I read an article recently that listed the things you need to take out of your home to become greener. Can you guess what was number 1 on their list?

If you thought non-stick cook and bake ware you are right!

For years I loved the stuff, everything I had was coated with the miracle non-stick stuff. Now we are finding out all of that stuff that it gives off is not healthy for us. It is not safe over a certain temperature. That temp being much lower than than the high setting on most stove tops. This is just down right scary. There are enough chemicals surrounding us, then to think we are adding more with what we prepare our food in.

Alternatives?

Several years I switched over to stainless steel. Does my food stick? I have become a better cook over the years, but yes on occasions those silly little pancakes do stick. You have to learn to adjust the temperature. If you do that and use the correct oil you shouldn’t have a problem.

Hard anodized aluminum cookware. I do not have any of these pieces but have heard they work just as well as the Teflon and are much safer.

If you are lucky enough to have a gas stove you may want to consider cast iron. When it is seasoned correctly it is non-stick. You cannot use these on glass topped stoves. On electric stoves they may not heat evenly.

I also don’t use cookie sheets or bake ware coated with Teflon. For starters it was much less expensive to buy metal baking sheets.  I can also scrub them without the fear of ruining the non-stick surface. I also use glass baking pans where I can.

So next time you are preparing food, think about the containers as well as the food!

So I journeyed off to HEB, armed with my shopping list. It had been several years since I have done any serious grocery shopping here. I was so pleasantly surprised to see so many green choices.

There were many choices of 7th Generation. From toilet paper to dish liquid, there was a great variety. Made me a happy camper. I did wish there were more organic choices in produce, but I do have another option that I will be sure to blog about. Right now I am happy that I have some greener choices available at the local market!

What irks me is all the packaging that the products come with to the store. All the plastic, all the filler, all the paper and cardboard that is just wasted.

Electronics seem to be the worst offenders. You go to purchase a simple memory stick and the amount of plastic and packaging is outrageous. Is there anything we can do?

We need to be aware of waste when we are shopping. If you have the choice of purchasing something in a container that can be recycled versus one that has to go to the landfill that is an easy decision. If we can opt for no packaging at all that is even easier.

Use reusable shopping bags when you can. An even better choice is no bag at all. At our local bookstore they have started asking if we want a bag. It is no big deal carrying our purchases out the door. Can you think of other stores where this is an option?

We can even shop green for major appliances. When you are shopping ensure that the retailer your purchase from offers recycling of your old appliance. Many do not even charge you, if you are buying a new appliance from them.

What ever you are shopping for, THINK GREEN. We have become a consumer generation. Let’s make the things we purchase with our mother earth in mind!