I sat here this morning and looked through the local grocery ads,contemplating what we need versus what's on sale...
I'm having an increasingly difficult time making a shopping list this year so far.
It seems as though the stores are geared toward having boxed,powdered,or frozen ready made foods on sale cheap....highly processed,overly sugared stuff...even the cereals they have on sale are high in sugar...
I'm looking for things we need....and not finding any of it...
I used to buy a lot of that stuff,until I got smart.You get what you pay for in most cheap food.It's all either highly processed and full of salt and sugar,or full of ingredients that read like a chemistry test.
I want food...real...plain and simple food...
One of our goals this year is to reduce our dependence on the grocery store by growing a lot of our own,buying it locally and putting it up,or if need be,eliminating it altogether...
We can purchase beef and pork direct from the local meat processor,we're replacing chicken with rabbit meat,and well,fish will be a challenge....we like a varied diet when it comes to meats,and tend not to have the same thing more than once a week.
Ideally I'd like to find a local fish farm,but the nearest one is still a good hour away...we've been there a few times,it's really fun to catch your own.We do go fishing during the warmer months when we have time too,but locally it's pretty darned hard to catch enough for regular meals unless you want fried pan fish...
If we can grow and put up most of our own vegetables,we'll be set there.We're also working with a volunteer program this year that "pays" you with part of the harvest you bring in..so that will help too.
We'll still need to buy things like flour and sugar for cooking and baking,but for the most part,I'm finding less and less need for a grocery store.
How about you? Since switching to more,real foods,are you having a harder time shopping and filling your pantry with foods you're actually willing to eat?
I hear ya! I NEVER see sales on whole wheat flour, heck---not even on white flour! I cook from scratch and it can be difficult to justify it--budget wise---when you see that with coupons for processed foods, you can save so much money!
ReplyDeleteOn one forum I belong to, folks come on and show the savings they have made using coupons. Then they post a pic of what they bought. ALL PROCESSED FOODS!
But the health of my family and my own health mean more to me than what I could save by using coupons to buy all that nasty processed food!
I used to be one of those types.LOL...I was raised on a lot of it,which could explain a lot of the health problems that I have now.
ReplyDeleteHowever in the long term it doesn't make sense financially or health wise to continue to buy all that stuff...even a small 5lb bag of flour doesn't cost much compared to everything you can make with it..
Have you looked at the ingredient label on store bought bread lately?Bread,which should be as simple as a few ingredients,has a list a mile long,full of things that make you wonder why they can still call it bread...
On my long term list,I plan on getting a grain mill and grinding my own flour,but that's on the back burner yet,as the one I want/need is quite pricey..I can't hand grind flour,otherwise I would get one of the cheaper hand operated ones...
What's a girl to do?
I stopped buying store bread when I found out a "conditioner" they use call L-cystine. It is in almost ALL commercially sold bread, also probably in the pizza dough flour at every pizza place. It is made from chicken feathers and human hair.
ReplyDeleteYeah...
They have found most of the hair used comes from China and frequently has higher levels of lead and arsenic. O-O
Not what I want to pop in MY toaster!
What breaks my heart is...I LOVE croissants. I used to buy them in the big packs at Costco...but after I found out about L-cystine, I read the ingredients on the package...Yup!, it's in there!
Until I can figure out how to make those delightful flaky, buttery breads of joy at home, I will, alas, be without them.
Yep, yep & yep - I love reading about people that have gone my kind of 'crazy'. We buy our meat direct, help raise our broilers (hoping to start rabbits in the next year), and finally have enough ground to start a garden.
ReplyDeleteIf you're anywhere near Seattle, I'd suggest checking out Ocean Beauty's monthly dock sale for extremely good deals on fish.
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