Day 28 - End of February Dollar a Day Challenge

I did it! I finished the project out with a very tasty vegetarian potluck, and a mug of mint and ginger tea from partner Otto.
A whole month for under a dollar a day. My total food expenses were $18.96, which works out to almost 68 cents a day. When the costs of the garden are included, it works out to 85 cents a day. I could have gone lower if I had opted for less variety. I really enjoyed the cheese and the Italian sausage, but I did have enough home-grown beans and other protein foods to replace them.
I have purchased food left over: a couple of pounds of potatoes, a cup or more of raisins, a cup of rolled oats, over 2 pounds of salt, a few very small oranges, over two sticks of butter, and two eggs.
I have also put up a small container of celery leaves, 2 quarts of dehydrated leeks, and about 2 ounces of dried parsley.
Tomorrow I won't think about what I eat, or where my food comes from, or keep track of any of it.
I will still continue to keep track of the productivity and costs of the garden. I estimate that the value of the produce harvested for February to be $170. It was higher than I expected, mostly because I found more takers for all the collards.
What's next? I am going to eat down the freezer, so that there is new room for the spring and summer produce. There is a bundle of bean soups I threw in there right before the February challenge, some mixed foods like applesauce with cinnamon, a turkey I bought on sale right after Thanksgiving, and a ham I bought right after Christmas. I'll pull out my expensive local olive oil and start making collard chips in the dehydrator.

Day 28 - A day at the Market

What a difference a day makes! The weather was beautiful, so after the usual breakfast (made with broccoli instead of kale or chard) I headed off to the farmer's market. The walk was wonderful, and many other families had the same idea. The market sidelines were full of Dads with strollers and large dogs, and the accumulated purchases. A couple of booths featuring vegetables were mobbed with customers.
I sampled plenty of fruit: strawberries, tangerines, pears and apples, and a bit of cucumber. I felt pretty full after shopping only a couple of rows. I purchased some Pink Lady apples and some dried persimmons (for tomorrow!) and then stopped by a few other stores on the way home. My basket felt pretty heavy by the time I arrived home.
For lunch, I enjoyed some ginger and regular tea from partner Otto, the rest of the vegetable soup, another huge plate of greens cooked with the rest of the sausage, dehydrated apples, raisins and the final chunk of cheese.
This afternoon, I will assemble a beet salad for the potluck, with Detroggia beets, freckles romaine lettuce, corn salad, and blood oranges from partner Danielle.

Day 27 - Winter is back!

I really wanted to sleep longer on one of the rainiest, coldest days of this year, but I had an event to attend early.
For breakfast, I had a potato with cheese and butter. I finished off the rest of the banana. I didn't have enough time for the greens.
For lunch, I had a huge plate of greens (mostly collards) cooked with some of the left-over sausage and a bowl of the vegetable soup with turkey. I ate some dehydrated apples from partner Colin, some raisins, and a mug of ginger tea from partner Otto.
For an afternoon snack, I had some crackers from partner Lisa, lettuce, a small orange, yogurt from partner Alex and a small bag of M&M's and a fun-sized Heath bar from partner Vince.
For dinner, we went out with friends. In the evening I enjoyed a cup of apple cinnamon tea from partner Igor.
I did not spend any money on food today, except for dinner out, of course. I have $3.48 left in the food bank.

Day 26 - SlugFest

This evening, there was a real slugfest in the kitchen sink, as what seemed like thousands of baby slugs crawled out of the lettuce heads and into all corners of the kitchen. So, this is why I am writing today's post on tomorrow.
I got to the garden plenty early this morning, just in case the rain got here a bit earlier than predicted. I picked several large Detroggia beets for a Sunday potluck.
Home by 9:30, I didn't really know what to do with all that time. Egged on by Detroggia beet success, I planted three more bins of beets out on the patio. They weren't Detroggia, I decided to plant more Bull's Blood. This variety just goes so slowly in the winter, so this is their time, I am hoping. I also tried some more Dino kale, although the seeds are pretty old. Everything is safely under glass window panes before the rain and the new cold.
For a late breakfast, I had the usual potato dish, with ginger and mint tea from partner Otto. After I popped it out of the microwave, a trading partner called, and we gabbed for awhile (cause I never hang up on a trading partner!!) and 20 minutes later the potatoes were still hot.
For lunch, I enjoyed a bowl of the vegetable soup, an orange, potatoes with sauerkraut, parsley and mustard seed, apple slices, peas, Detroggia beets and lettuce.
For an afternoon snack, I had some yogurt from partner Alex, and went off to do some shopping. I had some coffee and a piece of sandwich wrap at Trader Joe's and some coffee, mac and cheese, and some potato thing at Fresh and Easy. I splurged on a package of Italian sausage, for $2.46!
For dinner, I enjoyed the Italian sausage with more soup, apples from partner Colin, raisins, almonds from partner Igor, and cake from partner Arlene.
I am still full from dinner, and I am enjoying a cup of ginger and mint tea from partner Otto.
I have 2.65 left in the food bank, and only two more days to go!

Day 25 - Getting ready for More Rain

Today I spent much time at the community garden, and I was able to completely surround one garden with hardware cloth.
I spent the morning coiffuring the fiber animals and washed a couple of hanks of yarn.
For breakfast I had the usual potato, greens cooked in butter, egg, cheese but NO toast, tea from partner Otto. The bread is mostly gone now, though there is a little bit in the freezer.
I snacked on peas in the garden.
For lunch, I had a green drink made with a limequat from partner Colin, celery and kale. I also had a tangerine from partner Earl, half a banana, some fresh peas, granola, dehydrated apple slices, raisins and cake from partner Arlene.
For dinner, I had a large bowl of soup made with turkey from partner Cindy, rice from partner Matthew, carrots from partners Earl and Gaston, a turnip from partner Colin, fresh winter squash, leeks, celery, fennel, kale, beet greens, parsley from the garden, dried garden zucchini, dried garden peas, Jack in the Beanstalk beans, dehydrated vegetables from partner Harvey, pepper from partner Ophelia and salt.
Like day 24, I spent no money on food. I have $5.09 left in the food bank.

Day 24 - More Rain

I waited for the rain, but it never really came down all that hard, and then I decided that it was enough so that I didn't have to travel to the community garden. I fiddled around in the backyard instead. I monitored the cats while they loaded up on local grasses so they could have even better barf once they came inside.
For breakfast, I ate the usual potato, egg, cheese, greens (cooked in butter), toast and tea from partner Sean. I think I also set a record for the number of cups of tea made out of the same teabag.
For a morning snack, I enjoyed a taste of sauerkraut, some roasted squash seeds and a cup of the pea soup.
For lunch, I ate the rest of the vegetable soup with turkey, some newly-made granola (with cardamom from partner Matthew) and a grilled cheese sandwich.
For an afternoon snack I stopped by Trader Joe's and had a bit of salad, some tomato-ey pasta and a small cup of coffee.
For dinner, partner Tammy fed me. Lots of shrimp, raw carrots, cold-cut sandwiches with herbed mayo and some wonderfully warm decaf coffee with hazelnut creamer.
In the evening, I snacked on dehydrated apple slices, raisins and the last of the squash seeds, at least until I boot up another squash.

Day 23 - More Potatoes! and Celery

I have settled into the same old breakfast potato dish with greens, only it's not just for breakfast anymore. I don't ever really tire of it, but I am probably using more butter than I need to.
For breakfast, I had rice from partner Matthew, with garden veggies, cheese and butter. I made a cup of tea from partner Sean, and saved the bag for later.
For a morning snack, I had a small potato with butter and some home-grown toasted squash seeds.
For lunch I had a cup of the pea soup, tea from partner Sean, lime juice from partner Colin, an orange, and a tangerine from partner Jose.
For dinner I had ANOTHER potato with cheese, greens and an egg, butternut squash with the last of the tikka masala sauce from partner Karl, raisins, toast from partner Arlene and dehydrated apples from partner Colin.
For an evening snack, I had more toast, an orange and almonds from partner Igor.
In the evening, I cooked up a storm, processing several batches of vegetable broth from celery and leek tops. I cooked a couple of big chunks of butternut squash and made a soup base out of pureed squash, leeks, celery and fennel bulb. I will freeze this for summer use. I don't usually freeze much celery, but when it is blended with the other ingredients it seems to keep better. I harvest very little fresh celery for eating after May. Seems weird right now that there will ever be a time when I am not eating it constantly.
The pots in the backyard are filled with celery seedlings, and after the recent rains there will be even more seedlings to come. I transplant a few of them for friends and trading partners, and many will get to go to seed, and start the crazy process all over again.
The leeks and parsley are in the dehydrator.

Day 22 - Eating up What's Left

For breakfast I had a potato with dressing from partner Lisa. Good stuff! I also had a protein shake from partner Igor, raisins, tea from partner Otto and toast.
For lunch I had a large garden-fresh salad with lettuce, sliced Detroit dark red beets, radishes, peas, a tangerine from partner Jose, an orange, and cake from partner Arlene.
For an afternoon snack, I had lychee jelly from partner Lisa, raisins, vegetable broth with salt, and roasted home-grown squash seeds.
For dinner, I ate another potato with egg, cheese and greens, broccoli, and a cookie from trader Rena.
In the evening, I ate more raisins and dehydrated apple slices from partner Colin.
I made pea soup today, with split peas from partner Matthew, ham from partner Shary, pepper from partner Ophelia, thyme from partner Tomas, and tons of home-grown celery, leek and fennel, with garlic, habanero pepper and salt.
I did not spend any money on food today, so I have $1.77 in the food bank.

Day 21 - Eating Other People's Food

After today, I have only one week left. I am not bored with the food, or have too little of it, but I am worn out by trying to write it all down. Today's potlucks made things a bit easier. Not much cooking, just bringing fresh veggies from the garden, which were a huge hit at both events and kept me from having to lug home leftovers.
For breakfast, I had coffee from partner Irene, and a potato topped with an egg, cheese and greens cooked in butter, with salt and pepper.
For lunch, I went to a mini-potluck, and enjoyed fruit salad, hummus, lemonade, dried cranberries and vegetable chips.
After lunch, I stopped by Trader Joe's and had some coffee and a piece of muffin. (I shopped only for family food items this time.) I stopped by Fresh and Easy, but they didn't make it easy for me. They are always out of the sale meats when I am there, and won't give explanations or rainchecks. I did enjoy another cup of coffee there while I bought some other vegetables for my family.
For dinner, I went to another vegetarian potluck, featuring cheddar cheese, deviled eggs, bread, cabbage salad, eggplant casserole, chai tea, chocolate cake, apple streudel, cinnamon balls and water with lemon.
For an evening snack, I sampled some really great fried sweet potatoes in chipotle ranch dressing from partner Lisa.

Day 20 - Shopping spree

With only a week or so to go on the challenge, I am coming to the end with money to spare. I will have a couple of potlucks and special events, which always add to variety.
For breakfast, I had some decaf coffee from partner Irene, lettuce, dried apples from partner Colin, and granola.
I enjoyed some coffee, yogurt and some fruit jam at Trader Joe's. I stopped by the stores as soon as they opened, and I bought a large chunk of cheese, a bag of raisins, a banana and a package of California butter. I also snacked on some snow peas at the garden.
For lunch, I ate a grilled cheese sandwich, wheat berries with raisins and honey, a taste of sauerkraut, cake from partner Arlene, a huge plate of steamed broccoli and snow peas, and a tangerine from partner Earl.
For dinner I enjoyed the vegetable soup with turkey from partner Cindy, some toast and butter, and some beets fresh from the garden.
For an evening snack, I had granola and raisins.
My extensive food purchases totalled $9.68, leaving me with 11 cents in the food bank.
I am really getting sick of lettuce!

Day 19

Still on the road, I enjoyed a hearty breakfast of eggs, turkey sausage, sweet potatoes, a banana, a tangerine and coffee, all from trader Jose. But, I really worked off all that food throughout the morning with a combination of walking and hard labor.
For lunch I had half a chicken sandwich, potato chips, artichoke salad, cucumber and carrot salad, a diet Coke and some coffee, all from trader Jose.
For an afternoon snack I ate a part of a fish sandwich, a tangerine and a banana and some decaf coffee all from partner Jose.
For dinner I had the squash soup, toast with butter, cake from partner Arlene, a taste of sauerkraut and toasted squash seeds.
I had dehydrated apple slices from trader Colin for an evening snack.
I purchased some oranges for 25 cents, leaving $8.96 in the food bank.

Day 18

I am still on the road, and working hard!
For breakfast, I ate a banana and tangerine from partner Jose, and an orange from partner Danielle.
I was starving by the time the morning coffee break came around. I enjoyed a piece of cake and a mug of coffee from partner Irene.
For lunch I ate an Italian-style chicken pasta dish from partner Jose.
For dinner I had some turkey, salmon, sweet potatoes, salad, ice cream and coffee from partner Jose.
I saved up all my 83-cent allotment for today. There is $8.38 in the food bank.

Day 17 - Another Road Trip

I started off very early on the road again, so I didn't eat too much for breakfast, just a bit of toast from partner Arlene, butter, greens and a protein shake from partner Igor.
I stopped by partner Arlene's, and was served a nice morning snack of coffee with cream and sugar with a large bran muffin. Pumped up with all that sugar and caffeine, I headed down the road again.
For lunch, I was served a plate of fresh vegetables, falafel, coffee and Diet coke, all from partner Jose.
For dinner, partner Jose served fish, game hen, salad (with a heaping serving of carrot/raisin salad!), sunflower seeds, cooked carrots, coffee and a taste of warm apple cobbler topped with whipped cream.
Once I got out of the car, I worked hard, especially walking, so it was nice to have these meals.
I spent no money on food today, so there is $7.55 in the food bank.

Day 16 - Project Recap

I spent no money on food today, so I have $6.72 left in the food bank.
I have been able to keep my food expenses low by relying on my garden and my trading partners.
I did purchase a few items, but the surprising part about this challenge is how much of the purchased food I still have left, with less than halfway to go and lots of money to spend if I need it. Here's what I still have:
6 lb. potatoes
over 2 lb. salt (this is LOTS of salt!)
8 eggs
1/2 stick butter
1 lb. oats, minus a handful

Day 16 - No Carrots

I went looking for my container of carrots from trader Gaston and found that someone else had eaten all of them. Dang! I really wanted something different today.
I was too busy to shop today. I spent over three hours in the garden, tearing down some old fencing and putting up new metal mesh fencing. I worked until the staples ran out in the staple gun, about a third of the way through the project.
I picked a ton of greens to take with me on a trip, and spent much time washing, trimming and pulling off slugs. The fridge is bursting with vegetables.
For breakfast I had the last of the coffee from partner Irene, and a protein shake from partner Igor.
For lunch, I ate MORE french toast with honey, lettuce and potato salad.
For an afternoon snack I ate a tangerine from partner Earl. After working in the garden, I sat down with a large container of tea from partner Otto and lime from partner Colin.
For dinner I made stuffing with bread from partner Arlene, turkey from partner Cindy, leeks, celery, sage, salt, thyme from partner Philippe, and black pepper from partner Ophelia.
For an evening snack I had a cup of the squash soup, garden pumpkin seeds, lettuce, corn salad, and a taste of sauerkraut. I decided to put some dried shiso leaves into the crock, to see if they would lend more color to the batch. By the end of the day, much color had been added, and I fished the shiso leaves out and ate them. They tasted wonderful, but they could have been left in longer. (They were a bit too chewy.) I lined the crock with a new layer of shiso leaves and put the kraut to sleep for the evening. Shiso leaves have a cinnamon-like taste, and the only cinnamon flavor I have enjoyed since the start of this February challenge

Day 15 - Too busy to Cook

I have been on the run since the weather turned for the better and I realized that I had better get the garden prepared if I wanted any summer food at all. Can't live on dehydrated parsley and leeks forever.
For breakfast I had coffee from partner Irene, toast from partner Arlene, almond milk from partner Igor and garden greens with some butter.
In the morning, I snacked on snow peas and broccoli at the garden.
For lunch, I had a protein shake from partner Igor.
For a snack, I ate raisins, cookies, orange juice and cheese crackers, all from partner Nate.
For dinner, I finished the second batch of vegetable soup with turkey from partner Cindy, toast from partner Arlene, butter, broccoli, lettuce, beets and corn salad.
For an evening snack, I had a few almonds from partner Igor and some lime juice with limes from partner Colin.
I made a batch of squash soup with almonds from partner Igor, celery, leeks, vegetable broth, salt, coriander and black pepper from partner Ophelia. This will be for Monday.
Trading partner Ophelia has also been decluttering yard and garden supplies and the trades will really help to keep my garden expenses low for the coming year and beyond.

Day 14 - Halfway point

After today, I am halfway finished with this food challenge. After a sort of boring couple of days, I was able to round out my scrounged menu with some of the luxury foods, like butter. Eventually, the crazy abundance of my community kicked in and I don't think I will have to buy anything for the next week, unless I get bored with what I already have. I have been churning through the butter faster than I had planned. Perhaps I will go a bit more lightly when the bread runs out.
For breakfast I had the usual eggs and greens cooked in butter, with some toast from partner Arlene and coffee from partner Irene.
For lunch, I finished up the bean soup, ate a large plate of steamed broccoli and peas (some of the peas were from partner Colin), mini bagels with butter, lime (also from partner Colin) and grape juice.
For a snack I had more french toast and honey. I am not really all that into french toast as it seems, but I do have an abundance of eggs and bread and it is really easy to make. I spent several hours today working in all my gardens, getting ready for spring and don't have much time, or the inclination to spend it, in the kitchen.
For dinner, I ate a bowl of vegetable soup with turkey from partner Cindy, and the final bit of rice from partner Matthew. I also ate more apple slices from Colin, an almond cookie from partner Lisa, garden lettuce and another mug of coffee from partner Irene. The coffee is starting to taste a bit old, but as long as the caffeine still is there, I'll keep drinking it. I would put some into the freezer if it wasn't full of squash.
Over the weekend I harvested many leeks and now have two trays of them in the dehydrator, along with another batch of parsley. So far I have "made" about an ounce of chopped and dried parsley flakes, and of course, the head of cabbage slowly being turned into sauerkraut.
I did not buy any food today, and so have $5.06 left over.
In the first two weeks, I spent a total of $6.56 for food. Combined with the cost of the garden, it works out to an average of 63 cents a day.

Day 13 - Spring is Here!

I ate a substantial breakfast before a date with another trading partner involving lots of walking. I had eggs, greens, toast from partner Arlene, butter, and coffee from partner Irene.
I had a late-morning snack of french toast with honey from partner Alex and a tangerine from partner Earl.
For lunch I finished up the chayote squash dish, and had some mini bagels and apple slices.
For an afternoon snack I had 1/2 banana, and another cup of coffee from partner Irene, with a dab of honey and some Detroggia beets.
I have to take back all the bad things I said about the Detroggia beets! Despite their shape and lack of a white ring, when I cooked them in the pressure cooker, all the water was yellow. When I sliced the beets, I discovered that the insides were strawberry red and gold striped, with all the wonderful flavor of a chioggia. I can't wait to show these off at the next locavore potluck, I'll be the best little food snob.
We went out to eat with friends for dinner. I also had a calcium pill from partner Igor.
I did not spend any money for food today, and so have $4.23 left over. This is almost enough to buy a package of raisins at Whole Foods.

Day 12 - Back to my old favorites

I made another baking dish full of chayote squash (from partner Julia) and tikka masala from partner Karl. I also had a mug of coffee from partner Irene and a taste of my new batch of sauerkraut. While I was away, the kraut started to turn nice and pink from a baby head of purple cabbage from partner Richard. It looked pretty sad before, but now that the acidity is higher, the color is much better. The juice looks like a nice blush wine.
For a snack I had some mini-bagels with margarine and a mug of coffee with half-n-half, all from partner Arlene. I also got some bread from Arlene.
For lunch I had french toast made with the bread from partner Arlene, an egg and some butter. I also had a huge plate of steamed broccoli and peas from the garden, some cookies from partner Arlene and some lime juice.
For an afternoon snack I had toast and butter, and more of the squash with tikka masala.
For dinner, I had a bowl of the vegetable soup made earlier in the week, rice from partner Matthew, 1/2 of the banana and some turkey from partner Cindy and a handful of dehydrated apples from partner Colin.
I didn't spend any money for food, so I have $3.40 in the "food bank".

Day 11

I was busy today with many projects, and I was able to grab food here and there along the way. Really good food.
For breakfast, I enjoyed the last of the sandwiches from partner Lee. I had a mid-morning snack of apple pie, cheese and coffee from partner Irene.
During lunch, I ate ground turkey, chicken, mixed salad, cheese, corn chips, guacamole, salsa, sour cream and a diet Coke from partner Jose.
In the afternoon, I had a taste of coffee from partner Maria.
For dinner I had lasagna, summer squash and a diet Coke from partner Jose. Partner Irene gave me a huge pot of coffee for my trip home and beyond.
It would have been pointless to purchase any more food today. I have $2.57 left.