Food Storage Cooking Made Easy

Food Storage Cooking Made Easy

by Debbie G. Harman

LDS cooks around the world have often looked at their freeze dried food and thought, “Can I actually make anything good out of this?” The answer is a resounding yes! Try out some of these delectable recipes and be surprised at how good food storage can actually taste.

Shepherd's Pie
* 3 cups dried potato slices
* 1 quart mixed vegetables
* Salt and pepper
* Paprika


Boil potatoes until tender and drain. Drain vegetables and pour into a greased 9 × 13 casserole dish. Spread potatoes over vegetables. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and paprika. Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes.



Beef Stroganoff
* 2 pounds ground beef
* Salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste
* 1 can cream of mushroom soup
* 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
* 1 can evaporated milk
* 3 tablespoons sour cream powder
* 1/4 cup water
* Egg noodles


Brown ground beef with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Drain fat. Stir remaining ingredients into browned meat. Simmer until heated through. Serve over hot cooked egg noodles.



Brown and Wild Rice Pilaf
* 1 (4-ounce) can mushrooms, chopped
* 1/2 cup green onions, chopped
* 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
* 3 1/2 cups water
* 3 teaspoons chicken bouillon
* 1 cup brown rice
* 1/2 cup wild rice
* 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
* 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
* 1/2 cup frozen peas
* 1 carrot, shredded


In a large saucepan, saute mushrooms and green onions in hot oil until tender. Add water and bouillon and bring to a boil. Add brown and wild rice, basil, and pepper. Cover and reduce heat. Simmer 40 minutes or until rice is tender and most of the broth is absorbed. Stir in peas and carrots and simmer 5 minutes or until heated through.



Split Pea Soup
* 1 pound dry green split peas
* 1 ham hock
* 1/2 cup minced onions
* 2 teaspoons chicken bouillon
* 2 1/2 quarts water
* Salt and pepper
* 1/2 cup dehydrated diced carrots
* 1/2 cup dehydrated diced celery
* 1 10 ounce can evaporated milk
* 2 tablespoon butter (dried or fresh)


Combine split peas, ham hock, minced onions, bouillon, water, salt, and pepper into a large soup pot. Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer 1 hour, stirring frequently. Add carrots and celery and simmer additional hour or until tender. Remove ham hock; de-bone and chop ham. Return chopped ham to soup. Stir evaporated milk and butter into soup and heat through.



Applesauce Muffins
* 2 cups applesauce
* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 1 cup sugar
* 2 eggs, well-beaten
* 2 cups whole-wheat flour
* 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1 teaspoon ground ginger
* 1 teaspoon allspice


Mix first four ingredients until well blended. Sift dry ingredients together. Stir into applesauce mixture until just moist. Pour into greased or paper-lined muffin cups. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until tops are golden brown. Yield: 2 dozen muffins.



Lemonade Cream Pie

Pie crust
# 1 1/3 cups whole-wheat flour
# 1 1/3 cups unbleached flour
# 1 teaspoon salt
# 3/4 cup shortening
# 6 tablespoons cold water


Sift flours and salt together. Cut in shortening until coarse and crumbly. Sprinkle in water a few tablespoons at a time. Blend together with fork until dough forms into a ball. Roll out on lightly floured surface. Gently roll dough around rolling pin and lift over pie pan. Unroll dough and gently press down into sides and bottom of pan. Trim crust 1/2-inch wider than pan. Fold edge under and pinch to flute. Bake according to pie directions. Makes 2 9-inch single crusts.


Filling
# 1 1/2 cups sugar
# 1/3 cup cornstarch
# 1/3 cup powdered milk
# 1 pkg. lemonade punch powder
# 2 cups water
# 2 tablespoons lemon juice
# Pinch of salt


Blend first 4 ingredients in a medium saucepan. Add water, lemon juice, and salt, and stir until dry ingredients are dissolved. Bring mixture to a boil. Continue cooking over medium-high heat, stirring continuously until thickened (7-10 minutes). Pour into baked pie crust; chill.


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Excerpted from Cooking with Food Storage Made Easy, Covenant Communications 2009. Available here.
Covenant Communications, 2009.

Out with the Old

Out with the Old

When looking at Debbie Harman’s food storage recipes, consider your own supplies.

Often we are quick to assume that our unperishables are . . . unperishable. But many of those items sitting in your food storage will not last forever. Here are guidelines for when some of the basics need to be thrown out:

Pancake mix: 6-9 months
Crackers: 6 months
Pasta (without egg solids): 1 year
Cereals: 6-12 months (but they can go stale quickly if opened)
Plain white rice, in airtight container: 2 years
Popcorn: 1-2 years
Canned fruit: 12-18 months (unopened)
Baking powder and soda: 6 months (opened)
Flour: 6-8 months
Sugar: 2 years (indefinite if kept free of moisture)
Prepared cake, pudding, and biscuit mixes: 9-12 months
Shortening: 18 months (unopened)
Vanilla extract: 1 year (opened)

100 Items to Disappear First in A Panic By Joseph Almond

100 Items to Disappear First in a Panic

October 12, 2008 by arksoaper

This list was originally prepared for Y2K, but it is still relevant, especially considering our current economic situation. (And let me interject here that I did nothing for Y2K except fill the bathtub with water, and sit around on the internet watching to see what happened in Australia when 12:00am rolled over. When it appeared they were ok, I went to bed and slept soundly! Our current situation, however, has alarmed me beyond anything I’ve experienced thus far. I urge you to prepare for a spike in inflation at the very least – whatever you can stock for your family now will help you down the road later.)

****************************************************************************************************

100 Items to Disappear First in A Panic

By Joseph Almond

#1. Generators (Good ones cost dearly. Gas storage, risky. Noisy..target of thieves; maintenance, etc.)

#2. Water Filters/Purifiers (Shipping delays increasing.)

#3. Portable Toilets (Increasing in price every two months.)

#4. Seasoned Firewood (About $100 per cord; wood takes 6 – 12 mos. to become dried, for home uses.)

#5. Lamp Oil, Wicks, Lamps (First choice: Buy CLEAR oil. If scarce, stockpile ANY!)

#6. Coleman Fuel (URGENT $2.69-$3.99/gal. Impossible to stockpile too much.)

#7. Guns, Ammunition, Pepper Spray, Knives, Clubs, Bats & Slingshots

#8. Hand-Can openers & hand egg beaters, whisks (Life savers!)

#9. Honey/Syrups/white, brown sugars

#10. Rice – Beans – Wheat (White rice is now $12.95 – 50# bag. Sam’s Club, stock depleted often.)

#11. Vegetable oil (for cooking) (Without it food burns/must be boiled, etc.)

#12. Charcoal & Lighter fluid (Will become scarce suddenly.)

#13. Water containers (Urgent Item to obtain. Any size. Small: HARD CLEAR PLASTIC ONLY)

#14. Mini Heater head (Propane) (Without this item, propane won’t heat a room.)

#15. Grain Grinder (Non-electric)

#16. Propane Cylinders

#17. Michael Hyatt’s Y2K Survival Guide (BEST single y2k handbook for sound advice/tips.)

#18. Mantles: Aladdin, Coleman, etc. (Without this item, longer-term lighting is difficult.)

#19. Baby Supplies: Diapers/formula/ointments/aspirin, etc

#20. Washboards, Mop Bucket w/wringer (for Laundry)

#21. Cookstoves (Propane, Coleman & Kerosene)

#22. Vitamins (Critical, due 10 Y2K-forced daily canned food diets.)

#23. Propane Cylinder Handle-Holder (Urgent: Small canister use is dangerous without this item.)

#24. Feminine Hygiene/Haircare/Skin products

#25. Thermal underwear (Tops and bottoms)

#26. Bow saws, axes and hatchets & Wedges (also, honing oil)

#27. Aluminum foil Reg. & Heavy Duty (Great Cooking & Barter item)

#28. Gasoline containers (Plastic or Metal)

#29. Garbage bags (Impossible to have too many.)

#30. Toilet Paper, Kleenex, paper towels

#31. Milk – Powdered & Condensed (Shake liquid every 3 to 4 months.)

#32. Garden seeds (Non-hybrid) (A MUST)

#33. Clothes pins/line/hangers (A MUST)

#34. Coleman’s Pump Repair Kit: 1(800) 835-3278

#35. Tuna Fish (in oil)

#36. Fire extinguishers (or.. large box of Baking soda in every room…)

#37. First aid kits

#38. Batteries (all sizes…buy furthest-out for Expiration Dates)

#39. Garlic, spices & vinegar, baking supplies

#40. BIG DOGS (and plenty of dog food)

#41. Flour, yeast & salt

#42. Matches (3 box/$1 .44 at WalMart: & Strike Anywhere & preferred. Boxed, wooden matches will go first.)

#43. Writing paper/pads/pencils/solar calculators

#44. Insulated ice chests (good for keeping items from freezing in Wintertime)

#45. Workboots, belts, Levis & durable shirts

#46. Flashlights/LIGHTSTICKS & torches, & No.76 Dietz Lanterns

#47. Journals, Diaries & Scrapbooks (Jot down ideas, feelings, experiences: Historic times!)

#48. Garbage cans Plastic (great for storage, water, transporting – if with wheels)

#49. Men’s Hygiene: Shampoo, Toothbrush/paste, Mouthwash/floss, nail clippers,etc

#50. Cast iron cookware (sturdy, efficient)

#51. Fishing supplies/tools

#52. Mosquito coils/repellent sprays/creams

#53. Duct tape

#54. Tarps/stakes/twine/nails/rope/spikes

#55. Candles

#56. Laundry detergent (Liquid)

#57. Backpacks & Duffle bags

#58. Garden tools & supplies

#59. Scissors, fabrics & sewing supplies

#60. Canned Fruits, Veggies, Soups, stews, etc.

#61. Bleach (plain, NOT scented: 4 to 6% sodium hypochlorite)

#62. Canning supplies (Jars/lids/wax)

#63. Knives & Sharpening tools: files, stones, steel

#64. Bicycles…Tires/tubes/pumps/chains, etc.

#65. Sleeping bags & blankets/pillows/mats

#66. Carbon Monoxide Alarm (battery powered)

#67. Board Games Cards, Dice

#68. d-Con Rat poison, MOUSE PRUFE II, Roach Killer

#69. Mousetraps, Ant traps & cockroach magnets

#70. Paper plates/cups/utensils (stock up, folks…)

#71. Baby Wipes, oils, waterless & Anti-bacterial soap (saves a lot of water)

#72. Rain gear, rubberized boots, etc.

#73. Shaving supplies (razors & creams, talc, after shave)

#74. Hand pumps & siphons (for water and for fuels)

#75. Soysauce, vinegar, boullions/gravy/soup base

#76. Reading glasses

#77. Chocolate/Cocoa/Tang/Punch (water enhancers)

#78. “Survival-in-a-Can”

#79. Woolen clothing, scarves/ear-muffs/mittens

#80. BSA – New 1998 – Boy Scout Handbook (also, Leader’s Catalog)

#81. Roll-on Window Insulation Kit (MANCO)

#82. Graham crackers, saltines, pretzels, Trail mix/Jerky

#83. Popcorn, Peanut Butter, Nuts

#84. Socks, Underwear, T-shirts, etc. (extras)

#85. Lumber (all types)

#86. Wagons & carts (for transport to & from open Flea markets)

#87. Cots & Inflatable mattresses (for extra guests)

#88. Gloves: Work/warming/gardening, etc.

#89. Lantern Hangers

#90. Screen Patches, glue, nails, screws, nuts & bolts

#91. Teas

#92. Coffee

#93. Cigarettes

#94. Wine/Liquors (for bribes, medicinal, etc.)

#95. Paraffin wax

#96. Glue, nails, nuts, bolts, screws, etc.

#97. Chewing gum/candies

#98. Atomizers (for cooling/bathing)

#99. Hats & cotton neckerchiefs

#100. Goats/chickens

Dave Ramsey Quote

I really like this quote from Dave Ramsey that he posted on his Face Book page. What is thoughtful is we are coming to the Christmas Season and we can either pay cash or charge everything on our credit card. What would you do?

"Money is like a beautiful thoroughbred horse--very powerful & always in action, but unless this horse is trained when very young, it will be an out-of-control & dangerous animal when it grows to maturity." - Dave Ramsey

5 Mistakes We Make Teaching Kids About Money

Top 5 Mistakes We Make Teaching Kids About Money


By Laura Rowley


We all make stupid money mistakes. Find out if you're making bad money decisions with this advice from Kodak spokesperson and money expert Laura Rowley.

1. Becoming a Human ATM Machine
Give children an allowance and let them know what they have to pay for out of their own stash—whether it's the ice cream truck, the goodies in the $1 aisle at the discount store or that Scholastic book order form that comes home from school. This reduces nagging, allows them to develop math skills and learn from their mistakes. It's amazing to see how much more they value the things they paid for themselves.

2. Overlooking Every Day Lessons
Don't miss opportunities to discuss simple economics in every day settings. While grocery shopping, explain why it's smarter to choose the package that costs less per pound, or the more affordable generic brand; and why it makes sense to stock up when an item is on sale. Explain why savvy savings habits make sense: "By saving just $15 a week using the grocery store's loyalty cards and coupons, we'll have almost $800 at the end of the year to spend on something fun."

3. Not Involving Kids in Longer-Term Goals
Solid money management comes down to two things, planning ahead and making choices. If you're planning a vacation, talk to the kids about the budget: airfare, lodging and entertainment. Take a coffee can and label it the "Vacation Fund" and throw in your loose change at the end of the day. Take the coins to the bank and show the kids how the money is adding up; and how the bank will pay you interest for storing the cash in a savings account. Give them a specific budget for souvenirs—say $15—and suggest they increase it by earning cash for the trip through lemonade stands, dog sitting or lawn mowing.

4. Missing the Opportunity to Motivate Their Savings Habits
If your kids put money in the bank, match their contributions. I took my kids to our local bank branch when they were 8, 6 and 4 and opened savings accounts for all of them. I matched the money they deposited, using the opportunity to discuss how a 401(k) plan works and why someone should contribute up to the amount of the company match (free money!).

5. Not Explaining How Plastic Works
According to a study by Nellie Mae, the student loan firm, the average college freshman has $1,500 in credit card debt, and that figure doubles by the time they graduate. Some 56 percent of college seniors carry four or more credit cards. That's when the real trouble starts, because if teens lose the battle to understand and manage credit cards at 18, the damage can haunt them for years. An estimated 70 percent of employers check credit scores before they hire. Over time, a low credit score will suck tens of thousands of dollars out of your child's pocket when they seek financing for an auto or a home. Consider allowing a teen to practice with a pre-paid, reloadable debit card such as Visa Buxx. It has fewer fees than competing cards and features parental controls—such as setting a weekly cash limit. Parents can also get email alerts showing when and where a teen used the card, setting the stage for discussions about wise spending.


Do you have any fail-proof methods for talking money with your children? Chime in here and share your techniques!

The Biggest Losers (of Debt): How a Family Shed $106,000 in Debt

This is an awesome article about this family.





Photo: Jeff Holmquist
Russell and Kathy Hildebrandt of New Richmond, Wis., won an award for successfully tackling $106,000 in credit card and personal debt through thrifty spending, a second job and bit-by-bit payments on their credit card balances. They're shown outside their home surrounded by their three children, 14-year-old twins Heidi (left) and Holly, and 3-year-old Joey.



The Biggest Losers (of Debt): How a Family Shed $106,000 in Debt
Karen Kroll
Friday, September 18, 2009
This article is part of a series related to being Financially Fit
Meet the Hildebrandts; their frugal ways lost debt, won an award
Five years ago, the Hildebrandt family of New Richmond, Wis., was juggling more than $100,000 in credit card and personal debt. Through frugality, determination and hard work, they are now -- other than a mortgage -- debt-free.
At the time, Russell and Kandy Hildebrandts' credit card balances totaled about $89,000, and they owed $17,000 to a family member. While they were current on all the payments, the card companies had begun raising their interest rates, adding hundreds to their minimum monthly payments. Kandy acknowledges that they presented a higher credit risk, given how their balances had ballooned. Even so, with the bump in the required payments, covering the monthly payments was a struggle. "We had to change," Kandy says.
Change they did. For their debt-fighting prowess, the Hildebrandts were on Tuesday night named the winners of the Professional Achievement and Counseling Excellence (PACE) 2009 Graduate Client of the Year Award. This national award, given by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, recognizes the hard work and commitment they demonstrated in repaying their debts, and their willingness to become effective managers of their money and change their lifestyle. (Disclosure: CreditCards.com Senior Reporter Connie Prater served as a judge in the awards.)
Slow Decline Into Debt
Not that the Hildebrandts' lifestyle was lavish. The couple, along with their twin daughters, Heidi and Holly, lived in a rented 1,000 square foot townhome. Vacations consisted of visits to extended family members in the Midwest. Russell was a chemist with a Twin Cities-based environmental testing laboratory; Kandy was a stay-at-home mom and home-schooled their daughters.
While the Hildebrandts weren't living extravagantly, they also weren't frugal, Kandy notes. They purchased most items, such as clothes for the girls, new. In addition, they had medical expenses related to Russell's diabetes and several miscarriages that Kandy suffered. At the same time, they remained committed to tithing, or giving 10 percent of their income to their church. The accumulation of day-to-day expenses left the family going a bit more into debt each year.
Bankruptcy? No Thanks
Several family friends recommended that they file for bankruptcy. That was out of the question, Russell says. "We were committed to paying off our debts." They also resolved to continue to tithe and home-school their daughters.
To get started, Kandy met with Linda Humburg, a manager with FamilyMeans Consumer Credit Counseling Service (CCCS) in Stillwater, Minn. Linda reviewed their finances, and developed a five-year debt management plan. While the schedule was daunting, the Hildebrandts signed on. "If we didn't make it, we knew that we would go out trying," Russell says.
Several steps were key to making the plan work. Kandy and Russell eliminated discretionary spending. Kandy began buying generic food and frequenting thrift stores for clothing purchases. They stopped exchanging Christmas and birthday gifts with each other and their relatives.
Even with the drastic cutbacks, the Hildebrandts couldn't cover the $2,000 they were sending to CCCS each month to be distributed to their creditors. At that time, the sum amounted to about half of Russell's take-home pay. So Russell took on a second job cleaning a local grocery store several nights a week from midnight to 4:30 a.m. He would arrive home from his day job, eat dinner, catch a few hours of sleep and head to work. After his shift, he would go back home, sleep a few more hours and then get up for his day job.
Slow Progress
The first two years were particularly tough. Russell's work schedule was grueling, while Kandy managed just about everything at home on her own. Moreover, while their credit card balances were going down, the drop wasn't yet noticeable. For about a year, the Hildebrandts made do with one car, until they received a used van from Kandy's family.

Even so, "they didn't let anything deter them from progress," Humburg says. "If the money wasn't available, they simply did without." Equally, important the Hildebrandts kept their goal -- becoming debt-free -- in mind.

After the first few years, the Hildebrandts' efforts finally seemed to be bearing fruit. Their card balances were coming down, and some were getting paid off. As one card reached zero, CCCS would apply the money that had gone to it to the remaining balances. As a result, those cards would get paid off even more quickly.

About this time, Kandy became pregnant with Joey, who's now 3. While recognizing that a new child would mean additional expenses, the couple was thrilled. "The joy he brought to a negative, grinding situation was the light we needed," she says.
Dream Home Appears
By the fall of 2008, the Hildebrandts had one year to go on the payment plan. Russell even started daydreaming about a new home when he saw a three-bedroom rambler for sale in New Richmond. It had all that they were looking for, including a large yard and a separate bedroom for Joey. Russell let a real estate agent know that they liked the house, but added that the family would have to pay off their debts before taking on a mortgage.
Several months later the agent called and asked if the Hildebrandts would be interested in a rent-to-own agreement. The current owner of the house had some health concerns and was eager to move. The monthly rent would be $1,000, which included $200 to be escrowed for closing costs. They could manage it.
Earlier this year, the owner wanted to accelerate the sale process. In April, using the tax credit for first-time home buyers, the Hildebrandts were able to swing the purchase and pay off the remaining balances on their credit cards about six months ahead of schedule.
Now, the Hildebrandts are content in their new home and free of debt, other than their mortgage. Russell has been able to quit his second job and spend more time with his family -- and catch up on sleep.
Frugal Habits Stick
Several things haven't changed, however. Kandy remains a dedicated bargain hunter. Shopping online, she found eight bar stools for their kitchen island and basement family room for $24; at a yard sale, she bought a $2 desk for the girls. The Hildebrandts "had to completely rethink how they spent and what was a need versus a want," Humburg says.
Both Russell and Kandy say that while bankruptcy might have seemed like an easier option at the outset, it would not have been as satisfying. They wouldn't have learned to take control over their money and spending. What's more, with a bankruptcy on their credit record, they wouldn't have been able to purchase a house when they did.
Their advice to others? "Get out of debt," Kandy says. "It's a chokehold."

New frugality is the new normal, by necessity

New frugality is the new normal, by necessity
By ASHLEY M. HEHER, AP Retail Writer Ashley M. Heher, Ap Retail Writer Mon Sep 7, 1:23 pm ET
CHICAGO – A year after "shop 'til you drop" stopped, the nation fixates on this question: Will consumer spending ever return to pre-recession levels?
Increasingly, the answer appears to be no. Belt-tightening in bad times is normal. And after every other recession since World War II, penny-pinching quickly fell out of fashion and Americans resumed their demand for houses, cars and everything else.
This time it's different. Like the Great Depression in the 1930s, the Great Recession seems destined to turn many Americans into lasting coupon-cutters, scrimpers and savers. Consumers dug a debt hole over the past decade from which there's no easy climb out. The population segment that drives spending the most — baby boomers — faces special pressure: Boomers are running out of time.
A study by research firm AlixPartners concluded that once a new normal sets in after this recession ends, Americans will spend at about 86 percent of their pre-downturn level.
In an economy driven by consumption, the implications are far-reaching if that forecast proves correct:
• For every kitchen not remodeled, there will be lost sales of appliances and supplies, and fewer jobs for designers and contractors. As homeowners do work around the house themselves, there will be less work for gardeners, plumbers and handymen.
• For every shopper who trades down from luxury stores to discount stores, it will mean less profit for retailers and manufacturers. Retailers will continue to offer few product choices and leaner inventories, and they'll reassess store locations and advertising.
• If sales of cars and trucks average closer to the recession level of 10 million a year than the 16 million in boom times, more suppliers will fail and further consolidation among automakers could occur. Taxes not paid on lost vehicle sales will continue to stress budgets of state and local governments.
Frugality may be good for family budgets, but it's bad for the national economy. And that has the potential to reinforce and continue the miserly mood. A Gallup survey last month found seven in 10 Americans are cutting weekly expenses — a number that has been consistent through the summer.
A year after last fall's financial meltdown turned a garden-variety recession into the worst downturn since the Depression, thriftiness is still driven by the twin engines of necessity and fear. Unemployment, now at 9.7 percent, is still rising and expected to reach double digits before year's end for the first time since 1982. Many who still have jobs are getting paid less, and investments have a long way to go before they return to pre-meltdown levels.
Kathy Haney, 46, of Orland Park, Ill., has a job but is scaling back her shopping and packing her lunch.
"You put your priorities in different places because you never know if you're going to have a job tomorrow," the legal secretary says. "You think twice now. I have six TVs in the house. Do I really need a new flat screen?"
For her and many other Americans, the answer is no. The underlying causes of the meltdown and where it left millions financially suggests a fundamental change is under way. Personal spending has fallen in four of the last six quarters — the only time that's happened since quarterly records were first compiled in 1947.
In a normal recession, a vicious downward cycle of reduced spending by consumers and layoffs by employers finally eases and a virtuous cycle begins. Consumers start spending again. Factories ramp back up to meet the demand and hire workers. Incomes rise, fueling greater spending, more production and more jobs.
Until the Great Recession, the worst recession since World War II was in 1981-82. Unemployment peaked at 10.8 percent in December 1982, a month after the recession had ended.
The recovery that followed was powered by baby boomers, they were mostly in their 20s and early 30s then. Their careers were taking off, they were starting families, and they were spending freely. On homes, furniture, cars — and everything else. Saving for retirement was the last thing on their minds.
Fueled by boomers, when the recession ended, growth was explosive. Consumer spending rose 5.7 percent in 1983. GDP rose 4.5 percent in '83 and 7.2 percent in 1984.
"If someone gets more comfortable, they spend a little more," says Erik Hurst, an economist at the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business. "As they spend a little more, someone else spends more."
Jump to today. For most of this decade, Americans enjoyed a credit-fueled binge that allowed them to spend more than they made. They snatched up everything from gadgets to houses.
Those houses soared in value and became as valuable a source of cash as a bank ATM. Home equity was tapped to pay for vacations, new cars and kitchen renovations. The rising stock market gave people an inflated sense of wealth as they watched their retirement accounts grow.
Not unlike the Roaring '20s, which preceded the Great Depression three generations ago, people believed the good times would never end. Per capita personal spending ballooned 25 percent from 2003 to 2005, according to data from Euromonitor International.
When the party ended, the nation was left with more than just a hangover. Personal debt had doubled in a decade. As of July, it stood at $13.8 trillion, or about $124,000 per household. Despite months of frugality, that was only slightly below its 2008 peak.
It will take years to work down the debt, which will prolong people's thriftiness. Paying it down will be harder because of the layoffs, pay cuts, freezes and furloughs. Personal income has fallen or been flat eight of the past 10 months.
On the asset side of their balance sheets, plunging stock prices and home values have made Americans feel poorer. Their net worth — the difference between the value of what they own and what they owe — has taken a staggering $12.2 trillion hit in the Great Recession. Net worth fell from $62.6 trillion at the end of 2007 to $50.4 trillion at the end of this year's first quarter, figures from the Federal Reserve show.
The result: Consumer spending adjusted for inflation fell 0.2 percent in 2008 — the first annual drop since 1980. Hardest hit from the first half of last year to the first half of this year: Motor vehicles and parts (down 17.2 percent); furnishings and durable household equipment (down 8.8 percent); clothing and footwear (down 5.8 percent).
"There will be a fundamental shift in the kind of cars we buy, a fundamental shift in the homes we buy, and a fundamental shift in consumption generally," says Matt Murray, an economist at the University of Tennessee. "And that is not something that took place in the 1980s."
As in the 1980s, much of that shift will be driven by baby boomers. For the 78 million people born from 1946 through 1964, the Great Recession hit at a particularly inopportune time — during peak years of earning and saving before retirement. Boomers range from 44 to 63 today — the youngest is nearly 10 years older than the oldest was in 1982. They are running out of time and are most likely to remain cautious spenders and become aggressive savers even as the economy improves.
The housing bubble mistakenly led boomers and millions of others to believe their home was their retirement nest egg. If they left their home equity alone during the boom, they've taken a hit the last couple years but are still ahead. But many treated their home like a personal bank and spent the gains by tapping a home equity line of credit.
Some now feel disgusted with the great national buying binge and are reacting against it. Last month, Chicago playwright Maureen Riley began giving away what she amassed.
"I felt this tremendous clarity as I looked around and saw my space emptying out and my closet emptying out," the 55-year-old says.
Despite all the battered personal balance sheets, thriftiness will abate somewhat as the economy continues to recover. There will still be vacations and home remodeling. But there will be caution, too.
Sanda Schramm, 63, a second-grade school teacher from Florham Park, N.J., and her husband Rob, 64, made changes after their retirement funds fell 20 percent below their peak. They considered themselves frugal before the recession. Now, they are even more tightfisted.
Instead of scouring for 40 percent discounts at Macy's and other department stores, she looks for 75 percent markdowns and shops more at consignment stores. They go out to dinner once a month instead of twice a week. And most everything they buy is paid for in cash, not with a credit card.
When the economy bounces back and her retirement accounts recover, Schramm says she'll continue to shop at consignment shops but will probably go to restaurants more.
"When the housing market and stocks were booming, everybody felt wealthy," she says. "But when everything goes down, you feel you're vulnerable ... I have always been careful, but now I am even more careful."
___
AP Retail Writer Anne D'Innocenzio contributed to this report from New York.

Rose Park Mormon a gardening advocate

Rose Park Mormon a gardening advocate
By Sharon Haddock
Mormon Times
Published: 2009-08-26 00:17:21

ROSE PARK, Utah -- With the national economy stumbling and the world climate changing, now is the time to become proficient at growing food.

So says a Rose Park, Utah, Mormon who hasn't bought a vegetable in a store for more than 20 years but still sits down to a healthy, veggie-laden meal every night.

"My mother used to make me take care of the vegetables in our garden," Ralph Steenblik said. "I thought it was an abomination."

Today, Steenblik, 81, cares for an 18-tree orchard and a large garden. He also oversees the Rose Park Community Garden just a ways north of his home in Salt Lake City.

Steenblik tills, seeds, weeds, waters and harvests all season long and even tends a few hardy crops through the winter. He raises sweet corn, celery, tomatoes, beets, carrots, 10 varieties of squash, beans, garlic, cabbage, leeks, chard and spinach.

"I eat fresh spinach all winter long," said Steenblik, who covers the plants with a layer of leaves so they continue to grow in the cold.


Eighty-one-year-old Ralph Steenblik works in his garden at his home in Rose Park, Utah. Photo: Michael Brandy, Deseret News


Steenblik freezes or cans his harvest. Last year, he put up 160 quarts of fruit, canned string beans and dill pickles, and froze corn, peas, broccoli, cauliflower and English broad beans.

At one point in the process, he stood back and surveyed the quart jars and the sink full of dishes and told himself, "Ralph, you'd make somebody a good wife!"

Steenblik, a widower with six children, 29 grandchildren and 20 great-great grandchildren, has lived in the Rose Park area his entire life. He has a knack for gardening, and he's learned a lot from books.

But the most valuable knowledge came from growing plants for years in the clay soil that's typical of the area.

He knows if he wants good carrots, he has to break up the soil to about a 1-foot depth wherever they are planted. He knows potatoes won't do well in the hard clay.

He knows to push the soil up around the celery plants and corn stalks to support them.

He understands the value of staggered plantings to assure fresh crops throughout the summer.

He's trying some peanuts to see what happens, and he's thinking about adding a few chickens to the mix.

"I don't grow radishes or red beets because I don't care for them," Steenblik said. "I won't waste my time with melons here. They didn't grow, so I'm not going to monkey with it."

He figures he's not only saved a good amount of money over the years from gardening, but he also eats healthily and feels good.

Steenblik can't believe people aren't growing their own food, given the current economic circumstances. Sometimes, he's the only one who shows up on Wednesday and Saturday evenings to work in the community garden, a place designed to benefit those who want fresh vegetables in return for a few hours labor.

"People will starve to death before they'll come and work and do something," he said. "That's my gut feeling."


E-mail: haddoc@desnews.com



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Copyright © 2009 Deseret News Publishing Company

Grow 100 lbs. Of Potatoes In 4 Square Feet:

(For pictures please see the web site)

How To Grow 100 lbs. Of Potatoes In 4 Square Feet

Posted By TipNut On April 7, 2009 @ 1:06 pm In Garden & Plants, Popular Tips | 54 Comments

Potato Box Project By The Seattle Times
Quite the clever gardening tip here folks! Today’s feature includes tips from three different sources for growing potatoes vertically (in layers) instead of spread out in rows across your garden. If you have limited garden space or want to try some nifty gardening magic, this could be a great option for you.

First, there’s this article from The Seattle Times: It’s Not Idaho, But You Still Can Grow Potatoes [1]:

The potatoes are planted inside the box, the first row of boards is installed and the dirt or mulch can now be added to cover the seed potatoes. As the plant grows, more boards and dirt will be added.

You plant potatoes in one bottom layer, boarding up the sides of each layer and adding dirt as you go higher (you wait until the plants have grown a bit before adding a new layer). While new potatoes are growing in the top layers, remove the boards from the first layer at the bottom to carefully dig out the potatoes that are ready for harvesting. Fill the dirt back in and board up the box again. You move up the layers and harvest as the potatoes are ready. I imagine the new potatoes in the first couple bottom layers would be somewhat awkward to get at but as you move higher–not so bad.

I traced the information provided in the article to Irish Eyes Garden Seeds, they have another how-to article online here: How to Grow 100 lbs. of Potatoes in 4 Square Feet [2]. They also advise you can skip the box and try growing the potatoes in a barrel or wire cage instead.

In another article on The Seattle Times (How To Grow Potatoes At Home [3]), I came across this blog post from Sinfonian’s Square Foot Garden that details his attempt at growing potatoes with this potato box method: Build-As-You-Grow Potato Bins [4]. The info was from last year (lots of pics) and he’s promised updates of this year’s attempts. He added this tip for a better yield:

Greg from Irish-Eyes Garden City Seeds let me know that Yukon Golds, and all early varieties set fruit once and do not do well in towers. You only get potatoes in the bottom 6 inches, which is what I got. Late season alternatives to yukon gold are Yellow Fin and Binjte.

Bonus! For a handy project sheet, The Seattle Times has a nice image file detailing the steps (click to view the original):

How To Build & Use Your Potato Box: The Seattle Times

Imagine growing all those potatoes in a just a few square feet–and how drastically reduced the potato-patch weeding job will be! So Clever.

Reader Update: Here’s some info sent in by Christine who made a potato bin using wood pallets:

Last weekend, I was inspired by the Tip Nut potato bin – grow 100 lbs in 4 square feet. As nice as it looked, it seemed to be very complicated, especially unscrewing slats. Being a “just do it” kind of person, I asked my husband to build me one using pallets — which are free. He picked some up, but I realized that they were enormous, so he cut them in half and made side by side compost / potato growing bins.

The Tip Nut plan called for unscrewing the bottom portions to get the grown potatoes out. Rod attached pieces of wood to hold the front pallet in place and to allow you to slide it up like a window. I took books of hay to stuff in the openings of the potato bin so the dirt wouldn’t fall out. We’ll see how it does.

Here’s a photo:

Christine's Wood Pallet Potato Bin

Unfortunately we placed it up against our neighbor’s fence. On the other side is their dog, who our Puggle Feeney loves to visit. He is always trying to dig under the fence. With the bins in place over his digging spot, the poor guy jumped into the compost bin and got stuck!

Christine’s Update: After having it in place for a couple of weeks, I discovered that the local cats think it makes a fine litter box, so I’ve added a frame on the top with chicken wire to keep them out, but allow the sunlight and water in. See her page here for lots more info and tips: Food Security 2009 [5].

*Updated, corrected information

Reaping fruits of their labor

(See the article for pictures.)

Church News
Reaping fruits of their labor
By Lisa Christensen
Church News staff writer
Published: Thursday, Aug. 6, 2009

What started as a simple idea to help a ward in troubled economic times has sprouted into a program that will continue to benefit present and future ward members and non-members alike.

A former farmer, Bishop William Erickson of the Battle Creek 2nd Ward thought of the ward garden as a way to help his ward through the trying economic and spiritual times. After the Pleasant Grove Utah East Stake was asked to develop a 3-acre parcel of land in 2008, Bishop Erickson realized gardening was an efficient way to teach gospel principles, as well as supplement the needs of the Bishops' Storehouse, the use of which, he said, had increased by 40 percent as the economy had recently faltered.


"This year we have more people who have been out of work for a period of time than ever before," he said.

A member of the ward, Shirley Stone, had a small field behind her house. She agreed to let the ward use it as a garden. The land, about 3/4 acre, hadn't been used for years, and there were a lot of rocks to clear — three weeks of work. From there, the ward planted some winter crops to be harvested in the spring. Bishop Erickson said they didn't have high expectations for the first year of crops but have been pleasantly surprised: The ward started harvesting in early July and now harvests three times a week. Tim Salsbury, co-chairman of the activities committee and garden specialist with Scott De Montmorence, said the progression of the garden from being rocky and unused to fertile and bountiful has been interesting and rewarding.

"It's been fun to see it develop from what it was to what it is now," he said.


Brother Salsbury was recruited in part because of his profession as a plumber. Bishop Erickson provided the materials necessary to set up a watering system and Brother Salsbury put it together, creating a drip watering system, which he said reduces weed and insect problems, and eliminates the need for furrows. It also makes it easy for members to water the garden, Bishop Erickson said.

The members planted a diverse bunch of vegetables, including not only the standard fare of tomatoes, beans and squash, but also less-ordinary plants like broccoli rabe. Their harvesting started this season with spinach and radishes, and now has moved on to include beans and peas. Their planting isn't over, either: The ward recently planted some carrot seeds for a late harvest. Bishop Erickson said the harvest, seeing the fruits of their labor, is one of the benefits to the members he had hoped for.


"Producing crops you can see the fruits of your labor," he said. Seeing those fruits makes the work worth it, and, he added, builds a work ethic within the members of the ward. Such patience and work ethic required to garden is rare these days, he noted, but so important. "They're going to have a lot of difficulty if they don't learn how to work," he said.

The produce, as per the original plan to help provide food for members in need of assistance during trying economic times, has been given to those who have been struggling recently and, as more preservable vegetables ripen, Relief Society members will can them for the months ahead, as well as teach others how to can their own. The garden has been a missionary tool, too, Bishop Erickson said. Neighbors and friends who aren't LDS have helped in the garden and reaped the benefits, also.


The point of the garden, Bishop Erickson said, is to share and give some to everyone. The ward strives to not only produce food and work hard at the garden, but also to utilize their resources as best as they can.

"We're utilizing every inch of that ground," Brother Salsbury said. The project has helped forge better ties between ward members, he said. "It's been a good fellowshipping thing."


Bishop Erickson said the fellowshipping has been particularly helpful in regard to less-active members and people who have recently moved in and might not know the people who have been there longer. He noted that the project has reaped not only tangible rewards but spiritual fruits have been cultivated, too.

"To have the opportunity to do this … it has been very, very spiritually rewarding," Bishop Erickson said.

© 2009 Deseret News Publishing Company