Thrifty Thursday: Timber Creek Farms

It's something that I've wanted to do for some time now, but could never get my act together to put into motion. The idea of it jumped from one "To Do" list to another "To Do" list. Never making it off the list.

Thankfully, a girlfriend of mine investigated and jumped on the band wagon asking me to come along.

A year ago, we abolished purchasing and consuming the majority of pre-packaged snack foods (cookies, chips, gummy "fruit" snacks, etc.) in order to create a healthier kitchen and save money. Thus, our kitchen is now stocked with fruits and vegetables and the kids know that they never need to ask permission before grabbing a piece of fruit for a snack. And yes, Zane, you can dunk your apple in Nutella, as I'm down with hazelnut goodness if it means getting an apple into you.

So, now as we continue along the path to thriftiness, I find myself having to restock the fruits and vegetables weekly because we run out so quickly. And if we don't get the chance to restock, which does happen on occassion, we find ourselves having nothing, nada, zip, in the produce department of our kitchen. It's either this scenario or the opposite: pitching produce that has gone bad due to overbuying. This is wasteful on so many different levels: throwing away food, throwing away money, and throwing away time. I also tend to purchase the exact same varieties of fruits and vegetables every week. Boring.

Enter Timber Creek Farms: delivering tasty and organic foods to your home! The Farmer's Market Box costs $49.14 a week. We have agreed to split a box of produce with our friends. Thus, for $24.57 we will be receiving half of the following every week: (this is an example)

3# Bag of Red Delicious Apples
3# Bag Pears
3# Bananas
12 Tangerines
½ Gallon Apple Cider
2 Pie Pumpkins
1# Okra
1# Green Beans
1# Brussels Sprouts
Cauliflower
5# Bag Red Potatoes
1 Bunch Celery
½# Parsnips
1 Head Romaine
1 Bunch Broccoli
2 Cucumbers
1 Bunch Carrots
½# Mushrooms
1 Bunch Collards
1 Bunch Beets

Timber Creek also provides recipes for the items in your box. So, you needn't be worried about what to do with that bunch of collards.

This setup will help our family by:

1. Insuring that we have produce in the house every week.
2. Decreasing waste from overbuying produce and chucking it when we fail to use it!
3. Encouraging our family to try new produce and recipes.
   

Think about it. $100 a month towards produce is a pretty good deal for a family of 4. Organic, no less. Usually, I can not afford organic, locally grown produce from Whole Foods, (although I splurge for organic apples), so this is the next best step. I'll track our total grocery bill in February and see if this helps to decrease the overall monthly bill.

Tip of the week:

• Do a Google search to see if you have any local farms in your area who offer a similar program for produce and other grocery needs.
  
• Then, if you need to save on costs, go "co-op" with another family.

By sowing frugality we reap liberty, a golden harvest. ~Agesilaus