, Week 2 Update (Link-Up)


Clean Out the Cupboards Challenge

Welcome to the Clean Out the Cupboards Challenge, co-hosted by Me (Crystal) here at Mrs Happy Homemaker, Laura at Frugal Follies, Denise at Shopper Strategy, Robbie at Going Green Mama, and Rebecca Jean at Midnight Maniac.

Well – we are halfway to the end of the month, & therefor the end of the challenge.  I am happy to report that I have done well this week.  I have not gone to the grocery store for anything besides milk & baby products.  I have been able to make some really great meals with what I already had on hand too.  That’s not to say that I did not go to make a recipe, then realize halfway through it that I didn’t have what I needed on hand.  I just substituted something that I did have on hand.  For instance, I was making a dish this week that called for green chiles.  I didn’t have them on hand (which is odd, because I usually have a small stock of them!) so I used some bottled Salsa Verde that was in the pantry, which I bought a while back, but never used.  You know what?  I actually liked the recipe better with the substitution then I did the way I usually prepare it.

Our dinners this week consisted of this:

  • Monday:  Chili & Cornbread
  • TuesdayChicken, Bean, & Rice Burritos
  • Wednesday:  Meatballs, Macaroni & Cheese, & Black Eyed Peas
  • Thursday:  Ham & Pineapple Pizza
  • Friday:  Roast Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans & Corn
  • Saturday:  Hot Dogs at a friends house
  • Sunday:  Shredded Mexican Chicken Sandwiches (with leftover chicken from Friday) with Mont Jack Cheese Sauce & homemade french fries

I was able to use the Salsa Verde that had just been sitting on the shelf for months now in the Shredded Mexican Chicken.  The chili made good use out of tomato paste, tomato sauce, & a couple cans of beans – and the cornbread was made from 2 boxes of Jiffy mix & a can of creamed corn, plus some buttermilk that really needed to be used.  The ham & pineapple pizza used up the rest of the lunch meat in the fridge, the Pillsbury pizza crust that was a couple days shy of the expiration date, & a can of pineapple.  All of the veggies & beans that were served as side dishes were all canned goods from my pantry as well. 

This week, I have really made a nice little dent in things that needed to be used – and I am very happy about that!  Next week, I hope to continue on the same path.  I am planning to not buy anything from the grocery store unless it consists of milk, eggs, or baby food/juice.  I’ll let you all know how I do with that next Sunday!

So, for those of you joining in with myself & my fellow co-hosts on this pantry challenge – how are you doing with it at this point?  If you are a blogger, share your pantry challenge posts in the linky below.  We would love to see how you all are faring!!