Going shopping when you shop Smart can be so stress free, you may wonder what you’re missing. You know that feeling of “what am I forgetting?” at the grocery store if you’ve forgotten your list? I was hit with that feeling during today’s shopping trip, as after being out of town for a week, and with a nearly empty fridge, I expected I would need a lot of things at the store. But I quickly realized those thoughts as I knew what they meant – there really wan’t much that I needed.

I grabbed a package of fresh mushrooms knowing I have ground beef in the freezer (from last week’s stock up) and every thing else I need to make salisbury steak. I grabbed avocados, tomatoes, cheese and lettuce, knowing that with them I can make many variations of tacos/tostadas with the chicken, shrimp, beef and tortillas I have in the freezer.

Then, because I had room to spare in both the cart and the budget, I added a brisket and cranberry sauce to my cart to make my favorite elegant meal, Cranberry Brisket, from the Cook Once… Eat Twice! cookbook.

When I got home to unload, there was plenty of room in the cabinets to unload my groceries — and I don’t have that much cabinet space. The thing is, after you really get into shopping Smart, and buying ingredients that you use over and over in many different dinners, you are buying a whole lot less of “this and that”. Believe me, “this and that” can take up an incredible amount of room in your cabinets and storage space. And because it’s only rarely used, it doesn’t move. When you buy Smart ingredients, you use them. And you’re buying less clutter, so your cabinets become naturally organized.

My Smart ingredients are mostly the things on the 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store shopping lists (These can be seen, and printed, off the Smart Ingredients page of the website), along with a few of my favorite seasonings and frozen shrimp. Your Smart Ingredients can vary based on what dinners are a sure-fire hit for your family. What’s your family’s Smartest ingredient?

If you’re a blog subscriber you should have received a coupon code via e-mail for the new copy of the 70 Meals, One Trip to the Store cookbook, including beautiful photos, extras and a fantastic new design by Studio One Eleven www.studio-oneeleven.com. If you own an original copy of the book, check out the Shop page for information on how to order a replacement copy at cost. Thanks Studio One Eleven, we love our new look!

The most important part of grocery shopping is to make sure you buy Smart Ingredients. What are Smart Ingredients?
Ingredients that add up. Do you know what I mean? Surely you have a lot of this-and-that in your cupboards. But do you, every night, feel like they can be mixed and matched to make dozens of dinners? I didn’t used to. Before I started Organizing Dinner, I knew I had a lot of stuff. But whenever I went to make a recipe, there seemed to always be something, some random fresh or packaged ingredient I didn’t have. I spent a few years figuring out ways to avoid the “never having the right ingredients” gap in my cabinets and fridge. What I discovered and solidified as the key to kitchen success became what I call Smart Ingredients. Ingredients that are easy and inexpensive to keep on hand, and when mixed + matched = dinner. Simple, fast, hot and healthy. Without a moment’s worry. Is it that easy, you ask? Yes. Join our blog and learn for yourself what to shop for and how to use it. Not convinced? Click on one of the subscription options at the right to subscribe, and become one of the lucky winners of the Smart Ingredients Test Kitchen who will receive free Smart Ingredients in the mail, along with the book that puts them all together in one shopping trip for 6 months worth of dinner “70 Meals, One Trip to the Store.” One winner will be randomly selected each month. When notified, we will arrange for a delivery of Smart Ingredients to your door. Use them, and hot, healthy, homemade dinner success will become a daily routine in your household. Also, each week you will gain smart shopping tips, weeknight dinner recipes, and kitchen organization tips.