Sunday's Plate

My daughter told me that her grocery bill is $350.00 per week for a family of five. I gasped. I'm not sure I spend that much to feed fifty children for a week. I know that groceries are climbing because of the rise in gas prices, so now more than ever homemades and scratch cooking make sense.

I really began to think about homemade food this morning as Terry and I had homemade bread and jam for breakfast. At lunch, we had swamp or soup made with left overs and a Monterrey cheese and bacon stuffed whole grain tortilla. When lunch was over, I made ice cream for dessert tonight. I had strawberries, and I spun them down in the Cuisinart and added them to the ice cream.

I got some ground meat and cheese and onions out for a cheese and onion stuffed meatloaf later, and remembered that we were out of yogurt so I made that too. I suppose we are living on more homemade foods than ever around here, and we take them for granted more and more. Tonight I will make bread again.

It's hard to do if you don't like to cook, but even the most lackluster cook can make these things. It's a matter of having the machinery and wanting better quality foods that are always on hand. And no, I don't spend my life in the store nor do I spend my life in the kitchen. Today I probably spent 20 minutes in the kitchen and an hour at the grocery, but I had to buy school groceries, and that takes some thought.

I have to admit that having the right equipment helps a lot and makes life a little easier. I have a bread making machine. It cost about $65.00. The simple recipes in the direction book are simple and easy to follow. It's just a matter of doing it. I use whole wheat, rye, and regular bread flour.

I have a yogurt maker that cost $15.00. Yogurt is made with any milk and a starter of plain yogurt purchased from the store. Once you make yogurt, you can use a jar of your own yogurt as the starter. I make my yogurt from 40% cream. It makes richer better yogurt which is more like the thick Greek store purchased.

In a pan, you heat your milk to baby bath warm and add your starter yogurt. Then put your mix into the yogurt cups or in my case, pint canning jars. Plug in your machine and in 12 hours you will have yogurt.

I have an ice cream machine that cost $50.00. It has a tub that stays in the freezer until you are going to use it. You mix three cups of the 40% cream with 2/3 cup of sugar in a bowl, and then deposit your mix into the frozen ice cream machine, insert the paddle and turn it on. Today I added strawberries. Sometimes I add cocoa or marshmallows. In twenty minutes you have ice cream. It needs to be stored in the freezer.

My suggestion to young moms and people wanting to make their own food is to go on Amazon and buy those machines on sale that will save lots of money and make life a lot better. I also say, go to a restaurant supply store for your pots, pans and bake ware. These pots, pans and bake ware are indestructible and they are cheap. The variety is incredible, and the gadgets amazing.

The right equipment makes cooking so much easier, and the easier it is, the more fun it is.

Have a great Sunday.