Saturday, March 20, 2010

Real Food Friday Wrap-up

(which is being written early Saturday morning, because I just realized it's not Friday.)

*I've slacked off in the homemade dairy department. Had the intention of making a quart of goat's milk yogurt, but the milk is still in the fridge. Just haven't gotten to it, and then I forgot yogurt at the store yesterday to use as a started. Hopefully will get that going tonight - I plan to try the crock pot method.

*Dinner last night was fabulous. Super quick to put together - homemade French rolls (made the same time I made our weekly bread) split, then piled high with leftover smoked elk roast (which is NOT quick, but was already done) that had been simmered in a spiced beef broth mixture with lightly caramelized onions... used the broth for dipping and voila - "French dip sandwiches", Real Food style, served with a side of homemade bread and butter pickles and lots of fresh veggies with homemade ranch dressing.

*Real Food is about planning ahead, making enough to last a few meals so you aren't always spending hours in the kitchen. I need to work on getting more pre-made stuff into the freezer.

*Can't forget the geese that are now in the freezer, thanks to my fantastic husband. I look forward to experimenting with those in the coming weeks.

*The garden is started, which I'm pretty sure counts as Real Food - lettuce, spinach, mixed mesclun greens, chard, broccoli, kohlrabi, radishes, green onions, beets and carrots are all in. Many of them have sprouted, and are carefully snuggled under sheets out there since it got back below freezing last night.

*I'm terrible about preparing 'real' lunches. I serve things like hunks of leftover meat, with a side of homemade crackers, homemade cheese, homemade pickles and chopped raw veggies. Not that it isn't nutritious... but it doesn't feel much like a meal.

*I'd love to say we're eating a lot of local foods, but I can't say that, because I'd be lying. There are no local veggies and fruits! We eat a LOT of raw fruits and veggies, and they just aren't available from local farmers yet. We do make a game out of finding "closer to home" veggies though, and buying what we can that's local-ish. I'm taking a small map to the store with us next time we go so I can show the Little One where Chile is when she asks.

*Real Food is about embracing simplicity. To get a meal made completely from scratch on the table has the potential to take many hours. Sometimes it's okay to serve just salad and baked potatoes. I always feel like that's not a "real dinner", and I need to get over that.

*We haven't eaten any pre-prepared or processed foods at all this week, so I'm calling it a success. We actually haven't eaten anything like that all month, except for some bottled salad dressing that needs to be used up.

Anyone else out there post a wrap up to finish their week?


2 comments:

Sara said...

I haven't posted my wrap up yet....but I agree that I need to stop feeling like things aren't meals too! Today for example we had a long, busy day and for dinner we had rice, beans and veggies. The kids ate it up and were full, so it's a meal right?

Anonymous said...

High, dry, cold desert is not an easy place to buy local year-'round. I'm impressed with all you *are doing-- it's an extensive movement in the right direction. Go, Julie!