One of my favorite life rhythms right now is walking to the Brentwood Farmers Market on Sunday mornings after church. I pack a few reusable produce bags, my giant canvas tote bag from high school and our wiggly toddler into the stroller for a leisurely 2.5 mile journey to the market.
There's something so sacred and so uncomplicated about the act of walking a few miles on foot to purchase some of our groceries for the week. I don't have to worry about parking, I get fresh ideas on meals to prepare and I meet my good neighbors who carted their homegrown asparagus all the way into Los Angeles for us.
These are a few of my favorite things about the farmers market:
I love dancing with my son to the steel drum songs of Prince Bernard
I love sampling Brothers Product's iconic fried lemon pepper pita chips (they're just TOO GOOD to not have a whole meal of them while I'm standing there. Don't worry - I always buy them)
I love giving our son a dollar bill to tip the classical violinist
I love finding "new" vegetables like romanesco broccoli to work into our meals
I love seeing my neighbors out and about enjoying a leisurely afternoon
But I'll be honest, I mostly have only gone to the farmers market for the experience rather than for the primary goal of buying all the food for our family. I'm a big Trader Joe's girl and do most of our grocery "hauls" from there spending far more there than at the market. When I shop at Trader Joe's, all of our salad greens (e.g. spinach, kale, arugula) come in plastic bags and if I'm being honest, there's a whole lot more packaged snacks (e.g. pretzels, chips, crackers, frozen meals), premade sauces and snack dips in our cart than actual fresh-out-the-ground food.
This gave me an idea. Since I love the farmers market so much, what if I used that same monthly grocery budget and poured it back into my local community instead of my beloved Trader Joe's (a privately held multi-billion dollar grocery store chain)? With our monthly budget of $400 on groceries, I decided to forego any additional shopping at traditional grocery stores. If that sounds like a lot of money, remember that our family's budget is significantly below the national average! My June Challenge means no supplementing at our neighborhood Trader Joe's, Pavilions, or Whole Foods. We'd obviously eat the remaining food in our fridge and pantry, but my goal was to not buy anything new unless it came from one of my local farmers market.
HERE'S HOW IT WENT!
Week 1
741 S Gretna Green Way, Los Angeles, CA 90049
Sundays, 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Spent: $49
Items Purchased:
3 bunches of kale - $6
1 bunch of radishes - $2
1 bunch of carrots - $2
1 bag of sugar snap peas - $4.50
1 bag of Brussels sprouts - $4
1 package of homemade flat noodles - $9
1 bag of sprouted almonds $11
2200 Virginia Ave, Santa Monica, CA 90405
Saturdays, 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Spent: $15
2 packages of blueberries - $10
1 package of raspberries - $5
Week 2
Arizona Ave. and 2nd St. Santa Monica CA 90401
Wednesdays, 8:30 AM to 1:30 PM and Saturdays, 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Spent: $7
Items Purchased:
1 package of cucumbers - $7
741 S Gretna Green Way, Los Angeles, CA 90049
Sundays, 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Spent: $153.86
1 lb. of fresh salmon - $23
3 containers of strawberries - $17
1 jar of almond butter with cocoa chips - $12
1 jar of homemade Pad Thai sauce - $11
4 bunches of kale - $8
1 bunch of carrots - $3
3 donut peaches - $XX
2 plums - $XX
6 lemons
1 cauliflower - $3
3 oranges - $0
1 container of feta cheese with sundried tomatoes - $6
1 container of tahini - $6
1 container of green sauce - $6
1 container of fig labneh - $6
1 container of figs - $7
4 avocados - $6
1 container of homemade pita chips - $1
2 zucchini - $1.50
2 squash - $1.50
1 package of homemade thin noodles - $7
Week 3
741 S Gretna Green Way, Los Angeles, CA 90049
Sundays, 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Spent: $11
1 container of homemade Drunken Noodle sauce - $11
Okay, I'm a new-ish Mom so let's just say I forgot I was working on this blog. And I didn't finish writing down all the details of what I bought and where, but GUESS WHAT. I'll spare you the boring details and just tell you what I learned that month.
Here's What Happened:
I spent significantly less money on groceries than we usually do
I met a lot of nice vendors
I bumped into neighbors and met new ones
I walked 5+ additional miles every week
I invited a few friends to join the fun and they also fell in love with the farmers market
The verdict? Go shop your actual grocery list at your local farmer's market!
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