Earlier this year I posted an article about why I cook from scratch. Today, I’d like to follow up with what I cook from scratch. I hope this is encouraging and not overwhelming. I don’t want anyone to feel judged or criticized! I just hope knowing what we do can help you transition if you are hoping to move to a ‘from scratch’ sort of lifestyle.

Veggies

As mentioned in the past, cooking veggies from scratch isn’t hard or as time consuming as you may think. We use fresh, raw vegetables as well as frozen. Canned goods often lose their nutritional value when heated. However, I do can our own homegrown veggies, like green beans and tomato products. Ways of preserving means we can eat healthily and sometimes homegrown all year.

Grains

I make almost 100% of our bread and grain products. But, I haven’t always. It was a goal and a challenge I gave myself. Sweet Husband still loves the treat of store-bought bagels or cinnamon loaf. Store-bought breads, tortillas, etc, have preservatives and additives that make them shelf stable. Making bread products at home means I can grind my own grains at times or use sourdough for fermentation and easier digestion.

Meats

We purchase locally grown, grass-fed beef whenever possible and I seek to buy local pork as well, though I don’t always find every cut I’d like at our butcher shop. And, as you may know from a recent post, we grow 100% of our own chicken. When you begin with meat instead of processed meat products, you choose how it is prepared and know exactly what your meal consists of. It is also a good idea to know how the meat was raised. Recently I heard a podcast on grass-fed vs conventionally raised beef etc. It mentioned how much of our medical numbers and statistics due to health concerns can stem from the lot-raised animals. When we eat grass-fed, the health benefits shine! (Do some research to this end and see what you learn. Weston A. Price Foundation may be an excellent place to start). This past week I added beef liver to our ground beef. Small bits, in stages… the taste, if noticeable at all, was richer and fuller. Organ meats are a super star when speaking of health. This was a simple addition, yet can make a large difference. When I cook our homegrown chicken, my two youngest actually ask for (and can make it a contest) as to who gets to eat the heart. I often chop the organs (heart and liver in the case of chicken) up and put them into our BBQ chicken. No one knows the difference and its a great health boost.

Sweets

Making our own desserts is never frowned upon. Ha! My family loves a sweet treat at the end of a meal. I try to have bars or cookies or cake made and on hand frequently. When I do so, I can make those items withOUT artificial dyes or sweeteners. I can use the sweetener of my choice. And, I can save a lot of money. When we do have a store bought treat or cake at an event, I have to limit the amount my kiddos eat. Inevitably, one or more of them will end up with headaches because they aren’t used to eating white, refined sugars. This is a real thing- pattern things according to diet and you are sure to see links in the chain. I am totally behind giving up refined sugars and eating unrefined cane sugar, honey (buy local!), maple syrup, succanat…

Dairy

I have begun making some cheese, but since we don’t have a dairy animal, it isn’t often. I do, however, shred our own cheese. I buy block cheeses and shred them with my Kitchen Aid shredding attachment, but I also have a handheld shredder that gets ample use. Shredding your own cheese means many things, not the least of which is having only cheese in your meals and no false anti-caking agents. I have also heard that cheese melts much quicker and more evenly when shredded at home.

Meal Ideas

With all of this being said, I wanted to include a few quick and easy from scratch meal ideas that you can have in your back pocket. When I know a recipe, I tend to be able to make meals more readily. Most complicated dishes don’t make it into my kitchen. Simple, healthy ingredients; a few staple spices and flavorings; and learning over time ‘what goes with what’ has been how we stay afloat on hectic days. This is how you can keep from going the all-too-easy route of running out for fast food. [ At-home convenience foods are very helpful and something I intend to make more of- look out for future posts!]

• Sheet Pan Dinners- meat of choice, veggies of choice, fat of choice, and seasonings of choice. Bake at 400* for approx. 40-60 minutes. This can be as easy as cubed beef, potatoes, carrots, onion, lard or butter, and salt, pepper, thyme…. Get the idea? Lots of room for creativity, but if that isn’t your kind of cooking, stick to simple! It is always yum.
• Skillet Meals- meat of choice (cut in small pieces), veggies of choice, fat of choice, seasonings of choice, possible starch. Cook in preheated cast iron for best results. This sounds familiar, huh? Very similar to the above sheet pan dinner. On the one hand, you have a bit more ‘hands on’ time. However, you have a little more freedom with add-ins! For example, a fave of ours is as follows: kielbasa, gnocchi or bow tie pasta; cooked in bacon grease and/or butter; adding salt and pepper to taste and pesto; throw in fresh or frozen peas toward the end of cooking time and let steam under lid. Top with freshly grated Parmesan cheese. Wow! One pot meal…
• Soups- I love soup season! Warm and cozy and filling…. A basic soup foundation can be: protein of choice (meat, bean), veggies (what do you have on-hand?), starch of choice (pasta, barley, potatoes), bone broth, and seasonings. My all time, must have seasonings for soup are: S, P, cumin, and garlic… That’s it! You can definitely add more. And, depending on the type of soup, you may want thyme or onion powder, etc. Creamy soups love half & half and cheese. Tomato based soups are my bowl of choice.
• Crock Pot Meat and Vegs- very similar to above, crock pot meals can be staples and must haves. As I type, a pork roast is in the slow cooker upstairs. I’ll add simple mashed potatoes and either roasted carrots or green beans. Meat, vegetable, starch… done! You can do mac and cheese instead of potatoes. Throw the veggies in the slow cooker with your meat. Bam!

MEATS- beef, pork, chicken, lamb…

VEGGIES- carrots, peas, zucchini, squash, green beans, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, onions, garlic, cabbage, kale, spinach…

STARCH- white or red potatoes, pasta, barley, gnocchi, corn, couscous, rice…

OTHER PROTEIN- beans (pinto, great northern, chickpea, navy, cranberry), lentils…

FATS- butter, lard, tallow, bacon grease, olive oil, duck or chicken fat (everything in moderation, of course)…

SEASONINGS- garlic, onion powder/flakes, thyme, rosemary, cumin, chili powder, dill, Italian seasoning, paprika, oregano, basil, mustard, ginger…

Does this list help you? I hope so! Cooking from scratch can sound daunting, but it doesn’t have to be. Also, let me say again that I don’t cook everything from scratch! I believe in the 80/20 rule and seek to make cooking a part of my lifestyle instead of a chore that is overwhelming. Let me encourage you: stay simple if you are feeling like this is too much. Start with one meal this week! Do that same meal next week, then add another new one. Don’t get burnt out. Please, enjoy your cooking journey! God has given us so many beautiful foods and keen taste buds. Let us go from one delicious meal to another without guilt or overwhelm on our plates.

Bonus:

Some of the above mentioned meals have plenty of leftovers. Yes, I said it. So many people don’t like leftovers. BUT… they are frugal, they mean a meal is already cooked, and they can be used in a different way as a sort of disguise to form a new meal. If you are wanting to save money, the frugality of this statement should make you cheer! If you are wanting to save time, I know you are raising the roof right now.

An example: if you make a sheet pan dinner or slow cooker meal, take the leftovers and make them into a pot pie! Reheat the meat and veggies in a sauce pan on the stove, adding broth or water as needed and put a pie crust or cut out biscuits on top! Bake for 30-40 minutes at 350* and voila! A brand new meal! ***I adore adding thyme to my pot pies.***

Another example: if you cook meat alone in your crock pot (adding sides separately), reuse the meat as something different (i.e. pork roast- shred and add BBQ sauce= pulled pork; beef pot roast- shred, add broth= serve over noodles or rice; whole chicken- so many things I can’t name them all, but= debone (make bone broth, of course) and make… BBQ chicken, tacos, chicken ‘n rice, soups, sheet pan dinner, chicken and noodles…..)

Final example: if the soup you make is chili, serve it over hot dogs or noodles the next day.