Pantry Basics

Having a well stocked pantry helps make meal planning and cooking MUCH easier! One of the most frustrating parts of cooking is not having all of the ingredients you need at your fingertips. Having a well stocked pantry and food storage makes all of this EASY and fun!

I get several questions a week from people wondering how I organize my pantry. Lets just say it is not as organized as my food storage, but it works :)


Here are a few commonly asked questions:

#1--Where do I store the 25lb. bags of wheat, flour, sugar, etc. that I bring up to my pantry from my food storage room?

*I bring the bulk bags upstairs and keep them in the bottom of my pantry in a 5 gallon bucket, or on the bottom shelf. I fill the canisters I have on my counter of sugar, flour, oats, and salt for easy access, and then keep the rest of these items in the bucket in my pantry. Unless your home has a problem with rodents/bugs, this should be fine.

#2--What items do you keep stocked in your pantry?

*Basically I have one or two of everything I keep in my food storage room. The list would be quite lengthy if I were to list everything in my pantry, but here are a few of the basics that I can not do with out:
*Basic grains; wheat, flour, oats, pasta, rice, flax seed (I like to put it in a lot of breads & pancakes), cereal.
*Oils; olive oil, vegetable/canola oil, shortening, and peanut butter.
*Legumes; dried beans, canned beans (kidney, black, great northern, refried beans, etc.)
*Vegetables & Fruit; corn, green beans, mandarin oranges, pineapple, pears, peaches, etc.
*Cooking Basics; white vinegar, apple cider vinegar, rice vinegar ( I use vinegars in TONS of recipes and buy them in the large gallon size), soy sauce (couldn't live without that!), sesame seed oil (I LOVE Thai food!), balsamic vinegar, worcestershire sauce, maple syrup, jam, coconut milk, taco shells, etc.
*Baking goods; coconut, chocolate chips, raisins, craisins, chocolate & almond bark,
*Misc.; croutons, tortilla chips (great to have on hand for soups, dips, salads, hot cocoa, etc. **TIP: If you have leftover USED #10 cans from the Cannery, use them to help organize your pantry. You can also buy them at the cannery for around .15 each**
*Keep a well stocked spice rack/cabinet so you have all of your favorite spices on hand for a variety of meals. Some basic spices to have on hand are: chili powder, taco seasoning, cumin, Montreal Steak Seasoning (my personal favorite!!), garlic powder/salt, parsley, oregano, basil, Italian Seasoning, cajun seasoning, dry mustard, sage, ginger powder, dill weed, rosemary, poppyseeds, vanilla, baking powder & soda, cocoa, cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes, etc. I try to keep a year supply of these spices on hand at all times. Many of them you can buy at Costco in bulk for great prices. **TIP: If you have extra mason jars lying around, use them to store spices, dried goods, or baking goods. They are easy to see what's inside, and help your pantry stay clean**
*My wheat grinder for EASY access..making it so I can pull it out, grind wheat into flour, and have homemade bread in about an hour!

Think of your food storage as an extension of your pantry. When you keep a well stocked food storage, you will have nearly everything you need for meal planning at your finger tips. Cooking is FUN when you have all of the ingredients on hand. Keeping pantry basics on hand will make your life more simple and cooking a breeze!

Read more...

Freezer Favorites

So, pretty much I freeze just about anything! If you are like me, I use red, yellow, orange, and green peppers in many of my meals. They are so great for you, but are not always on sale, and the colored peppers are not cheap (reg. price $2.49-$3 each). When they go on sale for $1 or less, stock your freezers! All you need to do is rinse them off, cut out the core and seeds, slice or keep whole, and then put in freezer bags. They will stay good in your freezer for at least 6 months. You wouldn't use these frozen peppers in salads or meals where you want them fresh tasting. They are good however in any meal that is cooked--fajitas, soups, enchiladas, french dips, pasta, on pizza, stirfrys, etc. You can use up the whole bag or just pull out as many slices as you need.


I also freeze several kinds of fruit when they go on sale. Blueberries are one of my favorite! They are a power food and are SO great for your body--filled with antioxidents. Frozen blueberries are one of my favorite snacks! You can also use them in shakes, in pancakes, jell-o's, yogurt, etc. Give them a try, you will love them!

Read more...

A new & simple approach!

Some of you may have received the LDS Ensign Magazine in your mail boxes today. I just wanted to make you aware, LDS or not, of a great article in the March issue titled "Family Home Storage: A New Message". This article talks about how home storage/food storage is now taking on a new and simplified approach. Getting a year supply to any family, especially in today's economy, can seem daunting. Many of us get overwhelmed and think it is out of our reach and so we don't start. I am here to help you know this is not true! If you work on your food storage a little each week, or month, depending on your finances, you will find it becomes FUN & easy overtime. Our motto is 'Your year supply, ONE week at a time!". This article teaches you just that.

They give you four easy steps to help simplify your goals of food storage and self reliance, and I thought they were worth sharing with you. As soon as the new link is updated online, I will post a link to the article so you can read it in it's entirety if you would like (it is March's issue and is not on their website yet www.providentliving.org).

1- Gradually build a small supply of food that is part of your NORMAL, daily diet until it is sufficient for three months.
2- Store drinking water (14 gallons per person).
3-Establish a financial reserve by setting aside a little money each week, and gradually increase it to a reasonable amount.
4- Once families have achieved the first three objectives, they are counseled to expand their efforts, as circumstances allow, into a supply of long-term basic foods such as grains, legumes, and other staples.

The article talks more in depth on each of these four guidelines. To me, being self reliant just makes sense! It is such a smart way to live and shop. Blessings have come to our family many times because of the storage we have in our home. In today's economy, it is crucial that we take these four steps and continue to prepare our families for whatever is to come. I promise you will feel peace and comfort knowing you are becoming prepared...even if you are only adding a little each month, you will see the fruits of your efforts shortly!

The article ends with a quote from Dennis LIfferth, the managing director of the Church Welfare Services that I liked. It says, "Perhaps in the past accumulating a year's supply of food may have been a little intimidating. But this new approach asks us to do the best we can, even if all we can do is to set aside a can or two a week. If the prophet asks us to do something, we can find a way to fulfill the commandment and receive the blessings. The new program is within EVERY ONE'S grasp. The first step is to BEGIN. The second step is to continue. It doesn't matter how fast we get there so much as that we begin and continue according to our abilities."

Great advice! We can all do one or two cans :) Good luck in all of your efforts! I would LOVE to hear your success stories. If anyone has pictures of your storage, or stories of how your food storage/preparedness efforts have blessed you and your family, I would love to hear them! If it is okay with you, I would love to share your stories with our readers as well. We can all help inspire each other!

Read more...

Exciting News!!

It's almost our ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY!
We will be celebrating with exciting changes to My Food Storage Deals!
Keep tabs on our blog for the exciting news!
We promise you will LOVE the changes…until then, happy shopping!

Read more...

Deliciously Moist Banana Bread

If you have ever had dry, flavorless banana bread, you need to give banana bread another try! This recipe is a family favorite and once you try it, you will NEVER go back to your old recipes again! It is fabulous as a bread..or you can put the batter in a 9x13 cake pan and frost with homemade cream cheese frosting! Yum! Give this old time favorite another try :)

Banana Bread

1 ¼ c. sugar
½ c. margarine
1 c. banana pulp (2 bananas)
4 T. sour cream
2 eggs
1 ½ c. flour (wheat flour tastes great in this recipe! You could also do 1/2 white & 1/2 wheat)
1 t. soda
1 t. vanilla
½ t. salt

Cream butter and sugar together. Beat in eggs and add. Dissolve soda in sour cream and add with flour and rest of batter. Grease bread pan and flour. Cook at 350 for 1 hour and 10 minutes (or until toothpick comes out clean). Check at 1 hour.

**Tip: Do you ever have bananas on your counter that are too dark and ripe to eat, and you feel badly throwing them away. These are PERFECT banana bread bananas. If you don't have time to make banana bread right away, peel the banana and put it in a ziploc bag to freeze. I keep a zip loc bag with ripe bananas in my freezer at all times. When you are ready to bake, pull them out, microwave or let them thaw and you will have delicious banana bread in about an hour. You know the saying..waste not, want not :)

Read more...

My FAVORITE roll recipe!

This picture doesn't do these rolls justice--but they were gone so fast I couldn't retake my picture :0)

If any of you LOVE the Lion House Rolls as much as I do, here is the recipe so you can make your own fluffy, soft, & delicious rolls in your own home:

Lion House Rolls

Ingredients
2 cups warm water (110 to 115 degrees)
2 tablespoons dry yeast
2 teaspoons salt
1 egg
2/3 cup nonfat dry milk powder (instant or non-instant)
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter or shortening
4-4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour or bread flour
Directions
1-In large bowl of electric mixer, combine water and milk powder, stir until dissolved.
2-Add yeast, then sugar, salt, butter, egg, and 2 cups flour.
3-Mix on low speed of mixer until ingredients are wet, then 2 minutes at medium speed.
4-Add 2 cups more flour; mix on low speed until ingredients are wet, then for 2 minutes as medium speed. (Dough will be getting stiff and remaining flour may need to be mixed in by hand).
5-Add about ½ cup flour and mix again, by hand or mixer.
6-Dough should be soft, not overly sticky, and not stiff.
7-(It is not necessary to use the entire amount of flour.)
8-Scrape dough off sides of bowl and pour about 1 T.vegetable oil all around the sides of the bowl so it is covered with oil.
9-Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise in warm place until double in size.
10-(My note here- I just sprayed a clean large bowl with vegetable spray and put my ball of dough in there, turning to cover the dough with the vegetable spray.).
11-After dough has risen, sprinkle cutting board or counter with flour and place dough on floured surface.
12-Roll out and cut rolls in desired shape and size.
13-Place on greased (or parchment lined) baking pans.
14-Let rise in warm place until rolls are double in size (about 1 to 1 ½ hours).
15-Bake at 375 for 15 to 20 minutes or until browned.
16-Brush with melted butter while hot.

Read more...