Downtown
September 3, 2015
Downtown
September 2, 2015
Wall sits for days.
What To Do With A Box Of Vegetables: Brooklyn Beet CSA Box 7
Whoo hoo! It’s CSA time again! Time to shrug off winter’s recipe rut and reign spring’s exuberance with bi-monthly boxes of vegetables (and hopefully meat).
This year’s CSA is from Brooklyn Beet CSA. Brooklyn Beet provides veggie shares from Angel Family Farm, a sustainable farm located in Orange County, NY that was created with the support of GrowNYC’s New Farmer Development Project; fruit shares from Hepworth Family Farm, a 250-acre NOFA-certified seventh-generation family farm in Milton, NY; baked goods from Wild Mountain Bread based in Brooklyn; and a wide variety of grass-fed beef, pasture raised pork, and other products (like other meats, cheeses, bread, flour, grains, lax-fermented vegetables, pastas and other pantry goods) from Lewis Waite Farm, which sources from over 35 local family farms.
I purchased a half share, and will be getting a box containing 6-8 vegetables (about 2 bags worth) every other week from June – October (11 shares), and plan on ordering a carnivore share box from Lewis Waite (4-6 lbs. of meat) for pickup each veggie week. I also purchased a “Challenger Share” for the season (6 deliveries total) containing odd bits like animal fats, organ meats, neck bones, shanks, and rendered lard to stretch my culinary skills. The price of my CSA averages out to $25.50 per share for veggies, plus an additional $45 per pickup week for meat/offal. This total will be accounted for in my weekly Adventures In Budget Paleo Cooking posts.
You would think by now that I’d be used to flying blind when it comes to CSA season, since they rarely seem to post previews of upcoming shares, but I’m not. At least not going into this first week. Pickup this year is on Tuesday, so it looks like another summer of alltheveggies for half a week & utilizing the stragglers before they go bad on Mondays and Tuesdays. Such is the life of a CSA devotee. Boom and bust every week (or every other week, in my case).
Brooklyn Beets 2015 CSA Box 7
2 lbs. onions
2 lbs. roma tomatoes
5 cucumbers
5 ears corn
1 bunch stevia
1 bunch lemongrass
1 huge eggplant
1 head lettuce
Lewis Waite Meat Share Box 6
1 lb. ground pork
No nitrate pork shoulder bacon
Lamb blade chops
Chicken legs
The tiniest beef eye round steak
How I Used My Share
I ate last share’s second cabbage half shredded in lunch salads with cucumber and leftover meat.
I served two ears of the corn plain cob-style with burgers, alongside some tomato.
I made a quick stir-fry of the ground pork, some leftover green pepper, carrots and celery.
I braised the chicken legs in some stock with 1 ear corn, sweet potatoes and celery.
I broiled the lamb chops and the rest of the corn.
The stevia dried up while I was thinking of something to do with it.
The lettuce went bad.
I tossed a bunch of tomatoes out.
I tossed half an onion in most things I made.
I’ve been steadily eating tomatoes with whatever I make for lunch.
Leftovers: Lamb kidneys, lamb riblets, shoulder bacon, tiny steak, cucumbers, lemongrass, some onions
My Favorite Dish From This Box
This week, my favorite was probably the braised chicken. That turned out really well and was a big hit.
September 1, 2015
Old, new, newer & newest.
August 31, 2015
On Mondays, we ruck.
Adventures In Budget Paleo Cooking – Week of August 24 – 30
This Week’s Menu
Monday
Breakfast: Green smoothie
Lunch: Leftover innards from last week’s stuffed zucchini
Dinner: Crock pot paleo butter chicken
Tuesday
Breakfast: Green smoothie
Lunch: Leftover pulled pork with peaches, kimchee and broccoli slaw
Dinner: Eggplant and beef meatballs
Wednesday
Breakfast: Green smoothie
Lunch: Leftover pulled pork with peaches & kimchee
Dinner: Kielbasa with Instant Pot pork broth, potatoes & cabbage
Thursday
Breakfast: Green smoothie
Lunch: Leftover balsamic beef with peaches and cabbage
Dinner: Beet & cherry gazpacho with avocado + london broil
Friday
Breakfast: Green smoothie
Lunch: Leftover balsamic beef with peaches and cabbage
Dinner: Out
Sunday
Breakfast: Out
Lunch: Out
Dinner: Out
This Week’s Grocery List
Sheep romano cheese ($5.39 @ Whole Foods)
Tomato paste ($0.99 @ Whole Foods)
Grass fed ground beef ($7.49 @ Whole Foods)
Celery ($2.99 @ Whole Foods)
Frozen cherries ($4.99 @ Whole Foods)
2 onions ($1.50 @ Whole Foods)
2 bulbs garlic ($1.05 @ Whole Foods)
1 avocado ($1.25 @ Whole Foods)
Parsley ($1.99 @ Whole Foods)
Coconut milk ($2.79 @ Whole Foods)
Smoothie Supplies
Coconut water (~$4 @ Brooklyn Fare)
5 Apples ($5.05 @ Whole Foods)
5 limes ($3.75 @ Whole Foods)
4 Avocados ($5.00 @ Whole Foods)
Bagged kale ($3.99 @ Whole Foods)
Bagged spinach ($2.99 @ Whole Foods)
Impulse Items
Smoked pork hocks ($2.07 @ Whole Foods)
Totals
Whole Foods: $54.01
Brooklyn Fare: $~4
Overage from last week: $13.65
Budget Breakout
This week, I spent $71.65; $29.35 under budget. Yay, budgetary wiggle room! This week, I kept the impulse buying to a minimum and had enough meat from my CSA (plus extras from last week) to carry me through.
Leftovers From This Week
At the end of the week, I have lamb riblets for stock, 1 green pepper, a few carrots and a jalapeño left over. I need to incorporate these items into my menu for next week.
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Think eating healthfully is too expensive for you? Think again. According to the USDA, to ensure a nutritious diet as of December 2014, a family of two aged 19-59 years should spend between $388.90 and $776.10 on food per month, or $89.80 – $179.30 per week. Source
For my family of two adults, I spend roughly $400 a month on groceries or $100 a week – and we eat well. Not caviar and lobster well, but I do manage to serve a predominately paleo diet with little to no processed foods, and I get to throw in a few luxuries here and there (like expensive snacks for the hubbs and the occasional ridiculously expensive bag of coffee). We even manage to buy “good” meat (grass fed beef and free-range chicken) most of the time – and I make this budget work even on the weeks we pay for convenience by getting delivery groceries. I make: 10 breakfasts, 5 lunches, and 10 dinners a week – plus enough snacks to satisfy and fuel two active adults.
I’m hoping that this series will help shed a little light on the day-to-day things a “paleo” person really eats — and how that way of eating can work on a budget. I want to nudge anyone sitting on the fence right over the edge by showing that it *can* be done and that you don’t just eat meat, meat, meat and more meat.
August 30, 2015
Red Hook
August 29, 2015
Well, my day was great.
Climed some things, talked to some really great local clothing manufacturing guys, stretched my comfort zones, and walked a bunch. #winning
Paleo Slow Cooker Butter Poultry
This is a paleo-fied version of one of my DH and my favorite Indian takeout treats. This version uses everyone’s favorite weeknight dinner helper to make an almost hands-free dish that can be ready when you are.
Gluten-free, paleo, Whole30 if you source your coconut milk and tomato paste well
Paleo Slow Cooker Butter Poultry
Based on Slow Cooker Butter Chicken Sliders by Kiwi & Bean
1 lb. poultry – I used boneless, skinless turkey breast
2.5 Tbsp. FOC (fat of choice)
1 large onion
4 cloves garlic
1/5 – 2 inches fresh ginger
1 Tbsp. garam masala
1 Tbsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. ground turmeric
Spice – I used a slight dust of ghost chili powder, the recipe calls for 1/2 – 1 tsp. cayenne
15 ounce can coconut milk – I used light, because that’s what was on hand
4-5 ounce can tomato paste
Kosher salt & black pepper
Something to serve with or on – I ate mine over chopped cucumber, the DH had a sandwich, cauli rice or zoodles would also be great
Heat the fat in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Chop the onion and add to the pan when hot. Chop the garlic and add. Peel and dice the ginger and add. Hit with a couple big pinches salt and a few grinds black pepper.
Cook until the onion is browned. It would be awesome if you waited until the onion was caramelized, but I have zero patience for all that.
While your aromatics are working, add your poultry to your slow cooker.
When your onion is caramelized or you can’t wait any longer, add the spices and cook, stirring, until the spices bloom and become fragrant.
Add the coconut milk and tomato paste. Stir to combine and break up any clumps and bring to a boil.
Dump into the slow cooker. Cook on High 6 hours.
When done, shred the poultry and toss well to coat in sauce. Taste and season more if needed.
Serves 2 – 4 depending upon your delivery vehicle
August 28, 2015
Gowanus
Gastography 