Feasting on Food Storage
Keeping extra food on hand in the event of an emergency or financial setback is a good idea, and members of the LDS Church (the Mormons) have been advised to have food storage long before the “Doomsday Preppers” reality TV show.
But what do you do with buckets of wheat and powdered milk? A mother-daughter duo, Jane Merrill and Karen Sunderland, have some ideas in their cookbook, “Feasting on Food Storage,” (Cedar Fort Press, $18.99). I visited Karen and her mother to find out more about their book.
“We want to help people see that food storage can actually taste good,” said Sunderland. “Our book isn’t just about food storage; it’s a wonderful cookbook for everyday cooking and a preparedness book as well. We want people to see that it’s easy as 1-2-3.”
The idea of storing food is a throwback to rural farm life, when harvested crops were stored for the long winter. For others, there’s the idea of saving money by stocking up when canned goods are on sale.
The LDS Church’s pamphlet, “All Is Safely Gathered In,” says, “We encourage Church members worldwide to prepare for adversity in life by having a basic supply of food and water and some money in savings.”
Sunderland said the idea is not to prepare for just one major disaster, but for any challenge life may offer — inflation, wildfires, floods, power outages, erratic weather, food shortages, a sagging economy, political upheaval, injury, unemployment and so on.
The key is to rotate food storage on a regular basis, by storing what you will actually eat, and then eating what you store. The book has more than 320 recipes to help you with that.
Like most food-storage cookbooks, there are recipes for using whole wheat. But there are also more than 140 gluten-free recipes in the book, including recipes for gluten-free flour blends and baking mix. There are guidelines to build up a food supply based on the meals your family already eats.
There are also directions for making your own baby food, growing sprouts and assembling sanitation and first-aid kits, a 72-hour kit to take to a shelter, and a “mini-survival” kit to keep in your car.
You can save money by stocking up on grocery items when they’re on sale. But if it goes bad sitting in someone’s basement for years and years, it’s just wasted money. Merrill and Sunderland advise fixing at least one meal per week based on food storage items, so the family gets used to eating them.
Sunderland, who has a bachelor’s degree in family and consumer science, has six children. She teaches cooking classes at Honeyville Farms stores in Salt Lake City and Brigham City.
Merrill, who also raised six children, owned a Magic Mill and Bosch Kitchen Center in Burley Idaho, and taught numerous cooking and nutrition classes. Previously, they co-authored a self-published nutrition cookbook, “Set For Life.”
Sunderland’s Cabin Stew recipe came about when she took her grandkids to the family cabin in Huntsville. When the kids said they were hungry, she looked in the cupboards and found a can of stew, a can of vegetable beef soup and a can of chili. So she mixed them all together, adding some water to thin it.
“It was a winner!” she said. “Now it’s my most-requested meal from the grandkids.”
In their book, Sunderland and Merrill stress that it’s not wise to go into debt on food storage.
“You will save big if you plan ahead, make and list, and shop wisely. Always remember that good nutrition is of the utmost importance during times of stress to increase energy and avoid illness.”
These recipes come from “Feasting on Food Storage”:
Cabin Stew
24-ounce can beef stew
14-ounce can chili with beans
10-ounce can vegetable soup
Mix all ingredients in saucepan. Heat to boiling and simmer for 10 minutes. Thin with a little water if desired. Serves 4-5.
Biscuits Supreme
2 cups white flour, or 1 cup white flour and 1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk; or 3/4 cup water and 1/4 cup dry milk
1/4 cup oil
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix flour, baking powder, and salt. If using dry milk, mix it into the dry ingredients. Add milk or water and oil. Stir with a fork just until dough follows the fork around the bowl. Knead dough lightly on floured surface for about 30 seconds; too much handling makes biscuits tough.
Roll or pat dough 1/2-inch thick. Cut into squares with pizza cutter. Bake on ungreased baking sheet for 10-12 minutes. Makes 16 biscuits.