Marti’s Corner – 170

Hi Everyone,

NOTES:

** YES!!!  This is such an easy thing to do.  Prepare one month of menus.  A One-Month Shelf-Stable Food Menu Your Family Will Love

I actually went ahead and purchased her complete list of menus for $3.  Can’t beat that price.  Check it out.

**  We cleaned out a couple of shelves and found canned peaches from 2016.  

The pears and applesauce looked the same.  The carrots weren’t much better.  We dumped them all.  Now I have about 4 dozen clean jars, ready for filling.  I never feel bad about having to do this.  I probably SHOULD have rotated it better, but I always think of it like “food insurance.”  Sometimes you don’t need it, but you still buy it again.

Canned fruit doesn’t last very long either.  

** I took my own advice and bought shortening last week.  What the heck???  I was shocked at the price!!!  $8+????  For shortening???? I’ll have to check out the Dollar Store and see if it’s available there?  

GARDEN HAPPENINGS:

**  Lettuce transplants are hanging in there.  It looks like one or two aren’t going to make it.  I’ll admit, this is partly my fault for not covering them during the first three days.  I KNEW better, but was lazy.  Ugh.

I thinned the beets and carrots.  Hopefully, they will have room to grow now.

I think the basil, oregano, and celery are ready to be picked and dehydrated.  

I HOPE the weather is finally cooling off from 90˚.  I still have the shade cloth on.

THIS WEEK’S PURCHASE: onions and garlic

Let’s face it. These are the two most common ingredients in ANY dinner recipe. Onions can be purchased in #10 cans from the Home Storage Center.  

Find a Home Storage Center

I use dehydrated onions exclusively!  I just fill a small dish. with water, heat it up in the microwave for 1 minute, and put in about 1 TB of dry onions.  I let it sit for 15-20 minutes and it looks and feels just like raw onion, except that it’s diced VERY VERY small!  If you are making something in the crockpot, no need to rehydrate, just dump it in.  Because the onion bits are so small, cooking time is significantly less, only a minute or two.  

You can find dehydrated minced garlic at the grocery story in the spice section of the baking row.  ( I HAVE dried garlic, but I much prefer minced garlic in the jar.  BUT, jars that have been on my shelf longer than a year or so, start to turn brown and are no longer appetizing.  Dehydrated garlic will last MUCH longer!!!)

I found this one online: US-FARMERS Natural Premium Quality Garlic Minced (6lb) : Grocery & Gourmet Food

6 pounds for $6.  It’s an amazing price!!! 

You can also get it in the bulk section at Winco, but then you’ll have to find a way to store it. A vacuum-sealed mason jar kept out of the heat and light will work. OR a Mylar bag sealed by ironing will also work. You can probably divide it up into several Mylar bags. That way, you can open one, and the rest will stay fresher longer.

MISC. PURCHASE: paper goods & cutlery

I noticed on the hurricane comments that having paper goods was a real necessity.  Clean water was hard to come by in the aftermath.  I think this week, I’ll pick up a large package of plates, and some extra boxes of cutlery from Costco.  Having gone three days without water last month, it was a real pain trying to get the dishes washed!!!

FOOD STORAGE RECIPES:

Today’s recipes are from the Stockpile Cafe by Daisy Luther.  This is the book mentioned above.

Vegetable Soup

optional:  1 c. freeze dried beef crumbles, or 1 pint canned ground beef
1 large (46 oz) can of tomato juice
1 can each of potatoes, corn, green beans, peas, and carrots
    (I just threw away all my canned carrots, so I’ll be using dehydrated carrots!)
1 can beans (navy, pinto, white, kidney, etc.)
1 TB each thyme, basil, and oregano
1 TB garlic powder
1 TB onion powder 
    (Here’s a great opportunity to try out your dehydrated minced garlic and onions!)
1 tsp paprika
1 c. macaroni or other short pasta
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Pour all the cans, undrained, into a large stockpot.

If you are using the freeze dried beef, stir it in and it will reconstitute as it simmers.

Stir in seasonings. 

Bring to a boil, then reduce and simmer for 15-30 min.  Add the pasta and cook for another 10 minutes or until the pasta is fully cooked.

One Pot Beans and Rice

1 c. dried beans
6 c. water
2 c. brown rice

Seasonings:  

cumin, chili powder, garlic and onions
Cajun seasoning mix
Garlic, onion, thyme, and sage
Bay leaf, tomato paste, paprika

Rinse and sort beans.  Soak overnight.  In the morning, drain the beans and rinse them.  Then add to the pot with 6 c. water.  Simmer for one hour.  Add the brown rice and seasonings.  Cook for another hour.  Taste test to make sure both the beans and rice are cooked and tender.

Five-Can Chili

1 can chili without beans
1 can pinto beans
1 can black beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can corn
2 TB chili powder
1 TB onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder

    (Use those dehydrated onions and garlic)

3 TB cheese powder

Without draining, add all the cans into a stockpot.  Stir in spices except cheese powder.  Simmer without a lid for half an hour.  Finally stir in cheese powder and simmer for about 5 more minutes.

Serve with crackers, tortillas, fry bread, or cornbread.

Marti Shelley