With rising food costs I've been thinking about how much homemade food is a bargain. But it takes knowledge, planning ahead, shopping in bulk, storing that food well, and having discipline to use what you have - things that are hard sometimes.
Have you noticed also that homemade food doesn't taste like takeout or restaurant food? If you have gotten used to heavily salted and ultra sweet flavors, it can take a little time to reset your taste buds to more subtle delights.
I wanted to share a simple and healthy meal today. There are tons of blogs and cookbooks devoted to helping us do homemade food better - here's one more idea for your consideration.
The lunch option:
Brown rice cooked in homemade stock/bone broth, served with butter and salt and pepper
Baked yams with butter and salt and pepper
And for dinner add:
Grilled or pan fried sausages or hamburger patties
Lettuces dressed in olive oil and salt and pepper
That's it. For the yams, the easiest preparation is to wash, poke with a fork a few times, and bake on foil at 375 degrees for an hour to an hour and a half (depends on size). When they are soft to a fork's push, let them cool on the counter for a minute, then cut in half and carefully squish out of skin. Mash on plate and top with butter and s & p.
So this dinner isn't going to win any James Beard awards but here's the thing: everyone in my family enjoys it. We feel good after eating it. It's satisfying, it tastes good and kind of... calm. It speaks of the peace of having had the time to wait for those yams to bake. Call me crazy but that translates to the food.
Hope you enjoy, let me know if you tried it or some iteration!