Meal Planning- Weekly Menu

It's been about a week since I started our new cooking venture (mostly SOLE, trying some NT) and it's been both more simple and more difficult than I would have imagined. I hope to share much more detail over this week. Friday's menu planning went off this week- I didn't get the weekly circulars to plan, so I went into the store with only a basic idea of what I was going to be buying. I decided to switch my offline day to Saturday (yesterday, instead of today) because of local festivals. (though I'll be offline most of today too- hopefully the weather holds up and it stays nice out. This week I had (yet another!) great deal on natural grass-fed beef loin (3.99 lb.)

I'm going to start including some of my daily cooking tasks on this plan for each day
Sat B: soaked blender pancakes (recipe to come)
L: at festival- hot dogs (imagine the nitrates- yikes) with sauerkraut (store-bought, for sure)
D: grilled steaks (from loin), grilled zucchini and onions with garlic vinaigrette
tasks: prep produce from farmer's market, feed sourdough (started last week), pickle eggs

Sun: B: bacon (all natural, no nitrates), zucchini and carrot bread
L: pig roast- yummy!
D: salad w/ farmer's market ingredients (inc. huge basket of heirloom tomatoes), pickled eggs
tasks: sourdough, make pie crusts, grind flour, pickle green beans

M: steak quesadillas (loin) w/ homemade tortillas
tasks: sourdough, soak tortillas, make pies, ice cream, zucchini bread
T: meatloaf, mashed potatoes and gravy
tasks: sourdough, grocery shopping, start sprouted grains
W: smoked salmon, pickled veggies
tasks: start kombucha, make sourdough bread, brine salmon, dry grains
Th: pot roast w/ veggies
tasks: clean refrigerator, make tomato sauce, start pickles, dry grains
F: Cobb Salad
tasks: grind flour, start homemade flavored vinegars, soak flour for pancakes tomorrow

Depending on how my experiments work out, I hope to be sharing lots of recipes this week, and some ideas on non-smoker smoking on Wed. (did not work last week!) and on vinegars Friday.
Hopefully my sourdough comes out, I've never tried it before with an authentic recipe (no yeast) and am very excited about it. Leave a comment if you have any tips or questions for me.

SOLE Food Frugally

Since deciding to incorporate more SOLE food (Sustainable, Organic, Local, Ethical) in our cooking, I have struggled with the knowledge that it can be more expensive. Eating healthy can be cheaper than conventionally, especially when it means you're cutting out processed/ packaged *food.* However, making the change to good meats, fresh raw dairy products, and the like, can quickly break the bank unless you're careful. Here are some of my tips on how we are transitioning, with links to some great sites who know so much more than me!

1. Consider a local CSA for your produce, or even meats, dairy products, etc. If your area doesn't have CSAs, you might still be able to buy these foods straight from local farms, or at farmer's markets. Buying from the farms is not only local (obviously!) and more sustainable, but often much more frugal than trying to find these foods at a regular grocery store. Buying meat in bulk can really save money, and some farms offer plans where you pay a bit every month during the spring and summer for meat butchered in the fall.
2. Smart shopping- decide what is most important for your family, and splurge on these items (often meat and dairy.) Try to save money on other items, paying as little as possible and stocking up when you find a good price on an item (such as buying whole grain flours and baking supplies around Christmas and other baking seasons.) Also, try to buy local produce in season- it's not only cheaper, but it tastes better too.
3. DIY- make as many foods as you can at home. Baked goods are easy, and not too time-consuming once you are accustomed to them. Again, this will not just save money, but will also result in healthier foods for your family. If you don't already, definitely start gardening- there is nothing more fulfilling than cooking with vegetables that you grew yourself. This is a great way to bring kids on board.

How do you save money and still provide healthy food for your family?

I am happy to post this at Pennywise Platter Thursday- check it out for more great posts on frugal and fantastic healthy food!

This post is also at Food Renegade's Fight Back Friday- chock full of great posts on real food!

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SOLE and Traditional foods

SOLE food- Sustainable Organic Local Ethical
I want my food to be as close as possible to the source. I want my food to look how it did originally. Also important:
Traditional Food- food the way it used to be
"If your grandmother wouldn't recognize it- don't eat it!"
Butter, lard, bacon fat, yum yum!
Stay away from refined sugar/ starches, and get rid of the fake oils and such. Eat

REAL FOOD!

Weekly Menu Planning

This week will begin a concentrated effort towards my new philosophy: SOLE food
(Sustainable, Organic, Local, Ethical) see this post for more on my changes.
This week's menu is based around natural beef tenderloin, and local produce including squash, beans, corn, and heirloom tomatoes (so yummy).

Sat B: Scrambled eggs, home fries
L: BLT's
D: BBQ at a friend's house- I'm bringing my panzanella

Sun B: buttermilk oatmeal muffins- recipe tomorrow!
L: turkey corn soup
D:grilled steaks and zucchini

Mon: crock pot meal "Pot Roast"
Tues: Cobb Salad reinvented- recipe
Wed: Beef and Vegetable Shish Kabobs
Thurs: Clean out Refrigerator day - "Burgundy Beef"- beef, mushrooms, onions and wine gravy
Fri: Meatless Day- Homemade Smoked Salmon, green bean salad and grilled tomatoes

This is only a baby step to my goal of SOLE eating. Local and organic is the most difficult for me, but I am trying to incorporate this as best I can. Please join me this next week as I share why I started this new journey, and how I will fit it into my life (on the time restraints and economical challenges of eating SOLE.) I will be addressing this in some of my upcoming posts.
Be sure to come back tomorrow and Tuesday for recipes, and on Friday for my "smoking without a smoker" post.

I am happy to link to Fight Back Fridays on Food Renegrade for the first time. Visit this site for lots of great posts and information!
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