I’ve estimated, budgeted, planned, canned and purchased. Then my kids started leaving the nest instead of filling it up. All of a sudden we’re down to one (soon to have a few months with two as Chris comes home from his two-year mission in Africa).
 
My husband was laid off last week. He’s the breadwinner. I bring in a few dollars here and there from my writing, but not enough to buy bread and milk on a consistent basis (yet). (There it is folks, aspire to be a writer and you aspire to a very lean figure). Of course we have hope and faith that my Sweetheart will quickly replace his employment, hopefully within the company he has enjoyed working for so much over the years.
For now, were tightening belts, slashing the budget and solving another problem. We’ve got far more food storage than we need or want to move or will likely fit in the downsized house we plan to get.

This blog will serve as a journal of living on the food storage and a bare bones budget. I hope it’s a journal of living well. I’m not going to cheat on nutrition. Good health is an important part of well-being! We’ll start with a recipe for peanut butter muffins. I made four dozen this morning. They’ll serve as breakfasts and snacks for a week or so.

2 cups of instant milk powder reconstituted in

¾ cup of powered eggs. (not reconstituted) (These have been stored for over ten years (sealed plastic bucket with oxygen absorbers) and taste very cardboardy. But they weren’t that great when they went into the bucket, either. I tried cooking them like scrambled eggs and it didn’t work at all; just yellow slime) This is the equivalent of about 6 eggs. 
½ cup of oil
4 cups of (old fashioned) rolled oats
1 cup of peanut butter powder (this has been open in my cupboard for about 4 years. If you’re using regular peanut butter, cut the oil in half and use ¾ cups of  peanut butter.)
1 tablespoon of Mexican vanilla. (order this on the internet unless you live in San Antonio and can buy it at the Mercado. Danncy brand. It’s much cheaper than grocery stores and a thousand times better.)
1 cup of sugar
1 Tablespoon salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 ½ cups of special flour. (My blend. I bought a number ten can of flax seed, but it’s unground. Later, I read that it’s unwise to use flax seed whole because the seed has a sharp point and can lodge in the intestine and cause problems. It’s far too oily to grind in an electric wheat grinder by itself, (I tried and it clogged up the machine like nobody’s business). So I mix it with two parts white wheat and one part flax seed to grind. The resulting flour is very high fiber and includes Omega 3 fatty acids for healthy hearts. (It’s also quite oily) The flavor is mildly nutty. I still want the unground flax seed because it has a much longer shelf life than pre-ground. It’s been in my cupboard for a year already without any taste of rancidity. When I run out of flax seed, I’ll just use wheat flour. (Celiacs use ground brown rice flour in equal proportions with or without flax seed)

Stir the whole concoction very well and divide into 48 greased or sprayed muffin cups. Bake 22 minutes at 350.
They’re delicious! I was worried about the egg powder but there is no trace of cardboard flavor. The crumb is light and the peanut butter flavor is pleasant without overwhelming the vanilla. This one’s a keeper!