"Real food"??

[Mary Ann's Rabbitry]

I grow my own veggies. Raise some rabbits . Have my own eggs . I buy from a farmer the beef and pork. And i love to cook. I cook everything from scratch. Including the bread. I dont drink pop . Just v8 and orange juice and water. I dont even drink coffee. I crave homemade meals. But i do now and then snack on potatoes chips .
I buy natural bacon and sometimes make my own bacon . I have smoked my own hams and pulled pork.

 

[hoodat]

I'm so excited to have found this site today:

http://www.nourishingourchildren.org/Home.html

Lots of good, PRACTICAL info!

I found some sprouted-grain bread at Trader Joe's today that I've been using for toast the last couple of days. I really like it, so I bought two more loaves for sandwiches. Going to get back to making my own bread soon.

My kids agreed to try Kool-Aid made with stevia instead of sugar. We'll see how that goes. I'm also looking into making my own ginger ale.

I finished my first batch of homemade kefir today. Can't wait to try it (have some store-bought to finish off first).

I'm also going to start working organ meats into our diet. I grew up eating and enjoying liverwurst. Hopefully I can get my kids to eat it, too. Eggs from pasture-fed chickens are on the market list for Saturday.

I bought some Bragg's raw ACV today--just need to figure out what to do with it. And my first order of fermented cod liver oil should be arriving tomorrow.

Organ meats should be quite healthy but the problem is all of the chemicals the livestock are exposed to these days. Herbicide and pesticide residues plus all of the medicines and antibiotics they receive concentrate in the organs, especialy the liver and kidneys.

 

[trinityoaks]

Organ meats should be quite healthy but the problem is all of the chemicals the livestock are exposed to these days. Herbicide and pesticide residues plus all of the medicines and antibiotics they receive concentrate in the organs, especialy the liver and kidneys.

I found several local sources of pasture-fed beef, pork, etc. with NO chemicals whatsoever.

 

[AnnClaire]

I am the one on the "make it from scratch" bandwagon, but the ex and DD will settle for hamburger helper (ugggg! I eat a sandwich that night LOL)

I started this back when DD was teething at 8 months and he and I were working 50+ hours per week. The only way I was able to actually get it worked into my schedule was to plan the meals by the week, then double up on the meat or veggies or starches ... for example, if we were going to have stir fry on monday and then bier ox on wednesday, I would cook a double batch of rice and refrigerate half for the next meal. Yes, I use rice in my bier ox instead of cabbage/sourkraut Then, if we were having spaghetti on friday, I would fry a double batch of hamburger, one for bier ox and one for spaghetti, seperate it before adding the spices and refrigerate half.

I would also do most of my cooking on either saturday or sunday ... saturday at that time was also laundry day at the laundromat and grocery shopping for the next week.

I would also cook the fresh vegetables that were going to have a short shelf-life or blanch and freeze in meal-size portions.

Now, I generally can or freeze enough garden vegetables each summer to get us through to the next harvest.

As for meats, I am lucky to have a custom butcher shop in town that sells off any "extra" and can get grass-fed, grained beef, chicken and pork. Like the butcher says, if folks are raising for themselves, they DO NOT put chemicals in those animals

There are times when this process will "break down" and I have to buy from the grocery stores, and I can definitely tell a difference in how my body reacts ... most prepared items such as the hamburger helper have so much salt and/or MSG in it that it gives me a terrible headache the next day.

One thing we do have to watch out for in my area is beef that has been pastured where there is too much sage brush as that will definitely leave a "twang" to the meat! LOL If only someone would develop a miniture cow that I could have on my city lot here in town LOL

 

[skysthelimit]

http://www.miniaturebull.com/

 

[trinityoaks]

http://www.miniaturebull.com/

I wonder what traits they're breeding for besides size. Are they good milkers? Are they good for meat?

 

[3mina]

http://www.miniaturebull.com/

I wonder what traits they're breeding for besides size. Are they good milkers? Are they good for meat?

I just wandered through the site, it looks like they have a little of everything going on including meat and milk.

 

[MKirst]

I make or grow most my own foods. Mason Jar almost everything we eat. My grocery list for a store is always the same - spices, salt, pepper, butter, buttermilk, heavy whipping cream, flours, corn syrup, vanilla, baking soda, baking powder, yeast, rice and sugar. I keep my kitchen stocked - stocking this stuff I can make just about anything at any time. I make alot of candy, cakes and pies too.

My boyfriend of 20 years goes on charter fishing trips every other month to get salmon, tuna, flounder and brown trouts - he goes to the closest river night fishing to get catfish. He goes every year for spring gobblers, turkey and white tails. Fills all his tags every year. I butcher everything myself. I just did a blog about how to fillet a catfish - LOL

We never go out to eat except maybe once every 3 years to Red Lobster. (unless my boyfriend does with out me knowing) When we go on vacations we stay in hotels or motels only if they have full kitchens. Believe it or not, but the price of a full kitchen saves you moneys on a vacation when you don't go out to eat. More money to do other things.

We don't even order pizza's - I make them myself. It's a nice treat though when the neighbor brings over a box of donuts when we have coffee together.

My boyfriend wants rabbit meat in the freezers now too, but I don't want John and Jane in the freezer. I didn't get them for that. So I'll have to invest in another larger hutch and go from there if I ever see babies. I hope she's prego now.

 

[AnnClaire]

http://www.miniaturebull.com/

I wonder what traits they're breeding for besides size. Are they good milkers? Are they good for meat?

Sky - THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!! Frostie was even born on my birthday LOL No photo yet, so I don't know what she looks like, but OH, I WANT HER

Trinity - They are breeding "longhorn" style cattle, so that means meat and milking

 

[skysthelimit]

http://www.miniaturebull.com/

I wonder what traits they're breeding for besides size. Are they good milkers? Are they good for meat?

Sky - THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!! Frostie was even born on my birthday LOL No photo yet, so I don't know what she looks like, but OH, I WANT HER

Trinity - They are breeding "longhorn" style cattle, so that means meat and milking

I"ve been researching mini animals, cows, sheep, for some time, in the hope that one day I could get some farm land. It did occur to me that it would mean I'd have to cook the fresh foods, but with mini animals, I could save up and buy my farm in my golden years, and still be able to handle the physical labor with smaller animals, and I'd have plenty of time to butcher and cook.

 

[trinityoaks]

That sounds like my kind of cattle, kinda like Kinder goats.

My homemade kefir has been a success, and hubby likes it, too. Haven't gotten the kids to try it, but they said they like smoothies, so I'm going to buy some fruit and slip the kefir into the smoothies.

They ARE excited about the prospect of homemade soda (lacto-fermented, no alcohol). I have my first batch of ginger culture going, and will have a batch of ginger ale brewing by the weekend. Going to try kombucha (lacto-fermented tea) also.

I'm signed up at the dairy for a class next month that will cover making butter, cheese (several kinds), kefir, yogurt, and sour cream. We get to take home what we make. Yum!

Found a place that I can order cod liver oil capsules and high-vitamin butter oil capsules, especially for my college students. I don't mind the liquid too much, but I think it's going to be a hard sell for my kids.

 

[tm_bunnyloft]

My aunt and uncle raised low line cattle. They are mini angus. And boy did they taste yummy on the grill.

 

[AnnClaire]

LOL - Sky, yes, it sounds like you need to work on the "cooking" aspect LOL Maybe this winter you can find a cooking class to take one saturday per month? I realize you have a very busy/demanding schedule, but you are in a larger metro so there should be a class schedule to suit you. Besides, you just might meet a candidate for "significant other" at the class <giggle - someone's matchmaking finger is itching to stir the pot>

 

[tm_bunnyloft]

Its a bonus if you find one that does good in the class!!!! lol