It's Week #4, and the focus items are......

Hi Food Storage Enthusiasts!  I hope you are well on your way to stocking for your Long-Term Storage.  Last week, we had Oats as the focus item.  Can I just say, I couldn't get to all the wonderful things Oats can be used for....time just wasn't on my side.  However, I may stick some of them in as we go along this year.

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Yeast is one of our target items this week.  Yeast is a one-celled fungus that converts sugar and starch into carbon dioxide bubbles and alcohol. Bread is made with baker's yeast, which creates lots of bubbles that become trapped in the dough, making the bread rise so it's light and airy when baked. A small amount of alcohol is also produced, but this burns off as the bread bakes. This information and more information on the different types of Yeast comes from http://www.foodsubs.com/LeavenYeast.html.  It is well done and has great pictures!

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Vinegar is the other target item for the week. This is a very, very versatile staple to have not only for cooking, but also cleaning.  Here is are two short segments to introduce you to the cleaning aspects of Vinegar.

The Best Oatmeal Cookies.....

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Growing up, we had this very sweet neighbor that lived next door.  She made wonderful Oatmeal Cookies.  When we moved out of state, my mother secured the recipe...and it has been a family favorite ever since.  I would like to share, in my humble opinion, the very best Oatmeal Cookie recipe...by Ann Potter.  You really need to try these...they are delish!

Ann Potter's Oatmeal Cookies

3/4 Cup Brown Sugar
1 Teaspoon Soda
3/4 Cup White Sugar
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1 Cup Shortening
1 1/2 C flour
2 Eggs
2 Cups Rolled Oats
1 Teaspoon Vanilla

Mix and bake at 350 to 375 de3grees for 10-15 minutes.  A single batch makes about 6 dozen cookies.  When doubling the recipe, add about 1/2 to 3/4 Cup additional Flour.

Different types of Oats..........

Photo courtesyof Anson Mills

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There are several types of Oats that ou can purchase from the store.  Do you know the difference?  Let's look into it!

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Rolled Oats:   These look like little flakes.  They are whole oats that have been pre-steamed, rolled, and then flaked so that they will cook in a shorter time period. The average cooking time for these is about five to ten minutes. These are also referred to as Old-Fashioned Oatmeal.

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Steel Cut Oats:  These look like chopped up rice.  Steel-cut oats are hulled, toasted, oat grains that have been coarsely chopped into chunks about the size of a sesame seed. Stone-ground oats are the same thing, only ground into smaller pieces, closer to the size of a poppy seed

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Quick Oats: which have been processed to greatly decrease the total cooking time required in their preparation. They are not the same as instant oats, oats which have been precooked, so that all they require is a quick heating.


Sources: http://coachlevi.com/nutrition/rolled-oats-steel-cut-oats-difference/, http://hubpages.com/hub/Deciphering-The-Difference-Between-Oats, http://blog.nutritiondata.com/ndblog/2010/01/more-on-oats-rolled-vs-steel-cut-vs-stone-ground.html, http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-quick-oats.htm,

Some nice recipes....

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Well, can I just tell you this has been one of the busiest weeks of my life!  I had all these things I wanted to share with you about Oats....and I literally have not had time.  However, here is a great website with wonderful ideas and recipes for your oats.   "It's not just for breakfast anymore".  Go and see how versatile this Food Storage Staple is..... here.

Check it out!

It's a Quick Morning Meal......

What in the world do you think I will be doing with all of this? You can see that I have our focus item, Oats. I also have Peaches and Strawberries that I had dehydrated, baggies, labels, a hand blender and a bowl. What can be made with these? How about Instant Oatmeal Packets!

I don't know about your home, but around here the mornings get very hectic. So, a quick bowl of Oatmeal from the microwave is very welcome. I want to show you how easy this is to do and that you can make these from your Food Storage Staples.

 

The recipe calls for blending a 1/2C of Quick cooking oats in your Blender.  By now, you hopefully know that the LRH tries to do things as simply as possible.  So, I pulled out my hand blender.  But, it started making a big mess! 

So, I improvised and put a baggie around my mixer....no more mess!

This is the Oat Powder that you are trying to make. Now into each baggie, place 1/4 Cup un-powdered oats, 2 Tablespoons powdered Oats, and a scant 1/4 teaspoon of salt.
 

If you would like to "jazz" things up a bit, you can make variations of this. I like the "Fruit and Cream" Oatmeal, so I began to make that. I added Tablespoon of Dry milk.

I began to cut my Peaches into small pieces.  (You can see the Oatmeal mix in the baggie to the right).

Add 2 Tablespoons of fruit to your baggie.

Place your "pre-printed" label on the package with the directions of how to prepare it.

I also made "Strawberries and Cream" by breaking the dehydrated Strawberries into small pieces before placing them into the bag.

And here are two types of Instant Oatmeal ready to eat on a busy morning.


Please know that there are several varieties of Instant Oatmeal you can make. Just look below the recipe. My thanks goes to www.heart4home.net/recipes/oatmealmix.htm  for the recipe. Also, I have found that if I Microwave the water on high for 1.5 to 2.5 minutes, it is boiling and makes this process go faster when I am ready for breakfast in the morning!).

Instant Oatmeal Packets



Check the cereal aisle for more flavor ideas. The possibilities are endless!


• 3 cups Quick-Cooking Oats


• Salt


• 8 Plastic Sandwich Bags


Put 1/2 cup oats in a blender and whirl at high speed until powdery; reserve in a small bowl and repeat procedure with an additional 1/2 cup oats. If you're using a food processor, powder the 1 cup of oats in one motion. Into each sandwich bag put 1/4 cup un-powdered oats, 2 tablespoons powdered oats, and a scant 1/4 teaspoon salt. Store in a box or airtight container.


To serve: Empty packet into a bowl. Add 3/4 cup boiling water; stir and let stand for 2 minutes. For thicker oatmeal, use less water; for thinner, use more water. (I microwave for 1 1/2 - 2 1/2 minutes or until done on high)


• Apple-Cinnamon Oatmeal: To each packet add 1 T. sugar, 1/4 t. cinnamon, and 2T. chopped dried apples.


• Cinnamon-Spice Oatmeal: To each packet add 1 T. sugar, 1/4 t. cinnamon, and a scant 1/8 t. nutmeg.


• Fruit and Cream: To each packet add 1T. dry milk and 2T dried fruit or fresh fruit after cooking or jam.


• Oatmeal with Raisins and Brown Sugar: To each packet add 1 T. packed brown sugar and 1 T. raisins.


• Sweetened Oatmeal: To each packet add 1 T. sugar


• Wheat Germ Oatmeal: To each packet add 2 T. any kind of wheat germ