Cooking with Food Preps: Wheat

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Ok so i think i may have a hole in some of my food prep info…well a few holes! mainly that I tell you and give you lists of what to buy and store…but not much on how to use it!  A reader pointed this out and I am sorry about that!  So here it is, not a complete list but a few ideas and where to find more information.

WHEAT BERRIES

Wheat berries are the whole grain version of wheat, they are not processed and very high in fiber.

They need to be soaked in water or steam cooked to become tender, and when cooked they have a sweet, nutty like flavor with a somewhat chewy texture.

One of the easiest ways to prepare is to cook them or soak them in water overnight.  You can make it easier to cook them by soaking overnight, but just the soaking with some brown sugar or syrup can make them a decent breakfast meal, albeit somewhat monotonous after awhile!

To Prepare:

In a pot with a fairly tight lid, mix 3 cups water and 1 cup wheat (scalable to needs and the measurements are not set in stone, a little more or less is fine).

Bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes.

Turn off the heat and allow the wheat to stand 8-12 hours.  Drain any remaining liquid and then eat them or store in a refrigerated area tightly covered for no more than a week.

THERMOS COOKED:

Put wheat and 2 1/2 cups of boiling water in quart thermos, screw top tightly and leave until morning.  Would work well if you are going to be out in the woods for the day and would be a good dinner meal that cooks while you are hiking.

SLOW COOKER:

Simmer Ingredients on high for 2-3 hours, turn off and let it sit overnight.

WHEAT FLOUR

You can store normal or whole wheat flour, but storing it in flour form SIGNIFICANTLY reduces the storage life of the wheat.

Whole Red Hard Winter Wheat whole  Stores for 30+ years

All Purpose Flour (normal white flour) up to 10 years in a #10 can with oxygen absorbers

As you can see storing it in flour form is not ideal, the best way to do this is to store the wheat in whole form and grind it yourself.

Where the recipe calls for “All purpose” flour this is a mixture of hard and soft wheats (hard wheats last longer than soft, so this is why it is more popular for preppers) and this flour is made from wheat without the germ, which is what you will find in most buckets of wheat preps.  You wont be able to take your wheat buckets and make exact “all purpose flour”

To use ground whole wheat flour you can mix hard and soft wheats or use all hard however when you use a cup for cup substitution you must add five teaspoons of water per cup and add additional flour only when need while shaping the bread or whatever it may be.

If you are using 100% whole wheat flour, add two teaspoons of vital wheat gluten to make a stronger and faster rising bread/product.  For every teaspoon of wheat gluten add 1 1/4 teaspoons of water.  You can find it like the Honeyville farm has it in cans for around $13-14 for 3 1/2 pounds.

However you must be aware that whole wheat is a bit bitter compared to all purpose flour so the taste will not be the same when making breads, etc.  Experiment first now and find how you like to make it instead of later!

To grind the wheat to a flour you will need a GRAIN MILL, now these can range from cheap to spendy depending on your budget…

Country Living Grain Mill

Considered the Cadillac of Grain Mills, Made of solid cast aircraft aluminum in the USA.  FDA approved Food grade powder coating, ball bearings make it easier to grind and a cast iron flywheel grinding plate.  Adjustable from cracked grain to fine fine cake flour, and will do EVERYTHING you want it to.  Lifetime guarantee but comes in at around.. $429.  All who have bought this however swear by it.

Wondermill Junior Deluxe Hand Grain

Decent mid level grain mill, burr grinder works with wet/oily grains, powder coated and limited lifetime guarantee, holds more than a quart of grains.  It can grind fine flour, but you need to grind it course first then regrind it fine.  Complaints were usually around the length of time to grind flour, however we are prepping not looking to set speed records, and its quality of production is also a selling point.  The Country living is twice as expensive but still a better buy if you have the money with this one coming in at around $220.

Back To Basics Hand Grain Mill

Nothing fancy small  2 1/4 cup hopper, can adjust from fine to course and grind wheats, corn, rice, oats, coffee, barley, spices, etc.  Decent reviews most talk about how it works, but is not easy and does not make A LOT at once, you can spend up to an hour grinding 8 cups of flour, however it is simple and works and is a decent price  at around $65-$70.

RECIPES

(These are from the Utah State University Extension, all credit given to them)

WHEAT AND BEAN CHILI

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup uncooked dry beans
1 cup uncooked wheat
1 quart water
1 onion, chopped
1 lb. ground beef
1 clove garlic
2 tsp. canola or olive oil
1 large can (46 oz.) tomato juice
1 (15 oz.) can Mexican-flavored stewed
tomatoes*
1 tsp. chili powder
Salt and paprika to taste
2 tsp. brown sugar
½ tsp. cumin

Cook wheat and beans together in one quart of water (may be soaked overnight before cooking). Cook until almost tender. In a separate pan, sauté meat and onions and garlic in canola or olive
oil. Drain. Add to beans. Add other ingredients. Simmer for 1 hour. Season to taste. *Fresh tomatoes may be added in place of canned stewed tomatoes. Use about 8 skinned
tomatoes. Adjust spices for flavor.

MEATLOAF MIX

(This is used for many other recipes to follow)

INGREDIENTS

2 eggs, beaten
2 (8 oz.) cans tomato sauce
2 Tbsp. dried chopped onion
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
¼ tsp. ground sage
¼ tsp. ground oregano
¼ tsp. ground marjoram
¼ tsp. celery salt
2 lbs. lean ground beef*
½ cup bread crumbs (optional)
½ cup regular oatmeal (optional)
½ cup wheat berries (optional)
½ cup cooked rice (optional)

In a large bowl, combine eggs, tomato sauce, onion, salt, Worcestershire sauce, sage, oregano, marjoram, and celery salt. Add in ground beef and any/all optional ingredients as desired and
mix well. Spoon evenly into three 2-cup freezer containers with tight-fitting lids. Attach lids. Label containers with date and contents. Store in freezer. Use within 3 months. Makes 3
packages or about 6 cups MEAT LOAF MIX. *use only fresh (not frozen and unthawed) ground beef.

MINI MEAT LOAVES

Ingredients

1 pkg. MEATLOAF MIX
2 tsp. tomato sauce
1 tsp. brown sugar

Preheat oven to 375º. Shape meat mix into two mini-meatloaves. Place in shallow baking pan.
Top with tomato sauce mixed with brown sugar, if desired. Bake 30 minutes or until done.

STUFFED GREEN PEPPERS

Ingredients

1 pkg. MEATLOAF MIX
2 green peppers, halved, seeded
½ cup tomato sauce
⅛ tsp. garlic salt
½ cup cooked rice

Cook green pepper halves in boiling water for 2 minutes. Drain well. Combine tomato sauce (reserve 4 Tbsp. for topping) and rest of ingredients with the meat mixture. Fill each pepper
half. Place in glass baking dish. Top each pepper with 1 Tbsp. tomato sauce. Bake uncovered at 375º F. for 45 minutes or until done.

CASSEROLE PIZZA

Ingredients

1 pkg. MEATLOAF MIX
½ cup tomato sauce
¼ tsp. oregano leaves, crushed
⅛ tsp. dried sweet basil leaves, crushed
1 (4 oz.) can sliced mushrooms
6 green pepper rings
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 Tbsp. grated Romano cheese
Sliced black ripe olives for garnish

In medium bowl, combine tomato sauce, oregano, basil and mushrooms; set aside. Preheat oven to 375º F. Turn MEAT LOAF MIX evenly into two 4-inch pie pans, or individual casserole
dishes. Spoon tomato sauce mixture evenly over mix. Bake 15 minutes in preheated oven. Remove from oven and top each with 3 green pepper rings. Sprinkle evenly with mozzarella and
Romano cheese. Bake 10 minutes longer. Garnish with black olives and parsley sprigs.

PORCUPINE MEATBALLS

Ingredients

1 pkg. MEATLOAF MIX

Sauce:
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup bottled barbecue sauce
½ cup catsup
1 can tomato soup
½ tsp. Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp. seasoning salt
½ tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. dry onion flakes

Meatballs:

Form into balls, each about 2 inches in diameter. Place in casserole dish. Cover with sauce (below). Bake at 350º F for about 45 minutes. Makes 6 to 8 servings, 2 large meatballs each.

Sauce:

Combine ingredients and blend thoroughly. Heat and simmer about 3 minutes. Pour over meatballs.

MINESTRONE SOUP

Ingredients

2 Tbsp. oil 1 lb. hamburger
¾ cup chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery
1½ quarts water
1 Tbsp. beef bouillon crystals
1½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
¼ tsp. oregano
1 cup green beans or peas
½ cup kidney beans
1 cup wheat berries
1 cup sliced zucchini
½ cup shredded cabbage
½ cup sliced carrots
½ cup minced parsley
1 (15 oz.) can Italian-flavored stewed tomatoes

1 Cup green beans or peas

Heat oil; add ground beef and onion, sauté until onions are straw-colored. Drain grease from beef; add celery, water, and beef bouillon. Cover and simmer slowly until celery is tender. Add
remaining ingredients. Cover and simmer 15 minutes. Yield: 8-10 servings.

CHOCOLATE ZUCCHINI CAKE

Ingredients

2 cups flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
½ tsp. salt
2 tsp. soda
½ tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. allspice
4 Tbsp. cocoa
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
½ cup butter or margarine
½ cup oil
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
½ cup buttermilk
2 cups grated zucchini
1 cup chocolate chips

Sift together white and wheat flour, salt, soda, spices, and cocoa. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, cream together sugars, butter or margarine, and oil. Beat in eggs, vanilla and buttermilk.
Add sifted dry ingredients. Add 2 cups of grated zucchini and 1 cup chocolate chips. Bake in greased and floured 9×13 pan for 45 minutes in a preheated oven at 350º F.

NOTES:

For this recipe and others to follow where they call for Whole wheat flour or all purpose flour refer back to the beginning of the post where i talk about grinding wheat into flour!

FEATHER ROLLS

Ingredients

7 cups whole wheat flour, divided

2 to 3 cups white flour
2 to 3 Tbsp. dry yeast
1 cup nonfat dry milk powder
3 cups warm water
⅔ cup oil
½ cup honey or sugar
4 large eggs
2 tsp. salt

Mix 5 cups whole wheat flour, dry yeast, and nonfat dry milk in large mixer bowl. Add water, oil and honey. Mix well for 1 to 2 minutes. Turn off mixer, cover bowl, and let dough *sponge for
10 minutes. Add remaining 2 cups of whole wheat flour. Add eggs and salt. Turn on mixer. Add white flour, 1 cup at a time, until dough begins to pull away from sides of bowl. Knead for 5 to 6
minutes. Dough should be very soft and manageable. Stiff dough produces heavy, dry rolls. If dough stiffens while mixing, drizzle a little warm water over dough as you knead it. Dough may
be used immediately or covered and stored in refrigerator for several days. Lightly oil hands and counter top if needed. Shape immediately into rolls. Let rise until very light. Bake at 350º F. for
18 to 20 minutes. Do not over-bake. Yield: 5 dozen large rolls. *Sponge means to let it stand while yeast becomes active.

HONEY AND WHEAT MIX

Ingredients

3 cups whole-wheat flour
6 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup instant nonfat milk powder, or whey
milk substitute, or dry buttermilk powder
⅓ cup baking powder
4 tsp. salt
¼ cup powdered honey* or ½ cup sugar

In a large bowl, combine wheat flour, all-purpose flour, milk powder or buttermilk powder, powdered honey, baking powder, and salt. Spoon into 12-cup container with tight-fitting lid.
Attach lid. Label container with date and contents. Use within 10 to 12 weeks if stored in refrigerator or within 6 months, if stored in freezer. Makes about 12 cups HONEY AND
WHEAT MIX.
*(½ cup liquid honey may be used. Drizzle over mixture while stirring with a wire whisk.)

HONEY AND WHEAT WAFFLES

Ingredients

3 eggs, separated
2 cups buttermilk
¼ cup butter or margarine, melted
3 cups HONEY AND WHEAT MIX
¾ tsp. baking soda
½ cup canola oil

Preheat waffle iron. In medium bowl, combine egg yolks, buttermilk, and butter or margarine, beating with wire whisk to blend. In large bowl, combine HONEY AND WHEAT MIX and
baking soda. Stir in buttermilk mixture until just moistened. Batter will be lumpy. Beat egg whites until stiff but not dry. Fold into batter. Bake in waffle iron according to manufacturer’s
instructions. Serve hot with syrup. Makes 4 large waffles.

HONEY/WHEAT PANCAKES

Ingredients

1 egg, slightly beaten
1⅓ cups water
2 cups HONEY AND WHEAT MIX
3 Tbsp. canola oil

In medium bowl, combine egg, oil and water, beating with wire whisk to blend. Stir in HONEY AND WHEAT MIX until blended. Let stand 2 minutes. Preheat griddle according to
manufacturer’s instructions. Lightly oil griddle. Stir in more water if a thinner batter is desired. Pour about ⅓ cup batter onto hot griddle to make 1 pancake. Cook until edge becomes dry and
bubbles form. Turn with a wide spatula. Cook 35 to 45 seconds longer until browned on both sides. Repeat with remaining batter. Makes about ten 4-inch pancakes.

HONEY/WHEAT MUFFINS

Ingredients

3 cups HONEY AND WHEAT MIX
2 Tbsp. packed brown sugar
1 egg, slightly beaten
1⅓ cups water
¼ cup canola oil

Preheat oven to 400º F. Generously grease 12 large muffin cups. In large bowl, combine HONEY AND WHEAT MIX and brown sugar. In a small bowl, combine egg, oil and water,
beating with wire whisk to blend. Add egg mixture all at once to flour and brown sugar mixture, stirring until just moistened. Batter will be lumpy. Fill each prepared muffin cup ⅔ full with
batter. Bake 15 to 20 minutes in preheated oven until golden brown and wooden pick inserted in center comes out dry. Makes 12 large muffins.

BUTTERMILK BISCUITS

Ingredients

2 cups HONEY AND WHEAT MIX
½ cup buttermilk, milk or water
¼ cup shortening

Preheat oven to 400º F. Pour HONEY AND WHEAT MIX into medium bowl. Cut in shortening. Add buttermilk, milk or water all at once. Stir with fork until dough follows fork around bowl.
Turn out dough on lightly floured surface. Knead 10 to 12 times. Roll out dough to ½ inch thick. Use 2-inch biscuit cutter to cut rolled-out dough. Arrange dough circles on ungreased baking
sheet. Bake 10 to 12 minutes in preheated oven until lightly browned. Makes about 9 biscuits.

PANCAKE MIX

Ingredients

10 cups flour
2½ cups instant nonfat dry milk
½ cup sugar
¼ cup baking powder
2 Tbsp. salt

Combine all ingredients in large bowl. Stir together to blend well. Put in large airtight container. Label. Store in a cool dry place. Use within 6 months. Makes about 13 cups of Pancake Mix.

PERFECT PANCAKES

Ingredients

1½ cups PANCAKE MIX
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 cup water
3 Tbsp. canola oil

Put pancake mix in medium bowl. Combine egg, water, and oil in small bowl. Add egg mixture to PANCAKE MIX. Add more water for thinner pancakes. Blend well. Let stand 5 minutes.
Cook on hot oiled griddle about 3 to 4 minutes, until browned on both sides. Makes ten to twelve 4-inch pancakes.

Once again this is by no means an extensive list, there are literally thousands of recipes out there, these are just a few ideas.

MORE INFORMATION/IDEAS

• Google and search Prepper/Survival Forums, plethora of information out there also search out whole food and back to nature blogs

• Peggy Laytons Book “Cooking with Home Storage” is awesome and great source of knowledge for cooking with food preps

• Crystal Godfrey’s Book “I cant believe its Food Storage” Is also a great resource of recipes for cooking with common storable foods.

As Always for your own good experiment with these recipes and books NOW, you can survive on OJT food storage cooking in an event but you will have tastier meals for you and your family by working the bugs out now and learning the ropes!