PGC Feast!

Happy weekend! One of the PGC challenges from about a week ago was rather difficult, but it challenged me and I actually won! We had to host a dinner party for a group of friends, and prepare a main course, side dish, dessert, and beverage that was entirely sustainable, fair-trade, or organic, and all of this for $2 a person. I ended up hosting my dinner party for 4 of my residents and I, and I made it breakfast themed! Our final total came to $9.96! And here is my entry...

Since my definition of sustainable food involved maintaining a nurturing relationship with the food from seed to what ends up on your plate, I looked for foods that were organic, harvested by workers who were paid a fair wage, and harvested locally to maximize freshness and minimize transportation costs and energy. When planning my menu, I wanted something that was all vegetarian, produce that was fresh and locally grown, and food that wasn’t going to be too expensive, especially with the price constraint of no more than $2.00 a person.

The shopping:

County Market:

Phil’s Farm Fresh Eggs: cage-free, antibiotic-free, grain-fed      

$2.74

Bob’s Red Mill Buttermilk Pancake and Waffle Whole Grain Mix made with organic flour      

$4.99 for the whole package (I used 1/3 of the package)

= $1.67

Organic Grape Tomatoes

$2.99 for the whole pack, we used 1/3

= $1.00

Target:

Archer Farms Organic Milk:

$3.79 for half gallon, we used half

= $1.90

Common Ground Food Co-op:

(I did not ask for a receipt, but the total came to $2.65)

Equal Exchange Chocolates (organic and fairly traded)

Locally grown, organic, and seasonal red pepper

Locally grown and organic potatoes

Total:

= $9.96

Cost per person (for 5 people)

= $1.99

In the campus community of Champaign-Urbana, County Market is a very popular grocery store, although not especially sustainable or unique. I also had to run errands at Target, so I picked up the organic milk while I was there. However, the Common Ground Food Co-op is where things get exciting!

This was my first time ever being in the co-op, and I loved it! Every produce label tells you where it was grown and who grew it. For example, the red pepper I bought was grown by the Moore Family Farm in Watseka, IL. It adds a real personal touch the food that we buy, and I really liked that the co-op provided this information.

This is a picture of Anna, who is an employee at the Common Ground Food Co-op in Urbana, IL. Her title on her nametag said “Change Maker”, and I liked that, since this co-op is making a difference in the Urbana community. She was very helpful and taught me a lot about the co-op. To become a member of the co-op, you pay a fee that supports the co-op and also technically makes you an “owner”, which gives you extra benefits that include potlucks, cooking classes, and voting on important matters within the co-op. The vibe of the co-op is really warm and laid back, with people working who are very happy with what they do!

The Meal:

Now for the fun part… the meal!

The theme was breakfast for dinner. After all, it’s too early to get maximum enjoyment out of scrumptious breakfast foods in the morning. I made all elements of the meal without recipes, but had made all of them before.

 Our main course was frittatas, made with the cage-free eggs, local and organic red pepper, and organic grape tomatoes, and a splash of organic milk. This recipe couldn’t be easier. I mixed 10 eggs with probably around ¼ cup of milk with the chopped up red pepper and grape tomatoes, and added some salt and pepper. I poured the egg mixture into a muffin tin and baked until they were fluffy and golden at the top.

The side dish was oven-roasted potatoes, which were locally grown. I cut up four small potatoes and mixed them with a little olive oil and seasoned them with salt and pepper. I put them on a baking sheet and baked them at 400 degrees Fahrenheit until they started to brown and were soft on the inside.

My “dessert” was chocolate chunk pancakes that were stuffed with chocolate chunks. The chocolate was definitely the star of the show! I purchased Equal Exchange Organic Milk Chocolate with a hint of hazelnut, and it was honestly the best chocolate I have ever had in my entire life. I cut up chunks to put inside the pancakes and made some chocolate shavings to put on top of the pancakes. I prepared one cup of Bob’s Red Mill Pancake mix using one of the two remaining eggs, a tablespoon of oil, and ¾ cups of water. I mixed these ingredients together, added the chocolate chunks, and cooked the pancakes!

We drank organic milk for our beverage.

I would say that our dinner party was a huge success. I must admit, when I first heard of the challenge, I thought it was going to be really tough to buy all organic/fair trade/locally grown foods for such a small budget. However, the whole thing was easier than I thought and was a lot of fun too! My friend Samar even said they were the best pancakes she ever had! I am so happy I went to the Common Ground Food Co-op for the first time! This was definitely my favorite challenge thus far… and the most delicious!

From left to right: Christian, Pavan, me, Heather, and Samar

These are some of my residents and we had a late night feast in the main lounge of our residence hall. I am the RA on a floor for environmental sustainability, so they were all excited when they heard about this challenge (and when I invited them to dinner!)