Tuesday October 14th, 2008
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Food for Thought
Posted by Jessica Harlan on May 10, 2007 - 9:21am.
When I got married, I somehow assumed that some dormant gene would kick in, enabling me to stock my kitchen with everything needed to get wholesome dinners on the table, with one weekly trip to the supermarket. I thought that coupon-clipping and food budgeting would suddenly become second nature. And just like in my childhood, we'd eat around the dinner table as a family; not huddled over take-out containers on the couch, reruns of Scrubs playing on the TV.
Well, more than a year later, we've done a lot of the grown-up things: bought a house, had a baby, and acquired a car or two, But if that aforementioned home-cooking gene exists, it must've skipped a generation.
I went to culinary school and could make a mean Cornmeal-Stuffed Saddle of Rabbit in Demi-Glace if you gave me a few hours and a hundred bucks or so for the ingredients. But meal planning somehow eludes me, and I can't seem to spend less for groceries than what we'd pay for a take-out order of Thai. Add to that my desire to eat low-fat, organic, unprocessed and natural foods whenever possible, and I've got a real challenge on my hands.
How did our mothers do it?
But I'm always up for a challenge, so in the coming months, I'm going to give my family's eating habits a makeover. I'll figure out how to save money at the supermarket, find affordable ways to make our meals as healthy as possible, and, because there are already way too few hours in a day, keep my time in the kitchen to a minimum.
Can it be done? In the coming weeks, read along as I check out the bargains at Whole Foods and Costco, figure out the most affordable (and satisfying) lunches to send to work with my husband, and experiment with some shortcuts in the kitchen. You can be the judge as I report on my accomplishments every other week here on lime.com. Feel free to weigh in with your own experiences, and maybe I'll even share with you a successful recipe or two.
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I can't wait to see how this blog unfolds. I really need training and support in this area. We are on the road 2.5 hours commuting back and forth to work, we eat on the "convenience" theory, and have minimal time in the kitchen. The results..my husband and I both have high cholestrol and are overweight, plus my over all health and wellbeing suffer because of my lack of knowledge in this area. Thank you in advance for this blog. I would love to get back to the low-fat, organic, unprocessed and natural food way of eating. I have an added road block... I cannot have any kind of artificial sweetners, including Splenda. I will be reading this along the way.
=^.,.^=
Cats are like potato chips, you can never have just one!!
I've been in charge of dinner for the better part of 30 years; my son will be 28 in June. That son is now a chef and he still phones occasionally to ask how I make some of his childhood favourites, so I can offer at least one recommendation for my culinary skills. I raised 2 kids, much of it alone because of a husband in the military, and managed to go back to university full time. And we didn't have the budget for takeout - that was "special" - so I had to figure out how to use real ingredients to make real food. At the time, they were actually cheaper than prepared products.
I know that there is an argument for and against menu planning in advance of going to the store, so over the years I have evolved a system - if you can call it that - that lets the weekly specials direct the planning. The weekly ads and coupons tell me what I'll be buying, and I think about how I'll prepare those ingredients before I buy 'em. I couldn't walk past something that was a very good bargain to buy something at regular price just because I had made a menu plan.
The evolution of food acquisition now includes shopping for organic and natural products whenever possible, and that does make a budgetary impact. I'm looking forward to your thoughts about how to combine the search for wholesome with the time constraints and budget concerns.
Finally, in the time management department, a slow cooker, a pressure cooker and some storage containers for your freezer are your best friends. The slow cooker allows you to make tomorrow's meal while you are cleaning up tonight's, store the sleeve of the cooker in the fridge overnight and then fire it into the base in the morning. The pressure cooker works in the opposite direction; I can make stew that tastes like it cooked all day in under 30 minutes using this great appliance. And finally, batch cooking on the weekend and freezing meals in advance is a lifesaver. It takes no more time to make lasagna for 3 meals than it does for one. I also made "master sauces" and froze those in batches, to be used later and customized for specific dishes.
My son and daughter are now insanely healthy adults. They aren't overweight, they don't have any ongoing physical problems and they don't get sick nearly as often as their contemporaries. I know that eating healthy food with short ingredient lists helped as they grew up. I also know that they eat relatively healthy diets as adults because their bodies will not accept a "junk diet" for more than a day or two. You are doing the right thing for yourself and for your family by making the choice to eat real food.
Congratulations!
I am looking forward to the updates. I get tired of spending a small fortune on groceries only to stand in front of the frige or pantry thinking what am I going to make for dinner.
My family leads a super busy life and I am all for any ideas on making quick and healthy meals that won't break the budget.
Maqistra40, please adopt me! I know I'm probably older than you but I'm not anywhere in your ballpark with cooking/saving! I'm currently trying the cook once a month deal. I bought a FoodSaver right after Christmas. I know it has saved me a lot of money and I'm eating better. Not so good with coupons. I get frazzled in the search. Any suggestions on grilling?