Food Storage Made Easy » Comfort Foods

Spice Up Your Comfort Foods

Jodi and Julie — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 20:31:26 +0000

Step 9: Comfort Foods is one of our favorite steps. When we participated in our 7 Day Challenge we came to realize just how important these foods really are in making your life feel somewhat normal in an emergency, and also in adding variety to your long term storage foods. We recommend getting a few spare bottles of spices/herbs that you commonly use. This will ensure you have enough for your long term cooking needs, and also give you the convenience and cost-savings in the short term. Don’t go overboard on buying too many bottles though, as spices can lose their flavor over time.

Here are a list of common spices/herbs to get you started:

Herbs*
Basil
Bay Leaves
Chives
Cilantro
Dill
Mint
Oregano
Parsley
Rosemary
Sage
Tarragon
Thyme

Spices*
Allspice
Black Pepper
Caraway
Cardamom
Celery Salt/Seed
Chili Powder
Cinnamon
Cloves
Coriander
Cumin
Fennel
Fenugreek
Garlic Powder/Salt
Ginger
Mustard Seed/Dry Mustard
Nutmeg
Onion Powder/Salt
Paprika
Red pepper flakes
Saffron
Turmeric
Vanilla
White Pepper

* Herbs are the leafy, green plant parts used for flavouring purposes, and may be used fresh or dried, typically cut into very small pieces. Spices are dried and often ground or grated into a powder. Small seeds, such as fennel and mustard seeds, are used both whole and in powder form.

p.s. Feel free to add your own ideas in the comments below

Day 10: Food Storage Christmas (comfort foods)

Jodi and Julie — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 00:00:02 +0000

NOW THIS feels like Christmas. We had plenty ideas for this part of the 12 days of Christmas. Feel free to use some of these, or choose your own. Comfort foods are definitely things people need in time of any type of crisis:

Candy Bar or Pudding Mix

Even just a candy bar or 2 in your storage for just in case scenarios are great. Pick up the person’s favorite one and surprise them with a little treat to have in time of need (and tell them they can’t eat it right away, they have to store it Tie a cute ribbon around the candy bar and add the Day 10 Tags and you’re all set.

Big Baskets of Goodies (that would store well)

Take a look at our list of common comfort foods and pick some to compile in a gift basket with the Day 10 Tags attached. Trust us- these are things people want in times of stress!

Extra Set of Common Spices

A great thing to store one extra of is all your spices. Spices can be pricey, so it’s not something people tend to buy extra of on a regular basis. Surprise someone with an extra spice set and don’t forget the Day 10 Tags!

Back to the 12 Days List

Condiment Craziness

Jodi and Julie — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 07:08:43 +0000

In BabyStep 9: Comfort Foods we list spare condiments as one of the items to store. As we have explored the reasons why people do food storage we found that everyday emergencies were the ones that seem to occur the most. Condiments are definitely something to store to prevent an “emergency”. Have you ever run out of ketchup the day of a barbecue and not had time to run to the store? Don’t you hate it when you run out of soy sauce and have to buy a bottle for FULL price? With food storage this will never happen again!

So here’s what to do. Compile a list of the condiments your family uses and then watch for them to go on sale and pick up a few bottles. Keep a little inventory list of what you have and mark off when you use one up so you can remember to replace it next time it’s on sale. Here is a list of ideas to get you started:

ketchup
mustard
relish
mayonnaise
peanut butter
barbecue sauce
soy sauce
worcestershire sauce
teriyaki sauce
olive oil
vinegar
horseradish
cranberry sauce
applesauce
hot sauce/chili sauce
taco seasoning

If you have any others to add to the list please feel free to leave them in the comments below and we’ll update the list to reflect them. Have fun with your condiments!

Beyond the BabySteps: Comfort Foods: Yummy Recipes!

Jodi and Julie — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 04:10:12 +0000

For our Summer Crash Course we have been revamping all of the BabyStep pages and last week we updated the Step 9: Comfort Foods page. On that page we give a great list of ideas for comfort foods but we wanted to give you this bonus handout of fun recipes you can make all with shelf-stable foods and with minimal cooking required (could use a fire pit or barbecue grill in a pinch). Here are the recipes included in the handout.

Recipe 1: Best Rice Krispie Squaries (courtesy of Grandma Lori)

Recipe 2: Homemade Popcorn
Put a few tablespoons of oil (any kind will do) in the bottom of a 4-quart pan. Pour in 1/2 c. of popcorn kernels (we buy ours in bulk #10 cans to use to make corn meal as well) and put the lid on the pan. Heat stove to medium/medium high heat. Allow the kernels to cook, shaking the pan occasionally to avoid burning. When there are a few seconds in between pops, remove from heat and pour into a bowl (be careful as lid may be hot). Coat with your favorite toppings!

Recipe 3: No Bake Oatmeal Cookies (As found on AllRecipes.com)

INGREDIENTS
2 cups rolled oats
3/4 cup white sugar
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2/3 cup butter, softened
1 cup confectioners’ sugar

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, combine the oats, sugar and cocoa. With clean hands, mix in the water, vanilla and butter to form a dough. Wash hands, then roll the dough into balls 1 to 2 inches in diameter. Roll balls in confectioners’ sugar until thickly coated (or they will become crusty). Chill 20 minutes before serving.

Click here to download the pdf version of this handout. If you have already purchased one of our Food Storage Made Easy Binders this is a perfect addition to the Step 9 section or recipes appendix. Enjoy!

p.s. If you have any good comfort food recipe ideas share them in the comments below and we will compile another handout with your suggestions!

BabySteps 8, 9, and 10 (revised)

Jodi and Julie — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 17:10:48 +0000

In order to get your ready for the Seven Day Challenge, we are going through revising and cleaning up all our BabySteps. We created the BabySteps to break down the vast amount of information in the “food storage world” when we first got started last summer. From the BabySteps, we developed the BabySteps Checklists as a way to split up the 10 steps over a one year period.

We decided it would be good to revise each BabyStep as part of our Summer Crash Course. So jump in and get started … it’s not too late! This week we are covering the following steps:

BabyStep 8: Fruits and Vegetables (click here to view the full step)
BabyStep 9: Comfort Foods (click here to view the full step)
BabyStep 10: Fruits and Vegetables (click here to view the full step)

Updated each page to reflect the ideas shared in comments
- Items with an * are new to the list
Updated the online resources of each page

Homemade Applesauce Recipe & Canning
Best Rice Krispie Squares
Cleaning Supplies Using Food Storage

Stay tuned for some advanced posts on this topic coming later this week.

I was sneaky tonight!

Julie - Food Storage Made Easy — Thu, 21 May 2009 05:51:49 +0000

So Crystal at EveryDayFoodStorage.NET is always recommending adding food storage to meals and not telling your family since they may not give it a fair chance. Well my husband works from home and knows how and what I’m cooking so I haven’t been able to use that trick.

Well tonight I hosted a little dinner party at my house and decided I would sneakily use tons of food storage in my dinner and dessert. I definitely recommend it, it was fun having a little secret… hehe.

Anyways, I made a great tortilla casserole recipe, (added black beans) and even made the tortillas from scratch using all fresh ground whole wheat! I even replaced the cream of chicken soup with BEAN FLOUR cream of chicken, my favorite!

For dessert I made my EMERGENCY, I don’t feel like baking, icing or dirtying a pan dessert with POWDERED MILK! Everytime I have to bring a dessert to a dinner and don’t have the time or energy to pick up fresh ingredients, I make a quick and easy pudding pie. I always have at least one tub of cool whip in my freezer for this special dessert.

Ingredients

Powdered Milk
Water
Box of Chocolate Pudding
Graham cracker crust
Cool Whip

Prepare pudding according to package directions for pie. Pour into graham cracker crust, chill for an hour or so. Top with Cool Whip. Optional, add strawberries, crushed skor bar or any crushed cookie.

I love this dessert because it is SO easy to bring places. The graham cracker crust container has a lid with it (you don’t have to remember to get your pan when you are going home). You don’t have to dirty dishes except the pudding bowl, but you can lick that. It’s a dessert that uses POWDERED milk and no one knows it. You don’t have to turn your oven on in the hot summer, its great!

Food Storage Recipes: Best Rice Krispie Squares

Jodi -- Food Storage Made Easy — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 07:16:09 +0000

What do you do on a Sunday night when you don’t want to go to the store but you want a delicious treat? This happened to me last Sunday and guess what I did? I made a food storage dessert! YAY!!! This one has been a staple in my family for years and it is one of my favorite treats. But it only just dawned on me that it was a perfect food storage recipe. It qualifies as a comfort food in my opinion because if I was eating purely food storage and I could eat this treat every now and then I’d be in heaven. So here it is:

Best Rice Krispie Squaries (courtesy of Grandma Lori)

Ingredients:

1/2 c. white sugar
1 c. corn syrup (karo light)
3/4 c. peanut butter
2 c. Rice Krispies
4 c. Corn Flakes

Directions:
Use a large pot and stir together first three ingredients until melted & smooth. Then stir in the cereal. Spread in a 9×13 pan. EAT! (yes my mom included the EAT direction on the recipe card she gave me, it is the most important item)

Added “BabyStep 9: Comfort Foods” to Main Topics

Jodi and Julie — Tue, 02 Dec 2008 14:00:35 +0000

We added another BabyStep! We are almost finished with the steps YIPPEE! Check out Step 9: Comfort Foods to learn some foods that are not necessary for survival but could sure make life more enjoyable if you had them on hand in an emergency.

Recipe: Cookie Clay Dough

Jodi and Julie — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 05:13:18 +0000

Cookie Clay Dough

Serving Size: About 40 small cookies
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes

The ingredients and directions can be found at the Everyday Food Storage blog which is a site we use frequently when looking for great new recipes and ideas for using the foods we are storing. This recipe is fun because your kids can use it like play dough, and then take the shapes they made and bake them up into yummy cookies.

Jodi’s Comments:

I am the chorister for the children in my church. They did a huge program during our meeting today, so I made these cookies as a treat to reward them. One of the kids asked me what was in them so I gave the list of ingredients and was proud to include “fresh ground whole wheat from my food storage”. Well the kid pulled a nasty face and said “Are you trying to POISON us or something?”. I got all sad thinking that the kids would reject them. I didn’t teach music today so I just left the cookies for them to have during their lesson. After church I had at least 5 children come up and try to convince me to give them one of the leftover cookies, 3 kids thanked me for making such good cookies, and one little girl drew a picture of me celebrating with her after our program (with cookies!). I guess they were a hit. Another food storage recipe success!

Leave a comment if you try this recipe and let us know what you think!