Canning Chicken

Are you intimidated by pressure canning?  I know I am!  My little sister has recently been canning meat, though, and I'm starting to think maybe I can do it too.  One reason my sister likes to can meat is that they often have ice storms where she lives and they can be without power for a week or more at a time.  Canned meat won't go bad if your freezer defrosts!  Here's a link she posted to a YouTube video that makes it all look so easy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fINnsFJGyKU

My niece also recently posted a recipe on facebook that she uses to can pork.  She calls it Chili Verde.  She just opens a bottle and uses it as enchilada filling.  How cool is that?!?  Homemade taste, health benefits, and economy with store bought convenience! 

Chili Verde
3 lbs boneless pork – cubed
1 Tbsp oil
1 onion – chopped
6 cloves garlic –chopped
1 Tbsp fresh oregano
2 jalapeños – chopped
8 oz whole green chilies – chopped (I have used up to 4 whole chilies per batch)
3 c beef stock

Sautee onion, garlic, and jalapeños in the oil till onion melts. In a stock pot brown the pork with a splash of oil. Once it is browned on all sides add sautéed mixture. Add green chilies and beef stock. Bring to boil. Reduce to lowest setting and simmer, partially covered for 2 ½ hours. Add water if needed as it evaporates. Simmer till it reduces and pork easily breaks apart.

Process jars in small pints at 15 pounds of pressure for 1 hour and 15 min or 1 hour 30 min for quarts. When ready, open the jar and use as filling for tamales, enchiladas, tacos, salad, quesadillas or serve with beans and rice on the side. Amazing!

WHEN TO PRESSURE CAN
You should use a pressure canner whenever what you're preserving is low in acid.  Fruit and tomatoes are high in acid and so can be done in a water bath canner.  Always be sure to add all acid (lemon juice or vinegar) your recipe calls for.  You can do vegetables in a water bath canner if they are pickled. 

Things you can do in a pressuer canner:
Beans (legumes)
Meat
All vegetables

SAFETY FIRST!
You should take your pressure canner lid (they only need the lid) down to the County Extension Office once a year to have the pressure guage tested.  You can also pick up charts of processing times for your elevation.  They're phone number is 256-2828.

Here's a link to the chart on their website: (scroll down to pages 3 & 4 for processing times and elevation by county seat for Montana)

http://msuextension.org/publications/HomeHealthandFamily/MT200905HR.pdf

Here's a good one on canning meat, fish, and poultry:

http://msuextension.org/publications/HomeHealthandFamily/MT200903HR.pdf

Here's their page that has tons of useful home canning links:

http://www.msuextension.org/nutrition/Food%20Pres.html

Happy canning!!

Carole's Granola

This recipe was developed by a good friend of mine by trial and error. All ingredients can be stored in your food storage! It is fabulous, and your house will smell divine while it's baking. It's great with milk or stirred into plain yogurt or cottage cheese with fresh fruit on top. It's also pretty great just to nibble on for a midday snack.

Ingredients:
7 cups rolled oats, or 7-grain rolled mixture
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1 cup pumpkin seeds
1 cup flaked coconut (unsweetened)
1 cup nonfat dry milk
2-1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup whole almonds
1 cup sunflower seeds (omit if you used the 7-grain mix, as it includes sunflower seeds)

1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup water
1-1/2 teaspoons imitation maple flavor
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup honey
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions:
Combine first group of ingredients in a large bowl and stir together well. Combine second group of ingredients in a small bowl and mix thoroughly. Pour wet stuff over dry stuff and stir until well combined. Divide between three cookie sheets and bake at 250 degrees for 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. Mixture should be soft and moist when removed from oven. Cool. When dry and crisp, put in a plastic container. Yields 19 cups.

Notes:
Play around with the ingredients in the first group according to what your family likes. 1 or 2 cups of dried fruit is great - raisins, dates, chopped apricots, pineapple, candied ginger, etc. Ground flax seeds would also make a healthy addition.

Enjoy!

Juice Steamers

Did your grandma have one of these? Mine did! This is a handy item known as a juice steamer. It is used to extract juice from fruit and vegetables. Steamers can be expensive when purchased new, but you often see them at garage sales, estate sales, and on various online sites at a reasonable price. I've also seen them for sale at various hardware stores around Billings.

For years, my neighbor had an apple tree growing next to our mutual fence that dropped apples all over my lawn. It was aggravating--they had to be picked up before we mowed, and they were not great tasting apples.

Then I got a juice steamer, and turned those apples into delicious, fresh apple juice. Wouldn't you know it, the very next summer my neighbor cut down his apple tree.


. The steamer consists of three pots: the bottom pot for boiling water (right), the middle pot where the extracted juice collects (center), and the strainer/top pot where the fruit is placed (left).


Today I'm making rhubarb watermelon juice. I have a large rhubarb growing in my garden,

and a small watermelon leftover from a reunion.


I cubed the unpeeled rhubarb, cut off the rind and chunked the watermelon, and put them in the strainer. You generally don't need to peel or seed your fruit. Watermelon rind is one of the few things that leaves a distinctive flavor I don't care for. You can also add sugar or spices at this point if needed. Add water to the bottom pot and bring to a boil. Put the middle pot on top of the boiling water and the strainer with fruit on top of the middle pot. Do not let the water boil dry. Steam fruit until it appears dry. As the fruit steams, it drips into the middle pot as pure juice.

Now you have juice which you can drink after chilling, or make into syrup, or jelly or jam, or use as flavoring in other desserts. The booklet that came with my steamer has lots of recipes and ideas. Now that I don't have apples falling in my yard, I use my steamer mainly for the grapes and plums from my garden. You can also steam peaches, cherries, berries, tomatoes,--just about any fruit or vegetable you want.

Apple Cake

This cake is a recipe that my neice modified to make healthy. I tried it and I love it! It is so moist and yummy, you'd never know it was whole wheat!

Ingredients:

3 eggs

1/2 cup natural sugar (look for anything that says "evaporated cane juice" on the ingredients. It has a lower glycemic index, and it tastes like sugar because it really, truly is just sugar).

1/2 cup agave nectar (I've seen this at grocery stores and at Costco - it's also an all natural, low glycemic index sweetener)

1/4 cup vegetable oil (use one that's heart healthy, like canola)

3/4 cup apple sauce

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups whole wheat flour (freshly ground hard white wheat or soft white wheat* is best)

1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups diced apples (no need to peel them)

1 8-oz package reduced fat cream cheese

1/2 cup natural sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs and sugar until fluffy and pale. Add agave nectar, oil, applesauce and vanilla; mix well. Sift dry ingredients and mix into the wet mixture. Stir in apples.

Coat 13 x 9-inch pan with non-stick spray and spread batter evenly into pan.

Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Frosting:

Soften cream cheese. Add sugar and beat with rotary beaters until creamy. Spread on apple cake.

*Soft white wheat is also called Durum. When it's ground into a flour, it's called whole wheat pastry flour or semolina. It's perfect for baking non-yeast or quick breads, as well as for making pasta. It's not recommended for making bread, as it's lower in protein and won't rise well. This is also what makes it perfect for quick-rise cooking. The lower protein makes the batter less tough. It has a shorter shelf life than hard wheat, so don't store more than you can use in a year or two.

Pinto Beans

Many, many years ago, when I got married, someone gave me a bucket of pinto beans as a start to my food storage. I had grown up eating beans so I thought this was great. It took a lot of trial and error, though, to figure out how to successfully cook beans. Often when I tried to cook them they would remain hard after hours and hours of cooking. Ever heard the expression "tough beans"? Well, I came to understand it pretty well. When you have "tough beans" there's not much you can do about it! Now after many years of cooking and experimenting with different kinds of beans, pintos are still my favorite. They have a creamy, buttery flavor when cooked from scratch that I love. Who knows, maybe it's just because that's the kind of beans my mother always cooked. They are definitely a comfort food for me!

Pinto beans are available right now at the Stake Cannery. The price is $15.46 for 25 pounds.

HOW TO COOK BEANS

Sorting: First of all, dried beans must be sorted, or picked over, before you can cook them. There will often be small, bean-sized dirt clods or pebbles in among the beans. To sort them, carefully dump out a cupful of beans on a clean counter top. Don't dump them from any height, or they'll bounce and roll off the counter onto the floor. Sort through the beans a few at a time, looking closely for little rocks.

Washing: Place the beans in a bowl and cover with lukewarm water. Swish them around with your fingers. Drain and repeat until the water is clear.

Soaking: Dried beans must be soaked before they can be cooked. I know of two methods for soaking - quick and slow. I prefer the quick method. I found that I never had time for the slow method, as it requires remembering the night before that you want to have beans for dinner the next day. This just didn't work out for me very well. :)

Slow method: Place washed beans in a bowl and cover with water by an inch. Let sit overnight or for 12 hours.

Quick method: Place washed beans in a pot and cover with water by an inch. Place on high heat. As soon as it comes to a simmer, turn off the heat and let the beans sit for about an hour. When you can push your thumbnail into a bean, they're ready.

Cooking: I know of three methods for cooking beans: simmer in a pot on the stove top, simmer in a crockpot, or cook in a pressure cooker. The crockpot and stove top methods probably take about the same amount of time, but the crock pot has the advantage that it will not scorch on the bottom. I'm the kind of person who walks away and forgets things, so I prefer the crock pot method if I'm not in a hurry. :)

Stove top: Place soaked beans in a pot and cover by an inch of water. (If you used the quick soak method above, just keep the beans in the same pot and add more water if needed.) You may add seasoning at this point, but NOT SALT!! If you add salt at the beginning, your beans will more likely remain hard. Bring to a boil and simmer for 1-4 hours until beans are soft. You can test the beans by taking one out and trying to mash it with a fork. If it mashes easily, they're done. At this point you can add salt.

Crockpot: Place soaked beans in a crockpot and barely cover with water. You may add seasoning at this point INCLUDING SALT. I've found with the crockpot, you can add salt at the beginning of the cooking process without ill effect. Set the crockpot on high and place the lid on the pot. Cook for 4 hours, or until soft. Test beans by mashing one with a fork, as above.

Pressure cooker: This is the method I use most often. With the quick soak method above and a pressure cooker, you can have dried beans ready to eat in 2 hours. Not super fast, I know, but it's pretty quick in the bean world. :) Place soaked beans in pressure cooker and cover with water by one inch, being sure you don't fill with water higher than the fill line on the inside of your pressure cooker. You may add all your seasoning, INCLUDING SALT. Follow the cooking directions that came with your pressure cooker. Just as an example, my pressure cooker booklet says to place over high heat. When the rocker begins to rock, reduce the heat medium and keep a slow steady rock going for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and allow the pressure to drop on it's own. Voila! You have beans ready to add to a recipe!!

A WORD ABOUT MILLET

















Millet is a small round grain that most Americans only see in bird seed. It is, in fact, one of the most nutritious grains in the world. It is a complete protein, and therefore is considered to be one of the least allergenic and most digestible grains available. It is often used in rescue situations as a first food for malnutritioned people because of it's so gentle on the digestion.

So why talk about millet in the context of beans? I'll tell you why! It has the same enzyme as Beano! I put a small handful of millet in my beans every time I cook them (about 1-1/2 to 2 tablespoons).

BASIC PINTO BEAN RECIPE

2 cups dry pinto beans, sorted and soaked.
Water - enough to cover, per cooking method above
1-2 tablespoons millet
1 teaspoon salt (leave out til end of cooking if using stove top method)
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon oregano
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon olive oil

Cook according to above method. When done, use in your favorite chili recipe, layered bean dip, or refried beans.

Note: If you're going to make one of those mock pinto bean desserts, such as Pinto Bean Pecan Pie or Pinto Bean Fudge, leave out all seasoning.

Another note: One thing I didn't know when I was a young bride is that pinto beans need to be refrigerated after cooking! Like other foods that are high in protein, such as meat, they spoil quickly. Unfortunately, I had to learn that the hard way.

Yet another note: Cook up a big batch of beans, then rinse, drain and put the left overs in the freezer in zip-top bags in 1-2 cup portions, according to your recipes. Defrost in refrigerator when ready for use.


NACHOS, AKA REFRIED BEANS

Try having a pot of these ready in a crockpot when your teenagers get home from school. They'll love it for an afternoon snack of nachos, and it's healthy!

One recipe of cooked pinto beans above
2 teaspoons taco seasoning mix
2 cups mild cheddar cheese, grated
Salt to taste
3 T butter or olive oil
1 cup salsa/picante sauce, mild
1 can chopped mild chilies
1 small can olives, chopped
2 green onions, chopped
1 pkg nacho chips

Working in batches, place beans and cooking liquid in a blender and blend on medium speed until smooth, stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides. Blend 1/2 of the beans at a time. When blending the second half of the beans, place the following in the blender along with the beans: taco seasoning mix, butter or oil, salsa or picante sauce, chopped green chilies, and 1 cup grated cheese. Blend until puree has a very smooth consistency. Place all the bean puree into a crockpot and mix very well. Taste and add 1 teaspoon of salt if needed. Sprinkle the remaining cup of grated cheese, the green onions, and the chopped olives on top of the bean mixture in the order given. Turn the crockpot on low and cover with lid. When the cheese has melted (about 15 minutes), serve with nacho chips and picante sauce, placed in separate bowls. Serves 8 people.

Powdered Milk

Powdered milk is an essential part of food storage; however, it has a relatively short shelf life.* It needs to be rotated regularly, which means using it all the time. Don't like the taste of powdered milk? I'm with you on that one! Here are some recipes for using powdered milk that are pretty darn good!

The Stake Cannery has lots of powdered milk right now at about half the price it was a couple of years ago.; the price is $40.20 for 25 pounds. Remember, if you don't want to start out with a full 25 pounds, you can buy just one can. The only catch is, if there are no cans of powdered milk available, you will need to can the whole bag and leave the remaining cans on the shelf. Not a bad option. :) Contact your ward cannery specialist to schedule a time to go to the cannery.


Cream of anything soup mix

2 cups instant nonfat dry milk
3/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup instant chicken bouillon
2 T dried onion flakes
1 t basil, crushed (optional)
1 t dried thyme, crushed (optional)
1/2 t pepper

Combine ingredients, mix well. Store in airtight container. Makes 3 cups of mix, which will make the equivalent of 9 cans of soup.

To use: combine 1/3 cup of mix with 1-1/4 cups cold water in a saucepan. Cook and stir until thickened. Add 1 T butter or olive oil if you wish. Add chopped, cooked meats and vegetables as desired. This soup is considered low in sodium.

NOTE: Making your own mixes is a great way to get your family to eat healthier. For instance, my sons are allergic to corn, so I spent a lot of time making my own cream sauces for casseroles when they were little, as I couldn't use prepared cream soup from a can. With this recipe, I can substitute tapioca starch for the corn starch and use kosher bouillon (most bouillon has corn syrup in it). You may also have noticed the above recipe has no salt added. That's because most bouillon has tons of salt in it already! If you use a salt-free variety, you will want to add some salt. :)


Sweetened Condensed Milk

3/4 cup non-instant powdered milk (1-1/3 cups if instant)
3/4 cup sugar (granulated)
1/2 cup hot tap water
2 T butter

Melt butter in hot water, place hot water in blender. With blender going, add sugar and powdered milk. blend until smooth. Makes about 14 ounces. It can be stored up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

NOTE: This recipe can be used in place of one 16 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk in any recipe and you won't know he difference.



Creamy hot or cold chocolate mix

9-1/3 cups instant nonfat powdered milk
3 cups sifted powdered sugar
1-3/4 cups unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
1-3/4 cups (or one 6-ounce jar) nondairy creamer

Mix all ingredients thoroughly in a large bowl. Sift mixture if there are little lumps of cocoa powder or powdered sugar. Store in an air tight container or gallon zip top bags at room temperature for three months. Stir before measuring. Makes about 11 cups of mix.

To Use: Mix 1/2 cup of mix to 1 cup hot water. Stir until dissolved. Add more water to taste. Chill if you want cold chocolate milk.

VARIATIONS:

• For mint hot chocolate, try adding a few finely crushed candy canes to the mix. They're all on clearance this time of year.
• For Mexican hot chocolate, add 2 T ground cinnamon.
  

Yogurt from powdered milk

Remember this post from last year? It's another great way to use powdered milk!

Link to "Making yogurt from powdered milk."



Powdered milk reconstitution

To substitute instant for non-instant powdered milk or vice versa, use the chart below. Also, you can substitute powdered milk in most recipes by adding powdered milk to the dry ingredients and adding the water amount to the wet ingredients.


Water--------Instant Dry Milk-------Non-instant dry milk
1/4 cup-------1 T---------------------3/4 T
1/3 cup-------1-1/2 T----------------1-1/4 T
1/2 cup-------2 T---------------------1-1/2 T
2/3 cup-------3 T---------------------2-1/2 T
1 cup---------1/4 cup-----------------3 T
1 pint---------1/2 cup-----------------1/3 cup
1 quart-------1 cup-------------------3/4 cup
1/2 gallon-----2 cups-----------------1-1/2 cups
1 gallon-------4 cups------------------3 cups


*Shelf life of powdered milk

40 degrees F -- up to 5 years
70 degrees F -- 2-1/2 years
90 degrees F -- 6 to 9 months

Granola Bars

Ingredients:
4-1/2 cup rolled oats
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2/3 cup softened butter
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 cups miniature semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup raisins (optional)
1 cup nuts (optional)

Directions: Preheat oven to 325 F. Lightly grease a 9 x 13 inch pan. In a large mixing bowl, combine the oats, flour, and baking soda. In a small mixing bowl, combine vanilla, butter, honey and brown sugar. Stir this mixture into dry ingredients. Stir in chocolate chips, raisins, nuts, etc. Lightly press mixture into the pan. Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool 10 minutes then cut into squares. Cool completely before removing or serving.

Play around with this recipe! Make it your own. Substitute whole wheat flour for the all purpose flour. Try adding ground flax seeds, pumpkin seeds, or sesame seeds. Try adding other kinds of dried fruit, such as chopped apricots, craisins, or dates. You can also add flaked coconut, butterscotch chips, or wheat germ. If you want to go even healthier, use canola oil instead of butter, and use sucanat instead of brown sugar.

Many thanks to Francine Palmer in the Hilltop Ward for finding this recipe on the internet, trying it out, loving it, and sharing it!!

Hawthorne Ward Enrichment Project

Hawthorne Ward recently had a great Enrichment project--they made food storage shelves! It was a great project and the sisters enjoyed working on them. Some sisters didn't know how to use a drill, they learned new skills and were better then they thought!!!

Contact Kim Peterson, the Hawthorne Relief Society president, if you would like more details on making these shelves.

Thanks for sharing, Hawthorne! If your ward or branch has a project you'd like to share with the rest of us, please let us know.

Quinoa

Quinoa is a grain-like food that comes from South America, where it has been eaten for thousands of years. It is actually the seed of a plant that is closely related to spinach and beets. It is very high in protein, and contains a balanced set of amino acids, and is a good source of fiber, magnesium, iron, and phosphorus. Quinoa is truly a super-food, gluten-free, and can be used in place of rice, or cooked as a cereal, or added to homemade bread. You can find Quinoa at most grocery stores, including health food stores.

It makes a great addition to your food storage.

Here is a recipe for a healthy, delicious Quinoa dish from epicurious.com

Black-Bean and Tomato Quinoa
2 teaspoons grated lime zest
2 Tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup quinoa
1 (14-15 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 medium tomatoes, diced
4 green onions, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Whisk together lime zest and juice, butter, oil, sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl.

The zest of a lime (or lemon) is just the very outside layer--the green part. Don't grate down into the white part. The white part of the peel is bitter.

Wash quinoa well in cold water in a bowl, draining in a sieve.

Cook quinoa in a medium pot of boiling salted water (1 Tablespoon salt for 2 quarts water), uncovered, until almost tender, about 10 minutes. Drain in sieve.



Set sieve in same pot with 1 inch of simmering water (water should not touch bottom of sieve).


Cover quinoa with a folded kitchen towel, then cover sieve with a lid (don't worry if lid doesn't fit tightly) and steam over medium heat until tender, fluffy, and dry, about 10 minutes. Remove pot from heat and remove lid. Let stand, still covered with towel, 5 minutes.


Add quinoa to dressing and toss until dressing is absorbed, then stir in remaining ingredients and salt and pepper to taste. This recipe serves 6.

Shelf Life of Food

The link in this post was provided by a sister in our stake.

Do you wonder how long you can eat stored canned goods? Here is some interesting information:

http://grandpappy.info/hshelff.htm

Personally, I'd have to be pretty desperate to eat 100 year old food, but it's good to know I could, just in case I ever get around to cleaning the food storage room! Be sure, no matter what their age, your food cans are not bulging, rusty, or damaged, and work to rotate your food for maximum freshness, taste, nutrition and appearance.

Bread in an Hour

Recently, Marjie Stott posted a recipe entitled "Bread in an Hour". I tried it today and it is delicious! It really took me just a little longer than an hour to produce two yummy loaves, mostly because I had to pull out and dust off my wheat grinder:

It smelled so good, we couldn't let it cool before slicing into it:

The bread is moist, very, very tasty, and super quick and simple to make.

You can buy gluten in many sizes, including No. 10 cans, and after a little research on the Internet, I discovered that rapid or quick rise yeast, available at the grocery store, is the same as the instant yeast called for in the recipe. -Chris Jones

Bread in an hour

My family loves this bread, and because I never have the foresight to plan our meals very far in advance, it is great that you can make it so quickly, and from food storage items. I adapted the recipe slightly from a book that my dear friend, Leslie Probert wrote, Emergency Food in a Nutshell. The lemon juice in the recipe acts as a dough enhancer which gives the bread a fine, light texture.

Whole Wheat Bread (in an hour, from your food storage supplies)
Makes 2 (8x4 inch) loaves
3 c. whole wheat flour
1/3 c. gluten flour, sifted
1 1/4 T. instant yeast
2 1/2 c. very warm tap water
1 T. salt
1/3 c. oil
1/3 c. honey or 1/2 c. sugar
1 1/4 T. bottled lemon juice
2 c. whole wheat flour
Mix together first three ingredients in mixer with a dough hook. Add water all at once and mix for 1 minute; cover and let rest for 10 minutes. Add salt, oil, honey or sugar and lemon juice and beat for 1 minute. Add last flour, 1 cup at a time, beating between each cup. Beat for about 6-10 minutes until dough pulls away from sides of the bowl. This makes a very soft dough.
Preheat oven for 1 minute to lukewarm and turn off. Turn dough onto oiled counter top; divide, shape into loaves, place in oiled bread pans. Let rise in warm oven for 10-15 minutes until dough reaches top of pan. Do not remove bread from oven; turn oven to 350 degrees F and bake for 30 minutes. Remove from pans and cool on racks.

Building Your Three Month Supply

The information in this post was provided by a sister in our stake

In the March 2009 Ensign, there is an excellent article about Home Storage (page 56). It suggests as a starting point of your home food storage: "Gradually build a small supply of food that is part of your normal, daily diet until it is suffiecient for three months."

Here is an easy plan to follow that directive:

What do you eat? What do you prepare for dinner?

1. Write down all the things you eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

2. Add those to days on a calendar for 3 weeks. Rotate those 3 weeks, 4 times and you've got your 3-month menu. (If you do not have enough ideas for 3 weeks, just eat the same things more often. If you have enough variety for 4 weeks, rotate it 3 times.)

3. List every item that is needed to make that meal happen.

4. Take inventory

5. Make a shopping list

6. Shop and buy a few extra items on your list each time you shop

Don't forget DRINKING WATER

You will be amazed how quickly you’ll have your cupboards full of what you’re going to eat.

After reaching your goal of a 3-month supply, BE SURE AND MAINTAIN IT by continuing to shop for items on your menu. What a neat feeling knowing you're shopping for weeks in advance and that you are prepared and self-reliant.

Bleach

There are many things that are helpful to add to your storage that aren't food. Bleach is an item that has a multitude of uses beyond making your whites whiter. It is inexpensive and effective. Just be careful not to splash!

1. As a drinking water disinfectant: In an emergency, bleach can be used to disintect drinking water, but remember: while bleach is a good disinfectants for the most common water contaminant (bacteria), studies have shown it is not effective against certain contaminants in water such as toxic chemicals, heavy metals, Cryptosporidia , and Giardia. Use 1/8 teaspoon unscented bleach (8 drops) per gallon of water.

2. But don't use bleach bottles for water storage: Many chlorine bleach bottles contain an anti-static agent which prevents accumulation of dust during storage and are therefore not recommended for water storage.

3. In the bathroom: Bleach as a bathroom disinfectant, mildew killer: Mix ½ bleach and ½ water to make a cleaning solution for cleaning tub, counters, plastic shower curtain liner, shower doors, around the toliet, and mildew on walls and other bathroom surfaces. Add one cup bleach to toilet bowl, let sit for 30 minutes, swish and flush.

4. In the garden: Undiluted bleach will kill weeds, moss, and algae in your yard.
5. In the kitchen: Mix ¼ bleach and ¾ water to use for kitchen cleaning solution. To make your porcelian sink shine, pour 2-4 cups bleach into sink, add hot water to fill, and let soak for 1/2 hour. Pour bleach down your garbage disposal, run hot water with the disposal turned on for a minute.

6. As a bouquet preserver: Add 1/4 teaspoon bleach to vase to make a mixture for your cut flower to make them last longer. Some recipes call for 1/4 teaspoon bleach and 1/2 teaspoon sugar.

7. As a glassware cleaner: Brighten drinking glasses by adding ¼ bleach in warm soapy water, let them soak for 15 minutes, then wash them as usual.

8. In your yard: Clean plastic lawn furniture by mixing ½ bleach and ½ water in a spraying bottle and spray them

down, rinse well.

9. When you're sick: Sore throat relief by mixing 2-3 drops of bleach with a 16 oz of warm water, then gargle until the glass is empty.

10. After camping: Deodorize coolers and thermos bottles by filling with bleach and water, let sit. Wash and rinse.

11· Steam clean your microwave: Clean your microwave oven with 1/4 cup bleach mixed with 3/4 cups water. Bring to boil and let sit for several minutes. Wipe down microwave.

12. Odor control: Disinfect your garbage cans by washing with a solution made from three-quarter cup Clorox bleach to one gallon water. Let stand for five minutes, then rinse clean.

13. Cutting boards: Clean butcher blocks and cutting boards to prevent bacteria from breeding. Wash the cutting board with hot, sudsy water and rinse clean. Then apply a solution of three tablespoons Clorox bleach per gallon of water in your kitchen sink. Soak for 30 minutes, then rinse clean.

14. In the garden: Make a weather cap. Cut off the bottom of an empty, clean Clorox bleach jug and place the jug over seedlings. Take the cap off during the day, and replace the cap at night. To anchor these hot caps, simply cut off the top of the handle, insert a sharp stick, and drive the stick into the ground.

15. For household projects: Make a paint bucket. Cut a hole in the side of an empty, clean Clorox bleach jug opposite the handle.

Five More Things You Might Learn From

Relying on Your Food Storage

This is a continuation of Jodi's post. What would your family learn do if you had to live on your storage for awhile? Challenge your family to try it for a period of time. You will quickly learn your weak spots and what you can work to improve.

6. “Using my food storage really helps stretch my budget dollars.”
It does! Using food items bought in bulk usually makes sense (and cents) economically, plus you’re eating at yesterday’s food prices. Also, by planning out your meals and using food storage, you’re going to get the biggest bang for your buck because you’ll avoid expensive impulse buys and stick with the necessities.

7. “Making things from scratch uses up a lot more of some ingredients than I realized” or “I’m lacking some of the ingredients that I need for doing a lot of baking, etc.”
Make sure that you have all of the ingredients needed, or know what you can use as a substitute (like 1 Tbsp ground flax seed + 3 Tbsp water = 1 egg), for the recipes you use. Also, make sure you have sufficient quantities stored. For instance, you’ll go through flour/wheat, yeast, and oil faster when baking a lot of bread.

8. “Our diet is a lot healthier and is more inline with the teachings of The Word of Wisdom when we use our food storage.”
You’ll be eating more of what you know is good for you, and a lot less of the fats, chemicals, and preservatives found in processed foods.

9. “It’s fun cooking and baking together as a family.”
Kids especially like to help punch down bread dough, or roll out and cut noodles or cinnamon rolls. Let them help and learn, and do some family bonding (plus they’re more likely to eat something that they helped make).

10. And last, but not least, you might learn --
“I’m very grateful for my food storage and to be able to feed my family, no matter what.” If ye are prepared ye shall not fear.

Making Yogurt From Powdered Milk
Thanks to Norma Olson from Lake Hills ward for this post

For this recipe you will need a food thermometer, acidephilus capsules (available in the vitamin section of your store), powdered milk, vanilla, plain yogurt, heating pad, two large towels,

and two quart jars. Scroll to the end of this post for a complete list of ingredients.

Mix up 6 cups of milk, using the proportions your milk requires. You can mix it up the night before and put it in the fridge to give it time to completely blend. Heat this milk to 180 degrees (make sure it is this hot so that your yogurt sets up properly), or to the point it starts to boil. If you heat it in the microwave, you don't have to worry about burning it.

Cool to less than 100 degrees (make sure it is this cool). You can speed the process by putting your container of milk in a sink of cold water.

When cool, break open two capsules of acidophiles and add to milk

Add 1/2 cup plain yogurt.

And 1 tablespoon vanilla and mix well.

Pour mixture into two 1 quart jars. If you have more yogurt mixture than fits into the jars, use it for bread or anything else you normally use milk for. Screw lid on.

Lay a large towel on your counter, put your heating pad on top of the towel.

Fold the towel over top of

heating pad and set the bottles on top. Wrap the towel over the top and secure.
Wrap the second towel around the whole thing and turn your heating pad to medium.
Let sit for 6 hours.

The yogurt will now be set and ready to eat. Place in refrigerator.
To add flavor, take two envelopes of gelatin and add to 1/4 cup or so of fruit juice and let it sit for 10 minutes to soften the gelatin. Heat 3/4 more cups of juice and add the softened gelatin, stirring well. Using a mixing bowl, add (while still hot) to the yogurt, mixing in well. Since the yogurt will be set, use a whisk to mix thoroughly. Add 8 Tablespoons sugar, or to taste. You can use Splenda. You can also add chopped fruit at this point. Return to fridge and let reset. Pour into individual bowls and let set. (Editor's note: If you could taste how good this is, you would be making it right now!)

Recipe

6 cups reconstituted powdered milk

2 acidophilus capsules

1/2 cup plain yogurt

1 tablespoon vanilla

to add flavor:

2 envelops gelatin

1 cup juice with or without chopped fruit