HUNKER-DOWN MODE

It's the time of year my mother and I go into what we refer to as "hunkering-down". As the nights grow colder and the days crisp with falling leaves, we start dreaming of soups and stews, cranberry-apple cobbler and freshly baked bread. We pour over new recipes and pull out the old standard "More With Less" cookbook published by the Mennonites. There are green beans to be dilled, beets to be pickled, zucchini to be grated, apples to be sauced or sliced and frozen for winter pies. After the heat and busyness of summer, we are ready to fire up our ovens and fill the house with the smells of home cooking and baking.

We resolve anew to prepare meals that are wholesome and inexpensive, using what we have on hand and not running to the grocery store every day. We plan menus and bulk baking or cooking days around what is on sale. I am challenged to limit my grocery bill to $100 a week, which isn't just for food items but also soaps, toiletries, paper products, OTC medicines, dog and cat food, kitty litter and hamster food. Told you I was challenged! But I am enjoying finding creative ways to feed my family and stretch my grocery dollars. I was given a head of cabbage the other day and a carton of pre-washed, sliced fresh mushrooms on another day, both food items my family turns their noses up at. But they were FREE and I wasn't going to let them go to waste.
The "boiled dinner" I made in my crock pot with the cabbage, potatoes, onions, carrots and a smoked pork shank was hearty and the delicious smell lured even the most leery family members. Mark and a couple of the kids even had seconds. With the mushrooms I made stroganoff with sliced venison tenderloin. I sauteed those mushrooms with garlic and onion, added a little beef broth and the meat, simmered a while, then stirred in a pint of sour cream. Served over dumpling noodles, it was a big hit and not one person even commented on the mushrooms! Just goes to show it's all in their heads.

The other day I bought 6 big, beautiful green peppers, three for a dollar, at the bulk food store and I made stuffed peppers for the first time yesterday. They were wonderful, and complemented nicely by the fresh zucchini bread I made at the same time I was preparing the peppers and also canning Dilly Beans. Talk about a challenge! I don't know why I do that to myself -- try a new recipe, can beans and bake all at the same time! I need to pace myself and, above all, not forget to thank the Lord from whom all these good things come. I need to remember to trust in His provision and not rely only on my own resourcefulness.

"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life" 1Timothy 6:17-19