Food - without it we could not live for long! It nourishes our bodies, hearts and souls. In kitchens the world over families share joys and sorrows, laughter, tears and secrets. With food we celebrate the milestones in our lives, births, deaths, marriages, treaties, and new presidents. The most important room in our homes usually is the kitchen, it is invariably where everyone congregates during festivities.
There is nothing like a home cooked meal, no matter how humble the ingredients. It is nice to go to a lovely restaurant and enjoy a meal with a friend or loved one, but even the simplest broth enjoyed at home with some freshly baked bread will hold more satisfaction than the fanciest meal eaten out.
I have been cooking for myself and my family for too many years not to understand the value of knowing what is in the food we eat. In a culture where convenience is very tempting because our schedules have become too hectic trying to balance family responsibilities with jobs and social commitments, it is all too easy to succumb to the lure of 'all you do is add water' or 'heat for 5 minutes in the microwave and serve'.
Alas, the unwelcome news is that there is a price tag attached to all that convenience - the myriad chemical preservatives, additives and flavor agents used to prepare those convenience foods seldom are in harmony with what nature intended to nourish our bodies and ensure our good health with and all too many of us have paid for their convenience with ill health. So there is much to be said for taking the time and cooking your food at home as freshly as possible and as little processed as possible.
Over the years I have amassed an impressive collection of recipes from breads to cakes, from soups to main courses to delectable snacks. Being an avowed do it yourselfer I have recipes for teas, refreshing drinks, punches and preserved herbs, herbal tinctures, marmelades, deserts, and many unusual concoctions. I even have recipes for organic pest control sprays, remedies for insect bites and much more.
As I am getting older I would like to share these recipes with others of like mind and I thought it might be nice if I had all my recipes on hand in a blog. It is now winter and we spend much more time indoors so this is the ideal time for me to get everything set up and ready to go. This spring when our garden demands more attention I will be lucky to find time to make entries, I know I won't feel like figuring out the format for this blog and whatnot!
The first entry will be a recipe for orange marmalade. I love having some marmalade on toast with breakfast! Orange is my all time favorite, closely followed by raspberry. I bought some oranges today and tonight I will be deciding which recipe I will follow tomorrow when I will prepare it. Hopefully my camera will cooperate with me so there will be some photographs to accompany the recipe.
There is nothing like a home cooked meal, no matter how humble the ingredients. It is nice to go to a lovely restaurant and enjoy a meal with a friend or loved one, but even the simplest broth enjoyed at home with some freshly baked bread will hold more satisfaction than the fanciest meal eaten out.
I have been cooking for myself and my family for too many years not to understand the value of knowing what is in the food we eat. In a culture where convenience is very tempting because our schedules have become too hectic trying to balance family responsibilities with jobs and social commitments, it is all too easy to succumb to the lure of 'all you do is add water' or 'heat for 5 minutes in the microwave and serve'.
Alas, the unwelcome news is that there is a price tag attached to all that convenience - the myriad chemical preservatives, additives and flavor agents used to prepare those convenience foods seldom are in harmony with what nature intended to nourish our bodies and ensure our good health with and all too many of us have paid for their convenience with ill health. So there is much to be said for taking the time and cooking your food at home as freshly as possible and as little processed as possible.
Over the years I have amassed an impressive collection of recipes from breads to cakes, from soups to main courses to delectable snacks. Being an avowed do it yourselfer I have recipes for teas, refreshing drinks, punches and preserved herbs, herbal tinctures, marmelades, deserts, and many unusual concoctions. I even have recipes for organic pest control sprays, remedies for insect bites and much more.
As I am getting older I would like to share these recipes with others of like mind and I thought it might be nice if I had all my recipes on hand in a blog. It is now winter and we spend much more time indoors so this is the ideal time for me to get everything set up and ready to go. This spring when our garden demands more attention I will be lucky to find time to make entries, I know I won't feel like figuring out the format for this blog and whatnot!
The first entry will be a recipe for orange marmalade. I love having some marmalade on toast with breakfast! Orange is my all time favorite, closely followed by raspberry. I bought some oranges today and tonight I will be deciding which recipe I will follow tomorrow when I will prepare it. Hopefully my camera will cooperate with me so there will be some photographs to accompany the recipe.
