Some days, I have the energy to cook from scratch.
And some days… I’m tired.
Today was one of those days.
But instead of ordering out or skipping a good meal, I leaned into something simple that still felt like a real dinner—and honestly, it turned out better than I expected.
I used a boxed seafood paella mix I picked up from the store last week and added a few small touches to make it feel more like my meal.
🌿 What I Used
Boxed seafood paella kit
1 small onion (chopped)
1 bell pepper (chopped)
1/8 cup olive oil
Fresh parsley
Cayenne pepper (to taste)
1/2 cup shelled edamame
1 3/4 cups vegetable broth
👩🏾‍🍳 How I Made It
I kept this super simple (because that’s all I had the energy for):
Heated olive oil in a pan Sautéed the onion and bell pepper until softened Added parsley and cayenne pepper and cooked for about a minute Mixed in: the canned seafood the rice mixture edamame vegetable broth Stirred everything together and let it cook on low heat for about 20 minutes
And that was it.
From start to finish—about 30 minutes.
đź’ Real Thoughts
I didn’t overthink this meal.
I didn’t try to make it perfect.
I just needed something:
warm filling easy
And it delivered.
Even better?
👉 My very picky eater loved it.
That alone made it a win.
And now we have leftovers for tomorrow, which means one less thing to think about.
🌱 Why This Matters (More Than the Recipe)
This is something I’m learning in this season:
Not every meal has to be from scratch.
Not every day has to be “high effort.”
Sometimes, taking a shortcut is taking care of yourself.
Because at the end of the day, it’s not just about the food—it’s about:
feeding your family conserving your energy and still showing up
And today, this was more than enough.
✨ If You Try This
Make it your own.
Add what you have.
Use what’s already in your kitchen.
Don’t overcomplicate it.
Because simple meals like this?
They’re the ones that actually get made.
Haven Harvest Living 