The journey to Knoydart with Jules was a good one – we were both very excited and pleased to be on our way. Just one stop on the way to Mallaig – the supermarketLists….make lists and you won’t forget things.
The shopping list took ages to compile – how much milk will 12 people consume over 4 days? How much should we consume? How much is too much….
We stopped at a big box supermarket just outside Perth. No time to think now – just shop. I had grand schemes of fresh local produce and now I’m just throwing food into a massive shopping trolley. I was past being nervous about cooking and was treating the whole thing like a military operation. No time for tears. Shut up and shop - get the ingredients, arrive and cook your heart out.
Under normal circumstances (i.e. shopping for 2 at home) I am filled with anxiety in supermarkets. So much so - that I haven’t been in a supermarket for 9 months. I worry about which products to buy – organic, fair trade, local…. It’s too hard. I put so much pressure on myself that I’ve decided to avoid the whole experience. I’m lucky to have local shops nearby. The thing is that I should have some idea which product is better as I’m an ecological footprint officer.
Back to my shopping list… I work out the shopping criteria in my head - I’ll purchase Scottish and UK produce, organic where possible and try to avoid products from far off. You can make your mind up as to whether I succeeded – the shopping list is below.
1L bottle olive oil
1L bottle vegetable oil
1 bottle balsamic vinegar
1L mayonnaise
2 jars honey
1 jar peanut butter
1 jar marmite
Olives
Capers
Sundried tomatoes
Salt
1 jar vegetable stock powder
1 jar mustard
1 jar pickle
Jams – raspberry, black currant, marmalade
Oregano, cayenne, paprika (smoked), peppercorns, coriander seeds
400ml soya sauce
1kg mature cheddar cheese
Selected cheeses for lunches (1 kg?)
1L double cream
500ml single cream
500ml soured cream
3000ml plain yoghurt
10 x 250g butter
15L semi-skimmed milk
1kg plain flour
1kg self-raising flour
500g walnuts
1kg porridge oats
1 jar baking powder
1kg caster sugar - vegetarian
1kg icing sugar - vegetarian
1kg brown sugar (light if possible)
5kg potatoes
4kg onions
4kg apples
2kg bananas
20 oranges
6 lemons
2 broccolis
1kg carrots
1kg frozen peas
3 large pumpkins
5 garlic bulbs
1kg tomatoes
3 large egg plant (aubergines)
1kg zucchini (courgettes)
6 red onions
200g leeks
1 large cauliflower
2 heads of celery
5 green bell peppers
20 large Portobello mushrooms
10 red peppers (Ramiro if possible)
4 romaine lettuce
fresh parsley, coriander, mint
ginger
light tahini
chillies
Polenta
Lentils (green if possible)
700g tinned butter beans
500g tomato puree
6 x 400g cans tinned tomatoes
6 dozen eggs
6 large bars chocolate
1 jar cocoa
Gluten free and wheat free bread
Rice cakes
6 boxes oatcakes (3 rough, 3 fine)
1 roll parchment paper
1 roll foil
1 roll cling film
from my garden….
Rosemary, thyme, sage, chives
rocket from Jules’s window box
