This has been the Six Ingredient Challenge hosted by Hobo Mama and Anktangle!

We've been on a six-week path to eat more whole foods, guided by one simple rule: Buy foods with six ingredients or fewer. And we've been blogging about our journey on the way.

This week we're answering the question: What are your final thoughts and reflections as we wrap up this challenge? Do you have any new-found wisdom to share?

You can see all the responses to this question today at this link-up post at Hobo Mama and Anktangle. If you're a blogger who's published a response, please post the URL in the linky below so we can visit to read. If you don't have a blog or haven't published a response, feel free to provide your answer in the comments on this post on either Hobo Mama or Anktangle.

Thank you for following along for the Six Ingredient Challenge! This is our final post, and we've had such an enjoyable time journeying with you all along the way.

To read all the posts and recipes in the Six Ingredient Challenge, visit the main page or see below for a list of reading resources!

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My answer:

I'm really glad we hosted the Six Ingredient Challenge and brought it out to a wider world than just the confines of my kitchen. It's been so interesting to hear about your own struggles and triumphs as you craft your own journey toward eating more whole foods.

Here are a couple final thoughts Sam and I had this week as we contemplated the challenge:

I wanted to share the Six Ingredient Challenge for a reason — and it wasn't to impress anyone. Choosing to buy foods with six or fewer ingredients is not that difficult a challenge; it's sort of a baby step toward eating more mindfully and healthfully.

And I firmly believe that baby steps are what set us on the most important journeys.

I get so frustrated by the oligarchs of the nutrition world who sit on a throne of superiority and lord it over anyone who hasn't come to their conclusions about what is right to eat and what is so dreadfully wrong. Naturally, they conveniently ignore that pretty much every other diet "expert" disagrees with them; all their voices clash and contradict, so clearly they can't all be right! You'd never know it to listen to their shrill pronouncements, though, would you?

I've had more than a few discouragements over the course of my own journey (as you might be able to tell from the harsh tone of the preceding paragraph!). In my quest to choose more healthful foods, I've had people come to my blog space and tell me what a disappointment I am, how someone who espouses a natural lifestyle should eat so much better (presumably by that, they mean the way they eat), that I am clearly someone who is not interested in health or wellness, again because I'm not following their rules for what is "correct" nutrition. It's the type of attitude Michael Pollan talked about when he discussed orthorexia, this overconcern with what they themselves and what others eat, and a certainty that they're allowed to judge from the outside how poorly other people are doing at nourishing their own bodies.

I hate hate hate that what Americans or Westerners eat has been given the wink-wink nickname of SAD for "standard American diet." What smugness!

It bugs me. And it burns me up inside to think that these same people are spreading their pronouncements far and wide and hitting the ears and hearts of people who are more vulnerable and less far along on their journey.

Because you know what happens when someone presents their diet as The Best One Ever and You're Stupid Not to Have Figured This Out By Now? Does it make you want to adopt that way of eating? Does it encourage you to take one more step forward?

Switching from conventional foods to more whole foods is always a tradeoff — in terms of convenience, cost, and time.

Foods fall on a matrix in one or more of four categories:


You can have food that is one or more of these things:

• Inexpensive
• Convenient
• Tasty
• Nutritious

But very rarely does a food fit all four categories (or even three), so some compromises have to be made.

Processed and packaged foods usually score high on convenience, and they might also hit the tasty and inexpensive marks (depending on what it is). But rarely do processed foods win out when it comes to nutrition.

So if you're transitioning to whole foods, you usually have to let one or more elements go. Some people might sacrifice convenience and prepare more meals from scratch, including taking the time to soak and cook dried beans and grains, for instance. Some people might sacrifice in terms of cost and pay a lot more for foods that are relatively healthful but still convenient, such as all the packaged organic and natural foods that line the shelves of places like Whole Foods. Some people might even sacrifice taste and consign themselves to foods they don't like that meet their other criteria.

But I'd say by far that in our transition to whole foods, we had to compromise on cost and convenience the most.

We're rounding out the fifth week of the Six Ingredient Challenge! If you haven't yet, remember to link up your responses to last week's writing prompt and read and reflect on next week's writing prompt sometime before next Thursday. If you're joining us today, there's still a little time left to sign up to follow along with the challenge!


Today at Anktangle, Amy is sharing a simple recipe for making homemade mozzarella cheese. This delicious soft cheese comes together in just 30 minutes, and it's a fun process, too! Bonus: The whey produced when making cheese can be used for many different recipes and household tasks.

Continue reading at Anktangle »

Join the Six Ingredient Challenge hosted by Hobo Mama and Anktangle!

We're on a six-week path to eat more whole foods, guided by one simple rule: Buy foods with six ingredients or fewer. And we're blogging about our journey on the way.

This week we're answering the question: How's your budget? What money-saving strategies have you been employing?

You can see all the responses to this question today at this link-up post at Hobo Mama and Anktangle. If you're a blogger who's published a response, please post the URL in the linky below so we can visit to read. If you don't have a blog or haven't published a response, feel free to provide your answer in the comments on this post on either Hobo Mama or Anktangle.

Next week's writing prompt is at the end of this post along with posting instructions.

To join in the Six Ingredient Challenge anytime during the six weeks, visit the sign-up page for a list of posts and to link up!

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My answer:

I definitely agree that eating more whole foods is a hit to the pocketbook. When we first started pricing out even one discrete thing like organic milk, it was shocking to us the difference in price. When I priced out raw milk … well! That just went over our limits there.

Time is flying: We're already into the fifth week of the six-week Six Ingredient Challenge! How's it going for you? Amy and I posted our answers to the fourth week's writing prompt, and the linky there is still open for you to link up your posts about the joys and challenges of the Six Ingredient Challenge. Remember to post your answers to the fifth prompt sometime before Thursday. Even if you didn't start the challenge with us on February 1, it's not too late to sign up and join in now!

Today I'm bringing you a guest post from Sam, who's been happily experimenting to craft us new condiments that fit the rules of the challenge. He's sharing an easy recipe for making homemade Caesar salad dressing. It can be nearly impossible to find any store-bought salad dressings — particularly creamy ones — with six ingredients or fewer, and when I've looked at the nutrition labels of store-bought creamy dressings, Caesar in particular, they have a lot of questionable ingredients, like soybean oil as mock-dairy. By contrast, this healthier version of a favorite dressing uses a light-tasting olive oil as a base and works for traditional salads or any mix of veggies, as well as a tasty dip or creamy topping. To be clear, there's no cream — the rich texture is a result of the emulsion of oil and egg yolks.

The dressing has more than six ingredients itself, but it fits the rules of the challenge as a homemade concoction because the individual components are all six or fewer and are whole foods-based. You'll just want to check on the individual ingredients you've got on hand. The versions we have of Dijon mustard and Worcestershire sauce are mostly vinegar and spices, but Worcestershire sauce traditionally has one or more sweeteners as well as anchovies, and some alternate versions will contain soy or wheat, so look for brands that have ingredients you can live with. Anchovy paste might not be something you usually have on hand, but it's easy to find — check near the canned tuna and other fish. In fact, you can buy and blend tinned or fresh anchovies instead if you'd rather, though a tube will store easily and last you for more than one round of dressing.

Homemade Caesar dressing

Guest post by Crackerdog Sam

I've always been a little wary of attempting mayonnaise or salad dressing from scratch because I've heard you have to be careful about the oil/egg mixture separating on you, and I dislike tossing out an entire batch of anything.

It turns out to be quite simple, though, and according to some of the recipes from which I cobbled this together, having your liquids mixed with the yolks before adding the drizzled oil makes it more-or-less idiot-proof (something science-y about emulsification).

You can make this in your food processor or blender; the final result is just about 2 cups in volume.

Welcome to the fifth week of the Six Ingredient Challenge! Remember to read and reflect on the latest writing prompt sometime before Thursday. Even if you're joining us today, you can still sign up and follow along with us for the Six Ingredient Challenge!

Do you have trouble deciding what to cook for dinner each night? Are you throwing away food that you forgot was in your refrigerator until it was too late? Maybe you're still a little stumped about cooking with fewer processed foods and more whole ingredients? Today at Anktangle, Amy has a tool for working through these obstacles. She has put together a detailed week-long menu plan full of recipes and low-ingredient (but nutrient-dense) meal ideas.

Continue reading at Anktangle »

Today marks the end of the fourth week of the Six Ingredient Challenge! Remember to link up your responses to last week's writing
prompt and read and reflect on the writing prompt from this week sometime before next Thursday. Even if you're joining us today, it's still not too late to sign up and participate in the Six Ingredient Challenge!

What's your favorite kind of ice cream? Today at Anktangle, Amy is sharing an easy homemade ice cream recipe. There's no special equipment or appliances required to make this delicious treat at home, and it'll be ready in ten minutes or less! Better yet: It's a fun dessert to prepare together with your children.

Amy's basic vanilla ice cream recipe has just three ingredients, and she's included additional recipes for other flavors as well.

Continue reading at Anktangle »

Join the Six Ingredient Challenge hosted by Hobo Mama and Anktangle!

We're on a six-week path to eat more whole foods, guided by one simple rule: Buy foods with six ingredients or fewer. And we're blogging about our journey on the way.

This week we're answering the question: What has been the easiest part of this challenge for you so far? The most difficult part?

You can see all the responses to this question today at this link-up post at Hobo Mama and Anktangle. If you're a blogger who's published a response, please post the URL in the linky below so we can visit to read. If you don't have a blog or haven't published a response, feel free to provide your answer in the comments on this post on either Hobo Mama or Anktangle.

Next week's writing prompt is at the end of this post along with posting instructions.

To join in the Six Ingredient Challenge anytime during the six weeks, visit the sign-up page for a list of posts and to link up!

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My answer:

The easiest part of the challenge was probably how quickly Sam and I adapted. I also was so glad he was in this with me, because I think (I know) trying to eat in a different way from my partner would have been really hard. Especially since he does the cooking!

I'm so chuffed to have a guest post at African Babies Don't Cry about how to manage the tricky but needful art of side-lying nursing. It lets you breastfeed but sleep at the same time! How cool is that?

I'd love to chat with you in the comments over there!

As long as you're going places, I'm also pleased that Reduce Footprints picked up our Six Ingredient Challenge as their Change the World Wednesday Challenge this past week! Glad we were inspirational. How's the challenge going for you?

Back to my breastfeeding tutorial:

I want to put a tutorial out there for how to breastfeed lying down, because it makes such a significant difference to how enjoyable cosleeping and breastfeeding will be for most mamas. If you want to get the best sleep while breastfeeding, I recommend cosleeping. And if you want to get the best sleep while cosleeping and breastfeeding, I highly recommend learning side-lying nursing early on! It can take a little time to get the hang of it, but once you've got it down, you can pull your baby in for a feed and then both of you can drowse, safely, back to sleep.

Read more at African Babies Don't Cry »

Can you believe it? We're already into the fourth week of the six-week Six Ingredient Challenge! How's it going for you? Amy and I posted our answers to the third week's writing prompt, and the linky there is still open for you to link up your posts about why you felt inspired to be a part of the Six Ingredient Challenge. Remember to post your answers to the fourth prompt sometime before Thursday. Even if you didn't start the challenge with us on February 1, it's not too late to sign up and join in now!

Today I'm bringing you a guest post from Sam, our family's resident breadmaker. He's sharing an easy recipe for making homemade semi-whole grain bread. It can be nearly impossible to find any store-bought grain products with six ingredients or fewer, and processed breads often have a lot of questionable additives, hydrogenated oils, and even high fructose corn syrup. Here's a healthier version that kids will eat — maybe because they don't realize how healthy it is! It's a family-friendly mix of white flour, whole wheat flour, whole oats, and whole flaxseeds. It takes just six ingredients (not counting spices), and it helps use up the whey from the homemade ricotta recipe Sam posted before.

Homemade semi-whole grain bread

Guest post by Crackerdog Sam

I'd been making the basic white loaves from the stellar book Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day for a few months when Lauren suggested switching over to at least partially whole-wheat flours. Unfortunately, my first attempts were too dense and dry and I gave up.

It wasn't until I got into homemade ricotta and had all this whey to use up, reading in various places that whey gave bread a "fluffier crumb" (the interior of the loaf), that it occurred to me that I might salvage the whole-wheat option. I've added flaxseed and whole oats for more whole fiber, and more hearty flavor. Mikko eats it up without complaint.

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup + 1 Tbsp room-temperature whey
• 1/2 Tbsp granulated yeast
• 1/2 Tbsp kosher salt
• 1 1/3 Cups unbleached white flour (7.2 oz)
• 2/3 Cup white whole wheat flour (3.6 oz)
• 1 Tbsp whole flaxseeds
• 1/4 Cup oats
• Optional: dill, tarragon, finely diced garlic, etc.

Note: Breadmakers actually weigh their flour instead of measuring it, because you can get different amounts in a cup depending on whether you sift, sweep, or pack the flour. The cup measurements I've listed are based on my typical method of reaching a scoop into the bag and pressing lightly against the side of the bag when filling it, which slightly compacts the flour.

Here we are already, at the end of week three of the Six Ingredient Challenge! Remember to link up your responses to last week's writing prompt and read and reflect on the fourth writing prompt sometime before next Thursday. Even if you're joining in today, it's still not too late to sign up and participate!

Today at Anktangle, Amy shows us how simple it is to make another cooking staple: butter. Making homemade butter is easy and fun — a great project to involve your kids in the kitchen. Plus, you know exactly what goes into it, unlike many of the "butter-like" products you'll find in your grocery's dairy section.

Continue reading at Anktangle »

Join the Six Ingredient Challenge hosted by Hobo Mama and Anktangle!

We're on a six-week path to eat more whole foods, guided by one simple rule: Buy foods with six ingredients or fewer. And we're blogging about our journey on the way.

This week we're answering the question: What new foods or recipes have you tried or discovered?

You can see all the responses to this question today at this link-up post at Hobo Mama and Anktangle. If you're a blogger who's published a response, please post the URL in the linky below so we can visit to read. If you don't have a blog or haven't published a response, feel free to provide your answer in the comments on this post on either Hobo Mama or Anktangle.

Next week's writing prompt is at the end of this post along with posting instructions.

To join in the Six Ingredient Challenge anytime during the six weeks, visit the sign-up page for a list of posts and to link up!

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My answer:

One thing that's been a plus during this challenge is how much we didn't have to replace. It's lovely to keep your comfort foods and feel like you're already taking a lot of strides to be healthy.

That said, it's been an adventure to try out new tastes, and here are a few of the ones we've discovered:

It's already week three of the Six Ingredient Challenge! Are you learning new recipes? Trying new foods? Amy and I want to hear all about it, so remember to read and reflect on the third writing prompt sometime before Thursday. Even if you're learning about our challenge for the first time today, it's not too late to sign up and follow along!

Today at Anktangle, Amy is sharing another great whole foods recipe, this one sure to satisfy even the most tenacious snack attack: chewy fruit and nut granola bars! These granola bars are rich in protein and high in fiber, so they'll fill you up with wholesome ingredients. Plus, unlike many of their store-bought counterparts, Amy's granola bars are completely free of refined sugars, gluten, soy, and corn!

Continue reading at Anktangle »

We're nearing the end of the second week of the six-week Six Ingredient Challenge! Amy and I posted our answers to the second week's writing prompt, and the linky there is still open for you to link up your posts about how the Six Ingredient Challenge is going. Remember to post your answers to the third prompt sometime before Thursday. Even if you didn't start the challenge with us on February 1, it's not too late to sign up and join in now!

Today I'm bringing you another guest post from Sam, our family's chef extraordinaire. He's sharing an easy recipe for making homemade ricotta soft cheese. Some cheeses have a lot of ingredients, but this one has only three — and it's simple for you and your kids to whip up at home and flavor to your liking.

Homemade ricotta cheese

Guest post by Crackerdog Sam

Making homemade ricotta cheese is extremely easy and fun. Traditionally, ricotta is made from the whey left over from other cheesemaking recipes (the word literally meaning "recooked"). This simpler version is great for making with kids, or for using up larger quantities of milk in your fridge that you think you won't finish before it goes bad.

The only ingredients you need are lemon juice, salt, and milk (whole milk yields more cheese, but you can also use 2%). Hint: Save the whey when you're done for a bread-making recipe coming shortly.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 Cup lemon juice (the juice from one large lemon)
• 6 Cups whole milk
• 3/4 tsp kosher salt

Equipment:

• large pot
• kitchen thermometer
• cheesecloth or strainer
• large mixing bowl

Dietary/allergy notes:

Vegetarian, gluten-free, grain-free, sugar-free. Contains dairy!

Directions:

1. Pour milk into a large pot and turn the heat to medium-high.

Join the Six Ingredient Challenge hosted by Hobo Mama and Anktangle!

We're on a six-week path to eat more whole foods, guided by one simple rule: Buy foods with six ingredients or fewer. And we're blogging about our journey on the way.

This week we're answering the question: How is the Six Ingredient Challenge going for you so far?

You can see all the responses to this question today at this link-up post at Hobo Mama and Anktangle. If you're a blogger who's published a response, please post the URL in the linky below so we can visit to read. If you don't have a blog or haven't published a response, feel free to provide your answer in the comments on this post on either Hobo Mama or Anktangle.

Next week's writing prompt is at the end of this post along with posting instructions.

To join in the Six Ingredient Challenge anytime during the six weeks, visit the sign-up page for a list of posts and to link up!

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My answer:

I'm going to answer as if I'm back in time, one week into my first foray into the world of Six Ingredients. (I have a time machine, so this is totally legit.)

I've found that eating the Six Ingredients way is mostly just dandy, which is great. There are a lot of substitutes for things we used to eat that had more ingredients, and I really like the way we're cleaning up our food sources. I also love that Mikko's gotten into the program and understands that we're shopping a new way.

Downsides and challenges, though:

Welcome to the Festival of Food Carnival. In celebration of Valentine's Day, we're sharing recipe ideas for "love foods" or foods to share with loved ones. Hosted by Diary of a First Child and Hybrid Rasta Mama, you're welcome to join us next time, or if you have a previously published recipe you'd like to share, add it to the linky below.

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This is one of Sam's recipes that makes Mikko very happy. He has no idea that these pretzels are made with half whole wheat flour, and, even though he usually makes us cut the crusts off bread, he doesn't seem to notice that pretzels are pretty much all crust.

Sam and I aren't eating grains anymore, but Mikko hasn't gotten the memo. I like that these have a healthy dose of whole wheat flour and not a lot of other questionable ingredients.

If you're following along with Anktangle's and my Six Ingredient Challenge, you'll be happy to know these pretzels weigh in at exactly six! (Remember you count out water and salt.) There's a tiny bit of sugar, but these make for a more whole-foods version of the type of pretzels you'd get at the mall for quadruple the price. Plus, you can choose how salty the final product is.

If you don't usually bake bread, this can be a fun challenge. The dough stretches out quite easily, and figuring out the knot is simple once you've done it twice. A beautiful handmade pretzel makes a lovely presentation for a special day or a special kid.

Guest post by Crackerdog Sam

Ingredients (for six pretzels):

dough:

• 1 Cup plus 1 Tbsp room-temperature water
 (neither hot nor cold to the touch)
• 1 Tbsp sugar
• 1/2 Tbsp granulated yeast
• 1/2 Tbsp kosher salt
• 1 Cup unbleached white flour, pushed slightly against side of bag when measuring (5.4 oz)
• 1 Cup white whole wheat flour, pushed slightly against side of bag when measuring (5.4 oz)

wash:

• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 Cup warm water
• large-grain salt (kosher salt or rock salt)

equipment:

• pizza stone
• pizza peel
• pan for water
• parchment paper

Dietary/allergy notes:

Vegan, vegetarian. Contains gluten.

Here we are, already moving into the middle of the second week of the Six Ingredient Challenge! How are you doing? Amy and I want to follow along with how it's going for you, so remember to read and reflect on the second writing prompt sometime before Thursday. If you're joining us for the first time today, it's still not too late to sign up for the challenge!

Today at Anktangle, Amy is exploring various food shopping strategies to help you get the most out of your meals and your budget. It can sometimes be difficult to navigate stores in a new way when you're making changes in the ways you eat. Amy outlines some tips and ideas about different ways to approach grocery shopping for whole, less processed foods. To learn more (and to share your tried and tested methods with the rest of us!) head on over and join the conversation about shopping for food with Six Ingredients in mind.

Continue reading at Anktangle »

We're into the second week of the six-week Six Ingredient Challenge! Amy and I posted our answers to the first week's writing prompt, and the linky there is still open for you to link up your posts about why you felt inspired to be a part of the Six Ingredient Challenge. Remember to post your answers to the second prompt sometime before Thursday. Even if you didn't start the challenge with us on February 1, it's not too late to sign up and join in now!

Today I'm bringing you a guest post from Sam, our family's chef extraordinaire. He's sharing an easy recipe for making homemade flour tortillas. It can be nearly impossible to find any store-bought flour products with six ingredients or fewer, and tortillas especially seem to have a lot of questionable additives and hydrogenated oils and even high fructose corn syrup. Here's a healthier version you can whip up for your family taco night! If you ask nicely, Sam might also share his fantastic how-tos for the perfect taco meat and tangy Mexican coleslaw.

Homemade flour tortillas (makes 8)

Guest post by Crackerdog Sam

There's no real need to make your own tortillas these days, unless, like us, you've been attempting to cut down on the amount of processed foods you eat. Prepackaged tortillas are often full of preservatives and stabilizers, so I thought I'd see how difficult it would be to make our own. It's somewhat time-consuming, but the degree of difficulty isn't hard, and I like the taste of them better because they're never gummy or tough.

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 4 tsp coconut oil, warmed to liquid (could also use the traditional lard)
• 1 tsp honey
• 1/4 Cup + 2 tsp whole milk

Dietary/allergy notes:

Vegetarian, could be vegan if maple syrup is substituted for honey and almond milk for the cow's milk, could be dairy-free if almond milk is substituted for the cow's milk. Contains dairy and gluten.

Directions:

1) In a mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Add oil and honey, and stir mixture until all wet ingredients are little flour-covered bits. (Traditionally tortillas are made with lard, which I don't usually have on hand, so I went with coconut oil, which is solid at room temperature and melts when warm, like lard, and it worked very well.)

We've finished the first week of the Six Ingredient Challenge! Yesterday, Amy and I posted our answers to the first week's writing prompt, and the linky is still open for you to link up your posts about why you felt inspired to be a part of the Six Ingredient Challenge. Even if you didn't start with us last Friday, it's not too late to sign up and join in now!

Today at Anktangle, Amy is sharing another surprisingly easy tutorial for a homemade version of a food we all might normally buy ready-made. This Friday it's all about dairy-free beverages, and Amy has written up recipes for two different nut-based
drinks: almond milk and sweet almond cream. Like homemade peanut butter, homemade almond milk and sweet almond cream are both easy to customize to suit your family's taste preferences.

Continue reading at Anktangle »