Refill station - Shopping without the packaging

I have wanted to do a podcast about this for ages! But a bit like the banana bread, I find it so awkward to know what to call it! It's a stall at the East Oxford Farmer's Market or is it Community Market?! Somewhere (I think on the un-updated website) it's called SESI but how do you say it and what does it stand for. Unhelpfully there are no signs at the stall. I tend to call it something along the lines of packaging-free or refill place.

After that rant about not knowing what it is, I'll now talk about how fantastic it is!! I have probably been 5 or 6 times now and beginning to feel like I know what I'm doing. I was very nervous the first few times and that's the sort of situation I feel quite uncomfortable with as I don't know the system and the etiquette. It got better when I was brave enough to ask for a list of what they have so I can study it at home in advance. John and I have also been through it marking the items we are likely to buy so I can just look through those each time to see if there is anything I need. Then we have also been collecting containers and keep those in a bag ready for the market. I go through those in the morning and make a list of what we want and which container it will go in.

It's a bit of a lifestyle change from being able to go to the shops and get something whenever we should fancy, to only being available on a Saturday morning from 10-1. Quite often we are not around on a Saturday morning but if we are I try to stop at the market on my way back from park run. And it's funny having to wait your turn at the stall. But I try to remind myself that that is a good old world thing like Blair's shop in Carmody, PEI! I try and mentally allow an hour for the shopping.

It's a nicely efficient set up. You pick a little yellow number and wait to be called and then they place your number on the hook so you and they know who is next. All the tubs of goods they offer are lined up along the back. On the table are the scales where we put our containers to be refilled. There are also the bottle pumps with liquids like washing detergents - some of which we have recently started to do ourselves. They write down each price on a scrappy notepad and so unless I read it upside down I have no idea what I'm spending on each thing! Another example of the weirdness of this lifestyle - price is no longer the consideration! And often we are now getting things in strange quantities so prices seem funny. Scarily I spent £10 on olive oil and £8 on an ice cream tub of dried mango last Saturday!

Also at the market are other stalls. Lots of nice looking lunch sort of things of various country origins. There's an amazingly big bread stall. Then outside there is a fruit and veg market that I'd like to get in the habit of using more. On Saturday it was mainly a veg market, possibly just winter thing? There is also an egg refill place that we have been using latterly. I was also excited to see the milk last weekend. Their cows hadn't been producing latterly apparently so they'd been away but are planning to be back now. I'm looking forward to getting my milk from there till we can live somewhere that we can have a milkman.

So once I've added my photos (don't seem able to from phone - such a pain the app is gone!) I think that completes this long awaited post. I'm not sure if it came across, but this is a new part of my life that I'm really excited about and enjoying and want to get their Oxford people to partake in!

I'll just finish with a funny little story. Last Saturday I was proud of getting up in time for park run and market despite not setting an alarm. I ran in the snow and then went a different way to the market at the primary school in hopes of finding somewhere to park without having to pay for the car park. Unsurprisingly it turned out to be permit holders everywhere on the other side but I parked a way up the hill and then walked down to the school feeling rather chilly now I'd cooled after the run and surprised how heavy empty containers can feel (I guess there were a few glass ones). Just as I finally made it to the school, I suddenly realised I had no money with me, at all. Not on me, not in the car... So I just had to turn around and walk back up the hill in the cold and drive home. At least there I showered, warmed up and breakfasted before heading back again. At least it's not a mistake I should be making again!

January's plastic

Here it is!  We tried to keep aside all the plastic we were going to throw away in January.  I was going to do it for a week, but then that didn't feel like it would be representative, so I decided to do it for a month.  But I think I must have got slack and started putting some plastic in the regular recycling bin as I feel sure it must have been more than this!

'The Book' (have I even really talked about what the book is?)  includes a list of questions for the Show Your Plastic Challenge.  I'll try answering some of them.

Q: Looking at my photo and list, what feelings arise for me?
A: Where's the rest? I can I live without this stuff.  How can I live without chocolate?  Why are cards and magazines in plastic?  What about when people (/school children) give us gifts in plastic?  I realise these are probably not classed as feelings!

Q: What items could I easily replace with plastic-free or less plastic alternatives?
A: I rather think the easy to replace things we have already done back in September. And then more we have looked into at the packaging refill market stall. So this is tricky!

Q: What items would I be willing to give up if a plastic-free alternative doesn't exist?
A: Ummm, not sure I can think of anything... Ready made sweet things. Heat in microwave rice etc.

Q: What items are essential and seem to have no plastic-free alternatives?
A: toothpaste. Paracetamol. Quorn. Cheese.

Q: What lifestyle change(s) might be necessary to reduce my plastic consumption? 
 A: start making my own bread. Start smoothie-ing again. Milk from the market.

Q: What one plastic item am I willing to give up or replace this week?
A: Chocolate chips for cooking. The chocolate bars are in paper.

Q: What other conclusions, if any, can I draw?
A: We are on the right track. It's very hard when you are given plastic things as gifts. Plastic is everywhere!!!

Let's see how this spurs me on to reduce plastic...

TES magazine package
Royal mail package
Spaghetti wrapper
Cold and flu tablet case
Chocolate chips bag x2
Tissue box plastic bit x2
Courgette package
Cling film
Cadbury dairy milk wrapper
Toothpaste tube
Pitta bread wrapper x2
Contact lens cases x 4
mouth wash bottle
Orange juice carton caps x3 (must be more!)
Grated cheese bags x2
Warburton's toastie pockets wrapper
Oatcake wrapper x2
Milk bottles x3
Microwave quinoa and rice packet
Satsuma bags x2
Quorn mince bag
M&S caramel crispy tub
Chocolate orange wrapper and holder
Chocolate biscuit casing
Individual Chocolate wrappers x16
Supermarket veg plastic bags x7 (lots more used for rubbish bags
Toiletries gift packaging
New pillow bag
Heat in the oven baguette wrappers
Shower spray bottle
Random packaging?
Mr Muscle two bottle costco packaging
Cereal bag
Greetings card bag
9 unidentified clear plastic bag wrappers

Baking - Banana Bread

It annoys me unnecessarily whether this should be called Banana Bread, Banana Cake or Banana Loaf.  I think it is most accurately cake, I like the thought of it in a loaf tin, but I like the alliteration of bread!

I've made this quite a few times, and it is the only cake that I actually like eating!

I keep googling different recipes so decided to try to record one on here.  I have failed to do this quite a few times so will do a rubbish post now and maybe one day return to it!

Here's the link to All Recipes' Easy Banana Cake and time to try and improve this post (14/4/17)

Ingredients
Serves: 10 

• 125g butter
• 150g caster sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 very ripe bananas, mashed
• 190g self raising flour
• 60ml milk

Method
Prep:10min  ›  Cook:35min  ›  Ready in:45min 

1. Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin. Melt butter, sugar and vanilla in a saucepan over a medium heat.
2. Remove from heat and add the mashed bananas, mix well.
3. Add the egg, mix well.
4. Stir in the flour and the milk.
5. Pour into the prepared tin, sprinkle with a tablespoon of demerara sugar to give a crunch topping if liked.
6. Bake at 170 C / Fan 150 C / Gas 3 for 35 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool and enjoy!

 I am beginning to realise that I really enjoy and prefer recipes like this that involve melting the butter and then adding everything else to the pan - no need to get out and wash up the mixing bowl!  This time, I realised just as I'd put it in the oven that I had forgotten to add the milk so out it came quickly and we will see how damaged it is!  It's a low temperature and not a long cook time.  I have feeling that I normally need to cook it for a lot longer.

Update So the bell went at the end of 35 minutes and I went to look in the oven expecting it not to look cooked, but I wasn't expecting it to look so flat... that's when I realised that I had used plain flour not self-raising flour!!  So much for being concerned for the late addition of milk!  Well, I still had 2 very ripe bananas so what else to do in the holidays, but to make another one.  It was good to practise it again when it was so fresh and all the utensils were washed on the drier.  Much quicker this time, but let's not be so cocky so soon this time.  We will see what comes out of the oven!