Snowy Posted November 6, 2006 Share Posted November 6, 2006 All this talk of cooking from scratch really got to me today! I do try, but it can be time consuming with toddlers trying to help. BUT - today managed to satisfy their sweetie craving without resorting to custard creams. We made: Muffins with chocolate topping (oh, and Bob the Builder pictures on ), chocolate chip cookies (except I didn't have any choc chips, so I grated some chocolate and they ended up a bit caky inside ), and some sultana scones(in varying shapes as DSno2 wanted to try out the different cookie cutters ). A very satisfying day. Shan't need to do it again for, oh, at least another 24 hours.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kazaddress Posted November 6, 2006 Author Share Posted November 6, 2006 PurpleHen Well done Thats how I started.. and it took a while to learn to live with different produce.... I bet you will notice a huge different in your health I have dropped my bills down further since starting this post. mainly because I have had an increase in bills.. Food and house shopping comes to under £35 a week (£140) i cant believe I used to spend over £200 a week.. what a waste of money! (thats £650 a month more then now).. and I eat exactly the same meals! £10.00 a week from the local grovers £11.50 on Fruit, Veg and Dairy £13.00 on Meat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PurpleHen Posted November 10, 2006 Share Posted November 10, 2006 So - my delivery arrived yesterday and I'm very happy with it. The fruit & veg box bit cost £10 and I think is good value for money, especially as the majority of the goods were from local producers (not the bananas ). So I'm getting there! I will be ordering next week, so just need to get the staples sorted now... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kazaddress Posted November 10, 2006 Author Share Posted November 10, 2006 oh lovely was it a riverford box? or did you find somewhere more local? what goodies did you get? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PurpleHen Posted November 11, 2006 Share Posted November 11, 2006 I got the delivery from Northern Harvest - they use as much North West produce as possible. In the £10 fruit & veg box was: Green topped carrots (& v dirty - great ) Apples Pears Onions Broccolli Cabbage Leek (only 1 - VERY large) Bananas Oranges Turnip Greens Potatoes Parsnips There is a £15 min order so I also got the following goodies at the same time: organic milk Cheshire Yoghurt locally produced fresh soup Ecover laundry liquid Lancashire Tea locallly baked harvest loaf (it is heavenly) cheshire apple juice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicola H Posted November 11, 2006 Share Posted November 11, 2006 Thanks for that Jackie I have been thinking for a while about using Northen Harvest I have made my mind up now I will definitely give them a go for next weeks shopping. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PurpleHen Posted November 11, 2006 Share Posted November 11, 2006 Hi Nicola, I called them before putting my order in on the web with a few questions - they were very helpful and friendly. They do a range of different boxes, organic and conventional - you can select from veg, salad, fruit or a mixture if you see what I mean. ANd of course differetn size boxes too. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicola H Posted November 11, 2006 Share Posted November 11, 2006 Thanks Jackie I have just found the web site and they are only about 20 mins away from me, so I should use them I think I may have been to the farm when I was younger, it seems to have improved a lot since I was there last................ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
red Posted November 11, 2006 Share Posted November 11, 2006 That sounds like great value for money Jackie. I have been getting a Riverford box for many years now - I can't believe how big they have got - it just goes to show that you can still do organic and ethical on a bigger scale. I use Riverford because they are relatively close to me (same county). They do a little newsletter with each box telling you what they are doing on the farm and which crops are doing well/badly and they also give recipe ideas which can be a godsend when you are running out of adventurous ideas for parsnips at the end of January Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kazaddress Posted November 12, 2006 Author Share Posted November 12, 2006 That sounds like great value for money Jackie. I have been getting a Riverford box for many years now - I can't believe how big they have got - it just goes to show that you can still do organic and ethical on a bigger scale. I use Riverford because they are relatively close to me (same county). They do a little newsletter with each box telling you what they are doing on the farm and which crops are doing well/badly and they also give recipe ideas which can be a godsend when you are running out of adventurous ideas for parsnips at the end of January I LOVE the little news letter I always make a cuppa, then sit down and have a good read I get a newsletter with my meatbox and organic groceries too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PurpleHen Posted November 24, 2006 Share Posted November 24, 2006 Nicola - did you give Northern Harvest a go? I got my second delivery yesterday, on top of the fruit & veg box we also got salad as well. We have decided to do this once every 2 weeks. It just means working out what needs to be eaten first to make sure none of it goes off. Two weeks down the line and I'm still really happy. I have ended up using a much wider variety of veg than I would before and it has meant looking for new ideas to use them all up - great Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chickpea Posted November 29, 2006 Share Posted November 29, 2006 I'm lucky enough to live close to a fantastic place called The Organic Farm Shop. As well as selling their own fresh produce (veg, meat, eggs, milk) they also stock cleaning stuff, toiletries, clothes, pet food, and it is ALL certified organic! On top of all that they also run a café right next door which I always stop and have lunch in, it's just heaven Here's the link if you are ever in the area, it's well worth a visit! http://www.theorganicfarmshop.co.uk/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicola H Posted November 29, 2006 Share Posted November 29, 2006 Nicola - did you give Northern Harvest a go?I got my second delivery yesterday, on top of the fruit & veg box we also got salad as well. We have decided to do this once every 2 weeks. It just means working out what needs to be eaten first to make sure none of it goes off. Two weeks down the line and I'm still really happy. I have ended up using a much wider variety of veg than I would before and it has meant looking for new ideas to use them all up - great Jackie i have just placed my first order I think every 2 weeks sounds like a good idea, I am going to try the salad box too........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheilaz Posted November 29, 2006 Share Posted November 29, 2006 I'm lucky enough to live close to a fantastic place called The Organic Farm Shop. Here's the link if you are ever in the area, it's well worth a visit! http://www.theorganicfarmshop.co.uk/ I had a look, that sounds a great place. I'm not nearby, but I know where to go if I'm in the area. The shop has a lovely range of stock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
