Making it from Scratch.....

I would like to start a series of entries about keeping things natural in our homes. Both food-wise and other items. Is anyone else interested in this? I was thinking I could do "Make Your Own Mondays" or something like that. It would mainly hit upon things that people simply don't know that they can make on their own or don't know how....or maybe think it is too complicated or requires specialty equipment....

I could also do something on weekends that might require more time involvement, like making pasta from scratch.

When I mention making this or that from scratch, I get many comments to the tune of "I'm too busy" or "I like the convenience of...." I'm here to show you that you're not too busy, you can save money (and time, which is priceless), and you will feel good about it!


The food is especially important to me. And before I get started, let me just say, I do have some processed food in my cupboards. Please....I'm a busy mom and wife....and I have one child who lives on cereals, anything crunchy and salty, and vegetarian bacon. But I make as much as I can from scratch. I don't find most convenience items very convenient. If I can make something at home using ingredients I already have, especially living where we live, it is not worth a drive to the store. By the time I get my kids ready (which involves getting them dressed, going potty, changing Emma's diaper, packing the diaper bag, and loading them into the Suburban), drive to the store, herd all 3 of them wherever I need to go, pack them back into the car, and drive home, where I have to unload not only my kids but the groceries, I probably could have saved myself time and money by making it myself. (That said, of course we go grocery shopping like anyone else, but we buy smart. Or try to, at least.) Most of these things are easy to make and cheaper than buying....things that you probably have in your homes...laundry soap, stock, yogurt, crackers, baby wipes, salad dressing, etc....and most times, I bet your homemade version will taste so much better that you will wonder why you ever paid for the prepared store version!

As a mother, and a woman who desires to be healthy, I worry over food additives, chemicals in our food, cleaning supplies, and bath and body stuff. When I make my own things, I know the ingredients, which provides peace of mind. Challenge: go read the list of ingredients on something in your cupboard. And I mean some kind of prepared food. Salad dressing or another condiment, hot cocoa, coffee creamer.....Do you have a cake mix? (I do not, so I can't list ingredients here to compare to a recipe.) Scary, right? And here's the thing: throwing together a cake is SO easy. It takes you maybe 2 minutes longer than dumping a mix into a bowl and adding oil and eggs. And it allows you to control your own sugar, sodium, fats, etc. (You do not want to get me started on how "low fat", "low calorie", whatever!!!!, is not usually good for you....many people buy these things blindly without reading the nutritional information....not saying I never buy these things, just saying, be aware of what you're eating.) This is something I learn more and more about, so it is a journey we can take together.

As usual, I'm babbling. I feel passionately about this topic. Who wants to learn more? Anyone?