In 2025, it’s possible to still spend less, even with rising prices. It takes a little more planning and a lot of thinking outside the box.
These are the exact steps I use to shop on a small budget every week and create meals that are easy and delicious for my family of 4! If you have extra tips, be sure to leave them in the comments!
Recipes in this video:
Southwest Black Bean, Lentil, and Quinoa Skillet
Ingredients
Oil
½ Red or Yellow Onion, Diced
1 packet Taco Seasoning (or make homemade)
½ cup Green Lentils, rinsed
1 (14.5 oz) can Fire Roasted Tomatoes
1 (15.5 oz) can Black Beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup Frozen Corn
2 cups Vegetable (or Chicken Stock)
⅔ cup Quinoa, rinsed
½ cup Cheddar Cheese, shredded (or any cheese)
Instructions
1. In a medium pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and saute until soft and translucent, about 2-3 minutes. Add taco seasoning and sauté, stirring frequently, for 30 seconds more.
2. Stir in lentils, black beans, and vegetable stock. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat, and cook for 5-10 minutes.
3. Add quinoa, fire roasted tomatoes, corn, stir, cover, and continue to cook for 15-20 minutes or until lentils and quinoa are cooked through.
4. Serve with cheese and any toppings you love. Enjoy!
Chocolate Peanut Butter Chickpea Pancakes
7 Servings
Ingredients
1 can Chickpeas, drained and rinsed
⅓ cup Milk of choice
½ cup Peanut Butter, or any nut butter
3-4 Tbsp Maple Syrup
2 Eggs
1 tsp Baking Soda
½ tsp Vanilla Extract
¼ cup Cocoa Powder
½ cup Chocolate Chips, optional (semi-sweet, sugar-free, or dark chocolate)
Instructions
1. In a blender or food processor, blend all ingredients until smooth. If using chocolate chips, fold into batter.
2. Heat a large pan on medium heat. Once hot, turn to low and add butter or oil, if desired. Scoop ¼ cup of the batter and drop onto pan. Cook until bubbles form and edges are dry. Flip and cook on the other side until brown.
3. Serve as is or with peanut butter, almonds, chocolate chips, or any other toppings you love. Enjoy!
Notes -
*Pancakes can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
Easy Chicken Pho
Ingredients
3 Chicken Leg Quarters or Thighs
½ Onion
1 small piece Fresh Ginger
1 Tbsp Fish Sauce
1 tsp Salt
1 Tbsp Sugar
1 Cinnamon Stick
2 Whole Cloves
1 Star Anise
3 Whole Black Peppercorns
Rice Noodles or Pho Noodles
Cilantro or Mint, optional
Jalapeño, sliced, for garnish, optional
Hoisin, optional
Sriracha, optional
🍋 Meal Plans Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXZXYyWqi2FLUv7Is2VTdXpymEbI7yiQv&si=fCR3cRs9UyEu3AAo
🍋 Lots of Recipes and Meal Plans on my blog: WholeAndHappyLiving.com
🍋 Recipes, Meal Plans, Grocery Lists, and EASY tips for saving money on groceries! Get my Meal Planning Guide here! https://a.co/d/0cFYb2T
🍋 My Meal Planner (the book I use while grocery shopping): https://a.co/d/f5Z15yy
🍋 Shop ALL my favorite kitchen tools and more on my Amazon storefront: https://www.amazon.com/shop/lauralegge
🍋 More Recipes can be found on my blog and social media! https://linktr.ee/LauraLegge
As always, I truly appreciate you being here! Thank you so much for watching!
With Love,
Laura
CONTACT:
For business inquiries, please use this email: WholeAndHappyLiving@gmail.com
Thank you so much for joining me today!
With love,
Laura
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