Praying was the foundation of making do in hard times. In the kitchen, the very best thing I did to keep my family fed during hard times was to bake. There's a reason why bread is called the staff of life. It's nutritious and filling. When I had money for nothing else, I made sure I had basic baking ingredients.
At the worst of times, during a time when we had no regular income, I needed the following ingredients to make sure we ate something:
- flour
- baking powder
- canola oil
- milk
- salt
With these ingredients, I could make old-fashioned biscuits. We literally survived on these during a couple of hard times in our life. A little butter, apple butter, or jelly, if available, really make these more tasty. I adapted the recipe from one in an old cookbook from the early 1900's.
If you can add cornmeal to your shopping list, you can make cornbread. We use the recipe on the back of the Quaker cornmeal box. My daughter adds extra sugar to make it sweeter. ~smile~
If you can add yeast to your shopping list, you can make bread. Recipes abound on the internet.
You have to have the mindset of "Do with whatcha got." Whatever it is, whatever is in your hand, you have to think creatively about what to do with it. A meal can be just bread and whatever you can find to put on it. Butter, margarine, jelly, molasses, honey, peanut butter, think creatively. We actually do this on purpose as a last supper on the Thursday before Easter. We, as a family, take communion with homemade bread and grape juice, then we make a meal of it. I started this way back in the day before I knew what they ate for Passover. ~wink~
Creative thinking is key to surviving hard times. Even not so hard times are enhanced by creative thinking.
Prayer is key to surviving hard times. God can give you hope for the future, creative ideas and plans, and necessary provision. Reach out to Him. He's waiting to help. He didn't take Noah out of the storm. He gave him a way to rise above it.
You can do this!
Blessings,
Laura of Harvest Lane Cottage
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This article was published in issue #137 of
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Some of my favorite comfort foods are things my mom/aunts/grandma learned to "make do with" during the Depression. Biscuits and cornbread definitely fall into that category!
ReplyDeleteWith all the negative press that carbs get,this is a good reminder that they aren't all bad... I'm going to try that foccacia recipe~ I LOVE to bake! :)
ReplyDeleteLove the spirit behind this post and your willingness to be cheerfully creative with what you have.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for linking up at Thrifty Thursday!