EVERYDAY FOOD STORAGE » Fanatic Friday

Thanksgiving Fanatic Friday Contestant #1: Whole Wheat Pumpkin Muffins

Crystal — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 02:52:41 +0000

I love this idea from Marci H. Personally, I never think about breakfast the morning of Thanksgiving, too excited for that turkey! Anyway, and growing up my mom definitely didn’t, too busy working on that turkey! I love that these can be prepared the night before and then baked the next day. What a wonderful idea! (Especially, since I’ve tested it and you can definitely enjoy more (READ: eat more) thanksgiving dinner if you’ve eaten breakfast…c’mon, by now you all should know I’m a little obsessed with food…and eating it!)

Whole Wheat Pumpkin Muffins
1 ¼ c whole wheat flour
¾ c quick oats
1/3 c brown sugar
½ tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ginger
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp cloves
¾ tsp baking powder
½ tsp soda
½ tsp salt
2 eggs (2 T. dry egg powder + 1/4 c. water)
1 c pumpkin
1/3 c veg. oil
1/3 c honey

Mix dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and mix until moist. Spoon into muffin cups. May be refrigerated overnight and cooked in the morning.
Bake 400º for 15-20 min.

Want to enter the Fanatic Friday recipe contest? December will be all about Neighborhood gifts. There’s no better way to make sure your neighbors AREN’T knocking down your door for food storage…and that’s by getting them hooked! Share what you’ve done and can do to try and get your neighbors excited about food storage through a neighborhood gift! Please share it with us at fanaticfridays@gmail.com! For more information on the contest click HERE. The winner will receive 2 Conversion Chart Magnet sets…perfect for Christmas!

Fanatic Friday Contestant #4-Pumpkin Bread Bowls with Witches Brew…more food storage recipes!

Crystal — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 14:23:15 +0000

Thank you so much for sending in your recipes for this month’s Fanatic Friday Recipe Contest! Here is the last contestant for this month’s Fanatic Friday’s contest. Mirien C. sent this to me and it looks fantastic doesn’t it?

Pumpkin Bread Bowls
Mirien C.
Makes 4 medium bread bowls—I double this recipe for our family
Ingredients
2 T. instant yeast
1/4 cup sugar
2 cups warm water
4 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup oil
6 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (I use white wheat)
Yellow, red, and green food coloring

Instructions: It seems like a lot of steps, but these are really pretty easy. They can be made the day before you use them. I use my Bosch mixer, knead for 10 minutes, and skip the first rise in #3. But for those who don’t have bread mixers, follow the steps below.
1. In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water. Add the salt, oil, and flour and combine.
2. Knead the dough on a floured tabletop, adding more flour if needed, until it is smooth and elastic but not sticky or soft.
3. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, turn it over once, then cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise just until it has doubled in bulk (about 1 to 1 1/2 hours).
4. Punch down the dough. Divide the dough into four portions, and remove a small piece of dough from each portion for the stems.
5. Shape each pumpkin by grasping the dough from the bottom, stretching it upward, and gathering it on the top. Repeat this process until you have a uniform ball. Then firmly pinch together the gathered dough in the center and turn over the ball. Now gently squeeze the middle of the pumpkin to make it stand as tall as possible.
6. Place the pumpkin on a parchment-paper-lined sheet pan. Grease one end of a toothpick and insert it into the dough stem so that it protrudes an inch from the top. Stick the other end into the pumpkin top. Then cover each pumpkin with plastic wrap and let it rise to twice its size.
7. Uncover the risen dough. Holding the stem, slowly twist the toothpick to loosen it but don’t remove it.
8. In a small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of water with 30 drops of yellow and 6 drops of red food coloring. Transfer a half teaspoon of the mixture to a small saucer and stir in a drop of green food coloring.
Use a small pastry brush to paint the stem green (the brush should not be too wet). Gently apply a coat of orange to the globe using a larger brush and long, soft strokes. Let the paint dry for about 2 minutes.
With a sharp knife, lightly score the dough to create the pumpkin’s vertical grooves (adults only).
9. Heat the oven to 375 degrees and bake the bread until it sounds hollow when you tap the crust, about 35 to 40 minutes.
10. Set the pumpkin on a cooling rack and twist the toothpick to remove it. If the crust seems soft, cool the bread completely, then bake it for another 5 to 10 minutes.
Before serving, slice off the top of the pumpkin and pull out the bread from the inside, leaving the bowl about 1” thick on the sides and bottom. Fill with thick soup.

Note: I’ve tried coloring the dough orange with food coloring before baking, but I’ve found that painting it on before baking looks much better.

Witches’ Brew (Split Pea and Barley Soup)
Mirien C.
My kids love this soup—maybe because we’ve always called it witches’ brew. It’s warm and filling—perfect food to eat before trick or treating. It’s so easy, too. Just put everything in the crockpot and forget about it until it’s time to eat.

INGREDIENTS
1 onion, chopped
1 bay leaf
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups dried split peas
1/2 cup barley
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
9 cups water or chicken broth
3 carrots, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
3 potatoes, diced (I don’t peel them!)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley or 2 T. dried
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS
Place all ingredients in a large slow cooker and stir until well combined. Cook for 3-4 hours on high or 6-8 hours on low. Add more water if soup is too thick. Serve in bread bowls.

TIME TO VOTE!

If you don’t remember the other three, you can check them out below…

Contestant #1: Pumpkin Sloppy Joes

Contestant #2: Jock-o-lantern Pot Pie

Contestant #3: Chili Getti

Remember, you’re deciding which dinner MY FAMILY should eat for Halloween and the winner gets “Deceptively Delicious” (one of my favorite cookbooks!). It’s easy to vote, just leave a comment for which recipe my family should eat! (If you missed the story, my husband and I “debate” every year about what the “proper” Halloween Dinner is-either Spaghetti or Chili Bake…so this year, I’m brining it to the masses and letting you decide with a third party option!)

Want to enter the Fanatic Friday recipe contest? November will be all about Thanksgiving favorites. Did you know that even the Pilgrims were counseled to have a year supply of food? There’s no better way to celebrate them than to make things for Thanksgiving that use items from OUR one year supply. Have a food storage recipe that would be perfect to serve on Thanksgiving? Please share it with us at fanaticfridays@gmail.com! For more information on the contest click HERE.

Fanatic Fridays Contestant #3

Crystal — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 07:05:36 +0000

Our third contestant in the “What in the world should Crystal’s family eat for Halloween” is Heidi, this is what she had to say…”Since you like spaghetti and your husband likes chili bake, I thought it would be perfect to share a recipe from my grandma called Chili Ghetti. It hasn’t been a yearly Halloween dinner, but I think it would be great to start making it a tradition. I always loved when my mom made this growing up. Enjoy!”

Chili Ghetti

1 lb. hamburger, browned and drained
2 15 oz. cans chili
3 1/2 c. tomatoes, chopped (or 2 15 oz. cans stewed tomatoes, chopped)
8 oz. spaghetti, cooked and drained
3 c. grated cheddar cheese
1 c. sour cream
3/4 c. chopped onion ( or slightly less than 1/4 c. dry onion)

Mix all ingredients together and pour into a 9×13″ pan. (You could also just mix them together in the pan to save a bowl.) Bake at 350 degrees for 30 min. or until warmed through.

Contestant #2-Halloween Food Storage Dinners

Crystal — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 07:12:33 +0000

I got this from Jennifer W. and I’m just amazed at how creative all of you are! Here is contestant #2 for the Fanatic Friday contest. Remember you’re deciding what I’ll be eating for Halloween!

Jack-o-Lantern Chicken Pot Pie

1 Heaping cup potato, diced
1 cup onion, diced
1 cup celery, diced
1 cup carrot, diced (you could try using dehydrated carrots- I have not, but I bet it might work)
1/3 cup melted margarine
1/2 cup all purpose flour (I used half white, half wheat)
2 cups chicken broth (boullion works fine)
1 cup half and half
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 8 oz can of corn
4 cups chicken, cooked and chopped (a great way to use canned/bottled food storage chicken)
a pie crust (either your own or store bought, but here’s a great pie crust recipe at the end)

Directions
1- Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2- If using raw chicken, boil it in water (I boil it in extra chicken broth) for 15 to 20 minutes until white. Let cool, then chop or shred.
3- Meanwhile, saute onion, celery, carrots, and potatoes in butter for 10 minutes.
4- Add flour to sauteed mixture, stirring well. Cook one minute, stirring constantly.
5- combine 2 cups broth and half and half
6- gradually stir into vegetable mixture and add DRAINED can of corn
7- Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thickened and bubbly.
8- Stir in salt and pepper; add chicken and stir well. Pour into shallow 2 quart dish (or divide between personal sized ramekins) and top with pie shell. Cut in slits for the steam to escape, just little lines around the face to make it look like a pumpkin.
Bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly and cooked through.

******Perfect Pie crust:
1 cup wheat flour
1 cup white flour, sifted
3/4 cup shortening
1 tsp salt (use garlic salt for the chicken pie recipe, regular salt for dessert recipes)
4 Tablespoons ICE COLD water

Measure flour and salt in a bowl; combine. Add half of shortening with a pastry cutter. Cut through. Add the remaining shortening; cut through.
Sprinkle in the water, 1 Tablespoon at a time, and mix it with a fork after each tablespoon until the dough holds together. DO NOT BE IMPATIENT AND ADD EXTRA WATER!
Press into a ball and divide the dough in half. Roll the dough between two sheets of parchment paper to make a two crust, 9″ pie (or just leave it as one thick pie crust for the top, which works well for this chicken pie recipe- its just personal preference). If using many little ramekins, divide crust between number of ramekins used.
For chicken recipe, after crust is rolled flat, remove top parchemnt paper and use a knife to carve a face in the middle, taking care to remember that the face will be put on upside down when placing it on the pie and peeling the bottom parchment paper off.

Let the contest begin!

Crystal — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 14:02:45 +0000

Our first contestant in the “What in the world should Crystal and her family eat on Halloween” is from Keya. It sounds like a great Halloween twist on an old favorite!

Pumpkin Sloppy Joes

1 pound ground beef
3 Tablespoons dried onion
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 cup of canned pumpkin
1 can 8 0z tomato sauce
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
2 Tablespoons prepared mustard
2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Brown ground beef and drain of any fat. Add onion and garlic mix in well.
Add pumpkin,tomato, sugar, mustard, chili powder, salt. Bring to a boil and
simmer.
Top your bread or buns with mixture and add cheddar cheese. I used cookie
cutters to cut out cheese shapes ( a witch and a autum leaf ). You can do a
openface and really dress it up.

Reintroducing….Fanatic Fridays…with a fun TWIST!

Crystal — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 04:13:45 +0000

I wanted to reintroduce Fanatic Fridays (the days that YOU get to share YOUR awesome food storage recipes with the rest of us.) I did this before the Summer but in a quest to continually make food storage fun, I’ll be changing some things around. It’s actually going to be a sort-of mini recipe contest each month. Your friends, family and fellow Everyday Food Storage blog readers will be able to vote for a winner and of course there will be prizes!

Here is how it will work:

Each month will have a different “Theme” I’m looking for in a recipe.
Each submission needs a PICTURE (because we all like to see what it looks like) and it needs to include at least one food storage item.
E-mail submissions to fanaticfridays@gmail.com, submissions will be accepted up until the last day of the month BEFORE, i.e. the submissions for the Fanatic Friday Recipe Contest for October will be due by September 30th.
I’ll pick enough recipes so that each Friday one of your recipes will be spotlighted as a Fanatic Friday Recipe.
Voting will take place the last week of the month and the winner will be announced on the last Friday of the month.

So you’re all excited because you know next I’m going to unveil the Fanatic Fridays Theme for Thanksgiving: Food Storage at Thanksgiving! Did you know that even the Pilgrims were told to have a year supply of food? So what a great way to celebrate them by using items from OUR one year supply. Submit your favorite item(s) to serve at Thanksgiving that also include items from your long term food storage.The winner will receive “Deceptively Delicious” by Jessica Seinfeld (one of my FAVS!)
I can’t wait to see what you send me!-Remember the last day to submit is October 31st!

Fanatic Friday: Bread Recipes-whole wheat food storage recipes

Crystal — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 07:00:10 +0000

I absolutely LOVE hearing for you all of you and am even more excited when you share recipes with ME! Here are some bread recipes I was sent for our lessons on bread.

9 Grain Whole Wheat Bread (from Tiffany R.)
This recipe makes 6 large loaves…
In a blender crack: (I like chunky so I don’t blend as much)
1/3 cup flax seed
2 cups 6 grain rolled cereal
1 cup sunflower seeds
In bowl of mixer, pour in 6 cups very warm tap water then add the cracked flax seed, cereal and sunflower seeds, and add the following: (I add 1 Tbs of sugar to aid rising)
1/3 cup millet
1/3 cup sesame seeds
1 and a 1/2 cups white flour
1/2 cup vital wheat gluten
3 Tablespoons yeast
Mix this and then let brew for 15 minutes, then add:
3 cups white wheat flour
2/3 cup oil
2/3 cup honey or molasses
2 Tablespoons salt
Mix well and start adding 1 cup of white wheat flour one cup at a time until the mixture pulls clean from sides of bowl (6-7 more cups of white wheat flour)
Knead on Speed 1 for 7 minutes then add:
3 Tablespoons dough enhancer
mix for 2 more minutes.
Form into 6 large loaves, place in greased bread pans and let rise until double–about 1 hour. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes
I tent the loaves in plastic sacks it raises faster and Target bags (clean, I asked if I could have some:) are the best! Just fold over the flaps and put two loaves in per bag!

My Version of Two-Hour Wheat Bread-(From Laura S.)
Preheat oven to 200° for both methods.
If using a stand-mixer:
Combine the following in a bowl or measuring cup and set aside:

3 T. yeast 1 T. salt

3 T. vital gluten ½ – 1 cup wheat germ*
Combine in the mixer bowl:

¾ cup honey

2/3 cup oil

6 cups hot water – about 115° – I test mine with a meat thermometer.☺

A hint: Use the ¾ cup measuring cup to measure your oil, just don’t fill it up all of the way. This way you can use the same measuring cup for your honey and it will basically slip right out of the oiled measuring cup.☺
About 12 cups wheat flour.
Add 6 cups flour to the mixer bowl; mix well. Add combined yeast, gluten, salt and wheat germ. Start timer for 12 minutes. Add about 6 more cups of flour – until dough cleans the sides of the bowl. Continue mixing until the 12 minutes is up. Dump the dough out onto an oiled counter and divide into 4 loaves. Place the loaves in 4 oiled, sprayed or non-stick bread pans. Place loaves in preheated oven and turn off the oven. Set timer for 20 minutes. If loaves have risen to just above the rim of the bread pans or higher after 20 minutes, then turn the oven back on and heat to 350° (leaving the loaves in the oven). Set timer for 20 minutes as soon as you set the temperature (before it is up to temperature) and bake. When the 20 minutes is up, check for doneness by tapping the loaves and listening for a hollow sound; bake 5 more minutes at a time until they are done. I have learned that it is better to have a little “crustier” bread (especially since I spritz them with water), than to have them doughy in the middle. So if they look a little brown on the tops, that is o.k., because they are much more likely to be done in the middle too. For softer crust, immediately turn the bread out of the pans onto a damp kitchen towel and spritz with water. Allow them to cool completely and then slice and freeze or eat. If you prefer, brush the hot loaves with melted butter/margarine and allow them to cool completely.

If mixing by hand:
Combine yeast, water and honey; allow to stand for 5 minutes; add oil. Stir in 6 cups flour. Add gluten, salt, and wheat germ; mix well. Add more flour, 1 cup at-a-time (about 6 cups probably), until it is stiff enough to knead by hand, but not too dry. Oil your kitchen counter and knead for about 12 minutes (or until your arms fall off ☺). Proceed as above for baking.
*Wheat germ is available in all major grocery stores, usually on the same aisle as oatmeal, cream of wheat, etc. It is not necessary, but adds fiber, nutrients and a good flavor.

Share your successes! E-mail me at everydayfoodstorage@gmail.com with a picture (don’t we all eat with our eyes first?) and recipe of your food storage successes to be highlighted on Fanatic Fridays!

Or…proclaim it to the world that you are an Everyday Food Storage fanatic! Simple copy the entire text in the box below and place it in a text widget on your blog.

Fanatic Friday Food Storage Recipe: Chicken and Rice

Crystal — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 07:00:17 +0000

Thank you for all of your patience! My baby is doing a little better and went to bed early tonight so I thought I would sneak in a post. I realize it’s a little early for a Fanatic Friday post but this dish looks too good to WAIT! This recipe comes from Staci and it looks AMAZING! Give it a try!

Chicken & Rice

4 Chicken Breasts (or 3 cans Chicken)

2 cans of cream of mushroom or chicken soup (you could of course make your own click on the names of the soup to learn more!)

1 can cut green beans

1 C shredded cheese

1 C water

3 C Un-Cooked Rice (I used brown)

Season salt and olive oil

Brown chicken in olive oil. While that is cooking, combine rice, soup, green beans, and water in either corningware dish or 13×9 pan. Sprinkle 3/4 cheese on top. Either cut up chicken or leave as whole breasts and add to top. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake, covered 350 for 30-40 min

Share your successes! E-mail me at everydayfoodstorage@gmail.com with a picture (don’t we all eat with our eyes first?) and recipe of your food storage successes to be highlighted on Fanatic Fridays!

Or…proclaim it to the world that you are an Everyday Food Storage fanatic! Simple copy the entire text in the box below and place it in a text widget on your blog.

Food Storage Fanatic Friday: Live from the Request Line

Crystal — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 07:00:43 +0000

Okay, I’ve been getting a lot of questions about the specific organizers I showed you in my video of how I organize my kitchen…so here are pictures and links to more information (including a few I just found and wish I had!)

Rubbermaid 2937 White Twin Turn Table Spice Racks, click HERE for more info.

Under Sink Shelf Organizer. I had no idea something like this existed! I’ve always tried to figure out how to organize around the pipe under the sink…well now I know. Click HERE for more info.

These are the boxes I use in my fridge. You could use any size though. These are the Sterilite 1660 stackable bins. For more info, click HERE.

A good way to clear off some counter space is with a hanging paper towel holder like the one above. I got mine for Christmas but they’re available all over. Click HERE for more info.

Okay, I couldn’t find the exact racks I use on my cupboard doors to my sink. (I purchased them at Wal-Mart so you can take a look there…they come in a set of 3) but this is the same idea. For more info, click HERE

And these come in really handy for small spaces. It organizes all of your tupperware and spins around. Perfect for small spaces. For more information, click HERE.

If you haven’t seen my post about my food storage room, click HERE or if you missed getting a sneak peek into my cupboards, click HERE.

Are you a Fanatic?

Or…proclaim it to the world that you are an Everyday Food Storage fanatic! Simple copy the entire text in the box below and place it in a text widget on your blog.

For more tips and tricks for using your food storage in everyday ways, please visit www.everydayfoodstorage.NET

Fanatic Friday Giveaway #2: Kid’s apron, chef hat, baking mat, and cookie turner..phew! Plus, more gift ideas!

Crystal — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 15:00:24 +0000

Before we get to the giveaway…I wanted to share a really GREAT blog on Gingerbread that Marilee sent to me. Gingerbread is a GREAT thing to disguise wheat flour in because 1) it’s dark 2) has A LOT of molasses in it for moisture and 3) great spices to cover any wheat taste you may be worried about. So just to prove that you can take ANY recipe and add in food storage visit, this blog and use whole wheat flour for the regular flour. She also has patterns, the recipe, and my favorite…HOW TO VIDEOS!…aren’t they so cute?

Fanatic Friday Giveaway #2: Kids Baking Sets

Okay, I’m putting my money where my mouth is. You all know how STRONGLY I feel that you should have your kids in the kitchen with you helping. It teaches them important life skills like math, science, reading, how to follow directions, and COOKING! (Not to mention you’re giving them a GREAT gift of teaching them how to use food storage because we all know they WILL DEFINITELY need to know how to use it. It also gives you great one on one time with your children to talk about their days, accomplishments, and struggles. Which is why for this giveaway I’m giving away two of the following items aprons, baking mats, and cookie turners to TWO lucky winners (one set per winner).

Now, here is what to do if you want to enter the give away:

1. Proclaim that you are an Everyday Food Storage FANATIC in a post on your blog. (Don’t worry if it’s private.) BEFORE MONDAY MORNING.–If you entered the contest last week, you can use the same blog post.

2. Email me at everydayfoodstorage@gmail.com with a link to your blog post (not just your blog url). (I wanted to keep this private for people so others can’t phish for your blog. Don’t worry I won’t spam you…I hate junk mail too!)

3. I will email you back with a number (the number in which you entered the contest). Keep this email so you will know if you won or not.

4. On Monday morning, I will put all of the numbers in a hat and randomly select one. I’ll post the winning number Monday morning. If you’re the lucky number, simply email me so I can mail you the child baking set!

While I wish I could give one of these children’s baking sets to each and every one of you, I do have something for each and every one of you! If you haven’t downloaded my Kids in the Kitchen handout…you’ve got to check it out before you get your kids in the kitchen with you. It has some great recipes to try that are kid friendly along with tips and tricks for making the experience enjoyable for both YOU and YOUR child. Don’t worry if you don’t win this give away…I’ll be doing giveaways every Friday until Christmas and you won’t want to miss them! I’ve been working on picking these out for months!

Are you a Fanatic?

If you’re really proud of all the food you’ve made with food storage and want others to benefit from it as well, you can proudly display this button on your own blog! Just copy and paste all of this html code (it requires scrolling down to copy everything) into your blog (Just add an html widget to your layout and paste this text in it!) If you’ve tried it in the past and it didn’t work…try it again. Some wires got crossed in converting to a website but it’s all fixed now!

Text for Button:

<a border=”0″ href=”http://everydayfoodstorage.net” mce_href=”http://everydayfoodstorage.net” target=”_blank”></a> 

For more tips and tricks for using food storage in your everyday recipes, please visit www.everydayfoodstorage.NET