After a weekend of eating I'm on a roll! lol
Now granted I don't eat a lot of cake...but when I do, it better be good! I'm like that with chocolate too! And yes I realize many think sugar and flour are the enemy...but frankly for me the 'processing' that has gone into our 'foods' that I put at the top of the list to 'avoid'. And it's not easy! We pay for convenience and yet for something as basic as cake..how convenient is it really? I mean we buy a box - add water, oil and eggs to most of them...and we 'make' a cake. Did you know the basic ingredients needed for a made from scratch cake?
Butter
Sugar
Eggs
Vanilla
Flour
Baking powder, salt
Milk
So if you can handle a couple measuring cups/spoons..you're done in about the same time. And you can pick your own ingredients...organic butter or milk/flour/eggs if you so choose to make it even healthier! (save money too as you have most of these normally on hand)
Here's what you get for 'convenience' in a box: (plus adding your own eggs/oil/water)
Sugar, Enriched Bleached Wheat Flour (Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron,Thiamine Mononitrate,Riboflavin,Folic Acid), Vegetable Oil Shortening (Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Propylene Glycol Mono- And Diesters Of Fats,Mono- And Diglycerides), Leavening (Sodium Bicarbonate, Dicalcium Phosphate, Sodium Aluminum Phosphate, Monocalcium Phosphate). Contains 2% Or Less Of: Wheat Starch, Salt, Dextrose, Polyglycerol Esters Of Fatty Acids, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Cellulose Gum, Artificial Flavors,Xanthan Gum,Maltodextrin,Modified Cornstarch,Colored With (Yellow 5 Lake, Red 40 Lake). Contains: Wheat.
I hope you can see where I'm going here! Now I'm not saying never use any convenient prepackaged item again - but what I am saying is we've gotten so far away from actual cooking it's affecting our health! We all get into a rut, but one thing I remember are family get-togethers of home cooked meals! I LOVED these meals and what went into them...recipes exchanged and great conversation as well. I'm on a bit of a rampage here as I sometimes get nosy and look in other peoples shopping carts when I'm in the store. Some inspire me and I wonder what they are making! lol And others depress me as some are full of frozen meals and convenience foods I can't help but feel bad as even the kids in that house won't know how to cook!
My daughter Rachael inspires me with her experimenting with more ethnic and simple meals - healthier and end up costing less as well! Or home made cookies made with the kids instead of store bought - again, something worth taking a little extra time for.
Another area I've been experimenting with as I pretty much despise bottled salad dressings, is making my own vinaigrette. Basic ratio is 1 part acid (vinegar or citrus) and 3 parts oil (I tweak this to my own tastes...but that's the beauty of it...YOU decide. Basic ingredients to add: minced fresh garlic, pinch of salt, pepper, Dijon mustard, honey etc. All you need is a glass jar with a lid to shake it in and of course pick a healthy oil to use. Regular salad, pasta salad even as a marinade!
Lordy now I'm really getting hungry! :o)
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