Kitchen

[jeanlake]

Made spaghetti for lunch & dinner today. Accidentally used chili ready diced tomatoes to add to my spaghetti sauce. Hubs loves it. Me - not so much.

We're doing some carry out throughout the week with our favorite, local restaurants - good tipping. I want these places to stay afloat and they're so thankful for the business.   

I'm not a Pop Tarts person, but found hubs & grandsons' blueberry pop tarts and have been eating these from the toaster with hot tea or coffee. Strange for me. Never interested in Pop Tarts before.   

[homedecor1]

Normally I don't cook on weekends so I'm trying to get creative!!

I know we can go to our favorite restaurant for take out BUT honestly, I'm now more concerned than ever about the "food handlers".

I feel better cooking my own food.

I've got to get creative since hot dogs and white bread!  tuna fish salad, buttered noodles ...are getting tiresome! And we are only on day #3....haha

so far haven't found the good vegetables ... hoping this week I'll get some lettuce, tomatos, peppers and carrots.

[RedTop]

I purposely did not buy any cookies, chips, nuts, candy, etc. when I restocked, so there are no sweets in the house. I am craving fudge, and teacher daughter wants carrot cake!

[CherryHugs]

(Bloomberg) --

Out with the Tuscan kale and acai berries, in with the Spam and popcorn.

In a stark reversal, American shoppers who were taking up healthier eating are gravitating back to old ways as they hunker down to weather the coronavirus pandemic. They are loading up on shelf-stable items from canned meat and soup to pretzels and Kraft Macaroni & Cheese as they comply with orders to stay home.

The shift back from healthier fare toward traditional staples may boost the fortunes of packaged food companies, which have been struggling with lagging sales as consumers opted for fresher alternatives.

General Mills Inc., Tyson Foods Inc., Campbell Soup Co. and Kraft Heinz Co. saw sales gains between 10% and 20% in the rolling four weeks that ended March 8 for items such as soup and breakfast food, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Diana Rosero-Pena said in a Thursday report, citing IRI data. Hormel Food Corp.’s sales of Spam increased as much as 37% and Oreo-maker Mondelez International Inc. saw growth in the sales of cookies and crackers.

Americans aren’t holding back on treating themselves, either. Popcorn sales rose nearly 48% in the week ended March 14, compared with a year earlier, while pretzel sales were up 47% and potato chip sales surged 30%, according to Nielsen data.

Also read: With Virus Lurking, Americans Flock to Safety of Comfort Foods

“People are retreating back into comfort habits,” said Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Jennifer Bartashus. “There’s a lot of uncertainty and in those kind of times people tend to retreat to what’s known to them and what’s comforting to them.”

Meat eaters are no longer cutting back on animal protein as beef cases at grocery stores have been cleaned out and profit margins for packers have spiked to all-time highs.

Shares of Tyson and Sanderson Farms Inc. were upgraded as outstanding retail demand for meat is more than offsetting soft demand at food service, JPMorgan Chase & Co. analysts Ken Goldman and Anoori Naughton said in a note.

Meat is “flying off the shelves” and in some locations there are completely empty rows of dried meat snacks, according to the report.

Milk is also seeing a boost after decades of poor sales and dwindling consumption. Cows milk sales increased 32% for the week ended March 14 compared with a year earlier, according to Nielsen.

[candys mine]

@homedecor1  Noodles and tuna?  Got any ceam of mushroom or "what all they have these days" soups?  Tuna cassarole, Soup and tuna sandiwiches, or soup alone or sandwich alone, Noodles with butter

My usual care package of groceries is , Egg noodles, Canned tuna,  mushroom soup, crackers, a jar of Mayo and a box of Jello.  Provided one has a stove working they have options. 

[homedecor1]

@candys mine 

I love tuna casserole but spouse hates it because we ate it every Friday night in our younger years raising kids...

I like anything tuna!  Thanks for the reminder!!!

[FlowerBear]

baked or mashed potatoes with melted cheese, chips and dip, cookies, ice cream. but not often and rationing and eating alot of healthier foods too!

[Shanus]

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@CherryHugs wrote:

What comfort foods do you find yourself having during this stressful time?  I have been having too many carbs but they are comforting to me. Plus chips  ahoy cookies, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, homemade vegetable soup. Still trying to keep mostly healthy eating.

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@CherryHugs   It's difficult watching what we eat now. I always have to watch carbs. I made 2 lasagnas yesterday...doubled the ground round in meat sauce, substituted some lasagna noodle layers w/ layers of thinly sliced (long wise) zucchini, low fat Ricotta and shredded mozzarella cheeses. Tasted great. Froze in portions for 2. 
***Good snack: Garbanzo beans toasted in the oven...tastes like peanuts and lots of protein. 

[novamc1]

@Shanus 

Those are two really great ideas.  Thanks for sharing them.

The lasagna  sounds like a good alternative for reducing fat and calories.

Also, I never knew I could get interested in garbanzo beans, but I think you succeeded!

[Shanus]

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@novamc1 wrote:

@Shanus 

Those are two really great ideas.  Thanks for sharing them.

The lasagna  sounds like a good alternative for reducing fat and calories.

Also, I never knew I could get interested in garbanzo beans, but I think you succeeded!

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@novamc1   Spread the drained/rinsed garbanzos on a cookie sheet. Preheated oven at 400 for about 15-18 minutes!!!