Real Food.

Since 2013 began I have been wanting to "get back on the wagon" of healthy eating. The holidays just seem to bring out the worst eating habits, but oh my, is it delicious. I'm not calling what I'm doing a resolution, because I always break those.  No, this time it's a life changer. I'm getting the whole family on board.

I'm not going on a diet and I'm avoiding things that say light and fat-free .So, how might you ask, do I plan to eat healthy if I'm not eating those things?! It's called Real Food. 

I had known for some time that the food we buy at the store is full of additives and chemicals that are not good for us. Food dyes can lead to hyperactivity in children, added sugar is now thought to cause Diabetes, the list goes on and on. I have been actively reading food labels for some time now. I tried my hardest to buy things that had no added sugar, preservatives, etc. I most certainly avoided foods that said sugar-free. These typically have what I call fake sugar. (Splenda, Equal, etc.) Those are just chemicals and I'd rather not put that into my body or my baby's. I tried my best to read labels and avoid the "bad stuff", but I would let some things slide. Cereal bars with food dyes got thrown in the shopping cart way too often. (Because they're an easy on-the go snack!) Cream cheese with those words I can't pronounce was being consumed at breakfast. I didn't like it, but it was easy.

That's when I saw a Pin on Pinterest for unprocessed snacks. Perfect! That Pin led me to the 100 Days of Real Food blog. I began reading it and thought, "this is what I've been looking for!" The site has a 10 Days of Real Food Pledge that I'm not sure I'm ready for quite yet. But it is a GREAT resource for all things whole food.

I'm not going totally unprocessed, but I am definitely avoiding things that are not 100% natural. Let's just say I'm avoiding things that are highly processed. Oh and don't forget to read the labels of things labeled "natural". They can sometimes contain things that are definitely NOT natural. Do not be fooled by Organic foods either. Organic just means that there are no pesticides or fertilizers or additives. Again, read the labels! I buy organic, but I know that the organic pop tarts are just as unhealthy as the real ones. Hello, sugar and calories!

All this being said, I am going to try my hand at making a few things that are normally highly processed at the grocery store. I found most of the recipes on Pinterest. Of course! (What did I ever do before that site?!)

The first thing I tried was Chocolate Peanut Butter Powerballs to replace all the cereal bars we'd been consuming. This recipe is super simple, because you just throw everything into a food processor.

Having a giant sweet tooth meant my next attempt were these 2 ingredient cookies from The Burlap Bag!  Bananas and quick oats. That is all! Of course, I added dark chocolate chips. :)

 Do not be fooled by the ingredients! These things are amazing!

 Liam enjoyed them too!

So, what do you do to stay away from processed foods?