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Veggie Lo Mein, a delicious noodle dish that is packed with veggies, easy to customize, and perfect for staying-in!
What have you guys been up to lately? Today I started getting my taxes in order. Not so fun! You may remember from my Million Dollar Bars that my family usually gets a hefty tax return. Honestly, in the past it has been really exciting to talk about some of the fun ways we can use that money. Usually we talk about using it for dream vacations and travel, but then our responsible side wins out and we end up using it for things like savings, and education.
Last year we decided to try something new. We used our tax return to grow the offerings on my blog. I invested in gear, education, and video creation. I invested in myself and my business.
And it paid off. My blog traffic grew, and so did my income. And as a result this year we won’t be getting a return. In fact, we owe. While I am bummed about not getting a return, I am grateful for what this actually means.
And so this year, instead of discussing how to make a smart investment with tax time savings, I will be approaching taxes from the opposite side. I will be talking about how to take the sting out of tax time owing by saving money in your daily life and expenses.
We are pretty budget conscious people already because we love to travel, so every dollar saved means a dollar toward a vacation. One of our favorite ways to save is to eat homemade versions of our favorite take out. Like this Veggie Lo Mein. Want to know something? I don’t even miss the restaurant version because my homemade version is not only really delicious, but easy to customize, and comes together so quick. It literally takes less time to make it than to go and pick it up! And my kids eat it!
Check out this video showing just how simple this lo mein is to make:
My kids love “noodles” and I love adding lots of vegetables into it, and using up whatever I happen to have in the fridge, which is another way I save money by reducing waste. Don’t let ingredients like “oyster sauce” and “sesame oil” keep you from trying this recipe. Most grocery stores carry these ingredients in their “Asian” section, so they are no harder to find than ketchup. In fact, I picked mine up at Walmart. And once you have them, they last a while.
Along with the recipe for this easy veggie lo mein, I also wanted to share some of the ways we save for tax time by reducing expenses throughout the year. We do this in simple ways, like driving slightly older cars with cheaper insurance. Buying memberships for our favorite places and getting our use out of them. Enjoying FREE or low cost entertainment options for our family like playing games at home rather than going out. Mostly we save by making simple choices that don’t impact our lifestyle but do impact our wallets, like trading an expensive phone plan for an affordable plan that offers more.
You already know how much I love Walmart Family Mobile. Especially for my kids, because I can buy an affordable phone service, with affordable phones, and not be tied to any kind of contract. But now with the Plus plan, I love it even more, especially for myself as I am a big data user. If you don’t remember what the Plus plan is, read more about it in this lemon chicken egg rolls post. But to recap: Walmart Family Mobile PLUS = Unlimited Talk, Text, Data; 10GB 4G LTE plus a free movie on VUDU every month, per line for $49.88. The increased 4G LTE data is great for me while I search out recipes for our favorite take out, and the free movie credit is another way to save by staying in rather than going out.
So whether you are getting a tax return or you owe, I hope you can find simple ways to save, like making your favorite take-out at home or getting an affordable phone plan! Now I want to know: How does your family like to save money?
Vegetable Lo Mein
Ingredients
- 1 lb Spaghetti noodles or Lo Mein noodles cooked according to package directions
- 1 Tbs Olive oil
- 1/2 head Bok Choy
- 1/2 Napa Cabbage
- 1 cup Sugar snap peas
- 1 cup Matchstick carrots
- 1 cup Sliced Mushrooms of choice
- 2 Green onions sliced
- 1 yellow pepper
- Lime wedges for serving
Sauce
- 2 Tbs minced garlic
- 4 Tbs soy sauce
- 1 Tbs brown sugar
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp ginger paste
- A squirt of Sriracha
- 1 tsp Mirin
- 2 Tbs oyster sauce
Instructions
- Cook noodles according to package directions and set aside
- Slice up veggies so they are in bite sized pieces, combine, and set aside
- In a large wok or skillet heat 1 Tbs olive oil over medium-high heat
- Stir fry veggies for 3-5 minutes until slightly wilting, remove from heat
- Mix sauce ingredients together
- Put veggies back on heat, pour sauce over the top
- Add in cooked noodles
- Stir fry for 2-3 minutes, making sure noodles are fully coated in sauce.
- Serve hot with lime wedges
Nutrition
Our recipe card software calculates these nutrition facts based on averages for the above ingredients, different brands, and quality of produce/meats may have different nutritional information, always calculate your own based on the specific products you use in order to achieve accurate macros for this recipe.
Want to use this recipe in a meal plan?Try PrePear, my FREE Meal Planning App that allows you to save your recipes, plan meals, shop for groceries, and cook simply in one place. Join Here!
You can get the Walmart Family Mobile Plus plan at Walmart, along with many smart phones that are totally affordable: Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime – $99.00 (Rollback from $149.00), Samsung Galaxy Core Prime – $79.92 (Rollback from $99.92), HTC Desire 626s- $129.00, LG G Stylo – $179.00 (was $199.00), LG Leon LTE: $69.82 (Rollback from $99.82)
Disclaimer: All prices for phones and plans included in this post are accurate as of the date of posting; however, these prices are subject to change. Please refer to https://cbi.as/2nt2y or your local Walmart for current pricing.
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