Within the last week, I wrote a blog column about a flaw in my homemade dinners. In short, a few years ago, I realized that we were spending an obnoxious amount of money on food per month. That's because Lisa and I were relying on takeout 3-4 times per week for our dinner. For the longest time, we had a standing joke that our kids ate better than we did. I spend hours making their meals of lean meats, fresh and steamed produce, diced up fruit, and homemade dog treats.
I have since gravitated towards making homemade meals. Takeout is now a luxury we enjoy once a month.
The flaw in my homemade dinners is that I was utilizing a lot of premade stuff like spaghetti sauce, pizza crust, bread, etc.
Sure, I was making homemade dinners for Lisa and me, but after a few epiphanies, I know I can do better.
And, I have.
Today, I made eggplant parmesan and homemade Italian bread for dinner.
One of our neighborhood family members gave us 4 homegrown eggplants the other day.
I had a few slices of homemade bread that needed to be used up. I toasted it. Crushed it. Added herbs and spices.
Boom!
Homemade Breadcrumbs.
While all of that was happening, I made homemade spaghetti sauce from fresh garden tomatoes.
I made a double batch of everything.
We delivered a pan of eggplant parmesan and a loaf of homemade Italian bread to family neighbors.
Lisa and I feasted on the same tonight for dinner.
Everything tasted fresh and light.
For me, that was the proverbial light bulb.
Part of being a Work at Home Dog Mom is not only putting in the effort to make the freshest meals and snacks for our kids, but also for Lisa and I.
That includes eliminating as much pre-made as possible.
Sure, making homemade breadcrumbs is a pain, but it's worth it.
Making homemade bread is a pain at times, but it's worth it.
Making homemade spaghetti sauce or pizza sauce takes time, but it's worth it.
The list goes on.
I'm always a bit hesitant about sharing stuff like this because of what I went through when I flirted with veganism.
I joined several vegan groups on Facebook. These groups varied from super strict to the vegans who made it their mission to still embrace comfort foods whether healthy or not.
It didn't matter what group it was, there was always a battle.
A memorable post that comes to mind was a photo of a vegan pizza. When I saw the photo, it instantly reminded me of the incredibly delicious pizza that I used to enjoy from Laconia House of Pizza in my early 20's.
The first thing I thought was, "How the hell do you make a vegan pizza that looks like that?"
Pizza is one of my favorite foods. When experimenting with veganism for almost a year, one of my missions was making pizza.
Let's be honest, vegan cheese does not have the same melty quality as dairy cheese.
I made several vegan pizzas, but it didn't look like that pizza in the photo."
I didn't comment because, in my minuscule corner of the world, there's not a lot of vegan cheese availability. And, I was the new vegan on the block. Maybe there was a vegan cheese that I was unaware of and it had that melty, bubbly, pizza quality.
But, that didn't stop both the novice and veteran vegans from rudely commenting.
In time, those rude comments were all over the charts and extended in all of the vegan groups. It was to the point that I didn't post photos of my vegan food porn or comment on other people's posts.
In the here and now...
People have emailed and messaged me because they miss my food porn posts.
I'll be the first to admit, my almost-one-year-of-veganism haunted me. That was a few years ago.
I'm proud of the dinner I made tonight. I'm even prouder that a couple of my neighborhood family members enjoyed it too.
But, in this day and age, when you post something on social media, the critics and internet trolls swarm in.
My eggplant parmesan was homemade. Homegrown eggplant. Homemade breadcrumbs and spaghetti sauce and Italian bread.
But...
If you claim your dishes as homemade and fresh and made from real ingredients, the trolls rush in.
"Did you use organic flour?"
"Were the eggs farm fresh?"
"Were the tomatoes organic?"
The list goes on.
I need to get over that.
I need to resonate in the fact that the meals and snacks I make for our family are fresh. Homemade. I utilize seasonal vegetables. I am working hard to not utilize anything that is premade.
As of now, I spend about 40 hours a week in the kitchen between making fresh, homemade meals and snacks for our kids and for Lisa and I.
That's. A. Long. Time.
But, to me, it's worth it.
I will continue to put in the effort and even more effort in the months to follow.
And, I will be taking photos of my food porn after a lengthy hiatus.
I'm sure the critics will swarm in like flies on a new pile of shit.
But, that's fine.
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