It has now been over a month since we started visiting the Addi Road Food Pantry every week.
Over that time, our previously weekly visits to Harris Farm have dropped to once every three weeks, and we’ve eaten more vegetables than ever before. We spend an average of $10 at the Food Pantry on purchases, then add a $10 donation. So on top of donating a box of food to a family in need each week, plus rescuing edibles that would otherwise be destined for landfill, we’re also saving $40 a week. In fact, everything you see in the photo above cost us just $7 (plus the donation).
Shopping this way has forced us to become more creative in our meal prep, but it’s been worth it as the results have been delicious!
This salmon feast was put together entirely from rescued food…
A free loaf of day-old fig and walnut artisan sourdough became three bread and butter puddings, two of which went to neighbours. Our friend Will declared it to be the best yet…
This Japanese inspired salad has been a staple in our house for over 30 years and it always has two ingredients: corn kernels and tinned tuna in oil. The can of corn, cos lettuce, onion, cucumber and sourdough were all from the food pantry, to which we added a tin of tuna from our cupboard stores. It was simply dressed with balsamic vinegar, oil from the tuna, and black pepper…
Small Man isn’t a huge fan, so he had baked bean toasties and undressed greens instead, made from Addi Road sourdough, tinned beans and salad veg…
This Croatian cabbage soup (a riff on this recipe) is quite different to what we would usually prepare, but it was surprisingly tasty. As my dad used to say, it didn’t cost a brass razoo!
We used (a portion of) the two cabbages we’d been given (one green and one red) and added some bacon bones we’d picked up for free at Harris Farm (a one-off, I think, as we haven’t seen them since). I also added mushroom mortadella – a somewhat strange freebie that was included in my Black Forest Smokehouse order some months ago. At the time I didn’t know what to do with it, so it was stashed in the freezer. The stock was leftover from our last batch of Hainanese chicken rice, frozen for another day. The spices were in the fridge.
I couldn’t believe how delicious this was! Comforting and nourishing, without being gut churning like raw cabbage is for me. We accompanied the soup with slices of dried sourdough. Again from the food pantry, a day old artisan loaf donated by The Bread and Butter Project (look them up, they’re cool) was sliced and dried in a low oven for several hours until rock hard. Perfect croutons with soup!
This entire pot of takka dal was made from an Indian packet mix ($1.50 or 3 points) to which we added frozen garden rapini. With rice, it fed all three of us for dinner…
Finally, let me share with you this week’s $10 purchase. Australian grown wasabi macadamias, Italian made pesto, Teriyaki sauces (which Small Man loves), ice tea infusions and Persian fairy floss, all past their best before dates but perfectly fine, a loaf of day old sourdough, a mountain of vegetables, and three frozen meals prepared by Chef Neil Perry’s team (not shown in photo).
I love that we never know what’s going to be there, almost as much as I love knowing that every time we shop there, it helps to reduce food waste! 🌿♻️💚
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 