Spicy Mexican Chicken Filling

Anyone who knows me knows I LOVE Mexican food!! I was able to make a chicken filling that tastes like it was simmered for hours- all in about 20 minutes from my THRIVE food storage! Here's how....

2 TB THRIVE tomato powder
1/3 C THRIVE freeze dried onions
1/4 C THRIVE mixed bell peppers
2 handfulls THRIVE chicken. Ok, I was lazy. I didn't measure.
2 C water

Mix the above together, then add the following:
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (more or less to taste)
1 tsp chili powder
dash salt

Simmer on medium-low for about 15 minutes. You can use this to fill enchiladas or tacos, or even serve it on top of a baked potato. If you really like it spicy, add some green chile peppers or a dash of Tobasco sauce. You could also try adding some corn or olives, if desired.

Enjoy!

Raspberry Sauce

OK, I have a confession to make. I made brownies the other night for a show and used a brand-new mini muffin pan. I forgot to spray it, and my brownies stuck. Bad. So I ended up with brownie pieces. Well, never one to let a little chocolate crumbiness get me down, I decided to serve brownie pieces, macaroon pieces, and raspberry sauce over ice cream at my party. I whipped up some raspberry sauce, and voila! Yumminess.

Raspberry Sauce
1/2 C THRIVE raspberries
1 C water
1/4 C sugar
1 tsp cornstarch if necessary

Reconstitute raspberries in water by cooking over low heat. Add sugar and stir until dissolved. Add cornstarch if necessary. The longer you cook the sauce the fewer full raspberries you'll have.

So here's another confession: I'm not exactly sure how much water I used. It was about a cup. And it was a little much, so even after cooking it down, it was too thin- hence the cornstarch. And the reason I tell you this is you really can't go wrong when you're using THRIVE!! Don't be afraid to play with your food!

Hearty Minestrone Soup

I was in the mood to "play with my food," so I decided to give minestrone a try. It's very good, but if you have time for it to simmer for awhile, it's even better as the flavors blend and meld.

6 C water
4 TB THRIVE Tomato Powder
1 can beef broth
1/2 tsp Italian Seasoning
1 Bay leaf
1 tsp parsley
1/2 C small shell pasta OR THRIVE elbow macaroni

1/4 C each of the following THRIVE freeze-dried products:
Onions
Celery
Carrot
Mixed bell peppers
Sausage crumbles
Sweet corn
Green beans

1 tsp olive oil


Heat water and stir in tomato powder. Add remaining ingredients except olive oil. Allow to simmer for at least an hour (the longer the better!!) Stir in olive oil, remove bay leaf, and serve hot. Top with parmesan or romano cheese, if desired. This recipe makes 4 decent-sized, fill you up, bowls of soup.

"Gee, I wish we had nacho cheese"

I'll be honest. Today I feel awful. I just want to sleep on the couch and have the world go away. Evidently, my kids feel the same way. The problem is, even when they feel bad, they still want to eat. So my oldest says, "Gee, I wish we had some nacho cheese. I'd really like a burrito." Well, knowing that I had leftover taco meat from last night (made with my THRIVE ground beef, of course! All I did was reconstitute and add a pouch of taco seasoning) I said, "Let me see what I can do." I went into the kitchen and mixed up the following, and voila! Burritos with nacho cheese!! And Spencer's response? "These burritos are amazing!" Now THAT puts a smile on a mama's face!

1/4 C THRIVE Monterey jack cheese
1/4 C THRIVE Cheddar cheese
2 TB your favorite brand of salsa in a jar (I always have some in my pantry)
1 tsp milk or water

Reconstitute cheeses in warm water and drain. Place in a small pot and melt, adding salsa and milk or water to thin a bit. Serve in a burrito with taco meat and refried beans. This recipe makes about 1/3 C of cheese sauce- just enough for 3 burritos for my 3 boys :)

Terrific Taco TVP Dip

I was playing around to make a dip to serve at an upcoming party, and my 15 yr old stole the bowl after it was made! I think it's a hit!

1/2 C THRIVE Taco TVP, prepared
1/4 C THRIVE onions
1 clove minced garlic
1/8 C THRIVE mixed bell peppers
1/4 C THRIVE sweet corn
1/4 C THRIVE cheddar cheese

Prepare Taco TVP and set aside to cool. Rehydrate all vegetables and drain if necessary. Rehydrate cheese and drain. Mix all ingredients together and serve with tortilla chips.

Great food storage article!

I'd like to thank my friend, Rochelle Crews, for sending along this great article! Be sure to check out the photos of her food storage room. I want one!!

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/695242364/Can-do-attitude--Book-offers-tips-on-using-food-storage-items.html

Chicken Tetrazzini- YUM!!

Here's one that will be sure to please a crowd- even your kids! Have company showing up and need something easy? A neighbor who's sick and needs a meal? This is perfect!!

Chicken Tetrazzini

1 ¼ cup THRIVE chicken dices, reconstituted

¼ cup THRIVE celery, reconstituted

¼ cup THRIVE onions, reconstituted

¼ cup THRIVE mixed bell peppers

1 ½ C THRIVE Monterey Jack cheese, reconstituted

1 can cream of mushroom soup

½-1 lb spaghetti (I like mine exceptionally creamy, so I use less spaghetti)

Pepper

Garlic powder

Cook spaghetti according to package directions, drain and set aside.

Place reconstituted bell peppers, celery and onions in a small pan with 2 TB margarine. Sautee. Add chicken, pepper and garlic powder to taste. Add soup and cheese and mix well. Add spaghetti. Place mixture in a casserole dish and bake at 350 until hot and bubbly.

My kids can't stand bell peppers, so I either reduce the amount or leave them out completely.

ENJOY!

Whole Eggs- Indespensible and a GREAT value!!

I made cinnamon rolls last weekend. They were fabulous. The only problem was I didn't have any eggs, and I was too lazy to go to the store. Luckily, my little guy ran next store and borrowed some from the neighbor. The first thing I thought was, "DANG! I wish I had some THRIVE eggs on hand!" Then today while I was at the store, I bought some eggs. I paid $2.69 for 18 eggs at Walmart, which is cheaper than my grocery store. Then I got to thinking....

"Gee, that seems expensive for eggs. I wonder how much THRIVE eggs work out to per dozen?"

So, I walked to the computer and did some quick math.

First thing I realized was HOLY COW! There are 236 EGGS in a #10 can of whole egg powder! That's 19 dozen!! And at $19.65 per #10 can, that's only $1.00 per dozen!! That's actually CHEAPER than what I paid at Walmart! And even better- they have a 5 year shelf life unopened, or 6 months once opened. That gives you roughly a dozen eggs a week, for less than HALF of what they cost at the grocery store. I'll never buy fresh eggs again!

What's in YOUR Storage?

Okay, here's an exercise for you. Right now, tell me 3 meals you could make from your food storage. Ready, set, GO!!!

*crickets chirping*

Is it that hard? If you're like most of us, yes, it's that hard! The "traditional" method of emergency food storage involved storing the following items: Wheat, Beans, Rice, Oats, Powdered Milk, and Sugar. Then you would try to supplement that storage with canned vegetables and basic baking items like baking powder and yeast. At times, I've had thousands of pounds of food storage, but I still couldn't really EAT anything.

That's one more thing I love about THRIVE. I no longer think about storing individual commodities. I think about storing MEALS. With all the foods available through THRIVE, I can have breakfast, lunch, snacks, and even desserts in my storage! I can easily make breakfast burritos or omelettes, spaghetti, beef stroganoff, and all sorts of breads and muffins. I can make blueberry pancakes in the middle of winter, or a peach-berry smoothie in April. I can make tacos, soups, casseroles- just about anything you can think of, you can make with THRIVE. How exciting is that?!

If you're going to spend the time, thought, and money on storing food for your family, make sure you can actually EAT it. This is especially important if you have kids, because believe it or not in an emergency situation, kids WILL choose not to eat instead of eating the same thing over and over. Plus, storing a variety of foods ensures that you will have the nutrition you need to remain healthy. We'll cover the emotional stresses of emergencies another time, but you'll definitely feel more comfortable if you have a variety of foods at your disposal.

FEMA Guide to Emergency Kits

We've all heard by now that we should all have the ability to be completely self-reliant for 72 hours after an emergency. FEMA has established a website to help you know what should be in your kit. The link is here: FEMA's Get a Kit. Let's face it though, some of the conflicting information you find online can be confusing. How much water should I have? How much food? What kind of food? How am I going to carry all of this stuff?
I will cover each of these topics more as the weeks and months go on, but a GREAT place to start is by visiting Shelf Reliance's Emergency Kit Planner. Simply tell the planner how many people are in your family, and it will configure a kit for you- telling you everything you will need. You can even specify if you live in an area more prone to tornado, earthquake, flood or other natural disaster. You can also specify if you want a kit for your car, home or business. It makes everything such a snap!! Of course, you can purchase entire kits that are ready to go, such as our Providence 2-Person Kit, or you can assemble your own. Whichever route you go, it's sure to be MUCH easier with the help of Shelf Reliance. Or, contact me with specific questions. I'm always glad to help!! Below is a picture of the Providence kit.

Welcome!!

Have you ever just wanted the cleaning fairy to show up at your house and clean it for you? I HAVE! (And darn it, she never shows up!) Have you ever wanted to obtain an emergency supply of food and supplies, without spending hours and hours determining what you need for your family and trying to figure out how you're going to pay for it? Well, HERE I AM!! Your Food Storage Fairy!

I served as an Emergency Preparedness Specialist for several years, helping others obtain their emergency food and supply storage. I have spent hundreds of hours organizing a food co-op, packaging grains and other commodities with dry ice into food grade buckets, and helping other people learn to cook with their storage. In the past, it was frustrating to buy food storage products, only to realize they tasted so nasty, you'd never want to do anything with them but store them in your garage unless you had nothing else to eat.

That's why I'm so excited to tell you about THRIVE foods! I have recently become acquainted with their products, and I was instantly impressed! I signed up to become a consultant because I know how difficult it is to find quality products with excellent shelf life that you actually want to eat!

I will use this site to share ideas, quarterly specials, recipes, etc. I'm also excited to share with you some of the experiences I have had with food products and emergency supplies- from camping my way through Canada and Alaska by small plane to Scout trips and convenient family meals. So WELCOME!