Friday, January 2, 2009

Is it possible to eat green on the cheap?


I love food and the people who make it. I live in Portland, Oregon, a foodie mecca where people are more than willing to pay a premium for fresh, local and organic foods. I heart organic too, but when you're on a budget, it's not about love - it's about feeding your family well without spending your rent money.

At one point a few years ago, when my husband was in school and I was managing my first campaign, we spent about $50 bucks a week on food for ourselves and our baby girl. I breastfed for two years, saving the cost of formula, but trips to the grocery store were stressful, panic inducing experiences. Forget a leisurely stroll down the supermarket aisle. Every item that went in my basket increased my paralyzing anxiety. Natural dish soap or organic milk?
Cage-free eggs? (going to heaven) Or regular eggs? (definitely burning in hell)

I would watch with envy as parents in front of me piled their purchases on the conveyor belt, building beautiful, towering piles of organic vegetables, milk, gourmet cheese and meats. They all swiped their debit cards without a care in the world, while I stood white-knuckling the shopping cart, hoping I had added up my list properly and wasn't in danger of over-drawing my account.

Luckily, my current position pays well and I'm often one of those carefree shoppers at the supermarket. But I haven't forgotten what it was like to want the best food for my family and not know if I could afford it. Not only have I not forgotten, the dearth of blogs and books and cooking shows using ingredients the average family can afford makes me angry. Revolution angry. We the People angry. So to all you wonderful parents and singles out there who want to eat well on a tight budget, this blog is for you. I'll share my tricks and recipes for eating green on the cheap and you let me know what you think.

No comments:

Post a Comment