Long Term Food Storage sticker facts

Ever opened a case of #10 cans or found a random can with a missing or faded label. Then thought to yourself, "I wonder what surprise is inside or how to prepare it?

Well I can't help you decide what is inside. However, I can help with how to prepare it or what the serving size and nutritional facts are of that product.

Below are the stickers that go on those can from a church cannery near you. 

Are YOU Prepared?

Canning Dry Beans

 

 

 I am not prepared to reinvent the wheel...So with the proper acknowledgment and shout out to http://amatterofpreparedness.blogspot.com/2010/02/i-dont-have-time.html

 I will give credit where credit is due, along with my applause and thanks for this brilliant idea.

 

I usually only buy canned beans when I can pick them up for 50.cents or less. Then I will fill my shelves with them for future use.

I happen to LOVE to can and see my shelves overflowing with bottles of goodness.

Here is a simple way to keep your shelves full without a ton of work.

 

Much easier then soaking and cooking the dry beans forever. Dry beans are a perfect storage item, and canning them is a perfect go to for quick and easy meal preparation.

 

A Win, Win I'd say!

Enjoy these easy to follow steps then try it for yourself!

Wash and sort your beans.  Sometimes beans have rocks or small sticks in them.  I use my colander and do this step.

Clean and sterilize your jars and lids.

Set up your jars and place a funnel into the first jar.

 

For pints, put a 1/2 Cup of dry beans into the jar.  For quarts, use 1 Cup of dry beans.

 

For pints, put in 1/2 teaspoon of salt.  For quarts, use 1 teaspoon.

Fill up the jar with water.  Leave about 3/4 inch of headspace.  I just put water in until I reach the glass circle that stops the ring when it is screwed on.

 

Here, you see that I have 4 different types of beans.  That is one of the things that is so great about doing this.  I only can a few jars at a time....as I need them.  I have Black beans, Navy Beans, Pinto Beans, and Kidney Beans that I will be canning in this batch.

Wipe off the top of the jar with a clean cloth.

 

Place a sterilized lid on the jar.

Next, place the ring on the jar.

 

 

 

Place the jars into your Pressure Canner.  If you have hard water, make sure you put in a few Tablespoons of Vinegar into the water in your Canner.  If you don't, your jars will come out with a hard-water film on the outside of them.  The beans will be fine, your jars will look.....funny.

Here, you can see that I have 7 pints in my canner.  This is equivalent to 7 cans of beans.  Process them for 90 minutes at 15 lbs of pressure. 

 

After 90 minutes, allow the canner to cool naturally.  Do not rush the cooling process as beans have protein.  You should never rush a canner to cool quickly when canning proteins.  After the cooling process, remove the jars from the Canner. 

 

 

Here is a jar of Navy beans.  As you can see, most of them are plump, but some are not.  There is no reason to worry.  After a few days, they all will be plump.

 

Once again, THANK YOU http://amatterofpreparedness.blogspot.com

Dinner by Jared and Kim

DINNER!

 

Now here is a PERFECT food storage dinner idea.

What makes this even BETTER is that it was created by a young Utah boy.

I found it on this blog http://www.provident-living-today.com/cheesy-beans-rice-casserole.html

So go ahead and check it out. All credit and praise  go to Jared.

 

Cheesy Beans & Rice Casserole

by Jared
(Utah)

Jared Holding His Casserole

       This is one our family's favorite pinto bean recipes. This is Jared's creation.

He made it all by himself.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups cooked rice
• 4 cups refried beans (two 16 oz. cans)
• 6 eggs
• 3/8 cup wheat flour
• 1 small can of green chilies
• 2-3 cups cheese

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Layer 1 Spread approximately 4 cups of cooked rice on the bottom of a 8" x 11" baking dish.

Layer 2 Next spread approximately 4 cups of refried beans on top of the rice. You can use homemade pinto beans or refried pinto beans from a can.

Layer 3 Mix the eggs, flour, and green chilies together and pour the mixture over the beans.

Layer 4 Sprinkle the cheese on top of the egg mixture.

Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.

Optional - Sprinkle diced fresh tomatoes on top of the casserole when it comes out of the oven.


Here is one more to try using real food storage, from the same website...

Macaroni & Cheese (Kraft style)

by Kim Wengreen
(Mendon, Utah)

1 c. macaroni
1/2 t. salt
2 T. powdered milk mixed with 1/4 c. hot water OR 1/4 c. milk
4 T. butter powder mixed with 3 T. water OR 1/4 c. butter
1/3 c. cheese powder

Boil macaroni with salt until tender; drain, but don't rinse.

In the meantime, blend together milk and butter mixtures.

When pasta is cooked and drained, add milk, butter, and cheese powder and mix well. Serve hot.

Dinner is on

For the month of March we will focus on DINNER meals.

If you have hit up any of the case lot sale at the grocery stores lately, then you probably already have everything you need to whip up a quick meal.

What I seem to lack, is the ideas or creativity to make the same meal seem new.

 

Here is one I just threw together and was very pleased with the out come.

I know everyone has made a Taco Soup type recipe. But do you really follow a recipe or could you make it the same way 2 times in a row?

NOT me!

 

So when I found this recipe on Pinterest and it was titled 8 can taco soup. Well it had me!

Normally I grab a ton of cans from the pantry and go for it. Which frankly is fine, that's how I cook. But this was outlined and easy, No guess work. Give it a try.
My family Loved it!

 

 

recipe and picture courtesy of:http://www.highheelsandgrills.com/2012/09/8-can-taco-soup.html

 

 



Ingredients:

• 1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (15 oz.) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 (14.5 oz.) can petite diced tomatoes, drained
• 1 (15.25 oz.) can sweet corn, drained
• 1 (12.5 oz.) can white chicken breast, drained
• 1 (10.75 oz.) can cream of chicken soup
• 1 (10 oz.) can green enchilada sauce
• 1 (14 oz.) can chicken broth
• 1 packet taco seasoning

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients together in a large pot.
2. Heat until warm, stirring occasionally.
3. Serve with tortilla chips. 

So you see how easy it is to cook with your food storage!

Crockpot Refried Beans

Nothing says Food Storage like BEANS

I have tried this recipe a couple of times and been very impressed with how easy and delicious it is.

Give it a try.

                     Slow Cooker Refried Beans (without the Refry!)

recipe courtesy of
 http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2011/07/slow-cooker-refried-beans-without-refry.html  

• 1 onion, peeled and halved
• 3 cups dry pinto beans, rinsed
• 1/4-1/2 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 3 teaspoons salt
• 1 3/4 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cumin (optional)
• 5 cups water
• 4 cups chicken broth

-Place the onion, rinsed beans, jalapeno, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin into a slow cooker. Pour in the water and chicken broth and stir to combine. Cook on High for 8 hours, adding more water as needed. Note: if more than 1 cup of water has evaporated during cooking, then the temperature is too high.

-Once the beans have cooked, strain them, and reserve the liquid. Mash the beans with a potato masher, adding the reserved water as needed to attain desired consistency.

-If you want to turn this into a big batch of bean dip, add the following:

2 cups salsa

2 cups shredded Colby Jack cheese

2 cups shredded pepperjack cheese

8 oz. cream cheese

16 oz. sour cream

2 Tbls chili powder

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

Mix in with the beans and let cook a couple hours longer so flavors can blend. Makes a huge batch so just freeze leftovers!

Homemade Flour Tortillas

In celebration of Cinco de Mayo, I thought I would post this easy "how to" for flour tortillas.

 I LOVE Mexican food and I own one of these tortilla presses. So no excuse here. Besides, it's Food Storage at it's best...Flour and water (and a little bit of fat).

So go ahead, Try It!

Homemade Flour Tortillas

Surprise the family with an authentic Mexican dinner tonight. I made some refried beans the other day that were SO easy and Yummy too. This is what I did...

Refried Beans

3 cups dry pinto beans
1 whole onion cut in half and placed in the pot
2 t salt
1 t. pepper
3 t. chili powder
1 t.cumin
5 pieces of bacon cooked and crumbled (I didn't take the time to add this, but it would have been really good I bet)
1 jalapeno
Throw everything in the crock pot and cook on high for 8 to 10 hours

After it is done, throw it in a blender and blend it up. That is it! It freezes well.
When I made it we had burritos and I blender some and left some whole. I liked it both ways. I had plenty left over so I put some in containers and froze for late. How easy is that?!

This is how I did it.

Here is the crock pot of beans. The chunks you see is just the onion and peppers. No need to cut anything up cause it just blends right up in the blender.





See, perfectly smooth refired beans without the refry!

Which just = healthier.



AAHH, now time to assemble.

Refried beans and some whole beans, cheese tomatoes and sour cream. Would be even better with some lettuce or cabbage.



The final product.

This took me maybe 10 minutes top to throw everything in the crock pot. (I rinsed the beans only, no need to soak over night.) Then several hours later I just threw some in the blender and dinner was ready.



Substitutions and Amounts

I just found this on one of my go to blogs  on food storage(http://everydayfoodstorage.net/) . I hope it gets you motivated to use some of those beans you have stashed away somewhere in your house. Besides the healthy alternative, it will save you some money too.

How to use Food Storage Beans for Butter and/or Oil

Beans in place of butter and oil. Why? Well beans are CHEAP, from your dry beans you can make the equivalent of a can of beans (which is about a pound) for under 20 cents! Has anyone seen what a pound of butter costs these days? Last time I checked it was around $3 a pound-good grief. Plus, beans are virtually fat free, full of protein and fiber which means less calories and they make you feel full! No joke! I can eat one piece of cake made with beans instead of oil and feel FULL. Before I could eat 2 (or 3 or 4) and not feel satisfied. Plus, beans make a very moist product and I promise there is no bean taste! And just because I know you’re wondering, I don’t use powdered butter or shortening because for the most part it isn’t cheaper than using fresh plus it lacks the protein and fiber of beans. So, I want to make sure you all understand how to use the beans and how to be successful at it because I’m BIG on YOU figuring out how to do this with YOUR recipes.

TIPS FOR USING BEANS FOR OIL AND BUTTER

1. If your recipe calls for oil, you are going to use a bean puree. What is a bean puree you ask? It’s simply cooked beans with enough water to whirl in your blender. If you want a simple way to try this, take a can of beans (the entire can) and dump it in the blender and blend it. Done.
2. If your recipe calls for butter, you are going to use cooked, drained beans.
3. For substituting beans for both butter and/or oil you are going to use a 1:1 ration. That means if your recipe calls for 3/4 C. oil, you are going to use 3/4 C. bean puree. If your recipe calls for 1 C. butter you are going to use 1 C. beans. You’ll use the same measurements for beans as your original recipe says to use for either the oil and/or butter.
4. When wondering which beans to use-you are going to match color for color. If it is a chocolate cake, use black beans. If it is a spice cake, use pinto beans. If it is a white cake, use white beans. Now, here is the tricky part…you can also use white beans in chocolate cake but you can’t use black beans in your white cake. Your family will wonder what all of those black specks are. To be safe, you can use white beans in almost anything.
5. Now, you’re going to add the beans however your recipe says to use the butter and/or oil. So, if your recipe says to cream the butter with the sugar-you’re going to cream the beans with the sugar. If your recipe says to add the oil to the dry ingredients, you’re going to add the bean puree to the dry ingredients.
6. If you are using beans in something like brownies or cookies that are supposed to be chewy, the beans will not make it chewy-it will be cake like. So if you’re family is big on chewy that doesn’t mean you have an excuse not to use beans. It just means you need to use half oil/butter and half beans. It will still be chewy and you’ll still be saving money and adding fiber and protein! Remember, I’m not big into all or nothing-even a little or half is better than nothing and it’s important that your family likes what you make!

Thank you Crystal!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ever wonder how much grain to grind for a recipe?

Here is a chart that will help. Each of these equal 1 cup of flour.

3/4 C. Wheat
1/2 C. Pearled Barley
1 1/3 C. Rolled Oats (Grind in Blender)
2/3 C. Buckwheat
2/3 C. Quinoa
1/2 C. Navy Bean
2/3 C. Lentles
1/2 C. Chickpeas / Garbanzo Beans
5/8 C. Popcorn
2/3 C. Kamut
2/3 C. Millett

Half Cup Dinner

Last week I experimented with a last minute idea while I was home from work during lunch time. I thought that attempt tasted pretty good. So I attempted it again and this time kept track of exact amounts and made a picture log to share...

I think I need to name it,

 Half Cup Crock Pot Meal

you'll see why soon enough.

I gathered all the dry beans I had along with white rice and wheat.

A REAL Food Storage Meal!

Here they are all together.

1/2 cup black beans

1/2 cup pinto beans

1/2 cup white beans

1/2 cup white rice

1/2 cup white wheat

I rinsed them all and then dumped them into my crock pot.

 Then on top of that I added:

1/2 cup catsup

1/2 cup barbecue sauce

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup dried onions

1 can of chunk pineapple with juice

1 can diced tomatoes with juice

SEE

 Then I added 8 cups of water and stirred it up real good.

 I only had 5 hours to let it cook because I needed to be to Y.W. so we ate.

 We enjoyed it with a couple of whole grain tortillas and decided we were full.
Oh ya, I also added a pint of hamburger that I had in storage to bulk it up. So nice to have that option.

After we ate I turned it to low and left for Y.W.

after another 3 hours I tried another cup of it and it was even better.

The first time I made it I added a cut up bell pepper @ 15 minutes before eating and that was really good too.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Here is a recipe I found that would work well with our long term dry beans.

Emy's chili

2 c. dry pinto beans soaked over night
6 c. water
2 c. brown rice, rinse well
1 diced yellow onion
2 cans tomato sauce
1 quart diced tomatos with juice (or 1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes)
2 Tbsp red pepper flakes
2 garlic cloves
1/2 tsp ground pepper

optional:
any fresh peppers-jalapinos, anaheim, bell etc.
shredded cheese
corn chips

Put the beans in a slow cooker and cook according to time on package (two or more hours). Add the rest of the ingredients except for the optional ones. Let simmer a couple hours. Meal is done once the rice is soft or absorbed. You will want to mix it once or twice while cooking, the rice has a tendency to rest on the bottom and may burn. This meal gets better the longer it sits.

Great as a main course, with nacho's or as a dip.

*This serves as a complete protein because of the beans and rice.

Just a few ideas to get ya thinking about what to do with BEANS.

Black Beans

Black Bean Burgers

Ingredients

• 1/2 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped
• 1 tablespoon chopped garlic
• 2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained, divided
• 2 tablespoons freshly chopped cilantro leaves
• 2 teaspoons freshly chopped parsley leaves
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup bread crumbs
• Salt and fresh ground black pepper
• 4 hamburger rolls

Optional Toppings:

• 1 tomato, sliced
• 4 small Romaine lettuce leaves, or any other type you have on hand
• 1/4 cup ketchup

Directions

Heat a grill or grill pan over medium-low heat.

In a food processor, pulse onion and garlic until finely chopped. Add 1 can black beans, cilantro, parsley, egg, and red pepper flakes and pulse to combine.
Transfer mixture to a large mixing bowl, add the remaining can of black beans and the bread crumbs. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and mix until well combined.
Reserve 1/3 of the black bean mixture for Round 2 Recipe. Divide remaining mixture into 4 portions and form into patties. Place on hot oiled grill over medium-low heat and cook about 6 minutes a side or until heated through. Toast hamburger buns on a grill. Place a burger on the bottom of each bun. Top with lettuce, tomato and ketchup. Cover the burgers with the top of the bun and serve.
Use the leftovers from this recipe in Black Bean Enchiladas.

Recipe is courtesy of Sandy Lee from the food network. Here is a link to watch the video of her making these Black Bean burgers. They look So Yummy! Since I eat with my eyes first, I love to see the food made or at least a picture of it. Hope you do too, enjoy the viedo of the black bean burgers. Then go try some for dinner. I am!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/videos/black-bean-burgers/73036.html

Black Bean Enchiladas

 

Ingredients

• 1 (10-ounce) can enchilada sauce
• 8 corn tortillas
• 1 cup leftover black bean burger mixture
• 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Pour half the of the enchilada sauce into the bottom of a baking dish.

Warm tortillas by wrapping in a damp paper towel and heating in microwave for 45 seconds or until soft and pliable.

Place 2 tablespoons of black bean burger mixture in to the bottom third of a tortilla. Roll the tortilla up and place seam side down into the baking dish. Repeat with remaining black bean burger mixture and tortillas. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the filled tortillas. Top with the Cheddar and bake in the preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until the cheese is browned and bubbly.

How fun and easy is this?! The other half of the recipe for a round 2 meal. It doesn't get much easier when you can watch it being done first, and see the results. Just wish we could smell and taste it too. Enjoy the enchilada video. They are only 2 minutes long.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/videos/r2r-black-bean-enchiladas/38001.html

BLACK BEAN SALSA

• 2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 (17-ounce) package frozen whole kernel corn, thawed
• 2 large tomatoes, seeded and diced
• 1 large avocado, peeled and diced
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1/8 to 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• Salt and pepper

Directions

Mix all ingredients thoroughly in a large bowl. Cover and chill overnight. Taste and add salt, pepper or more lime juice as necessary. Serve with tortilla chips as an appetizer, or with grilled chicken breast as a meal.

Need more BEAN ideas?

Check out http://www.justbeanrecipes.com/ there are a gazillion (yes, I counted! )recipes to view and try. Actually only 4033 recipes, but that should be enough to get your imagination going.

The benefits of BEANS

Ever wonder what benefit BEANS were in your diet?

Low Calorie Food:
When added to boiling water, bean flours thicken in only 1 minute. By replacing bean flour in cream and soup recipes you lower the calories dramatically because you take out the butter.

Great Protein:
Beans are an excellent source of protein, forming a complete protein when combined with rice, corn, and many other foods. Getting protein this way can help you avoid some of the fatty meat proteins.
High in Fiber:

One cup of beans provide the same amount of fiber as 3 standard doses of Metamucil. Not only do they give you the fiber, they are much more pleasant to eat and can be prepared with endless variety of tastes.

Low in Fat:
Nearly all beans contain only 2-3% fat! You can even add oils to some recipes without going above even the 10% fat level recommended by Doctors.

Lower Cholesterol:
Did you know that beans can help lower your cholesterol level? Not only do they contain NO cholesterol, “they actually help the body get rid of what are considered bad cholesterol.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Here’s a little video on making bean condensed soup (like cream of chicken etc). AND if you’re still not a believer…A can of this kind is like 60 calories compared to 210 from a can.

courtesy of www.foodstoragemadeeasy.net

Cream of Chicken Condensed Soup Recipe:

• Grind: 4 T. of any white bean (lima, navy, etc.) to make 5 T bean flour
• Combine: 5 T bean flour, 1 ¾ c. water , 4 t chicken bouillon into a saucepan
• Cook: On stovetop at medium temperature until thick and delicious (whisk frequently).
The soup should cook in 3 minutes! (this may be longer if your grinder makes a very coarse flour).

Use this with cooked veggies and or meat for a complete meal.  You can also add this to recipes calling for cream of chicken soup cans (I have found this replaces a can plus the water or milk in recipes).