Photo: Great grandparents at their farm in Blandinsville, IL, with five of their six children .. my grandpa was yet a twinkle in grandma's eye. Stable boy and governess also pictured. Hodges farm, circa 1903-4

Wednesday, January 05, 2011

bread ready for final rise .. by Mrs. Mac
Hubby is reading 'Food Rules' and 'The Omnivore's Dilemma' .. both books by Michael Pollan.  I think I will be writing out the food rules on little 3x5 index cards and drilling him ..  maybe even add a few of my own rules.  It's a step in the right direction.  Yesterday .. he mentioned he'd like to learn to make bread.  There's always hope of reforming a 'Wonder (white squishy) Bread' boy, eh? :)

Today is our monthly budget day.  This, again, is an area hubby wants to gain knowledge of the process .. Oh, yes, he sees the end result .. no debt .. nutritious food on the table .. his cash envelopes filled.  But he is wise to see how it's done and to have a look-see at all the budget categories.  Just knowing that he wants to try and eat healthier when away from home .. or when I am out of town .. and how to manage the finances .. is music to my heart. 


homemade bread .. by Mrs. Mac
This week in the kitchen I'm tackling making and canning chili (meat and beans separately), making waffles to store in the freezer for quick school morning breakfasts, and looking into buying more food items in bulk .. which means figuring out where and how much to purchase, and how to store it all.  Any suggestions for bulk ordering would be helpful. 

Ants are creatures of little strength,
   yet they store up their food in the summer
Proverbs 30:25

6 comments:

meemsnyc said...

Oooh, nothing beats baked homemade bread in my opinion. Making waffles to freeze is such an awesome idea! One of my wishlists is a waffle maker. What type do you use and do you recommend it? I buy my bulk shopping from Costco. It can be a great bargain!

Mrs. Mac said...

meemsnyc .. I have an old Belgian waffle maker that I use .. got it from a friend at her garage sale 13 years ago .. just got my daughter a nice Cuisinart (stainless steel) at a thrift store for $4.50 .. nicer than the one I'm using. Check around if you don't mind gently used.

meemsnyc said...

Wow, I am so jealous that you got one from a thrift store for so cheap! What an awesome score. We don't have good thrift stores here in NYC surprisingly. Anytime there is anything good, it gets purchased right away, so it's hard to find good stuff. I'll keep on the lookout for sales. Thanks!!

Maria Stahl said...

http://www.wheatmontana.com/dealer.php?state=ID

Dani said...

Mrs Mac - the way I get my husband to eat something other than "white squishy" bread is to make beer bread - it is so substantial that two pieces fill him up. (the recipe will be in my solar cookbook) - bread and beer simultaneously - he's very happy.

As far as storing bulk foods - after my recent visit to the farm and the field mice I made acquaintance with, I have decided to invest in a steel cupboard (similar to a school locker. That way I can store my dry goods in large plastic containers without rodents being able to access them. I also place a sprig of bay leaves in with the flour / rice / pasta, etc - it keeps the weavils at bay (with / without the pun) - replace the bay leaves after 3 - 4 months.

Sorry I can't help with ordering - wouldn't apply in your country. :-)

http://bitsandpieces-sonja.blogspot.com/ said...

your homemade bread looks so tempting! I have never tried it, but once I tried my grandmother's cinammon rolls and proudly told my hubby that he would have homemade rolls that night. Big mistake! I ended up throwing the whole thing down the disposal and it nearly broke the disposal, the dough was so heavy!! :)