Marti’s Corner – 77

Hi Everyone,

NOTES:

*  Someone on FB said she had 1 gallon of milk starting to taste sour.  Someone else shared this:  Our Favorite 11 Recipes That Use Sour Milk – The Kitchen Community  Evidently sour milk is good for baking.  So much so, that you can make your own sour milk:  1 TB apple cider vinegar or lemon juice and fill it up to the 1 cup line.  Stir and let sit for 5 min.  Recipes include soda bread, pancakes, muffins, spice cake, oatmeal cookies and more.

*  I made Lentil Barley Stew for dinner on Tuesday (see last week’s recipes).  It was good!!!  And I got to thinking that it would be easy to seal in jars.  I think it would fit in a pint jar, but not sure.

1/2 c. barley 3/4 c. lentils      Put in the bottom of the clean jar. 1/4 c. dehydrated, diced carrots 1/4 c. dehydrated diced potatoes (most of my potatoes are in slices, so I’d probably break them up a bit) 2 TB dehydrated minced onion 2 tsp dried parsley 1/4 tsp pepper 2 tsp vegetable or chicken bouillon

Seal the jar.

To cook, add 4 c. water.  Bring to boil, reduce to simmer for 25 min until done.

We don’t eat a lot of vegetarian dishes, but this one was good, and we didn’t even notice the missing meat.

GARDEN HAPPENINGS: 

*  I had some comments on applying DE.  Annie says her mom would make a pouch with a few layers of cheesecloth and fasten it with a rubber band.  Then she would shake it and it would fall out between the cracks.  Sherri says she used a metal strainer and gently tapped it against her hand.  She says she got rid of her Japanese beetles and Squash bugs completely with the DE.

*  Here is another seed-saving chart I found:

*  I’ve really been battling spider mites in the beans and aphids in the lettuce.  Ugh.  I spray one day and two days later they seem just as bad as before.  I just read that spider mites thrive in hot, dry climates.  Before I complain too much, I think there are worse bugs that thrive in hot, humid climates.  LOL

Spider mite damage looks like this from the top.

And this is where leaves and stems meet:

According to the different products I have, Neem oil and Captain Jack’s should work.  But, I have not been able to get them under control.  I have a ton of beans that are still too small to pick.  I just want to hang on until I get them picked, then, I just may rip out all the bean plants.  Luckily, I have not seen them on anything else in the garden.  

THIS WEEK’S PURCHASE: oats

Oats are available in both regular and quick varieties from the Church Distribution Center in Salt Lake.  

Regular Oats | United States Store $36.50

Each case is six #10 cans at about 2.5 lbs each for about $6.10 each (must buy a whole case).  

Now, if you buy a large container of oats from the store, it is about $3.50 (last I looked), and it is 3 pounds.  So, much cheaper.  This is what I do.  I do NOT like the taste of the oats after they have been in the cans.  In fact, I can’t get past the taste.  I just store oats in cardboard cylinders.  BUT….. cardboard is not waterproof, nor is it rodent proof.  I have not had any problems with pantry moths, nor any other tiny thing.  But if you get mice, you would be better off with the cans – or food-grade buckets.  The recommended amount is 1/2 large cylinder per person per month.  

The bran and germ are still intact in old-fashioned and quick-cooking oats.  So both are considered a whole grain.  Steel-cut oats are chewier and nuttier.  The fiber in oats is especially healthy because it may help lower cholesterol.

MISC PURCHASE: duct tape

Time to buy an extra roll of duct tape.  My new favorite quote comes from a movie starring Dwayne Johnson.  “If you can’t fix it with duct tape, you haven’t used enough duct tape.”  We bought some Gorilla Tape (It’s black).  That stuff is SUPER sticky and tough!!!!

FOOD STORAGE RECIPES

One of the comments for this FaceBook post concerned the 1/2 c. of flour, wondering if it was enough.  Other comments assured us that it is correct.

Oatmeal Pancakes From Whole Grains, by Betty Crocker

(I made these for breakfast last week and they were really good.  This recipe made six 4-inch pancakes.  My husband ate 3 of them, and I ate about 1 ½.  They were so filling.  According to the recipe, it is supposed to make 6 servings, but that is only if they are really small and you only eat 2.  So……. make more if you’re serving a family.)

1/2 c. old-fashioned or quick-cooking oats 1/4 c. flour 1/4 c. whole wheat flour 3/4 c. buttermilk 1/4 c. milk 1 TB sugar 2 TB vegetable oil 1 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt 1 egg      Mix everything together with mixer or wire whisk until smooth.  For thinner pancakes stir in additional 2-4 TB milk.  

For a special syrup, heat maple syrup and cranberry sauce 2:1 ratio.  Yeah, I’m not going to open a whole can of cranberry sauce just for this.  But it sounds cool.  In fact, I may try this for breakfast tomorrow.  I think I even have whole wheat flour hanging around somewhere.

Baked Apple Oatmeal From Whole Grains, by Betty Crocker

This recipe calls for fresh apples.  But, if you have dehydrated apples, I’ll bet you could rehydrate them by soaking them in water for 20 min or so.  Because they are going to be baked, you shouldn’t notice a difference.  

Also, because the recipe is sweet, this could be a dessert OR a breakfast.

2 2/3 c. oats 1/2 c. raisins 1/3 c. packed brown sugar 1 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp salt 4 c. milk 2 medium apples, or pears, chopped to equal 2 cups

    Put everything in a 2 quart casserole dish.  Mix and bake at 350˚ uncovered 40-45 minutes or until most liquid is absorbed.  Remove from oven and sprinkle with

1/2 c. chopped walnuts.

Just one serving of this oatmeal provides fiber, iron, calcium, folic acid and omega-3 fat.

Oatmeal-Blueberry Muffins From Whole Grains, by Betty Crocker

In a small bowl, pour 1 c. buttermilk (or sour milk)  over 1 c. old fashioned oats.  Let sit.

In a large bowl, mix

1/3 c. oil 1/2 c. packed brown sugar 1 egg     Mix with a spoon.  Stir in… 1/2 c. whole wheat flour 1/2 c. all-purpose flour 1 tsp baking soda 1 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp salt     Stir just until moistened.  Stir in oat mixture.  Fold in… 1 c. fresh or frozen (thawed and drained) blueberries.  Divide batter into greased muffin cups or paper baking muffin cups.  Bake 15-20 minutes at 400˚ or until golden brown.  Cool 5 minutes before removing it from the pan.  Serve warm.

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Marti