Super Secret Survivalist Honey Holes

Danner Fort Lewis Go Devils, Thrift store ($20.00 nwt)

As most of you may have guessed, Sir Knight and Master Hand Grenade are serious gear guys (here at home, we call them another name - but I don't think its proper to say in polite company!).  Sir Knight takes gearing up every member of our family very seriously.  With 7 of us, buying the latest and greatest equipment is not even remotely financially feasible.  We have had to get creative in order to acquire the gear we want and still be able to buy groceries.  Although we are not above picking up gear anywhere we can find it, we have a couple of Super Secret Survivalist Honey Holes that we return to over and over.  In reality, they are probably not all that super secret, but they can be honey holes and it is my pleasure to share them with you.

1. AR15.com  Affectionately known as "arfcom", AR15.com has an awesome division call the EE or Equipment Exchange.  The EE is chuck full of deals waiting to be had.  Not only are there dealers advertising their best deals, but the EE is full of regular guys (and a lot of former military folks) selling their gear and equipment.  Everything you could possibly need can be found (eventually) on the EE.  Combat boots, BDU's, scopes, night vision, body armor, intrusion devises - you want it, they've got it.  The good stuff can go quickly, although sometimes things hang around a long time and you can get them for a song.  The folks who frequent arfcom are straight-up guys and we have never had a deal go bad.  Most of our packs, vests and pouches have come to us via AR15.com.  
2. Falfiles.com  FAL Files is a firearms forum that is specific to the FN FAL and L1A1 and all variants of that rifle.  They have a marketplace section with parts and accessories for all rifles (but they are geared toward the FAL) and also have tactical gear.  If you know what you are looking for and frequent the marketplace, there are good deals to be had.  
3. M14.com  M14 is geared toward the M1A/M14 crowd.  If you have any questions on this particular rifle, the best of the best of the M14 gunsmiths and historians hang on M14.com.  You will get an answer if you have a problem.  They have a classifieds section (you have to register to see the classifieds).  The BX (base exchange) is for all guns and accessories.  The PX (post exchange) is for M1A/M14 related items only. 
4. Craigslist  Yes, you read that right.  Craigslist can be a gold mine for nearly any and all survivalist/preparedness items.  We bought our solar panels from a Craigslist add (yes, all 2150 watts of them) for pennies on the dollar.  We have purchased oodles of military surplus, our James Washer and washtubs, our Den Haan hanging lantern, among other things.  My father actually found a Gen III mil spec night vision monocular, in excellent condition, for considerably less than market price.  You can actually buy guns if you are fast enough, but often they are flagged and removed before you can move on them.
5. Shopgoodwill.com  I know, I know - Goodwill?  But, we have gotten piles of tactical gear from shopgoodwill.  You have to watch them on their shipping (it can be exorbitant) and sometimes, depending on what you are bidding on, the price can skyrocket.  Shopgoodwill is an online auction that serves all the Goodwill stores nationwide.  It is amazing what people will donate!  We have purchased 2 PASGT helmets, 2 MICH helmets,  3 Woodland Gortex shells, 1 pair of Gortex pants and countless other items for significantly less than we could have bought them anywhere else.  Generally I just type "Military" in the search box and go from there.
6. Thrift Stores  Really.  Every once in a while, we hit the survivalist honey hole in one of our local thrift stores.  We have purchased more BDU's than we can count (generally for $1 a half), combat boots to fill a closet (or a Conex container!), field jackets, ammo cans and even an occasional AR15 magazine.  Sometimes you have to dig through piles, but when you're doing preparedness on a budget, it is well worth the effort.  Not only can you find military surplus, thrift stores can be a treasure trove of basic preparedness items.  Oil lamps and chimneys are often plentiful.  Blankets, towels and sheets abound.   I've seen mosquito netting, camp stoves and water filtration systems.  Make your list and hit the thrift stores - you might be pleasantly surprised by your survivalist haul.
7. Yard/Garage Sales  Probably some of the best deals we have gotten for our preparedness efforts have been at yard sales.  We have bought entire Y2K stores, surplus BDU's (for .25 cents a half), combat boots, food-grade 5 gallon buckets, 1 gallon glass jars, more canning jars than we can count, an All-American pressure canner, a stainless steel steam juicer, reference books - the list could go on and on.  I will stop at almost any yard sale, no matter how humble, knowing that I could find that next piece of survival equipment. 

Gortex jackets (3) & pants (2) (Shopgoodwill.com  $11.00 for everything + shipping)

Den Haan hanging lantern, Craigslist ($50.00)

James Washer, wringer, wash tubs - Craigslist ($375.00 for everything)

MICH Helmet, Shopgoodwill.com ($45.00 + shipping)

2150 watts of solar panels, Craigslist (Pennies on the dollar + shipping)

In our currently economic state of affairs, we could all stand to save a few bucks.  These few resources have helped us prepare for whatever the future holds.  We have been able to provide kits for every family member without going into debt.  

If any of you have an Super Secret Survivalist Honey Holes that you would like to share, I would love to hear about them.  I'll post whatever you send and perhaps we can help each other prepare for whatever comes.

Gerber Omnivore Review - Revisited

Examples of tactical flashlights
(the XD isn't a tactical light - it just looked good in the picture!)

More information was required to illuminate our flashlight review.  Sir Knight went through the comments and tried to answer them all, to the best of his ability.

This information is for the Gerber Omnivore Model #22-80147
1.  Output:  50 lumen's, 67 lumen's with the CR123 batteries.  For comparison, the mini-mag light puts out 12 lumen's (with a standard bulb).

2.  Tactical capability:  While this light could be used as a tactical light, the fact that it does not have a momentary off/on switch would preclude this light from being considered "tactical".

Use of tactical light

Another method

3.  Run time:  12 hours, with AA battery.  3.15 hours with the CR123.  There are no specs available for AAA run times.

4.  Can this be weapons mounted:  Yes.  This could very easily be mounted to a shotgun using the Elzetta Mount.  That particular mount will accept all flashlights with a diameter of .70" to 1.05".  The Omnivore Model 22-80147 measures 1.04", and will just fit in this mount.  Due to the LED construction of this lamp, it is quite suited for a weapon mounted light.  LED's are non as susceptible to damage from recoil as incandescent and xenon lamps.

Elzetta Mount

5.  Boat tape:  Most hardware stores sell self-adhesive, non-skid tape (like you would use in the bottom of your bathtub).  It is easily cut with scissors.

6.  Price for the Omnivore:  Anywhere from $25.00 to $35.00.

Sure Fire light with Butler Creek cap

Equipment Review - Gerber Omnivore

The Omnivore - and all of its food sources

*** **

Omnivore  Latin om-ni-vore
n: An animal or person that eats food of both plant and animal origin. See omnivorous


The Gerber Omnivore lives up to its name by being capable of using AAA, AA or CR123 batteries - whatever you happen to have on hand.

After reading about the Omnivore on SurvivalBlog, I decided to order one and put it to the acid test.  We have used and abused this flashlight for about 4 months, and this is what we have found:

The Good

1. Versatility.  The fact that it can take three different batteries renders it extremely useful.
2. It is an LED lamp.  It has a super long run time, although it does vary with which battery you use, as does the brightness.
3. Sturdy construction.  It appears to be aircraft grade aluminum.  The anodizing is good - it is difficult to scratch.  
4. The switch.  The off/on switch is a push to turn on and push to turn off.  We like the fact that it is non-momentary.
5. Size.  It is a handy size.  Not too big, not too little.  It fits easily in a pocket, purse or your hand.
6. Tough.  Our children have been unable to break or damage the Omnivore in any way in the four months that we have owned it.  Believe me, this is saying a lot!

Empty battery slot

Eating a AA battery

Eating a AAA battery

For dessert - the CR123

The Bad

1. The finish.  The finish is so slick that it is almost impossible to hang on to.  If your hands are dry or if it is raining, or if you have blood on your hands, you will not be able to turn it on.  As you can see by the photos, I put heavy-duty non-skid boat tape on it so that I could hold on to it.
2. Occasionally, the switch in the back does not work and you have to hit it twice (although that has not been a problem recently - perhaps that is a break-in issue).

The boat tape improvement

The Ugly

1. The Omnivore comes with a ballistic nylon case - super handy for carrying your flashlight on your belt.  This is completely laughable.  This is the first time in my life I have seen a piece of equipment ship with a case made of ballistic tissue paper.  
2. You will see by the photographs that there is whole cut in the top of the ballistic tissue paper case.  This is because, when sitting down, in soft chairs, the Omnivore turns itself on and runs down your batteries (no matter which battery you have in it). I cut the whole in the top so that I could see when it was on and reach down and switch it off.  The case is useless.

The "improved" ballistic tissue paper case

The bottom line - I would buy another one.  Despite it's inconveniences, the fact that it can use so many different batteries makes this flashlight a winner.  As a permanent fix for the finish, I am going to put it in a lathe an attempt to knurl the body.  I hope it doesn't destroy the flashlight.  

Our overall rating for the flashlight is a 3 star rating.  While it does have some problems, the versatility and sturdy construction of this unit more than outweigh the negatives.

Sir Knight

Product Review - Honey Powder

A friend, visiting last week, mentioned in passing that they had been traveling through a small town to the south of us and stopped at a local grocery store to pick up a few essentials.  Imagine her surprise, when going toward the checkout line, she noticed a large, hand-lettered sign with the words "Emergency Survival Food".  Intrigued, she made her way toward the rows of #10 tins to investigate.  She toted home a few tins of banana chips and quickly made plans to revisit the store to further bolster her preparedness supplies.  Of course, I filed this information away with hopes that we too would be making our way south in the near future so that I could check out this "survival" section of a mainstream grocery store.

Today was that day.  Sir Knight, the kids and I headed south to attend our nephew's birthday party and had to drive right past that very store.  How could we possibly not stop?  A quick trip inside revealed a gold mind of emergency essentials.  Sure enough, rows upon rows of dehydrated foods in #10 tins consumed premium space right next to the checkout counter.  Standard fair such as powdered milk and potato gems were present along with other not-so-common items like powdered scrambled eggs, butter powder and honey powder.  We picked up a few tins of this and that so that we could evaluate the quality of the food and decide what we were interested in stocking up on.  The honey powder was especially intriguing, since we had never heard of such a thing.  I couldn't wait to get home and try it.

Honey powder in the can
(it was about 2/3 full - it is filled
by weight and not by volume)

Mixing the powder with water

The honey powder package had direction for using both straight from the can (in powder form) and rehydrating the powder and using as table honey.  I thought it more likely that we would reconstitute the honey and use it in liquid form so I followed the rehydrating directions, with really exceptional results.

First, I measured 1 cup of honey powder into a saucepan, slowly added 1/4 cup of cold water and stirred to combine.  After the powder and water had been sufficiently mixed, I put the saucepan on the stove and slowly heated the mixture up until the sugars went into solution.  Of course, at this point we had to taste the honey to see if it was remotely edible.  It was great!  I was very surprised.  It was the taste and consistency of "regular" honey.  I would gladly put the reconstituted honey on my table.

Heating the honey

The honey after the sugars have dissolved

It was exciting to see preparedness foods in a chain grocery store.  We brought home a brochure for the supplier, Augason Farms, which showcased even more products than the grocery store had carried.  The prices in the grocery store were considerably less than they are on the Augason Farms website, which I attribute to the shear bulk that is carried in the store location.

It is even the right consistency and color!

Although honey has an incredibly long shelf life, I think the honey powder is definitely a worthy addition to our preparedness stores.  I will definitely be frequenting that grocery store and adding to our honey powder supply.

Practical Preparedness - Wound Care

I come from a medically inclined family.  My parents were both EMT's, serving our rural community for most of my growing up years.  I have been to more first aid classes than I can count.  When I was in high school, I assisted our local Vet both in the office and during farm calls.  I have given shots, lanced boils, stitched injuries and been a horse midwife.  My husband was a Firefighter/EMT when we lived in the big city and our oldest daughter is an EMT training to be a Midwife.  All of our children, with the exception of the three year old, have been through first aid classes.  When we think of TEOTWAWKI situations, we always think of medical emergencies, illnesses and normal parts of life, such as birth and death.  We want all of our bases covered.

In that vein, we stock up on not only pharmaceuticals, but personal protection and wound care supplies.  We often pick up band aids, medical tape and other medical necessities when we go to the dollar store (it is amazing how a box here and there really adds up), but once a year or so, we make a major "band aids" purchase through a company that outfits firehouses and ambulances.  Moore Medical carries everything from butterflies to suture strips (they even carry medications, though they are only available by prescription).  We find it much less expensive to buy in bulk (when we have a chunk of cash) than to pick up more expensive items singly.

Here is a sampling of what we purchase, and what we use it for.....

Personal Protection Equipment

• Nitrile Exam Gloves (S, M, XL).  It is wise to have gloves on anytime you are dealing with blood products or bodily fluids.  It is the first line of defense in infection control
• Surgical Masks.  If you are dealing with a communicable disease a surgical mask offers a modicum of protection.
• Fluid Shield Surgical Masks.  To protect you from contracting diseases due to small droplets.

Band Aids (aka boo boo strips)

• Butterfly Closures.  For closing lacerations that don't quite require sutures.
• Fabric Adhesive Bandages 1"x3"
• Fabric Fingertip Bandages
• Fabric Adhesive Bandages 2"x4"
• Fabric Knuckle Bandages  (we find that fabric band aids move better and wear better than plastic band aids)

Dressings and Bandages

• Sponges 4"x4".  Use as a dressing for a wound, or to clean a wound.
• Kling rolls.  To be used over a dressing - holds dressing in place.
• Surgical tape.  Secures kling over wound.
• Sponges.  Use as a dressing for wounds.
• Gauze Pads.  Use as a dressing for wounds (sterile) 4"x4".
• Vaseline Petrolatum Gauze.  Use as a dressing for weeping wounds or sutured areas.  We use these extensively.  They will not stick to the wound.
• CoFlex.  Cohesive flexible bandage.  This can be used in place of Kling and tape.  It sticks to itself, but not to skin.  It is stretchy and applies nicely.  We purchased our CoFlex through KV Vet Supply for half the price we could purchase it for at our medical supplier!  Interestingly, the CoFlex is identical to what we have bought from pharmacies in the past - even the packaging is the same.
• Sterile oval eye pads.  You never know when someone is going to get "pucker brush" in their eye and require first aid!

Bumps, Bruises and Sprains

• Triangle Bandages.  Stabilize dislocated shoulders and fractured arms and wrists.  Also used for wrapping head wounds.
• Elastic Bandage (Ace Bandage). (2", 3", 4")  Multiple uses.  Used for supporting sprains and sore joints.  Can be used as bleeding control (without cutting off circulation).  For the price we pay for them, they can be used for bandaging any wound.

Burn Care

• Burn Jel.  Made by Water Jel, Burn Jel contains Lidocaine and offers almost instant relief for burns.  The thick jel cools the burn and seals out air.  We use Burn Jel exclusively for burn care (including sun burns).  We stock bottles of bulk jel, along with pre-soaked sterile dressings in foil packets.

We have found that being medically equipped is not just for preppers awaiting the end of the world.  Our latest order was merely a re-supply.  Living in a rural area, we are frequently called upon to render first aid to any number of neighbors and most often, our own children.  We have flushed eyes, transported severed digits, preformed CPR, bandaged severe lacerations, stopped major bleeding, dealt with anaphylactic reactions, stabilized fractured bones and even delivered a few babies.  Being rural, more than one farm animal has also been the recipient of our equipment and supplies.  

Preparing for medical emergencies goes hand in hand with food storage, defense and communications when anticipating a grid-down scenario.   It's not just about preparedness - it's about Practical Preparedness.

Practical Preparedness - Pharmaceuticals

Every couple of years, we take an inventory of our medical supplies, both pharmaceuticals and wound care, and make major purchases.  This year, we are redoubling our preparedness efforts, so rather than making one major purchase, we are breaking things down into categories and making numerous purchases, otherwise the shear volume would overwhelm us.

A recent buying trip (to our local Costco) yielded pharmaceutical gold.  Here is a sampling of what we bought, and why....

• Fleet Saline Enemas.  As people age and become less active, a little help in the waste management department is indicated.  Also, a change in diet, from a heavily laden fiber diet to a diet including mostly protein (as in a wild game driven TEOTWAWKI diet) will cause things to "stop up".  If not dealt with quickly and efficiently, constipation could prove to be a life-threatening condition.
• Stool Softeners.  Basically, they are indicated for the same condition mentioned above, however, they would be a preventative, taken before complete stoppage.
• Cough Drops.  For soothing relief of itchy throats due to PND and bothersome colds.  Something along the lines of Chloraseptic Throat Lozenges would be in order for sore throats.
• Ibuprofen.  Fever relief and pain management.  Ibuprofen is good three years past the expiration date (per doctor), then throw it away. 
• Quick Release Caps Ibuprofen.  For super fast acting pain relief or fever reduction.  Gel caps are more expensive and the shelf life is shorter, but can be worth the extra price.
• Tylenol.  Fever relief and pain management.  Tylenol has no shelf life (per doctor), so it is an excellent long term storage option.
• Aspirin.  Fever relief and pain management.  It also works as a blood thinner.  Aspirin lasts forever (per doctor), making it perfect for long term storage.
• Children's Tylenol.  As indicated previously, but with children's dosage.
• Children's Ibuprofen.  As indicated previously, but with children's dosage.
• Tylenol PM.  Use as you would for Tylenol, but with the added benefit of a sleep aid.  In cases of extreme illness or pain, sleeping can be a great healer.
• Benadryl Allergy.  Benadryl is the first course of action for an anaphylactic reaction.  It can be the difference between life and death.  We keep quite a supply on hand.
• Children's Benadryl Allergy.  Same as above, but with dosage for children.
• Neosporin.  An antibiotic ointment to be used on minor scrapes and scratches to prevent infection.  It can keep minor injuries minor.
• Bag Balm.  Truthfully, we use bag balm in place of Neosporin regularly, with great success.  We do find that the Neosporin tubes are easier to transport in packs and bags.
• Visine. When allergies come calling or you get something in your eye, there is no better eye wash.  It can bring immediate relief.
• Hydrogen Peroxide.  The uses for hydrogen peroxide are too numerous to mention!  We use it extensively to remove blood from clothing and linens.  It is also a great gargle and antiseptic.
• Betadine.  We use Betadine as a topical antiseptic.  You can scrub for minor surgery (or major) with a Betadine solution by mixing 2oz. of dish soap to 1 gallon of betadine.  This is an excellent solution to wash with and sterilize wounds.
• Isopropyl Alcohol.  Yet another topical antiseptic for use in wound care (ie. sterilization of instruments).

Not only do we stock up on simple medications, we purchase large quantities of vitamins to maintain health.  Our daily regime consists of an Emergen-C packet every morning followed by a high quality multi-vitamin.  Emergen-C is available in bulk at Costco and is packaged in a foil packet (plastic is NOT an oxygen barrier!).  My all-time favorite multi-vitamins are made by a company called Beeyoutiful.  I love them!  I take Super Mom and they have worked so well for both Maid Elizabeth and myself that I just placed an order for Super Dad for Sir Knight!

Preparing for medical emergencies goes hand in hand with food storage, defense and communications when anticipating a grid-down scenario.   It's not just about preparedness - it's about Practical Preparedness.

Wood Cookstove - Revisited

A few readers requested further information and pictures on our wood cookstove, so I thought I would take this opportunity to show you the ins and outs of the Pioneer Maid.  Please excuse what looks to be a terribly dirty stove.  I could have spiffed it up, but I was too busy keeping house, homeschooling, sewing, tromping in the woods and yes, blogging!

The Pioneer Maid, unlike most (if any) other wood cookstoves, has a lever allowing the smoke to go around the oven before it goes up the flu, essentially turning the oven "on".  As the smoke travel around the oven, it heats the oven more evenly than a traditional stove that heats only on the firebox side of the oven.  I still have to rotate foods in the oven, but not nearly as much as with a stove without the oven "on" feature.

Oven on/off lever.  The oven is off.

Now the oven is on.

There are two wooden knobs that turn clock-wise to close the drafts and counter clock-wise to open the drafts.  Because the Pioneer Maid is an airtight stove, these draft knobs give me great control of the firebox, thus allowing me to control my burning temperature.  When I want to heat things up, I turn the knobs counter clock-wise and when I want to turn the stove down, I turn the knobs clock-wise.  The stove responds very quickly.

The draft knobs.

I have found that wood heats more thoroughly (or something) than either gas or electric heat.  I know, I know - all the old timers said "food just doesn't taste right cooked on that electric stove", but, ya know what?  They're right!  Food cooked in a wood cookstove is just better.  Bread is crusty and golden on the outside and moist and soft on the inside.  Biscuits are unparalleled and even meat is moister.  I also find that it is wonderfully easy to find "high", "medium" and "low" on the top of the cookstove.  High is right over the woodbox and low is right next to the water reservoir.  Medium is, of course, somewhere in the middle.  I have a metal trivet on the top of our stove to put pots on if even low is still too hot.

There is a wooden knob at the bottom of the stove, under the draft knobs, that, when pulled out, opens a trap door in the bottom of the woodbox so that you can easily clean the ash of the stove.  You push the ash through the hole into a drawer located under the woodbox.  You fill the drawer with ashes, the knob pushed back in to create a solid firebox floor, and then just dump the ashes on the compost pile.  Perfectly simple.

Clean out lever (in the open position).

Clean out at the bottom of the firebox.

Ash drawer under the firebox.

The ash drawer full of ash.

Because the smoke can be re-routed around the oven, ash can build up under the oven, decreasing the oven's effectiveness.  To remedy this, the makers of the Pioneer Maid put a little door beneath the opening that can be taken off so that the ash can be cleaned out.  We generally only do this about twice a year.

Oven clean out (under oven door).

One of my favorite features of my stove is the warming oven.  It is huge, running the entire length of the stove and water reservoir.  You would never believe how many plates I can fit in here!    This stove is completely mechanical - nothing fancy.  Even the warming oven door is mechanical.  There are two chains attached to either side of the door, they go through a hole in the back of the warming oven, through tiny pulleys and have weights hanging at the bottom.  This keeps the door from hanging all the way open and helps pull the door closed when you shut it.  Very clever.

Open warming oven.

Warming oven chain and weight.

As I mentioned before, our stove has an option for a waterfront.  There are two "knock-outs" in the back of the stove on the left side of the firebox.  Those "knock-outs" are removed and the waterfront installed in the firebox and the waterfront is then piped into a hot water tank.  Generally these hot water tanks work on thermal convection, meaning that the water circulates without the use of pumps.  Your hot water tank would be higher (the higher the better - even up to the second story) than your waterfront so that the cold water and hot water could circulate properly.  Before installing a hot water system, I would highly recommend Lehman's pamphlet on how to safely install a waterfront.  Not installing your waterfront properly and safely could have dire consequences.  Remember, 1 cubic foot of water turns into approximately 2000 cubic feet of steam - very dangerous!

Waterfront knockouts.

Waterfront (to go in firebox).

I find that I can bake and cook about 100 degrees lower in my wood cookstove than in my gas oven.  Truth be told, I rarely look at the temperature gage on my oven door.  I stick my hand in the oven and if it is too hot to hold it in there for more than a few seconds, the oven is too hot for bread and even for biscuits.  If I can hold my hand in the oven for 8 seconds or so, the temperature is just right for bread, rolls and most other things.  I generally turn things once or twice while they are baking and can tell when things are done by the way they smell.

As you can see, my wood cookstove and I have a very close relationship.  I cook with a commercial gas range in the summer time - but come winter, I can hardly wait to begin my wood stove cookery.

I recommend.....

Another favorite cookbook on my kitchen shelf is Hearth & Home, Recipes for Life by Karey Swan.  Karey has a wonderful, engaging style that makes you want to grab a cup of tea and settle in for a long "visit" with her.  She has wise advice on healthy eating and encourages the use of whole grains and whole foods.  Her opinion is, if she can't make it, she shouldn't eat it - an opinion I heartily embrace.

A number of recipes have become our favorites, specifically Sky High Biscuits and the crust recipe for her Pastys. I use the Pasty crust for our infamous Fried Apple Pies! (Oh, and the Pastys are wonderful, too!)

Although the recipes are wholesome and tasty, the true treasures lie in the Recipes for Life sections of this book.  Karey covers topics ranging from wives loving their husbands to raising children to the gift of hospitality and homeschooling.  She has an entire section on stocking your pantry and a month by month guide of activities and celebrations that encourage family togetherness.

Hearth & Home is a treasured resource in our home.  I highly encourage you to "invite" Karey to minister to you.  If you care to order Hearth & Home, I have featured it in the Kitchen Resources tab on the upper left-hand side of my blog.

I recommend.....

Many of you have asked for cookbooks and other resources that we find helpful in our off-grid/prepared lifestyle.  I thought it would be easier to start a page of recommendations and links than to try to remember to whom I've told what.  On the left-hand side of my blog is a link that says "Paratus Familia Resources".  All of the cookbooks that I will recommend will be linked on that page (don't think that didn't take me forever to figure out!).

After seeing my lovely friend Patrice's practice of book recommendations, I thought I would follow her lead and recommend some myself, starting with the most beloved of my kitchen tools - the More with Less cookbook.

My Titus 2 mentor, "Lady Pauline" introduced me to the More with Less cookbook about 15 years ago.  I had just started ordering bulk foods and grinding my own grains, and this book walked me step by step through making just about everything from scratch.  The author is Mennonite, so the book is full of recipes from church members from the States, but also from missionaries all over the world.  There are tons of ideas for using leftovers to create whole new meals and also certain recipes they tag as "time savers" because they are so quick to prepare.

The yogurt recipe that I first tried is in this book, along with various methods of incubating it - depending on what you have available.  I still use this tried and true recipe, and I still use the method of incubating that I found in this book.  I make one of the granola recipes regularly along with potato rolls, white sauce, skillet beef and lentils and so many other things that I couldn't possibly list them all here.

If you are looking for a basic, down to earth approach to cooking from scratch, this is the book for you.  I have purchased a copy of each of my daughters to put in their hope chests so they will never be without so many of the recipes they have grown up with.

I will be recommending more books in the days to come.  Who knows, you might find your favorite on the list!