Pre-Hospital Grocery Haul

Before my dad goes into the hospital for surgery tomorrow, I'm doing my best to ensure that my husband and I have food for on-the-go.

If all goes well, Hubby will be working every day but Sunday, and he will be studying for final exams, writing papers, etc. in addition to visiting us at the hospital. I go back to work on Monday to finish up the school year with my students--to prepare them for writing their final papers and taking their final exams. "Oy to the vey!"

This is definitely one of those situations where I know that we will be eating nothing but fast food, hospital food, and junky snacks from vending machines--unless I plan ahead.

Eating a few of these items is fine, but for an entire week or more? Gross.

And besides the gross factor, I am hypoglycemic. This means that I have to be more careful about what I eat than most people, and I have to eat more frequently than most people. I don't want to spend this already stressful time hunting down vending machines or begging someone to take me to McDonald's or worrying about what's for dinner, etc.

I want to be able to focus on what's really important right now: my family.

I also thought you might want to see what I have assembled, should you ever find yourself in a similarly busy circumstance. There are ideas here (and a few how-to's) for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, and sweets.

Breakfasts:
Pre-made

I am head-over-heals for this yogurt! I had the opportunity to sample it for free a few weeks ago, and let me tell you--yogurt never tasted so wonderful in my life!

For the kid in you. Or in your husband, as the case may be.

Homemade: Egg & Cheese "Mc"Muffins

If you want your eggs to be the same size as your muffins, use an English muffin ring to fry them in. Don't forget to spray the ring so the egg doesn't stick to it...

If you don't like runny yolks, I recommend puncturing them with the corner or your spatula while the egg is still in the ring. Obviously, you need to remove the ring before frying the other side of the egg. 

Last night, we had cheese toast with dinner. I took an entire package of Thomas English Muffins, sprinkled cheese on them (two sides for cheese toasts, one side only for the "Mc"Muffins), and baked them about 10 minutes at 400 degrees. These four were spared and placed in the fridge overnight. 

Place your eggs on the bottom halves of the muffins.

Ta-da!

Wrap them individually and freeze in a big ziploc. They re-heat in the microwave in 1-2 minutes, depending on your microwave oven.

Snacks:
Pre-made

I got this for $1. I portion it out in sandwich bags (yes, I literally measure 1 cup per bag).

Homemade: Granola Bars

I made these based loosely on this CCK recipe. I subbed 2 eggs for the applesauce, prunes for the dates, almonds for the hazelnuts, and 1 c. this PBP granola for the puffed wheat and oats. I may have also sprinkled on a few chocolate chips...

Individually bagged, they are ready for the fridge or freezer.

Homemade: Hummus & Veggies

I love hummus! I follow this basic recipe, and it turns out amazing every time.

I divide one recipe's worth into fourths. I am using a metal measuring cup to help hold open my bag so I can spoon the hummus with less mess.

I orient it in the corner so it's easier to eat later. 

Time to wash the veggies!

I use a muffin tin to help hold open multiple bags at a time for veggies.  Yes, you could do this with the hummus, too.

All bagged and ready for the fridge!

Lunches:
Homemade: PBJ

Never underestimate PBJ and its ability to bring comfort. If you want to freeze PBJ by the way, just be sure to put peanut butter on both sides of the bread.

Dinners:
Pre-made

My husband's favorite brand of frozen pizza. It has a really thin crust and it's cheap. Definitely a win-win situation.

Homemade: Pasta + Pasta Sauce (+ Meatballs already in the freezer!)

I softened a white onion with 1 clove of freshly chopped garlic. I added quartered Roma tomatoes (about 7), salt, fresh black pepper, and let it simmer down, covered (30 minutes or so). It's ready to be frozen.

I really enjoy this pasta. Although, the only bad pasta to me is gushy pasta.

After you boil it to al dente, toss it with oil, spread it on a sheet pan (covered with foil), and freeze it. Once it's frozen, you can put it in a bag or container for longer-term freezer storage. I am going to use this with the above pasta sauce and some of the deer meatballs I talked about in this post here.

Sweets:

For the hubs. 

For me. (Portable fruit!)

I anticipate not blogging for several days, but I will try to at least give a shout out as to how the surgery goes. My family and I appreciate your prayers.

Blessings,
--Mrs. D.