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Some thoughts on ELC before I start
By Kristen | May 20, 2007
While I was cooking just now, I realized why $121 seems like both too much and not enough to spend on food for the week.
It seems like far too much because I never spend anything close to $121 on groceries every week — $75, maybe $95, but not as much as $121. But, then again, if I needed to buy every single ingredient for every single meal I cooked all week, then yes, I probably would spend more than $121.
Now, with this in mind, should I just buy the things I would ordinarily buy? Or should I be trying to buy every single ingredient locally?
Topics: Eat Local Challenge, Questions |
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May 20th, 2007 at 7:21 pm
That’s what would stump me too. What about rice/pasta?
And: I am impressed you only spend $75-95 on groceries each week! We only buy on sale and we generally spend more than that. We do sort of bulk buy and freeze/store though so some weeks are less, I guess but rarely do we spend that little.
May 20th, 2007 at 7:38 pm
I’m still not sure about rice or pasta.
That’s my average FreshDirect order, but we eat out fairly regularly as well — probably at least twice a week, sometimes more.
May 20th, 2007 at 7:41 pm
ah. maybe we are not so bad after all. we generally don’t eat out at all and only occasionally get take-out-normally under $20.
May 20th, 2007 at 7:52 pm
Come to think of it, for us to spend more than $20 on take-out is a rarity, too.
We usually spend less than $10, except for the local pizza place ($12 for a large, but that usually covers lunch the next day as well).
May 20th, 2007 at 8:59 pm
Are you “allowed” to use seasonings you already have, regardless of whether they’re local? Because stocking a spice rack could break the bank all at once (plus I don’t know where the salt mine nearest New York is). Maybe buy what you’d normally buy and sort of pro-rate the cost of stuff you use but already have for keeping track of costs?
May 20th, 2007 at 9:09 pm
I KNOW! See how hard this is?
I already ran into this exact dilemma when I was doling out some salt and pepper for the hard-boiled eggs I was putting in Dave’s lunch for tomorrow. I was like, “Shit. Pepper? Is this okay? How am I supposed to live in a world without pepper?“
May 20th, 2007 at 10:41 pm
I’ve been lurking quietly since following you over from Accidental Hedonist. But to ‘unlurk’ myself — Volume 35 of this podcast is an interview with two Canadians from up in BC who did (started?) the 100-Mile Diet. I haven’t read their book, but they do mention in the interview how they dealt with salt etc in their meals (short answer: they allowed themselves to use up whatever they already had in the house). Might be a useful perspective to support your ELCing.
May 21st, 2007 at 10:15 am
Thanks, Catherine. I’ll go have a listen this afternoon. Using up what I have in the house already makes far more sense than anything else I’ve heard (or thought up) so far.