In thinking about what to share on this blog, and my ongoing efforts to find income related to food, I will share some of my random thoughts from recent experiences.
I found a YouTube page called Living On A Dime To Get Rich (link below) because of one video I wanted to watch. Then there were free offers to get on the email list. Then the emails. And here I am... thinking about survival foods again.
Cheap foods are really just made with less.
I use to make anything with ground beef by using less than was normally required... instead of one pound, I sometimes used 1/4 pound. I figured the flavor and nutrients would be a benefit even if it wasn't a large amount. This was mostly in dishes like Spanish Rice a Roni made into a one pan dish... adding corn and hamburger, cheese on top if we had it. I still love that meal, but now I am trying to learn how to make Spanish Rice from scratch.
Meat is a costly item in poverty households. Living without it was a source of misery then, now I want to live on more fruits and vegetables, trying to go fully organic because of the dangers of GMO foods, and reducing my portions as often as I can. Looking back, it was a good thing to be poor in that respect (eating less meat). :-)
The freebie I signed up for was a PDF with 22 Dinners you can make in 22 Minutes... so, when I looked at the recipes, they are simple meals using one main meat source. Their family is larger than mine was, and I could never afford some of the meats they shared recipes for. I guess we mostly ate ground beef and maybe hot dogs back then... it's hard to remember right now.
So, living on less is really a relative statement.
In countries with intense poverty, life is much different. I cringe every time I see people getting their food from the dumps. I even saw a photo where elephants searched for food in dumps. This is not good.
I like having more meals with rice and veggies, but I end up with pasta as the main go-to ingredient when I am at the end of my food. I am working on some better pasta recipes for one these days... smaller portions... less ingredients.
I am really trying to find the right amount of variety each MONTH, which is my budget cycle for food. That means using rice, pasta, breads, and other grains in varied meals with mostly veggies and fruit. I discovered the food movie Forks Over Knives and work to limit my meats and dairy. I don't plan to live without them, but I am trying to reduce my intake. It is hard with dairy for me... I love my cheeses.
In my search for better foods and recipes, I am beginning to discover things I never knew were possible in food options. It's so sad that I am heading into the grave instead of looking toward a long life. Why does it take so long!?!?
If you can start now, you will be ready for any future problems that don't destroy your supplies.
Here are a couple links to check out this low-cost food living effort ::
https://youtu.be/mE9IxAmk8gg -- short video on stocking a year's worth of food for unknown emergencies in the future.
With the economy an unknown, anything you can save ahead will be a benefit.
My idea of stocking up for a year is more ongoing. I would like to build up to a year's food but go through my supplies at the end of every year to make sure I give any food that is soon going to expire to the local homeless missions and food pantries. Then in January I want to build my food reserves back up to the limit I can.
In the video I shared a link for, and in other prepping videos you can find on YouTube, storage is the critical issue. I don't have that kind of space. I am rebuilding my reserves after depleting them to see how long they might last (twice!) and hope to get to a better JANUARY supply.
In restaurants and other food businesses, the rule is "first in, first out" to make sure you use the oldest food first. This takes a storage plan! :-)
One thing I really missed in the shopping struggle this year was yeast. It went away and didn't come back for months. I was amazed. It made me wonder how yeast is made! :-) I am stocking up on yeast now.
So, this became a nice post! :-) Hope you liked it. Let me know in the comments.
In Christ,
Deborah Martin
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