You’ve got one week under your belts: you’ve cleaned out your pantry, learned about the proper preparation of grains, prepared a soaked flour recipe, started your sourdough, sprouted some grain and – perhaps – even attempted milling your very own flour. So it’s time to check in and let everyone know how you’re doing.
Did you really clean all the processed food from your pantry? Are you still struggling with placing stevia, whole grain pastas and agave nectar on the forbidden list? How’s your sourdough starter going? What, in this first week, was the most challenging and what was the least? What real food has made its way to your tables and which nourishing meals are you preparing for your family?
So, sit back and evaluate the week. If you blog, share a link to your post (or posts) below so we can check them out and give you some support. If you don’t, make sure to check in by commenting. We have some fantastic prizes for the challenge (Nourished Kitchen Recipe Cards, Kitchen Kop’s Real Food Ingredient Guide and a Starter Kit from Cultures for Health featuring dairy kefir grains, kombucha and water kefir grains).
Did you miss an assignment or a day?
If you joined the challenge late, missed your email or assignment, get caught up by checking out the challenge’s archives.
Real Food Challenge Prizes:
Remember, to be eligible to win these prizes you must check in every week to share your progress – where you succeeded and where you struggled.
- 2 Participants will receive a 1-year Subscription to Nourished Kitchen’s Recipe Cards by Mail.
- 1 Participant will receive a Real Food Ingredient Guide by Kelly the Kitchen Kop.
- 1 Participant will receive a culture kit containing water kefir grains, dairy kefir grains and a kombucha mother courtesy of Cultures for Health (see their listing on the resources page)
Post Your Progress for Week #1
If you have a blog, link your post or posts here. If you’re working the challenge without a blog, post a comment to let us know how you did during week #1.
I was very happy to clean out all the accumulated “stuff” that I didn’t realize had snuck back into the pantry. However, I’ll be happy to move past the grains phase of the challenge. Both my kids are recovering from lots of intestinal damage and can’t tolerate grains yet. About a year ago, I did make a sourdough starter with sorghum flour – turns out to be an excellent sourdough bread!
We’ve also shared our leftover honey with neighbors, as we all have allergic reactions to it right now. Is blackstrap molasses ok? I guess we’ll find out.
Week 1: Sheesh. There was a lot in my cabinets to reconsider! The sugar (white – organic) will stay – for the kombucha. I am gluten free so at this point not so worried about grains. I love getting the daily challenges – I am finding lots of useful information I didn’t have.
I’m reading along and trying to keep up (I didn’t need to clean out, as we got rid of all the bad stuff a long time ago), but haven’t gotten as far as I’d like. I’ve been distracted with reading Peter Reinhart’s Whole Grain Breads, though, so my slow progress has been for a good cause! I’ll hopefully get caught up this week (looking forward to yogurt!).
I am really enjoying this challenge, I have learned so much! I am really looking forward to what is to come. I did have a tough time starting, but I did make chicken liver pate for the very first time yesterday and have two of your recipies on my menu for this week. Thanks so much!!
Just checking in!
I did not do so well with the first assignment. I still have a few things in my cabinets which I’d like to see go. Sugar is one of them. Also, I find that the organic baby crackers are so simple for me, that I couldn’t get rid of those.
I began my sourdough starter and have had terrific success with sourdough bread. My family loves it and it is so easy! My sourdough is my new baby.
I also started kefir. After over a week of it tasting like vomit every morning when I tried it, this morning it finally had a better taste. I was told to be patient, so I’m waiting it out.
I have not started the soaking of the grains. I do not have a dehydrator and to make enough for my family would be really tough, so I’m sticking with the sourdough for now.
That’s it! I’m looking forward to the rest of the month.
Leslie (Momma of 11)
My re-cap is late (crazy day yesterday…) hope that’s ok!
On the clean cupboard day I was not at all surprised to find the things that I’d been “meaning” to get rid of for a while…still taking up space in my cupboard. Instead of throwing things away (since we’re on a really tight budget) I’ve started replacing things as we finish them with healthier options (been food shopping once since then and stuck to my new healthier food list!). I’ve been trying to be TF for a couple years yet so it isn’t a ton but still and all…it’s going to be REALLY hard to give up our white sugar for baking because, even though I love Sucanat in my coffee, it just doesn’t bake up the same (in my experience) in stuff like scones.
Day #3 went well as I’ve soaked our oatmeal for a while now…and now that we have eggs in the house again I’m going to make your baked oatmeal for tomorrow…can’t wait!
Day #4 (Sourdough) I’ve tried at and failed miserably with in the past (something about living in the desert…not as many wild yeasties flying around!) so I’ve decided to wait until I have the money to buy a starter from your source. I’m making our food budget extra tight so that I can order a couple of things from them at the beginning of March (including a Kombucha mushroom since buying bottled is no longer in the budget, an a yogurt starter!).
Day#5&6 Since it’s been cold here I’ve had some issues getting my grain to sprout but am pleased with the results. This day made me realize that I’ve totally been malting my grains and that is probably the reason I’ve had so much trouble baking with them! DUH! We’ll see what kind of bread baking luck I have with this batch!
All in all I have to say it was a successful week overall, just the kick in the pants that I needed to get back to my TF ways!
Thanks so much for the challenge!
Just jumping in here today, February 9th. But after reading the archived challenges, I’m pretty caught up. I have a sourdough starter going already, and we already had most of the no-no’s out of the house. I’m ditching the Agave Nectar though!! never knew that, thanks! We have raw milk here, and farm eggs, but I still have to supplement with store junk, because I cannot afford to feed us entirely on the good stuff…I’m trying to get better at shopping, and cooking so that I might be able to.
this is an exciting challenge. I hope I can keep up!
Wow.
This is mind-blowingly hard.
I confess.
I didn’t throw away all the refined garbage.
It is sitting in a brown paper bag in the garage.
I don’t know why.
I’m trying, but I feel lost in the snack department. I am dairy free due to my nursing babe’s reaction to it. That is difficult enough- then on top of that, to take away my rice cheese? oy! what am I to eat to stay full between meals?
I’ve found that I am craving dairy and SWEETS, oh the sweets.
I’ve committed to buying some raw milk for the rest of the fam, and am considering buying a Blendtec blender and excalibur dehydrator….. I’ve switched my daughter’s post-dinner treat from ice cream to a yummy “smoothie” made with milk and frozen fruit- she looooves this!
Kelly -
I remember how hungry I would get when I was nursing my little guy – especially when he was a newborn. I suggest you pick up some nuts, vegetables, larabars, dried fruit and naturally prepared beef jerky (if you haven’t the time to prepare it yourself). Bread spread with ghee (which is butter without the milk solids) or coconut can also help to tied you over. Boiled eggs or deviled eggs are also good. Homemade hummus with vegetables can be quite filling as well.
You’ll make it through, promise.
- Jenny
I am really behind on posting my progress, but we have been doing fairly well. We already eat all the healthy, traditional fats and don’t have much in the way of processed foods in our house to begin with.
I think my biggest challenge has just been eating enough. I have been so incredibly busy with my web site, our business, and home schooling our son that I tend to get really caught up in what I am doing. Then all of a sudden it is really late in the day and I have not eaten as much as I should! Fortunately when I am eating something, it is always wholesome.
The only thing I’ve eaten this week that wasn’t healthy was a few bites of bun at the restaurant we ate at for dinner last night. I took the bun off my chicken because I forgot to ask the waitress to leave it off on my order. – but this restaurant is known for their local, organic fare so the bread was better than some (and it was covered in real butter, cheese, and pesto!). I’ve also been tasting the Green and Black chocolate samples I received in the mail this week to write my review of their products. They are great, but we received milk chocolate (and dark is my favorite), so my son has been enjoying those samples.
I also find that I am having a challenging time eating enough vegetables. I eat plenty of real fats and proteins – meat, seafood, cheese, home-made yogurt, butter, coconut oil, and others. I am having trouble getting motivated to also prepare vegetables to go along with it. And then of course, I find myself being hungry sooner than I should.
Last night I actually found myself feeling really exhausted and almost as though I might be coming down with something (I’ve been completely healthy all during flu and cold season this year, as has my husband – and our son has only had one sick day all year). I ate a very healthy dinner with local, pastured chicken, mozzarella cheese, pesto, and sundried tomatoes, a big salad, and a cup of clam chowder. I took extra cod liver oil and probiotics before bed, and made sure I drank extra water – the mixture I always keep around is filtered water with a bit of unsweetened cranberry juice (for minerals) and added some fresh squeezed lemon. Today I feel much better! Now I need to focus on getting my vegetable intake back up. Thanks for the Real Food Challenge, Jenny!
What a great week! I’m making so many new food-connections around town. AND, both my kids are loving our homemade sauerkraut. I look forward to next week.
I think I did pretty well this week. We already used real maple syrup and molasses, we bought Rapadura and now I’m looking into a local source for raw honey. I have been soaking all our grains and beans, but I still have to sprout some. I also started the sourdough culture. My husband and daughter are addicted to bread, so for our family that has been a little hard. Luckily we found Alverado sprouted sourdough and tortillas. I am really looking forward to making a real sourdough loaf! We also bought some ghee for cooking. I used it for the first time to sear goat neck for a goat neck stew. We have joined a local organic meat CSA, and it is really great. I feel like we are healthier, and I am giving the best, nourishing food to my 18 month old daughter.
I bought a farm last year, with the idea of growing and raising all my own food. I am loving all the wonderful information I am getting from you! I am new to eating anything healthy, being a junk food junky all my life. My biggest surprise so far was how I am not having any sugar cravings at all- eating healthy is much easier than I had anticipated. Mostly eating chicken, turkey, eggs and salads I have grown myself. This will get easier as the gardening season progresses. I have started my sourdough, and am really looking forward to tasting that. I have done much else… YET, due to budget constraints, but it’s great to know all that I need is sitting in my email box for when I am ready for each step. Thanks!
Hi I am vicki from sth australia, love your website and the 28 day challenge. I had just bought nourishing traditions by sally fallon and mary e enig when I stumbled upon your sight and saw about 28 day challenge. It is great, I am sprouting lots and have made saurekraut and apple and beetroot relish will try some tomorrow. Have been thinking of making sour dough bread for ages but always put it off thinking I would muck it up but when it was in the challenge decided to go for it, mine is a little runny not sure wether this is correct thought I would take some out and make sour pancakes tonight. Have been off margerine for a couple of years now after eating it thinking it was the correct thing to do butter is sooooo much nicer. Thankyou Jenny for putting up the challenge.