No-Spend Weekend

by guest blogger Meghan P.

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It can be so tempting this time of year to run out to the store to get that “one last thing”: one more present, one more stocking stuffer, another bag of sugar, a few ingredients to try a new dish. After all, it’s the last weekend before Christmas… it’s only a week away!

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And yet, I really wanted the weekend to be peaceful and relaxing. I didn’t want to spend all my time and energy thinking about things I wanted to buy. Those goals plus the rain we’ve been inundated with (rain + driving = scary) gave me the nudge I needed to declare a No-Spend Weekend. I thought the hiatus would help me to appreciate what I already own and be more deliberate in the coming week about how I spend my money.

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For meals, I used what I had in the fridge and pantry, instead of going off to the store. I had tuna, a few avocados, nori, and goma (sesame seeds), so I experimented with an “open-faced sushi roll.” At the last minute I decided to use salad greens instead of rice, and it turned out fine.

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To Make:

Season the tuna with some soy sauce and sake and then dry it out a bit in a skillet. If you want to add tofu, now is the time to do it so that the excess moisture cooks off. Mix in some avocado slices and cucumbers if you’ve got them. Then put it on the rice or salad and sprinkle on some goma. If you’ve got shichimi, that would probably be great. For the nori sprinkles, I just shredded a big sheet of it with scissors.

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It was a really easy, tasty break from the stuff I’ve been eating lately (like holiday desserts!). And I didn’t have to go to the store for any of the items.

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What are your strategies for keeping things calm during the holidays?

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