Well its been a few weeks now since I vowed to go organic. I have been having a weekly food delivery from Riverford Organic of a mini veg box, fruit bag, milk, butter, yoghurt, cheese, chocolate and apple juice. I have also tried several other organic products from them such as meat, veggie burgers, blackcurrant squash, mayonnaise and pasta.
So how has it been? Well, a huge unexpected plus is the taste. I don’t know if it’s because there’s no chemicals or because it is seasonal, but I honestly say I have never tasted better fruit and veg. The apples are incredible and the tomatoes are like the ones you get in France or Italy. I have found this has made cooking so much easier because I do not have to work hard to get make a good sauce or tasty veg. Also they supply really useful recipes in every box so that I don’t run out of ideas of how to cook the veg they have put in. Some of my husbands favorites have been runner bean ratatoullie, and poor mans potatoes, (potatoes cooked with peppers and garlic – a great alternative to my usual baked or boiled).
On the downside though, I have found it a bit of culture shock from supermarket organic veg that is usually washed, packaged and generally perfect looking. I really don’t mind washing the dirt from the potatoes and carrots (I remember all veg looking like that when I was young), but I wasn’t quite prepared for some of the wildlife that has tagged along! Yes I know I’m supposed to be doing this to help the little guys but I wasn’t expecting a personal thankyou. I’ve had a few bugs on the brocoli , the salad comes with teeth marks, and I’ve had a few surprises on the cabbages such as a caterpillar and a worm! I won’t pretend that it’s not going to take some getting used to, although what better proof that the produce is pesticide free! and therefore no toxic chemicals for my families bodies. Plus my daughter is always absolutely delighted. I suppose it’s no different to when I’m digging up potatoes in my garden and putting the worms back!
Organic weekly delivery – my good and bad list
Best bits:
* Riverford butter – no words can do it justice, toast has been transformed in our house, could never go back to other butter now.
* Riverford milk – as above, even the skimmed has a lovely flavour better than other organic milks.
* The potatoes – taste so good, make any meal ten times better.
* The meat – seems pricey but you get really big portions, I order lots, freeze half, then use a pack for two meals. Ends up costing a couple of quid a meal and feel happy that the animals are extremely well looked after and fed.
* The diversity – we have different variety apples, potatoes etc each week, odd-looking cucumbers, which ever salad leaves are in season etc. I don’t think I ever had a different cucumber delivered from my supermarket – it was all the same.
* The quality and size of the food – amazing quality – look at the size of the garlic! Has improved my cooking no end.
* Seasonal – I don’t even have to think about what’s in season as they just don’t stock it. It feels like I’m living more in tune with the planet already (is that really cheesy!).
The not so good bits:
* My husband and kids didn’t enjoy the organic squash at all. But the apple juice was a big hit. I never used to think about juice when I was buying organic from a supermarket, but of course if the fruit isn’t organic it’s probably been sprayed.
* The farmhouse cheddar – big no from the family. The husband said it tasted like a farm. But if you like the taste of farmhouse cheese it would probably be a winner.
* Sometimes I just change the order to the staple veg (easily done). I do get fed up of eating too much veg, there’s only so much cabbage you want in a week! I prefer more salads I think, but it is easy to change the order.
All in all though I would really recommend trying a local organic delivery, it’s so nice to think the food we are buying is helping out the wildlife, the lives of the farm animals and the countryside and rivers that are polluted with pesticides. Plus the garlic is massive!
Oh what a long time it’s been and I apologise for the delay in letting in you know how I have been going with the new house and all the renovations. We moved on December the 16th, despite inches of snow, treacherous road conditions and lack of floor boards in the new house. Yes I wouldn’t go there again, but eventually we unpacked and despite a small breakdown on Christmas Eve (the house was in about 4 inches of dust from re-plastering), we survived. Now so many months on, we have had the house re-wired, re-plastered, re-plumbed and the floor boards are back down! I am getting myself organised and yes – back on-line, so I can keep you posted with all the little home made projects and vintage finds as I start to finish each room. For now though – a few photos of work done so far and the reason we moved – bigger garden and those countryside views.
jessicamolland
