Home Food

Our kitchen is often a hive of activity! There seems to be always something being chopped, grated, mixed, stirred, fried, blended or baked in what is the heart of our home. Up at the island bench I love, which looks out to a distant horizon, I make the food we love to eat. Home food! There are so many benefits to cooking and eating this way. Benefits way beyond the deliciousness and naughtiness of a big bowl to lick ... 

A very lick-able bowl.

(That's chocolate pudding mixture in there!)

Each morning, starts with a nourishing breakfast. Perhaps an omelette or toast with egg and bacon or mushrooms. Perhaps warmed slices of a nutty, breakfast-y bread made days before and frozen for those busier mornings when someone has to be out the door a bit earlier than usual. Granola in the warmer months and porridge, with warmed blueberries, when it's colder. Always a fulfilling start to the day no matter what's on the table.

A slice of  nutty banana bread for breakfast.

An omelette with spinach and leftover roasted veg.

Weekday lunches are prepared and packed in a mini production line upon the kitchen bench (I have never quite mastered the night before packing of lunches). Leftovers from dinner the night before or fresh salads and always a sandwich or two! Weekend lunches are more leisurely, rounds of toasted sandwiches or fresh Turkish bread, if I've been to the little local shop that sells it, spread with each of our favourites. Weekend lunches are made whenever we are hungry and eaten with noses in our local paper or a good book.

Leftover roasted chicken and salads for lunch.

Snacks for morning and afternoon teas are mixed and baked on the weekends for the work and school days ahead. This week, it was Anzac Biscuits and a simple cereal slice. Often it's muffins, pear or banana, studded with little chocolate chips. 

A batch of little muffins ready for the oven.

Each night, at our little wooden dining table, we sit and share a home cooked meal. Nothing fancy, just simple food we enjoy. Over these meals, the highlights of our days are shared and the things we are thankful for are voiced. If we are cooking for a crowd, we still keep it simple and just increase the quantity!

 A quick macaroni & cheese bake.

A stir fry with lots of healthy vegetables.

A nourishing salad with lots of greens.

Many homemade pizzas!

Home food is real food! It's the way we eat most of the time. Cooking and eating this way doesn't mean that we never have takeaway or that I've never resorted to opening a packet of very convenient biscuits. Of course we do and I have! These are rarities though and not our normal, everyday way of preparing and eating food. 

Home cooking not only fills our tummies, it nourishes our bodies and our hearts. Beginning with the breakfasts that provide sustained fuel for the day ahead through to the homemade meals around our table at night, that bring us together and over which we talk and laugh, I know what's in this food. I know what ingredients I've used and how it's been cooked. I know those lunches made with leftovers prevent waste and save us money. While there's more washing up involved (Let's be realistic!), I also know there's a lot less food packaging and plastic too. I know that the birthday cakes I make my boy and the cheesecakes I make my husband are  baked with all of my love. I know the meals we cook and contribute to share with friends are made with a fondness for those we hold dear. In so many ways, home food is good for our family, our bodies, our wallets and our planet. 

Chocolate pudding to share.

(Imagine generous scoops with dollops of cream!)

Now, back to that big bowl in which I mixed this chocolate pudding. I absolutely did lick that bowl! I was home all by myself so there was no-one to see me really...except Sir Steve dog who knows that chocolate is no good for dogs:D

Have a lovely weekend. What will you be eating at your place?

Meg