Free Class Tomorrow - hope you can come!

Just a quick reminder for those of you who are planning to come - I'm teaching a free workshop tomorrow at Food 2 Store in Meridian on Fairview just west of Eagle Rd. (Next to Seagull Book)

Saturday, April 28th 10:00 a.m.

Preparing a 3-month Food Storage Meal Plan

Are you ready to begin collecting food storage for your family and just don't know where to begin? Do you already have a lot of food storage but you're not quite sure how you would use it to actually feed your family? This class is designed to answer your questions on basic storable items as well as provide you with the knowledge and motivation to go home and put together an individualized meal plan that will be tailored to your family and situation. Many recipes will be shared and a tasting table with samples of storable meals and snacks will be provided.

Making dried lemon/orange zest

Many recipes call for orange or lemon zest and I don't always have a fresh one around. The zest really adds a lot of flavor though so it is hard to just skip it in the recipe. I know you can purchase dried orange or lemon zest so a few years ago I decided to experiment with making my own. 

When you do have a fresh lemon or orange around, make as much zest as you can get. I spread it out on a plate. 

Leave the plate out on the counter overnight to allow the zest to dry. When thoroughly dry, package in a ziplock bag. Use about 1/3 of dried zest to replace fresh zest in a recipe. For example, when the recipe calls for 1 Tbsp of zest, use 1 tsp of dried zest.

My kids have had a hankering for lemon poppy seed muffins a lot lately. I tried just using lemon extract, but the lemon flavor wasn't strong enough. I bought some lemons the next time I was at the store and now I am stocked up on dried lemon zest and the kids have loved the muffins I've made with it.

Drop Sugar Cookie Mix

I love the convenience of a mix but the health benefits of homemade. I'm sure many of you are right there with me. Here is a new recipe to add to your list for pantry mixes you can make from scratch. They go together so quickly when you have the mix all ready to go.

Mix all the ingredients together.  I have made these cookies lots of times over the years for my extended family members that cannot have milk. This is the first time I am trying this recipe with bean puree instead of oil though.

Drop them onto a baking sheet.

Flatten slightly with a glass that you have dipped in sugar to keep it from sticking. Sometimes I spray the bottom of the glass with Pam instead of dipping in sugar.

Top with sprinkles or colored sugar. This is always the kids favorite part about helping. You can also sprinkle with jello powder to add some fun color and flavor.

Bake and enjoy! The beans made these cookies a bit more cake-like in texture. They still taste great, they just don't have the crispy texture or light brown color that the oil gives them. They are more like a pumpkin cookie in texture. The kids devoured them so they didn't seem to care at all - Hooray - a new, more healthy snack I can keep as a mix in the pantry!

Drop Sugar Cookie Mix

Combine the following ingredients in a ziplock bag:

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

To make cookies add:
2 eggs
2/3 cup vegetable oil (or bean puree)
2 tsp vanilla

Mix well. Drop spoonfuls onto baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Flatten with the bottom of a glass you have dipped in sugar. Sprinkle with colored sugar or other sprinkles. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Cool for a couple of minutes on baking sheet before moving to wire rack. Enjoy! Makes 2-3 dozen.

Note: I am just beginning to experiment with bean puree in this recipe. Using vegetable oil gives you a nice, crispy cookie. When I replaced the oil with bean puree, the cookie rose more and was softer, more cake-like in texture - more like a pumpkin cookie. The cookies were still very good, just be aware that they are more cake-like and not too sweet. I will update this post as I experiment a little more.

Upcoming Free Classes

I have been asked to present some classes at a local preparedness store one Saturday each month. Food 2 Store is located on Fariview just west of Eagle Rd (by Seagull Book.) These classes are free to the public so tell your friends and family - it would be fun to have a large group there! The bread class can be fun for older children as well as adults. I'll post more classes as dates are set.

Saturday, April 28th 10:00 a.m.

Preparing a 3-month Food Storage Meal Plan

Are you ready to begin collecting food storage for your family and just don't know where to begin? Do you already have a lot of food storage but you're not quite sure how you would use it to actually feed your family? This class is designed to answer your questions on basic storable items as well as provide you with the knowledge and motivation to go home and put together an individualized meal plan that will be tailored to your family and situation. Many recipes will be shared and a tasting table with samples of storable meals and snacks will be provided.

Saturday, June 2nd 10:00 a.m.

Bread Making and Shaping Techniques

Nothing says "home" more than the smell of fresh baked bread! Join us to learn tips on making better yeast breads using your freshly ground wheat flour. We will also cover quick, easy ways to shape your bread dough into hot dog buns, hamburger buns, different roll shapes and even alligators for those who really want an adventure in the kitchen!

Strawberry Lemonade Concentrate

Doesn't it just look pretty? It tastes as good as it looks. My family is really enjoying this recipe. I think I'm going to make another batch for end of year teacher gifts. It is probably the quickest canning recipe I have ever tried!

Wash your berries or use frozen berries that you allow to thaw.

Cut off the tops and puree in a blender or food processor.

Measure out 4 cups of puree and pour into a large pan. I quadrupled the batch so I used my large pressure canning pot.

Add four cups of lemon juice. You can squeeze your own lemons or use bottled juice. Next, add 5 1/2 - 6 cups of sugar. Heat the mixture until the sugar dissolves, stirring occasionally. You do not want the mixture to boil, you just want the sugar to dissolve. You also don't want it too hot to pour into your jars. (If you pour hot liquid into cool jars, they will break.)

I scooped my mixture up with a 2 qt picture to make the pouring into jars go quickly. You could ladle it in if you wanted to. I chose to process mine in quart jars since we have a large family. Each jar will make 4-5 quarts once we add the water later.

Here it is all ready to put in the canning pot.

Boil pints for 15 minutes and quarts for 20.

My 4 batches made 12 quarts. Mix the concentrate with 3-4 jars of water to serve - it all depends on how you like it.

Recipe adapted every so slightly from the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving. 

Please note: You have to be careful when altering canning recipes. You do not want to change the acidity level of the finished product to insure safety. The original recipe called for a certain amount of cups of berries, I measured how much puree that made and gave you that measurement instead. I find it much quicker to just puree the berries and measure once it is pureed. I also did mine in quarts instead of pints so I lengthened the boiling time. Neither of these changes altered the acid level.

If you haven't ever tried canning before, this would be a great recipe to start on! Enjoy!

Pepperoni Pizza Braid

This is a fun way to trade up your traditional pizza night. I always make two when I do this because they freeze well for my husband to take for lunch or for me to reheat another night for a quick dinner.

Begin with your favorite pizza dough. I made a double batch of my garlic breadstick dough. Each braid takes the same amount of dough as one pizza.

Roll out into long rectangles  - about as long as a jelly roll pan.

Spread with a little pizza sauce down the center.

Add your favorite pizza toppings. I made one with pepperoni and olives and one with sausage and olives. We also like using Ranch dressing in place of the sauce and adding chopped ham, bacon bits,green onions, and diced tomatoes. Feel free to get creative here. If you like it on pizza, you'll like it in this recipe.

Top with a little shredded cheese.

Use kitchen scissors to cut around the edges as shown, going in only as far as the sauce.

Tuck in one piece at a time, alternating sides as you would with a braid. Be sure to tuck the ends in well.

Place both loaves on a jelly roll pan. Allow to rise about 10 minutes. Bake at 350° F for 25–30 minutes. If browning too quickly, cover loosely with foil before baking the final 5 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with pizza sauce for dipping if desired. To freeze: Remove from oven after 25 minutes of cooking. Allow to cool. Wrap in a few layers of plastic wrap and freeze. To use frozen loaf: Thaw and wrap in foil. Place on a baking sheet and bake at 350° F for 10–15 minutes or until heated through.

Brush with melted butter after removing from the oven to keep the crust nice and soft.

Slice and enjoy!