DIY Month 2012!

So I'm already one week into the thick of it! That is, making everything I consume from scratch. A while ago, in a lonely stairwell in the hospital, I came across a lone tortilla chip. There, in between the sixth and seventh floors it sat for months, and the only thing that that happened to it was a little dust settling on it. I couldn't help but imagine that sitting in my stomach. I know the stairwell lacks the same enzymes in my digestive tract, but it still eeked me out. All the more reason to pursue knowing exactly what I put in my body.

The rules are the same as last year:

• I will make everything from scratch ...within reason. At this juncture, it is not currently within my means to milk my own cows, mill my own flour, press my own oil, etc. However, if I can take a step back in the process of preparing an item, I will (e.g. orange juice comes from oranges, and I can reasonably juice some oranges).
• No canned or frozen fruits/veggies/beans/etc. I chose July/August as the month to do this, as fresh produce is plentiful in Wisconsin.
• I will allow myself beer, wine, coffee, and tea, although someday I wish to venture into preparing each of these.
• I will allow myself to eat out 3 times during the month. I'm only human, and there are so many good restaurants in Madison. Also, many celebrations and social events take place at restaurants, from which I would not like to exclude myself.

I had many favorites from my forays last year, and I look forward to making those again. I also have a list of things that will be new this year. As my first week went last year, most of what I've eaten this last week consisted of fruit and raw veggies, so my week wasn't too exciting. I did get around to making some new stuff though, and I will share them in the coming week.

Frozen grapes: nature's popsicle

Happy reading!