Kitchen Goals Updated

Way back in December I made a list of 12 kitchen goals - one to work on each month of the year.  I have done fairly well with them, even if I have not posted about all of them.  Today I wanted to update 2 of my goals 1) use less processed foods and 2) meal plan consistantly and stick to the plan.

Use less processed foods - This has become more and more important to me over time as I read about food additives and I see how certain chemicals make me feel and my children act.  Some permanent changes I have made since January have been -

• make my own chicken broth
• make my own cream of whatever soup
• make my own ranch dressing
• make my own chocolate sauce 
• make my own pancake syrup (1 c water, 2 c sugar, 1/2 t maple flavoring - boil for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.  Store in refrigerater)
• make my own pesto

Each one of these items is soooo easy to make and tastes so much better than what I buy at the store (cheaper too!). 

Meal Plan Consistantly and Stick To It - While I don't always post my menu plan on Monday, I do have it written out and ready to go by Sunday afternoon.  I also do all my grocery shopping by Monday night so the week can just flow (yeah, right!).  With 3 nights a week and all day Saturday spent on the football field, meal planning is the only way to go to make sure we don't resort to the closest drive thru window.  Below are some of my favorite meal plans since January.

• January
• February 
• March
• April
• May
• June
• July
• August

Overall, two successful attempts at improving our eating habits at home.  Now, on to those last few goals.....