About a year ago I decided to simplify my life by moving to scratch cooking. Some recipes require a little more time but I think it’s worth it. It’s cheaper and tastes better –like lemonade made from fresh squeezed juice. It’s even better with two little helpers in the kitchen.
One of the great things about scratch cooking is a simplified shopping list. When you make things from scratch you just need the basics: flour, milk, eggs, butter, meats, vegetables, spices etc. I now buy a fewer items but buy them in bulk.
I buy most things at Costco and fill in with smaller items from the regular grocery store. Shopping is easier because there are several things I no longer buy:
- Baking mixes (cake, brownie, biscuit etc.)
- Frozen meals (lasagna, Chinese food)
- Rotisserie chickens
- Pizza of any kind
- Rice mixes, pasta mixes (Rice-a-roni)
- Canned soup
- Cookies or other desserts
- Fruit snacks
This is not to say that you won’t find a few packaged items in my pantry right now. I’ve got some macaroni and cheese for the kids and a can of chicken noodle soup for an emergency. And I do occasionally buy a package of Oreos because they the kids love them and I can’t duplicate them!
My goal is to take it to the next level and eliminate even more processed and packaged items. These are on my next hit list:
- Soda
- Jams, jellies & syrups
- Boxed cereal
- Granola bars
- Bread
- Flavored coffee creamer
- Jarred pasta sauce
- Juice
These items will take more effort to banish from our home. Some will be replaced. Soda and juice will be replaced by iced teas. Cereal by oatmeal or farina.
Other items will be made from scratch. I plan to make some jams and syrups for the first time this summer. I am also in search of good recipes for bread, granola and pasta sauce. Lucky for me there is Pinterest so I will have no problem finding recipes to try!
Do you cook from scratch? Do you think my list is too ambitious or just right? Let me know what you think by leaving a comment.
