5 Ingredients or Less

I've decided to give myself a food challenge. And what better way to keep me accountable than to blog about it?

It's a five ingredients or less challenge, for six months I will not buy anything that has more than five ingredients in it. I've mentioned my plan to a few people and have gotten a wide range of responses. Some people thinks it's awesome. Some people think I should probably be committed. There is a method to my madness though. I have food allergies, and luckily for me high fructose corn syrup is one of my allergies. I'm sure that even if you haven't seen the commercials promoting high fructose corn syrup, you know that it is put in seemingly, everything from bread to jam, spaghetti sauce to juices it is everywhere.

I'm not always successful at avoiding it. Sometimes a product changes their ingredients and I don't realize it until after the fact. I do read labels, but naively, I tend to think manufactures will not change their formulas.

I chose to go with five ingredients, so that I can still fuel my hot sauce addiction. I cannot imagine life without Tabasco sauce. The five ingredients limit also gives me a little leeway in buying a few ready to eat foods... Not many, but a few. I'm excited at the prospect of making my own sauces and breads.

Six months is my starting goal. I know that when Sweet Husband returns home, he'll want to go visit all of his favorite eating places, and I would like to go with him. Hopefully by the time he returns I'll have mastered bread and he'll look in disdain at conventional bread.... Hey, a girl can dream!

Of course, there are a few limitations. When traveling the five ingredient limit does not stand. I try to take bring travel foods along when we travel, but I've had better success in theory rather than practice so far. Return trips are the worst.


So watch out 2012!