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.