First, I’m going to acknowledge that it’s been over two months since I’ve written a blog post. I went through all of October and November without writing! Let me give you a quick snapshot of some things that occurred during that period of time, not as any sort of rationalization or excuse for not being present on my own blog but rather as a bit of context. In the past two months I…

• went hiking upstate
• fostered a dog
• adopted aforementioned foster-dog
• was “doored” while riding my bicycle home from teaching yoga one sunny afternoon and took a little trip to the emergency room. This will probably be it’s own longer post for another day. Bottom line: I’m fine.
• performed with a contemporary dance company
• went to western Massachusetts for the first time
• completed a Level 1 CrossFit Training
• ate a lot on Thanksgiving in Connecticut with a nice group of Argentinians and Norwegians

Okay! So now that we’re all caught up and reacquainted, let’s get real. Life can be busy. While a good portion of my year has been about doing, acquiring, and needing less, I have found myself in the midst of some days and weeks that are brimming with activity and responsibility. And I find that when I don’t have a lot of spare cash to throw around, that can be a recipe for disaster. New York City is not the least expensive place to live on the planet, so heading into a full schedule without a plan can get costly (as well as a bit unhealthy if you have as much of a love and desire for salted caramel brownies as I do).

So when I was staring down the barrel of this first week of December, I knew I had to prepare some fulfilling, delicious meals and components that would stretch over the course of several days. I ended up creating the following:

• Spinach and Cheddar Frittata
• White Bean and Mushroom Veggie Stew
• Currant and Walnut Oat Bars

This armed me with sustenance that could be mixed and matched in a variety of days. Frittata for breakfast or lunch. Stew for lunch or dinner. Oat bars for breakfast or as a packed snack on the go or a small treat after dinner. Supplementing with a few other items here and there, this has taken me through most of my week and helped me save both time and money!

I’ll share the recipes as individual posts over the next few days. For now… here’s some teaser photos to get your mouth watering!