What a great week!  The Dubuque County area has some amazing foods and the quality of our family’s meals this week has been incredible. Take a look at some of our local eats:

Wednesday

Ray’s Breakfast– eggs, cinnamon roll, apples, and honey
Local Items: eggs from Beckers Farm Fresh eggs, Dyersville, IA

cinnamon roll- Anna Mae Scherbring, Dyersville, IA

creamed honey- Johnson’s Honey Farm, Guttenberg, IA

apples- Stierman’s Orchard, Dubuque, IA

Brittany’s Lunch– pork stir fry with sweet bell pepper and pickled onions

Local Items: pork chops from Westlinden Locker, Dyersville, IA

bell pepper from Dyersville Farmers Market

onion from Dyersville Farmers Market

Brittany’s Dinner– meat sauce, mashed potatoes, sweet corn, and apple

Local Items: meat from Westlinden Locker Dyersville, IA

tomatoes from Alan Becker farm near Dyersville, IA

potatoes from Kristi’s Perfect Produce, Cuba City, WI

sweet corn from Annie’s Acres, Bellevue, IA

onions from Dyersville Farmers Market

Brittany’s Snacks- yogurt, AE Dairy, Des Moines, IA

Thursday

Brittany’s Breakfast- bagel from Big Apple Bagels, Dubuque, IA

Ray’s Breakfast- breakfast sandwich from “The Bistro in Story City” croissant, goat cheese, strawberries, and spinach

Ray & Brittany’s Lunch- soup, salad, and bread from “The Bistro in Story City”

(See our previous blog “Eat Dubuque County!” Day 6: Thursday)

Brittany’s Dinner- steak, potatoes, and sweet corn

Local Items: meat from Westlinden Locker, Dyersville, IA

potatoes from Kristi’s Perfect Produce, Cuba City, WI

sweet corn from Annie’s Acres, Bellevue, IA

Ray’s Snacks- apples from Stierman’s Orchard, Dubuque, IA

Friday

Brittany’s Breakfast- homemade cranberry, white chip scones and yogurt from AE Dairy, Des Moines, IA

Brittany’s Lunch- grilled cheese sandwich and sweet corn

Local Items: bread from East Mill Bakery, Dubuque, IA

cheese from Forgotten Valley Cheese, South Wayne, WI

sweet corn from Annie’s Acres, Bellevue, IA

Brittany’s Dinner- shrimp and vegetables

Local Items: shrimp from Shrimptastic! Fayette, IA

tomatoes from Alan Becker farm, Dyersville, IA

Brittany’s Snacks- bread and creamed honey from East Mill Bakery, Dubuque, IA and Johnson’s Honey Farm, Guttenberg, IA

A lot of preparation went into this week’s local challenge.  It did take a conscious effort and more time than a simple trip to the grocery store or take out place.  It took mindful planning and the ability to cook most of our family’s meals ourselves.  Still, eating local has been a great experience for our family.  Through this challenge I discovered which local products are available in area grocery stores, and had a chance to experience some of our local farmer’s products for myself.

I’m also happy to say we finished the week UNDER budget.  Our grocery total for the week was $113.00, a savings of $20 from our budgeted amount.  I was fairly accurate with our food area break downs (meat, starch, fruit & veg, dairy, and treats) with a bit more being spent on treats than was expected.  The final percentages looked like this:

Hopefully we have helped make your local eating experience easier too!  With meal inspiration and shopping ideas, we hope you have enjoyed following our challenge on social media and this blog.  We would love for you to enjoy the best and most wonderful items our local farmers have to offer.  Use the budget tools, grocery lists, and recipe ideas to create your own ‘eat local week’ with your family.

Keep sharing your #eatdubuque ideas and stay tuned for more local food fun to come!

Happy eating!