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Frugal, Healthy Cooking
For Long Life and a Healthy Homestead Budget
Frugal, healthy cooking is not only a great way to give you the energy you need for a successful homestead, it also gives a boost to your budget.
Cutting back on food expenses is the easiest way to save money and get out of debt.
But limiting yourself to cooking boxed macaroni or other cheap foods isn't the wisest of choices. A lot of cheap food has been highly processed. It's full of chemicals and low on nutrition.
It may seem like a good deal at the time, but such choices are costly in the long run. Deprived of the proper nutrients it needs, your body becomes less resistant to disease.
Also, studies have shown that highly processed food is a significant contributor to obesity. If you have a weight problem, it may not be because you over eat.
Rather, you are eating the wrong types of food.
Does High Quality Mean High Cost?
The good news is, you don't have to spend a lot of money to obtain high quality food. But you do have to make a time commitment.
Cooking things like brown rice, beans and grains aren't "instant foods." They take time to fix. Such meals will generally take about an hour or even an hour and a half to get ready, unlike the "fast foods" that you can pull out of the microwave in just a couple of minutes.
But once you taste the difference, I'm sure you'll agree, these delicious foods are worth the extra time.
Rethink Ground Beef
Many people consider hamburger meat to be a staple of the American diet. The problem with this is, unless you're raising a steer on your back 40 acres, you're going to be consuming a lot of extra things that aren't good for you.
Recently, I watched a documentary called "King Corn," in which two young men had a DNA sample taken of their hair. They were shocked to discover that despite their fast-food diet, they were made primarily of corn.
They decided to rent a corn patch, grow some feed corn and trace where it ends up.
It turns out that most farmers in the farm belt are raising feed corn.
Feed corn tastes awful and has little nutritional value. But that doesn't matter because it's fed to cattle anyway.
Problem with this is, cattle aren't meant to eat corn. They're designed to eat grass. If they're given a strict corn diet, and no grass, a cow will die within six months. They just can't digest the corn. It makes them sick.
Yet, that's all these cattle eat. Furthermore, they're crammed into feedlots where they can barely move. If a cow gets sick, he gets trampled on by the other cattle, and when he dies, the other cattle can't get away from him. Nor can they get away from their own waste.
Naturally, they get sick, so they're pumped full of antibiotics to keep them from dying prematurely.
So when you're cooking meals with ground beef you bought at the store, you're usually consuming the meat of an animal that was likely sick, stressed out and crammed with steroids.
Suddenly, that burger you're cooking is not looking too good, is it?
Lentils, Wonderful Lentils
Fortunately, there is a wonderful, healthy, low-cost substitute for that ground beef. Try cooking with the lentil, an often overlooked, under-appreciated member of the legume family.
This wonderful little bean can be cooked quickly without pre-soaking (20 minutes generally) and can be used as a substitute for ground beef in tacos, chile and any casserole calling for beef.
Brown Rice - And We're Not Talking Instant
Another important staple that should be on your shelf is brown rice. Not the processed stuff that can be prepared in ten minutes, but real whole grain brown rice.
It takes 45 minutes to prepare and is worth every second of cooking time. One of the main reasons people get colon cancer is because they don't have enough fiber in their diet.
White rice is nothing but starch. Brown rice on the other hand provides not only fiber, but wonderful nutrients your body needs.
Brown rice with butter and sugar makes a delicious breakfast food. Plus, brown rice can be added to any casserole for both texture and flavor.
Whole Grains
Buying a loaf of whole wheat bread at the store isn't really the answer to including whole grains in your diet. Unfortunately, several brands of commercially prepared bread has a chemical called potassium bromate.
Sometimes it is called "dough enhancer." This chemical is used to give the flour a finer texture and kill bugs.
It's the "kill bugs" part that should have you alarmed. Researchers found a link between consuming bromate and developing cancer.
Want a really radical way to include whole grains in your diet?
The Miracle of the Grain Mill
A few months back I took the plunge and bought a grain mill. The difference has been huge. Breads made from freshly ground flour taste fabulous.
I was amazed at the amount of energy I had after I began eating bread made from flour I ground fresh.
Even my gravies and sauces taste better. I often bake bread for my mom, and she prefers the bleached white flour. Recently I was out of my own fresh ground flour and in a hurry, so I borrowed some of hers.
The sauce I made was awful! I could taste the chemicals in it. Once you start using your own freshly ground flour, you won't want to go back.
Frugal Cooking Links:
Lentil Brown Rice Casserole - a family favorite!
Enjoy cooking your own healthy soy dogs!
Make fresh bread from whole grains with your grain mill.
Use roses from your homestead garden to make a delicious rose petal jam.
Try this delicious spaghetti pie recipe!
This almond spread is made from almonds and healthy oil.
A cheesy vegetable quiche your family will love.
TVP - What it is and why it should be on the shelf of every frugal homesteader.
Try these authentic Mexican frugal enchiladas.
This beefy bulgur vegetable soup recipe combines wheat berries and beef-flavored TVP.
Other Great Links
If you're looking for more healthy recipes, check out Healthy Recipes For Your Family.com. They have all sorts of great recipes, including crockpot, gluten free and easy recipes. Not only are these recipes healthy, but they are also delicious.
For more great information on living a happy, healthy life, visit Ride The Sunshine Glow.com.
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