I'll Take The Shiny One

So you will remember that earlier this week I started the journey of East meets West beginning with my diet. One of the theories that I had read repeatedly was that a Lupus patient should remove all processed foods from their diet. I have even read numerous personal accounts from patients who said they felt that this dramatically increased their health and reduced the number of flares they experienced. Well alright, I'll try it. (I discovered this is going to be harder than it sounds, but that is another day. ) I told my husband the plan and he was on board. He's one of those guys who actually loves to cook and he loves the idea of making something from the very start to finish. (Which is evident in his hobbies, but again, something for another day.) In an odd coincidence there was a show on Food Network that evening discussing the preservatives that are put into our food. One tray compared store bought bread to homemade bread after a two week period. It was both gross and alarming. We decided to start with our bread.

My husband has made homemade bread before, as well as homemade pizza dough, pastries, what-have-you. But he decided that if he was going to be making bread often he needed a new machine. A new bread machine. So off we went a few days later to get his new toy. And after just a few minutes of comparison "I'll take the shiny one" is what he told the lady behind the counter. The frugal, comparison shopper in me cringed at the thought of not visiting at least two other stores as well as at least three online options. But that night, instead of our normal bowl of ice cream for dessert, we had fresh bread. Good stuff Maynerd. There is nothing in the world like warm, fresh bread and butter. I was in heaven and was no longer upset about not comparison shopping for the machine.

I realize I still have more research to do. Comparing types of flour and yeasts and what is better for us and what is not. Looking at the various recipes that came with the machine and trying each and every one. I'm going to hate that part of the research. This taking processed food out of my diet isn't going to be that hard. Oh wait.... what do I do about the Cheerios, the Nilla Wafers, the popscicles, the brownie mix, the tortillas, the salsa, the cheese. Heck, by some definitions everything I eat, with the exception of the vegetables from the garden and the beef from the freezer is processed. Hmmm.... this may be a little harder than I thought. Guess I will just slice another piece of bread and contemplate what goes next. Where is that knife?

Until next time, take care of you.
Nicky