Cooking from scratch and finding good recipes for homemade "packaged foods".

I'm looking for something I can make for dinner that I can use homemade pasta in. I now have a pasta machine, and I can't wait to use it. I just have to discover a good pasta dish that I can make which will highlight the homemade pasta. I'll try to post pictures if I find something, and if it turns out good. LOL

I like cooking from scratch, with as little packaged foods as possible. I've made homemade mac and cheese, but the kids don't like it. I want to find a way to make rice-a-roni too because the kids like it with some chicken, or beef or pork cut up in it, throw in a few veggies and it's a good meal. Well it will be when I figure out how to make it without all the salt and sugar boxed foods tend to have. I'm trying to do more natural foods because children, especially those with special needs, are more sensitive to the chemicals and modified foods. I don't think either of our kids have any problems with food, but  who knows? So, anyway, I'm looking for homemade recipes of the convenience type foods kids seem to love so much. I'm going to use real sugar, butter not margarine, whole milk, cream, fresh vegetables and meats whenever possible, and frozen or home canned fruits and vegetables as much as I need to. Dried foods would be good too, if I dry them myself. I need to get a dehydrator soon, the kids like dried apples, cherries, and blue berries. I can get those easily around here. I'd like to try drying some veggies too, maybe broccoli and peppers for a start.

I haven't had much contact with anyone in the family except for my Mom since we all left her place after her birthday. I play Words with Friends with my youngest brother sometimes. And I keep up with what my brother in California and his family are doing because of Facebook. It makes me a little sad, because I love my family so much, but we are not very good at keeping in contact. Besides I know that the California part of the family is VERY conservative, fundamental Christian  and think I'm VERY liberal and not Christian at all. They are some of the people I mentioned in another post about religion, they are some of the ones who think they know what I believe but probably don't. Another one would be my niece, I doubt that she has a real idea of my political or religious standing. It's okay though. I still love all of them no matter what.