One Hundred Dollars a Month reader Laura sent in a few pictures of her recent “chicken scraps” shopping trip, and holy free fruits and vegetables Laura, you scored the mother load of free food!
Here’s what Laura had to say…
“My family and I are saving a TON of money each week on groceries, produce. Next trip, I hope to pick up some day old bread as well. We only have a family of four, so we usually give a box of food to all four of our neighbors.”
Now I don’t know about you, but I am beginning to wonder what percentage of strawberries the grocery stores actually sell and what they toss on a weekly basis is. With the exception of 1 or 2 boxes over the past 6 months, all of my free produce boxes have all had strawberries in the. Hmmm.
Free Potatoes? Wowza! What on earth are you going to do with all those potatoes Laura? What do YOU think she should do with all of those potatoes? There must be at least 50 pounds there.
Good job Laura! I’m proud of you for asking your local grocer for their produce scraps.
You know what they say… One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.
♥ Mavis
To read more stories about reclaimed food head on over HERE.
*If you have a garden, a chicken coop or anything else super exciting and would like to be featured here on onehundreddollarsamonth.com, simply send in your clear, well-lit photos to onehundreddollarsamonth {at} gmail.com, along with a brief description of your pictures and I will try to get them posted.
Looking for a way to store your extra produce? In Progressive International’s lettuce keeper, fruit, lettuce, and vegetables stay fresher longer for up to 2 weeks. The special design lets you wash and store all in one since the container doubles as a colander. A water reservoir in the base keeps produce moist, and adjustable venting regulates air circulation and moisture.
Amazon currently has the lettuce keeper on sale for $13.98 and the reviews are crazy good.
Sakura says
A couple of things I would do with your potatoes is slice, par-boil, then dehydrate your potatoes. I seal mine in mason jars with an oxygen pack, lasts forever. To reuse just let them sit for 20 minutes in boiling water to rehydrate then use them in whatever recipe you’d like. The second thing I would do is make mashed potatoes, then use an ice-cream scoop and make individual servings onto your silpat and cookie sheet, freeze and bag for later. Makes for a really quick mash potato fix!
Good job on the score.
Mavis says
These are all great ideas! Thanks Sakura. 🙂
Amanda M. says
Can the potatoes. They are awesome to open, drain the water, put in a hot skillet with some butter and onion, fry for an awesome breakfast dish. Also, pop open the jar and toss the potatoes into soups and stews. Home canned potatoes are amazing!
Heidi says
Has anyone tried shredding and then freezing potatoes for hash browns? Also, could you make twice baked potatoes and freeze them for later?
I’m green with envy at your load of veggies/fruit!
Veronica says
You need to blanch them first or the starch will turn all the shredded potato pieces brown/black. It’s easier to blanch and then shred when cool.
Melissa says
I would chop the potatoes up as french fries, season with some canola oil, garlic salt and oregano, cook for about 15 minutes on 425 and then let cool and freeze. They will have a freezer full of homemade french fries. When ready to reuse, just heat at 425 for about 15 to 20 minutes. They’ll be good all winter.
Tra says
Can I ask a newbie question?
When the produce folks give you this free food, is there gross, moldy, rotten stuff mixed in that you have to sort through? Or are they just getting rid of things that are still good but have sat out on the shelves too long or are they making space for new stuff? Do they give you cartons of strawberries with mold on some of them or bags of grapes that are split and gooey? I mean, I gather that you are asking for “chicken scraps” so are the produce folks getting rid of a lot of stuff that is not fit for human consumption?
I’d love to try getting some free produce too but I’m a little worried about how much crap might have to wade through to get to the good stuff…
Mavis says
The free produce I receive is taken off the shelf that morning. Hardly ever is there moldy produce. For me, it’s just a matter of what I want to save for my family and what I want to give to the chickens. 🙂
Tra says
Cool! That makes me more confident to ask at my local store. The produce guy already knows me MUCH too well….
cheers!
Tali says
In regards to the questions about making hash browns: I did that last year. I boiled the potatoes half way (we like the peel so I scrubbed them and tossed into a huge pot with cold water covering them, when the water boiled I turned off the heat and let it cool). I then put my kids to work with a grader and laid thick layer on wax paper on cookie sheet (about 3 inches thick), I place in freezer and about 1-2 hrs later while they were still only half frozen I made cuts to divide into squares. I waited a day or 2 (well, really I forgot about it) and then placed them in zip lock bags. Each one square is a serving and we just toss it frozen into some hot oil and fry it.
Heidi says
We don’t eat a ton of potatoes so I often have half a bag or so sitting in my pantry and will eventually throw it out. I will give the freezing hash browns a try. I think my kids would love them and I won’t have any guilt associated with throwing out food 🙂
Thanks for sharing.
lili says
It is nice of her to share the extras with her neighbors.
Kari says
Holy smokes!!! I would be making a huge batch of lefse with all of those potatoes. It freezes nice, and you’d be set for the holidays.
Sarah says
I’m with you Kari! Great way to use potatoes. AND it makes me think of my Grandma 🙂
Jackie says
In general, are people having more success by asking the smaller, mom and pop stores for scraps or are the larger stores also giving out scraps?