Eating healthy while stretching dollars: two workshops and a free Christmas dinner in Smoky Lake

By Irene van der Kloet

With prices rising and inflation as high as in the 1980s, it is harder for everyone to get healthy groceries reasonably priced. Recently, two workshops were held in Smoky Lake to help residents eat healthy while staying within budget, or in other words, while “stretching their dollars.” The Smoky Lake Library organized the first workshop with Galia Alexander as the facilitator. “I have grown micro greens commercially and delivered them to Edmonton and Sherwood Park,” Galia explains. “It is an excellent and simple way to add some greens to sandwiches and salads.” Galia donated all materials for this workshop: each participant received a large and small bag of soil and five little and five bigger bags of seeds. The smaller bags were intended to be used during the workshop; the rest was for taking home. The package also contained five environmentally friendly bowls. “When you do this at home, don’t use soil with much compost, as there are too many nutrients in them. Only pre-soak large seeds, and when you water the seeds, use a spray bottle to avoid moisturizing the soil too much, which would cause your seeds to get mouldy”, Galia explains. She is very knowledgeable about all sorts of vegetables and briefly talks about growing lettuce in the house. “When you grow lettuce inside, seed liberally, and do not cover the seeds. You can place the bowls in the window right away”. Galia is starting Alexander Gardens in Warspite, where she lives, in 2023. She has already prepared her gardens and beds and will sell organic produce only. Sixteen participants were signed up for this workshop, but six could not make it that night for several reasons. The six participants that could not attend picked up their bags at the library the next day. That same week, Smoky Lake Family Resource Network (FRN) hosted a workshop about healthy eating on a budget. Brianne Popowich, a Lakeland Primary Care Network registered dietician, facilitated this workshop. Brianne discussed strategies to avoid spending too much money in the grocery store while putting a healthy meal on the table. The basis is the Canadian Food Guide, from which, ideally, every meal contains a component. Eating meat every meal is unnecessary; proteins can be derived from other food such as nuts. Although fresh fruit is generally considered healthy, products deteriorate in quality because of the long travel between picking and ending up on your plate. Canned fruit is processed immediately and therefore contains more nutrients. Another well-known strategy to most people is: don’t go grocery shopping on an empty stomach, as the hungry feeling will entice a person to buy more and different groceries than necessary. Plan ahead, have a list and know the food prices in the store where you are shopping. There are helpful apps for shopping on a budget, like the Flash Food App and the Flipp App. Anyone with questions about healthy eating on a budget can contact Brianne at Brianne@lakelandpcn.com. To top off the excellent work, the Smoky Lake Legion hosted a free Christmas dinner on December 25. Seventy people sat down to enjoy a full dinner with turkey (and stuffing), ham, perogies, potatoes and vegetables, and some tasty desserts while in the company of friends.