Bountiful Baskets

A few months ago, I was introduced to a new way to shop for my fruits and veggies. A close friend of mine showed me the wonders of Bountiful Baskets. She explained that each week on Monday at 12:00pm, you log onto the website and place the order. Then, each Saturday morning at 7:15 you go and pick up your basket. I'm sorry, what? On Saturday? In the morning? I'm not what you would call a morning person. And my daughter is old enough to let me sleep in on Saturday. There isn't much that I find worth waking up for at 6:30 on a Saturday. Possibly catching a flight to Cancun would be on that list. Broccoli and apples....Never thought they would have been on that list. But, I was 99.99% percent sure that waking up bright and early on a Saturday was not going to in fact kill me. I say 99.99% sure, because I've never been up that early on a Saturday to witness whether others were dying from being up too early. I've never read about it on the internet though, and if it isn't on the internet, then it's not real. Right?

So, I placed my order for a basket of lovely fruits and vegetables and headed off bright and oh so early the following Saturday. I was so excited when I got home, I completely forgot that I was exhausted. I ran into the house and immediately started telling my daughter about the amazing haul. I was never so excited with romaine before. Then, I ran and woke my husband up. And began telling him about all the delicious antioxidant rich goodness that I got from a parking lot of an elementary school. Then, I went on facebook and started telling more people.

There was a lot of food. For $15.00 I got broccoli, lettuce, radishes, strawberries, apples, mangoes, pickling cucumbers, carrots and a watermelon. I went to Walmart that afternoon to get some non veggies items and I couldn't help myself. I priced everything that I got in my haul and it would have added up to $33.00. I was sold.

Each week has it's issues. Sometimes I get caught up in life and don't get around to using everything. Or forget that random head of cauliflower that is sitting in the back of the fridge. Or make food that doesn't utilize all the veggies (ok, sometimes I get a little sick of romaine salads). But I see the baskets as an opportunity to save money while feeding my family healthy meals that are based around fruits and veggies. So, in an effort to make sure I use every last onion and and apple and bit of celery in that basket, I've decided to share my journey with you. Each week I will showcase the lovely fruits and vegetables that are bestowed upon me and all the creations I attempt to make with them.

Bon appetit.