A few months ago, the peeps at Valley Food Storage sent me a 1 Month Food Gluten Free Value Food Storage Kit. Back in 2015 I tried out their regular 1 month food supply kit and really enjoyed the challenge of eating my way through the meal kit and sticking to what was strictly in the box {plus beans and rice} for 30 days. Will power is an amazing thing, and I LOVED the fact that I really didn’t have to think about what I was going to eat for an entire 30 days. That, and honestly, it’s kind of nice every once in a while to step out of your normal day to day routine of stuffing your face with whatever strikes your fancy.
Back then though, I prepared meals for my family while eating my way thorough the meal kit, this time around, they are fending for themselves {yee-haw!} which has made the process even easier. The HH is COOKING everyday and doing the dishes to boot! He’s even been kind enough to make some of MY meal kit food for me as well. 😉
This time around instead of supplementing the meal kit with beans and rice, I decided to supplement the meal kit with whatever I could forage from our backyard. On the second day of this crazy daisy challenge, I decided eggs laid by our backyard hens counted as foraged food as well. The only problem is, I didn’t include any sort of cooking oil or butter in my initial challenge {and I’m not going back on what I said now} so cooking vegetables and eggs hasn’t been that exciting. Boiled or roasted basically. Which has been a little interesting.
Monday
Beverages: Black tea, water
Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner: Maple and brown sugar oatmeal, chicken teriyaki and rice, tomato soup.
Snacks {foraged from the backyard}: Boiled Yukon potatoes x2 with salt and pepper, breakfast radishes
Tuesday
Beverages: Black tea, water
Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner: Oatmeal, tomato soup x2, teriyaki chicken and rice
Snacks {foraged from the backyard}: 2 hard boiled eggs, boiled potatoes with salt and pepper
Wednesday
Beverages: Black tea, water
Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner: Oatmeal x 2, Enchilada beans and rice x 2
Snacks {foraged from the backyard}: 2 hard boiled eggs
Thursday
Beverages: Black tea, water
Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner: Oatmeal x2, sweet and sour rice, Asian rice
Snacks {foraged from the backyard}: 2 eggs, carrots, butternut squash, boiled potatoes
Friday
Beverages: Black tea, water
Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner: Waffle, 2 poached eggs, tomato soup, Teriyaki chicken rice
Snacks {foraged from the backyard}: Boiled potatoes with salt and pepper, carrots
Saturday
Beverages: Black tea, water
Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner: Maple and brown sugar oatmeal, teriyaki and chicken rice x2,
Snacks {foraged from the backyard}: 2 hard boiled eggs, boiled potatoes
Sunday
Beverages: Black tea, water
Breakfast/Lunch/Dinner: Strawberry oatmeal, enchilada beans and rice, strawberry oatmeal
Snacks {foraged from the backyard}: Carrots, 2 hard boiled eggs, boiled potatoes
Tuesday morning I did wake up with a major headache, which I attributed to sugar withdrawal {in my tea and the lack of pastries!} so I took a couple of ibuprofen and went about my day. 3 years ago when I did a 30 day survival food challenge the hardest part was getting through the first three days {and missing the milk and sugar in my tea!} and well, this time around I pretty much the same feelings.
My favorite meals of the week were the maple and brown sugar oatmeal and the tomato soup {which tasted a lot like the tomato soup from Panera to me}. The chicken teriyaki rice was really good as well.
While I was eating rice dishes and oatmeal… The HH and the Girl ate PIZZA!
And pork chops, and things like Ritz Cracker chicken!!!
Oh, and the HH and I stopped by King Arthur Flour while we were out on our fall foliage tour. I didn’t buy anything from the bakery, but I did snag a box of their lemon bar mix to make on November 1st!
This whole food storage challenge thing hasn’t really been that hard, and with 21 days to go…. I CAN DO THIS! Mind over matter, right?
~Mavis
P.S. Did you make anything insanely delicious this past week? Any baked goods? Curious minds want to know. 😉
Total Spent This Week $14.90
Total Spent in October $14.90
Total Spent in September $180.97
Total Spent in August $259.90 <– $30 on salami splurge
Total Spent in July $276.56 < – $38 Spent on Amish meat and cheese
Total Spent in June $206.47 <- Attempting once a month grocery shopping
Total Spent in May on Groceries $216.50 <- Included a stock up trip to King Arthur Flour
Total Spent in April on Groceries $169.98
Total Spent in March on Groceries $306.75 <– Apartment life, moving across the country and settling into a new house
Total Spent in February on Groceries $259.81 <- Living in an apartment and buying a lot of ready-made meals
Total Spent in January on Groceries $240.15 <– Packing mode and not cooking from scratch as much
Go HERE to read more Shopping Trip Stories.
Deb says
I made Pumpkin Chip cookies…that says fall for me!
Beth says
I made beef barley soup and roasted turkey thighs with a delicious sprouted rice mix from Trader Joe’s and candied sweet potatoes…on the menu this week…leftovers until we are tired of it and then I’ll freeze what we don’t eat..
jessica says
The waffle- was it a GF mix that you made a waffle with? In an emergency they assume people have their waffle maker?
OR
It was a premade GF waffle that you just reheated?
Mavis Butterfield says
Yes, the whole kit is gluten free. Actually it was a pancake mix but I didn’t have any butter or oil for my pan, but our waffle maker is non stick so I added an egg and used that instead.
Jessica says
You are slick!!!
Nancy D says
Gosh…. A whole week already completed on your month of food storage eating…I sure admire your goal setting. I also admire your HH for tapping into his inner chef. The photos you show of his dishes are proof of a hidden talent! Bravo to both of you!
Mavis Butterfield says
I totally think he should take over cooking.
Carrie says
I made lasagna on Saturday. It’s been a long time since I made it but its oh so good!
Teri says
The smell from the pizza would drive me batty. I am so impressed with your willpower and sticking to your goals that you set for yourself. But please take good care of yourself too — don’t want you to get sick from not getting enough nutrition!
Teresa says
We had beef stew this weekend with enough leftovers for lunches. Along with corn muffins. Still squeaking out the odd tomato and lettuce from the garden, although those are whittling down fast. My sweetie whipped up a batch of caramel popcorn. That sorta seems cool weather eats for Oregon!
Mavis Butterfield says
Beef stew with corn muffins sounds so good right now!
Sue says
I made four loaves of pumpkin bread, we like it with cream cheese.
This says fall to me and grandkids favorite.
Rosaleen says
Ditto on the pizza smell driving me nuts.
If you do something like this again, consider expanding the plan in advance to include dried milk products and some canned fish, maybe some canned/dried fruit. There are several dry milk vendors. Valkey Foods sells dry milk and several dry cheeses as well as dried fruits and vegetables. Even some shelf stable boxed milk could make your cereal and tea more palatable. I haven’t done a nutritional breakdown of your meal plan, but am concerned about calcium levels. (I get muscle cramps if my calcium and magnesium are too low.) If I’m on a short crash diet, I rely on the bones in canned salmon and sardines for calcium. While not part of this kit, all could be added to an emergency panty. You MIGHT figure a way to make eggshells palatable to use their calcium, but I haven’t gone there…
Mavis Butterfield says
I feel like I really learn a lot each time. Powered milk would be an excellent item {as well as cooking oil} to add to a food storage kit.
Mel says
I made fettucine alfredo with scallops and broccoli, sheet pan nachos, chicken stew with pumpkin, kale, and tarragon, and French toast muffins. We also fried homemade doughnuts using a British recipe.
I think we’re doing leftovers tonight and grilled filet mignon tomorrow. Our outdoor cat moved in this weekend, so the filet mignon is mostly to comfort the dog about that.
Mavis Butterfield says
Filet mignon is my favorite! Lucy dog.
Rosaleen says
Lucky fir Mel we don’t know where she is! How many of us might show up at supper time!
YUM!
(Joking, of course. )
Mel says
You’d totally be welcome if we weren’t currently holding group therapy for a dog and a cat!
Marcia says
As I posted earlier, I was worried at the low calorie counts.
But adding eggs makes me feel better!
You should totally add oil though.
Linda says
With the “I made fettucini alfredo” and “I made pumpkin bread” posts, I sense readers may be getting revenge for no surprise goal reveal on Friday. That’s just mean when a gal is on a gluten free diet!
Mavis Butterfield says
Funny funny! I like hearing what others are eating… I’m already planning my first week of November meals because they all sound so good.
Mel says
No revenge intended here! They could be gluten-free noodles or zoodles, of course!
Gee says
I have to say, I’m not enticed by your meals, Mavis, but then I don’t really like rice. God bless you for sticking with it.
Me? I made a quadruple batch of … New England Clam Chowder. Maybe the milk would count ’cause it’s raw from a local farm? I could pretend we’re bartering.
Mavis Butterfield says
No clam chowder for me! I’m not a fan of seafood, although my husband is. I will gladly keep my rice. 🙂
Marybeth says
I made a huge pot of chili. I used on sale ground beef and ground pork. A pound of each. I always double the amount of beans in the recipe. I used tomatoes from my garden as well as hot peppers. We put it on rice. Hubby loved it. He kept calling it 5 alarm chili since it was hotter then it usually is. I left out the cayenne pepper since I was using hot peppers from the garden. Good thing. I froze 3 large containers for future meals. I made 16 servings for about 40¢ a serving. Hubby enjoyed his watching the Jets game on Sunday.
LaToya says
I’m ADDICTED to the Great British Baking Show on Netflix and have just started trying my hand at yeast breads. I made a chocolate bread wreath and a chocolate and pumpkin loaf. I mixed up a fall spice mix of brown sugar, pecans and pumpkin pie spices and put that in both of them. They were suuuuper tasty – but the outsides were hard so I need more practice.
I had leftover pumpkin so I made some pumpkin chocolate chip cookies like everyone else in America right now.
Your meals make me sad. 🙁 — no butter to fry those eggs in? No ketchup to put them on?!
Mavis Butterfield says
Seriously, eggs without ketchup is a total crime I know. 🙁
Kim says
We’re a gluten-free family because of Celiacs. So, I made Meatloaf and Gluten-free Pumpkin Bread.
I’m eyeing my favorite soup recipes and dreaming of biscuits for next week.
Laurel says
I have eaten guten free for 9 yrs now. Lots of variety if you plan for it. Good to jear that of needed I could nuy a kit like that if needed for survival. I fixed a crockpot og nrown neams with uncured bacon ends in it.
Candy C. says
You can always poach the eggs..
Donna says
Sounds like you figured out how to cook your eggs – good for you. I scramble mine in a Red Copper skillet with no oil. Just dump the eggs in the skillet and cook. Really good.
Brianna says
What is the trick to a perfectly peeled hard boiled egg? They look so beautiful and perfect.
My kids love hard boiled eggs, but aren’t at an age to peel them on their own. I find peeling hard boiled eggs brings out the foul language and frustration in me and they look like Swiss cheese when I am through and shrunk quite a bit as I lost most of the whites peeling away. The worst part is my kids don’t eat the yolk, so they get very little white and want another egg. And the cycle continues.
Judy Johnson says
Steam the eggs rather than boiling them. Start the water first, then put the basket with eggs on top once it is boiling. Steam for 20 minutes and plunge eggs in cold water. They will peel. Sometimes, I remember to pierce the end of the egg. For some reason they seem more likely to “explode” if you steam rather than boil.
Mavis Butterfield says
I’m not sure if there is a trick to it but I bring the water to a boil, cover the pan and then turn off the heat and let the eggs sit covered for a half hour or so then pour ice water over them.
Nancy D says
I put hard boiled eggs in a jar one at a time and shake them and the shell slips right off. Experiment to find out the degree of shaking necessary. Wish I knew this when my 4 boys were little. (save their uneaten yolks for deviled egg perhaps?)
Anne says
I grew up making hardboiled eggs by putting them in the water, bringing the whole thing to a boil, then turn down the heat to low for 14 minutes. Pour off the boiling water and plunge the eggs into cold water. This gets them perfectly cooked. I also heard that they should be a little bit older, like a week or so, before you cook them, so they peel easier. I also heard about rolling them on the counter under your hand to loosen the shell before peeling, putting baking soda in the water, or piercing the end, etc.
I have now learned the real trick to easy-to-peel eggs!
Get the water to a boil BEFORE you put in the eggs. I now use tongs to add each egg to the boiling water. Then turn down the heat and time for 14 minutes, drain and chill the eggs under cold water. Voila! The shell peels off MUCH MUCH more easily!
The explanation I heard was that the egg white protein is suddenly shocked a little bit away from the shell by the sudden plunge into boiling water, so it’s loose enough to come off easily.
Pat says
This is off the subject, but i was wondering about the lap top you use for blogging. Do you mind telling which one you have? Seems like a while back you purchased a new one. Thanks.
Mavis Butterfield says
He ended up buying me an Acer Aspire 15. It’s super easy to use too so that’s good!
Pat says
Thats what im lookin for , easy!! Thanks Mavis!