The Prepping Thread - A Newer Beginning ;)

thriftwizard

jk0 said:

Hmm. I wish I could buy some flour to store. I went to 4 supermarkets yesterday, but only found a bit of white bread flour at Waitrose. Just about to start on my last pack of strong wholemeal.

I was reading the other day that the flour that goes in British bread is grown in the UK. They can use such poor quality flour due to the Chorleywood process. Interesting article: https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/features/the-shocking-truth-about-bread-413156.html

The flour I use in my breadmaker comes from Canada. They obviously don't want to risk the U-boats.

Jk0, not all British flour is poor quality! Some of it is very good. I get mine direct from the mill in 8Kg bags; we make a fair bit of our own bread, both yeasted in the bread-maker & sourdough by hand. I was happy to discover that our local, very good, "artisan" baker uses the same flour by choice. To be fair, it's milled from organic & locally-grown grain, so not the cheapest, but it is good.

117pauline

It appears here in Spain we will have the lockdown extended until April 12. It does have to be ratified by the senate but looks like a done deal.  The idea is to stop people visiting others over Easter.  It is thought that the exodus of Madridians to their second homes has been the reason why the virus is spreading throughout the country.
I walked to the local supermarket yesterday which was fully stocked.  There was a variety of fruit and veg, meat, milk, bread and all the staples.  The freezers were about half full. No one overbuying, everyone keeping their distance etc. I guess I did break the spirit of the lockdown as I could have driven in 5 minutes, a walk that took 25 minutes each way.  But it did make me think when I saw my first military vehicle, with 2 armed soldiers, driving slowly around the area where I live.
My prepping has involved making sure I have the necessary vocabulary to describe symptoms as well as being able to say thank you to the supermarket staff. I am also treating myself to planning very nutritious meals, walking around my apartment etc to keep myself as healthy as I can. I have also gone back to my old way of cooking - making sure I can make my meal the day before I need it so it is all prepared/cooked in case I can't be bothered or feel unwell.
I do wish everyone a safe and sane time
Pauline

elsien

The supermarkets are definitely calming down again. Called into Asda for emergency biscuits at lunchtime after the hordes had been,  and they had bread, milk cheese, veg, tins back in stock. Hopefully the worst of the idiocy is now over. 

mothernerd

I've brought my seed box and ordered a polytunnel (only a lidl one). It's dual purpose - I can go in there and play when mum and I need alone time. I've ordered some veg plants which I normally consider to be too expensive, but thinking in the polytunnel quick things like dwarf beans will be fresh food in a few weeks just when we need it. I've stored what veg i could get - a few baked potatoes/ sweet potatoes, onions in mum's tiny shed. I even managed to pick up some hessian sacks although my few veg look a bit pathetic in them. I have half a bag of dried peas so will be making pea shoots on a window sill in an old mushroom box. have more stuff I was trying to bring from home but hoping one of my sons will bring it and it can sit in the corner of the yard until danger of any virus spores is past.  Two double bagged heavy duty bin bags full of grow bags - they are recycled material and fold out to make a 1m x 0.5 m x0.5 m box. Really thick material - when I fell in my yard my head landed on the pile of themand avoided injury. Growing things will be good for my mental health if nothing else.

Just concentrating on one or two things at a time (have parked worries about 'future food' to the back of my brain - we won't be getting ship loads of tomatoes from Spain this year (I don't use them but the folks who usuually do will be competing for home grown supply and we don't even know if there will be anyone able or willing to pick them). A bonus for those of you who live close to the growers if they turn to 'pick your own'.

Hope every one is well and looking after their mental health.

[Deleted User]

I've been very thrifty this afternoon I had a cauliflower on its last legs so I've made 3 days worth of cauliflower cheese soup for our lunches, I've made a cauliflower cheese to have with some red cabbage coleslaw for supper tomorrow and I've just used up the last 4 tomatoes that had gone soft and wrinkly to make a batch of tomato sauce to go with pasta later in the week once as pasta with sauce and then in a pasta bake. I'm wasting nothing, I even cut out the good bits of a red pepper to go in the sauce rather than let it go to waste and used a wrinkly onion too.  The compost heap thinks I'm on strike which to a certain extent I AM!

unrecordings

Hope every one is well and looking after their mental health.

I bought a sombrero the other day...

[Deleted User]

To dance on Mexican style?

unrecordings

Think Kurt Russell in The Thing

needmoney

Wasn't sure where to ask this I had a google and didn't find an answer, Can the virus be on flowers fresh flower bouquets not the plastic wrapping but the actual flowers or is that a silly question?

euronorris

Have spent some time in the garden with little one. Doing some much needed tidying, seed sowing, lawn mowing and just general not being cooped up in the house! Well worth it.

Managed to get some fresh produce and quality beef from the local miller and carter, for myself and a neighbour. They were selling their stock at cost price, and we are running low on fresh fruit. Called ahead to check. Managed to get some blueberries, oranges, apples,lettuce, tomatoes, mushrooms, pomegranates and some steaks. Not a mad queue or crowd of people in sight, and those who were there kept 2 metres apart.

Very fortunate.

Also discovered an app called house party this weekend. Can do video calls with multiple people at the same time, a bit like zoom, but you can play trivia games with each other on there. We've been enjoying it a lot, daughter in particular. Fun calls with the family, but also with her neighbour friends. Brings the morale up a bit.