The Art of Meal Stretching – Part 1, by Nurse Michele

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Meal stretching is the learned art of taking simple, low-cost ingredients and turning them into not just one appealing meal for your family, but with some careful planning and a few adjustments, several meals to meet your family’s needs.

This is a subject I expect that most of us, at least SurvivalBlog readers, have already acquired a fair bit of knowledge. Sometimes it’s easy to assume then, that the ability to make one meal become three is all but ubiquitous. But recently something happened, making me re-think my assumption that folks at large are familiar with ways to help keep themselves and their loved ones fed, when lean times hit.

For most of their formative years my husband and I raised our children in a lovely suburb in New Jersey. Surprising to most, New Jersey has some of the nicest, safest towns in the country. No crime. Good schools. Surprisingly conservative morals. Close-knit communities. In peacetime, that is. Not a place to be when teh SHTF. Nice folks but no prepper awareness at all.

This community, though appealing, wasn’t one I could afford to live in. I was working there as the secretary in a small Baptist church but living in a more affordable town when, to no fault of our own, the apartment complex we were living in suffered damage and we lost everything. Like, everything. We left with nothing but the clothes we were wearing. In a not-worth-rehashing detail, our renter’s insurance found a way to not cover it. So, God’s people being who they are, took us under their wing and found someone-who-knew-someone in town with a wonderful apartment to rent at far below market value. The church folks also showed up with used furniture, toys, kitchen items–the works. In three days, I had a home and all we needed. We stayed there almost a decade. I’m still grateful.

So, while we were living there, surrounded by million-dollar homes, it was clear to the neighbors and our children’s friends that we ‘didn’t have a lot’ compared to them. Especially when we took the risk of me giving up my job to go to nursing school. Things were really lean for a while. In our neighborhood my children’s lack of electronics, our beat-up old cars, even our ‘not only on Sunday’ faith really stood out. Never bothered me one bit. And while I always assumed it was noticed, it wasn’t focused on. My children’s friends gravitated to us. And I fed every kid that walked in the door.

Fast forward to the current day, having voted with our feet several years ago, we now live in a small town with which we are more homogenous. Which brings me to a recent occurrence that brought home the fact that meal stretching is not naturally occurring but a learned art.

We all know that the Covid fallout has left a lot of people in lean times. Some, apparently, for the first time ever. Like Mary. A 20-something year old in New Jersey who, along with several of her family members, has lost her job. Last week Mary sought out my daughter on social media to ask for advice on “how to make cheap meals.” Her family is really struggling. She recalled our family and sought N out as a resource. Wow. For them, and perhaps many others, this is a new circumstance and a new challenge. One for which they are under-equipped. Mary’s situation really struck a chord with me. And while it’s easy to get judgmental about that level of ill-preparedness, this may be the reason the Lord allowed our “less-than-the-Jones’’ lifestyle to be on full display to our neighbors. He gave us knowledge to share with tangible and practical advice.Continue reading“The Art of Meal Stretching – Part 1, by Nurse Michele”

The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods

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SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods— a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from “JWR”. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. Today, we examine the risks posed by major solar flares.

Largest Solar Flare In Years Reported

Over at Zero Hedge: Sun Ejects Biggest Solar Flare In Years Ahead Of Active Cycle. Here is a quote:

“‘Remarkably, the flare was even bigger than it seemed. The blast site is located just behind the sun’s southeastern limb, so the explosion was partially eclipsed by the body of the sun. “X-rays and UV radiation from the flare ionized the top of Earth’s atmosphere, producing a shortwave radio blackout over the South Atlantic… Ham radio operators and mariners may have noticed strange propagation effects at frequencies below 20 MHz, with some transmissions below 10 MHz completely extinguished…”

The Great Relocation

Linked over at the Whatfinger.com news aggregation site is this piece on societal trends by Michael Snyder: The Great Relocation: Americans Are Relocating By The Millions Because They Can Feel What Is Coming.

An Update on ATF’s Ever-Changing Pistol Brace Policies

Over at Townhall Media, Cam Edwards (of Cam & Company) has posted his fascinating interview with Alex Bosco of SB Tactical: ATF Pistol Brace Shenanigans, A Sign Of Things To Come?  Bosco confirms that more than one million of his company’s SBA3 braces have been sold. He also points out that the ATF lied through omission about their approval letters for five other SB Tactical pistol brace models — not just the SB-15 and MPX-SB. Those five received specific ATF approval. Bosco assorted that there have been more than 4 million arm braces produced, nationwide. So banning them would NOT be trivial! Again, please repeatedly contact your U.S. Senators and U.S. Congressman to have them rein in or better yet disband the ATF!

Continue reading“The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods”

Preparedness Notes for Wednesday — December 2, 2020

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On December 2nd, 1823, what became known as the Monroe Doctrine was declared by President James Monroe to Congress outlining a foreign policy initiative that forbade European interference in the American hemisphere but also asserted U.S. neutrality in regard to future European conflicts.

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Today, we’re posting another review article by our Field Gear Editor, Pat Cascio. (Once in a while, article scheduling allows us to have two articles from Pat in the same week.)

CRKT Ken Onion Panache, by Pat Cascio

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Ken Onion is one of the most famous knife designers on the planet. I’ve never met him face to face, but I’ve spoken with him a few times on the phone and discussed his knife designs, as I was preparing articles about them. He is a wild man, to be sure! But he knows everything he needs to know about making some of the most in-demand knives in the world – both for collectors and practical users alike. To be sure, original Onion handmade knives don’t come cheap, so we have CRKT (Columbia River Knife & Tool) to thank for bringing some of Onion’s knives to the market in larger numbers, so that we all can afford them. I’m not sure if CRKT was the first knife company to do collaborations with custom knife makers, but they are at the forefront these days. Many of their knives are designed from collaboration with some of the best-known knife makers in the world.

I’ve probably written more articles about CRKT knives than any other writer out there. I’ve been covering their knives since about the first year they came on the scene. And, I haven’t come close to covering all the newest designs they introduce each year, if I did, I’d be writing about their knives all day long, for weeks on end – that’s how many new designs they come out with each year. I try to find the cutlery and tools from CRKT, that I believe will be of the most interest to SurvivalBlog.com readers. Our reader’s taste run the full gamut – from small EDC folders, to big fixed blades, to all manner of survival knives and tools.

I’ve witnessed many changes at CRKT over the years, and all for the good if you ask me. To be sure, many of their knives are made in Taiwan  – and there are a couple reasons for this. They can bring some outstanding knife designs to fruition, for a lot less money, than if they were made here in the USA. And, CRKT also has some of their executives going to the plants in Taiwan on a regular basis to make sure things are running smoothly, and the knives are made to their strict specifications, too. Their knives are NOT made in the slave labor factories of Mainland China, instead, they are manufactured in state of the art factories in Taiwan. That is Free China.

Today we’re looking at a Ken Onion designed folder that is called “Panache” – and if you don’t know the meaning of that term, then look it up. Plus, this is a limited edition and only 550 of these knives will be produced – making them instantly collectible. I don’t collect knives, and I certainly don’t collect firearms, either. Most readers would be surprised at how few knives and firearms I actually have on-hand, at any given time. Many firearms I review are on-loan from gun makers – I’ve love to purchase all the gun samples I get, but that’s impossible. Like most folks, my wife and I live paycheck to paycheck most months – some months we make ends meet, some months, we do – and do whatever it takes to get the bills paid.Continue reading“CRKT Ken Onion Panache, by Pat Cascio”

JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:

Here are JWR’s Recommendations of the Week for various media and tools of interest to SurvivalBlog readers. The focus is usually on emergency communications gear, bug out bag gear, books, and movies–often with a tie-in to disaster preparedness, and links to “how-to” self-sufficiency videos. There is also an emphasis on links to sources for storage food and a variety of storage and caching containers. You will also note an emphasis on history books and historical movies. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This week the focus is on the wonderfully anachronistic music of Pokey La Farge. (See the Music section.)

Books:

Live Not by Lies: A Manual for Christian Dissidents. This new book is by Rod Dreher, the author of the bestselling 2018 book The Benedict Option.

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Jordan Peterson’s upcoming book release is already raising a ruckus: Beyond Order: 12 More Rules For Life. That will be released March 1st, but they’re already taking pre-orders. The book’s release is still more than three months out, and it is already ranked #179 in books, overall!  I should mention that I first heard of this book from this article: Penguin Random House Staff Melts Down After Learning They’re Publishing Jordan Peterson’s New Book. The book is of course a sequel to Peterson’s best-seller: 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos.

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And, speaking of pre-orders: This biography of famed explorer Joseph Banks won’t be released until September of 2021: Banks.

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The Complete Guide to Your New Root Cellar How to Build an Underground Root Cellar and Use It for Natural Storage of Fruits and Vegetables

Continue reading“JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:”

Preparedness Notes for Tuesday — December 1, 2020

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This is the birthday of novelist Rex Stout (1886–1975). Rex Stout was the brother of Ruth Stout, the gardener who wrote about no-till, year-round mulching, organic gardening in her book Gardening Without Work: For the Aging, the Busy, and the Indolent

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Today, in addition to announcing the most recent writing contest winners, we’re presenting the latest precious metals column from Stephen Cochran of Gainesville Coins. He kindly sends us this, monthly.

Writing Contest Prize Winners Announced: Round 91

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We’ve completed the judging for Round 91 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prize-winning authors are:

First Prize:

First prize is awarded to A.D.C. for: Kitting Out The Kalashnikov which ran in four parts: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4 — posted November 5-8, 2020.

He will receive:

  1. The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC  are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000.
  2. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
  3. A course certificate from onPoint Tactical for the prize winner’s choice of three-day civilian courses, excluding those restricted for military or government teams. Three-day onPoint courses normally cost $795,
  4. DRD Tactical is providing a 5.56 NATO QD Billet upper. These have hammer forged, chrome-lined barrels and a hard case, to go with your own AR lower. It will allow any standard AR-type rifle to have a quick change barrel. This can be assembled in less than one minute without the use of any tools. It also provides a compact carry capability in a hard case or in 3-day pack (a $1,100 value),
  5. Two cases of Mountain House freeze-dried assorted entrees in #10 cans, courtesy of Ready Resources (a $350 value),
  6. A $250 gift certificate good for any product from Sunflower Ammo,
  7. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses.

Second Prize:

Second Prize is awarded to N.E for: Range Estimation and Windage with Mil Reticles  Part 1 and Part 2, which ran on October 20th and 21st, 2020.

He will receive:

  1. A Front Sight Lifetime Diamond Membership, providing lifetime free training at any Front Sight Nevada course, with no limit on repeating classes. This prize is courtesy of a SurvivalBlog reader who prefers to be anonymous.
  2. A Glock form factor SIRT laser training pistol and a SIRT AR-15/M4 Laser Training Bolt, courtesy of Next Level Training, that have a combined retail value of $589,
  3. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from www.TOUGHGRID.com (a $240 value).
  4. Naturally Cozy is donating a “Prepper Pack” Menstrual Kit.  This kit contains 18 pads and it comes vacuum-sealed for long term storage or slips easily into a bugout bag.  The value of this kit is $220.
  5. An assortment of products along with a one-hour consultation on health and wellness from Pruitt’s Tree Resin (a $265 value).

Third Prize:

Third prize is awarded to E.P. for his article  Making Dosa – Indian Fermented Bread. He will receive:

  1. Three sets each of made-in-USA regular and wide-mouth reusable canning lids. (This is a total of 300 lids and 600 gaskets.) This prize is courtesy of Harvest Guard (a $270 value)
  2. A Royal Berkey water filter, courtesy of Directive 21 (a $275 value),
  3. Two Super Survival Pack seed collections, a $150 value, courtesy of Seed for Security, LLC,
  4. A transferable $150 purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of firearms purchasing privacy!

Editor’s Choice Award:

We had a bit of a quandary when judging Round 91. Two of the best articles submitted in Round 91 came from a writer who had won one of our top three prizes just 11 months ago. That made him ineligible to win any of the top three prizes until Round 92 of the writing contest. So we decided to present a first-ever Editor’s Choice Award. That prize a transferable $400 purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, good toward the purchase of any of our pre-1899 antique guns. He in fact has already selected a S&W top-break .38 revolver, and it was just mailed to him late last week. Congrats to St. Funogas, the author of these two Editor’s Choice articles:

  • How to Make Wooden Mason Jar Crates, which ran in two parts:  Part 1 and Part 2, on October 24th and 25th, 2020, and,
  • Seed Saving Tips, which and in three parts:  Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3, on November 20th, 21st, and 22nd 2020.

Honorable Mention Prizes:

The Honorable Mention prize winners will each receive $30 Amazon.com gift cards. The five Honorable Mention prize-winning articles are:

Round 92 ends on January 31, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging.

November 2020 in Precious Metals, by Steven Cochran

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Welcome to SurvivalBlog’s Precious Metals Month in Review, where we take a look at “the month that was” in precious metals. Each month, we cover gold’s performance and the factors that affected gold prices.

What Did Gold Do in November?

There were many different factors steering gold prices in November, but the two major influences were also the most controversial: the COVID epidemic and the Presidential election.

Gold gained in early November, as COVID infections and deaths rose in the US and Europe. The possibility of a contested Presidential election was an even larger factor in the early November gold rally. Prices were further supported by continued dollar weakness. The gold price weakened as the Democrats failed to capture a majority in the Senate, breaking the “Blue Wave” that some had predicted.

The announcement in the middle of the month of three different COVID vaccines passing human clinical trials sent stocks shooting higher, and depressed safe-haven assets such as the dollar and gold. The last brick supporting gold prices fell when President Trump allowed the GSA to release transition funds to Joe Biden’s team.

Gold dropped more than $100 over the next two weeks, hitting a five and a half month low of $1,770 before the US open on November 30th. November was the worst month for gold in nearly four years.

In contrast, the Dow Jones Industrial Average had its best month since 1987, while the SP 500 and Nasdaq had their best months since April.

Factors Affecting Gold This Month

COVID SECOND WAVE AND VACCINES

COVID infections and deaths surged across the nation in November, once again straining hospitals to the breaking point. Pfizer announced on November 9th that its COVID vaccine had successfully passed human trials. The news sent the Dow 1,300 points higher at the opening bell. Gold fell by $67 at the open. December gold futures lost $98 on the day to settle at $1,854 an ounce. Spot gold closed at $1,863, down $86.

The next Monday, a second successful COVID vaccine was announced by Moderna. This time, the gold market had a muted reaction, leaking $20 lower on other news over the course of the week.

November 23rd saw a third COVID vaccine announced, this time by Astrazeneca and the University of Oxford in the UK.  Gold investors, shaken by a new vaccine being announced three weeks in a row, headed out the door and into the stock market. By Black Friday, gold prices had fallen another $90 an ounce, breaking below the important $1,800 level.

The economy is expected to rapidly recover as vaccines roll out.Continue reading“November 2020 in Precious Metals, by Steven Cochran”

SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt

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This weekly column features news stories and event announcements from around the American Redoubt region. (Idaho, Montana, eastern Oregon, eastern Washington, and Wyoming.) Much of the region is also more commonly known as The Inland Northwest. We also mention companies of interest to preppers and survivalists that are located in the American Redoubt region. Today, we focus on some crowded rivers.   (See the Montana section.)

Idaho

Authorities arrest fugitive in Coeur d’Alene, rescue two children missing since 2012

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Boise virus order prompts ‘robocalls’ to jam phone lines, deter enforcement

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In court over Idaho Capitol arrest, Ammon Bundy accuses government of ‘conspiring’

Continue reading“SurvivalBlog’s News From The American Redoubt”

The Editors’ Quote of the Day:

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“A heart that’s full up like a landfill
A job that slowly kills you
Bruises that won’t heal
You look so tired, unhappy
Bring down the government
They don’t, they don’t speak for us
I’ll take a quiet life
A handshake of carbon monoxide

And no alarms and no surprises
No alarms and no surprises
No alarms and no surprises
Silent, silent

This is my final fit
My final bellyache with

No alarms and no surprises
No alarms and no surprises
No alarms and no surprises, please

Such a pretty house
And such a pretty garden

No alarms and no surprises
(Let me out of here)
No alarms and no surprises
(Let me out of here)
No alarms and no surprises, please
(Let me out of here)”
– Lyrics to the 1998 Radiohead song No Surprises. (Best covered in a retro style, by singer/clarinetist Chloe Feoranzo.)

Preparedness Notes for Monday — November 30, 2020

Satirical novelist Jonathan Swift was born on November 30th, 1667.

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Today we are featuring another review by our stalwart Field Gear Editor, Pat Cascio.

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Shipments of Survival Retreats & Relocation are continuing. This is a book that I recently co-authored with my #1 Son, Jonathan Edwards Rawles. If strong interest continues, we will try to have one more printing run completed before Christmas.

The book is available through both Amazon and Jonathan’s SurvivalRealty.com site. The e-book is available at $9.99 as both a PDF and on Kindle.

Here are the current ordering links:

Main link: https://www.survivalrealty.com/survival-retreats-relocation/

Ruger American Compact .45 ACP , by Pat Cascio

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I’m a big fan of the .45 ACP cartridge. The “official” FBI tests show that there isn’t a lick of difference between the 9mm, .40 S&W, and .45 ACP rounds – when loaded with high-performance JHP ammo, when it comes to stopping power. But I refuse to believe that those three rounds are all pretty much the same when it comes to stopping a deadly encounter. I do a lot of shooting, and I mean a lot of shooting for my articles, as well as for target practice, tactical shooting and just plain ol’ fun shooting. If there is one thing I’ve noticed when shooting different calibers of handguns, its that some calibers hit a whole lot harder than others. Whenever there are some targets of opportunity, like fist-sized rocks, I’ll focus on them. The 9mm will chip away at these rocks and eventually break them. The .40 S&W hits a lot harder and gets the job done faster. However, when we use a .45 ACP round on similar-sized rocks, it will break them – quite often with just one hit.

Now, this isn’t scientific testing, however, with the same aforementioned calibers, the 9mm when it hits a big rock, makes it move ever so slightly. The .40 S&W moves those rocks a bit more. However, when hit with a .45 ACP round – the rocks will move quite a bit. So, I’m not sure how this relates to real-world stopping power, or “knock-down” power, but it tells me that, the .45 ACP is hitting a lot harder than the other two rounds are.

The 9mm caliber, even with +P ammo is real easy gun to shoot for most people while the .40 S&W can be a handful with different ammo, and this is why many police departments, and the FBI and other Federal agencies have gone back to the 9mm, over the .40S&W. The .45 ACP isn’t all that hard to handle in the recoil department. Sure, it “kicks” a little more than the 9mm does, however, the felt “kick” is a lot less than the .40 S&W round does. Police qualification scores have gone way up, since many of them have gone back to the 9mm over the .40 S&W. Quite frankly, many in law enforcement simply aren’t “into” guns and don’t do a lot of shooting – so the hard-kicking .40 S&W round made it more difficult for them to qualify on the range – and it was even worse on the streets, when they had to deploy their firearms. Of course, then we have the fact that handguns can hold more 9mm rounds compared to .40 S&W or .45 ACP rounds – and that never hurts to have more ammo in your gun in a gunfight.

Not too long ago, I tested the Ruger American Compact 9mm pistol, their hot-selling LEO model. The “LEO”  stands for Law Enforcement Only – model. And, I don’t believe this LEO gun is only sold to law enforcement, but it had some really nice features that the other American Compact 9mm didn’t have. My review article on the 9mm model is the SurvivalBlog archives. Shortly after testing and reporting on the 9mm American Compact, I received the new American Compact .45 ACP model with a gray Cerakote finish on the slide and a matching color frame – very handsome, indeed.

The 9mm version holds either 10 or 12 rounds – the LEO version came with three 12-round magazines, while the  other models only come with a 10-round magazine. The new .45 ACP American Compact comes standard with three 7-round magazines, and these mags are Teflon coated, and make for easy insertion into the gun and even easier to load them to full capacity – an excellent design touch.Continue reading“Ruger American Compact .45 ACP , by Pat Cascio”

Recipe of the Week: Smothered Chicken

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The following recipe for Smothered Chicken is from The New Butterick Cook Book, by Flora Rose, co-head of the School of Home Economics at Cornell University. It was published in 1924. A professional scan of that 724-page out-of-copyright book will be one of the many bonus items included in the next edition of the waterproof SurvivalBlog Archive USB stick. This special 15th Anniversary Edition USB stick should be available for sale in the third week of January, 2021. The 14th Edition sold out quickly, so place a reminder in your calendar, if you want one.

Ingredients
  • 2 small chickens or 1 large chicken
  • 2 or more tablespoons butter
  • Salt and Pepper
  • Flour
Directions

This is one of the most delicious ways of cooking chicken.

Take off the neck and split the chicken down the back, wiping it with a damp towel.  Season inside and out with salt and pepper, and dredge on all sides with flour. Lay the chicken, with the inside down, in a small baking-tin and add very little water.

The pan should be very little larger than the chickens. Otherwise, the gravy will be too quickly-evaporated. Cook slowly for one hour, basting every ten minutes alter the first twenty minutes, or cook in a covered baking-pan.

Should the chicken be decidedly lacking in fat, add butter or butter substitute. There will be plenty of gravy in the pan with which to baste if the pan is small.

When done, place the chicken on a hot platter. Add enough water to make two cups gravy and thicken with two tablespoons of flour. Should the chicken be quite fat, remove all but two tablespoons of the oil from the pan before making the gravy. Season with salt and pepper, pour it over the chicken and serve at once. Any small birds can be dressed in this way with the most satisfactory results. The secret of success in this kind of roasting lies in very frequent basting and in not having too hot an oven.

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Do you have a favorite recipe that would be of interest to SurvivalBlog readers? In this weekly recipe column, we place emphasis on recipes that use long term storage foods, recipes for wild game, dutch oven and slow cooker recipes, and any that use home garden produce. If you have any favorite recipes, then please send them via e-mail. Thanks!