On day one, I started off with boiled eggs and soldiers.The free range eggs were from a friend's farm about four miles away, and the bread was from Jessica, a local artisan baker who uses flour milled in Leicestershire. So a good start to the day....
For supper, I took out of the freezer a pasta sauce I made in the autumn using my homegrown tomatoes
(you can read the recipe on my other blog at www. thinkingofthedays.blogspot.com).
Now usually I would of course accompany this with some dried pasta, but that 's not an option now so I had a jacket potato and some of last year's homegrown peas which were also in the freezer. Unfortunately there's not many of those left so I'm going to have to start sowing peas earlier this year!
I completely forgot to preplan what I would have for lunch though. Luckily, a hunk of the same bread and some excellent Sparkenhoe Red Leicester cheese ( made in Market Bosworth and made from unpasteurised milk from their farm) did the trick.
So day one of the challenge was successful...at least eighty per cent of what I ate was grown or made locally. I did have two cups of coffee though and there was a third of a cup of red wine in the pasta sauce.Oh and I drank alot of tap water....
I was more prepared yesterday --and luckily as it was the first Thursday of the month..I popped down to the Farmers Market in Market Harborough.
I couldn't resist some Gloucester old spot sausages from March House farm in Great Dalby. Boy, did they hit the spot last night with mashed potatoes...and a lovely crisp January King cabbage, which I steamed and drizzled with a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar on top.
And yes I know, the balsamic vinegar isn't from Leicestershire....but that's why I 'm trying the eighty per cent local food challenge and not a one hundred per cent one! Day two a success and I felt I simply had to celebrate with a glass of merlot...from France.
Cheers my dears! But don't worry -this isn't going to be a day in, day out diary of exactly what I've eaten.. Coming up will be reasons why we should all be eating more local food....and I'll be telling you about a remarkable man from Fife who 's inspired thousands of people to really think about local food challenges.
Hi Bridget,
ReplyDeleteHope you're well :)
It's good to see more people eating locally. We've been 'going local' for our food shops for a few months now.
Meat from the local butchers is cheaper and a better quality than the supermarkets. And the farm shop is great for everything seasonal.
I can't say that we reach 80% as you are trying to, but it makes us feel better.
Plus it's so much nicer to put your money into local, than huge faceless corporations.
There is a definite feel good factor to all of this.
Laura W
Hi laura...good to hear from you! definitely agree with you about the meat, and I'm trying to avoid supermarkets for food shopping.Loo rolls and washing powder maybe!
DeleteAnd I agree about the feel good factor!
What an amazing and admirable challenge you've set for yourself. Although I buy quite a bit of local food and grow my own produce I think I'd struggle with not being able to eat some things. No Rice, Coconut milk, and CHOCOLATE would be devastating! ;)
ReplyDeleteHi Tanya...well it's going to be a challenge that's for sure. Rice , as you say, well that's a hard one.but with this 80 per cent local rule, (which is specifically to overturn the 80p per cent of food imported to the UK) it does give me some room for manoeuvre.
ReplyDeleteeg rice, wine, coffee and oh yes, the occasional bit of chocolate.If I tried to go for 100 per cent, I'd probably immediately fail!
This is an excellent idea in the summer but I suspect far harder in the winter. There's only so much winter greens any one person can digest. I'm intrigued to hear more about this remarkable man from Fife.
ReplyDelete