Nourishing. Satisfying. Gourmet.
For those of us doing the Sugar Free Challenge this week, we can feel like we are giving up a big part of our diets. It limits us. But we need to understand that white sugar is a new phenomenon. Leaving out white sugar and white flour is hardly extraordinary. Then again, it may be extraordinary in our culture considering that most of the food in the store contains it. But in light of history, we are simply going back to how people used to eat.
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We eat simple, frugal food most of the time at our house. And we like it! But that doesn’t mean that every dish I make is the cheapest possible meal to make. In fact, I purposely try to balance out my simple meals with nicer ones.
And I find that historically people did the same thing too. So many farmer’s wives cooked simple, but hearty bean dishes, cornbread and the like during the week, and then would serve a large meat dish with the sides on Sunday. So while everything could be quite simple and even repetitive during the week, Sunday would be the highlight with everyone feasting on a generous meal.
Many people, especially those in the last generation, remember pot roasts or roasted chicken being served each Sunday, continuing that tradition.
I find the same happened in the city during the Victorian era in all of the classes.
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Don’t forget that it’s time for Pennywise Platter Thursday tomorrow! Check out last’s week’s contributions and share your nourishing frugal tips tomorrow!
Yesterday I started cleaning out my fridge. Something I have been trying to avoid doing for longer than I want to admit. I wanted to avoid it partly because of the work, but partly because of wasted food that I didn’t want to face. I hate having to throw away food and I knew I had some ripe specimens waiting for me. I had been dealing with being overly tired the last few weeks, and hadn’t the energy to prepare some of the food I had bought. So they went to waste instead…
And I am not alone in wasting food!
“At home, the average American family throws away 14 percent of their food, Jones said. In terms of money, that’s almost $600 every year in meats, fruit, vegetables and grain products.
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(Don’t forget that it’s our first Pennywise Platter Thursday tomorrow! I hope to see you there!)
I don’t want to sugar coat hard times, because they were (and are) hard. Sometimes making ends meet on a tight budget isn’t dignified, glorious, or fun. Instead it can be depressing. I know that’s true.
But I think it’s important for us to realize that this struggle of survival is hardly a new phenomenon. Reaching back into the past we find so many lessons of help and encouragement for us today.
For example, take the women and men who lived through the Great Depression in our country.
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