THE ZERO WASTE FAMILY SUPPLIES BUDGET-MINDED RECIPES AND IDEAS DURING THE PANDEMIC

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By Rebecca Jefferis Williamson
(Photos courtesy of The Zero Waste Family) 
 

July 3, 2020 (San Diego) Many families and individuals have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic – with some experiencing unemployment coupled with financial insecurity, health issues and/or medical expenses.  

San Diego resident Fredrika Syren, founder of The Zero Waste Family, offers up tips to reduce the cost of feeding a family or individual and eating healthy at the same time.

(Photo at left: The Syren family)

“There are so many people who have lost money and their income during the pandemic,” said Syren, an environmental writer, in a phone interview with ECM. “We were prepared more than most.”

That preparation began when her daughter was born.  The family, originally from Sweden, is comprised of Syren’s husband and three children, and now live in the Talmadge neighborhood in east San Diego.  The tips they offer can be applicable to the whole county.

“When my daughter was born in 2006, I became more aware of what I was doing to the planet,” she said. That awareness manifested in looking at what household cleaning products she used, induced lifestyle changes, and changed the foods they eat.

Syren challenges families of five to eat for $100 a week and use healthy foods.

Part of how she accomplishes this are:

--Creative meal planning

--Canning and freezing

---Making different meals at home

---Know your pantry/fridge inventory

Another part of the challenge is finding recipes the family loves that are economical. She offered ECM readers her kids’ favorite recipes:

https://zerowastefamily.com/spinach-pasta-sauce

https://zerowastefamily.com/creamy-broccoli-soup-when-a-fast-meal-is-a-must#.XHcJGS2ZOL9

https://zerowastefamily.com/bean-bread

ECM asked questions of Fredrika Syren.  Some might inspire families to start a garden or increase the size of their current one.

1. How has the pandemic affected you and your family life?

“We, like many other families, are faced with a reduced income, so we have to budget more and have reduced our spending---which of course was not too much of a challenge in the beginning of the lockdown, since nothing was open. I think as a family, we now spend more time tending to our garden so it can provide more food for us and we cook a lot more and have fun trying new recipes.”

2.  How much did you spend before the shutdown versus now on food?

“Before the pandemic we spent about $1,000, or a little more; and today we have reduced it to about $800 a month.”

3.  What are the main tips for families?

“Store food properly to reduce food spoiling; for example, we keep our dried food in glass jars with lids to avoid bugs getting in. Vegetables I store in a drawer that I clean at least once a week to remove any food that has gone bad and dirt to keep the vegetables fresh as long. Be creative with leftovers and use them up. We have learned that some of the most amazing dishes came from leftovers – or makeovers. We have made lasagna soup from leftover lasagna and lentil soup and Mexican rice from leftover tomato soup. Learn to bake. Home baked bread is not hard to make and tastes so much better than store bought, plus it saves tons of money. Focus on eating staple foods that are filling and are budget friendly ---whole grains, lentils and beans. Even if you eat meat, adding beans to a dish adds more nutrients and makes the food more filling. Cook what you have at home instead of what you want that requires a trip to the store. Pre-packaged snacks and treats are so tempting, especially now that we are home so much, but they can significantly add to your food bill.  We make our own popsicles, cookies, granola bars, and crackers.”

4.  For foods - where do you recommend buying the products? Online? If so-what sites? What combination of stores?  Costco, traditional grocery stores, discount stores, farmers' market, or your own garden?

“We grow about 70-80% of our food and shop at farmers’ markets for coffee, tempeh, cheese, fruit and berries. We buy our staple foods like rice, beans, lentils, flour, nuts and seeds in bulk and like to buy 25-pound bags of it.”

5.  Your two top recipes if you care to share them? Old family recipes? Cuisines? 

“Broccoli stem soup is my kids’ absolute favorite soup and I use broccoli stems and leaves that most people otherwise would discard. It’s one of those meals I will make on the fly when we need food quickly. We always bake our own bread and one day when I had some leftover white beans, I decided to add them to bread I was making. Holy moly! It was such a surprise how good it turned out and I love that the beans added more fiber and protein to the bread.”

6.  Are your backgrounds in the culinary field? Is your family in the food industry?

“I grew up with my mom, who was a classically trained chef, but most of my food skills I learned from traveling and trying lots of different food and experimenting in the kitchen.”

7.  How do you clean the vegetables and other foods since the pandemic, before cooking? Tips?

“I clean my vegetables and fruit with some water and lemon essential oil and here is my recipe:

5 cups of water

½ cup apple vinegar

10 drops lemon essential oil

Soak vegetables and fruit for 5 minutes. Dry off before storing away.”

8.  Kid recipes? Or the family eats all the same offerings?

“My kids are huge eaters and eat exactly what we eat. We might add a bit more spice to our portions.”

9.  How many followers do you have on YouTube or social media?

“Instagram 3,640, Facebook 68K, YouTube 154 (we just started there).”



10. Any unusual methods to cook? Do you use an Instant Pot, air fryer, other kitchen appliances, or canning equipment? Where do you buy canning jars and products?

“My husband is the Instant Pot king and I use the crock pot for cooking soups and beans. We do can a lot, so we also have a pressure canner and we dehydrate so we have one of those. I usually use recycled jars for canning.”

11. Spices can be pricey--where do you recommend finding them? What’s your favorite spice and why?

“Before the pandemic we bought all our spices in bulk because we can do that without waste.  Pre packaged spices tend to be very over-priced. We have not bought any spices since the lockdown, so not sure how we’ll buy them now. My favorite spice I use a lot is smoked paprika powder. I really like that taste and I love cardamom because it reminds me of Sweden, where I grew up. They eat a lot of cardamom buns there.”

12.  Do you use coupons and if so, how? 

“No.”

13. Have you written a cookbook or do you plan on doing so?  

"I do have a cookbook, written about 10 years ago, called "Yummy in my Tummy: Healthy Cooking for the Whole Family," and I have an eBook that came out in January where I share my tips for saving money and reducing waste at the same time. In Zero Waste Family I share how we save $18,000 a year." 

14.  How did you manage the tricky part of shopping during the shutdown?  Or how will you for a future shutdown?

"We were lucky that right before the lockdown we had just done a major shopping trip for beans, lentils, rice and flour so between that, what we had in our freezer and what we grew in the garden---we ate really well and did not need to go grocery shopping.  When we did, we shopped at our local Stehly Farms Market* and they let you call in an order and pick it up without needing to go into the store.  Because we know another lockdown can happen again, we have planted more food in our garden and make sure we have staple foods at home, but not overbuying of course." 

15.  Where can readers find out more about your books and social media?

Our website is zerowastefamily.com 

You can also find us on YouTube where we share our frugal eating tips. 

 

 

Instagram zero.waste.family

Or - Faceboook at The Zero Waste Family. 

https://zerowastefamily.com/ebook

https://www.amazon.com/Yummy-Tummy-Healthy-Cooking-Family/dp/1461139635/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Fredrica+Syren&qid=1593574509&sr=8-1

*Stehly Farms has a location in Valley Center – Stehly Farms Organics.

 

 


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