A Fresh Start

Happy belated New Years! I have a former post about how I don't usually make New Year's Resolutions because I believe that self-improvement goals and strategies should not have to wait for a certain time of the year.  That being said, a few goals I have made for myself happen to coincide with the changing of the new year.  This year I would like to try harder to bring less (no) HFCS into the family's diet; make more staples; have more self-made, easily prepared foods on hand; be more aware of food and farming news to list a few.  I am saving glass bottles with which to build a green house. I sat down and made a list of things I plan on gradually adding to the blog.
    -Daily entries (though that may be a steep order what with a 6 month old taking up most of my time)
    - Weekly entries/topics
    -posting menus
    - reviews of books, cook books, articles, etc.
    -news and science
    -recipes that are easily converted into other things
    -instructions
    -picking or using "this over that"
    -things to do, recipes to make in a time crunch (fridge to table in so man minutes)
    -how to shop (here is one that will make your life easier and healthier, and make your shopping experiences quicker and more cost effective)
    -The making of baby food
    -Eating and cooking if you are pregnant and/or nursing
    -Clever use of leftovers
    -Less waste of food as well as water
    -Shop bulk and use it
    -Comparing the cost of homemade versus store bought items.
    -Seasonal cooking and home preserving
    -How best to use your EBT
    -How best to use WIC

I also plan on getting Nick to eat more vegetables.  I don't consume very much meat- probably a lot closer to what our bodies actually require as omnivores, not what fastfood and agribusinesses would rather have you believe.  Meat is a condiment, not a main part of the meal. *Dead horse alert* If you think about how humans have evolved in their eating habits, we are designed for some meat consumption, but not nearly as much as Americans eat today. As hunter-gatherers (more correctly known as "foragers" now) humans spent the majority of their food collection time foraging for plant based calories.  Plants don't run away; they don't require as many calories spent or as much time to collect, and as long as there is for to be foraged, there is a 100% rate of success.  Hunting, on the other hand, requires a lot more energy to be spent and does not guarantee success even if there is game about. 

Now I am not saying that everyone needs to go paleo.  I was almost entirely vegetarian for a very long time. I had to eat more meat when I became pregnant with my son. I craved chicken to the point of tantrums. My partner is a self-proclaimed "meat and potatoes kind of guy." He is of the traditional American mindset that a meal is not a meal if meat is not the centerpiece. His definition of meat does not include chicken (fine, yes it is "poultry") And mine is simply "dead animal that doesn't come from the water". I love vegetables; cannot get enough of them. I want them on everything. They have so much more variety of flavors and textures than I believe Nick can stand. I must also add that Nick is a long time smoker, so his palate has suffered I am sure. He was also raised by his grandparents, who are of the generation that came out of the fifties, and his food preferences show it.  So a long term goal of mine is to get more vegetables into the guy and to show him that they don't have to be tasteless, over salted or cooked to death.