Using 100% Real Food Ingredients



Creating delicious meals cooked from scratch starts with a little planning.  I know the thought can be overwhelming for some, so I suggest you start with small steps.  Look through the list below and begin with one meal.  Then expand and try cooking from scratch for multiple meals each week, or for all your meals for one day.  Soon these steps will become a habit, and you will be enjoying 100% God-made foods and the improved health and vitality that comes from eliminating man-made foods from your diet.  The ingredients shown in the photo are for Roasted Potatoes and Sausage Quick Meal.

 

Here is a list of the steps:

 

1.  Go to the recipe box and pick out a recipe for breakfast, lunch or dinner that you think your family will enjoy.

 

2.  Make a list of the ingredients you will need and then see what you have already.  But I want you to use 100% excellent quality ingredients, so for example, if the recipe calls for vanilla extract, make sure you have pure vanilla extract, preferably organic.  If the recipe calls for salt, obtain an excellent quality sea salt.  If the recipe uses beef, find 100% grass fed beef.  Remember that foods taste great when you use the best ingredients.  Though initially the cost may seem higher buying the best ingredients, if you/your family don't throw away food, if you don't let food go bad before it is used, if you eat your leftovers, if you aren't taking over-the-counter or prescription medicines, and if you don't have medical co-payments, then you will actually be saving money and enjoying better health while eating the best quality foods!

 

3.  Make a list of the ingredients you need to buy and find sources for each.  Possible choices include:

 

    a.  Natural grocery stores such as Whole Foods, Natural Grocer, Sprouts, Trader Joe's

    b.  The natural grocery section of some standard grocery stores.  I buy various things at Costco, Kroger, Market Street, Target and Kroger.

   c.  Local specialty stores.  A few that I am aware of include Local Yocal (McKinney) and Cupboard Natural Foods (Denton).  For raw milk, Lavon Farm's store in Plano.

   d.  Local farmers and ranchers and farmer's markets.  I personally have purchased my 100% grassfed beef from Burgundy Pasture Beef for years (they deliver).  Find local sources; be sure to read the post, It's All About Quality if you haven't already. 

     From that post:

       Here are a couple websites to get you started. Google, search, ask around.

        http://www.eatwild.com/products/texas.html
          http://www.localharvest.org/
          http://www.ediblecommunities.com/dallasfortworth/farmers-markets/farmers-markets.htm
   e.  Buy on-line.  I buy many things on-line that I cannot find locally.  Some of the resources I use include:  Tropical Traditions (every couple months they have a free shipping day if you are on their email list), Frontier Coop (start or join a wholesale group for incredibly low prices), Vitacost, Sunfood Organics (expensive but good quality), and even Amazon at times.  There are many, many more.  This is just the tip of the iceberg to get you started.  Google, research, find good prices and buy the best.

   f.  Join a food coop.  Some areas have great local food coops and coop stores.  If you live in an area with one, join and enjoy your blessing.  While traveling the United States, the boys and I found many outstanding coop stores and groups.  I have recently joined Azure Standard, which originates out of Oregon (so not local) but they provide many excellent ingredients that I cannot find locally.  There are also a number of organic produce coops with delivery in the Dallas area.  Two that I know of include:  Your Health Source and Greenlings.  (I have never ordered from either so I don't know about their quality or prices.)  My son, Tom, is going off to college in the fall and has joined a food coop near his college.  Don't settle for the man-processed foods sold in most grocery stores.

 

4.  Prepare ingredients needed for your recipe.  For the Roasted Potatoes and Sausage Quick Meal, I needed leftover Oven Roasted Potatoes and beans cooked from scratch (I will be providing directions soon).  You might want to start with a meal that does not require previously cooked ingredients, such as Oven Roasted Potatoes with hotdogs (suggested brands on oven roasted potato recipe) and Cole Slaw.  But after you have mastered these individual dishes, it is great to have extra things, such as beans and rice, or potatoes in the refrigerator for quick meals like Tom's Quesadillas or the Roasted Potatoes and Sausage Quick Meal.  Serve either of these with some raw produce such a simple salad or carrot sticks.

 

5.  Now you can prepare your meal.  Make sure you give yourself plenty of time and remember it always takes longer the first few times when you are unfamiliar with a recipe or cooking technique.  If you are just beginning, don't start with a difficult meal, try something simple.  There are now many recipes to choose from in the Recipe Box with more coming almost daily.  Pick a meal that you and your family will enjoy.

 

For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.”  2 Thessalonians 3:10