It is no secret that we have been accused of being like "little house on the prairie" with our eating. Yet, we do not own a farm....but we enjoy tons of home canned goodness from local produce, fresh eggs, fresh milk (we make into butter, butter milk, yogurt and last week ice cream), homemade bread (even for sanwiches and french toast - thanks to Jeff!) made from local whole wheat flour, and this fall Washington home grown beef (not local, but family). We eat through others local farms in exchange for home canned goodness. I love it. I really do. Going back to high quality local basics are a lot of work but boy does it taste good. Plus knock on wood we haven't been sick in over a year - I think it is what we eat!
We have always been partial to "healthy eating" and I had canned something almost every year since childhood. But with Jeff getting sick and setting out on the crazy diet to healing, we learned so much more about food and what you can do with food. While it is a lot of work - the quality and the price (we eat for probably less then you think) are well worth it.
Don't worry, we haven't completely gone off the deep end. We do still go the grocery store because lets face it bananas are like the easiest fruit to transport and give to your kids - and they don't grow around here! And I don't take the time to make own cereal. My kids do eat mac and cheese from a box, hot dogs, freezer pizzas and Dora the Explorer slow melt popsicles (I don't even want to know what was added to make them "slow melt") - just in limited quantities.
I would love to share more of what I have learned, the skills I have acquired and my local sources with you if you are interested. Maybe someday I can have classes at our farm when we get our 5-75 acres. Until then we will enjoy our raised bed, square food garden and live vicariously through others!
3 comments:
I think you should share. I'd love to read more about it!
Absolutely. My goal is to shop exclusively on the 'outside' of the grocery store. But anything local not from the store is even better! You should title your class, "The questions you didn't know you had.." I'd like that.
We too are trying to get our food less from the grocery store. We have the biggest garden we've ever had this year. We added 8 blueberry plants too (but two died). Our beef cow is very local, down the street. We have sacrificed more money for the food budget to get raw cow milk from Washington. We've tried goat milk from a friend, but just can't do it. I make into yogurt, for smoothies, and it doesn't taste bad, but can't do it on oatmeal or drink it, bleck! We'd love to do our own meat chickens and eggs, but can't really do that in this neighborhood. I do get fresh eggs though. We'd love to get 5-75 acres too!
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