Is your family is snobby when it comes to homemade dishes

"A homemade one just contains natural ingredients, no additives."

Not necessarily true. People often put 'ingredients' in their home made cakes that have a lot of ingredients in them already. An example is people using chocolate v just cocoa powder. Also, home made cakes will have a lot of sugar, which is not good for you even if natural!

"Since when do vegetarians not have the option to eat home made meat free food? I'm sure such a food loving family will be more than able to cater to her meat free needs."

Maybe she doesn't want to be a burden. I wouldn't want someone to cook an entire separate meal for me, which is what you'd have to do if your main course for Christmas in turkey.

"It's not necessary to bring smelly processed ready-made food to make a sanctimonious point."

And now we see the snobbery. Why would ready-made food be more smelly? In fact, it's usually less smelly to put something in the microwave for a few minutes than to be cooking it on the stove for hours.

It's not snobby not to want to eat shit.

Have you looked at the ingredients in a Tesco cake? It's like a bloody science experiment. A homemade one just contains natural ingredients, no additives.

To be honest you are the one who sounds insecure and threatened. Why do you prefer to eat stuff with additives?

I once thought my inlaws were foodies but I've since realised they are just very particular. They won't eat food at other people's houses if that's bought or homemade. They are similar in restaurants and will only eat one meal. They also like their food very very plain. No herbs spices sauces. Everything is very dry. Yet they will buy lots of branded food and goodies so it's not about upf. Just their own preferences.

I once did a birthday party for my young child and they didn't eat a thing. On the flip side I come from a family who would judge you for making homemade. I made homemade cakes and got called a 1950s housewife 🙈

I just let everyone get on with whatever their preference is. I think either way can seem strange when it's not what you've grown up with.

Unfortunately for my waistline I eat absolutely everything 😂

I don't eat meat, when I cater for myself at the in laws, I usually just do a quick omelette which goes well with the sides for a roast

I think there is a big difference between a cake bought from a patisserie and one bought from Tesco

I would freely admit that Konditor and Cook do it better than me. But my home made cakes are way better than supermarkets.

Renounce her beliefs? I solemnly swear to only ever eat ready made microwave food at my in laws 😂

Since when do vegetarians not have the option to eat home made meat free food? I'm sure such a food loving family will be more than able to cater to her meat free needs. It's not necessary to bring smelly processed ready-made food to make a sanctimonious point. And if the in laws don't cater for vegetarians, which I find doubtful, she could bring pre made home cooked food. If I were the in laws, I'd throw the microwave out and see what happens.

A specialist patisserie shop which makes cakes on-site or at a small scale fresh would almost certainly be better than my cakes. But a lot more expensive! And such shops are rare in the uk outside London.

"If feeding a few people then ready meals are a crazy idea anyway"

The OP explained that the ready meal would have been for one person, a vegetarian having a different main course than the others. In this case, it makes sense.

Oh no, not all meals. I was talking about cakes, including shop bought cakes made on a small scale.

I read this as inverted snobbery coming from you OP

I wouldn't find that snobby just more discriminating though it would be rude to scorn an offering brought to your home. I don't like shop cakes and desserts as they are way too sweet and often covered in a load of gank. If feeding a few people then ready meals are a crazy idea anyway as well the fact that they are not usually very nice and have weird ingredients.

They sound more like they are 'foodies' than snobs. And home made food tastes much better than bought.

Not sure you understand the word “snobby” or your judgemental SIL “insecurity” . I try to make everything from scratch, started when my now adult kids were babies and I wanted to avoid e numbers and additives. Now my adult kids are the same . We all share recipes cookbooks and enjoy eating and cooking. What I find snobby is looking down your nose at people who prefer not to “prick and ping” or feed their baby a pouch of

And many people exercise at home these days. It’s cheaper. So is cooking your own dinner.

90% YABU - good old MN!

OP, it's not 'snobbery' to care about food - how it tastes, how processed it is, where the ingredients come from. Lots of people care like this and it's not always a class/wealth marker, either. Where they might be 'snobby' is if they sneer at other people's food choices or go on a bit too much about their home-baked croissants ...

Supermarket cakes are generally made from crap, taste crap and too sweet, and last long enough that they don't even need to be kept in the fridge, BTW.

It's incredibly strange to be pathologising a preference for home made food. Home made food has been the norm throughout most of time and still is in many countries.

Shop better for everything, all types of food - taste, price, amount of processed ingredients? I just don’t see how that’s possible for all meals.

Um, yes, sure? Cooking from scratch doesn't have to be complicated or particularly time consuming unless you are literally comparing it to putting a ready meal in the microwave. I mean, very few people go as far as churning their own butter.

My pantry is well stocked. If I need new ingredients they just get picked up when I next go shopping.

I batch cook soups/lunches and main meals. I have just been ill for a week and didn't really need to cook much, as I just used up meals in the freezer.

I go to the gym 4 times a week, sometimes doing doubles, i.e. back to back classes or a class followed by a 60 minute swim. I walk my dog every day for at least 90 minutes.

I work 4 days a week and also doing a post doctoral course at uni.

I balance my life with positive mental health activities too, e.g mindful crafts/activities, sound bath classes, socialising with friends family, travel a lot, camping, hiking etc

You find it “fascinating” that people prefer home made food to ready made UPF? You sound like the “snobby” one, not them. It’s hardly news that food cooked from scratch is (assuming it’s not deep fried chicken or similar) better for you (and better for your purse) than pre-made ready meals and sliced white bread full of preservatives and fillers.

I work full time in a demanding senior job as a single mum to 3 kids and cook everything from scratch, Including bread. I wouldn’t dream of buying a cake. That is just my preference because I value good, nutritious food for my family. It’s quicker to knock a spaghetti carbonara or similar together than order a takeaway at the end of the day.

I was looking at the cakes in the bakery section in Tesco earlier and they’re about £20 for something which looks ok but which I know (having sampled them elsewhere) taste rubbish. I can make a lovely birthday cake for less than half that price.

Yes. Except I get a food delivery 🤣

I’m not a single mum but I am a nurse and I have always cooked from scratch. It entirely depends what you prioritise. I choose to cook from scratch as I care about what I eat and I am feeding my children. There is a lot of lost skills/confidence in cooking and baking with the rise of convenience foods.

I wouldn’t dream of offering to bring pudding and turning up with something in a packet. I grew up with most foods cooked from scratch and continued to do so with my children. Food is very much my love language so I think nothing of spending half a day stocking up the fridge/freezer.

My MIL prides herself on everything being home cooked but IMO a lot of the stuff she makes is bloody horrible. For example, flat mince pies consisting of undercooked, unsweetened pastry with a smear of gritty mincemeat on top. Give me a Tesco's Finest mince pie with short, buttery pastry any day!