[Home]  [GFCF Recipe Index]  [Frugal Food Storage]  [Biblical Womanhood]  [Archived Recipe Index]  [Links] [New Blog]  [Old Fashioned Education]  [Prairie Homemaker]  [My Mother's Blog] Title Feast & Famine  the Pescatarian Pantry Fred and I have been married for 20 years and he's had the same job for that whole time. He's an engineer for our local railroad; he drives the choo-choo trains. It's a good job. It pays our bills, keeps the boys in shoes and affords us some luxuries like heat in the winter and air conditioning in the summer. We can afford gasoline most of the time; paper and ink for the printer and fabric for the sewing machine. In the current inflationary times we're thankful we're doing so well. One thing about the railroad though, is that the work is cyclical. Our paycheck can vary by 33% from one pay period to the next. We've tried to set up our budget with the lower paychecks as our baseline. If we don't expect the better checks then when they come we have extra for our savings, and when they don't come we don't have to dip into our savings to make ends meet. Some years we've been more successful at this than others. The past 10 years or so we've managed a lot better than when we were younger and fiscally irresponsible. Over the years we've come to call our lifestyle "Feast & Famine". Sometimes there's money for extras, and sometimes there's barely enough to cover our basic needs. Working with this system took some getting used to, but now-a-days it's second nature to us both. Even the kids understand that some things have to wait until feasting time and during famine time we only meet our most basic needs. Cooking and menu planning under these circumstances is challenging. Early on I discovered the wisdom of stocking up during good times so there is plenty to see us though the lean times. Colonial Settlers, Pioneers and our Grandmothers did this as a matter of course. Stock up when you have plenty and make use of your reserves when you have less. Chapter 41 of Genesis makes it clear that people have been doing this for thousands of years. This particular bible story is related to the one of Joseph and His Coat of Many Colors. After Joseph gets sold into Egypt he goes though a lot of troubles but maintains his faith in God. Eventually God gives Pharaoh 2 dreams that only Joseph can interpret. In the first dream 7 skinny cows eat 7 fat cows. In the second dream 7 skinny sheafs of wheat eat 7 fat sheafs of wheat. Joseph explains to Pharaoh that his dreams predict 7 years of plenty followed by 7 years of famine. Following Joseph's advice Pharaoh institutes a program where 1/5 of the grain is preserved at each harvest during the fat years and stored until the time of famine, when it will be their insurance against starvation. Genesis 41:36  And that food shall be for store to the land against the seven years of famine, which shall be in the land of Egypt; that the land perish not through the famine. Not wanting my family to perish through famine, I have taken my cue from this bible story, developing my own program to store food during times of plenty. Over the years I've been able to create a list of staple items that are convenient for me to buy in bulk and store at home until needed. I made a lot of mistakes over the years, wasting money on items that weren't necessary or even useful. I've stored food under poor conditions and had it consumed by swarms of hungry bugs. I've purchased too many of a new product that I didn't try first and wound up wasting both the cash and the food because my family was unable to eat them. I've made so many mistakes that finally in a desperate act to avoid them I've come up with a basic checklist so I only spend my cash on items that will serve my family well. Only buy foods that I am 100% certain the family will eat and enjoy. Never waste cash on "iffy" items no matter how enticing the bargain. Only choose items that will fit in my storage space. This includes freezer space, pantry space and basement storage. Only buy foods that will keep for at least 1-year, preferably 2 to 5 years or more. Foods that don't store well have no place in my storage plan. They take up valuable space and cash that can be better spent on products which fit all of my requirements. Only store basic wholesome foods. Don't waste money on convenience items that take up space while contributing little nutritional value. Basic foods are the most versatile and offer the best nutrition value. Only stock up when the price is right. Comparison shop to make sure I've found the best price in town or on-line before investing a lot of money in any item. As I consider which products to stock I run each item through the checklist. All 5 requirements must be met. Not just 3 requirements. Not just 4 requirments. Before I open up my wallet and plunk down our hard earned cash on anything I run it through the cecklist, usually more than once, until I'm absolutely positive that the purchase I'm about to make is a good one. Below you'll find a list of items I'm willing to keep in storage and the quantity that I've estimated we use in 6 months. Our storage areas are made up of 2 chest freezers--1 small and 1 large; A large walk-in pantry in the kitchen and a collection of shelves along one wall in the basement. Quantities to last approximately 6 months Frozen Unsalted Butter-32 pounds. Eight 4-pound packages-already frozen. 1-pound allowed per week plus a few extra for holiday baking. 25 pounds shredded cheddar cheese. Five 5-pound bags, divided into quart-sized freezer bags and frozen. 20 pounds shredded mozzarella cheese. Four 5-pound bags, divided into quart-sized freezer bags and frozen 25 pounds sliced American Cheese. Five 5-pound blocks. Divided into sandwich bags-about 20 slices per bag, and frozen. 15 pounds sliced American Swiss Cheese. Three 5-pound blocks. Divided into sandwich bags-about 30 slices per bag, and frozen. This is 85 pounds of cheese. A lot of cheese, I know. Most of the sliced cheese is used for sandwiches and snacks. The mozzarella is used for pizza every week and Italian dishes. The cheddar goes into sauces, casseroles, stuffings and gets sprinkled on top of everything from baked potatoes to tacos. My family likes cheese. I've accepted that and done my best to find a way to keep it in their diet. 25 cans frozen Orange Juice Concentrate. 12-ounce cans. 25 cans frozen Apple Juice Concentrate. 12-ounce cans. 10 cans frozen Grape Juice Concentrate. 12-ounce cans. All used for drinking, cooking and breafast. Dairy 48 pounds Instant Nonfat Powdered Milk. Twelve 4-pound boxes. Enough for 60 gallons milk. Stored on shelf in basement where the temperature stays an even 60° F. 24 cans Evaporated Milk. About 1 per week. Stored on shelf in basement. 10-1/2 pounds Instant Whole Powdered Milk. Twelve 14-ounce cans. To add flavor and richness to powdered milk. 4-1/2 pounds Dry Buttermilk Powder. Six 12-ounce tubs. For baking 2 boxes Yogourmet Freeze Dried Yogurt Starter, from health food store. Keep with other dairy items in basement. Lasts about 1 year. Enough for lots of homemade yogurt. Flour, Starches & Grains 250 pounds Whole Wheat. Most used to make flour. Some used whole and some for cracked wheat. Whole wheat flour doesn't keep well. Whole Grain Wheat keeps indefinitely. About 10-pounds per week. Enough for homemade bread and lots of baking. 25 pounds unbleached white flour. For everything that doesn't quite work with whole wheat flour. 30 pounds Spaghetti. Six 5-pound bags. Kept in basement storage. 20 pounds Macaroni. Four 5-pound bags 10 pounds Egg Noodles. Two 5-pound bags. 9 cardboard tubs Rolled Oats. Store brand, 1-1/2 tubs per month. 12 pounds Steel Cut Oats. For breakfast. Purchased in bulk from health food store. Stored in Canister in basement. 25 pounds Converted or Parboiled Rice. Five 5-pound bags. 15 pounds Long Grain Brown Rice. Five 3-pound bags. 5 pounds Barley. 2-pounds pearl or hulled barley and 3-pounds quick cooking barley. 25 pounds Quick Grits. Five 5-pound bags. Stored in basement. 50 pounds Yellow Dent Corn for making cornmeal in flour mill. Stores much longer than whole grain cornmeal and tastes better to. When I can't find yellow dent corn, I store whole grain cornmeal in the freezer otherwise the bugs find it and ruin it all. Ten 5-pound bags. 12 pounds Instant Mashed Potatoes. Six 2-pound boxes. Store brand. Sweeteners & Baking Supplies 3 pounds Rumford Baking Powder. Six 8-ounce cans. 2 pounds Yeast. Two 1-pound bags 2 pounds Baking Soda. Four 8-ounce boxes. Used for cooking & cleaning and other things too. 2 pounds Cornstarch. Two 1-pound boxes. 3 pounds Unsweetened Carob Powder (or Cocoa).  16 ounce bottle Vanilla Extract 2 ounce bottle Almond Extract. 4 ounce bottle Maple Flavoring. 32 ounces Black Strap Molasses. One 32-ounce jar. 48 ounces Unsulfured Molasses. Four 12-ounce jars. 12 pounds Honey. Three 4-pound jugs. 32 ounces Corn Syrup. Two 16-ounce jars. 75 pounds White Sugar. Three 25-pound bags. 30 pounds Brown Sugar. Six 5-pound bags. 15 pounds Powdered Sugar. Three 5-pound bags. When possible I buy 100 pounds of Sucanat instead of the White and Brown Sugar above. Then I add about 10 pounds of organic powdered sugar or Powdered Rapadura sugar and 10 pounds of Turbinado or Raw sugar which works very well for candy. Fats 1 gallon Peanut Oil. 1 gallon Corn Oil. 1 gallon Olive Oil. Four 1-quart bottles. 6 pounds Coconut Oil or Vegetable Shortening. 6 pounds Butter Flavored Shortening. Two 3-pound cans. Dried Beans, Lentils & Peas 12 pounds Lentils. 6 pounds Split Peas--Yellow & Green 25 pounds Pinto Beans. This is our staple bean, we eat it every week and sometimes more often. 5 pounds Kidney Beans 5 pounds Black Beans 10 pounds Navy or Great Northern Beans 4 pounds Lima Beans 2 pounds Black Eyed Peas 6 pounds Chickpeas 12 large cans Vegetarian Baked Beans. Soy Products 15 pounds Dry Soybeans. For cooking, making soymilk, tofu and grinding for soyflour 12 Aseptic Boxes of Firm Tofu. 1-1/2 pounds soya bacon bits.       Nuts & Seeds       Canned & Frozen Fish & Seafood 18 foil packets Tuna 6 cans Salmon 6 cans clams 6 cans shrimp 6 cans crab 18 cans smoked oysters. For quick lunches and snacks.       Condiments         Canned Vegetables       Canned Fruits     Dried Fruits                           [Home]  [GFCF Recipe Index]  [Frugal Food Storage]  [Biblical Womanhood]  [Archived Recipe Index]  [Links] [New Blog]  [Old Fashioned Education]  [Prairie Homemaker]  [My Mother's Blog] GFCF = Gluten Free & Casein Free The Christian Counter © FrugalAbundance 2007-2008  :-)  And above all things have fervent charity among yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.  Use hospitality one to another without grudging.  As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.--1 Peter 4:8-10