How I stock my pantry organically for 99 dollars a month.

Image via WikipediaSo these are the items I MUST have in my pantry at all times.( I am not including the incidentals for a new recipe) I love a full pantry. Anyone who visits my house will always find all sorts of freshly baked goodies hiding on it's shelves. I have had a lot of people ask lately what I buy on a monthly or almost monthly basis as far as dry goods go. Hopefully this helps!

So here is my list and where I currently buy items.

8 pounds of organic dried beans (pinto, white, black, lentils, kidney, and garbanzo) all cost under 2 dollars per pound at the local co-op
4 pounds of whole grains brown rice, quinoa, black rice, millet,and/or buckwheat. 6 dollars for 5 pounds of brown rice at costco, black rice is 3.50 per pound at tropical traditions.com, Millet is 1.19 per pound at the co-op as is buckwheat.
2-4 pounds of either gluten free brown rice pasta or whole wheat pasta ( brown rice pasta 1.99 at trader joes)
2 pounds of rolled or steel cut oats, organic (89 cents per pound at the local co-op)
2 jars of diced tomatoes 2.79 per bottle at tropical traditions
2 boxes of organic unsweetened almond milk (2 for five dollars at Fred Meyer)
2 cans of organic coconut milk (bpa free brand native forest sold at Whole Foods for 2 dollars per can)
2 28 ounce organic peanut butters (4 dollars at costco)
1 pound each of organic almonds,  walnuts and sunflower seeds (local co-op came to a total of 10 dollars)
1 pound each or organic dried apricots, dates and raisins ( local co-op came to a total of 9 dollars)
1 bottle of organic dijon mustard (2.50 at whole foods)
16 ounces of organic apple cider vinegar
1 bottle of gluten free soy sauce
1 pound of rapadura sugar ( less than two dollars a pound at the co-op)
5 pounds of organic whole wheat flour (purchased at fred meyers on sale for 2.50)
1 bottle of red wine for cooking (3 dollars at Trader Joe's)

I make my own chicken and beef stock and purchase my spices on a yearly basis so they are not included in this cost.

I have not included here fresh fruits and veggies( I get a delivery from Klesick every other week), whole grain breads and tortillas, meat, dairy or gluten free flour. I buy my beef once a year through Klesick farms, whole grain breads I have been getting for free through the gleaner's program at church (Ezekiel sprouted breads and flax muffins), tortillas I buy as i need them from trader joe's, dairy is a once a week purchase at the co-op for 10 dollars i get 2 half gallons of raw milk, and Fish is a twice a month event when it is on sale at Fred Meyers.

How to Stretch Your 'Organic' Dollar

Money Wasters in the Food Budget

Image by Steven Vance via Flickr

There are certain items when cutting my food budget down to it's minimum I eliminated due to there non-existent nutritional value, not to mention their questionable harm to my family's bodies. Eliminating these 4 categories reduced our pre-packaged food intake thus reducing our overall cost!

1. "Corn sugar" or high fructose corn syrup. Research indicates it is a factor in metabolic syndrome and diabetes. Why would I spend money on something that will harm me? I discovered when I started religiously reading food labels that it is in snickers bars! The accountant was disappointed. I was horrified when I found it in bread, pastries, candy, soda, cookies, ice cream, hot chocolate and so forth. If it was prepackaged, it was probably in it. 
2. Artificial sweeteners such as splenda, aspartame, equal, sucralose. These are chemicals. Why would I put them in my body?Especially with their links to cancer. I stick to Stevia, honey, brown rice syrup, blackstrap molasses, and cane sugar.
3. Funny colors-food dyes have been linked to ADHD, brain tumors in mice, allergies, behavioral issues. This can be a difficult one to avoid. I have even found it in some balsamic vinegars! Read those labels carefully!
4. What I like to call "mystery ingredients". Things I can't pronounce or feel I need a chemistry book to decipher. If I can't pronounce it I probably don't want it in my body. Besides I wouldn't put it in something I cooked at home! If I don't know what it is, I don't know what it will do to my body. My body wasn't designed to eat it!

I am a ingredient list reader and PROUD of it! Are there any other items out there that you my readers recommend staying away from? 

I don't avoid all pre-packaged food but by adhering to the list above I avoid most of them. Some "healthy" pre-packaged quick foods that I keep on hand for snacks are:

Organic potato and tortilla chips. They have three or four ingredients and I know what they are.

Related articles

• Natural and Healthy Sugar Substitutes (food-facts.suite101.com)
• Is Agave Syrup Good Bad Or Just Kinda Tasty? (gliving.com)
• High Fructose Corn Syrup Side Effects (aolhealth.com)

3 Affordable Nutritious Foods

The top bang for your buck nutritious foods are eggs, beans and quinoa. These foods are affordable on a tight organic food budget. I can buy a dozen eggs from a lady down the street for three dollars, a pound of organic beans for $1.69 per pound and organic quinoa for approximately $7 for 4 pounds at Costco. These three foods are my fall back foods at the end of a pay period when supplies are running low. I always have them on hand. Often pairing them with brown rice or fresh organic veggies. For the accountant I often use beef broth or chicken broth to enhance the flavors with meat.



Cheap, nutritious meal ideas are:

- breakfast for dinner. scrambled eggs with toast
- beans and rice in tortilla wraps
- breakfast egg wraps
- stir fry with quinoa and fresh veggies
- bean soup
- meatless bean chili
- quinoa salad
- crustless quiche
- omelette
- green salad with brown rice

Chicken Stock, organic and homemade

My friend Emily encouraged me to start making my own chicken stock. She kept telling me it wasn't difficult, which I found to be so true! Here is the recipe I made along with her tips. You do have to have a whole day at home though while the stock simmers on your stove top. Although another friend told me today she puts hers in the crock pot. I will have to try that next!

Here is the recipe of what I did. I made potato kale soup with some of the stock and it was delicious. That recipe will post on Monday.

Prep and Cook Time 10 hours

Makes about 12 cups of broth

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of free range, organic chicken bones and giblets ( I used the bones from a whole chicken along with giblets.) Mine were roasted in the oven at 450 degrees for 20 minutes prior to putting in the pot. This is optional.
• 1 large onion, any type
• 3 carrots, organic
• 3 celery stalks, organic
• 1 bay leaf
• 10 whole peppercorns
• 3 sprigs of fresh parsley
• 4 cloves of whole garlic
• 10 cups of  COLD water
• 2 Tablespoons of organic extra virgin coconut oil
• Feel free to add other left over veggies you might have like leeks, shallots, ginger, potatos and so forth. It will only make the stock richer. I now save up my end of tomatos, ends of carrots and so forth. I put them in a bag in the freezer and save up for my next pot of stock! Also feel free to toss in other left over herbs such as thyme, rosemary and basil.

Place all veggies, spices, chicken parts and water in the pot on the stove top. Turn heat to low, cover and let simmer for 8 hours ( do not bring to a boil. Bring to a slow simmer over a less then 45 minute period). Check water level through out the day. Add up to two more cups to keep it from boiling off. Skim off any "gunk" that rises to the surface. Do not stir the pot. Just let it sit!

 When it is done simmering strain off the liquid and place in the fridge overnight. In the morning scoop of the fat and solids that float to the top then restrain through a cheesecloth ( my friend strains hers through a paper towel.). Freeze broth for later use or use in a soup today! I got 12 cups out of my last batch. I froze them in two cup portions.

Grass Fed Beef Stock Recipe

In an effort to save more money I have decided to make my own beef and chicken stock. After having tasted the first two meals using these stocks I have decided to share the process. Homemade stock is so good! Other than the time it takes to make (meaning you need to be home for about 8-10 hours) it is easy to throw together. Today I will share the beef stock recipe, tomorrow the chicken stock. The idea for this was inspired by a dear friend who very kindly asked if I had made my own yet. Thank you! The best part of this all is how affordable, frugal this is to make. Granted I had bought a quarter of a cow so I already have my beef bones. Original recipe found at allrecipes.com 

Prep time is 10 hours. Makes 10 cups of broth.

Ingredients:
6 Pounds of grass fed beef or organic beef bones
1 large onion any color or type
3 large carrots, organic
4 stalks of celery, organic
1 large organic tomato
1 large, cubed potato do not peel
10 whole black peppercorns
Large bunch of fresh organic parsley
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon of salt
4 teaspoons of dried thyme
6 whole cloves of garlic ( you don't have to peel)
10-12 cups of water
 Directions:
 Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place bones, chopped carrots, celery and onion in a shallow roasting pan. Place in oven and cook for 30 min to an hour depending on the size of your bones. They are done when they are browned on both sides. My bones had a lot of meat on them as you can see. I did not turn my bones as suggested in the original recipe.

Next in a large saucepan on the stove top place your now roasted beef bones and veggies, do not discard what is left in your roasting pan place 1/2 cup of water in it and rinse into large stock pot on your stove top. ( The original recipe had said to drain off the fat, grass fed beef left me with hardly any fat worthy of mention, so I did not drain it, I used it for a more flavorful stock). Now add the remaining ingredients from the list into the stockpot. Water, tomatoes, potatoes, spices. Place lid on stock pot and turn to low heat. Let simmer on stove top for 8 hours. (longer adds more depth to the stock. You might need to add 1 or 2 cups of water half way through). After 8 hours let cool for 30 minutes, remove the meat and vegetables from stock, then place the liquid in refrigerator overnight.

The next morning remove the fat that has solidified on the top of the stock. Then place a cheesecloth over a large bowl. ( Either secure the cheesecloth somehow or use your husband or a friend to help you here.) Secure cheesecloth. Then pour the stock through the cheesecloth. You now have your stock! Enjoy in the entree of your choice.

Baked Beans from Scratch

Lately I have had a craving for baked beans. Specifically baked beans on toast (gluten free for me, sprouted for the accountant). With all the press about BPA I didn't want to just go out and buy some "organic" ones in a can. Because they might be organic but not BPA free. So I decided to make them from scratch. The original recipe is found at all recipes . I doubled the sauce from the original because I found the first batch too dry, not sweet enough. I also omitted the brown sugar because I didn't have any and instead used more molasses. Here is my edited version of the recipe.

Serves 6-8 people. Not including bean soaking time. Prep and Cook Time takes 6 hours.

Ingredients:

2 cups of dry organic navy beans

1 pound of organic bacon

1 medium organic onion

9 Tablespoons of organic blackstrap molasses

1/2 teaspoon of black pepper

1 teaspoon of Himalayan salt

1 cup of organic ketchup

1/2 teaspoon of dry mustard seed powder

2 Tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce

1/2 cup of organic sugar

Soak the dried beans in water overnight (the water should cover the beans). The next morning cook the beans on the stove top on medium to low heat for 1.2 to 2 hours until beans are tender to touch. Drain the beans and save the liquid. (I forgot to do this the first time)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In a separate pot on the stove top place the bacon. Cook until done. Remove bacon from pan but do not discard the cooking fat. Place the now cooked beans in the pot with the bacon fat. Then layer the bacon and chopped onion on top. (This picture has a red onion because I ran out of yellow. Red works just fine)

Next in a saucepan place molasses, sugar, spices, Worcestershire sauce, ketchup. Bring to a boil then pour over your layered bean pot. Use reserved water to bring the liquid up to just covering the beans.

Cover pot and place in oven, Cook for four hours. Set the timer for one hour, and every hour thereafter to check to make sure beans are not dry. If liquid level drips add more of the reserved bean liquid (or if you threw that away plain water). 

Olivia being a monkey.

Yum! Homemade is WAY better than out of a can...just a lot of work!