Feeding a family out of a minibar fridge for a week...

[luckymom]

I am traveling on the cheap and could use some ideas about keeping my family fed with only a minibar fridge. I am thinking:

 

baby carrots

apples

bananas

granola bars

cheese sticks

milk boxes

hummus/pita

 

Any other ideas for a non-cooked dinner?

[KatieJ]

will you have a microwave?

 

then I would bring

microwave popcorn

cans of soup

Possibly even make some meals ahead and freeze them

 

 

hard boiled eggs (Made at home before you leave)

canned tuna or chix

 

My crockpot sits on a griddle and I could do quesadillas or grilled cheese if I had to.

You could bring an electric fry pan to actually cook in as well.

[Night Elf]

I take it you won't be eating at restaurants during this trip? And the trip will last a week, and you need to provide 3 meals per day?

 

Lots of bread and peanut butter and/or apple butter.

Cereal

Salad (buy lettuce along the way?)

[luckymom]

but I may have access.

 

I appreciate the suggestions but I think I may need to stick with more of the cold supper variety. I don't think the innkeepers will allow cooking of any kind in our tiny room. I should have said that in my original post - sorry.

[TXMomof4]

Pimento cheese

cold cuts and cheese and crackers

fresh broccoli

chicken salad (from canned chicken)/tuna salad

tortillas with cream cheese and ham

lots of oranges/apples/bananas

 

Have fun!

[OHGrandma]

Be sure you are allowed to use the minibar fridge with no charge. I've heard of cases where people stuck their own pop in it and were charged as if they purchased the pop.

 

Will you be using a cooler of your own? If so, freeze bottled(plastic) drinks that can keep other items cold, then consumed as they thaw.

[LND1218]

We recently spent a week like this. Although we did eat out a couple of dinner meals. We hit kids night at Chick -fil - A for free kids meals!

 

I let my kids have a lot of things we don't eat at home - chips, juice, treats and such so it makes the meals seem a lot more fun even when they get boring.

 

For breakfast, we did cereal with milk.

Single serving shakes (me like slim fast only Costco brand)

But we also brought breakfast bars.

If you have a coffee maker, you can do oatmeal.

Bagels - although these could be a dinner too!

 

Lunch - do hummus and cheese with all the things you suggested. We also add some crackers or those pretzel crackers. Also nuts! Our lunches were mostly snack foods, veggies, fruits, cheeses, nuts, rice cakes, hummus, trail mix etc.

 

Dinners -

Here was our menu:

Raw veggies and dip (dressing or hummus) at every lunch and dinner.

 

Nachos -

I bought corn chips at Costco with salsa. We used them for snacking too. But we make nachos with unmelted cheese, cold black beans, sour cream, salsa or whatever. My kids love it. I prefer the hot variety but oh well.

 

Sandwiches twice ~ any kind you like. I did 2 options for 2 different dinners. Or do bagels either with cream cheese, pb or lunch meat. It gives variety.

 

Cold chicken (cooked ahead of time - my crew likes cold oven baked fried chicken. It's rolled in corn flakes and baked. It's very good cold) with potato salad and chips.

 

Salad - can be combined with the cold chicken. We like chef's salad - eggs, bacon bits, etc Again this was planned to be for 2 meals with different options.

 

Wraps - tortilla or pita and use all left over salad, chicken, beans, veggies, cheese and salsa!

With a coffee maker, we can do those noodle cups.

Edited June 5, 2009 by Steph

[EarleneW]

We always bring a cooler with milk and cereal, sandwich stuff, yougurt, cheese and crackers, veggies, etc.

[Orthodox6]

LOL at your thread title, if you don't mind. I read the title, and immediately wondered why anybody staying in a hotel would choose to feed the family for a week on only the exorbitantly-priced candy bars and juice bottles which are the backbone of "minifridge" displays !

[Annie G]

I make panko breaded chicken tenders and the family eats them cold...it's my standby when I need to take a meat to a potluck. They last in the fridge for days and are versatile-- eaten alone or in a bun or on a salad.

 

Pasta salad can be made ahead and will last several days. I make one that has chunks of rotisserie chicken and cubed veggies and cheese...it's a meal.

 

We also like cold pizzas. They make premade pizza crusts and we just add sauce, cheese, and pepperoni (some of us add veggies). It's like those lunchables.

 

We eat lots of meals away from home and have no way to reheat things. So we're getting pretty good at going beyond sandwiches.

[BikeBookBread]

Are you bringing your own fridge, or using the minibar fridge at a hotel? Yes, as stated below, make sure it isn't a fridge that uses a scale...that's how some hotels know whether or not you have taken an item. If you put your own stuff in their, it will be weighed, then as you remove item, it will be removed from the total weight, and you'll be charged.

[Gamom3]

We make a pasta that has parmesan cheese, olives, cherry tomatoes, and then you put italian dressing on it. It's good either cold or hot.

 

I have an electric kettle that I got from Walmart. Boil some water and have oatmeal, grits or even cup-a-noodle soup.

I am sure you could even heat up soup in a can with the boiling water.

 

Sandwiches with chips

 

Spaghetti is good cold.

 

Salads with chicken or sliced beef

 

cereal, bagels, croissants, fruit

 

I would hit Costco or Sams(we prefer Sam's) for their pizza...very cheap and good. If you go on the weekends they have samples. My kids love going and normally they are full by the time we leave.:lol:

[luckymom]

so it will be all ours with no charge.

 

These are all very helpful. If anyone would like to add on, please keep 'em coming.

[WTMindy]

We eat granola bars, bagels, cream cheese, regular cheese, deli meat, fruit, cheese & crackers. We try and keep it pretty simple.

[lionfamily1999]

potted meat, mini sausages, crackers, chips

 

We had to live out of one for six months. It was horrible, I'm trying to be helpful, but all I can think about is frozen dinners night after night.

 

Sit down, write out five dinners that can be cooked and stored. Dinner salad (with a ham dressing) for instance. Then get the slimmest containers you can to store them. Really, though, remember how tight a space you're fitting. If you're carrying lots of loose foods, like veggies and fruits, I would HIGHLY recommend putting it into some sort of tupper wear container, otherwise, every.single.time. you open the fridge, you will have a cascade of food to deal with.

[Tap]

Think about things that you can rotate through. A cheap jar of mayo doesn't need refr. until it is opened, even if it isn't your favorite brand it is only for a few meals so you can deal with it. Most condiments don't need ref. in the short term so don't. Mustard, ketchup, peanut butter, store bought jam, relish, etc.

 

Have lunch meat sandwiches for lunch, tuna salad for dinner, chicken salad sandwiches the next day, any left overs for dinner or repeat Tuna. The only thing that needs ref. is the mayo, and the meat. You won't need the mayo again so toss it.

 

 

Can you go to a park during the day and use a fire pit? Or take a small grill to use outside? Hot Dogs, hamburgers, canned chili, soup, canned pasta/ravioli, boil in the bag meals...