Bread! Glorious Bread!

Alright. You keep being told to store wheat right? But I bet that you’re wondering what the heck to do with it. I do address different ways you can use wheat in a previous article, and one of those ways is obviously bread. Let’s face it. Bread making in our homes is a lost art. I forced myself to learn for three reasons.

1) I knew that if there was an emergency which required me to live off of my food storage, I darn well better learn how to make bread out of all of this wheat I was storing.

2) I needed to find some way to introduce hearty wheat into my diet so that I didn’t put my digestive system into shock when I did start living off of it.

3) Even though I could get away with paying only 99 cents for a loaf of bread occasionally, I knew that if I could make it fresh, it would be sooo much better for me and therefore worth it.

As it turns out, my decision to learn how to make bread was a good choice for other reasons as well.

1) My husband LOVES it, as do the neighbors, my employees, and even me! (Plus, it makes for great gifts)

2) I now have the confidence I need to make it and know that we’ll be just fine surviving on it.

3) I now have a more accurate understanding of what OTHER items I need to have on hand in my food storage. (Go figure. You can’t just make wheat bread with just wheat.)

4) My quest for learning how to make it has led me to develop a KICK BUTT-No-Fail recipe! (I never thought I’d be saying that when it came to bread making?!)

So, I’m going to share the recipe with you today. For those of you who are already pros, I dare say that you’ll find some twists that I incorporate that may be helpful to you. And at the very least, you will LOVE the breadsticks idea. For the record, this bread turns out nice and soft even though it’s 100% whole wheat. It’s often been mistaken as “store bought” bread. (When feeding kids that can be a good thing.)

First, let me just share with you—don’t be discouraged by the methods that I use for making my bread just because you may not have them on hand. I have had ALL of my new-fangled luxuries break down at some point and thus have had to make due with good old fashioned elbow grease. I use a Bosch Universal Mixer and a Nutrimill to make this easy bread making. The Bosch does all of my kneading for me, however, I have used my Kitchen Aid mixer instead of my Bosch, but it seemed to be awfully hard on the motor. You’ve got to have one of the heavy-duty Kitchen Aid mixers if you’re going to make bread in it. Otherwise you’ll have to knead the bread the good old fashioned way—by hand. Also, keep in mind that I’m giving you my recipe based on the use of electricity and such. Obviously, that won’t do you much good if your power is out and you’re camping for a while. Don’t worry. If you begin making bread more regularly “in comfort”, then when it comes time to do it under “less than desirable circumstances” you’ll be able to easily adapt, much better than had you never mastered it.

Kellene’s Kick-Butt Wheat Bread (and her famous breadsticks)

Ingredients:

6 cups of warm water (How do you know it’s warm enough or not too hot? If it’s warm enough to bathe a baby in without scolding it, then it’s just fine.)
2 T. “Real Salt”
3 T. of Lecithin Granules
2/3 C of Vegetable oil (you can use apple sauce as a substitute)
2/3 C Honey
2 ½ T. of Dough Enhancer (I use the Magic Mill brand which you can usually find in the grocery stores, but definitely locate in your specialty kitchen stores. You can also use lemon juice as a dough enhancer)
12 to 16 C of wheat flour (I grind my own flour for this recipe each time with my Nutrimill—Yes, you can use white flour if you’d like, but you only need to knead the bread about ½ as long)
2 ½ T of Instant Yeast (I use SAF brand and I store the open package in the freezer or the fridge for years)
2 T. Vital Wheat Gluten (Note: ONLY use wheat gluten if your flour is old or a lesser quality wheat. If you’re using fresh ground wheat or a good quality flour, then you won’t need the wheat gluten.)

Place 9 cups of freshly ground flour in the mixing bowl with the dough hook attached. Then add 6 cups of warm water. Mix on speed level 1 until you’ve got a paste consistency. Turn off the machine and add the yeast, salt, honey, oil, and lecithin granules (and wheat gluten if you’re going to use it). Turn machine back on to speed 1. Begin adding additional cups of flour one cup at a time. As the machine bears down, increase the speed to 2. Continue adding additional flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. I usually use a total of 15 ½ cups of flour.

Note: Here’s the trick. You want to make sure that you do not add too much flour. I like to add just enough so that the dough starts pulling away and that I can handle the dough. This approach, as well as the lecithin granules and dough enhancer, is the reason why my bread turns out so soft. Most folks who make homemade wheat bread add too much flour.

Set your timer and let the Bosch knead the dough for 7 to 8 minutes. Stop the mixer. Add the dough enhancer. Then let the Bosch knead the dough for another 2 minutes (still on Speed 2). Grease your hands and then gently remove all of the dough from the bowl and place it on a greased cutting board in an even rectangular shape. Using a knife, score your dough into 5 evenly spaced sections. Then pinch off each section, form it into an oblong loaf.

Note: Pinch your bread dough, not tear it. Only score your bread so that you can see the 5 sections. Don’t use the knife to actually cut the sections.

Place the loaf in 4 to 5 greased bread pans or you can use non-stick bread pans, depending on the size of loaves you desire. (I use 5 non-stick bread pans, but I still spray them with “Pam.” They should be about ½ to 2/3 full.)

Place the loaves where they will not be blown on by the air conditioning so that they can rise at room temperature. Cover the pans with Saran Wrap to keep them moist as they rise. (I spray the Saran Wrap with “Pam” on the sides that will be on top of the bread to prevent the dough from sticking to the wrap.) Let the dough rise until doubled. This should be approximately 1 ½ inches above the top of the pan.

When finished rising, place them in a pre-heated 350 degree oven. Bake for 30-40 minutes. When the bread is finished baking, you will be able to tap it lightly on top and have it sound “hollow.” Take the pans out and place them on a cooling rack for about 10 minutes. Then remove the loaves from the pans and cool sufficiently prior to storing.

Special Note: This recipe makes great rolls as well! As a special little trick when I’m hosting a party, I take the dough and roll them into small breadsticks (about 4 -5 inches long). Then I dip the “breadstick dough” into melted butter. Then I place them on a big cookie sheet about an inch apart from each other. I then sprinkle McCormick’s Salad Supreme seasoning generously on top of them and bake them at 350 degrees for 13 to 18 minutes. You will LOVE the taste of these bread sticks!

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved.
You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

Preparedness Pro Note: If you would like Kellene Bishop to present an Emergency Preparedness message for your community or church group, please contact us at 801-788-4133. Ms. Bishop is an experienced speaker on Emergency Preparedness topics and also has created a great “Preparedness Party” platform which makes the learning of such a topic more enjoyable for all.

Pressure Cooking Pot Roast

Last Friday I elected to nurture an injury with some real, home cooked food. I was really craving a pot roast, but didn’t want to put the traditional time and energy into it. So what did I do? I talked my assistant through the step-by-step process of making a yummy pot roast in under an hour! And it was so good, my husband finished it off before I had a chance to have seconds (darn it).

So how did I accomplish such a feat? I used my pressure cooker. So in the event that you’re still waffling around about purchasing one, I’m going to share the wealth with you (Just as a reminder, I recommend the Kuhn Rikon brand – aka Duromatic).

1. In your pressure cooker, put two tablespoons of oil. On med-high heat, sear your pot roast (about 2 to 4 pounds) on all sides. Once it’s nicely seared, remove the pot roast from the pressure cooker and add 1 cup of red cooking wine.
2. Scrape the bottom of the pressure cooker with a wooden spoon, being sure to loosen all of the flavorful bits from the bottom.
3. Add the pot roast back to the pressure cooker along with 2 cups of water and one envelope of Lipton Onion Soup mix.
4. Bring the water to a boil, and then cover the pressure cooker. Allow the pressure to come up to high, then turn the heat down sufficient to maintain the high pressure. Cook the pot roast for 20 minutes per pound.
5. Once roast is finished cooking, release the pressure completely.
6. Add 2 heaping cups of potato wedges (because you don’t have to cut them small with a pressure cooker), 2 cups of baby carrots and a couple stalks of chopped celery. Be sure to add the potatoes first to make room for the smaller items, and be sure that you do not fill your pressure cooker more than two-thirds full.
7. Add an additional cup of water.
8. Bring the water to a boil and recover the pressure cooker.
9. Cook at high pressure for 5 minutes.
10. Release the pressure and enjoy a yummy, tender pot roast and perfectly seasoned vegetables!

Again, I wholeheartedly recommend a pressure cooker so that you can preserve your own physical energy, your fuel, and water. It cooks faster and more nutrient rich than any other method available. The new models that have been made as of late are much safer than what you might remember your grandmother using. They really, really are an asset to any kitchen now, or in an emergency.


Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved.
You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

Preparedness Pro Note: If you would like Kellene Bishop to present an Emergency Preparedness message for your community or church group, please contact us at 801-788-4133. Ms. Bishop is an experienced speaker on Emergency Preparedness topics and also has created a great “Preparedness Party” platform which makes the learning of such a topic more enjoyable for all.

EZ Preparedness Recipes

I thought I’d give you a break today from all of the preparedness “thinking.” So today I’m simply providing you with two yummy recipes – Spam Friend Rice and Mexi-Cincy Chili – that you can easily make from what’s in your cupboards right now. Hopefully, knowing that you can make use of what you’ve got on hand (or can at least easily have on hand) will lessen any anxiety you may have in surviving a disruption to your regular way of life.

Be Safe and Be Prepared—Kellene

Spam Fried Rice

This recipe is an ideal use of Spam, the meat that seems to store as long as a Twinkie. And it’s an easy “dump” kind of recipe. Don’t shy away from this recipe just because it has Spam in it. If you don’t tell anyone, I’m certain they will never crinkle their nose to the Spam notion. J

Note: If you elect to make it as a non-food storage meal, you can use 8 to 10 ounces of boneless, diced pork chops and add a couple of stalks of sliced green onions (white and green portion) and use frozen peas instead.

As a food-storage meal, you can also substitute the Spam for canned chicken or canned baby shrimp too, if you prefer.

1 12 oz can of Spam, cut into small square pieces
2 teaspoons of olive oil
1 package (6.2 oz.) of Rice-A-Roni Fried Rice flavor (The store brands work just as well for this recipe)
2 cups of water
1 can of peas- drained
Soy sauce for serving (optional)

Place the oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven. And heat it over medium-high heat. Add the Spam pieces and cook, stirring until the Spam is browned a bit, 2-3 minutes.
Add the Rice-a-Roni including the seasoning contents. Pour in 2 cups of water and stir to loosen the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. Let the mixture come to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and cover. Let simmer for 15 minutes.
Add the peas and warm a bit longer, 3-5 minutes. Serve at once with soy sauce as desired.

Fuel conservation note: If you merely heat up the pan enough to bring the water to boiling, you needn’t continue to cook it on your fuel source. You can merely let the dish set for a while (about 30 – 45 minutes) and let it naturally absorb the water. The Spam is safe to eat whether it’s heated or not.

Mexi-Cincy Chili

This “chili” dish is actually served on top of cooked spaghetti. It’s commonly served this way in Cincinnati, OH. The chocolate ingredient is a take-off of Mexican mole’ cooking. It is often served with black beans instead of or in addition to beef, and is usually accompanied by shredded cheddar cheese on top. If you don’t have real cheese on hand in your food storage, you can also use Velveeta on top for serving.

1 can of canned beef (about 16 ounces)
1 tablespoon of granulated onion
2 tablespoons of minced garlic
2 cans of diced tomatoes. (You can use stewed tomatoes as well)
1 8 oz. can of tomato sauce
1 cup of water
2 tablespoons of chili powder
1 tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder
½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon of ground allspice
8 - 10 oz. of cooked and drained spaghetti

Sautee the beef, onion and garlic in your intended cooking pan (pressure cooker or Dutch oven). Cook and stir with a wooden spoon to break up the lumps and until the beef is heated through (about 4-5 minutes). Add the tomatoes and their liquid, water, tomato sauce, chili powder, cinnamon, cocoa, and all spice. If you’re cooking this in a Dutch oven, simply cook it low and slow for about 8 hours stirring occasionally.

If you’re cooking this in a pressure cooker, cover and bring the pressure cooker to low pressure. Cook for about 30 minutes for maximum flavor. You can use the quick release method when the time is up.

Top the spaghetti with your cooked mixture and enjoy!

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

Preparedness Pro Note: If you would like Kellene Bishop to present an Emergency Preparedness message for your community or church group, please contact us at 801-788-4133. Ms. Bishop is an experienced speaker on Emergency Preparedness topics and also has created a great “Preparedness Party” platform which makes the learning of such a topic more enjoyable for all.

Cheese Wax Will Save Us All

Well, at least those of us who are addicted to cheese anyway.

Can you name at least 10 different kinds of cheese that you love?
Do you believe that cheese should be its own food group?
Are you helpless to abide by your diet unless it involves huge amounts of melted cheese?
Then this article is for you!

So picture this. It’s a bona fide emergency survival situation. You are holed up in your home and living off of the emergency preparedness supplies you stored. And you’ve got one heck of a hankering for some yummy melted cheese. But you’re just not in the mood for the Velveeta, that nasty powdered stuff, or the “squirt” kind of cheese. You want a good solid bite of a yummy Monterey Jack, or Swiss, or sharp cheddar. (I’m making myself drool even as I write this.) But hey, cheese doesn’t store for a very long time, right? Well, in this case, I’m happy to tell you that you’re wrong. And if you’re a true cheese addict, then you’ll be happy to hear me tell you that you’re wrong for once, right?

So here’s the good news. You CAN have your favorite cheese on hand, even in an emergency, and even though no stores are open and you have no access to electricity. All you have to do is buy the blocks of cheese that you want now in order to have them stored for up to the next 25 years. Cheese wax prevents your cheese from developing mold or bacteria and it keeps the moisture in. Simply use a natural boars hair brush to apply the melted cheese wax liberally to your block of cheese, let it harden, and then, VOILA, you’ve got your wish. Cheese treated with cheese wax will store for up to 25 years at a mild to cool temperature. Sure, it will continue to age. But it sure won’t get moldy! Be sure that you select block sizes of cheese that you and your family can easily consume within a 3 to 5 day period in order to avoid it going bad once you’ve cut into it.

A couple of tips you should know though.
1) Don’t use paraffin wax. It tends to crack. And cheese wax warms at a cooler temperature and thus plies better to your cheese shapes and sizes. Cheese wax is also less crumbly and you can use less of it than paraffin.
2) I have yet to find a cheese that I can’t wax. So long as it’s hard enough to be in a block, you can wax it.
3) You don’t need cheesecloth, but if you desire to use it prior to your wax layers, it may be helpful getting the wax off. I’ve not had any problems without it though.
4) It’s best to melt the cheese wax in a double boiler as opposed to direct heat.
5) The less you handle the cheese with your hands the better.
6) Don’t bother with dipping the cheese. Your natural finger oils may cause cracking of the cheese wax. Use a natural boar’s hair brush instead. The reason why you want to use this kind of brush specifically is because other brushes will apply the cheese wax too thick, or with crevices, etc. This kind of brush is perfect for cheese waxing.
7) You don’t need to use food-grade labels for your cheese since they will go on the outside. However, it’s smart to use a label on the outside of your cheese just prior to the last wax layer. That way you don’t have to worry about it falling off. Be sure to label not only the kind of cheese it is, but when it was waxed as well.
8) Don’t store your waxed cheese in additional containers. Just stack them on top of like cheeses and let them breathe. I like to hang them from the ceiling in a “fishing net” kind of contraption.
9) Be sure to check for pockets or crevices that didn’t get sealed. 3 thin layers of wax is a good practice. There’s no need to do more coats than that.
10) The cheese surface should be clean and dry prior to waxing.
11) If your 2nd and 3rd coats are applied while the prior coat is still a bit warm you will get a better adhesion.
12) Cheese wax can be re-used several times. You can simply wash it in warm water, let it dry and then re-melt it. So when you remove cheese wax from your cheeses, you can simply reheat and reapply. Simply heat the cheese wax to about 110 degrees Celsius. This will also ensure that you’re not transferring any bacteria or unnecessary moisture to your new cheese.
13) You do not need to filter the cheese wax after you melt it. So don’t worry about that step.
14) Your first coat will have some unevenness to it. Don’t worry. The 2nd and 3rd coat will even it out just fine.

Cheese wax can be located at multiple places online or in your local health food stores. You should also have no problem finding a boar bristle brush either. It doesn’t really matter what color of cheese wax you use.

Once you get the hang of this cheese waxing stuff you can progress to making your own cheese from powdered milk in any flavor you decide! Yummy!

Enjoy the recipe below!

Kristen’s Cheesy Roughin’ It Enchiladas

1 can of tomato soup
1 can of cream of chicken soup
1 regular sized can of enchilada sauce
2 cups of canned chicken, drained.
About 2 cups of your favorite shredded cheese

Make your sauce by combining the soups and the enchilada sauce.

Use enough flour or corn tortillas to line a large baking dish or Dutch oven with your enchiladas. (About 12 to 15 depending on how big you stuff them) Be sure to spray your dish with some cooking spray.

Lightly coat the bottom of our tortilla with the sauce. Then add about 2 tablespoons of chicken, according to your desire. Then top the chicken with about 2 tablespoons of cheese. Add about 1 tablespoon soup mixture. Then roll up your tortilla and place seam side down in the dish. Continue until you’ve filled the dish a single layer deep. Once you’re finished, pour the remaining sauce over the top and top with the remaining cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes until the cheese is completely melted. You can add chopped black olives, black beans, rice, jalapenos, or even green chilies to this recipe as well.

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.


Preparedness Pro Note: If you would like Kellene Bishop to present an Emergency Preparedness message for your community or church group, please contact us at 801-788-4133. Ms. Bishop is an experienced speaker on Emergency Preparedness topics and also has created a great “Preparedness Party” platform which makes the learning of such a topic more enjoyable for all.

A Precarious Position Indeed

I confess that it is doubtful I will make any friends with this particular posting. It is inconvenient information that I share with you today. While I happily provide you with a yummy recipe at the end of this blog, one in which you can make from your food storage supplies, I realize that what I am about to share is an unpleasant thought.

Less than one percent of our population claims farming as their occupation--down from 10% in 1997. Over 40% of those farmers are north of the age 55. The farmers of our nation are dwindling significantly. Many of those farmers refused to grow wheat in past years due to an eagerness to earn a better living by jumping on the ethanol train, and thus grew corn and soy.

On average, one farmer only produces enough food for 96 people. In total there are 2 million farms in the U.S. (including livestock, etc). We have a total estimated population of over 303 million citizens. You do the math. The number of farms has been decreasing about 6 percent per year and yet our population has been increasing by just under 1% each year and is expected to increase by nearly 49% by the year 2050. A famine would overtake this nation in a matter of weeks if ANY violence or fluke of nature interrupted the operation of this highly interdependent system of food production and distribution. On a much smaller scale, look at what ripple affect one hurricane had on our entire nation, let alone what it did to Louisiana and other areas. Food, water, safety and freedoms were scarce.

For you additional consideration know that our government has shipped all of our surplus wheat to foreign nations due to the famines as of late. There is none to replace it because there are so few farmers who have been growing wheat. In other words, there is no longer any wheat or other public stores to fight famine in our own nation.

Indeed we are in a precarious position.

Perhaps there is not a people in the history of this nation who have been as vulnerable to starvation as we are today. Although we are highly specialized in our labor, we are relying almost completely upon electric power and labor-saving machinery. We have largely forgotten the meaning of physical labor and the art of feeding and clothing ourselves. If we had an interruption of our power supply, our production machinery, or our transportation, grocery markets would empty within hours and we would all be left to our own knowledge and skills to provide ourselves with the sustenance of life.

This is an overwhelming though to contemplate. But it is more clear to me, in consideration of this additional information, why we have been advised for eons to have emergency preparedness supplies on hand. Such supplies should address not just food and water, but shelter, clothing, medical, financial, mental, spiritual, and physical needs for protecting and providing for ourselves.

I understand that I may sound ludicrous. After all, it was probably just his past weekend that you roamed the aisle in the grocery stores and saw plenty. Have you never been in a grocery store on a Monday though, when so many of their supplies have been depleted over the weekend? I have and certainly feel inconvenienced by this simple anomaly. Now picture this scenario a hundred fold as the result of a REAL food shortage and a failing currency in our nation. It is as ugly as anything out of Hollywood has ever portrayed it. If our currency fails then all of the foods we import into our nation cease. If our food fails then all of the currency which we bring into our nation ceases as well. It’s a no win situation and you don’t have to look far to notice that both commodities are under serious threat!

Mark my words, the time will come when ammunition is worth more than any currency we can wave; when a bucket of wheat is held more dear than a bucket of gold; and when life skills such as shoemaking and iron works, and masonry will have a greater value than an irrelevant retirement account.

We are naïve if we somehow believe that this type of forecast is reserved for the future generations in light of all that is blatantly going on around us. We are naïve if we believe that the government will protect us or that anyone else is responsible for our well-being in this matter.

While you may bristle at this wake up call, nonetheless, wake up. I’m not exactly a “morning person” either, but I know enough to realize just how important this preparation is for you, your family, and anyone you love. And I tell you solemnly right now that the more complacent you choose to be in your lifestyle, the more hatred you will have for yourself later when you realize you could have done something to stop the suffering of those you love.

Blueberry Dump Cake

The name says it all. This is easy!

2 cans of blueberry pie filling
1 box of yellow cake mix (18.25 ounces)
12 tablespoons of butter or margarine

Simply dump the blueberry pie filling in your baking dish or Dutch oven. Top it with the box of yellow cake mix. Top that with the butter or margarine (melted or in cold pieces)
Bake at 350 degrees for 35-45 minutes until light golden brown on top.
If you have a way to make ice cream, this is a yummy dish served warm with some vanilla ice cream on top.


Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

Preparedness Pro Note: If you would like Kellene Bishop to present an Emergency Preparedness message for your community or church group, please contact us at 801-788-4133. Ms. Bishop is an experienced speaker on Emergency Preparedness topics and also has created a great “Preparedness Party” platform which makes the learning of such a topic more enjoyable for all.

Why You Will LOVE a Pressure Cooker!

A couple years ago I was interviewed by a magazine and asked what was it that I couldn’t live without? I replied that other than my husband, I couldn’t live without my pressure cooker -- but it was a close tie. J I am so absolutely in love with all of the features of a quality pressure cooker, that I’m out to convert every person who considers themselves a cook, or concerned with emergency preparedness.

When I mention a pressure cooker to most, they have images of one blowing up in their grandmother’s kitchen, or at least making some frightening hissing and clanking noise. A lot of people only think of a pressure cooker for canning. But here’s the good news. You can cook like an absolute pro in no time with a pressure cooker today. They’ve come a long way since their initial popularity during World War II. And the good quality ones are a must in every kitchen. The one that I highly recommend is a Kuhn Rikon. It has 3 safety features on it and has a fabulous quality otherwise. But let’s cut straight to the perks of a pressure cooker. Bottom line, if I had to choose between a microwave and a pressure cooker, I would hands down go with a pressure cooker. You’re reducing the cooking time of at least two-thirds and yet you don’t sacrifice flavor, tenderness, or quality.

Here are a couple of examples of cooking times: whole beef or pork roast with the BEST gravy every - 45 minutes. Artichokes - 15 minutes. Whole, long-grained rice - 5-6 minutes. Risotto - 8-10 minutes. Cheesecake - 12 minutes. Frozen chicken breasts - 10-12 minutes (and VERY tender). Mashed Potatoes, 3-5 minutes. Whole lamb, 35 minutes, etc, etc.

Do you love a good pot roast? How about creating a fabulous pot roast with the most effortless savory gravy in under 45 minutes? Once you make mashed potatoes in this thing, you’ll wonder how you ever did without it. How about getting home from work wondering what in the world to prepare and only see frozen chicken breasts in the freezer? With a pressure cooker you can take those frozen chicken breasts and a jar of BBQ sauce and have a yummy, tender chicken dish in less than 15 minutes!

What a pressure cooker does is exactly what the name implies. It creates a hot sealed pressure within the pan to cook anything inside. You’re creating 8 pounds of pressure per square inch above external pressure. Typical boiling heat is 212 degrees. However, with a pressure cooker, you’re cooking on high at 254 degrees Fahrenheit. Due to the sealed system, your not losing any of the flavor or moisture from your food, in fact, you’re infusing it!

You will need less water, less spices, less fuel for heating and less time with your pressure cooker.

Here are a few of points that I love to make when it comes to using a pressure cooker.

1) You can make so much in a pressure cooker—from roasts, to stews, even to desserts such as cheesecake.

2) Even if you have some meat that’s suffered a bit of freezer burn, you can salvage it in your pressure cooker because moisture is infused into it.

3) So long as you have sufficient moisture/liquid in your dish, you don’t have to worry about over cooking or burning a dish. A meat dish, for example, may not end up turning out in the consistency you had imagined should you forget about it for a few minutes, but it will still be tasty. It just may determine whether you need a knife or not for the dish.

4) I love to dump a bunch of chicken in the pressure cooker, cook it about 7 minutes per pound, and then just use a fork to shred it with—effortlessly. I can then use the broth for other dishes and the chicken for the myriad of casseroles I make. Add just a tad bit of veggies and you’ve got a very inexpensive chicken broth!

5) Foods are healthier with a pressure cooker. When you cook green beans, peas, or broccoli, you’ll discover that even though their sufficiently cooked and tender they are still a beautiful green. The reason is the nutrients and color don’t escape with the evaporating steam. It stays in the pan under pressure! The pressured steam actually intensifies the flavor of your foods, so your vegetables actually taste fresher!

6) Instead of boiling the pasta, then making the sauce and adding everything else, you can literally throw it all in there and end up with a GREAT dish!

7) When you cook potatoes for mashed potatoes dish you will notice a difference when you prepare the potatoes in the pressure cooker. You do not need to cut the potatoes in small pieces. I usually just cut the potato in fourths and then cook them. You will need very little mashing afterwards, and you can easily add garlic to infuse a yummy taste in your potatoes as well!

8) When you make a pot roast (or any kind of roast) you can seer it right in the pressure cooker, then add your liquid and seasonings. Cook the meat and then the last 10 minutes you add the vegetables. When you’re done, you will have a YUMMY gravy that’s just the right consistency as it will be naturally thickened with the starches in your potatoes and carrots. And the roast will be fork tender as well! Ooh. I’m getting hungry just writing about this!

9) Artichokes typically take about 45 minutes to cook. Only 10 to 15 minutes in pressure cooker though, and they are much more flavorful!

10) Rice and risotto cook effortlessly in a pressure cooker as well. And you can really spice things up with small amounts of seasonings too.

11) In the event of an emergency, if you need to conserve water, fuel, and personal energy, a pressure cooker will really come in handy. If you bring the pressure cooker up to high pressure, you can turn off the heat source, wrap the pressure cooker up in towels, and then continue to cook the contents for as much as another hour (Not that I can think of anything that takes an hour to make in a pressure cooker). Even in everyday cooking you will find that it takes significantly less fuel or electricity to cook your items.

12) Pressure cooker will keep your food warm without ruining it. My husband never seems to come for dinner right when I’m ready. I don’t mind so much when I’ve used a pressure cooker though because dinner will stay nice and warm and meat will simply get more tender. (Although I do hate it when he’s late when I’ve made vegetables… sometimes you don’t want them more tender)

Bottom line, there’s a whole new world of successful cooking waiting for you with a pressure cooker. And it’s a great asset in the event of having to cook in an emergency. In fact, in many of the European countries that don’t have a reliable source of fuel and electricity whenever it’s desired, you will see 2 or 3 pressure cookers in every kitchen. It’s a realistic way of life for them. And it’s an exciting way of life for you to take on. It makes your life easier, your food healthier, and maximizes your time in the kitchen.
So give it a try. You’ll love the benefits now and later.

Here’s one of my favorite recipes for a pressure cooker. It’s a luxury comfort food. I like to buy the Italian cheese mix at Costco - it comes in a clear plastic container.

Four Cheese Italian Risotto (Serves 6-8)

INGREDIENTS:
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2 cups Arborio rice (found in Harmon’s and Target)
1/2 cup dry white wine, or white cooking wine
4-1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (I use an Italian 4-cheese blend)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
½ tsp. fresh ground nutmeg (optional)

PREPARATION: Combine 1 Tbsp. of the butter and all of the olive oil in the pressure cooker and heat, uncovered, over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the onion begins to soften, 2 to 3 minutes. Be careful not to brown the onion or the butter. Stir in the rice to coat the grains with the fat and onion mixture, and cook about 1 minute longer. Add the wine and cook, stirring, until it is mostly absorbed by the rice. Add 4 cups of the broth. Cover the pressure cooker according to the manufacturer's instructions, increase the heat to high, bring the pressure up to high, and cook for 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and release pressure quickly, according to manufacture’s instructions. Remove the lid. Add the remaining 1/2 cup broth, 1 Tbsp. butter, and the cheese and stir well to combine with the rice. Season with the salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately. Serves 4-6

Copyright 2009 Kellene Bishop. All rights reserved. You are welcome to repost this information so long as it is credited to Kellene Bishop.

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