Author takes away fear of food storage

When Debbie G. Harman was growing up, she associated the words "food storage" with the end of the world. For years, the term brought fear to her heart.

But, as she and her husband made efforts to obtain and use stored foods, the Manti woman gained a new outlook.

Food storage is something to use on a regular basis, not drums of wheat and powdered milk gathering cobwebs in the basement.

"One day the thought came into my mind, 'This counsel isn't to prepare us for the end of the world, it is to prepare us for today,'" Harman writes in her book, "Cooking With Food Storage Made Easy" (Covenant Communications, $18.95).

"My experience is that as you use it to bake your own bread and preserve things from your garden, you gain a different attitude about how to cook, and a more provident lifestyle. It helps you save money and it's better for your health. You use fewer convenience foods and eat out less."

Harman, an artist for Covenant Communications, has written and illustrated two previous cookbooks. Years ago, she approached the publishing company about doing a food-storage book.

With soaring food prices and financial bust in 2008, the timing for a book seemed appropriate.

"It's always been a good time to do food storage, but now is the time that people might pay more attention to it," Harman said.

Apparently, other people have had the same idea. Another book, "I Can't Believe It's Food Storage," by Crystal Godfrey of Lehi (Walnut Springs Press, $17.95) came out earlier this year.

"My point is that if people would start using their food storage, they would see that it's not so mind-boggling," Harman said.

Her book has a recipes for home canning and making your own fruit leather and sun-dried tomatoes, as well as recipes that call for whole wheat and dehydrated foods. There's a "creamed" soup made from ground-up dry white beans.

"It's really easy to make, and it's great to use in a casserole instead of cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup," Harman said. "It saves you tons of money."

CREAM OF CHICKEN SOUP

1 3/4 cup water

4 teaspoons chicken bouillon or base

5 tablespoons white bean flour (grind dry white beans in a wheat grinder or blender)

1/2 cup chopped chicken, optional

Bring water and bouillon to a boil in a small saucepan. Stir in bean flour and beat until smooth and thickened. Reduce heat and cook 2 minutes more. Remove from heat. Pour mixture into blender. Blend on high 2 minutes. If desired, add 1/2 cup chopped chicken pieces. Use as a substitute for canned cream of chicken soup in casseroles and sauces. May be stored in refrigerator up to one week.

Options: For cream of mushroom soup, substitute a 4-ounce can of drained mushrooms for the chicken.

e-mail: vphillips@desnews.com