Mysticism is a system of belief that attempts to perceive spiritual reality apart from objective, verifiable facts. It seeks truth through feelings, intuition, and other internal senses. Objective data is usually discounted, so mysticism derives its authority from within. Spontaneous feeling becomes more significant than objective fact. Intuition outweighs reason. An internal awareness supersedes external reality.
John MacArthur

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#15-3: Food & Compassion

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#1 · April 5, 2012, 11:04 am

Posted by: virginiaknowles <virginiaknowles@...>

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Hope Chest with Virginia Knowles

#15-3: Food & Compassion

April 2012

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Dear friends,

 

You know how I try to plan ahead for the next Hope Chest issue?  This
month, an alternate theme,  Food & Compassion, emerged and I decided to run with it.  Or shop and eat with it anyway!  It started because the P52 photo project theme one week was Hunger, to
coincide with the release of the Hunger Games movie.  (I haven’t seen it yet, though at least of my
daughters have.  I’m waiting for it to
hit the dollar theater or Redbox.) 
Anyway, as I pondered the P52 theme, my mind immediately leapt to world
hunger, and I decided that my photo and blog post would reflect that, as you’ll
see a little later.  Well, then I
remembered how much hunger is still a problem in our own communities, and
fortuitously someone had just passed along a resource page with a list of
organizations that provide relief to needy families in Central Florida.  I came up with a bunch more on my own, and
posted those, linking it to Facebook. 
Then I decided to start trying menu plans again, and I found a sale on
chicken and did some batch cooking, and someone asked me why I go to the
grocery store so often, and I saw some funky fruits in the produce area, and I bumped into a friend who is big into couponing, and I started thinking about what God says about Food & Compassion…  So that was another six blog posts!  Are
you catching the thread?  (Or, in this
case, the bread?)  Well, I’m hoping these
blog posts save you some dough and equip you to be more compassionate with
those in need.

 

I’d also like to invite you to join my new weekly blog carnival, Equip & Encourage. We're on week #2! Each week, I plan to use the Simply Linked tool to allow readers to add links to
their own blog posts about mothering, homemaking, inspiration, outreach, marriage, education, and more.  It’s a way to find
new blogs and new friends, and I hope you’ll have a bit of fun!  How about you?  Got a blog?  Link up!

 

OK, here we go on Food and Compassion!

The articles in this issue:

Other recent blog posts about food:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Global Hunger Relief

 


Dear friends,

The theme of the P52 photo project this week is Hunger.  What better time
to highlight global hunger relief?

I chose the continent of Africa for my picture because that is where my mind
usually jumps when I think of starving children.  I have no idea of
whether black beans and rice are staple foods there, but I didn't have any
exotic African root vegetables lurking in my pantry cupboard. 🙂

I also chose Africa because that is
where my heart goes  (along with my money and care
packages) since I have been corresponding with Pastor Headson Makazinga in
Malawi for about 10 years.  (See Christmas in Malawi, Christmas in America,  What in the World Is This? and Out of Africa: A Letter from Headson Makazinga.)
 Pastor Makazinga, who oversees dozens of churches in the villages of
Malawi and Mozambique, cares for widows and orphans in his ministry.
 Please click those links for more information on how you can help!

Are you looking for other ways to help? Read here for information on three reputable Christian charities with global hunger programs (all three are rated 5 stars at http://www.charitynavigator.org): 

Do you want hands on service opportunities?  Here are two more
ideas from the same organizations:


I am extremely intrigued to find out that Children of the Nations has
opportunities in the Orlando area (as well as in California and Washington
State) for groups to sponsor and package nutrient dense meals to be sent to
hungry children overseas.  See here: Meal
Packaging Projects.

 

Last year, the youth at my mom's church in Maryland did a 30 Hour Famine to
raise money for hunger relief through World Vision.

 

Yes, I know there is hunger in our country, too, so I have compiled food, medical assistance, jobs and family crisis resources in the
Orlando area: Food, Health, Jobs, and Family Crisis Assistance Resources in
Central Florida)  Most of you don't live in Central Florida, so this blog link might not seem relevant to you.  However, I would like to challenge you to research community assistance resources in your area, compile a reliable list, and spread it around to your friends via e-mail, Facebook, blogs, etc.  These are "hurting times" for many, and you just don't know which lives you will touch with compassion.  Do it now!  🙂  And then, make it even more personal by thinking of how you can help the hungry and homeless in your community.  Can you volunteer at a shelter or soup kitchen?  Or can you assemble some Food & Compassion bags to keep in your car for when you see someone in need on the street?  What would you put in one? Granola bars, small boxes of canned chicken salad with crackers, juice packs, a pack of tissues, some bandaids, a Gospel of John, your list of community assistance resources...  What else would you put in your bag?  Let me know!


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Scriptures on Food & Compassion

 

Scriptures on Food & Compassion

As I was preparing for this Hope Chest e-magazine on the theme of Food & Compassion, I knew I had to include a little eternal encouragement on the subject.  This is just a very small sampling, enough to "wet your appetite."




Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are
blessed by my Father, inherit
the kingdom prepared
for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I
was in prison and you came to me.’  Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did
we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or
naked and clothe you?  And
when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the
King will answer them, ‘Truly,
I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you
did it to me.’   Matthew 25:34-40

 

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he
has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or
sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to
them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things
needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not
have works, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.”
Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.
 James 2:14-18

 

And he answered them, “Whoever has two tunics is
to share with him who has none, and whoever has food is to do likewise.”
 Luke 3:11

 

“Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of
wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go
free, and to break every yoke?  Is it not to share
your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when
you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? Then
shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up
speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then
you shall call, and the Lord will
answer; you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’  Isaiah 58:6-9

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Menu Planning Tips & Links


I'm trying to be more effective and efficient around the house.
 One of the areas where I always need work is in menu planning.  I recently compiled a list of all of the
different dinner entrees that I might prepare.  Most of them are standard
ones that I've fixed for years, but I have also been looking for new recipes
on-line via http://www.allrecipes.com and
the Food on Fridays links at  http://www.annkroeker.com.

 

Here is my current list:


Menu Ideas

 

Beef

 

v Spaghetti

v Tacos & burritos (sometimes as a make your own buffet)

v Chili

v Beef stir fry

v Beef potpie

v Beef stew

v Roast beef

v Beef strogranoff

v Hamburgers

v Lasagna

v Stuffed shells

v Sloppy Joes

v Meatball subs

v Meatloaf

 

Chicken

 

v Baked chicken with rotisserie seasoning

v Baked chicken with BBQ sauce

v Baked chicken with oriental sauce

v Stir fry chicken

v Chicken potpie

v Orange sesame popcorn chicken with
rice

v Honey apricot chicken

v Chicken noodle (or rice) soup

v Chicken Alfredo and noodles

v Chicken potato casserole

v Chicken tortilla casserole (layered with refried or black beans,
cheese)

v Chicken salad sandwiches

v Confetti chicken with penne, peppers & squash

 

Eggs

 

v Quiche

v Scrambled eggs

v Eggs in a basket

v Deviled eggs

v Egg salad sandwiches

v Strata

 

Pork

 

v Pork chops

v Pork ribs

v Ham and potato casserole

v Sausage and biscuits

v Hot dogs and baked beans

v Bacon and potato soup

v Kielbasa and noodles

 

Other

 

v Macaroni and cheese

v Pizza

v Calzone

v Chef salad

v Taco fiesta salad

v Baked potato buffet

v Lunch meat and cheese subs

v Turkey burgers

v Tuna salad

v Quesa dias

 

My goal each week is to sit down on Saturday and choose a meal
for each night of the week.  Then I can go grocery shopping based on what
we need to make these meals.  I try to choose a variety of chicken, beef,
egg, and other dishes each week.  We try not to have red meat more than three
times a week.

Day

Menu
for March 17-23

Ingredients

Considerations

Sat:

baked potato buffet,  green cupcakes

potatoes, bacon, sour cream, shredded
cheese

St. Patrick’s Day

Sun:

confetti chicken casserole, salad

chicken, corn, penne, parmesan, squash,
red and green peppers, whole milk

youth group for boys

Mon:

sub sandwiches and chips, salad

lunch meat, sliced cheese, rolls,
chips

PHE classes until 4

Tue:

chicken thighs (BBQ/teri), herb
veggies

chicken, sauces, sweet potatoes,
carrots, peppers, olive oil, herbs

Thad at class

Wed:

lasagna, salad,
garlic bread

ground beef, sauce, lasagna noodles,
ricotta, mozzarella, French bread

Thad & Rachel home

Thu:

strata with ham

eggs, bread, ham

Thad at class

Fri:

chili, salad, corn
bread

turkey burgers, beans, spaghetti
sauce, corn bread mix

 

So how did we do that
week?  Saturday went as planned, though I should have bought more bacon
for topping the potatoes. After Sunday's dinner of Confetti Chicken (see left)
we had plenty of leftovers which I recycled into a casserole on Monday to
supplement the planned sandwiches (on sale-priced bagels instead of sub rolls)
and chips. On Tuesday, I had forgotten to take out the chicken to thaw, so
I substituted stuffed shells (frozen bags from Aldi) which I had bought
 instead of lasagna ingredients for Wednesday.  We had the chicken on
Wednesday.  On Thursday, I got a late start at dinner, so we heated up two
boxes of pierogies (potato and cheddar in pasta) and a few cans of beef soup.
On Friday, my husband fixed tacos and burritos (instead of the chili) since we
were getting home late from a field trip.  There you have it!  We
didn't stick to the menu plan, but it sure helped as a guideline anyway.  At
least I had the recipe ingredients in the house, as well as some backup
convenience foods.

One more tip:  As long as you plan your menus for the week, you can set aside specific foods for each night so no one will take them for other purposes.  For example, if you are making chili using canned beans, rice, corn, sauce or salsa, a seasoning packet, or whatever, you can put the food packages in a plastic grocery bag, tie it up, and label it with the day you plan to use it.  You can store this bag on your pantry shelf.  You can do the same with the refrigerated ingredients such as ground beef, shredded cheese, tomatoes, onions, etc.  If you buy shredded cheese by the bag, you can take out enough for that one meal and put it in a zip lock bag to include in your dinner bag.

More menu planning resources on other sites:


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Your Children Can Help with Meal Times


This excerpt on Meal Times is from the Life Skills chapter in my book Common Sense Excellence: Faith-Filled Home Education for Preschool to 5th Grade.  

MEAL TIMES

“In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, 
but a foolish man devours all he has.”  Proverbs 21:20

“Better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened calf with hatred.” Proverbs 15:17


“She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar.  
She gets up while it is still dark;

she provides food for her family and portions for her servant girls.” 
Proverbs 31:14-15


The way to a man’s heart is still through his stomach.  Jesus fed bread and fish to the hungry multitudes, called himself “the bread of life”, ate a communion meal in the Upper Room with his disciples just before he was betrayed, and even ministered to them after his resurrection by roasting fish for them on the shore.  At this time, he also admonished the apostle Peter to “Feed my sheep.”  (See John 21.)  Can you just imagine the Wedding Feast we will enjoy in Heaven with Jesus as our Bridegroom?  If meals are so important in God’s sight, I think they should be a vital part of our children’s life skills education!   Here are some things you can teach your child to do:

Check out cookbooks from the library in the j651 section.  You will find plenty of international and historical food books, such as those listed in the Social Studies section.    The Fannie Farmer Junior Cookbook is one of our general favorites 


Start a recipe collection.  Let your child start a recipe notebook or box to collect her favorites.  These might include family recipes that are passed down from relatives. Take care that recipes are copied accurately!  If you like, you can insert each page into a plastic notebook sleeve to keep it clean during use. An older child can also choose one recipe to learn very well so that it can be her specialty.   She can also experiment with how to adapt recipes to make them healthier or more unique. My daughter Mary made her own illustrated keepsake cookbook when she was in elementary school. 


Plan a weekly menu, fill out a shopping list, go to the grocery store and shop for the ingredients.  Learn how to find the best quality and price for foods.  Read nutritional labels and unit pricing. While you are at the store, browse through unusual foreign foods such as calabaza, yucca root or malanga.


Follow recipes and learn the lingo. How much is a pinch of salt?  What does it mean to dice, mash, or simmer food?  Memorize abbreviations such as t. or tsp. for teaspoon and T. or Tbs. for tablespoon so that you don’t mix them up. 


Practice using kitchen utensils and appliances safely.  This might include the microwave oven, popcorn air popper, hand mixer, stove, apple corer, etc.


Prepare the food. Cut foods with a safe knife, peel vegetables, measure ingredients, mix batters, tear up lettuce for a salad, put spreads on bread, assemble a sandwich or burritos, spoon out dough for drop cookies, decorate a cake, scramble eggs, boil water for noodles, etc.


Learn about timing various elements of the meal preparation.  Your child will learn how to plan ahead so that everything is done and hot at about the same time. This requires more advanced thinking skills.  What will go on the big burners on the stove top?  If two things need to go in the oven, will they require the same temperature?  Will they both fit? What can be kept warm without burning?  What productive things can you do in the kitchen while you wait for the meat to fry?


Serve food to the table without dropping it.  Use plastic plates until your child gets the hang of this.  This requires walking steadily, and perhaps using a tray. 


Pour drinks without spilling.  Practice this with water over a sink or counter first. Use a child-friendly pitcher.  Allow your child to serve drinks to family members who are working outside in hot weather.


Clean up!  Don’t neglect this part of the process, or you will pay for it in aggravation later. Even a two year old can carry a plastic cereal bowl to the sink, stand up on tiptoe and dump it in.  A four year old can scrape his plate into the garbage --after he eats his vegetables!


Pack a picnic lunch.  Plan which foods can “keep” safely outside and are tidy to eat. Learn how to pack them so they won’t spill or spoil.  Include unbreakable plastic or paper plates and cups, as well as a good supply of napkins.


Explore food careers through books and field trips. What is it like to be a dietitian, chef, restaurant owner, or caterer?  What kind of laws govern food safety in restaurants or stores?


Learn table manners. There are courteous ways to eat, pass items, be excused, remove something inedible from your mouth, etc. Ask God’s blessing on the food. Memorize a variety of traditional table graces, and be able to ask a spontaneous blessing.


Also on this blog: My Own Batch of Cookies

Virginia Knowles

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Cooking Ahead Without Too Much Complication


Note: There are photos in the original blog post that I'm having trouble formatting here.  You can see them at: Cooking Ahead Without Too Much Complication

I know a lot of people do "Once-a-Month Cooking" which
was popularized in the book by Mimi Wilson and Mary Beth Lagerborg. 
That sounded a bit much for me, so I tried just once a week cooking over
20 years ago after hearing about the concept on Focus on the Family.
(Basically, you are assembling several meals in one day, combining your meats,
starches, veggies, and sauces in different ways.)  It was a huge chore
since I was pregnant with my third baby and had two preschoolers roaming
around.  I eventually had 10 children in 18 years, and still have 8 at
home, so for me to fix seven whole meals to feed that many would be quite the
overwhelming undertaking.  For me, fixing a double batch of anything
(which I often do) is like someone with a smaller family cooking enough for
several meals.  

 

I know you all are busy, too.  Maybe once a month or once a
week cooking would suit you just fine, but if you can't manage that, there are
less complicated ways to reap the benefits of cooking ahead, even if it is just
making a double batch of a dinner and freezing the extra.  

 

Another really easy way is to cook your meats ahead of time. We
usually buy large "economy size" packages of ground beef at Sam's
Club or Aldi, cook it up in our big electric skillet or in a pan in the oven,
and then bag it up for later use in chili, spaghetti, tacos, etc.

 

I spotted a copy of the
book Cut Your Grocery Bill in Half with America's Cheapest
Family by Steve and Annette
Economides (gotta love the name!) on the clearance table at the Christian book
outlet recently, and they recommend batch cooking and bulk buying, too.
 So I've had my eye out for grocery bargains and ways to save time in the
kitchen.

 

A week ago I noticed boneless skinless chicken breasts on sale
for $1.69 at Aldi, and immediately grabbed four large packages.  The next
morning, I rinsed 30 chicken breasts, placed them in four large
9"x13" glass pans, seasoned them with either garlic pepper or
rotisserie chicken seasoning, and popped them in the oven.  Cooking this
much chicken doesn't take much more oven energy than doing just one pan, and I
only had to heat up the kitchen once.  (Yes, this is Florida, otherwise I
wouldn't worry about it.) When they came out of the oven, I poured the broth into a large
bowl and was amazed at how little fat floated to the top!  I didn't even
skim it this time.  Then I cut up the breasts into large chunks
and stuffed them into six quart size zip lock bags.



My husband made two potpies on Sunday night
when I wasn't feeling well.  It was much easier for him to make dinner on
short notice since the chicken was already cooked.  On Tuesday, I made a
huge pot of chicken noodle soup with chicken, all the broth, a box of shell
noodles, a little cream of chicken soup, frozen peas, and diced red peppers.
 We had a lot left over, so on Thursday night, I added more cream of
chicken soup, topped it with shredded cheddar cheese and bread crumbs, and made
a pan of casserole.  Not everyone was home last night, so there are still
leftovers for lunch.  


And here is the amazing thing: there are
still four bags of chicken in the freezer!  So far, I have used about 10
chicken breasts far for three meals serving several people each, plus we used
some of that for a few sandwiches.  And I didn't even feel like we were
skimping on the chicken.  This was so much more economical than serving
each person a large chicken breast.  Nutritionists are telling us that
meat should be used sparingly  anyway.

Cooking a large batch of meat ahead of time saves cooking energy, time, and
money! 

So if you feel like you can't go "whole
hog" into batch cooking, at least try making a double batch or cooking a
lot of meat ahead of time and bagging it up.

Do you have any favorite ways to save time
and money in the kitchen?  Please share! 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Why I Shop for Groceries More Than Once a
Week


I
know that many of you have read the advice to shop just once a week or once a
month for your groceries, in order to save time and money. I
don't do that.  It is not uncommon for me to buy groceries a few times a
week, though not what I would call a "full run" each time.
 Here's why:

  1. I
    have a huge family with eight of our ten children still living at home.  I
    can almost completely fill a shopping cart, our refrigerator, and our cupboards
    with food for only a few days.  I personally don't like dealing with more
    groceries than that at one time anyway. And it's amazing how fast it disappears
    once its in the house -- or even on the way home!  For example, we go
    through a gallon of milk every day, I don't like to freeze it or use powdered,
    and our fridge only holds three gallons.
  2. I
    shop at several different stores depending on what I am buying.  I try to
    get most of our staple foods at Aldi, which is a discount grocery chain, but
    their selection is quite limited, and there is a lot that we need that they
    don't carry. I try to buy most of our bread at the local Entenmanns/Arnolds
    bakery outlet for about a dollar per bag.  (I think today I bought about
    20 packages of wheat bread, bagels, french bread, sandwich things, English
    muffins, etc.) I buy most of our other groceries at Super Walmart.  I also
    stop in at Winn Dixie occasionally to see what they have for Buy One Get One
    Free, or Publix if I am picking up a prescription, or Sam's Club if I am
    getting photos.  I also buy snacks and toiletries at the Deals dollar
    store which is right next to Aldi.
  3. We
    live within a mile or two of most of the above mentioned stores, and the rest
    are on our regular routes to other places.  It doesn't take me any extra
    gas to pull into a parking lot, or even much gas at all to drive from home for
    a solo errand.
  4. Grocery
    shopping gives me a chance to get out of the house and clear my head for a
    little bit, or to take just one or two children along for Mom time.
     Sometimes that is just what I need after being at home all day.
  5. It
    is not uncommon for us to run out of something that I need to make a certain
    meal.  It does help when I label things for their intended use, but in
    real life, this stuff just happens.  I find a child snacking on the
    "oyster" crackers I was saving to use for chili, or a container of
    sour cream turns out to be half empty when I thought it was full.
     Sometimes I just switch out the menu until I can get the needed
    ingredient, and other times I will just go out and get it.  (Usually if,
    as in item #4, I want to get out of the house, or if I have already started
    making the recipe.)  
  6. My
    most common impulse purchases are snacks, but I usually buy cheap ones, and
    they help us to avoid extra trips out for fast food if we're out and about and
    get a little hungry.  If a $1 box of crackers can tide us over, we can
    save $10 that we might have spent at McDonald's.  (We still do hit the
    drive-throughs and order from the dollar menu once in a while if I only have
    two or three kids along around lunchtime.)

So how does this
affect my food budget?  Am I blowing the bank going to the store that
often?  Hardly!  I looked up the USDA average monthly food bill for January 2012,
and our
family doesn't even come near to spending as much as their "thrifty"
level!  Do you want to know how?  Read: Saving Money on Groceries.

Should
you shop more than once a week?  That depends on how much food you buy and
how close you are to grocery stores.  What will work best for your family?

~*~*~

Just a reminder, the other blog posts for this month are:


Horned Melons


Ciao!  If you liked what you saw here, please forward this to your friends!  They can subscribe by sending any message to hopechest-subscribe@welovegod.org


And come join us at the Equip & Encourage blog carnival!


Virginia Knowles

--

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