painting update

here is a fast update on my nest painting... it's actually a lot further along though.
and i am already starting to look forward to the finish on this and starting the next one (6 seems to be my normal series, with the crows being an anomaly right now -- however i plan on doing series of 13 for calenders in the future)







to get back to discussing the stocking of a pantry, i would like some feedback from you folks, if this is at all helpful to you.
in the meantime, once you have a list of meals, also make a list (separate paper) of the things you use with them, such as ketchup, coffee, other condiments, you can even list things like napkins.

*** now i have found that almost everything goes on sale at least once a year, with the possible exception of the 'grain free' cat food that we feed the cats....... for you to save the most amount of money, you need to be able to stock enough to last you from one of the 'best price' sales to the next.....
for some things that is yearly but most stuff that is about six months. take butter, we tend to see it on sale here in may, and then again november. it's under 2.00 a pound on sale- so i tend to get at least enough to last me to the next big sale......and throw it in the freezer.  if you don't have a big freezer this won't work for you, but there is also a way to CAN butter..... just a thought***

when i decided to stock the pantry for a full year, i made a LOT of lists.
for a two week pantry it isn't too bad, the list of meals, then double or triple the ingredients, and pick them up. plan for the sale items that week for your meals
also keep buying water,....
i pick up things like batteries, periodically when there are sales, ditto on the light bulbs
i hit a great sale in september on pasta, that normally is about 1.50 a pound, i got it for 67cents a pound..i bought 15 pounds and i put it in mason jars. we eat about a pound for a supper and a lunch for two......that is going to last a bit added to what i already have on the shelf

i would also suggest strongly learning to can if you don't already.
now canning most fruits and tomato products involves a boiling water bath.. i used to use a 'canner' for this, now i use my big stockpot with the pasta insert! works great.

i would also like to suggest that you start either batch cooking, or double/triple your recipes. Storing the extra in the freezer.
when i worked outside the home, i cooked one saturday a month, we went food shopping friday night, and i cooked and put away raw meats in the freezer on saturday. now what works for me is batch cooking.
chicken parts on sale, i get 40 pounds and cook some into recipes and freeze some in marinades....
of course normally once a year i get 120# of boneless skinless chicken breasts (when they are under 1.80 a pound) and i slice them, cube them, bread some (link to my 'bread coating for chicken, pork, etc), and freeze some in marinades.

now a word about where to store everything..... i have a very small house, without closets, and the kitchen is a nightmare-(it's a glorified hallway with four doorways, all of which are essential, very little wall space, too narrow for an real island, and NO COUNTER TOPS- and due to a new faucet, terrible water pressure) ... we also have a damp basement with a partial dirt floor .... the joys of an old house,.... so storing the pantry is in several locations.... even in the damp basement, which doubles as night and winter quarters for the poultry, and a cold cellar for the potatoes. (mom was right, there always is a silver lining if you look hard enough)

for me the challenge to be ready for emergencies and to find new and better ways to save money is not only compelling but it's bailed us out on more then one occasion, so i wish that for you as well.
during hurricane sandy we were just slightly uncomfortable. the biggest thing was no running water.
during times of financial difficulty this made the difference in our surviving or starving.
and during better times, we were able to save some money towards retirement.

now if you want me to continue this as a sort of formal series here, please let me know
for us ..... living this way is a way of life.
without even thinking about it, i get ready for each season.
i even pick the seeds for the garden by what keeps the best for drying, freezing and canning.
(which can be a whole other series)

in the meantime
my turkey stock for the other day is in the freezer, part of the ongoing pantry.

dehydrating 102- & pantry cooking- PHOTO heavy

to continue from yesterday
(for rho)
today i am going to show you how to use some dried veggies in a meal.
i took pictures and posted them of the tortilla potpie bowls the other day (scroll down) if you would like to make a pot pie using tortillas (which we do as it's fast)...and that is a whole wheat tortilla in the photo.

melted butter with olive oil added

1/8 cup flour added

now as to filling, i tend to leftovers for potpies, and normally i start with a roux, which is a mix of equal parts flour and a fat .....
for pot pies i use a mix of butter and olive oil for the fat.

starting to whisk flour in

beef stock added

so lets say we start with a tablespoon of butter and one of olive oil, melt the butter in a heavy bottom pot, then add the oil and let that heat a bit
then add about 1/8 cup of flour, you can use all purpose
 whisk that together
i used beef stock in this, about 1-1/2 cups

finished sauce

you can use whatever you have on hand. you can even use bullion reconstituted if you absolutely have to. (ignore my crappy non counter, i am still trying to get counters in the kitchen!)

whisk it while heating until it gets thicker and smooth.
it should be lump free doing it this way
btw, this will also make gravy if you need to, the very same method, but use the pan drippings after you separate out the fats

dried onions in mason jar

dried veggies soaking

 meanwhile i took some dried veggies and started to soak them in hot water as we aren't going to do a true soup or stew. i just grabbed whatever i had close on the shelf, so it ended up as diced eggplant, vidalia onions, and some diced sweet peppers ( i need to dry another batch of carrots it looks like)

chicken sauteing in pan

leftover potatoes and onions to add

i diced up some chicken breast i had.....and simmered that with the veggies and their dehydrating water- i also had some leftover potatoes and onions from the other night....yup they went in there also




added some fresh ground pepper, and a dash of paprika and garlic powder,  a bit of tomato sauce i had in the fridge (you can use a cube you froze from something else)

dried veggies added to pan

sauce added and stirred

then added the roux thickened beef stock to it all and dumped it into the tortilla bowl..








i briefly softened another tortilla(not soft enough from the look of the photo) and put that on top, then into the oven at 350 for about 20 to 30 minutes. (i like the top a bit crispy)

add paprika & tomato sauce

add to the tortilla bowl

it is pantry and leftover cooking at it's finest!....
now i like to keep a lot of whole wheat tortillas on hand for my new found love ....enchiladas!
which i make out of leftovers, and add chopped vegetables to.
so these tortilla pot pies are sort of an extension of that idea, and while the enchiladas freeze well, i've never tried to freeze these.

i know that the photos are not the best however this is a pretty good way to use up leftovers, or make overs.... i use leftover everything (including leftover gravy when i made the turkey leftover pot pie)

out of the oven!- smells great!

cover with another tortilla and bake

 now i hope this helps you, because it does help to have another way to make leftovers, and to use pantry items.


by drying your own veggies and fruits, when are in season, you save a lot of money, and by keeping a pantry full of food, you know that in case of emergency you have a safety margin for yourself and your family.

here again are some sites for dehydration
http://www.clemson.edu/sustainableag/IP147_food_dehydration.pdf

http://msuextension.org/publications/HomeHealthandFamily/MT200907HR.pdf

http://nchfp.uga.edu/

i hope this helps you....
please let me know in the comments

where in we discuss dehydration of vegetables 101

*** edited to add some links to official dehydration sites at the bottom of this post

as some of you folks may remember, i keep a very large pantry.
i try to make sure that we have enough of everything to last us, in case of emergencies

storms
power outages
shortages (remember the rice shortage?)
financial set backs
illness

i try to keep three methods of food storage.

frozen
canned
dried

my friend rho asked me to do a post about dehydrated foods....
so i am going to start talking about that today (which is thursday for you folks)

first off i want to tell you, drying food at home is not hard,
with some minimal care,
it lasts a very long time, properly stored,
and it's wonderful for emergencies.
or because you just can't bear to scrub, peel and slice the carrots for the stew tonight cause you are so very tired from working all day

first off there are plenty of books on this (we'll get to the book list in another post- if i forget, you remind me)

so we'll start with the real basics, the dehydrator
i have several (yes i know)
i have two excaliburs (one 9 tray and one 5) and an american harvest with something like 11 trays.
i like all of them
and sometimes ALL of them are in use at the same time!

some of the things i dry the most?
carrots
broccoli
sweet peppers
tomatoes
ONIONS (you haven't lived until you've eaten dried vidalia onions-dry them OUTSIDE-you will thank me for that one)
cabbage
herbs
oranges
lemons
limes
grapefruit
zucchini
eggplant
peaches
sliced mushrooms
asparagus
celery


(and occasionally potatoes but you have to really watch potatoes, they mold FAST)

so let's start with something very easy.
onions! in spite of the smell, and i am very very serious about drying them OUTSIDE of your living area, they will get to you if not........
onions are great to dry
i sliced them up in the food processor one year and it was even easier to do
i like them about 1/8 thick
spread them in one layer on the trays, and depending on weather, i start at about 5 hours, then flip them until they are almost crisp. these things are fantastic as a snack btw.

now mine changed color a bit but that was ok too
we also grind them for onion powder as we need them

when they are totally dry, i put them in mason jars with a 'dry can' seal i use a seal-a-meal jar sealer and a used but washed canning lid and ring
label (although onions are pretty obvious.....citrus not so much so)
i think 50 # of vidalia dried down to 4 quarts or maybe 5, i wasn't able to do them this year or last so i can't quite remember how many, but i know that i STILL have them on the shelf
keep them stored in a cool, dark, DRY place (in moist climates, either use them food grade 'stay dry' packs or maybe try the heat sealing mylar bags or both--)

i will tell you also that i hooked more people on drying food by letting them have some of my dried vidalia onions....they are like fantastic chips- seriously, they are better then onion flavored potato chips!

i basically dry citrus the same way, just sliced and dried......USE ORGANIC citrus if you are going to do that ok? and remember to label the jars...... next time lemons and limes are on sale.... pick them up and dry them
i dry these guys crisp, and i do use them often
the oranges in either blueberry orange compot or my cranberry orange sauce at the holidays
sometimes i grind up the citrus slices and throw that into cookie dough......

now some things need to be blanched briefly before drying, i usually blanch broccoli and then slice it thin and dry it- not so much things like peppers or tomatoes, or zucchinis etc.

i cut the veggies uniformly, and i try to cut them into pieces that are pretty easy to deal with, i like to dice peppers and eggplant
i slice carrots and zucchini into 1/8'' slices
i grow special tomatoes sometimes for sun drying but i dry them in the dehydrator (they sometimes turn very dark but that's ok, i don't use sulfur or anything to preserve color)


use? well....... i mostly use them in soups or stews (either soak in liquid prior or just throw them in about 1/2 or so before you're going to eat )
and in sauces- also in dips with sour cream
i like the broccoli in cream of broccoli cheddar soup

but i am going to tell you a HUGE secret.......shhhhhh don't tell bernie, and DO NOT TELL YOUR KIDS
i grind my dried veggies up and put them into things like stuffing for poultry, or into a casserole sauce,
or into meatballs, meatloaf...... hahahaha
what they don't know is wonderful for them

ok, so that's your intro to dehydrating veggies and fruits
i know it's basic but really it's not hard

ask me questions in the comments and we will continue this for a few days if you find it interesting and useful...

http://www.clemson.edu/sustainableag/IP147_food_dehydration.pdf

http://msuextension.org/publications/HomeHealthandFamily/MT200907HR.pdf

http://nchfp.uga.edu/