Testimonials...

Diana said...
"What can I say, other than ILOVE IT, I LOVE IT, I LOVE IT!!!! I can't imagine going back to grocery shopping the way I used to--the time and money I save by being a member to My Food Storage Deals is unbelievable--the $8 a month is pocket change compared to what I save EACH time I go to the store! For example, I just got back from Walmart and this is what I got for ONLY $123.58
(see picture):
8 1/2 lbs. of Tyson Chicken Breast, 6 lbs. petite sirloin steak, 6 Ball Park Angus Franks, 5 loaves of Granny Sycamore Bread, 5 dozen eggs, 2 cantaloupes, 11 bags of marshmallows, 4 boxes of hard taco shells, 4 boxes of Capri Suns, 8 Jell-O puddings, 2 lbs. carrots, bananas, 2 cantaloupes, 14lb. seedless watermelon, grapes, 2 gallons of milk, 3 boxes of graham crackers, 2 boxes of Ritz crackers, 4 boxes of wheat thins, 6 lbs. of frozen hashbrowns, 4 lbs. sour cream, 3 cream cheeses, 20 string cheeses, onions, 4 packages tortillas, and cilantro. WOW!! Need I say more???

Bowman Family...
"We have been using your service for three weeks now and love it. Just wanted to say thanks. Our monthly expenses are down and our food storage is up. We did our shopping for this week and only spent $100.00 but came home with more food than we can eat. We have been telling all our friends and family about your service. Here is a picture of our 'loot'." (They matched all of the 'red' deals at Walmart)

"I spent $128.76 and saved (according to their fresh value calculations $248.27 (General Mills Savings) and $29.30 in bonus buy savings…Definitely paid for my membership already! Thank you!** PS – I also went to Smiths and saved over 50% there too!" J

"About 10 years ago while my children were still young, I subscribed to a simlar service which cost me $30 a month and it was sooo worth it. I had the best food storage on my shelves. Now the kids are gone, but I want the security of having a good food storage again. Thank you so much for all of your efforts. I am totally floored by the exceptionally reasonable monthly fee. We will be sharing this web site with the women in our neighborhood next month. I'm sure there will be a lot of excitement over this great information. "

"Can I just say I spent over $1000 in the grocery stores last week? Before you fall over – it is ok – I saved over 50% on almost everything I bought and we have been planning to put our tax rebate to good use building up our food storage – and I would take that over a brand new plasma tv any day! So I love your service and I am telling friends – you are the most reasonably priced service out there."

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Long Term Food Storage Totals

When deciding how much you need of each item for a year supply, this can be a confusing process. The following is a commonly asked question that was sent to my email:

QUESTION: Please help me solve a problem. Your 1 year supply of dry milk is _32 lbs_ for 2 people. Other food storage calculators say a 1 year supply is _120 lbs_ for 2 people. Am I crazy or is there a problem??

ANSWER: This is a common problem. The church has changed their suggested amounts several times in the past 10 years or so. They used to recommend 75 lbs. per person and the last forms I have seen say that it went down to 20 lbs. per person in 2002. Sixteen pounds of the 20lbs. is supposed to be dry milk and the other 4 lbs. can be evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, etc. I have heard the church has dropped the recommendations to lower amounts to help people feel like getting their food storage is doable. All totals are BARE MINIMUMS and where possible should be increased depending on each families budget and the amount of storage space you have. I have noticed that the church has pulled back as far as how much they talk about food storage. Their website is VERY basic and has minimal information now on food storage, emergecny preparedness. Maybe they think they have warned us enough over the past 120 years??

I would recommend if you can afford to buy more, to definitely buy MUCH more than the recommendations given. You also need to adjust the totals to your family's specific needs. If your family drinks a lot of powdered milk, has small children, stores a lot of cereal in your storage, etc., then buy MUCH more than the recommendation--same with all other grains, legumes, etc. Start with the basic amounts and then as your finances allow, buy more when necessary.

If you go to my website (http://www.myfoodstoragedeals.com/) and go to the FREE DOWNLOADS tab then you can print off the 'One Year Supply Guide'. This form is a basic form that tells the shelf life of each item and an estimated amount of each item for a year supply.


***The least expensive place to buy dry milk is the LDS Cannery. Buy it in the 25lb. bags and store in a cool, dry place--also, in a tote that can be kept away from rodents and moisture. The price just recently dropped to $44.45 for a 25lb. bag.

Here are some food storage calculator websites that can also help you know totals as well:

http://standeyo.com/News_Files/Food/bl.calculator.html
http://www.thefoodguys.com/foodcalc.html
http://lds.about.com/library/bl/faq/blcalculator.htm
http://www.containerandpackaging.com/food_storage_calculator.asp

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Our Incredible Homemade Marinara Sauce--once you try it, you will never go back to Prego!

Now, I'm not dogging on Prego Spaghetti sauce, but once you start making your own sauce--you will NEVER go back to sauce in a jar. I have several bottles in my food storage, but those are only for emergencies :) Nothing gets better than a big vat of spaghetti sauce cooking on your stove--the smell is to die for! It really isn't hard once you give it a try. I make up a HUGE batch every 3 months or so and then freeze the sauce in ziploc bags or Tupperware containers. Having homemade spaghetti sauce makes dinners a breeze. I love to make lasagna, spaghetti, meatball sandwiches, chicken parmesan, manicotti, etc. with my sauce. You can make homemade french bread (recipe in past post) and just dip in the sauce as an appetizer--it is awesome! So....here is how you can make your own gourmet spaghetti sauce in your own home (this beats Olive Gardens any day!!)

How do I know when I need to make a batch of my sauce??....I cleaned out my freezer and found a MASSIVE amount of Italian Sausage. When it goes on sale, I stock up! (That's probably not a surprise to anyone) By the way, Tennessee Pride and Jimmy Dean sausage is the ONLY brand of sausage I will buy. My garden is also bursting with peppers, zucchini, tomatoes & other vegetables. Throw them in your sauce! This recipe is great because it uses several vegetables and your family will never know--it's a great way to sneak vegetables into your children's diets.

Marinara Red Sauce (great for freezing!)

Makes 18 qts. (can 1/2 recipe for a smaller batch)
4 lb. ground Italian sausage (spicy is optional)
1 8 oz. pkg. mushrooms, sliced
3 large fresh garlic cloves
1/3 c. salt (or more depending on taste)
1 T. pepper
Red pepper flakes (optional—to taste)
1 1/2 lb. mini carrots finely blended/diced

1 bunch celery finely blended/diced
3 medium white onions/diced

Other vegetables-optional (zucchini, peppers, etc.)
1 tbsp. olive oil
5 T. basil (Add at the end of the cooking process to retain it's flavor)
2 T. sugar
30 cans of stewed tomatoes (15oz.), with juices (whole) or frozen/fresh tomatoes from your garden-if they are fresh, add a little more sugar and salt to balance the acidic flavor. If you use only fresh tomatoes you will need anywhere from 40-50 tomatoes (depending on their size).
4 cans tomato paste for thickening

Use food processor to dice carrots, onions and celery (and any other vegetables) into small chunks. Sauté all above ingredients (carrots, onions, celery, sausage, mushrooms & spices) in large saucepan with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add tomatoes including juice from can. For a smooth red sauce, puree all tomatoes and ingredients together in blender (or use blender/wand-- they work great!). Or, for meatier sauce, puree tomatoes only, and leave other ingredients in chunks. Allow sauce to simmer 2-5 hours on low with out the lid, sauce should reduce about one third. Add basil right before serving. Taste to make sure sauce does not need any more salt, sugar or seasoning. Simmer on stove or in roaster pan until thick. Let sauce cool and then freeze sauce in Tupperware’s or freezer bags for later meals.

**One of my favorite tricks...if you have extra tomatoes in your garden and don't want to can them, FREEZE them! Rinse them off, cut out the core and place in freezer bags (don't remove skin). Keep in your freezer until you are ready to use in later recipes, for homemade red sauce, chili, etc.

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My two favorite HEALTHY recipes that use your oats!

Here is my favorite recipe for homemade granola. It is SO good for you and a great healthy snack or can make a great breakfast with milk or yogurt. All of the items for granola can be found in your food storage, so it is a great recipe to have on hand to use up and rotate items in your food storage.

Homemade Granola:

1 c. sliced almonds (you could use any nut you prefer-cashews, walnuts, pecans, etc.)

5 c. oats (quick or old fashioned)

1 c. shredded coconut

1 c. raisins

1/4 c. sesame seeds (optional)

1/4 c. sunflower seeds (optional)

1/2 c. flaxseed (optional--good for you and gives it a nice crunch)

1/2 c. REAL maple syrup (the cheapest place to buy it is at Costco--it is kind of expensive, but well worth it-yum! It will last for a long time, so don't worry about not using it all)

1/2 c. honey

1/3 c. canola oil

Mix ingredients all together until all ingredients are covered in the honey, maple syrup and oil. If you need to add a little more honey you can do that. You don't want it very sticky, just enough to keep the granola together. Place granola on a baking sheet (don't spray) and put in the oven at 150-170 degrees and bake for 1-2 hours (or until COMPLETELY dry and crunchy). Every 30-40 minutes take the granola out of the oven and stir around to make sure all of the granola is evenly cooked. You can also put the granola in a dehydrator for 3-4 hours on medium heat until dry. By not cooking the granola at a high temperature you are keeping all of the nutrients and healthy enzymes in tact--it is the healthiest way to eat your grains. Let granola cool and then store in ziploc bags, Tupperwares or canisters. Will last for several months in your pantry (as long as it is completely dry).

These zucchini muffins are GREAT to have as a healthy snack! This is also a food storage recipe that uses up a lot of the grains in your storage. They are moist and delicious---and good for you!

Zucchini Muffins
1/2 c. canola oil

1 can applesauce (15 oz.)
1 1/4 c. sugar
3 eggs
2 T. vanilla
2 c. zucchini, grated
1 smashed banana (optional)

1 c. carrots, peeled and grated

1 c. raisins
3 cups flour (I do 1 c. wheat flour, 1 c. oat flour, 1/2 c. white flour & 1/2 c. oats)

3/4 c. raisin bran cereal (or plain bran--or more wheat flour)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt

Streusel:
½ c. oats

½ c. brown sugar
¼ c. butter
½ tsp. cinnamon

Mix together the oil, applesauce and sugar. Add eggs one at a time beating after each addition. Add vanilla, grated zucchini, carrots, raisins, and smashed banana. Combine the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients gently until the mixture is just moist. Do not over mix. Fill cupcake cups ¾ full. Sprinkle streusel on top before baking and then put in oven. Bake in a 375 oven for 20-25 minutes, or until done in center.

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One of my favorite time saving tips!

This is one of my favorite tricks to help save you time and frustration during dinner! If you are like my family, we eat chicken based meals about 2-4 times a week. Sometimes you don't have the time to cook chicken, cut it and add it to a recipe. Well...here is a quick and easy solution! When chicken goes on sale for a GREAT price, stock up! Bring the chicken home, trim off any fat that needs cutting off and then throw several pounds of it in a large crock pot or roaster oven. I usually crock pot 10-15 lbs. of chicken at a time. I cook it on medium heat and season the chicken heavily with Montreal Steak Seasoning (my absolute favorite seasoning!) and McCormick Chicken Base (it's like chicken bouillion but in a spreadable form--you can buy it at Costco for really cheap!). Once the chicken is cooked I let it cool and then divide the chicken into several portions. I put 2-3 chicken breasts in each Ziploc bag and then freeze them until I am needing the chicken for dinner. When you are using the chicken for meals, just defrost or microwave for a minute or so, and then you can easily shred, chop or cut into large chunks for any meal that calls for chicken. Once the chicken is in the recipe you can season it however you desire. Having cooked chicken on hand can cut your meal preparation time in half!

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