Meals in a Jar (7 page)

Ready-Made Meal Assembly

When the granola is completely cooled, in each of 16 vacuum bags, seal 2 cups of granola and a packet of dry milk.

Label each bag:

To prepare, mix the dry milk with 2 cups of water and chill. Serve 3/4 cup cereal and 1/2 cup milk per serving. Serves 4
.

Breakfast Burritos

Burritos are the perfect grab-and-go breakfast: perfectly portable, and everybody loves them.

Makes 16 (4-serving) meals

Ingredients

4 cups powdered eggs

1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese (like Kraft brand)

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons dried chives or thyme

4 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons pepper

2 pounds mild cheddar cheese

2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)

16 Tortilla Sidekits (
pages 129–30
)

Instructions

For eggs: In each of 16 zip-top quart-size freezer bags, seal:

• 1/4 cup powdered eggs

• 1 tablespoon finely grated Parmesan cheese

• 1 teaspoon dried chives or thyme

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• pinch of pepper

For cheese: In each of 16 wide-mouth quarter-pint jars, seal:

• 4 ounces mild cheddar cheese

• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Or, cut 2 pounds cheese into 4-ounce cubes and wax.

Ready-Made Meal Assembly

In each of 16 Mylar bags, tote bags, or vacuum bags, store:

• 1 bag eggs

• 1 Tortilla Sidekit

• 1 quarter-pint spicy cheese or 4 ounces waxed cheese

Label each bag:

Heat a medium pot of water over medium heat to just simmering. Add 1/3 cup of water to the bag of eggs and squish the bag to combine (or put in a bowl and stir with a fork). Reseal the bag and place the bag of omelet mixture into the water and simmer 10 to 15 minutes, until solid and just cooked through. Divide the omelet into quarters, roll in the tortillas, add grated cheese, and serve
.

Oatmeal

Homey and comforting as well as nutritious and fortifying, oatmeal is a great way to warm up a cold morning.

Makes 16 (4-serving) meals, 4 bags each of 4 varieties: apple, raisin, cranberry, and almond

Ingredients

32 cups quick-cooking oats

2-2/3 cups dry milk

4 cups brown sugar

6 tablespoons ground cinnamon

1 cup raisins

1 cup dried apples

1 cup dried sweetened cranberries

1 cup chopped almonds

Ready-Made Meal Assembly

In each of 16 vacuum bags, add and seal:

• 2 cups quick-cooking oats

• 2 teaspoons dry milk

• 1 tablespoon brown sugar

• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1/4 cup raisins, dried apples, dried sweetened cranberries, or chopped almonds

Label each bag:

Bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Put bag contents into a bowl and then add boiling water. Stir, and then let sit 2 minutes, stir and serve. Serves 4
.

Grits

I love grits. And polenta. Grits are typically made from white corn ground into coarse cornmeal and polenta is typically made with yellow cornmeal. Both are delicious and can be served either sweet or savory, particularly with cheese. Grits are usually paired with American or cheddar cheese, and polenta is usually paired with Parmesan cheese or mascarpone. If you want an alternative to using cheese, try grits topped with toasted nuts, brown sugar and/or toasted coconut. Yum.

Makes 16 (4-serving) meals

Ingredients

16 cups hominy grits

2 cups dry milk

3 tablespoons salt

1-1/2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper

4 pounds mild cheddar cheese, canned in quarter-pint jars or waxed 4-ounce chunks

Ready-Made Meal Assembly

In each of 16 vacuum bags, add and then seal:

• 1 cup hominy grits

• 2 tablespoons dry milk

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• 1 quarter-pint mild cheddar cheese or 4 ounces waxed cheese

Label each bag:

In a medium saucepan, bring 3 cups of water to a boil over high heat, add the dry grits ingredients and stir for 1 minute. Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring frequently for 10 to 15 minutes, until no longer gritty. Meanwhile, grate the cheese. When the grits are done, stir in the cheese until melted, and serve. Serves 4
.

Cream of Wheat

Doesn’t Cream of Wheat just bring you back to your childhood? If you are eating from food storage, you can also grind your own Cream of Wheat by putting wheat berries through your food mill at a coarser grind than you would use for flour. You can find farina in the bulk foods section of the grocery store.

Makes 16 (4-serving) meals

Ingredients

30 cups hard red wheat, ground in your grain mill and measured out to be 42-2/3 cups of ground wheat, or 42-2/3 cups cream of boxed wheat cereal, or 42-2/3 cups farina

4 cups sugar

2 tablespoons powdered vanilla

1/4 cup salt

Ready-Made Meal Assembly

In each of 16 quart-size vacuum bags, add and then seal:

• 2-2/3 cups ground wheat, cream of wheat, or farina

• 1/4 cup sugar

• a pinch of powdered vanilla

• 1/4 teaspoon salt