Anyways, I found this recipe on Pinterest a few weeks ago. If you’re not already following us on Pinterest make sure you do – we post, and repost cool stuff!. It was for a healthy energy ball. The thing that really caught my attention were the words NO BAKE, and HEALTHY. Hmmm I thought, maybe I could try those one day. My kids love granola bars, I don’t love the ingredients that always come with them, or the price tag for the healthy ones. I figured it would be worth a try.

Sunday night we were feeling an itch for a treat and I didn’t want to turn on the oven. I had about half the ingredients the recipe called for (I don’t always have cocunut or ground flax seed). I read the full post on the Smashed Peas and Carrots Blog, the recipe came from and decided substitutions would work just fine. I ended up with this mixture and JUST for you, I paid special attention to my measurements so I could share it. Not that I’ll ever actually measure when I make these again!

Ingredients
2 cups old fashion oats (original recipe called for 1 cup coconut, 1 cup oats, but I substituted)
1/2 cup peanut butter (I used organic – the kind that has JUST peanuts)
1/3 raw honey (doesn’t really have to be raw)
1/2 cup of chocolate chips (I chopped them, to make them go through out more of the mixture)
1 tsp vanilla

Directions
Put all the ingredients in a bowl and mix. You then put the mixture in the fridge for 30 minutes to cool. If you’re going powerless, you can skip this, it will just make the mixture tougher to make balls out of. That’s when you just grab a spoon and eat the mixture right out of the bowl. After the mixture is cool, roll into balls. Store in an airtight container in the fridge – if they last that long.

What I love about this recipe, is that it uses Food Storage, it has no refined sugar (outside of the chocolate chips), or butter, or baking, or REAL need for measuring. If it’s too sticky, add more dry stuff. If it’s too dry, add more honey. Substitute whatever you like. I think I’ll do raisins instead of chocolate chips next time, maybe craisins, chop some nuts… whatever you like. I think I’ll make these again for sure!

Still however, we get asked questions about it, and started to do a little research when we came upon this article at LDS.ORG. We are highlighing part of the article here for you, but urge you to check out the full article for TONS of tips on storing your food long term. The part we are highlighting is the Oxygen Absorbers section.

Oxygen Absorbers

Oxygen absorbers protect dry foods from insect damage and help preserve product quality. They are used when dry foods are packaged in sealed containers. Oxygen absorbers can be purchased from home storage centers and Church Distribution Services, or they can be ordered from store.lds.org. (You can also find them at Emergency Essentials – type in Oxygen Absorbers in search)

What are oxygen absorbers made of?

Oxygen absorbers are small packets that contain an iron powder. The packets are made of a material that allows oxygen and moisture to enter but does not allow the iron powder to leak out.

How do oxygen absorbers work?

Moisture in the packaged food causes the iron in the oxygen absorber to rust. As it oxidizes, the iron absorbs oxygen. Oxygen absorbers rated for 300 cubic centimeters (cc) of oxygen work well for properly packaged dry food in containers of up to one-gallon capacity (4 liters).

Is the use of oxygen absorbers equivalent to vacuum packaging?

Oxygen absorbers remove oxygen more effectively than vacuum packaging. Air is about 20 percent oxygen and 80 percent nitrogen. Absorbers remove only the oxygen. The air left in the container is mostly nitrogen and will not affect the food or allow the growth of insects.

What types of products can be stored using oxygen absorbers?

Products should be low in moisture and oil content. If the moisture content is not low enough (about 10 percent or less), storing products in reduced oxygen packaging may result in botulism poisoning.

What types of containers can be used with oxygen absorbers for food storage?

Oxygen absorbers should be used with containers that provide an effective barrier against moisture and oxygen. The following containers work well:

• Metal cans with seamed lids.
• Foil pouches (such as those provided by Church home storage centers and available from store.lds.org).
• PETE plastic bottles with airtight, screw-on lids.
• Glass canning jars with metal lids that have gaskets.

Oxygen absorbers are not an effective treatment method for plastic buckets, milk bottles, or other types of plastic bottles not identified as PETE or PET under the recycle symbol.

What is the proper way to use oxygen absorbers?

1. Cut open the top of the bag of absorbers. Do not open the individual absorber packets.
2. Remove the number of absorbers from the bag that you will use in the next 20 to 30 minutes, and spread them out on a tray. Remove additional groups of absorbers from the supply as you need them during the packaging process, but do not open and close the bag repeatedly to get only a few absorbers at a time.
3. Reseal the remaining supply of absorbers by one of the following methods. Do not store absorbers in ziplock bags.
   • Seal the bag of absorbers with the special blue clamp provided by the home storage center.
   • Seal the bag of absorbers with an impulse heat sealer.
   • For longer storage when an impulse sealer is not available, remove the absorbers from the bag and place them into a glass canning jar that has a metal lid with a gasket. A one-pint jar (500 ml) will hold 25 absorbers.
4. Place one absorber into each container of food as it is packaged.

So there you have a highlighted part of the article. Check it out for more tips on packaging food for longer term storage!

Feel free to add your tips and comments about packaging your foods for long term storage!

Bread in a Bag: A Creative Way to Store Bread! by Pam Emick

Background: We reviewed the book Dinner is in the Jar a couple of years ago … and when we were first approached by Pam Emick the author of Bread in a Bag we knew we would love her book too since it’s a similar concept. Rather than have to pull out all the individual ingredients for your bread every time you bake it, you simply stockpile the ingredients in the correct proportions all in one mylar bag or mason jar. GENIUS idea! She offered to give us a copy of her book to review and we were very happy to do so

What I Liked: Bread in a Bag is VERY thorough. It covers everything you will need to know, do, and buy if you want to use this storage method. There are a wide variety of different types of bread recipes in the book, and each one has detailed instructions on how exactly to store it, including if you need to put things in separate baggies for measurement purposes. There are also instructions for how to make the bread if you are using your “bag”, including what liquid or fresh ingredients you would need to add. Pam includes great labels for each recipe to make it SIMPLE when you pull out a bag or jar to bake your bread.

My Favorite Part: I love the recipes that are small enough to fit in a quart jar. I don’t keep mylar bags on hand so if I want to make this philosophy a big part of my storage I will need to get some materials for that. In the book it indicates recipes that can fit in a half-gallon mylar bag and those ones seem to work well in the jars too. I made the Hawaiian Bread (VERY delicious with the hint of lemon and the orange zest added in) and while I had everything out it was very easy to just measure the ingredients into a jar at the same time I was measuring them into my mixer. Then a few days later I had a FAST easy bread mix ready to go. LOVE!

Feedback: I think this is a great concept for making white breads, however I store more wheat than white flour due to the longer shelf life. We asked Pam about storing fresh ground whole wheat in the bags and she thought it wouldn’t be a problem. However, I would be concerned about the wheat going rancid unless I kept the whole bag/jar in the freezer. I think if you used commercially bought wheat flour you would be fine if you used it within the shelf life of that wheat. For me personally, if I’m going to do a jar for a recipe calling for wheat flour, I will just stick wheat kernels in baggies into the jars and then grind them up when I pull out the jar to make the recipe. This is still a very convenient way to do it and I won’t have to be concerned about my wheat flour going bad.

Summary: Bread in a Bag introduces a new way to think about your food storage and gives you all the tools you need to make these bread kits sooo easily. Her recipes look really great (I can’t wait to try the hamburger buns!). My plan is to go through the book trying a new recipe every few weeks and each time I do it just make a couple of jars or bags at the same time. Over a few months this should give me a GREAT supply of bread kits, ready-to-bake, and using foods already in my storage. If you are struggling with keeping up on making homemade bread consistently, or just want some new recipes to try out, I would definitely recommend Bread in a Bag

Last week we talked about water filtration and purification methods you may need to use, should you not have enough actual water stored. The idea is, that you would be able to find a water source and filter and purify that water should you need extra. While this is a good option, it’s always a great idea to store as much actual water as possible. In our “Water Storage Containers” post we talked about water storage containers, one of which is a 55 gallon barrel. Storing 55 gallon barrels comes with Pros and Cons:

Pros
– Great solution for storing LOTS of water
– Available in multiple sizes from 30 gallons up to 250 gallons
– With additives, can extend rotation needs to every 5 years

Cons
– Slightly difficult to fill and rotate
– Not very accessible when you have to actually USE the water
– Not an ideal solution in small homes/storage areas and shouldn’t be stored outside

WATER BARREL TOWER A couple of months ago, we were contacted by Trigen Manufacturing and we got some of their water barrel towers. Their water barrel towers solve the typical cons to the regular way of storing 55 gallon barrels. Rotating and filing the barrels is a breeze compared to when they are upright. Not only is rotation easier, it is a space saver too! Both of us got one of their 3 barrel towers. Jodi’s husband built her tower and they took a video of it in case you are wanting to know how to build the actual shelf. The shelf comes with instructions, and the shelf is pretty basic so it’s not too difficult:

Darin from Trigen was kind enough to come over and help Julie get the barrels plumbed and ready for filling. This video shows you the tower fully built with the water barrels on it, and how to assemble the plumbing kit:

Check out our post on the barrels we did a few months ago when we introduced them and learn more about discounts available for Food Storage Made Easy readers!

To order call: 801-997-0575. Make sure you mention Food Storage Made Easy when you order to get the following discounts:

• $20 off the Triple Barrel Tower with Upgraded Plumbing kit
• $10 off Triple Barrel Tower with Basic Plumbing Kit
• $10 off the Double Barrel Tower with Upgraded Plumbing kit
• $10 off the Double Barrel Tower with Basic Plumbing kit

Visit Trigen Manufacturing for pricing and full list of contents. To get the discount, make a phone order and mention Food Storage Made Easy.

Pick up your barrels here:

To celebrate Valentine’s Day, today we are highlighting the Products We LOVE Board. Whenever we find products that are amazing and helpful in building or using our food storage, we always want to share them with our readers. We become dealers if possible to help you get the lowest prices available online so that you can enjoy them too! Check out this board to see some of the products we sell as well as some others that we love and recommend.

• PIN 1: The quietest, fastest, cleanest wheat grinder available … we use this at least once a week!
• PIN 2: Cheap fruits and vegetables to add to your long term food storage.
• PIN 3: The water purifier that most of our readers love and use. Can’t go wrong with this one.
• PIN 4: Cook with the power of the sun (and dehydrate too, with a free dehydrating kit this month)

Make sure you check out the rest of the items on the Products We LOVE board. We’ll keep adding to these boards as we find great stuff.

Don’t forget you can Follow us on Pinterest so you don’t miss any of the great stuff we will be pinning in the future.

Company: Shelf Reliance
Last Date to Order: December 17th

Company: Emergency Essentials
Last Date to Order: December 15th-19th (depending on location)
To see the exact date for your area click here then click the tab that says “Guarantee Delivery”

Company: Global Sun Oven
Last Date to Order: December 18th (for most locations)
They are recommending to have orders in by December 16th before 9 am Central to ensure delivery by the 24th, however they think most areas of the US can order as late as the 18th and still make it.

We will continue to add to this list as we get more information from the companies! Happy shopping

Here are some tips that I have found have made my food storage more organized, useful, and rotated. I find building and using your food storage to be an ever changing thing, and I keep adapting as I learn more. I have a food storage area in an unfinished part of my basement (I know we’re lucky to have basements). I also have a little cupboard space upstairs I use for day to day cooking.

MY FOOD STORAGE AREA: I call this my food storage area, because it’s just against a wall in my basement. In my “dream” home, I’ll have a whole dedicated room, with all sorts of super cool shelves and stuff, but for now this is like heaven compared to my condo before. I have three areas along the wall. One is for long term foods, the shelves are for three month supply, and I have an area for water. Ok- ok, I have a fourth area – it’s called a big fat pile of non-food items, and appliances that are waiting for a new shelf area I also keep some water and my 72 hour kits upstairs in case we had to evacuate, or my whole basement got smooshed in a disaster. Oh and this reminds me, I need to put up a blanket against that window to block light from getting onto my long term food. I just moved everything around and before this wasn’t an issue. Light makes food go bad faster.

TIP FOR FEELING MOTIVATED: My first tip would be to get an area with shelves that you feel excited about. If your area looks like mine did at first (see below), you won’t feel excited to get started. It’s hard to go buy a bunch of food with the constant thought of “where am I going to put this?” going on in your mind. If you don’t know what kinds of shelves to get, look at Jodi’s husbands tutorial on building rotating racks here, at some cardboard options here, and at some great shelving units from Shelf Reliance at JodiandJulie.ShelfReliance.com/Home. (If you click on our store link, you get even more discounts after you click add to cart). If you don’t have a lot of space, make sure you check out our Small Spaces Storage Solutions.

TIP FOR KEEPING MY STORAGE ORGANIZED: In my food storage room downstairs I try to keep like foods together on shelves. That way I can quickly get stuff assessed and know where everything is easily. I like to keep fats together, sugars together, condiments, and all sorts of other logical (to me) groupings.

TIP FOR MAKING USING FOOD STORAGE EASIER: I put all the ingredients I need for making bread on one shelf in one of my cupboards. That way when it’s bread making day, I just pull all the things off that one shelf and I’m ready to go. Having to dig, and push through other ingredients is something I have always hated about baking, so this way I’m ready to go right away.

TIP FOR ROTATING MY FOOD STORAGE: These are ALL the cans in my upstairs pantry. How is this Food Storage? Well you see by keeping very, very few of my three month supply types of foods upstairs, I am FORCED to go downstairs to get food out of my food storage and use it. When I go grocery shopping, I come STRAIGHT home and put my food in the basement. Then when I need food, I have to go down there (send one of my cute little kids) to get it. I know it sounds annoying, but if I don’t do it this way, I’d end up using everything I just barely bought first, and my food storage in the basement would just collect dust.

TIP FOR USING MY LONG TERM FOOD STORAGE: One way I encourage myself to use my long term food storage such as grains and legumes is I keep smaller containers of them upstairs. I know this contradicts my previous tip a little – but it’s different- trust me. I save containers from nuts I get at Costco and use them to store the smaller quantities of my long term foods. This makes making pancakes, or muffins and all that kind of stuff with whole grains a lot easier. I also use my legumes a lot more in soups and chili’s.

TIP FOR REPLACING FOODS I’VE USED: Placed conveniently on a work table right next to the food storage is a pad of paper for me to write down things I take out of my food storage so I can replace them next time I’m shopping, or next time there is a sale. My dear husband knows if he takes something off a shelf he BEST be writing it down on that paper – or else

HEY WAIT! How did this get in here. Ok fine- when I go grocery shopping I DON’T immediately put the food in the basement. I put it on the stairs DOWN to the basement and deal with it later.

What are some of your tips for staying staying organized and motivated?

We introduced this surprise yesterday. If you missed it, make sure you go back and read it because it tells you all about it. As promised, here is Lesson Plan #2. We hope you enjoy! See you tomorrow for Lesson Plan #3.

PURPOSE: To help class members learn how to Plan, Buy, and Rotate Their 3 Month Supply.

You can learn more about sprouting Basics on our Sprouting Page. Sprouting is definitely NOT the place to start when you are building a Food Storage, however as you learn more and more about Food Storage – you’ll understand it’s importance. I’m almost 3 years into my Food Storage journey – and I’ll say I probably spend a WEEEE bit more time on Food Storage than the average person so don’t worry if you’re reading this post thinking WHAT IN THE WORLD IS JULIE TALKING ABOUT?

So last week a good friend of mine, called me up and said one of our neighbors was going to be teaching her how to make sprouted wheat bread, and if she knew anyone that wanted to come along to invite them. I hurried and told my husband he needed to drop everything and watch the kids (he works from home some days). I have been wanting to learn about this for so long but have been WAY too scared. Something about being in a friends kitchen learning about it made it so much less intimidating. So if you’re asking yourself what is sprouted wheat bread I’ll tell you –

Sprouted wheat bread, is whole wheat bread made with flour ground from wheat berries that have been sprouted. After sprouting the berries by having them sit in water for a number of hours, the sprouted berries are then completely dehydrated and put through a grain mill to create flour. Here’s a picture I found online- my loaf didn’t last long enough for a photo shoot:

In another post, I’ll tell you all about the process and how it works. I need to work up the energy to MAKE it, and to film the whole process so you too can feel like your in your friends kitchen learning how to do it.

The reason for the post today is to research the benefits of sprouting, and sprouted bread specifically. After tasting the delicious bread I wanted to commit to making sprouted wheat bread, however I’m not going to lie - IT IS A PROCESS. So I wanted to figure out how much better it is for you – so I could encourage myself to do it more often.

The following information is found at ehow.com. I read a lot of information on different websites before I found this concise synopsis. The information found in this article seems to be consistent with other stuff I read.

Benefits of Sprouted Wheat Bread

Sprouted wheat bread is nutrient dense, easier to digest and has more dietary fiber than processed wheat bread. Sprouting wheat berries encourages them to make enzymes that break down starches, fats and proteins, which makes it easier to digest the grain. Sprouting tends to break down many of the substances, such as gluten, that may cause allergies in some people.

Nutrient Dense

Sprouted wheat, as well as other sprouted grains, have a significantly higher level of vitamins, proteins and enzymes. The complex starches in sprouted wheat bread are converted into natural sugars. Sprouted wheat is high in magnesium, manganese and selenium. It is low in cholesterol, fat and sodium.

Low Glycemic Index

Because sprouted wheat bread has a low glycemic index (GI) it is digested at a slower rate, enabling a person’s blood sugar level to be stable for a longer time, which helps them to be more satisfied, decreasing a desire to snack.

Health Benefits

Sprouted wheat bread has more dietary fiber than processed grain breads. This may improve bowel health and regularity. It may also help to lower cholesterol and blood pressure, assist in weight control and reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes. Sprouting assists in making nutrients more available and can increase the absorption of calcium, iron and other minerals.

Stay tuned – I’ll be showing you the whole process of making the bread “soon”.