Ready....Get Set.....

OK. Are we all pumped, motivated and ready to start our food supply? This is the year of no procrastination, no excuses, no claims of ignorance. Just DO IT. Do it now. Start this week. HOW? WHAT? WHERE? Well, join me for 90 days to 90 meals. Then, we will start all over and do another 90 days to 90 meals. Food storage seems overwhelming, expensive and confusing. Most of us just simply take a back seat because of this. If you break it down, it can be easy and in almost any circumstances, doable. It's the "DO " that is the hard part. We can do it! Here's the plan....

We all should have some basic grains around. Our wheat, rice, powdered milk, beans , etc. If you are LDS, you probably have cans and buckets under beds and in cupboards. If you don't, you should. If you are not LDS, you can still purchase these items at great prices. Hook up with an LDS friend for details or visit our website at LDS.org and check under the preparedness link. There is so much great info and they will even help you figure out how much to store. I won't go into that because you can figure that all out on your own. What I want to do is move onto meals. I don't want to live off my wheat and beans. I think I would pretty much be sick of that after two weeks. I want to eat well, balanced and meals with variety. I want to stock things I will eat on a regular basis, things I can rotate so I don't have to waste. I want to have food that is not packaged with preservatives. It can be cheap and easy. I have learned much from Wendi Dewitt (link at right, Everything under the sun) and now am putting it to work.

Here is the plan. Each month, I will post 3 meals and all ingredients needed. You then times that by 10 and you will have 30 meals for the month. If you don't like my meals, create your own. Post them here if you would like so we can all share. We all like different things. They will be simple, easy and cheap. You should also do the same thing with breakfast but I think we can all figure that out ourselves. I still want blueberry pancakes so I will be canning some blueberries. Whatever you want.I also plan on canning meat for my meals and some may not have access to a pressure canner. You can purchase it in cans or go meatless if you want. I highly recommend buying a canner if at all possible. All American pressure canners are a great brand. If you want info, email me. But, here is the first meal I plan on stocking up on this week. And, as always, let me know if you find great deals out there on any great item. It is important to be buying your basic toiletries in bulk also. That is part of our home fortification plan as well. Who wants to go without toothpaste or shampoo. Yuck.

Tortilla Soup

(from SIL Megan)


1/2 pound chicken. (pressure canned or purchased)
1/4 cup dried , minced onion (fresh, 1 onion, chopped)
2 cans diced tomatoes, undrained (14.5 ounce)
1 can tomato sauce (8 ounce)
1 can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 carton (32 ounce) chicken broth or powdered
2 T olive oil
1 T chili powder
1 tsp Garlic powder
1 tsp ground cumin

If cooking this with fresh chicken, cook chicken in pan or boil. set aside.If using dried onions, rehydrate onions in water first, drain and then saute just slightly in olive oil release flavor. Watch to make sure they don't brown.If using fresh onions, saute as usual.Add all other ingredients. Shred or chop chicken. If you are going meatless, add extra beans.Simmer at least 20 minutes. You can add chips, cheese , cilantro, etc. if available.

Times this all by 10. It is a really cheap and nutritious dinner. I like the canned beans at fresh and Easy because they only have salt and water in them. They are under $.60 a can. I store lots of dried beans but also have canned beans on hand for power issues. I love the organic canned tomatoes from Costco. There you go. Recipe number 1!