How to Prep When Your Not A Prepper.... Smart Choices

     For many who choose to prep,  there isn’t a cut and dried reason.  For some,  there are definitive reasons they choose to prep. Whether its because you believe that the Zombie Apocalypse is coming, the government is going to collapse, solar flares, floods, cyber attacks, or even if you believe that the economy will break  due to the financial inequality that exists within this country.
     The bottom line is for whatever reason you do believe that we are headed towards trouble or you wouldn’t prep in the first place. So where does that leave the average person who may not prep and doesn’t feel like life as we know it is going to end. Pretty much somewhere in between those who believe that everything is OK and preppers. In some ways,  I think that is where a lot of people fall. You're not out and out convinced that the poop will hit the fan, but you're not foolish enough to buy into the other extreme either.

     So what can you do? Well for starters as stated in a prior post set up a grab and go bag it won't hurt, and no one will ridicule you for putting your families and your safety first.  Another thing you may want to think about is this, how you are shopping? Are you buying for the week or could you get by in an emergency with what's in your closets? Taking a few extra precautions won't turn you into a bona fide prepper. Truthfully it will put you in a position of being more self reliant, items like canned chicken, spam, and canned ham are good staples to have in your closet. You may never need them, but they have a long shelf life and it doesn’t take much to prepare them. Lipton rice and pastas when they're on sale buy a bunch and stick in the back of your cupboard.

     These are just a few packaged items that are easy to use in an emergency. I have a box of powdered milk, and dried eggs  I keep in my pantry. Truthfully it has come in handy when I am cooking and realize I'm out of milk or eggs.  If you cook, I am sure you know what its like when you realize you need an ingredient, and you don't have it. There are ways to get around obstacles that come up in life, and this is about learning how to navigate around them.
     Is it a good Idea to keep a couple of cases of bottled water on hand? Sure just ask the residents of Newark who couldn't drink their tap water because of an unexpected accident they had no water for several days to two weeks.
     It isn't my job to push anyone to embrace prepping. That is a personal decision that a person or family needs to make on their own. What I am advocating is being smarter in how we do things. Sure keep those two 5 gallon gas cans filled in your shed or garage. Look what happened during Sandy, if you didn't have the fuel you were all too often driving 25 to 50 miles away just to get it. Each of us as individuals needs to start using  our common sense again, when it comes to taking care of ourselves. If you look back even to the 30’s or 40’s many of the farms and ranches in this country, were pretty much self sufficient, some still are today. That isn’t about  prepping its about taking care of the NEEDS of the whole.  We are rushing into an electronic world becoming dependent on fast food, and faster service and frankly it is hurting us. Many of the essential things our parents taught us are being lost, and  the result is we as a culture are becoming ignorant of how to take care of ourselves.

     The tip for the week is this: Next time you go shopping pickup one or two of the extra’s that are on sale. I am mentioning that you can stick in the back of your pantry and forget about until you need them. As long as you know they are there you're one step closer to being self sufficient. Then the next time you go food shopping pick up another item that you can put in the closet and forget about until you need it.

Wants and Needs How to Save and Put Money in the Bank

It isn't always easy to save money when prices are always going up and our dollar is not stretching as far as it used  to. Lets face it when a sale at the grocery store used to mean you could get four boxes of pasta for a dollar or three cans of tuna for a dollar it was much easier to save money. As hard as it may be it is still possible, there are many different tricks you can use to save money for that rainy day.

The first thing we need to realize is the difference between want and need. Do you want it or do you really need it? We use this method in our house with purchase that are not obviously essential. Taking the five or ten minutes to discuss a purchase before making it can work out to savings in the long run. It takes real honesty with yourself to do this.

A great way, is to put your change in a jar each day. (Dont touch it or spend it.) Once the jar is full take it to the bank and add it to your savings account. You will be surprised by just how much you can wind up with at the end of the year if you do this. Our jar adds up to anywhere from $35.00 to 50.00 a month, thats $420.00 to $600.00.  

Another more traditional option is to take $20.00 each week and just put it in the bank. Pretend it isn’t there. In one year you’ll have $1,040.00 in the bank plus interest.

If you usually buy pizza once a week, make it instead. You can buy the dough for around a dollar and a jar of sauce and some shredded cheese puts you at around $5.00 to make a large Pizza. If you want to add toppings or make your own dough that’s a great way to save. It can also be a lot of fun if you have kids to include them in the process and let them put what they want on the pie. My kids all love doing this it becomes a great family activity.  We invested in a soda stream a couple of years ago and its does save money especially on pizza night when all anyone wants to drink is soda.

It all comes down to you and what you are willing to do to save money. There are many things we take for granted that we really don't need. Like buying prepackaged meals, you might think you're saving, but you're only really saving time and freshness. If you can stick it in a crockpot before you run out the door you can make your life more convenient.

the goal here is to learn to be smarter about our money and how we spend it. I am always looking for items on sale either at the end of season or after Christmas. Another option is to check online for school supplies or college books. If you can store something, that is a better buy in bulk then buy it, or if you don’t have the space see if a friend or two would be interested in splitting it. We all need to get away from this (I am an island) mentality and realize that your friends or your neighbor may be in the same boat. 

If you're looking for organic there are many farms on the internet that sell beef, pork or even chicken that is organic and not shot full of antibiotics. Pool your money and divvy it all up. You will find that in the long run you are saving money vs. what you would pay in the grocery store. Your friends or family may thank you for including them in the idea.

If you have any great idea’s for how you save money please feel free to share them or email them to me.

Saving money isn’t just about watching the thermostat or turning off the lights. Its about the bigger picture. Remember its starts with baby steps.

Slow Cooked Venison Leg

Brine Mix: Soak for 24 hours or overnight

½ C Coarse Salt

6-10 C of water

1C brown sugar

½ C Pickle Seasoning

2 TBS Cinnamon

1 quartered Onion

mix together and pour over the leg, you can put your venison in a plastic Trash bag and then place in a bowl if its easier. Put in fridge and let it sit for 24 hours or overnight. Take the leg out and pour out the brine, rinse the leg and place in your pan on a rack.

Usually before I take out my venison leg I will mix up my rub ahead of time so it is ready to go in the morning. The rub is a recipe I picked up for doing beef brisket in a slow cooker. It may seem like a bit of work but it is well worth it and only takes a few minutes for each step.

Rub:

2 tbs chili powder

2 tbs salt

1 tbs garlic powder

1 tbs onion powder

1 tbs brown sugar

2 tsps dry mustard

1 bay leaf

2 tbs instant coffee

Mix this up in a bowl with a whisk to blend it thoroughly. Your going to rub this onto your leg of venison and massage it in on both sides. If you have a side with more fat keep that as your up side. Next your going to take approximately half a pound of bacon. (reason for this is it helps to keep your venison moist for the 8 hours you will cook it at 250*.

Add about 2 cups of apple cider to the bottom of your pan. You are now ready to start your roast.

You are going to want to baste the venison throughout the day with the drippings, if they cook off add more apple cider.

If you're able to inject your venison leg, you can mix this up to inject throughout the day.

Heat on stove:

2C of apple cider

1 stick of butter

2 Tbs of bacon drippings.

 

I use this to inject the leg throughout the day, I will add some of the drippings to the mix.

The venison came out tender and juicy, it fell off the bone and had no gamey flavor at all.

This was an experiment that went very well and everyone was pleased with the result.

Also cooking it this way does leave you with enough left over to use for another meal.

It was safe enough to leave with my husband to watch over for the day and made an enjoyable meal to come home to. Enjoy!

cook time 8 hours
temp 250*

Venison Crock Pot Pot Roast Delicious!!!

Venison  Crock Pot Pot Roast

When you eat venison it seems you're always looking for new ways to prepare it that are tasty and not gamey. One of my favorite recipes is for a venison pot roast that is cooked in the crock pot for about 8 hours. This dish comes out tender and delicious with no gamey taste whatsoever. Most people cannot tell its venison.

It is one of my families favorites to eat and is a frequent request in the fall and winter. I will also mix up some sourdough biscuits to go along with it. This is a guide so feel free to experiment I've also added a ½ c of pepper/wild berry jelly sometimes which gives it a mild sweetness and doesn’t make it hot. This meal costs less than $10.00 to make and feeds a family of 4 at $2.50 each.

Venison Crock Pot Pot Roast

2 lbs of venison leg meat or shoulder

10 medium potatoes cut in half

6 carrots peeled and cut in chunks

1 medium onion quartered.

1 pk of fresh mushrooms.

*****put these in the crock pot with the venison on the bottom. *****

Next, mix the below ingredients in a bowl before adding over meat, potatoes, carrots, mushrooms and onions.

2 cans cream of mushroom soup

¼ C Worcestershire sauce

1 pint or can of pureed rotel tomatoes. (I use my canned salsa and puree it)

1 C of red wine

1 ½ C of water

1 C Coffee cold or hot

2 packets of brown gravy mix

1 ½ tbs of montreal steak seasoning

1 tsp of celery seeds

½ tsp white pepper

½ tsp of sage

Just add it in and let it go. 

¼ tsp of thyme

½ tsp Sea Salt

* Blend well with a whisk before pouring over your meat in the crockpot.

*Turn on the crockpot to low and cover and let it cook for 8 hours.

You can serve this over egg noodles, spaetzle or have it in a bowl by itself. The slow cooking melts away the fat and any of the cartilage that is common with the leg meat. This dish is easy to set up in the morning and gives you a nice hot meal to come home to. I do recommend the slow cooking as it allows the meat to break apart like a traditional pot roast.