The Grocery Store Rebellion: Heres What We Ate During Week 2Daisy Luther Heres what we ate this week. Local items, including stuff from my garden, are marked with a star *. Freezer items are marked with an (F). Pantry items are marked with a (P). We went out to dinner one night, and some meals were repeated because we ate leftovers. Breakfasts Lunches Dinners Snacks Heres what I preserved this week You know how a break-up goes sometimes. You split, you get back together, you split, and then get back together again. I dont want to get back together with the grocery store. I want this to be a permanent break-up. A divorce. So, I am preserving lots of goodies right now, while they are inexpensive and plentiful, and this way we can enjoy them in the winter. Heres what I preserved this week: This week, we started getting local meat. Its pricier but a kabillion times better than storebought. One of the biggest differences, preparation-wise, is that you may not be able to get the cuts that you get from the grocery stores. Sometimes farmers dont just slice off the chicken breast and hand it to you you get the whole chicken. I also had to really hustle to get some stuff canned before it spoiled. I keep reminding myself that its a fair bit of work now, but meals later will be as easy as popping the lids off of jars. (If you are new to canning, start here for water bath canning and here for pressure canning.) Im saving up for my next purchase: a chest freezer. We are planning to buy a quarter of a cow and possibly half a pig. We are also networking with some people locally, and well be bartering our home-canned goods for other things. So, I have lots of access to peaches, and someone else has meat rabbits then we trade. Its win-win for everyone. Because I am processing so much food, Im splurging and getting a really nice blender/food processor combo. I just ordered this beautiful creation: As I mentioned above, we are attending a foraging class tomorrow. Im hoping that this will be a good way to supplement our food without increasing the bill. Ill be sure to let you know! Even if you arent jumping into the rebellion with both feet, did you use some things you harvested from your garden this week? If you ARE participatingin the rebellion, how did it go? Share the details in the comments below. In the morning we will have fresh local eggs and sliced home-grown tomatoes, on slices from a loaf of white wheat from the breadmaker. The wheat isnt local, but we are working on it. For years, we have relied on local sources for almost all of our food. And we never waste anything. Tonight we had some shrimp we were given (a rare treat, as we live in the Midwest). I saved the shells in the freezer to make a lovely shrimp stock later. I make the leftovers from one meal merge into the next, or they get frozen for later use. I think the most important thing to remember is to start wherever you can, as so much of this self-sufficiency attitude has been lost in our country. We had great success with making pear cider this year. Given the cost of beer and wine, it is easy to make your own. (hard work but easy process). I have decided to sadly take out and replace ornamental camellias, in order to plant more fruit trees. We didnt make enough vegetables to can, but perhaps next year. Now it is getting time for fall garden.Each time I buy groceries, I buy extra canned goods and water, for our just in case pantry. 