All Things Prepping, Simple Living, Back to the Basics [Survival Today, an on going thread]

vanity | 2/26/18 | CottonBall

[CottonBall]

I’ve been missing the vast amount of information on prepping, survival, camping, simple cooking, the old ways of doing just about everything – all the things nw_arizona_granny knew so much about and shared with us, along with numerous other posters with a vast array of skills and knowledge.

We have our various related-threads here, a recipe thread, a gardening thread, and even a prepper thread. They are all great and I don’t mean to take anything away from those and the hard work their owners put in.

But I was missing a place to talk about ALL those things, to get the camaraderie that we used to have on granny’s thread.

I learned how to can on those threads! The pressure canner was not my friend, I thought, but I bought one and stared at it for a month, intimidated. Then I read the directions for another month. But with the help and encouragement of posters on granny’s threads, I jumped in and now have my very own food storage room in the basement with lovely jars of shelf-stable meats, vegetables, and fruit. When we moved, I fashioned my food storage room – and insisted upon having a basement – from what I learned on her threads. Getting started gardening was from her threads. Making my own cleaning products….the list is endless.

So I thought I would take the chance and start another comprehensive prepper thread and see how it goes. I used to have granny’s ping list since I made one of the threads for her, but alas, with numerous computer changes, I cannot find it. So please pass this onto any posters you think might be interested.

We’ll just keep it running until..whenever. Granny created a new thread at 10,000 posts or so. I do like the idea of having ONE thread to go to – because often I cannot find or keep track of the weekly threads. I won’t be posting lots of recipes or tidbits myself – to any mods concerned about the size of this thread. I’d just like a place to chat, post questions, post ideas, make new prepping friends.

Here are granny’s threads, if anyone wants to peruse them:

nw_arizona_granny’s Thread #1

nw_arizona_granny’s Thread #2

nw_arizona_granny’s Thread #3

[CottonBall]

I love peaches also. I planted one Peachtree. I figure since they ripen all at once, one would be plenty.

Actually I never cared all that much for apples. But the property came with three apple trees. And then when looking at what kind of fruit trees to plant, apples keep the longest. I planted in Arkansas black, that will keep for months in a cool place. In fact it says they aren’t very good when you first pick them but they will sweeten as they are stored. So that’s the main reason I have three more apple trees. And a peach, apricot, and pear. And an almond and two hazelnuts.

[V K Lee]

To be honest, a lot like you in that fresh apples are not a favorite. Rate them as low on the scale as bananas. Apples are best cooked (preferably a pie, bread, fried or baked) Bananas are eaten in bread or banana pudding, banana split (seldom). If eaten alone, they leave an awful taste in my mouth. Strange, huh? Pears, oranges, peaches, apricots all are high on the favorite scale. Grapes, not so much; Dark cherries- oh so good!

[CottonBall]

How ironic that my last topic was all about no knead bread!

I was going to make a no knead loaf, but instead decided to try the sandwich rolls that I saw on YouTube. I thought it would be fun to go on a picnic on the Appalachian trail today. At the very end of the kneading , my KitchenAid quit! The motor was going but the dough hook wasn’t . We have had trouble ever since I got it. And it’s a beautiful copper 6 quart 575 W machine.

i’ll keep it for its beauty, no matter what. Even if it becomes a heavy expensive paperweight. But I’m pretty sure my husband can fix it, he has replaced these gears several times. I have read how KitchenAid’s are just not heavy duty Enough to handle dough, and I think I’m convinced now.

I’m looking at the bosch Universal now. It has 800 W and several reviews I read said it is one of the few non-commercial machines that can handle kneading bread. One thing I like is that it’s only 12 pounds and will fit in the kitchen cabinet! My pretty copper KitchenAid can sit on top, and can probably still handle cake mixes and stuff like that. But I can get out the Bosch, which isn’t all that attractive, when I want to make bread.

Anyway I was hoping someone here would have some input. Suggestions, maybe alternatives that I haven’t found yet.

[CottonBall]

Yeah, I really can’t wait to have fresh apricots, peaches, and pears! Like you, I prefer apples cooked. And I prefer those other fruits fresh, perfectly ripe and fresh. I think they lose something when cooked.

Really wanted to grow cashews. But apparently they’re a tropical tree and wouldn’t grow here in East Tennessee. They are some fairly soft and don’t store well. oh well, if they would’ve grown I would’ve put up with that :-)

Can’t remember exactly now – apparently I’m not eating enough beads – but I think a constant store well. I think that’s why I didn’t grow any. But I thought growing nuts would be a good thing for a prepping situation, they would provide protein And can store without refrigeration or freezing for a while at least.. And I love love love hazelnuts! In Italy, where half of my family is, hazelnuts are as common as peanuts are here.

[V K Lee]

LOL - peanuts, least favorite of all the nuts. Dislike even more than Brazil nuts. Favorites, of course, are pecans and almonds, coconuts. Hazel nuts are good. Have you tried the stateside brand similar to Nutella? Don’t remember the mfg. perhaps it was Hershey Chocolate Hazelnut Spread. Used this one morning for stuffed Fried French toast. WOW!
Favorite candy would be Almond Joy - if only it was covered in the dark chocolate like the Mounds bars. The dark chocolate would make it twice as good :-) Prefer Dark chocolate over milk chocolate any day of the week.

[CottonBall]

Oh yeah, I love coconut. That has to be a prepping food right? :-). LOL I don’t think I’m ever going to try to Google the shelf life of coconut in mylar with an oxygen absorber. It’s hard enough to find every day foods sometimes.

I’ve tried almost everything that says hazelnut on it. I always go back to Nutella as far as the spreads go. It’s what I grew up with, in visits to Italy. Then when it became available here, it was like heaven on earth! I no longer have to travel that far to get it. Aldi’s has their version which is very good. Actually more hazelnutty than Nutella. But again I always go back to Nutella , it just has that different flavor that I can’t quite put my finger on that I really like.

I don’t think it would store very long though :-( just like peanut butter. I have never had Nutella that had been stored too long but I recently found an old jar of peanut butter that was just plain weird. Somehow all the flavor was gone and the texture was really gross. I assume it had to do with age.

I love both mounds and almond Joy, but just like you I prefer the dark chocolate. The coconut in them is just awesome. Wayback when for Easter mounds and almond Joy used to have eggs, with great big huge piles of coconut in it. I haven’t seen that in a long long time though.

[upcountry miss]

When my girls were of babysitting age, they were hesitant about charging parents, so I suggested that they ask what the parent was in the habit of paying and accepting that amount and if they thought it was not enough, declining to work for them again. This avoided the embarrassment of stating a fee. Apparently my great grand daughter follows much the same pattern as she mentioned several different parents and different fees.

I think I have made my chore of cleaning up storm debris a little easier. I gave myself an early mother’s day and 87th birthday gift and purchased a battery operated 40 volt Black and Decker chain saw. I think it is similar to one Windflier recommended in an earlier post. I hope so as I couldn’t seem to find the post that he discussed it in.

Anyway, I have had a good time with it so far, cutting up larger limbs and brush to make them more manageable.

[upcountry miss]

Do you, per chance remember rumbleseats in cars? My grandmother had a real neat Ford coupe wjth a rumbleseat in the back. It looked like a trunk, but when you pulled up on the cover, it exposed the seat back and the seat was underneath. How I loved riding in it! I waved and yelled at everyone we passed!!

[Iron Munro]

Do you, per chance remember rumbleseats in cars?

Oh yes!

One of my mom's uncles had an old car with one although I can't recall if it was a Ford or some other make.

We kids used to cram it full to go for a ride.

No mandatory safety seats or seat belts in those days!

[CottonBall]

Oh, you are so cute. I would love to have a picture of you using your chainsaw :-) that is the most adorable 87th birthday present I could think of. I hope when I am anywhere near your age that that is the gift I would want. LOL!

And I love your can-do attitude -instead of waiting for someone to come and help you clean up, you found away. That is what prepping is all about! And that is what will be missing for much of our society when things get bad.

We have had some horrendous win today. It is supposed to continue for two more days. I know the forest is going to be a mess after this. Speaking of your chainsaw :-)

[CottonBall]

Honeyville Grains is having a 15% off site-wide customer appreciation sale, ends April 27th.

https://shop.honeyville.com/?utm_campaign=1168203_Copy%20of%20Customer%20Appreciation&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Honeyville&dm_i=2W9V,P1E3,1WPYI5,2KA1N,1

They have good quality stuff, reasonable priced, and a flat $4.99 shipping.

[Flaming Conservative]

Thank you.

[greeneyes]

Thanks for the ping.

[Bob Ireland]

***Honeyville Grains***

Interesting; I am not familiar with them, but looks worthy of checking out. Somewhat similar is the Ready Store. They have a very extensive stock, food, equipment, tools, etc. They can be expensive - keep an eye on their prices - but they also have great sales each month... just shop.

[CottonBall]

I haven’t seen the ready store, thank you for mentioning it.

One thing I do need to say, is beware of Emergency Essentials. I spent a lot of money with them, getting wheat pails of stuff, cans of stuff, all this was way back when they had much better customer service. Now it seems like they have gone terribly commercial.

But anyway, I opened a super pail of wheat berries that was probably around 9 years old. It should have been perfectly good since the shelf life is 30. It was Rancid! I could smell it as soon as I opened it up. I tried all sorts of things to mitigate the spell, letting it air out, grinding it into flour and letting that air out, nothing. It was definitely Rancid. It wasn’t just from being stored

I contacted Emergency Essentials and they were less than helpful. I told them now I have numerous other super pails that are in question. They wanted me to send them a sample, which I did at my own expense. I heard nothing back nor did they reimburse me. All I got was a 10% off coupon. Whoop-dee-doo! After selling me bad Goods, now they want to make more money off of me?

I will never buy another thing from them. Their customer service is now horrible. As apparently are their products. When we buy something for long-term storage, we expect it to be good at the end. I’m just glad I found out now, before I have to rely on bad food products.

[Bob Ireland]

***Emergency Essentials***

Thanks for the info. I am not familiar with them, just the name, but you are right about being cautious. Also I spray my #10 cans when they arrive with Krylon as extra protection. Also inspect the cans carefully when they arrive. I did send one case back for replacement... long story. Gotta run, later. IR

[Professional Engineer]

For the Texans, it’s tax free weekend for preparedness supplies.

https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/publications/98-1017.php

[V K Lee]

Unable to linger long. Do want to share this site for those who miss the loved “good ole days”

FOUND IN MOM’S BASEMENT
http://pzrservices.typepad.com/vintageadvertising/

VINTAGE RECIPES
http://pzrservices.typepad.com/vintagerecipes/
HENRY FORD RECIPES AND COOKBOOK
https://www.thehenryford.org/explore/recipes-and-cookbooks/
A CAKE BAKES IN BROOKLYN
http://www.acakebakesinbrooklyn.com/

NOTE: There are so many new paths branching off the main road. To travel them all and viewing the sights will take forever.

Enjoy.

[V K Lee]

a few more sites:

MID CENTURY MENU
http://www.midcenturymenu.com/
VINTAGE RECIPE BLOG
http://www.vintagerecipeblog.com/
CHRONICALLY VINTAGE
http://www.chronicallyvintage.com/
AUNT LIL’S KITCHEN
http://auntlilskitchen.com/
GRANDMA’S VINTAGE RECIPES
http://grandmasvintagerecipes.blogspot.com/
RETRO RECIPE
https://retrorecipe.wordpress.com/
OLD COOKBOOKS, VINTAGE RECIPES AND MORE
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/13088655139676280/
BAD AN UGLY OF RETO FOOD
http://www.badanduglyofretrofood.com/
GOOD IN THE SIMPLE
https://www.goodinthesimple.com/favorite-old-family-recipes/
VINTAGE RECIPE CARDS
https://vintagerecipecards.com/
WRITES 4 FOOD
https://writes4food.com/2013/06/best-old-fashioned-and-vintage-recipes/?doing_wp_cron=1524932871.9895770549774169921875
LOST RECIPE FOUND
http://lostrecipesfound.com/
MY RETRO KITCHEN
http://myretrokitchen.blogspot.com/
FEEDING AMERICA
http://digital.lib.msu.edu/projects/cookbooks/index.cfm
VINTAGE KITCHEN NOTES
https://vintagekitchennotes.com/

[CottonBall]

Those are fun websites. Thanks!

I’m going to post my ping list as soon as I get to the main computer. I should probably put it on my homepage as well. That way you can use it anytime you have interesting things. I would appreciate it!