Where's the real food?

I am almost disheartened to see what people in America eat.  Fast food reigns as the go-to food for our children.  Most of us don't even look at the ingredients of packaged foods.  Additives and chemicals in foods have become the norm, while fruit and vegetables have been changed so much that they have an extra long shelf life, but have lost their flavor (when was the last time you ate an orange from the supermarket that tasted, well, like an orange?).  And don't even get me started on public school lunches (that's for another blog post).

But I figured instead of being disheartened, why don't I just put up recipes that are easy to follow and healthful instead of continuing to complain?  (Well, I will be doing some complaining interspersed between the recipes).  Complaining is much easier, but I also have four children who need to learn healthful cooking to last them a lifetime.  And I just learned to cook a few years ago, and only because I was so disgusted with what was being sold and offered in supermarkets.  So if I can learn to cook, you can too.  It's worth just the little extra time to make a home-cooked meal than it is to get yet another drive-thru burger.

And, don’t worry.  I won’t get too crazy.  No need to churn your own butter.  You can use canned tomatoes or pre-made pie crusts.  I will always try to give you shortcuts, because in this day and age, we’re all busy.  But every dish you decide to make from real ingredients and from scratch will make the meal much healthier.

This is a blog to help you try to make more homemade meals.  And make better food choices.

And also a place where you can forgive yourself for making bad choices.  Then to pick yourself up, dust yourself off,  and try again.