What I Eat When the Fridge Breaks

Written by on in Blog, Recipes

It’s another what I eat in a day video! But this one is a little different. My fridge went out! I rely on my fridge for my whole food vegan diet to keep all my fresh veggies cold.

Luckily I was able to keep some things in my garage as it is winter and the garage was about 40 degrees Fahrenheit. I also have a chest freezer, so I relied on frozen items as well as pantry staples to throw together healthy meals even though I didn’t have a fridge.

Check out my Youtube video and find “recipes” for this what I eat in a day below.

Breakfast: Rolled Oats and Smoothie

Bowl of mixed berry oatmeal and a mason jar filled with green smoothie

I started the day with rolled oats instead of my usual steel cut. Normally I batch prep steel cut oats and keep them in the fridge. But rolled oats are easy to make in the microwave in just a couple minutes.

Oatmeal Ingredients

  • ½ cup rolled oats
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 medjool date, chopped
  • 1 cup mixed frozen berries
  • 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed

Directions

  1. Add oats, water, date, and berries to a large microwave safe bowl. Make sure you have plenty of room in the bowl because oats can bubble over in the microwave.
  2. Microwave for about 2 minutes.
  3. Add ground flaxseed on top and enjoy. Feel free to add a splash of plant milk if you like, but I like it without.

Smoothie Ingredients

  • 2 or more cups greens
  • ⅓ cup cooked soybeans
  • 1 banana
  • ½ cup frozen mango
  • 1 celery rib
  • ¼ teaspoon each: ground turmeric, ground ginger, amla powder
  • ½ teaspoon dulse flakes
  • pinch black pepper
  • enough water to blend

Directions

  1. Add all ingredients to a high powered blender.
  2. Blend for 30 to 60 seconds and enjoy!

Lunch: Pesto Veggie Ramen

Bowl of ramen noodles topped with mixed veggies

For lunch, I dug into the chest freezer and added added some frozen veggies and lentils with some noodles from the pantry for a quick meal. Then I had an apple, some dates, and a Brazil nut for dessert.

Ingredients

  • 1 block or patty Lotus Foods brown rice and millet ramen
  • 1 cup cooked green lentils
  • 10 ounce bag frozen Chinese stir fry veggies
  • ½ cup frozen spinach
  • 1 or 2 tablespoons pesto
  • 12 teaspoons rice vinegar
  • ½ teaspoon coconut aminos
  • Sesame seeds

Directions

  1. Cook noodles per packaged directions and set aside.
  2. In a pot or skillet, heat up the frozen stir fry veggies and spinach.
  3. Add lentils and remaining ingredients and cook until everything is warmed through.
  4. Add the cooked mixture on top of the noodles and sprinkle sesame seeds on top.

Dinner

Plate with a roasted sweet potato and pita chips, a bowl of chili, and a bowl of salad

For dinner I chose a minimally processed, pre-packaged soup. There aren’t many great options for whole food vegans when it comes to pre-packaged items. Usually there is tons of salt, oil, and sugar, among other things. But I like to keep a couple of these Plantstrong soups on hand for emergencies. They are free of oil and added sugar, and while they do contain added salt, it is much lower than your average packaged meal.

To bulk this meal up, I added a roasted sweet potato, some toasted whole wheat pita, and quick salad topped with tomatoes, clementines, chia seeds, and balsamic vinegar.

Conclusion

It can be tricky maintaining a whole food vegan diet without a fridge, but it’s definitely possible. Some of the healthiest foods can be kept in your pantry: potatoes, onions, canned beans, and dried grains.

If you have the space and are able to get a chest freezer, I highly recommend it! I am lucky enough to have one, so I can keep frozen fruits and veggies on hand all the time to quickly and easily make healthy meals. And then if your fridge goes out you have a little bit of a backup.

Hope this gives you some ideas to keep it plant-based even in a kitchen emergency.