Design

If our western society would dump cheaply processed foods, supersized portions, excess sugar and white flour, and anything remotely modified ... get out and work in the garden, mowing the lawn, walking the dog ... moving ... and last but not least .. let common sense be the rule of the day instead of the governments stupid food pyramid, the population would be headed down a healthier path. Things to chuck out of your pantry: Any snack that comes in a box.  Replace with a piece of fruit or veggies and a good dip ... or just skip the snack. Cake mixes and frosting in a can.  Cake should be a once in a while treat .. not something every day of the week.  Making a cake from scratch is not that difficult.  Take time to bake your own. Anything that says 'Helper' ... such as in hamburger.  It's much healthier to just keep good food items stocked in the pantry and fridge or freezer to make your own quick meal. Learn to cook.  It's not that difficult.  Practice...

I have two cookbooks by Jeff Smith:  The Frugal Gourmet and Jeff Smith Cooks American.  Both books offer time honored recipes, many of which I have tweaked to use more whole food products.  Last month I made five quarts of his Basic Brown Soup Stock for the freezer.  Putting it in quart and pint jars to pull out at a moments notice.  It's the good quality stock that  makes excellent French onion soup.  Having it on hand makes cooking at home easier and very frugal.  To save time .. here is a link to the recipe I used.  Basic Brown Soup Stock Here are the ingredients:  Basic rendering bones (about 5 lbs), carrots, onions, celery Stocking the freezer assures you of having your own convenience foods on hand. Broth Is Beautiful   ... read more here about its health benefits ... the entire article is a must read.  Photos:  top:  beef bones ready to slow roast in the oven, bottom - simmering beef stock

Update:  This post is featured at Down To Earth ... For more kitchen sink photos, visit here . Here is a DIY project I undertook while we were building our home.  Some years ago I had purchased a (formerly built-in) ironing board cabinet.  After carefully stripping off the old paint (careful because the cabinet was very old ... and with the concern of there being some layers of lead based paint .. took no chances) and gutting the inner workings, I painted the unfinished inside .. and stripped down outside .. then sealed it with a waterproof satin clear coat.  Added new 'vintage' hardware, flipped the cabinet upside down .. installed a piece of glass where previously there had been a metal vent plate ... added glass shelves .. and had our builder  ... install it flush inside a kitchen wall.  The new 're-purposed' cabinet is perfect to keep spices cool and away from the heat of the stove.  It also holds both large and small containers of ...