Fresh Produce Co-op Haul

Do you like fresh produce?  

Have you noticed how expensive it is?  Have you wondered how long it has taken for the produce to get from the farm to the store then to your table?  I have.  I have noticed that when I purchase produce from a grocery store that I really need to prepare that produce right away or it will be spoiled within the day, even when I store it in the refrigerator.

Almost 2 (two) years ago, we were invited to join a neighborhood co-op.  March - November we have bi-monthly baskets and it is $15.  December - February we get only 1 (one) basket and it is $20. For us, a family of 3, it is gracious a plenty.  Often times, more than what we need.  I rarely supplement from the store.  And only for $15!!!  It really helps me to stretch my $$ further and keeps me from overbuying.

A Local Co-op Provides a Variety of Seasonal Produce

There are different types of co-ops.  Some incorporated and run like a business such as a farm or a grocery store.  And there are others that are unincorporated being run by churches, community organization or, like ours, a handful or neighbors.  Some of these co-ops are organic and some are not.  Organic co-ops are always going to be more expensive because organics, even locally grown, are more expensive.

 Today's Co-op Haul

In today's post, I am going to discuss the simple neighborhood co-op like the one that we belong to. We are so fortunate to be here in Central Alabama where we have the Birmingham Farmers Market. Farmers come in from all the nearby counties to sell their produce.  And in a co-op, we have some buying power that allows us to bargain.  My husband was suspect about the whole program when we first joined.  Then it became our turn to shop and he was so shocked at what we were able to buy. And of course, the experience really revealed to him the markup on produce sold in the grocery stores.  

What do you need to start a co-op?

• Participants - About 10 families for a decent haul. You will max out at 30. (LOL!  you don't want to have to hire a semi to get the produce to the home where it will be distributed!) 
• Baskets - Each participant will need to provide a sturdy laundry basket that is labeled with their name
• Distribution Center - One of the families will need to volunteer a their patio or carport to be the collection and distribution center.  The space will need to be big enough that the baskets can be spread out and produce sorted
• Organizers/Managers - It is nice to have a couple of people who will "be in charge" so to speak. That is administrate a Facebook group page and coordinated a text messaging & email system. That is be willing to send out the reminders and make up the shopping schedule.  We have 2 great ladies who do this for us.  They are also the founders of our co-op.  
• Find a place to do the shopping - a farmers market, a wholesale produce distributor 
• Determine $$ amount of each basket
• Participant shopping schedule
• Establish some parameters-What I mean is, keep in mind that peanut allergies seem to be on the rise so you may want to request that no one buy peanuts.  Also, keep in mind that you are spending other peoples money.  Everyone loves and want's watermelon, but if the best price is $5 a watermelon, might be best to pass as that is 1/3 of what every participant has paid.  So it is important that you have some parameters set up for everyone to follow.  

A neighborhood/community co-op is really simple to operate and in time, almost runs itself.  Every time we have shopped for our group we have had 23-25 participating families.  That makes for a great haul!  We have 2 civics and 1 accord and all 3 cars are packed with the produce haul.  We leave early o'clock.  Way before the sun, it order to get the best deals and the freshest produce.  We go to all the vendors and farmers to check their prices.  Then I find a quite place to work all the math.  Then my husband, daughter & I take our cars around and start filling them up with all the produce as I make the purchases.  If we collect $315 from all of the participants, we spend $315.  Once I had to spend $2 out of my pocket.  But when a farmer or wholesaler knows you are short just a few dollars, they usually just let that go.  By the way, in our particular group, the shopper does not pay for their basket.  Their time spend shopping and sorting for the group is payment enough! 😊 It is fun and very educational for children & youth.

Our Hauls Feed 3-4 People for 2 Weeks!

Co-ops are the best way to get variety & freshness in your produce.  It is also a great way to stretch your shopping $$$!  If you are interested in a co-op, ask around your community and see if there is one that you can offer to be a substitute for.  It is a great way to try and see if you would like being a part of one.  If there is not one in your area, check with your neighbors and see if they will be interested in starting one.  Everyone is looking for ways to save money and have a healthier lifestyle and a produce co-op is a great way to that end.

And before I forget, I have a video on YouTube of today's co-op haul.  If you have time, go look at it.
Today's Co-op Haul

Another one of those little things in life that we enjoy!

Missy

Fat is Still Fat!

Have you been as confused (and may still be) about "fat" as I have been?  When I was growing up, my grandmother lived with us.  Every morning she made lard biscuits.  She would also have a big platter of fried bacon and scrambled eggs (sometimes scrambled eggs and pig brains, yes, you read that right!).  By the way, those eggs were fried up in bacon grease. There would be a stick of real butter on the table, a glass of ice cold, whole milk at each plate, cream or lite cream (we now call that half and half) for coffee or just to pour over cornflakes.  My grandma would often have the box of corn flakes sitting on the table as well just in case we were still hungry.  And that would all be topped off with a jar of homemade jam, jelly or fruit butter.  I can still smell and taste it all!  My grandma believed in a hardy breakfast to start the day and hated it when all we wanted or ate was a bowl of cereal and milk.  Nowadays we would gasp at all the animal fat, carbs and sugar that was in that breakfast! 😱😱😱

So Many Kinds of Fats!

A few years later bacon grease, lard, butter and whole milk became taboo and we began to replace everything with vegetable oil, vegetable shortening, something called margarine and low fat milk, etc. That was "healthy".  I do not recall anyone talking about "quantity". Then as a young adult much of your vegetable fats and margarine was being tossed out the window and I started hearing about all the different kinds of fat. Your animal fats, your vegetable fats, saturated fat, trans fat, polyunsaturated fat, monounsaturated fat, fat from calories, low fat, high fat, good fats, bad fats, cholesterol, how our bodies metabolized fat...  It was enough to blow your mind! 😲😲😲

Follow the Money

In my younger days reports stated how bad animal fat is for you and the trend was to use margarine, shortening and cooking oil for everything.  10-15 years ago the reports stated our bodies were designed to metabolize butter, but not margarine.... And then there was a huge trend to start using olive oil.  More recently avocado oil, coconut oil, flax-seed oil and several others have become popular in food preparation.  A month ago I heard in the news that coconut oil has been deemed bad for us. That sounded odd to me.  While high in fat, coconut oil has many health benefits so why the bad "report card"?  (This report was put out by an organization that I have given a lot of support to in the last 6-7 years.) I made a mental note to be sure to research this, because it just didn't "sound right".  A couple of days later I get notification that Dani Spies of Clean and Delicious had just put up a new video on her YouTube channel titled "Is Coconut Oil Really Healthy?"  She had done the research (which I have since confirmed) and was willing to pass the information along to us, plus educate us on the healthy benefits of coconut oil.  Click on the above links to see the video and to visit her website.  (For more information on coconut oil you might want to check out her video "Coconut Oil 101".)  

Do your own research on the report(s) and follow the money.  And when ever you hear a news report on a particular product or food item, you might want to do your own research.  You may also find a case of "follow the money".  

So What About Good Fats and Bad Fats?

We have good fats and we have bad fats, but fat is still fat!  To give you an example, several years ago I was having a dinner party.  I had made up a couple of small dishes of olive oil (a good fat) with some herbs and garlic to be used for dipping french bread.  One of my guests exclaimed, with much excitement, "Olive oil!  It's a good fat! It's healthy for you!" and proceeded to consume one complete container (a little over 1/4 cup) with the bread.  Below is a photo of a label attached to a bottle of extra virgin olive oil I currently have in my cupboard:  

From my estimate, since there are 4 Tablespoons in 1/4 of a cup and 14 grams of fat per tablespoon, she consumed 56 grams of.... "good fat". (More math here... that is 480 calories in fat!) And that folks is when "good fat" becomes "bad fat" because fat is still fat! For an example, let's say I have a lite active lifestyle and only need about 1800 calories a day to maintain. 30% of those calories can and need to come from fat.  That equates to 60 grams a day. (That would be a total of 540 calories a day in fat.) Some of those grams can come from lean meat, etc, but a portion of those fats need to come from essential fatty acids (EFA): your omega 3's and omega 6's for cellular growth, repair and joint & brain health. When you eat more than what your body needs, it gets stored in your adipose (fat) cells. We also need protein to build, maintain & repair muscle. For an 1800 calorie diet you need about 136 grams of protein, ruffly 30% of your caloric intake.  Most of those calories will come from foods that contain what is considered your "bad fats". That would be your meats and dairy. Try to stay away from the fatty meats, chose instead the lean cuts. And enjoy dairy only in very small portions or as treats.  Nuts contain your "good fats" and protein.  Be sure to read your labels and be aware of your serving sizes and what those serving sizes contain.  More importantly, stick to a serving size portion.  😊

Avoid trans fats altogether.  They would be in shortening, margarine, fried foods, processed snacks & baked goods. Really watch your fat intake.  Read your labels.  Keep a chart or a log of what and how much you eat.  When you chart it, you will be amazed at how much fat you really consume.    

Essential fatty acids (EFA) have wonderful health benefits and are necessary for good health.  In moderation they will lower LDL (the bad cholesterol) and raise HDL (the good cholesterol), lower the risk of heart disease, aid in cellular growth & repair, aid in fat burning, and the list can go on. Our bodies need these fats! And they are good for us.  However, be sensible.  Know your numbers. Limit your fat intake to 30% of your total caloric intake per day.  Fill up that 30% with as many EFAs as you can and remember to avoid trans fats.  Moderation is key!  Good fat can become bad fat if you get more than your body needs, because fat is still fat! 

I hope that you found this post beneficial and somewhat entertaining. I am amazed at all the research that is on the world wide web on a little thing like "fat". So much of it is scientific, but sometimes we just need to know the basics such as keeping your fat intake to 30% of your calories and avoid the foods with trans fats. That way we will be healthier and around longer to enjoy...

The Little Things in Life

Missy

It's Been a While...

I have not posted to this blog in so long. For quite some time, I had lack of inspiration.  I have a photography business and just managing the website and blog for it keeps me busy.  I have also been ill.  God is very good and has blessed us so much.  I have shared this on my health and fitness blog and my business blog.  One day I will share it here.

We are taking life slower, enjoying the moments and looking for opportunities to serve our Lord Jesus Christ.

Edited to add...I am linking to Sally's Blue Monday.  :-)  

Container Gardening with Vegetables

I have always loved gardening.  We have a lot of shade and growing a vegetable garden is very difficult.  I decided I would try growing vegetables in containers.  We had fresh lettuces and greens most of last winter and spring.  :-)  Success!!!  I decided to plant lettuces again this year, only start earlier this time.  We are in the deep south, greens grow much better in our fall and spring.  In the late spring and early summer they tend to go bitter and burn up from the heat.  I purchased several lettuces, kale & broccoli.cell packs from a garden center and planted them in my large pots.

This a photo of one of my large pots, full of potting soil.  We have red leaf lettuce, broccoli & pansies.

Here we have kale (kale packs the most bang for the buck in nutrition!), romaine lettuce and some broccoli.  See my BLUE finial?  It will support the broccoli as it grows.  :-).  

I like to put a few pansies in my containers.  They do well through out the winter here.  It looks like someone else likes this pansy as well!  It is half eaten!

 
I picked a very large basket of romaine and red leaf lettuce.  I then mixed a couple of teaspoons of salt with some water in a large Blue bowl and let them soak for about 20 minutes.  This gets rid of any parasites on the vegetables and will keep keeps us from having a tummy ache.

Rinse and spin dry.

Chop, add any other veggies you have on hand, (I mixed in a large BLUE bowl) and add your favorite dressing.  (This salad has cauliflower, grape tomatoes, hoop cheese and apple pears.)
Yum!

Hugs,
Missy