Welcome! If you are new to our weekly challenges, please click HERE for information.
Last week we banned frozen dinners from our kitchens. While I don't buy frozen dinners, I do buy frozen vegetables on occasion, especially when the only fresh produce available is the hot-house variety which, in my opinion, lacks taste and nutrition. But this challenge made me think about all commercial frozen foods ... after all, most of the conditions which apply to frozen dinners also apply to frozen fruits and veggies. So ... what to do! My compromise is to only buy frozen foods when fresh, local & seasonal food is unavailable. Sometimes living "green" means minimizing our impact on the earth ... not actually eliminating it. Let's see how our Honor Society did:
EcoGrrl joined the challenge. She prefers homemade foods but brings up a good point ... planning is important. She tries to prepare foods on Sunday which will cover lunches throughout the week. She does have one frozen indulgence ... a pizza made by the local pacific natural foods company.
Argentum Vulgaris says that frozen food is his pet peeve. He talks about it in this POST and gives us an example of a typical meal in his house ... prepared in less than 15 minutes. Wow!
OLLIE MCKAY'S ~ A Chic Boutique dropped in ... always nice to "see" you Ollie!
Two Vegan Boys joined in the fun. They never buy frozen dinners. Krys, TVB's mom, shares that making a double batch of any meal and freezing it is a great way to have quick, nutritious meals at another time. As I wandered around TVB, I began to see a common theme in posts: check your pantry, refrigerator, garden and/or CSA box for ingredients before shopping ... more than likely, you have what you need for a recipe or an acceptable substitute. Great tip ... thanks, Krys!
Katsui Jewelry came by and thanked us for challenging their thinking. By the way, if you've never been to Katsui Jewelry Blog, please go ... the posts a great. Recently, they wrote about homelessness in America and how small actions can make a huge difference (oh I love that sentiment).
Mrs. Green admits defeat on this challenge. But after reading her post HERE, I don't really agree. 90% of her meals are homemade and as she says, "everything in moderation". I think Mrs. Green does a fabulous job!
ReWinn keeps an emergency pizza in his freezer but other than that, he doesn't buy frozen dinners. He offers us a wonderful post with his recipe for Bone Soup. In his words it will "please your palate, your pocketbook, and your ancestors!" Nicely done, ReWinn!
Great job everyone! As always, I have Stumbled and Tweeted your articles!
We also had some Twitter members who talked about our challenge using the hashtag #ctww. If you're a twitter member, please visit these folks and, perhaps, follow them:
@revivalzoo
@gingerlyspice
@waylandcook
@DPixel
@eazycheezy
@whopaysthepiper
@serravision
@myzerowaste
Okay ... ready for a new challenge? This week's challenge was suggested by our friend Ange of Signed by Ange. It's something that many people don't think twice about but ... it generates a lot of waste. Here it is:
This week, stop using throw away wipes and cloths (baby wipes, single use window cleaner sheets, duster sheets, etc.).
Or ...
If you never use these kinds of products, please write a post about what you use instead.
Great challenge, Ange! I'm definitely up for it!
That's it for this week ...
WE'RE CHANGING THE WORLD ... ONE CHALLENGE AT A TIME!
happy (almost) wednesday!
ReplyDeletehmm, well i've never bought those types of products as i'm not sure why people wouldn't just use rags to clean? not sure what a single use duster sheet is, they make something like that? amazing what wasteful products are made!
however, to make a proper contribution i will mention paper towels. i've been 'off' the stuff for over a year now and the only time i miss them are when i have to kill bugs :) but TP does the trick in a pinch.
i haven't personally used paper napkins in a much longer time as i use cloth napkins, and the ones at work are composted, but my next step is to stock up for entertaining, so that i don't feel obligated to buy cutesy napkins for parties. :)
I don't use much throw away stuff except like when I have deep fried food (I don't often) I use paper towels to soak up the oil. I use some of those thick cloth for wiping spills the cleaning the table.
ReplyDeleteUsing vinegar and crunched up newspaper is very good for cleaning glass.
Good one! My challenge post is UP!
ReplyDeletehttp://tomusarcanum.blogspot.com/
AV
As always, thanks for the kind words. We love your page.
ReplyDeleteHey thanks for taking up the challenge dearest SF!! I forgot to comment last week but we don't do frozen dinners anyway. However, I too do buy frozen fruit and vegetables sometimes (peas, raspberries/mixed berries) and some snap frozen uncooked, non-endangered 'free range' fish. Don't usually like the taste of frozen veges but mostly use the frozen fruit in winter when I need a vitamin fix. Where's the joy in cooking if you don't prepare it yourself??
ReplyDeleteTaking up Ecogrrl's suggestion of no paper towels. Not that I use many either (soaking up grease) and we compost them afterwards as they are recycled, unbleached paper.
Loved your last post on Organisation. One I try to abide by and then get run over with quite often in the process ;-)
I, too, find those products ridiculously wasteful! We have a drawer in the kitchen, right next to the dish towels and cloth napkins, just for rags. It's full of old cloth baby diapers, threadbare wash cloths, and even dish towels that were cut in half after being too stained. Great for cleaning spills, wiping surfaces and even blowing noses in :)
ReplyDeleteI've posted up. I had to research what these wipes were as I've never used them - go me!
ReplyDeletehttp://littlegreenblog.com/green-home/green-cleaning/getting-rid-of-disposable-wipes/
This is one of those topics where My Lovely Wife and I just have to agree to disagree.
ReplyDeleteI'm 100% pro-rags. Besides the health, environmental and financial benefits, it's just easier on me when it's time that a favorite T Shirt goes on to another life.