We've come to the realization that as consumers of processed, not natural foods, we are slowly killing ourselves. The junk they are putting in our so called "healthy" food is not healthy. All the commercials I see now advertising "real ingredients" just scares me! So most of our food has been made with what....fake ingredients? Well,YES, actually!
As a result of this, I, as a mother of two, a wife of one, a daughter, sister, cousin, and friend, have decided that no more will my pantry and fridge be filled with stuff made in a factory and bought at the store. Granted, there are things I can't make myself. I don't own a cow, I can't grow my own wheat for flour, or even have chickens for eggs, but I can however make breads, pasta & sauces, grown my own herbs, churn my own butter, make my own frozen pizzas, ice cream, chocolate syrup, pancake syrup, salsas, buy all organic meat from the local market (less per pound than at the grocery or Whole Foods),even convenience foods like Rice-a-Roni or flavored rice mixes. I can also make all my own soaps, laundry detergents and fabric softener, and cleaners. All with natural items. And you know what the main ingredient is in most of them......vinegar! Hey, I can cook and eat with that, so it must be okay to clean with, right? It's been fabulous. My whites are whiter and my counters are clean. Vinegar is a natural grease fighter and anti-bacterial. I can make all these things using whole grains, fresh fruits and veggies and know what I'm putting in my mouth and the mouths of my family, and what I'm using to clean with that they are not inhaling terrible chemicals or having harsh things put onto their skin.
I have found a wonderful website called Hillbillyhousewife.com. This site has given me many recipes for foods we have come to find easily in our grocery isle. The main exception is, mine won't have preservatives, be over processed, full of salt, and yes, taste better. My kids might disagree with the latter of these, but they will get used to it. I personally think there is nothing like homemade!
Not only is all this benefiting our bodies, it's benefiting our wallet. I was able to make the laundry soap for around $.90 for 64 loads. I average 4 loads a week. That's 16 weeks worth of detergent. That comes out to about $3/year for laundry detergent. Not bad. I figured up we spent about $30 on detergent annually. Not to mention all the other cleaners. Breads cost me about$.25/loaf. I made my own version of the frozen Pillsbury biscuits. You know, the ones you pull out however many you want and bake them. Yup, and mine are whole grain, fluffy and good. Hey, if my youngest, the pickiest eater in the world loves them, then you know they are good.
Here is the frozen before and the freshly baked after.
This new found way of cooking and cleaning has really empowered me. To know that, one) I made it with my own hands, and two) it's chemical free, and three) I'm keeping money in my bank account, it's just awesome! My family will naturally be healthier, our waists will hopefully get smaller, and our wallets get bigger! And we do it together!
Here is a picture of the top shelf of my freezer.
3 homemade pizza crusts, about 25 frozen whole grain biscuits, and 3 containers of homemade tomato sauce for pizza or pasta or whatever. All of this costs less than $10 and all is all natural and made with 100% USDA organic ingredients except for about 2 tbsp of sugar. I don't have organic sugar yet. I made all of this Tuesday after work starting at 2pm and finished around 4. Not bad. I do have a bread machine so the pizza dough was done with that, but one batch makes 2 crusts. My next will be deep dish frozen crust and bread sticks. These are all things we eat about once a week, but usually from Papa Murphy's or from the refrigerated section of Kroger.
