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Progress with The Challenge, Althea’s Thyme Chicken

10/26/2010

Hi everyone,

This week, take a minute and look back. How is your Three-Month Challenge coming? Have you filled out the survey with your visiting teachers? (It would be helpful to get them to me by this Sunday - but if you can’t, don’t give up! Just do it soon.) Have you figured out how much you need to feed your family for 3 months? My friend Elizabeth said the easiest thing for her was to break it down by meals- how much cereal, powdered milk, and pancake/syrup ingredients (or whatever your family prefers) would it take to eat for a week? Then multiply that by 12 to get your 3 months’ worth. Write it all down. A food storage notebook (or spreadsheet, if you like that better) is a great idea. Then tackle lunch. Then dinner. Her goal was one of those per day.

To find what you still need to buy, inventory next. I know that sounds awful, but it really isn’t that bad. I just keep picturing Joseph keeping track of everything in Potiphar’s house. Now there was a good steward. “The Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand.” (Gen. 39:3)   I’d like to qualify for that blessing, too! If you haven’t yet inventoried what you currently have, grab a notebook and start. The easiest way for me is to write categories (i.e. canned vegetables, box of cake mix, bag/can of flour, etc.) and just write tally marks- or count and write down the number if you’ve got a lot. After you inventory, sit down and compare what you need with what you have. Remember, getting your three months’ worth is the hardest part of the whole food storage plan. And you can do it! You all have visiting teachers who’d love to help where they can. We’re all here to help each other.

This recipe is from my 6-foot-3, skinny-as-a-rail Jamaican roommate in college. She only had time to cook once a week, so she’d make a big pot of either this or her chicken curry, then eat that all week. Yummy stuff. She never measured ingredients, so don’t worry about being accurate!

           Althea's "Oven Method" Chicken    4-8 servings

8   pieces bone-in chicken (2-3 lbs., or use 1 lb boneless)
2-3   tsp.  seasoned salt
1   small to medium   onion,   sliced into rings
3-4   stalks   green onions,   cut in 1/2" pieces (if you don’t have this, use a little bit bigger onion)
¼   c.   butter or margarine
2   sprigs   fresh thyme or 1 tsp. dried (if anyone local needs a plant, see me)
3-5    medium   tomatoes,   chopped

hot cooked rice

Put chicken in a bowl. Add seasoned salt, onion and green onion. Mix well; marinate at least 1/2 hour or overnight (or during the day). Remove onions and green onions; reserve. Brown chicken in a skillet, or bake chicken on a cookie sheet or in a baking dish at 450 for 1/2 hour; turn chicken pieces over and cook 15-30 minutes or til juices run clear and meat is no longer pink when slashed. Put onions and green onions in a large pot with the butter. Add thyme, chicken, and tomatoes. Pour in about 1 cup hot water. Cook on high til the water dries out (about 15 minutes- don't let chicken scorch!). Add one more cup water- cook until it's HALF dried out, then it's done. Serve over rice.

This is SOOOO good!

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How much does a year’s supply cost? and Best Drop Biscuits

10/26/2010

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Once the dough is mixed, if you use a greased/sprayed 1/4 measuring cup to scoop the dough, you'll get a more traditionally-shaped biscuit.

Yum. Tender and light on the inside, crunchy on the outside. This batch was made with 1 cup whole wheat flour.

How much will your year’s supply cost you? I just got an emergency supply store’s catalog in the mail; they advertised a year’s supply of food for ‘just’ $3649.95. For one person. Is it really that much money to get a year’s supply?

Adding up all the essentials, a month’s worth of food for one person is $16.23

                            A year’s worth for one person is $194.76

Figure in that you’re getting your year’s supply after building your three-month supply; that knocks it down to getting nine months’worth;

                                                            $146.07 per adult.

You CAN afford to get your home storage!

If you really want to spend $3649.95 plus tax, you could buy a year’s supply for not just one person, but for NINETEEN people. Yes, basic storage is different food than that ‘gourmet’ version, but here’s the counsel we’ve been given:          "We encourage members world-wide to prepare for adversity in life by having a basic supply of food and water and some money in savings.” “For longer-term needs….gradually build a supply of food that will last a long time and that you can use to stay alive” (fromAll is Safely Gathered In, First Presidency pamphlet)

Here is the cost breakdown:

Grains, 300 lbs- if you get just wheat and oats, at the cannery they cost between $5.80 and $8.15 for 25 lbs. depending on if you get white or red wheat, quick or regular oats. If you average this out, it will cost you $6.98 per person, per month. $83.70 per year’s worth.

Milk, 16 lbs is $1.40/lb at the cannery, which is $1.87 per month, $22.40 per year.

Sugar, 60 lbs is $ .56/lb there, $2.80 per month, $33.60 per year.

Oil, 10 qts –this isn’t sold at the cannery, but the price at Macey’s last week was $2.50 for 1 ½ quarts (48 oz.) At that price, after tax, it’s $1.43 per month, $17.17 per year. It’s only $14.38 if you buy it at Sam’s Club ($6.98 + tax for 5 qts.)

Salt, 8 lbs- 4# box at Costco or Sam’s Club is a dollar; $ .16 per month, $2 per year.

Legumes, 60 lbs– the cannery sells black beans, pinto, and white, from $14.10 to $16.30 for 25 lbs. Averaging the prices, it’s $2.99 a month, $35.92 per year.

Water, 14/gal/person-   You can store this for free by using 2- and 3- liter pop bottles, or juice containers (not milk jugs- they break down). Or use the 5-gallons square jugs or big blue barrels; they’ll run you about $1 per gallon of storage.

When you’re done storing these items, you might decide to add a few ‘gourmet’ items- but that’s just extra stuff.

Notice that the costs were just for food, not containers to store them in. Most of my storage containers cost nothing. You CAN get buckets for free, with a little effort- most bakeries give them away; all their frostings and fillings come in those buckets. Plan on washing them at home. There are two main sizes; 5 gallon and 2 1/2 gallon. I keep packages of dried fruit in the smaller buckets, also cornmeal or other things that I don’t use as much. They are a great size for a pantry, too. Some of the buckets have gaskets, some don’t. The ones that don’t seal well are still good for storing sugar.

If you want all your wheat, powdered milk, sugar, and legumes in #10 cans from the cannery, it will cost you $85.83 more to get a full year’s worth, $65 to do 9 months' worth.

Here’s the year’s worth breakdown and quantities:    51 cans of wheat $137.80, 11 cans of beans $48.95, 10 cans of sugar $46.50, 4 cans of powdered milk $28.20.

I don’t can my wheat, sugar, or beans because we go through large quantities; one batch of bread would use a whole can. Pretty silly storage for me. Besides, it’s easier for me to find space for 10 buckets than 60 #10 cans; they hold about the same amount of food.

Best Drop Biscuits
adapted from Cooks Country
Makes 12

1 cube butter, melted and cooled a few minutes- set aside 1 Tbsp. of this.
1 cup cold buttermilk or sour milk (1-2 Tbsp. vinegar in 1 cup regular milk)
2 c. flour
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt (3/4 tsp. if you used unsalted butter)
1 tsp. sugar

Heat oven to 475 degrees, no, that’s not a typo. Mix together the butter (except reserved) and buttermilk; stir until the butter forms clumps. (This is a faster way of getting the same results as ‘cutting in’ the butter.) Mix all the dry ingredients together, then pour in buttermilk mixture. Stir until just mixed in and dough pulls from side of bowl.   Drop onto greased or parchment-lined cookie sheet. A greased ¼ c. measuring cup makes the perfect size scoop.    Brush with reserved butter. Bake until tops are crisp and golden, about 12-14 minutes.    Serve warm. These also reheat well the next day (10 minutes at 300 degrees) and freeze well, too.

You can use powdered milk in this: mix in 3 Tbsp dry milk powder when you’re stirring together the dry ingredients. Use ice water and 1-2 Tbsp. vinegar to make 1 cup, stir with the melted butter.

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Year's Supply quantities, Roast Chicken Dinner with rice, and apple crisp

10/26/2010

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Hi,

Remember this?

"We encourage members world-wide to prepare for adversity in life by having a basic supply of food and water and some money in savings.” “For longer-term needs….gradually build a supply of food that will last a long time and that you can use to stay alive” (from All is Safely Gathered In, First Presidency pamphlet)

Here is what a basic supply of food includes: it will provide about 2200 calories a day, which means you’ll probably get 1800 and your husband will get 2600. This is less than most people are used to, especially if you're suddenly living a 'more active' lifestyle, but it will keep you alive!

300 lbs grains- includes Wheat, Rice, Rolled Oats, Dried Corn, Popcorn, Flour, Pasta Products, Dried Potatoes. Some lists say 400 lbs per person, but the current Church site says 300. Take your pick, according to what you can handle. Storage-wise or hunger-wise; that extra 100 lbs provides an extra 435 calories per day.

16 lbs. powdered milk- this is just enough for cooking, about ¾ cup per day. You can store instant, regular powder, and canned milk. It takes about 5 (12-oz) cans to equal one pound of powdered milk

60 lbs sugar- this includes white sugar, brown sugar, powdered sugar, honey, molasses, jam/jelly, corn syrup, fruit drink mix, gelatin. If you have honey that crystallizes, set the bottle in the sun on a warm day, or put it in a pan of water on lowest heat overnight. It will become liquid again. You will want more sugar than 60 lbs. if you can your own fruit.

10 quarts cooking oil (2 ½ gallons)- yes, YOU NEED FAT. Your brain is made mostly of fat. Guess what happens if you don’t get any fat in your diet? Plus, it’s a lot of calories for very little storage space. The darker & cooler you keep it, the longer it lasts. Fats include shortening, cooking oil, butter/margarine, mayonnaise, peanut butter.

8 lbs salt per person- this is the cheapest of them all!   In addition to the round canisters, you can buy salt in 4-lb rectangular boxes; these stack together more efficiently. At Sams’ Club, these boxes are just under $1. Woo-hoo! Two bucks and you have your personal salt for the year!

60 lbs. legumes, dried- includes soybeans, pinto beans, white beans, kidney beans, lima beans, anything that ends with ‘bean’ (unless it begins with ‘jelly’), black-eyed peas, split peas, and lentils. These are a great, inexpensive source of protein. Store the same as wheat- dry, clean, dark and cool if possible. It takes 4 ½ (15 oz) cans to equal one pound of dry beans.

14 gallons water per person. This is just 2 weeks’ supply, for drinking and a tiny bit for washing; the minimum our church leaders have counseled. You may also want a way to purify water for longer-term use. To purify, you can boil water for 2 minutes, or use chlorine bleach (plain only, not scented!) If the water is clear, use ½ tsp. per 5 gallons of water. If the water is cloudy, use double; 1 tsp. per 5 gallons of water.

Children do not need a full adult’s portion. For them, figure age 3 and under= 50%, ages 4-6= 70%, ages 7-10= 90%, ages 11 and up= 100%.

Obviously, kids' ages are always changing, so when I calculate what to have on hand ( I inventory every Conference), I project out six months to a year. For instance, if someone is 6 years old, I count that child as 7 years. That way I'm not always slightly behind when it's time to replenish.

* * * * *

Recipes today are for a whole meal….

Roast Chicken               From Living On a Dime, Jan 2010.
Here is a very basic but yummy recipe. You can also put this in a crock pot to slow cook all day.

1 (3 lb.) whole chicken
Salt and pepper to taste
1 Tsp. onion powder
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 stalk celery, leaves removed

Season the whole chicken inside and out with salt, pepper and onion powder. Place breast side down in pan placing margarine and celery into cavity. Bake at 350° for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until internal temperature is 180° (82° C). You can baste with juices or melted margarine once or twice. Remove from oven and cover with foil for 30 minutes and let it rest before cutting.

You can easily adapt this recipe to your own likes and dislikes. For example, you might use garlic powder instead of the onion powder, you could slide slices of lemons or garlic cloves or even onion slices under the skin. Try other seasonings, too.

The main thing that makes this recipe great is cooking it breast side down, which makes it extra juicy.

Cheesy Peas and Rice

2 1/4 cups rice, cooked
1 (10 oz.) pkg. frozen peas, thawed
1 (6 oz.) can of mushrooms, drained
6 oz. Velveeta, cubed*

Combine all the ingredients in a greased 1 1/2 qt. baking dish. Cover and bake at 350° for 20 minutes.

I didn't used to buy Velveeta because it was more expensive than other cheeses, but since it is the same price or less than cheddar now, I buy it more often.

Apple Butterscotch Crisp

This recipe is good served with ice cream or, for something different, try a slice of cheese or a dollop of sour cream.

5 large (7 small) apples, sliced and peeled
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 cup brown sugar, depending on your apples
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup quick cooking oatmeal
1/2 cup butter or margarine, cold
1 pkg. (3.5 oz.) cook and serve
           butterscotch pudding

Place apples in a greased 9x13 pan. Mix everything else in a bowl, cutting in* the butter until it resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over apples. Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes or until apples are tender.

You can leave out the butterscotch pudding; it won't throw off the recipe. It will still be delicious.

*Whenever a recipe says to cut in something, that means to take a pastry cutter and mix the butter, margarine or shortening in with the dry ingredients until the mix gets crumbly looking. (I just use my fingers. It is easier for me to wash them than a pastry cutter.)

Roast Chicken Leftovers:

Chicken Spaghetti Bake- Make your favorite spaghetti, mixing noodles and sauce. Instead of adding hamburger to it or leaving it without meat, add some cubed leftover chicken. Put it in a 9x13 greased pan sprinkle with mozzarella cheese and grated Parmesan cheese. Bake at 350° until heated through and cheese is melted.

Make Chicken Soup with leftovers- see the recipe for turkey soup. Use ¼ the amount of water and spices for chicken because it’s so much smaller!

Leftover Leftovers- If you have any of this soup left, thicken it with a little cornstarch or flour mixed in water. Make a batch of biscuits or use any leftover biscuits you have and pour the thickened soup (now like gravy) over it.

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Invest in food and clothes; homemade granola and "Honey Clusters of Oats"

10/4/2010

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The recipe below is one of the main reasons I buy cornflakes anymore. It’s my mom’s homemade granola. Very easy, but very dense food. So I added the box of cornflakes to it, and voila! Now it’s homemade “honey clusters of oats”! It makes for a lighter-weight breakfast.

Here’s my thought on food storage this week: There may be huge disasters where we need food storage, but we all have reasons for food storage that don’t involve major disasters- all it takes is the breadwinner getting hurt, losing a job, having a major hospital bill, all kinds of things. Something happens to everyone, sometime. Here’s a question to ask yourself. Is your food storage a higher priority than owning a TV or a second car? “Wait,” you say, “WHAT?” Read on:

A really excellent talk is “Prepare for the Days of Tribulation” by President Ezra Taft Benson. Here’s a little piece from it: “Let every head of every household see to it that he has on hand enough food and clothing, and, where possible, fuel also, for at least a year ahead. You of small means put your money in foodstuffs and wearing apparel, not in stocks and bonds; you of large means will think you know how to care for yourselves, but I may venture to suggest that you do not speculate. Let every head of every household aim to own his own home, free from mortgage. Let every man who has a garden spot, garden it; every man who owns a farm, farm it.” (President J. Reuben Clark, Jr., in Conference Report, Apr. 1937, p. 26.)

You do not need to go into debt, may I add, to obtain a year’s supply. Plan to build up your food supply just as you would a savings account. Save a little for storage each pay-check. Make your storage a part of your budget. Store seeds and have sufficient tools on hand to do the job. If you are saving and planning for a second car or a TV set or some item which merely adds to your comfort or pleasure, you may need to change your priorities. We urge you to do this prayerfully and do it now.” (I highly recommend spending the 5-10 minutes to read the whole talk. This is also the time where we find his famous quote about food storage being maybe like Noah’s ark for us.)

Is your food storage a higher priority than owning a TV or a second car?!

And now the recipe:

Homemade Granola and “Honey Clusters of Oats”

10 cups quick oats (rolled oats are OK too, just crunchier when baked)      P.S.- a full #10 can is about 13 cups- take out 3 cups and the rest is the right amount.
1 (7 oz.) bag of coconut (leave out if you don’t like coconut)
1 (18 oz) box of cornflakes
1-2 c. chopped nuts, optional
1 cup honey, corn syrup, or maple syrup (pancake syrup)
1 cup brown sugar
¼ c. water
1-2 cups raisins, dates, or other dried fruit

In a really big bowl, stir together oats, coconut, cornflakes, and nuts. Combine honey, brown sugar, and water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring just until the sugar is all dissolved. Pour over the stuff in the big bowl, stirring well to coat. Spread about ½” deep onto ungreased cookie sheets, then bake at 300 degrees until lightly browned (I think about 30 minutes) You can put 2 trays in at once, on different racks. When cool, stir in 1-2 cups dried fruit bits if you want to.   Store in an airtight container (like your now-empty #10 can, or an ice cream bucket). It will keep for several months, especially if in a cool and dark area. It won’t ever “spoil” unless it gets wet. The only problem I’ve had is for it to get stale after a long time. It’s still nutritious, though. The nuts could go rancid too, but I’ve never kept it long enough for that.

-Rhonda

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Two Cans of Corn, Apple Cider Syrup

9/25/2010

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This week's recipe is a simple lower-sugar syrup we love at our house. Try it as
written, then reduce sugar further if you like. We often make it with only 1/4 c. sugar.
For comparison, regular syrup has 2 cups of sugar to 1 cup of liquid.

Did you read last month's Ensign article about food storage? It was called "Two
Cans of Corn: Home Storage for Newlyweds". (Or for anyone else just starting their
food storage.) Remember Julie Beck's Relief Society address from a couple years ago,
where she talked about the Relief Society working toward being the best at righteous
living? The three categories she mentioned were Faith, Family, and Relief. I thought it
was interesting that when she gave details for each category, food storage was grouped
under "Faith".   Building your food storage is exercising faith in the Lord's
advice to us. If you're overwhelmed, start with the advice in that Ensign article. It's
simple and easy to begin. I know I've been blessed as we've built our food storage-
blessed to have enough in those money-tight times, blessed to know how to cook with it,
blessed with a feeling of added security.

Apple Cider Syrup

1/2 c. sugar                           1 c. apple cider or apple juice
1 Tbsp. cornstarch                1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/2 tsp. cinnamon                 2 Tbsp. butter

Mix together the sugar, cornstarch, and cinnamon. Stir in apple and lemon juices. Cook
and stir until thickened and bubbly, then cook 2 minutes more. Remove from heat and stir
in butter until melted. Makes about 1 1/3 cups. This is so delicious! If it gets too
thick, stir in a little more juice. If you want it thinner next time, use 2 tsp.
cornstarch instead of 1 Tbsp.

We've made all kinds of flavors with this recipe- whatever kind of juice I have works
well, though I often leave out the lemon juice, cinnamon, and butter. We also make it
into maple syrup- use water in place of apple juice, 1/4- 1/2 c. sugar (brown sugar is
yummy), and 1/2 tsp. maple flavor (a capful). Try making it maple, then stirring in
chopped pecans and butter.... aren't you hungry now?

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Forward>>

Progress with The Challenge, Althea’s Thyme Chicken

How much does a year’s supply cost? and Best Drop Biscuits

Year's Supply quantities, Roast Chicken Dinner with rice, and apple crisp

Invest in food and clothes; homemade granola and "Honey Clusters of Oats"

Two Cans of Corn, Apple Cider Syrup

Need a Search bar?
One day I may upgrade my website-- but until then, use your web browser search bar. Type in my web address and what you're looking for, like this--
www.theprovidenthomemaker.com pumpkin -- and you should get results.

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Progress with The Challenge, Althea’s Thyme Chicken

How much does a year’s supply cost? and Best Drop Biscuits

Year's Supply quantities, Roast Chicken Dinner with rice, and apple crisp

Invest in food and clothes; homemade granola and "Honey Clusters of Oats"

Two Cans of Corn, Apple Cider Syrup

Need a Search bar?One day I may upgrade my website-- but until then, use your web browser search bar. Type in my web address and what you're looking for, like this-- www.theprovidenthomemaker.com pumpkin -- and you should get results.Author

Archives

Categories

Need a Search bar?
One day I may upgrade my website-- but until then, use your web browser search bar. Type in my web address and what you're looking for, like this--
www.theprovidenthomemaker.com pumpkin -- and you should get results.

Author