Spinach Pancakes and Saving Money

Here’s another quick recipe this week - a fun way to get some veggies in for breakfast.

It's also a way to use up spinach if you have any left over from last week’s smoothie bowl, like we did.

And don’t pretend like that doesn’t happen - having leftover ingredients that you’re not quite sure how to use.

It happens to everyone!

The worst, though, is when ingredients or food starts going bad in the fridge. Here's the thing: tossing that floppy broccoli or old leftovers is like tossing a soggy wad of bills right in the compost.

The biggest way to save money on food, is to control food waste.  

Throwing out food is like losing 100% of an investment.

Actually, maybe it's more like losing 150% on an investment, if you include the time and energy wasted to go to the store and refrigerate slow decomposition.

Not to mention the wasted farming and transport to grow and distribute that food in the first place. (More on this here in a fascinating Nat Geo article).

“An American family of four trashes an average $1,484 worth of edible food a year. ”

— http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/10/141013-food-waste-national-security-environment-science-ngfood/

Ways to save on groceries.

The good news is that we have complete control over food waste.

With some simple planning, there’s no reason to lose money by tossing groceries. Here are some ideas:

• Plan out your food weekly. Tally up how many meals at home vs. out, think of possible leftover meals, and run through which days will be busy because of work/gym/family. This gives an overview of how much groceries you'll need in the first place. (Nat tries to plan on Sundays).

• Grocery shop only from a list. The temptation to buy sale items or what catches your eye is always there at the store. We try only to buy if we have an end use in mind.

• Keep pantry and freezer items on hand. That way you can always create a meal in a pinch, instead of having to hit the grocery store while hungry or spend extra to order takeout.

• Have a list of dishes that work well with substituted ingredients. A few ideas are: soups, frittatas, salads, and smoothies.

In general, though, it boils down to this:

1. Make a plan

2. Stick to the plan

3. Reevaluate the plan

Most of us are good at one, maybe two of these.

But making an effort to analyze our lives (yes, even our grocery shopping) in this way eventually makes things more efficient. That saves money, stress, or time.

Hopefully all three.

Here's another post on savings.

Did you know?

Veggies start losing vitamins as soon as they're cut. The same broccoli from the farmer’s market is not as nutritious 14 days later. If you end up with extra food or vegetables, freeze them as soon as possible to preserve them at their best.

Spinach Pancakes

Serves 2-4

Ingredients

• 5 eggs
• 1 banana
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 cup spinach, packed
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• Pinch of sea salt
• Coconut oil for pan

Process

• Combine - Add all ingredients to a blender.
• Blend - Blend into a batter consistency
• Heat - Heat skillet over medium heat. Melt oil and spread around.
• Cook - Pour batter into skillet in 3" rounds, then flatten a bit with a spatula or back of a spoon. Cook about 3 minutes per side.
• Top - Top your pancakes with your favorites. We used raspberries and coconut yogurt

*Because we can only cook four pancakes at a time, we use the 'keep warm' option on our oven ~140-170ºF. Place a baking sheet in the oven before cooking, then add the cakes as they come off the pan. This way, you can serve them all at once.