February 2013 Newsletter

Gardening Corner:  Yes, time to start thinking of the garden already.  If you plan on doing  a garden then this is the month to plan it out on paper and start to order your seeds.  If you wait very long some seeds will sell out early.  In about 1 month you can start some plants from seeds.  Better to plan early and be ready.

 Product Highlight of the month:    Dehydrated or Freeze dried foods

I have had several people ask me from time to time about how to use these foods.  It is rather easy I think.  Don’t think of them, especially the fruits and veggies, as being very different from using canned, frozen or fresh.  If you are to use frozen, you thaw things out first.  If wet canned you open the can, drain and dump.  If you are using dehydrated you just rehydrate for a while and then use like wet canned or fresh.  If you are making a soup or casserole and it will sit awhile you can even just throw the dry stuff in and let it soak up the liquid that is in your recipe.   I personally try to keep 1 #10 can of each commonly used food in my kitchen pantry and throw some of that stuff in as I am making dinner. That way I am getting used to it and I am rotating my stock.  Here are some of the ways I use my dried foods to keep them rotated.

Milk:  I use to make milk when we are low and I am not in the mood to run to the store.  Make ahead when no one is looking and give it time to get really cold!  Also when making pudding or any dish like potato soup that calls for lots of milk, whisk in a bunch of powdered milk to the water as it cooks.  There are so many other things in there, no one will know that you used powdered milk and not fresh. Use in baking too.

Eggs:  Yes, they have egg powder.  I am not a fan of fresh eggs, and these sound awful but we all use eggs.  I use these mostly when I am baking and have run out of eggs.  So glad I have a few cans of these.  No late night or Sunday afternoon runs to the grocery store.  Keep in mind that most of your ready-made mixes have egg powder in them.  I have not used them like fresh so I can’t comment on that.

Freeze dried or dehydrated fruits:  Rehydrate and use in cobblers or pies.  We recently opened a can of freeze dried strawberry dices.  They are TINY little pieces of REAL strawberries.  They taste really good.  I opened up the can because my child was mad that we bought a plain cereal that had strawberries on the photo.  There are no strawberries IN the cereal.  It became a lesson in product advertising.  She would not eat the plain cereal without strawberries.  I remembered we had some of these and thought “Now is the time to test them out.”  We put a bunch in the box of cereal and shook it up well and “Viola”, strawberry yumminess. 

Freeze dried or dehydrated vegetables:  I use the onions a couple times a week at least, my personal favorite.  And I use the celery dices in soups and other recipes when I realize I don’t have any fresh.  Most of the other veggies I have in #10 cans just to have for hard times.  I also have wet canned from the store and home canned from the garden.

Dehydrated potato products:  We all use potatoes in many different forms. These are really handy to have on hand.  I use the potato pearls and hash browns all the time.

Dehydrated red and green bell peppers:  I keep these in the pantry to use in soups and casseroles. You can also add them to your frozen or fresh hash browns once they have been rehydrated.  I have also used them a few times when canning homemade salsa or pickle relish when I realized I did not have any fresh ones on hand.  These are very small, no need to chop.

TVP/Soy based meat replacements:  They come in several flavors now such as beef, taco, BBQ, chicken and sausage.  I use them on occasion to “stretch” the amount of meat I am using in a recipe.  These are usually not cheap so I buy them when they are on sale.  Great to have when you are out of a job or low on meat. Use on occasion to get familiar with them.

If you are interested in finding some recipes on-line you can find a bunch at www.augasonfarms.com   I will put a couple in this newsletter that I found at the grocery store next to some of their products.

Freeze Dried Corn Chowder by Augason Farms

8 C. water                                                                     ½ C. dehydrated chopped onions

2 T. Chicken Bouillon                                                  1 sm. Can diced green chilies

4 C. freeze dried sweet corn                                     2 t. salt

2 T. dehydrated diced carrots                                  1 ½ t. cumin

1 C. dehydrated diced potatoes                               ½ t. garlic powder

½ C. dehydrated cross-cut celery                            2 C. heavy cream

Place all ingredients except for the cream in a pot and bring to a low boil, simmer 20-25 minutes until vegetables are tender.

1.      Place soup in a blender in small batches and blend until smooth.

2.      Return to pot and add cream.  Mix well.

3.      Garnish with hot sauce and fresh lime juice if desired.

Pasta Salad by Augason Farms

10 oz. Rotini pasta                                                2 tomatoes, chopped (optional)

¼ C. chopped onions, dehydrated                     1 C. chopped mushrooms (optional)

½ C. dehydrated red & green bell peppers, dehydrated

¾ C. fat free Italian style dressing                      1 sm. can sliced black olives

1.       In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook pasta until al dente, rinse under cold water and drain.

2.      In a large bowl, combine pasta, onions, bell peppers, tomatoes and mushrooms.  Pour enough dressing over to coat; toss and refrigerate until chilled.