More Baby Steps

Two of the first changes I made when I cut back on processed foods were eliminating bagged salads and pasta/potato side-dish mixes. For months, whenever I set a salad, loaded with fresh vegetables and tossed with homemade dressing, on the table, my children would cry in despair, "When can we have Caesar salad?" The bagged salad kit includes romaine, some Parmesan, 6 - 8 dry croutons and a calorie rich dressing. On a busy evening recently, I "pressed the easy button," and picked up a salad kit and a box of Alfredo style noodles to go with grilled pork chops. At the end of the meal, the salad sat, barely touched. My husband asked what I did wrong to the noodles because they were "sticky." I didn't have the heart to tell them, they were just used to eating real food.