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Farm Kitchen:  Pantry Panic  |
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MeadowLark
True Blue Farmgirl
2206 Posts
USA
2206 Posts |
 Posted - May 20 2005 : 07:33:30 AM
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My youngest daughter's last day of school is today. That means 3 months of extra meals, her friends over, relatives staying her for awhile, friends gathering for summer get togethers ect... I was looking in my pantry today seeing what I have on hand to meet those needs. I usually keep certain items alwys in stock, tuna, olive oil, pastas, canned tomatoes, and other veggies, bisquit mix, parmesan cheese, tomato sauce, herbs and spices, peanut butter, crackers, dried and canned beans. We tend to grill alot in the summer. I love to grill split eggplant and squash drizzled with olive oil and salt and pepper. Spaghetti tossed with a homemade sauce of tomatoes, basil leaves, onion and garlic and a wee bit of sugar is a favorite. Grilled homemade pizza is a hit with the kids. I am so anxious for my corn to produce roasting ears! What do you all keep stocked in your pantry/cupboards? How do you use these items for meals? Looking in my pantry, even if it is low on staples gives me a certain comfort. I know I am blessed with abundance in being able to prepare something for others to eat, even though it is not extravagant. ( Forgot to mention, I do keep some of MJ's food items tucked in there)
"Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there." Rumi, 13th century. |
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MeadowLark
True Blue Farmgirl
2206 Posts
USA
2206 Posts |
Posted - May 20 2005 : 5:11:58 PM
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Hi Lorij!! My prayers go with Greg on his return to Iraq! Gotta know what is a cassuletta? Sounds really tasty! I put my flours in the freezer too or the pantry moths would be going nuts. I did have a problem with those pesky moths and found pantry moth traps in The Cooks Garden catalog. They work like a charm! They are a little "house" imbedded with the phermones of a female moth. The males fly into it in droves and thus no new moth babies. The males get stuck to the sticky surface of the trap. A must for any pantry or cupboard with cereals and flour products. Try some white vinegar on that sunburn Lorij...it does take the sting out. So does the gel from aloe. Jenny
"Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there." Rumi, 13th century. |
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bramble
True Blue Farmgirl
2044 Posts
2044 Posts |
Posted - May 20 2005 : 6:20:55 PM
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Jenny- This is a good topic. Do you find your staples change from summer to winter? Mine seem to. I always have pasta on hand (angel hair, penne and elbow)and organic when I can find it, healthy cereal(my granola when I make it), brown rice, dried fruits and nuts (natural pistachios are big here), peanut butter, jam, jellies, chutneys and pickililies. Flour, oats, falafel, chick peas for hummus, tahini, pancake mix (pre made by me)good for crepes also, sugar (yes, I know..),home canned peaches, pears, rhubarb, apples ,
blueberries, and lots of veggies. Potatoes and onions too. I freeze alot of things, so the chest freezer is usually got hidden "treasure from one season to the next. We have a small broom type closet that serves as my spice, condiment and sauce cupboard. We like flavorful food plain or fancy! We marinate alot so it's good to have these on hand, but if I've got them in the herb garden all the better.
Lorij- Glad to hear you have all had some family time lately. I hope everyone returns to you soon and to stay. Does your husband's work have him travelling all the time? It's good to go but it's good to be home, sort of a conundrum huh? It also limits what you accomplish in any one place!
If cassouletta is anything like the cassoulet my husband made, it is banned from my house! He once decided to cook a duck cassoulet as a surprise and the joke here is that it cost 90.00 for the ingredients and he was the only one who liked it. We even had a bumper sticker made up for his truck that said Just say NO! to Cassoulet! (He had more questions about that...most folks thought it was a politician he was objecting to!)And yes, if you're wondering.... we are" a mite touched in the head" !
Be well and may peace come to all...soon.
with a happy heart |
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MeadowLark
True Blue Farmgirl
2206 Posts
USA
2206 Posts |
Posted - May 20 2005 : 6:41:52 PM
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Yes Bramble, My pantry seems to change with the seasons! There are candied fruits in the winter to make stollen with, along with raisins and currents. A bottle of Cognac is there to add to my Winter stews, the rest of the year it is put away. And chocolate baking bars, white chocolate baking bars, Aztec chocolate drinking mix is necessary for those long winter days! I use more beans in soups in wintertime, and yellow onions seem to be there all year long! Cans of pumpkin shows up in the fall for bread. But this year I have planted tons of pumpkin seeds to bake with this fall! Have you ever tried a tiny drop of Balsamic Vinegar on fresh strawberries? It is surprisingly delicous! I splurged on some French sea salt crystals and it is excellent on cooked vegetables, eggs. A little goes along way so I figure I will get a lot of use from them. Iodized salt leaves me cold. I wish MJ would come out with organic pizza crust mix using organic flour. I'd jump at it!
"Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there." Rumi, 13th century. |
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bramble
True Blue Farmgirl
2044 Posts
2044 Posts |
Posted - May 21 2005 : 12:47:31 PM
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Jenny- We use sea salt too and my husband put some in an extra pepper mill a few weeks ago so we don't over sprinkle. It works surprisingly well and he is the worst offender of "over sprinklage".
That was a good addition to our pantry!
I have tried balsamic vinegar on strawberries and many other things, but am the rare person who doesn't like it no matter what. I much prefer the herb vinegars we make ourselves like raspberry or tarragon.
We have been doing alot of herb rubs premade lately as well.
with a happy heart |
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Kim
True Blue Farmgirl
146 Posts
Kim
Pflugerville
Texas
USA
146 Posts |
Posted - May 22 2005 : 06:51:30 AM
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That's wonderful, lorij!
farmgirl@heart
Be at peace with yourself and the rest will follow |
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MeadowLark
True Blue Farmgirl
2206 Posts
USA
2206 Posts |
Posted - May 23 2005 : 11:43:42 AM
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LOrij, That is wonderful your other boy is coming back from Iraq! Prayers here go out to Kris. After reading what you have on hand Lorij I wanna come eat at your place girl! Black Truffle oil!! How do you use that? I heard it is good with egg dishes. Dark beer in winter foods...That sounds different and good. I use ale in my chili, the wheat beer kind. Wish we could all do a travelling farmgirl kitchen/supper tour. Yum!
"Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I'll meet you there." Rumi, 13th century. |
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cecelia
True Blue Farmgirl
497 Posts
cecelia
new york
USA
497 Posts |
Posted - May 24 2005 : 6:14:07 PM
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At first I thought "pantry panic" was about bugs! ant time! I find that I more and more I tend to eat by the seasons - heavier foods in the colder months, etc. I am trying to change my diet gradually, and find that the more I eat "naturally" (fewer to no processed foods, salt, sugar, white foods), the less I crave them. I had a danish today (thought it would be a "treat") and have been sorry all day! My body just doesn't feel "right".
Cecelia
ce's farm
"Curiosity is one of the forms of feminine bravery" Victor Hugo |
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Farm Kitchen: Pantry Panic |
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Pantry Panic
