Pantry

Dry goods:
- PASTA/NOODLES: different kinds of pasta, some rice, some oats, some dry beans and
lentils. Quinoa, and quinoa is a high protein grain that's also high
in fiber.
-  Flour on hand for baking: baking powder, and a little bit of sugar on hand, for days when you feel like baking something. I also love using nut flours, like almond meal and hazelnut flour. But if you're not a big fan
- Nuts:  different kinds of nuts and some dried fruit in your food cupboard.
- SPICE: chili powder, coriander, black pepper, and dried thyme. There's a bottle of vanilla essence in
there too, for days when I want to bake.
- Onions, garlic, and potatoes in a dark cupboard near my pots and pans. Apparently keeping them in a dark place prevents them from sprouting, at least for a week or so.

- Fridge: eggs, some milk, butter, cheese, and yogurt in it. Carrots and tomatoes
in the vegetable drawer, and some frozen peas in the freezer.

- In some places you can actually order a farm box to be delivered to your door every week, from
a local farm. It's kind of an automatic way to increase the variety in your diet. And it's also surprisingly affordable.

=>  you can make a simple pasta dish with a tomato sauce and some sprinkled cheese. You can make a quinoa salad with chopped carrots and some fresh lemon juice, or lentils and rice, or
beans and rice.

And you can dress these up with your favorite spices and flavor them with
onions and garlic.

For breakfast, you can always make oatmeal or scrambled eggs if you're in a pinch, and you can make pancakes, cakes, or cookies for occasional treats.

Now another benefit of storing some non-perishable food items in
your kitchen, is that you can buy in bulk, and sort of stock up when these
foods are on special at the supermarket. So you end up actually saving money on
your meals. Remember that even if you only have time
to boil some pasta and sprinkle some grated
cheese on top, and maybe cut up a fresh fruit, that meal
will almost certainly be healthier for your
family than a fast food dinner. My mom used to say, it's better to be real
than to be perfect. You don't need to cook like Julia Child in
order to feed your family well. Even Julia Child emphasized fearlessness
in the kitchen. One of her most famous quotes was this.
She said, learn how to cook, try new recipes, learn from your mistakes, be
fearless, and above all, have fun.