Changing up my habits

So as part of my goals to have a menu and do more cooking another goal has emerged. Over the last year I got into the habit of just doing my grocery shopping at the local Kroger. It was easy to get into the habit and I only had to go to one store. Part of this was due to the fact that Donald was out of work and so money was tight, but it was also just me not taking the time to use my local food-shed and it's resources. During the summer we get a full CSA share from Valley Family Farm, and so we are usually pretty good in the summer, but during the winter I don't always make as much of an effort to support my local farmers. But this weekend Donald and I undertook a household improvement project of building a new pantry. It was an exercise in repurposing badly used space. When we moved in to the house the space was a hallway/coat closet. Over time it just became a junk closet where everything and anything could be put. So armed with a tape measure, hammer, circular saw, and power drill we set out to turn a junk closet into the pantry of my dreams. And a strange thing happened while we were doing the construction project. I realized that I was spending more money outside of my local food-shed then I was in it. And so I decided to change. This week was week one of my shopping local sources personal challenge. As the person who does the shopping and menu planning most weeks I figure if anyone is going to make a noticeable difference in this area, it's going to be me. So I made my list and got most of my shopping done at the Co-Op (where everyone in my house has a membership), with the exception of a couple pieces of meat. Those I will be getting later this week - fresh chorizo from Dos Hermanos market in downtown Ypsilanti, and pork chops from Sparrow Market. So with all that local foodie goodness what's on the menu this week?

Monday: Bacon-Asparagus Quiche with Green Salad
Tuesday: Minestrone Soup
Wednesday: Black Beans & Rice
Thursday: Eating out, going to see Battlefield Band at the Ark
Friday: Falafel
Saturday: Brown Rice Pilaf and Pork Chops
Sunday: Leftovers

And so I leave you with a view of my new pantry, as I go off to re-organize said pantry and run the dishwasher and laundry.