The Prepping Thread - A Newer Beginning ;)

Si_Clist

CCW007 said:

... I've asked muvva if she can remember how much it cost

I'd be interested to know the make and model.

GaleSF63

Gingernuts from 1950s Good Housekeeping book. 
6 oz flour
Pinch of salt
2 tsps ground ginger
half tsp mixed spice
half tsp cinnamon
2 oz butter
4 oz brown sugar
1 tbsp syrup (approx)

Sieve flour salt and spices together. Cream butter and sugar and stir in dry ingredients alternately with enough syrup (which may be warmed very slightly to make mixing easier) to make a fairly stiff paste. Roll into 8-12 walnut-sized balls. put on a greased tin and flatten slightly. Bake in a moderate oven until brown and crisp - about 20 minutes. 

I imagine it's one of those recipes that once tried can be adjusted to personal taste (or depending if you've got the right ingredients).

sammy_kaye18

GaleSF63 said:

Gingernuts from 1950s Good Housekeeping book. 
6 oz flour
Pinch of salt
2 tsps ground ginger
half tsp mixed spice
half tsp cinnamon
2 oz butter
4 oz brown sugar
1 tbsp syrup (approx)

Sieve flour salt and spices together. Cream butter and sugar and stir in dry ingredients alternately with enough syrup (which may be warmed very slightly to make mixing easier) to make a fairly stiff paste. Roll into 8-12 walnut-sized balls. put on a greased tin and flatten slightly. Bake in a moderate oven until brown and crisp - about 20 minutes. 

I imagine it's one of those recipes that once tried can be adjusted to personal taste (or depending if you've got the right ingredients).

Well guess what I will be attempting to bake on the weekend. Just need to pick up some ground ginger.
Thank you Gale! 

elaine241

CCW007 said:

Si_Clist said:

CCW007 said:

 ... and log splitter (me) ...

What manner of log splitter do you have, and is it any good?  I'm starting to get a bit concerned about how The Lady Wife is going to split logs if I turn my toes up first ...

It's an 8 tonne splitter we bought / share with my parents.  OH uses the chainsaw to cut down to useable lengths and I use the log splitter - it's great fun but you do need to use it away from anything breakable if you are splitting knotty wood as it can travel some distance.  Can deal with pretty hefty sized logs to split. Doesn't require any particular physical exertion but standing holding done the button whilst operating the moving part can be wearing on the back after a while.

I've asked muvva if she can remember how much it cost

Great minds think alike!
We thankfully have a huge stack of trees/long lengths that we have collected from ground work jobs the OH has done or that have conveniently fallen down after a storm. We probably have enough for several years and add to the stack all the time. 
We decided with the cold weather coming to top up the split logs we had. Normally the stack is low going into the spring. We keep the logs in the cages IBO containers used to be in , which in turn are in a shed. We cut and split one full container and had another pile of unsplit logs. I decided that the unsplit logs needed doing! We have a log splitter that goes on the back of the tractor and you just hold the log on a shelf and pull the lever for the axe head splitter to come down. You do need to be careful of hands and if splitting big rounds into several small slices catching you fingers in the splits. Despite this I find it v therapeutic splitting logs, I managed to fill another IBO container on my own. We have a new chainsaw with an easy start mechanism for the pull cord. The other big heavy old Stihl and Husqvarna saws were difficult for me to start let alone use. I must admit I feel a bit bad !!!!!! with a chainsaw helmet on, cutting up wood and then using the log splitter! :-)
I am on the look out for a second hand wood burner with a back boiler so that I can run some radiators off it for upstairs. Having all electric heating in the cottage is v scary now let alone next winter! 

Happy_Sloth

Does anyone get food security anxiety?  

I'm always prepped, ever since we experienced real food insecurity and downright hunger (I don't go so far to say starvation but i certainly lost weight) when my kids where little.  

I have a well stocked deep pantry and some mylar bags filled with essentials.  However atm im finding myself quite anxious about the state of the world,  losing my job during covid didn't help because we ate down our supply's to save money and they are still not at pre-pandemic levels.

Now with all the troubles in Russia and hearing people are starving in Mariupol due to them not getting supplies in and reports that there will be food shortages later in the year due to the Russia mess. 

I'm finding my food security anxiety is through the roof.. it's been building since i started eating down my pantry during covid and while i have managed to re-stock some of it, it's not where i want it. Now im finding it quite difficult.  I've realised over the last few days im not in a healthy mindset over it all. 

sammy_kaye18

Happy_Sloth said:

Does anyone get food security anxiety?  

I'm always prepped, ever since we experienced real food insecurity and downright hunger (I don't go so far to say starvation but i certainly lost weight) when my kids where little.  

I'm finding my food security anxiety is through the roof.. it's been building since i started eating down my pantry during covid and while i have managed to re-stock some of it, it's not where i want it. Now im finding it quite difficult.  I've realised over the last few days im not in a healthy mindset over it all. 

I am with you. 
I have experienced food insecurity when I was younger and again since I have had the kids. Some days (years ago) I have skipped meals to give them meals. 

I have been putting tins and a few excess bits away in a cupboard so we have the means to make basic meals if need be such as pasta, flour, oats, rice etc. And I continue to keep hold of stock and herbs etc. I do need to do a decent shop though to be able to refill it as like you we turn to it when our money is really stretched and eat from there. 
I've also spent last year organising my garden and my son made low raised beds for me so I will grow some of my own vegetables as well this year. Plus foraging for blackberries in the summer. 
My mother in law has a bread maker and will make us the odd loaf of bread when she makes herself one and I managed to pick up a loaf tin just before lock down so I can at least home bake if I need to as well 

Si_Clist

elaine241 said:

 ... You do need to be careful of hands and if splitting big rounds into several small slices catching you fingers in the splits.

Better that than a machine so festooned with guards and safety features that it's become barely useable 

herbily

elaine241 said:

I am on the look out for a second hand wood burner with a back boiler so that I can run some radiators off it for upstairs. Having all electric heating in the cottage is v scary now let alone next winter! 

Elaine, keep an eye out for what they call "boiler stoves" which are basically just larger woodstoves which can link up to a hot water tank and a central heating pump. They're not special stoves, just bigger, but the installation of the pump isn't cheap. The house I'm in now used to have a back boiler attached to the fireplace but that was replaced with a big stove (an Aarrow, don't know if they still make them) and a pump to link it to the radiators. It works really well, but it's only a small house, and I understand the main issue is to have a big enough stove for the number of radiators you need to run off it.

CCW007

Si_Clist said:

CCW007 said:

... I've asked muvva if she can remember how much it cost

I'd be interested to know the make and model.

Will check at the weekend and report back - garage door currently broken so I can't get in there until it's fixed!

OH recently threatened to throw away my out of date oats so I figured I'd better use them up and replace them with in-date ones.  I do like overnight oats.  Not much of a sweet / dessert person but I could do crumble and hobnobs.  OH likes his porridge Scottish style but not keen on using these as they are OOD.  Any other suggestions?

DawnW

CCW007 said:

Si_Clist said:

CCW007 said:

... I've asked muvva if she can remember how much it cost

I'd be interested to know the make and model.

Will check at the weekend and report back - garage door currently broken so I can't get in there until it's fixed!

OH recently threatened to throw away my out of date oats so I figured I'd better use them up and replace them with in-date ones.  I do like overnight oats.  Not much of a sweet / dessert person but I could do crumble and hobnobs.  OH likes his porridge Scottish style but not keen on using these as they are OOD.  Any other suggestions?

Flapjacks? Or keep using it up for porridge for yourself. To be honest I have never looked at dates on a bag of oats. Is it a use by date (unlikely) or a best before date, which can be ignored?