The Everything Guide to Living Off the Grid (31 page)

Sprouts

Unless you can bottle or freeze them, it’s hard to store leafy green vegetables for a long period of time. You have probably pulled a bag of lettuce out of your refrigerator only to find that it has gone bad between the time you purchased it and the time you wanted to use it. But those green vegetables are essential to your health. So, how are you able to offer your family a supplement of high-powered greens? Sprouts.

From their original state as seeds, beans, or grains, sprouts actually increase in vitamins A, B, C, E, and K as they grow. Riboflavin and folic acid increase up to thirteen times, and vitamin C increases up to 600 percent.

You will want to offer your family a variety of sprouts in order to ensure a balanced diet. Many of the legumes and grains discussed in this chapter are excellent choices for sprouting, including wheat, barley, chickpeas, mung beans, adzuki beans, peas, and lentils. Other good choices for sprouts are alfalfa, buckwheat, clover, and quinoa. It’s suggested that a one-month supply of beans for one adult would be about five pounds.

Nonfat Dry Milk

Nonfat dry milk or powdered milk is an excellent source of protein, calcium, and nutrition. It provides about 80 calories per serving. Most vitamins in dried milks are present in levels comparable to those of whole milk. However, vitamins A and D are not present in nonfat milk and must be supplemented.

Nonfat powdered milk can be used not only in cooking and baking, but also to create other dairy products, like yogurt, cheese, and sour cream. Dried whole milk and dried buttermilk contain milkfat and are not suitable for long-term storage.

If you have milk allergies, consider other options. If your family enjoys soy milk, you can actually learn how to make your own with stored soy beans.

A month’s supply of dry milk for one adult would be about 1½ pounds.

Honey

For over 10,000 years, honey has been considered a basic survival food. It was considered as such both for its food qualities and for its medicinal purposes. Honey is a natural and healthy sweetener. It will store almost indefinitely, and comes in a variety of flavors depending on what plants the bees were exposed to as they gathered nectar and pollens.

Greeks and Romans referred to honey as a food fit for the gods. Greek custom was to offer honey to the gods and deceased spirits. This tribute kept one out of harm’s way and in a spirit’s or god’s good graces.

Because honey i.n’t processed like sugar, it retains its nutrients and mineral content. And, since it is a natural food, it is digested more easily than sugar.

Honey also provides natural antioxidants that can boost your immune system. In addition, honey produced locally may help inhibit allergies.

Honey can be substituted in recipes calling for sugar. Simply use ¾ cup honey for every cup of sugar in the recipe. Because honey is liquid, as opposed to sugar, you should reduce the amount of liquid called for in the recipe by one-quarter. Honey will also give your foods a sweeter taste than sugar.

Honey can be stored in any clean container, from plastic food-grade buckets to glass jars. Honey should be stored at about 75°F, but if it is stored at a cooler temperature, the crystallization that occurs can be reversed by placing the container in warm water.

You should be aware that honey is not recommended for infants under the age of twelve months.

You should store about five pounds of honey or sugar per adult per month.

Salt

Salt improves the flavor of foods and is essential in many recipes for baked goods (it helps bread rise) and in canning and preserving food. The recommended amount of salt to store for a year’s use is eight pounds per person per year. Salt can be stored long term and, if it cakes up, can be dried at a low temperature (250ºF) in an oven until you can break it up so it is granulized again. It is recommended to use and store iodized salt to prevent goiter.

Oil

Fats are essential to your survival and for the structure and healthy functioning of your body. The body needs two essential fatty acids—linoleic acid, which is better known as omega-6 fatty acid, and linolenic acid, also known as alpha-linolenic, ALA, a type of omega-3 fatty acid. For general health, there should be a balance between omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids. The ratio should be in the range of 2:1—4:1, omega-6 to omega-3.

Omega-3 fatty acid can be found in deepwater fish, fish oil, canola oil, flaxseed oil, and walnut oil. You can also find it in nuts, like almonds, hazelnuts, pecans, cashews, walnuts, and macadamia nuts. Omega-6 fatty acids
are found in raw nuts, seeds, legumes, and vegetable oils like borage oil, grape seed oil, evening primrose oil, sesame oil, and soybean oil. When you store oil, be sure that you choose an oil that will help you meet your requirements of fatty acids.

It is suggested that for one month’s storage you have about one quart of oil per adult.

CHAPTER 17
The Importance of Herbs

Herbs are the leaves or other parts of aromatic plants that are grown in a temperate climate. There are herbs you can use for everyday living, like cleaning, sachets, and laundry, herbs to flavor food, and herbs for medicinal purposes. Herbs can offer you a natural and healthier alternative to many of the products you might currently be using in your home.

Your Herb Garden

Traditionally, herb gardens were laid out in geometric patterns. From simple kitchen gardens to extravagant formal gardens, the plants were organized by use, relationships to other plants, or appearance. In more contemporary times, gardeners still enjoy unique herb gardens, but approach them with a more organic point of view, where appearance, color, and texture dictate the direction of the garden over use. Many times, herb gardens have elements that contrast with the plants. This is not only for aesthetics, but also to keep the herbs confined. You will find many herb gardens with brick paths, stone walls, containers of various shapes and sizes, and even statues like sundials or cherubs.

The Egyptians studied herbs and used them in medicinal and religious functions as far back as 3,500 B.C. The Chinese began the organized study of herbs in 2,500 B.C. Written records in China enumerate the uses of herbs dating from 100 B.C.

Your herb garden should be designed to suit your needs. But keep in mind that a well-thought-out plan in terms of planting, weeding, and collecting your herbs will go a long way in ensuring that your garden does not become such a cumbersome job that you neglect it.

Most herbs like full sun with well-drained soil and constant moisture. The plants that are originally from warmer areas, like rosemary, lavender, and sage, are more tolerant of dry conditions and flourish in warm weather.

You can start many of your herb seeds indoors in the winter and plant them in the garden in the spring, once all danger of frost is past. You’ll want to start the seeds eight to twelve weeks before the last frost date for your region.

Herbs are not only good for you, they are also good for your garden. Herbs attract bees and other pollinating insects. Some herbs are bug repellents. And some herbs actually have large root systems that help break up the soil.

An herb garden’s greatest reward is for you personally, both in using the final product and enjoying the whole experience of nurturing an herb
garden, which is a unique pleasure. You will find that as you take care of these plants, you will receive the benefits. There is nothing you will find quite as calming as weeding around chamomile plants after a stressful day.

If you don’t have space for an herb garden, create a container garden of herbs. Many herbs flourish in a window box or in pots on a sunny window ledge. Even a sunny kitchen window is a wonderful place to grow a collection of kitchen herbs.

Herbs in Food

Herbs that have historically been used for food have also played a vital role in your health, but it was often hidden under their excellent taste. Originally, herbs were added to cooking for their digestive and preservative properties, rather than their unique tastes and smells. Herbs in the mint family aid digestion; members of that family include marjoram, rosemary, and peppermint. Herbs like parsley and caraway soothe the walls of the digestive tract and reduce flatulence.

How many pounds of herbs are sold in the United States?
In the United States alone, 200 million pounds of herbs and spices are consumed annually, with black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, garlic, paprika, chili powder, oregano, celery (seeds and salt), onions, and parsley heading the list.

Adding herbs to food enhances flavor and, in many cases, adds to the vitamins and minerals you receive. When you use herbs to season foods, you should use them sparingly. You want the herb to enhance the flavor of the food, not overwhelm it.

Harvesting Herbs

You should harvest herbs in the morning, just after the dew has evaporated and before the sun can warm the leaves. Because the oils that give the herbs their distinct aromas are volatile, you want to handle the plants carefully as you pick them, taking care not to bruise or injure the leaves. You should pick only the amount you need, unless you are getting to the end of the season and need to dry them for use during the winter months.

You should pick only healthy-looking herbs that are clean and blemish free.

Both the flavor and aroma of herbs declines soon after picking, so you need to be ready to use them immediately. You can store them for a short period of time in a perforated plastic bag inside your refrigerator.

Tips for Using Herbs

You can experiment with herbs to see what you and your family like. There are no rules about using herbs, but here are some suggestions.

• Herbs should be at room temperature when using them in cold foods.
  
• Prepare a bouquet garni (a bundle of herbs containing parsley, bay leaf, thyme, and other herbs) when preparing stock, stews, or soups.
  
• Herbs can be used in three ways—fresh, dried, and crumbled. Dried herbs are more concentrated than fresh, and powdered herbs are more concentrated than crumbled. Generally, ¼ teaspoon of powdered herbs is equal to ¾ to 1 teaspoon crumbled or 2 to 4 teaspoons fresh.
  
• You should chop the leaves of fresh herbs very fine because more of the oils and, therefore, more of the flavor will be released.
  
• When using an herb for the first time, you should use a small amount until you become familiar with it.
  
• Extended cooking will reduce the flavor of the herb. To enhance the flavor of the dish, add fresh herbs close to the completed cooking time.
  
• Because a cold temperature often inhibits the release of oils, fresh herbs used in refrigerated foods should be added at least several hours before serving.