I was thinking the other day that I am just over-thinking all this.
I've done wartime rationing challenges before and planned it all out carefully, and indeed for most of the photos you will see this week I have been setting out the amounts to record the foods that I will be having on the rations, on the points system and I was about to do the un-rationed foods.
But then it struck me during our time away at the weekend that while the second World War didn't come totally unexpectedly back in 1939, and it was to some extent planned for on the Home Front, everyone had to get used to a new way of shopping, cooking and living virtually overnight with the advent of rationing.
So I am just jumping in with this now.
This week each day I will share one of the pages that will be remaining at the top of the blog for future reference both for myself and for readers of the blog.
Today - The Weekly Rationed Foods as they would have been during the war years for a vegetarian ... but with a modern tweak for a dairy-free, non-tea drinking person who is using up supplies already in the house.
*** *** ***
4oz Cheese - Violife Extra Mature
Will usually be grated to make it go further.
6oz Dairy-Free Spread
In place of 4oz margarine & 2oz butter
In place of 2oz Lard - I am using up supplies I already have.
One carton of Dairy-Free Milk
In place of 3 pints cows milk.
2oz Instant Coffee
I cannot drink tea, it makes me ill.
2oz Sweets
I am using up any 'sweet things' that I have in the house before buying anything else.
1 Egg and 2 Veggie Sausages
In place of the 2 eggs vegetarians were allowed each week.
These are the weekly rations I will be using, and the italics give additional information.
*** *** ***
As well as the weekly rations each person had monthly and bi-monthly food rations, as well as other foodstuff available for them to chose for themselves and their families through the Points system. There will be more about all of these on the next couple of posts.
Remember that whether you were shopping with your ration coupons or your points all food still had to be paid for in cash. The rationing system was to ensure that everyone in the country had the same access to the same foods to keep them healthy and fed during the war years. Lessons had been learnt and acted upon after the first World War when the rich had much more access to foods than the poorer in the population.
Why is there a photo of £40 at the top of this post you might have been wondering. Well I have decided to give myself a loose budget of £10 per week to purchase the bread, fruit and vegetables that I will be able to have to go with the rationed foods. Just to see if it can be done, this should be easy at first when I have things in the cupboard and freezer to use up but maybe more difficult later. We'll see, but in any case having a small amount of cash on my mind should help me to start the process of saving towards retirement.
Sue xx
