Arizona in the Saddle | Page 26

Food Storage Basics By Laura Owsley A hhh, March is here! I love the month of March. I’ll be married 47 years this month! I don’t know how that happened as I don’t feel over 47 years old myself! Quite an accomplishment if I do say so! It took a lot of committment and hard work, but we did it!! Marriage is very different from gathering a supply of food, but both take lots of commitment and hard work. On that note, we’ll talk about our goals for the month of March with our food storage!    I like to gather tomato products and pasta for the month of March. Keep an eye out for sales on these items this month. It’s always helpful to focus on a category of food items to gather each month so you spread the expense out over the year. It’s easy to get overwhelmed if you try to buy a bunch of food at one time. If you follow these suggestions, you can gather food throughout the year and your items will be naturally rotated so they don’t lose their shelf life.   I, myself, love it when I can gather a six month supply of tomatoes and pasta, but you can certainly gather a smaller amount. Do whatever your family can afford and have space for! Here is the list of items I work on for my family during March.   Week 1:15x8 oz. tomato sauce and 6x6 oz. tomato paste. Week 2: 10x15 oz. canned tomatoes and 2 jars of salsa. Week 3: 5 lbs. dry pasta and 4 boxes of macaroni and cheese. Week 4: 12 pkg. Ramen noodles.   Tomato based products have a shorter shelf life of 12 to 18 months, so it’s best to buy regularly. Dry pasta lasts about 2-3 years if you buy it in bags or boxes and keep it in sealed containers in a cool pantry. The key is cool, dark and dry. Some people love to can their own tomatoes and make their sauce from scratch. Everyone is different and that’s one thing I love about food storage—everyone can gather the perfect supply for their family! You don’t have to get anything I suggest or someone else suggests. You build a supply that works for your family so they will eat it! Food storage for you family, your way.   Remember to be charitable this month. There’s always opportunities to give of ourselves, just look around!! It doesn’t have to be anything big or time consuming. Smile at someone, ask a co-worker or neighbor how they’re  doing and then listen. Take a plate of goodies or maybe a dinner to someone. There are lots of choices! Have a great month! See Food Storage Recipe on page 55! 26 March 2015 AZintheSaddle.com