The "No Spend Month" Challenge Meal Planning - Week 2

Continuing on with my No Spend Month series today. This time I'm bringing you week 2's Meal Planning list. This week was a bit of fun because I got to really focus on trying something new. I stuck to my week 1's rule of trying a new recipe but the first was week so so successful financially because I noticed how inexpensive soup and salads are to make.

This realization formed the basis of my meal planning schedule every Sunday. A soup, salad, a side and another entree of my choice.

This week I went with a lovely beef soup that was chocked full of veggies. Potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, everything you love. It's super hearty and very easy to make. Surprisingly similar to a beef stew but without taking as long too cook. I found it on pinterest by another blogger. (See below for the link and week 2 plan. )

The "No Spend Month" Challenge Meal Planning - Week 1

There's a lot that goes into planning for a week, apparently. Personally, my life doesn't contain a marriage or children or even an animal! It's really just me. You'd think it's be easy but what I've learned is that I'm a really pain in the ....you-know-what, when it comes to food. Who the heck knew? 

My downfall? Spending money to spend money during my No Spend Month. To say this was actually a challenge for me... well, it really was an actual challenge. Being strict and honest with myself about where my money was going was tough enough so I had to create a plan that would work and keep me in line. 

I know I've spoken about this before, in another post, and this isn't a summary of my challenge. It is, more or less a type of guide on how I planned my meals. Which, by the way, was every single Sunday afternoon. Planning, buying and cooking. All of it at once. My favorite recipe guides were mostly from pinterest. I found at least one new recipe that I wanted to try and make, checked to see what I already had in the fridge or in the pantry and then set out my meals for the entire week. 

Fried Egg Quinoa Breakfast Salad Bowl

The best thing about leftovers is that it gives you the opportunity to get creative with your meals. I'm a breakfast person but I like my meal sometime after 9 o'clock. In fact, normally around 10am is my ideal time so this might qualify me as more of a brunch person.

My ideal breakfast is granola with soy yogurt (obviously I would choose , specifically, Tillamooks Marionberry yogurt if I could. It's significantly cheaper and tastier). I'm also a big smoothie fan. I tend to leave big breakfast items for the weekend for brunch with the girls.

However, this week I had to get creative. I had left over quinoa from a salad I made and just didn't know what to do with it. So, my creativity streak kicked in. What I love about making up recipes, from scratch, is literally being able to add everything I love. This thought, in and of itself, makes me incredibly happy. Example: GARLIC

You heard it hear first, beware, it's my favorite and that's my not-so-secrect ingredient to this yummy breakfast bowl. That, and a fried egg placed right on top.

Currently Obsessed With: Anthropologie's Gilded Rim Coupe

I've had my little green eyes on these lovely Coupe's since they first touched the beautifully finished, handcrafted, wooden selves at Anthropologie. The light pink giving your bubbles and kiss of rose gold for the night. *sigh* Dream, Dream, Swoon.