The 2022 Pantry Box Challenge
Meet Ashton;
whose idea it was for FoodtokTV
to
participate in a food pantry awareness challenge
Growing up I was far from being rich. My mother worked several jobs to provide for two little girls in an unforgiving world. The bills just always seemed to come in unexpectedly, especially for a mother who had a child with a disability. The saddest part of it all was that my mother didn’t qualify for any government assistance back in the 90’s because she made exactly 32 cents above the cut. My mother always asked for assistance from people but was usually answered with a strong NO! Mostly because they were either one, friends with my dad and he told them it was her fault and she could just come back home or two, no one in the church wanted to associate with a divorced sinning woman. Trust me, this is a real thing in small christian towns and they didn’t want to put their feet in someone else's shoes until it was time for them to walk in our shoes or a similar situation. They felt she could just surrender and be a good wife. To go back home and just deal with the hand she was dealt.
So for me this challenge was because of a personal note. Being on TikTok I realized just how many families in different ranges are facing some of the same struggles as I did as a child. I wanted a way to give back and do it in a way that I knew I could. Cooking, of course.
One of the benefits of growing up young was I acquired skills most don’t need to accommodate until they're in their twenties. I was seven when I actually started cooking. I would step in when my mother couldn’t, because she was working.I couldn’t use the stove or knives but. I had a microwave and a basic sense of what to do from watching others older than me. This concluded my adventure into the culinary world.
Getting back to the previous question asked to me? “How is this a personal commitment in thinking up this Activity?” - Simply put, I was dirt poor too once and have experienced what many are facing today. The worry of food security, having enough, and where it will come from next can send you into a whole new form of fight or flight that can stick with you for many years; if not the rest of your life. Therefore with that being said, going through my dry goods pantry I noticed I had accommodated several stockades of the same foods multiple times from the fear replaying in the back of my head ‘What if’? Again and again.
The idea came from cleaning out my pantry and realizing I was in fact a dry goods hoarder. Then realizing it came from my undeniable need to know that no matter the situation, I'd never go without a meal again. Even if it was just a bowl of rice.
In my head I thought, why not put my weakness... That insecurity I have to know I have a stash of it and put it to good use for others instead of letting that bashing fear keep pounding in the back of my mind. Make a challenge for not only yourself but others to actually live off of a few items you had no choice over and see just what would happen. It has not only relieved some fear for me but helped connect more with my community, my TikTok Family, and others I don’t even know I have touched. In conclusion, this challenge was more than just a normal everyday ‘challenge’ to me.
It was my way of using my fear to regain strength in ways I didn’t know I had for a better way of how I deal with food, in the hopes that I would/could touch the lives of others in the process.
The Assignment
Welcome to the foodtoktv pantry box challenge! You are 1 of 4 creators challenged to see who can come up with the best recipes using a standard food pantry box. Each box contains items randomly generated that are standard for what is issued daily to struggling families, the elderly, and single persons at donation centers worldwide.
Try to make delicious, easy, and well-thought-out meals to help inspire others in your community during the economic struggles we are facing today.
You have 5 days and 5 meals to make.
You may only use items already within your home.
Each creator can add $5 worth of ingredients to help complete their meals.
