Food Storage Friday - Cooking Old Beans

This technique for rescuing old cooking beans comes from my friend "M". She doesn't know yet that her method is the feature of Food Storage Friday.  Thank you, "M"! (Until and unless someone gives me permission to use their name, I will refer to them by their first initial.)

Rice and beans should be a staple in anyone's food storage. Together, they provide all of the amino acids you need to survive. Plus, it's relatively inexpensive. I say "relatively" inexpensive since food prices have skyrocketed lately and nothing is truly inexpensive anymore!

Below is the email I got from "M" that explains how to cook dried beans that have been in storage too long. I'd tried cooking pinto beans and despite nearly an entire day in the crockpot, the beans were still semi-hard. "M" came to my rescue with this technique. I used it on the rest of the pinto beans from that same bag and it worked! I had beautifully plump and tender beans.

Thank you, "M"!

The Mesa, Arizona LDS Cannery had a visit from the top employees of the Quality Control Lab of the LDS Church. They shared something interesting that I thought should be passed on.

 

 

 

 

 

  There are many complaints of not being able to cook “old” pinto beans. After many tests, the following information teaches how to cook old beans. 

 

By boiling the water FIRST then adding the beans, certain enzymes are released and actually allows the beans to soften and cook. By adding the beans and bringing the water to a boil, etc., the labs have found the bean enzymes aren’t released and you will be cooking bean “rocks.” 

 

The longer dry beans are stored, the longer they may take to cook. First, sort and rinse the beans. For each cup of beans, bring 3 cups of water to boil, add the beans to the boiling water, and boil for two minutes. Next, add 3/8 teaspoon of baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) for each cup of beans, cover, and soak for 1 hour or more. More baking soda may be required for older beans. Next, drain and rinse the beans thoroughly, cover with water, bring to boil, then reduce heat and simmer 1-2 hours or until tender.

 

Do not add salt or other ingredients until the beans have softened adequately.

"Volunteer" plants

I took a walk around the yard today and this time kept my eyes on the ground. Look what I found!
Volunteer herbs.

This is mullein. I've seen it called Cowboy Toilet Paper because of the thick, fuzzy leaves. I don't think I'd use it as toilet paper, since those fuzzies can also be irritating to sensitive skin! It's also used in various herbal medicines, teas and the like.

 

Mullein is a biennial plant. It's first year, it grows a rosette of leaves like this:

 

 

During the second year, it grows a tall spike with yellow flowers. Those flowers can produce in excess of 100,000 seeds.  The seeds can lay dormant for over 100 years before sprouting.

 

 

This mullein in the yard is taller than I am.

 

 

I also found Yarrow.

 

 

This variety is low-growing. Yarrow is used in different herbal remedies and supposedly can work to stop bleeding from cuts or wounds.

 

 

And here is a little mint plant I found growing along a brick path. I should probably dig him up and put him some place a little nicer for growing.

 

 

I have no doubt there are other edible or medicinal plants around here. In order to avoid dangerous mistakes, I'm going to see if someone knowledgeable in such things will come out and teach me how not to poison myself and others with foraged plants!

 

 

Do any of you have experience with foraged plants?











Hay Nets - Slow Feeders Versions 1.0 through 1.3

I decided, for a couple of reasons, that I wanted to use hay nets for my horses. Hay nets slow them down when eating. It's good for their digestion since it's more like grazing. It takes them longer to eat, so it gives them something to do. Plus, hay nets help keep the hay from getting scattered around and wasted.

You can buy hay nets (also called "slow feeders") at most equine supply places. But when I priced it out, I realized it was cheaper to buy some net and make my own.

For about $100 (including shipping) I got 15 feet of 60" wide hockey goal netting from Arizona Sports Equipment. It's enough to make four hay nets.

 

Why four nets when we only have three horses? So that when the horses jostle and push each other around from net to net, there are always open nets available for the low guy in the pecking order.

 

 

The net is fairly substantial with 1 1/2" mesh.

 

 

I cut it into four pieces, which left raw edges.

 





It's simple to melt the ends with a lighter. Don't touch the recently melted ends...it's hot as molten lava. (Not that I have any personal experience getting burned by it or anything.....Ow, ow, ow!!)

 

It seemed like bailing twine would be the perfect material for sewing up the open ends and attaching the nets to the rail fence. But in reality, it wasn't.

 

This is Kipp trying out Hay Net Ver. 1.0. There's a serious design flaw that he noticed about a minute into the experiment. Instead of using a running stitch with the twine down the vertical sides, for reasons I cannot explain I made individual knots. I know, I know! It seemed like a good idea at the time. Kipp had the side ripped open in about 3 minutes flat.

 

 

I fixed it with a running stitch and it seemed to be OK. The net is folded in half. The back half is tied to the rail. The front side is attached to a length of 1" PVC pipe. Having the pipe woven through the top edge of the net provides some structure. I can just open up the top of the net and slip a few flakes of hay in there.

 

 

 

 

It takes horses a little while to figure out how to pull hay out through the net. To reduce their frustration at being hungry and having to figure out how to eat from these contraptions Mom has built, I put a few flakes of hay on the ground in addition to what was in the nets.

 

Overnight, they managed to flip one of the nets over the top of the fence. Another was dismantled and the PVC pipe was pulled out and on the ground, which left the top of the net wide open. 

 

Here is Hay Net Ver. 1.2. I've used zip ties to attach the net to the top of the rail fence.

 

I've also used a zip tie loop to hold the PVC pipe more securely.

 

While I was changing over to the zip ties, I watched our paint horse Jesse working patiently on the blue twine that stitched the side seams. Although he hasn't gotten it apart yet, no doubt he will figure it out eventually. He's the Harry Houdini of horses and can figure out how to get into or out of just about anything.

 

So here is Hay Net Ver. 1.3 with small zip ties (instead of bailing twine) holding the sides of the net together.

 

 

 

Kipp was supervising all of my efforts today. He would helpfully try out each version. He developed a technique for eating from the net. He picks up the net with his teeth and shakes it hard. Hay sifts out through the holes. He drops the net, eats the hay that fell onto the ground, then shakes the net again. It's an effective technique and he's pretty smart for figuring it out. However, it's defeating the purpose of the net.

 

I may have to secure the back of the net to the fence so he can't lift it up to shake it.

 

 

Here are the nets as they stand now...waiting for another night of abuse from The Boys. I have three of them installed. Should have the fourth done tomorrow. They hold three, maybe four, flakes of hay each. Including the zip ties and PVC, they cost $115 total.

 



 

 





Hoop-de-do: Hoop House Ver. 1.1

I was right...the hoops were "floppy". Part of the problem is that the hoops are too tall. A contributing factor is that they're made from 1/2" PVC, which is fairly thin and flexible.

 

Without modifications, this whole thing will topple over.

So, I trimmed one foot from the length of the hoops. It might take another foot to do the trick.

Speaking of doing the trick, I've abandoned the hacksaw for cutting PVC in favor if this handy-dandy gadget. This is the best thing since sliced bread! It ratchets down and cuts the PVC cleanly with no ragged edges. Sweet! It cost about $12 at the local big box store.

Have I mentioned that I'm really liking working with PVC?

The next 'improvement' was end supports. This is 3/4" PVC attached with pipe straps to the short end of the bed. Notice the wicked curve in the board.  I wasn't really picky when I chose boards for these beds. Maybe I should be more careful next time?

 

Until I know what the final height of the hoops will be, I've left the end support long. It's attached with a zip tie temporarily, but I'll use a 90 degree elbow PVC fitting eventually.

 

 

I'm also beginning to wonder if metal conduit would be a better choice for the hoops? More expensive, but probably more durable. 



Mac & Cheese for Grown-ups

I'm delighted to introduce another guest contributor to Meanwhile, back at the ranch...

Richard, an extraordinary chef, has graciously shared his recipe for Grown-Up Macaroni and Cheese. This recipe contribution came about because I'd confessed my secret love for Kraft Macaroni and Cheese in the blue box. Being a true friend, Richard tried to rescue me from powdered orange cheese.

While I'll always harbor a fondness for Kraft, I'm intrigued by this recipe, especially the dessert variation!

A very big "Thank you!" to Richard!



White Cheese and Pasta by Richard
(or Mac & Cheese for Grownups)

Basic Ingredients

1 8oz brick cream cheese - this is your base cheese
1 cup total volume of any single or combination of the following; Monterrey Jack Cheese, Asiago, Goat, Gruyere - almost any semi firm white will work.
1/2 cup shredded Mozzarella
1/4 cup Parmesan and/or Romano
4Tbs REAL butter
1 cup heavy cream - sub lighter milks if you insist
1 tsp dried or 3 tsp fresh herbs to start - adjust to taste
Garlic to taste
Salt to taste
Fresh ground pepper to taste
1/2 lb uncooked pasta ( that would be 8 oz for the mathematically challenged cook... :-)

Options

Tuna

 Cooked sausages - Italian, sweet, hot or combined is my favorite but Chorizo, Kielbasa, even Breakfast Sausage works.

 1 - 2 cups fresh chopped veggies - I use tomato most of the time but broccoli florets, green chili's, peas, shredded carrots etc. can be used alone or combined with the appropriate meats.

My most requested dish goes like this;
Prep all cheeses and let them come to room temp

 I use a combination of 1/2 lb each sweet and hot Italian sausage with the casings removed. Cook this first.

 While elbow or small shell pasta cooks I combine cream cheese, Jack and 1/2 cup of heavy cream in a small sauce pan. If I MUST use an electric stove, I use a double boiler. Since I have a gas stove at home, I heat the cheese on medium low heat, stirring frequently. You want this to end up being the consistency of a fondue. Add cream or milk as needed and keep it hot and liquid until pasta is done.

I microwave the butter with about 2 crushed and chopped cloves of fresh garlic and 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper until it is completely melted.

 When the pasta is about 3 or 4 minutes to done add 1 tsp dried Italian spice seasoning to the cheese sauce.

 When the pasta is done, drain it well but don't rinse unless you are using boiling water. Return hot pasta to the pot and place back on the burner. Immediately stir in the hot butter. When pasta is well combined with the butter, stir in the cooked sausage followed by the cheese sauce. When all that is mixed well i add the grated Parmesan and Romano.

I take the pan off the heat and let it cool just enough to let the cheese sauce thicken and add fresh chopped tomato and for a nice finish I add 1/4 cup fresh chopped basil and 1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley.

That is the basic order things get added.

This process adapts well to completely different regional types of cooking. Make it a Southwestern dish with asiago cheese, green chili's, shredded pork and finished with fresh chopped cilantro.

Tuna and canned peas with shredded carrots is a nice Midwestern choice.

 I've added crab, shrimp and even lobster with fresh chopped chives and lemon grass for a coastal variation.

 Kielbasa with broccoli florets and raw sliced red bell pepper for my Northern friends.

 Heat it up with some cayenne in the butter if you like a little mystery punch to any of these.

 If you want to get real adventurous, (and I have) make it with the creme cheese and some sweet dessert cheese and add apples with browned walnuts. Refrigerate it until completely cooled. Serve it up topped with whipped cream, drizzled chocolate and add fresh fruit like strawberries, blueberries and raspberries.

Water

One of the exercises in last week's 7 Day Challenge from the Food Storage Made Easy website was to act as if there was a water outage for the day.

At the time, I had no water stored at all. Had that been an actual emergency, I'd have been in deep trouble. To make things even worse, I had empty water containers in the garage. I'd have been kicking my dry, parched, dehydrated self.

Happily, those containers are now full and I have 36 gallons of water at the ready.

 

Thirty-six gallons is a start, however it's not nearly enough for us. Our three horses will need a bare minimum of 30 gallons of water every day. Add to that one gallon per person per day for drinking and cooking, plus another one gallon per person per day for basic hygiene. Realistically, we need about 50 gallons of water per day.

 

I have found a unique bucket designed to fit into modern well pipes. Lehman's Non-electric sells a nifty one for $70. A real bargain considering that's about the only option we have for getting water from our well in the event of a power outage.

 

Rain barrels are also in my plans for water storage. I'd put a few at the house and a few more at the barn.

 

 But I digress....I was talking about storing water in containers.

 

We have well water, so it is not chlorinated. I added 16 drops of regular, unscented household chlorine bleach to each gallon of water in those containers.

 

 



 



The bleach helps keep icky bacteria from growing in the stored water. I will still boil this water before I'd use it for drinking or cooking.

 

 

It's a good idea to rotate your water storage just like food storage. Water in containers such as these is probably good for six months. After that, use it up and fill the containers with a fresh supply.

 

I strongly urge you to educate yourself on safe water storage. Below are a few links to helpful sites. I cannot be held responsible for any mishaps or illness you may experience if you store water based on the personal experiences I have detailed here. Please read what experts have to say on the subject!

 

Food Storage Made Easy - Water Storage

 

 



FEMA Web Page on Water Storage

Over the last year or so, I've been saving empty 2-liter soda bottles and have a few dozen on hand. I filled those up with water and eight drops of the bleach for safety. Soda bottles and plastic bottles from juice are fine for storing water. Don't use milk jugs though. It's impossible to get them completely clean from milk and the plastic is the kind that degrades quickly.

I know there is much more to do before I can feel comfortable with our Plan B for water. But at least I have some water stored now.

The second "crop" is in

The lettuce I planted six days ago has sprouted. There are about a dozen tiny plants so far. In the photo, it's the out-of-focus green thing to the right of the stick. Sorry about the fuzzy photo.

Nothing yet from the spinach, chard or collards.

I picked up six strawberry plants on clearance at one of the big box stores. They are the Elam variety.

This 2' x 10' bed is one of several I have planned for strawberries.

I filled it just like the others with chicken wire underneath landscape fabric, paper and the Square Foot Gardening mix. Since I had some empty paper bags from the vermiculite in the SFG mix, I used them instead of moving boxes and packing paper to help keep the weeds down inside the bed.

I staggered the plants in the bed to give them some room to stretch and grow.

I need 14 more plants to fill this bed. There's an ad on the local Craigs List from somebody selling their extra strawberry plants for $1 each, so I'm going tomorrow to get some. I've realized that Craigs List is a really helpful resource.

By next year at this time, these plants will have sent out runners and I may be able to separate some of them to plant in another bed. Within a few years, these original plants should have enough "babies" for me to expand the strawberry patch to several other beds....such as the empty one there in the background.

This 3' x 3' bed is for garlic. Fall is the time to plant it.

  I'm putting in Spanish Rojo hardneck garlic. Hardneck garlics are hardier and more suited for growing in Northern climates. Softneck varieties will store better/longer than hardneck, but grow best in milder, Southern climates.

 

 

You just break the garlic head apart and plant the individual cloves.  Put them in with the pointy end up and the root end down. Push them in about 2 1/2".

 Each square foot of the bed gets nine "seed" garlic cloves. I used scrap PVC pieces to mark off each square foot section.

Once I got all the garlic heads broken up, I only had about 70 cloves, so some of the square foot spaces didn't get the full nine. However, that's still quite a bit of garlic for a 3'x3' bed. This is why SFG is so wonderful....you really maximize minimal space!

Once winter arrives, I'll put about 6" of mulch over this entire bed to protect it. Since there are a lot of pine needles around, that's what I'll use for mulch.

The asparagus plants I ordered have been delayed in shipping again and aren't scheduled to arrive until December now. Ugh! I think that will be too late for "fall" planting and they'll have to wait until spring to go in the ground.

Swiss Chard Soup

Occasionally, I will have guest contributors to this blog. I've asked people from all walks of life to share their experiences, projects and recipes with you.

This morning, I'm honored to introduce my very first guest contributor....my Mom! Yay, Mom!

Mom tried a new food and a new recipe at the local farmer's market.


FROM MOM:

"I read about you planting Swiss Chard, and want to tell you about how I found a good recipe for Swiss Chard Soup.

"At our local Farmers' Market a man had a booth where he was cooking this soup, and was giving free samples of it, with the recipe. The soup tasted delicious, so I bought a bunch of Swiss Chard, which I had never eaten before. I had the other ingredients at home, so I made a pot of the soup, and shared some with my next-door neighbors. The soup is similar to Wedding Soup.
"
Here is the recipe:

SWISS CHARD SOUP


3 cups small pasta
4 cups chicken broth, with 4 cups water
4 cups chopped Swiss Chard, stems included
1 cup chopped onion
2 cloves minced garlic
1 Tbsp pepper
3/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Bring broth and water to a boil. Add all the ingredients, except for the cheese.
Reduce heat, and simmer until pasta is cooked.
Serve in a bowl, adding two Tbsp cheese to each serving.
Makes about 6 servings

The 7 Day Challenge: Day 7

Today is the final day of The 7 Day Challenge by Jodi and Julie at Food Storage Made Easy. This is the only one I know I can do. Despite the fact that I went into these last seven days feeling pretty good about my efforts to be ready for disasters, the challenges exposed gaping holes in my preparations.

Initially, I was upset with myself over it. But then I realized what a blessing these challenges have been. Better to find the gaps in my emergency plan now when it's only a test, than when it's a real emergency.



Today you felt a prompting to do an act of service for someone in need. A dear friend is really struggling and it would be very helpful if you brought him/her a meal or a special treat. You have a super busy day with no time to run to the store, but you still want to make something NICE.
Goal: Have a go-to meal or treat on hand for “emergency” acts of service

Today’s Tasks:

• Cook either a full dinner or a special treat for someone in need (be prayerful/thoughtful about this and really try to find someone you can do this for)
• Use only ingredients from your food storage
• Make a list of 2 meals and 2 treats that you can always create from your storage that would be nice enough to give to another family. Make sure you keep the ingredients on hand for them (add to your report card if necessary)
• Once you have performed your “act of service” you are DONE with the challenge!
• Compile all your report cards from the week into a master list of things to do, learn, and buy (use our master plan outline to help guide you)

The first "crop" is in!

I planted lettuce, spinach, swiss chard and collards today. With a little luck, they'll provide us with fresh salads and greens through most of the winter. The chard and collards are an experiment for me...I've never planted them before. They might make for good late season veggies, they might not.

Eventually, I'm going to fence the entire garden to keep the critters out. In the meantime, to protect the plants from both frost and deer, I built a hoop house over the bed. I used PVC pipe because it's easy to work with and is perfectly suited for this project.

I cut 1/2" PVC into 6" lengths to use as supports for the hoops.

The supports were attached to the wooden side of the garden bed using pipe straps...

 

...and these screws that I had on hand.

 

 

 

 I used 10' lengths of Schedule 40 PVC for the hoops.

 

 

The ends of the PVC hoop fit into the supports.

 



 

I put five hoops along the length of this 10 foot bed, then added a ridge pole for stability.

 

 

Those are zip ties holding the ridge pole to the hoops.

 

 

One of my neighbors is using this black plastic deer barrier so I'm trying it too. It seems a little thin and flimsy, though.

 

 

The deer netting is seven feet wide, so it took two lengths to completely cover the hoops. I used a couple of zip ties to attach it to the ridge pole.

 

 

I don't know how effective this stuff will be against hungry deer.



I used binder clips to clip the netting to the bottom hoops. Then I laid a couple of boards along the ground on the outside of the bed to anchor the edges down. All I need to do to get into the bed is flip the boards back, unclip the net, then fold it over the top.

 

 

Here is what I planted today:

 













 

 

My tongue depressor plant markers.

 

 

If I am left alone for too long in a doctor's exam room, I will get curious about what's in all those drawers and cabinets!

 

I only planted a little bit of each, in case things go horribly wrong and the deer get my seedlings.  I can do another crop in about two weeks if these sprout and the deer don't notice.

 

 

Those hoops are a little floppy. I have my doubts about their ability to withstand Colorado wind and snow. Once the weather gets cold, I'll put clear plastic over top of the deer net to make a mini greenhouse/cold frame under the hoops. I'm concerned the hoops won't be strong enough to hold all of that. 

 

Maybe if I add a support on each end? Or cut the hoops down a foot or two so they aren't so tall? I like them tall, since it's easy to get under them to plant, water and harvest. And tall ones like that will protect even big tomato plants.  I guess I'll have to experiment to find out what works best.

 

 

So there you have it....Hoop House Version 1.0. I'll let you know how it goes and when the seeds sprout!