“A prudent person foresees the danger ahead and takes precautions. The simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences. Proverbs 27:12
A deep pantry a good thing to have.
Remember having a deep pantry isn’t just about having extra food on hand. It is also about having the means to survive in an emergency situation, having all the extra food isn’t going to do you much good if you can’t cook it when the power is out. If you are having a hard time trying to afford filling a deep pantry read my post on “having a Deep Pantry on a tight budget.”
Don’t forget to share what you were able to do this past week to have a deep pantry/food storage. Let’s encourage each other. And if you have a question feel free to ask or if you have the answer to a question feel free to answer. If you have a tip or idea you can share that also. As I said let’s make this a place where we can share and encourage others to get that deep pantry.
5 Pounds Shortening / Canned milk
6 Pounds shortening, oil or lard I use lard, avocado, and olive oil to cook with since it is better for you then the hydrogenated shortenings. I do keep a little shortening and vegetable oil on hand. I use the oil in a spray bottle to spray the bottom of pans. The shortening I use in soap. As with everything be sure to rotate. If you plan to make your own soaps you might want to try and get a little extra.
Shortening does have a very long shelf life if keep unopened and in a cool place. I also have lard and tallow canned which extends the self-life. As with everything be sure to rotate.
Canned Milk 20 cans of milk, Wal-Mart has it for 92 cents a can. When storing canned milk you want to be sure and rotate. It does have a couple year shelf life but not much longer. As with all your canned goods it is best to store in a cool dark place. You can also can your own milk. Canned milk is also good to have on hand to use to make baby formula in an emergency.
The action Item this month is to learn all you can about medicinal herbs, especially the ones that grow in your area. Then if you are unable to seek medical attention you can use herbs. They are also better for you than most pharmaceuticals and have been around and been used for thousands of years. There are a ton of books and information on the internet. Start with just a few from your area then gradually start learning about more.
The extra item this month is a wheat grinder if you don’t already have one. This way you can store wheat which last a lot longer than flour. You can pick up a nice hand grinder for under 100.00 dollars. I got a hand grinder and used it for a few years before I got my electric one. I did keep my hand grinder then if I have no power I can still grind wheat.
Since I am so late getting this out I will just add what I was able to get done to next weeks challenge.
I put up a bushel of apples this week in applesauce along with some apple jelly. I also had excess green tomatoes so I made some Green Tomato-Apple Chutney. This is the first time I made this particular blend and mercy, it’s good!! I’ve brought in most of the rest of my green tomatoes and they are slowly ripening.
I made a bunch more tomato sauce and marinara sauce and canned them up. I always feel so empowered making marinara sauce because I get to use my own homemade Italian Seasoning, my homegrown garlic, etc. Nothing like it as I’m sure you know!!
I went out about a month or two ago, because I was so angry at the squirrels for eating my pears, and picked a small box of green pears. I put them in the basement and over time they turned yellow and I made some pear preserves from them this last week. Ended up being some pretty good stuff!!
The weather has been cool and the Swiss Chard is coming on fast and furious so I’m blanching and freezing a lot of that. I like to take the leaves and freeze them separately while taking the stems, cooking them up a little longer and freezing them. I love to make a bed of stems, which are cut about 2 inches long, on my plate and lay a piece of pork, beef or chicken on top. It looks nice, is tasty and is a nice break from potatoes or rice. We love it this way though you can take your stems and do a lemon butter sauce like asparagus as well.
The butternut squash and spaghetti squash have hardened off and I’ve prepared them for Winter and tucked them in a nice spot in our basement. The red, white and blue potatoes have been put up and we’re still hoping we get sweet potatoes though they will be late, if at all, due to the deer.
I’ve been putting a little more effort into saving seeds this year. I’m not good at this but I feel like it’s time to get better at it. One never knows when they’ll be unable to order the seed they so desire.
Thanks for your great site. I really enjoy it!
Nina,
Thanks, Sounds like you are busy as ever. Have to admit I am jealous of the apples, All our apples in this area froze so nobody has any. My tomatoes are finally starting to put off. They are small but hope I have enough to do a few things with I really need to can salsa and rotel. I defiantly agree about the seeds, I am thinking of ordering a few things that I don’t have growing now just so I have them for next year ( just in case I can’t get them).
Have a great week
Connie