INSIDE: Pantry staples can be a lifesaver at any time of the year. But stocking your cupboards with Christmas pantry staples can be a real gamechanger! And that’s what today’s challenge is all about. In this post, I show you how to get your pantry Christmas-ready the easy way. Let’s dive in!
Welcome back!
So, are you ready for the final week of the 30 Days to a Stress-Free Christmas challenge? Let’s do this! This week we’re going to get the last bits of your Christmas meal planning sorted. I’m going to show you how to stock your cupboard with pantry staples, batch cook a few meals and finalise your Christmas food battle plan. By the end of this week, you’ll be fully prepared for all the things Christmas food and drink!
But before you do that, there’s something I want you to do first. Just like the beginning of every other week of this challenge, I want you to spend a few minutes with your Christmas notebook. Pour yourself a cup of tea, grab a few highlighters and go through your notebook. What actions can you take this week make your Christmas a reality?
What can you do now that’ll save you time later?
Are there any gifts you can order, tickets you need to book or arrangements you can finalise? Decide what you can get started on this coming week and make a plan. Remember, the earlier you start, the more time you’ll have to enjoy the festivities later!
Have you added those tasks to your to-do list? Great! Let’s dive into the first challenge of the week. Let’s stock your cupboard with Christmas pantry staples!
Challenge #27: Fill your cupboards with Christmas pantry staples…
Christmas pantry staples….
Last week you worked on your meal plan for the three days over Christmas. You also created a 21-day meal plan for before and after Christmas. Today’s challenge is all about making sure you have everything in stock so you can make those meals!
Go through the list of meals you came up with on Day 25. Get what you can now. Ask yourself what ingredients you need, what ingredients you can store in your pantry that will make your life easier. Then go and get them. It may seem a little too organised, but I promise you you’ll thank yourself later for doing so!
Other Christmas pantry staples to include…
As well as buying the pantry staples you need for Christmas Day, try if you can to stock up on a few other pantry staples too. Having a few extra items on hand that you can make any meal from will give you great peace of mind. It’ll help make making meals from scratch a breeze too – especially during the holiday season. Here are a few of my favourite to get you started:
- Rice (basmati, risotto and paella).
- Noodles (egg, buckwheat and soba).
- Couscous and quinoa.
- Passata.
- Coconut milk.
- Oils (olive, rapeseed, chilli, sesame).
- Vinegars (red wine, cider and balsamic).
- Spices (cumin, coriander, garam masala, turmeric, paprika, garlic powder, chilli powder, cayenne pepper, ground ginger, star anise, onion powder).
- Dried herbs (mixed herbs, oregano, parsley, rosemary, thyme, bay leaves).
- Sauces and pastes (curry pastes, stir-fry sauces, tagine pasta, harissa, chipotle, tomato puree, garlic puree, ketchup, mustards).
- Stock cubes/pots (chicken, vegetable, pork, fish and herb).
Pantry staples like these allow you to make all kinds of meals. Include them in your list of staples to add and you’ll never be stumped with ideas of what to make. Should your plans go awry, you find yourself short of time or one of your kids come down with the flu, these staples will save your day. With pantry staples, Christmas meal planning has never been so easy!
That’s it for today!
I’ll be back tomorrow with challenge #28 of the 30 Days to a Stress-Free Christmas challenge. In the meantime, good luck stocking your cupboards with Christmas pantry staples! Don’t forget to check out the rest of the posts for this challenge if you haven’t done so already too!
- Day 1: Let’s Get Your Christmas Planning Started!
- Day 2: What Gifts to Buy?
- Day 3: Get Organised for Christmas.
- Day 4: Write Out Your Christmas Budget.
- Day 5: Take a Break and Have a Well-Earned Rest!
- Day 6: Declutter Your Child’s Bedroom.
- Day 7: Winter Prep Your House and Car.
- Day 8: Start a Packing List.
- Day 9: Do Your Christmas Decorations on a Budget.
- Day 10: Spend Money on Experiences Instead of Things.
- Day 11: Finalise Your Christmas Gift List.
- Day 12: Take a Break and Have a Well-Earned Rest!
- Day 13: Create a Stockpile of Last-Minute Christmas Gifts.
- Day 14: Decide Whether You’ll Send Christmas Cards.
- Day 15: Start Your Christmas Shopping Early.
- Day 16: Wrap Your Christmas Presents as You Go
- Day 17: Ask What Christmas Means to You
- Day 18: Plan a Family Christmas
- Day 19: It’s Time to Relax!
- Day 20: Write Your Christmas Bucket List
- Day 21: What are Your Christmas Family Traditions?
- Day 22: Make Time for You
- Day 23: Take the Time to Relax Before Bed
- Day 24: Decide What to Eat on Christmas Day
- Day 25: Create a 21 Day Meal Plan for Before and After Christmas
- Day 26: It’s Time to Chill!
That’s it for this post! Do you stock your cupboards with pantry staples ready for the Christmas break? Let me know in the comments!
Until next time…
P.S. Get all of the Christmas challenges by email!
Want a little more accountability? Don’t forget that you can sign up to receive each challenge by email! Every day for the next 30 days I’ll land in your inbox with the next Christmas challenge. A great way to remind you to take action, you’ll also receive my FREE Ultimate Christmas Planning Checklist too!
In it, you’ll find checklists for your Christmas budget, Christmas shopping, meal planning and prepping, family traditions, planning your travel and so much more. With every Christmas planning step you can possibly think of listed, no stone will be left unturned and nothing will be forgotten!
Simply enter your email address below and I’ll send it to you right away along with the first challenge!
