Farm and Garden To Table – Shaping Our Road To Self Sufficiency
One of the biggest reasons we started “Old World Garden Farms” was to simply become more responsible for the food our family consumed on a daily basis.
A fresh batch of salsa getting started – nothing beats the freshness of your own garden produce!
In addition to the ever-rising cost of fresh food and produce, the simple fact is that almost everything you buy in the grocery store today either contains preservatives, additives – or has been sprayed with who knows what. And of course, if your plan is to just purchase all-organic produce – you might as well take out a loan on your house.
But by growing and preserving and preparing more of our own – we have indeed become more self-sufficient. Our garden’s raised rows now account for the majority of our staple food year round (see: growing a garden for canning).
Our chickens have played a big part in our effort to becoming more self-sufficient on our food needs
The chickens of course provide us eggs, the bees honey, and the fruit trees, grapes, blueberry, strawberry and blackberry plants and bushes are beginning to produce a little more each year as well – allowing us to be able to preserve more for year round usage. In addition – the very work we put into it has allowed us to stay in better shape and stay active – two more great reasons to becoming more responsible for the food you grow. A win-win all the way around.
Our 30 most used recipes for preparing our own food
The real key is in the plan – for us it is having a set of recipes that provide us with a large majority of the food we eat on a consistent basis. As we sat down to write this article – we realized that there are about 30 recipes that make the main staples of our meal plans.
These are the recipes that have helped us to eliminate so many artificial flavorings, preservatives, and unhealthy foods from our diet. Staples like breads, pasta and sauces, cereal, jams, jellies and more that we use on a daily basis to create most of our meals and snacks. So we named them “The Go-To 30″ – and even created a new tab on the site to keep them handy. (see : 30 Recipes To Self Sufficiency)
Fresh pasta ready to be rolled into noodles
Don’t get me wrong – we still enjoy going out to eat from time to time – and we realize we can never grow everything we need – but I can honestly say we both really prefer growing, cooking and eating our own food over anything else. And it has made a difference for our kids as well. It has been amazing to watch them over the last few years actually ask for hot pepper mustard, fresh salsa, or home-made pasta.
It has nearly cut out the “middle aisles” of the grocery store for us. I can’t tell you the last time we have had to buy canned vegetables, pasta sauce or cereal. These days – we stick mainly to the outside aisles of milk, juice, fresh meat – and fresh fruits and vegetables when our own are not in season. Hopefully, that too will decrease with the building of the hoophouse and cold frames – and as our small orchard begins to allow us to pick and preserve more to use year around.
Get that garden started this year and take charge of your own food!
There have never been more reasons to grow your own food than now. With the extreme drought hitting certain parts of the country – and other crops that will be ruined from this winter’s extreme cold – it may harder than ever in the coming months to find the fresh vegetables and fruits we want. All the more reason to start that garden this year!
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Happy Gardening – Jim and Mary!
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