DISTRICT 10 Preparedness Newsletter - January 2023

Hello Members of District 10!

Here is our latest Preparedness Letter. It is much shorter than they have been in the past, and will be from here on out. In each newsletter we are going to have one main focus on something to help us all be more capable, including something to learn or practice. We will also post some storage goals related to that focus. Please read the whole thing and as you try things out, or if you have experience in that area that would be good to pass on, please comment below! Thank You!

“Preparedness, when properly pursued, is a way of life,

not a sudden spectacular program.”

-Spencer W. Kimball

GOALS:

Practice:

Bake a loaf of homemade bread (or rolls)!

-using-

whole grain flour

…which you grind at home if possible;

and you still get kudos if you add white flour.

Extra kudos if you also make a loaf of sourdough!

…and if you have a sourdough start and are willing to share

please let us know! 

(Incidentally, you can buy whole wheat flour if you don't have a grinder yet.)

Short Term Storage:

yeast, bread flour, “Crisco”, butter, cooking oil of choice

Long Term Storage:

hard red wheat, hard white wheat, iodized salt, sugar, honey

Prep Equipment:

bread pans, bread bags, parchment paper,

wheat grinder

Connect:

It’s always fun to be able to make a family connection with the past by using a recipe perfected by a parent or grandparent. See if you can find a cherished bread or roll recipe from an old family cookbook. Tell your children what memories it produces, or start your own tradition. We share some examples here:

Grandma Staheli’s Bread

6 cups lukewarm water 3 tablespoons yeast ½ cup sugar or honey

2/3 cup vegetable oil 5 teaspoons salt 10 cups whole wheat flour + - 5 cups white flour

Measure and heat water in a glass bowl in the microwave for approx. 2 minutes. Pour into a very large mixing bowl. Add yeast, sugar or honey, oil and salt, and stir. Let the mixture sit until the yeast turns frothy. Add the wheat flour and stir with a potato masher or large wooden spoon until the dough is smooth. Gradually stir in the white flour, 1 or 2 cups at a time, until the dough is elastic and too thick for stiring. Turn dough onto a heavily-floured surface and knead it by lifting the dough with one hand, then pushing it down with the other hand. Knead the dough in a circular motion for about 5 minutes, until it is smooth and elastic.

Cookbooks always direct bakers to let the dough raise for an hour at this point, bit I no longer do and haven’t noticed an adverse effect on the bread. Instead, I divide the dough into 5 equal parts. (I usually use one part to make scones by rolling the dough fairly thin, then cutting it into squares or triangles that are about the size of my palm. I let these raise for at least 15 minutes while I make loaves of the rest. Later, I heat a couple of inches of vegetable oil in a deep sauce pan for a few minutes, watching carefully so it doesn’t overheat. Stretching each piece of dough thin, I place it in the hot oil and let it brown on both sides by turning with tongs.)

Roll each of the four remaining portions of dough into fairly thin rectangles. Starting at the short end, roll the dough up jelly-roll style, then pinch the ends and the seam to seal and form a loaf. Place each loaf in a pan that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray or greased with shortening. Let them rise in a warm place for 45 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and bake the loaves for 30 to 35 minutes. Allow loaves to cool in the pans for a few minutes, then gently dump out sideways. Place loaves upright and butter tops while they are still warm.

Grandma Elizabeth’s Rolls

(small recipe)

Wheat flour (see below) 1 heaping tablespoon yeast 2 cups warm water

little pour of oil (can use coconut oil…2 heaping Tbs if hard, approx. 1 ½ Tbs if liquid)

1 teaspoon salt honey (preferably…big, heaping Tbs if hard, 1-2 Tbs if runny) or sugar

Put all these except flour in a mixer bowl and stir together. Add flour…start with 2 cups in the mixture, mixing on low, and add spoons-full until it thickens to the consistency of a wet dough. Put on higher speed and observe how it sticks to the bowl. It’s better to have too little flour than too much. Bread dough that is difficult to handle because it will stick to hands is the goal. Mix on high speed until it pulls away from the bowl and clings to the mixer. This indicates that the gluten is doing it’s job. Scrape the dough off of the beater and let it raise in the bowl. Each time it raises, punch it down once or twice. If you want to do bread, spoon it into a greased bread pan. If rolls, shape them with greasy hands (coconut oil works great) and put on a greased cake pan, allowing space for them to raise. Place in a warm oven for more raising. Then bake at 350 for 20 to 25 minutes or until you start smelling a wonderful smell. Brown bottoms means they are done (glass pans are easiest for looking). Rub butter on the tops of the rolls while they are still warm.

Here's an easy recipe for sour dough starter (with lots of links to recipes included): https://iamhomesteader.com/sourdough-starter/

And another recipe from the days when a ranch cook commanded great respect on the range: 

Sourdough Starter -

2 cups lukewarm potato water

2 cups flour (I'm sure theirs wasn't bleached in those days)

1 tablespoon sugar

First make potato water by cutting up 2 medium-sized potatoes into cubes, and boil in 3 cups of water until tender. Remove the potatoes and measure out 2 cups of remaining liquid. Mix the potato water, flour and sugar into a smooth paste. Set in a warm place until starter mixture rises to double its original size.