Hi Everyone
NOTES:
Extend life of nuts and seeds
GARDEN HAPPENINGS:
I had a bunch of tomatoes this year that never ripened. Seriously, these tomatoes were the first to appear (down low on the tomato plant). They never did ripen, and the tomato plant died before they could. Weird. Like 2-3 plants. Not sure what the cause was. The one I’m holding looks like it might ripen, but they’ve been in the house for 2 weeks, and I’m just going to throw them away. Ugh.
I pulled out all the determinate tomato plants. They are done, and looking poorly. I also took the shade cloth off of the part of my garden that gets partial shade from two big trees at either end. I have 3-4 surviving squash plants. They get taller and taller, and never bear fruit! I have to prune the bottom leaves because of powdery mildew, and there are flower buds but they never grow big enough to pollinate and the plants just grow taller with no squash. I have NEVER had luck growing squash, and it’s supposed to be the easiest thing to grow!!!
LONG-TERM STORAGE: This month, it’s all about milk. Not too long after Craig and I were married (2009) I opened and used a can of milk that he bought in 1994. It was surprisingly good. With milk, there is no “storage taste” like there is with flour or oatmeal. (At least those are the foods that have a “taste” for me.)
Even if you have NOT ever made cheese, and have no plans to make cheese in the near future, you may want to purchase and store some rennet in case of emergency and then you DO want to make cheese.
Here is a great website that explains the 4 types of rennet, when to use them, and what they do to milk to make cheese.
Rennet For Cheese Making: Everything You Need To Know – TheCheeseMaker.com
You can get rennet on Amazon. One small 2-ounce bottle will set 48 gallons of milk and turn it into cheese. Cost: about $15.
There are all kinds of instructions and videos about making cheese online.
SHORT-TERM STORAGE: Get a good can opener! I spent $30 buying an expensive can opener with a long turning handle. It was supposed to be for #10 cans. I had trouble with it from the very first day. The one I have now is from Walmart. It opens very small cans (tomato paste) and the #10 cans.
72 HOUR KITS: Luckily, if we have to evacuate, neither of us are going to be in serious trouble without medications. Oh, we take them, don’t get me wrong. But missing them would not be life-threatening. IF YOU have daily medications that you MUST take, consider putting 4-5 days worth in a small zip-lock bag. Make a note on your calendar to rotate them once a month or every-other month at the least. Keep the pills in the “first-aid” part of your pack.
FOOD STORAGE RECIPES:
Fudgsicles
from the book: There’s a Cow in the Kitchen by Virginia Nelson
3/4 c. sugar
3 TB flour
1 TB cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
3 TB cocoa
1 1/4 c. non-instant dry milk powder (2 c. instant)
4 c. hot water
1/2 tsp vanilla
Bring water to a boil. Combine the first 6 ingredients and beat into the boiling water, and cook 1 minute. Add vanilla and pour into molds and freeze. Small paper cups work well as molds. When partially set, put a tongue depressor or craft stick in the center of each one.
Most of these pies call for cream cheese. Yes, you CAN make cream cheese from powdered milk. But you have to have a yogurt “starter”. At the beginning, you’ll need any type of unflavored “commercial yogurt.” Make sure it states that it contains “live cultures.”
If you do NOT have a yogurt maker, your next best option is an electric frypan. I don’t have one of these either, but it might be worth it just to make my own yogurt!
Once you’ve made yogurt, you can turn that into sour cream AND cream cheese.
Yogurt
I watched a couple of videos about making yogurt, and thought I’d give the sour cream and cream cheese a try this week.
The actual amounts varied: one was 3 c. milk + 1/4 c. commercial yogurt; the other was 1 quart milk + 2 TB yogurt.
My understanding is that if you use more yogurt, it will “set” faster.
One video made it in a giant bowl, another one mixed the milk and yogurt and separated it into all different size jars.
Now, you have to let the yogurt set up.
Method 1, put the jars in an electric fry pan and set the control at 110˚. Check it in 3 hours.
Method 2, put the jars in a dehydrator with the shelves removed and set it at 110˚
Method 3, put the jars in the oven and set it to proof (which is about 110˚
Method 4, put the jars in a large pot, and 110˚ fill water around the jars right to the rim. Cover the pot with a lid and a towel. Set it in the oven. If you have a gas oven, the pilot light will keep it warm. This also works if you have the yogurt in a bowl, set in a larger bowl, and put water between the bowls.
The EASY Way to Make Homemade Yogurt (with fewer dishes!) – YouTube
(How to Make Homemade Yogurt – No Machine Required – YouTube
Here’s the plan: Make the yogurt. Use the yogurt to make sour cream and cream cheese. Then try it with powdered milk to see how much of a difference there is.
Wish me luck.
Marti Shelley
