(If you can’t accomplish this in 1 week, don’t worry, just take your time and do it in steps.)
Flour:
Flour is made up of carbohydrates (or starch) & proteins. Of these two nutrients, protein matters most to the baker. A high percentage of protein means a harder (stronger) flour best suited to chewy, crusty breads and other yeast-risen products. Less protein means a softer flour, best for tender and chemically leavened baked goods, like pie crusts, cakes, cookies, and biscuits. Although there are many types of flour, all-purpose (or occident) flour is used most frequently. The type of flour you choose affects the texture, stability, and overall outcome of your breads, cakes, pies, and cookies. It’s also great for thickening sauces, gravies and puddings or deliciously dredging meats and vegetables prior to frying or sautéing.
What kind of flour is best?The major
difference between bleached and unbleached flour is that bleached flour contains edible bleaching agents added to it and unbleached flour is bleached naturally. The white color is achieved as the agent oxidizes the surface of the flour grains. Some bleaching agents in the bleached flour are said to be harmful for the body.
Unbleached flour is bleached naturally and as it ages the color gets dulled. But this flour contains more protein content than the bleached flour.
Read more:
Difference Between Bleached and Unbleached Flour | Difference Between | Bleached vs Unbleached Flour http://www.differencebetween.net/object/difference-between-bleached-and-unbleached-flour/#ixzz21IeK8kJC
Personally I only use unbleached flour but perfection in baking is not that important to me. If there is something healthier, I try to use it.
Unless you’re an avid bread or cake baker, an all-purpose flour is probably your best choice. A combination of hard and soft wheat is milled to produce all-purpose flour. The resulting medium protein content (between 9% and 12%) offers just the right balance of strength and tenderness for the everyday baker to make chewy breads, delicate tarts and everything in between. In general, you may find that cakes made with all-purpose flour are a bit tougher and less delicate than those made with a softer pastry or cake flour. Likewise, breads made with all-purpose flour may be a bit softer and flatter than those made with bread flour. But overall, these differences should be slight for the casual baker.
So, we suggest storing all-purpose flour and then buy any other flours you like to use on top of the standard 50lbs of all-purpose flour, to make sure you’ll have plenty for your everyday cooking/baking needs. If you enjoy baking and start making breads or cakes regularly, you might want to use specialty flours. Feel free to adjust the 50 lbs accordingly for the types of flours you will be using. After all we do not want you to waste any food, make sure you’re rotating through all of your food, ingredients and supplies.
I recommend owning a wheat grinder and grind your own wheat to make whole wheat flour that is fresh on demand. Wheat stores for 30+ years. Flour can be stored up to five years. But I do keep unbleached flour on hand when I need it. On another note... buy a hand wheat grinder first. They cost about $50-$70 but in the event the electricity goes out... you can still make flour. Then buy a nice wheat grinder for everyday baking.
Bread Flour vs. All-Purpose Flour
Bread flour is a high-gluten flour that has very small amounts of malted barley flour and vitamin C or potassium bromate added. The barley flour helps the yeast work, and the other additive increases the elasticity of the gluten and its ability to retain gas as the dough rises and bakes. Bread flour is called for in many bread and pizza crust recipes where you want the loftiness or chewiness that the extra gluten provides. It is especially useful as a component in rye, barley and other mixed-grain breads, where the added lift of the bread flour is necessary to boost the other grains.
All-purpose flour is pre-sifted and versatile enough to use in everything from hearty breads to delicate tarts. All-purpose flour is made from a blend of high- and low-gluten wheats, and has a bit less protein than bread flour — 11% or 12% vs. 13% or 14%. You can always substitute all-purpose flour for bread flour, although your results may not be as glorious as you had hoped. There are many recipes, however, where the use of bread flour in place of all-purpose will produce a tough, chewy, disappointing result. Cakes, for instance, are often made with all-purpose flour, but would not be nearly as good made with bread flour.
Do I need Bread Flour?All purpose flour is fine as long as it is unbleached as bleaching weakens the protein which is needed to give a good texture or crumb to the bread. Bread flour has higher protein and will make a chewier bread.
Buying FlourTo choose the right package size for your needs, keep in mind there are about 3½ cups of flour per pound, so a five-pound bag contains approximately 17½ cups.
Storing Flour WarningRoom temperature: Store in an airtight container for up to a year. Remember, the longer it sits, the more susceptible it is to kitchen pests. Try putting a few bay leaves in the container to keep them away.
According to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, some dry products may not be suitable for longer-term storage because it may go rancid, including: Flour. You can put flour in a #10 can with an oxygen packet to keep if fresh for about five years. View
this PDF document for the full details.
Refrigerator or Freezer: Can be stored indefinitely packed in airtight containers or freezer bags. This keeps the oils from going rancid. The flour will not freeze solid, but plan to take it out a few hours before using to bring it down to room temperature.
SmellIt should smell and taste “wheaty,” not musty or stale.
Measuring
In the picture - from top to bottom: whole wheat pastry flour, unbleached all purpose flour, whole wheat flour and chapati flour.
Unless your recipe calls for it, no sifting is required. Just fluff the flour in the container with a metal spoon and lightly sprinkle into a dry-ingredient measuring cup. Without tapping or shaking the cup, scrape off the excess with a straight-edge spatula or knife. Measuring this way should yield a cup of flour that weighs about four ounces.
Substitution IdeasIf a recipe calls for a certain type of flour and you only have all-purpose on hand:
• Use one tablespoon more per cup when making breads.
• Use one tablespoon less per cup when making cookies and biscuits.
• Recipes calling for self-rising flour: add 1½ teaspoons of baking powder and ½ teaspoon of salt to each cup of all-purpose.
Recipes2 in 1 Breadsticks or Pizza Recipe in 30 min.
Homemade Greek Pita
Classic Crumb Cake
Fastest Cinnamon Buns -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Week # 30: 3 lbs Flavored Gelatin(If you can’t accomplish this in 1 week, don’t worry, just take your time and do it in steps.)
This is a great food storage item if you like and use Jello. If not... don't worry about it. Store only foods you and your family like.
Nutritional Value: (found on
eHow.com)
Calories
1. Most varieties of regular JELL-O gelatin contain 80 calories per serving, but most flavors of sugar-free JELL-O gelatin contain 10 calories per serving.
Fat
2. Both regular and sugar-free varieties of JELL-O gelatin are fat-free. Do not confuse JELL-O gelatin with JELL-O pudding, which does contain fat.
Carbohydrates/Sugars
3. Most varieties of regular JELL-O gelatin contain 19 grams of carbohydrates, all of which come from sugar. Sugar-free JELL-O gelatin, on the other hand, does not contain any carbs.
Sodium
4. Most varieties of regular JELL-O gelatin contain about 80 milligrams of sodium. Most types of sugar-free JELL-O gelatin contain between 45 and 55 milligrams of sodium.
Protein
5. Most varieties of regular JELL-O gelatin contain 2 grams of protein, while most varieties of sugar-free JELL-O gelatin contain only 1 gram of protein.
Other Nutrients
6. JELL-O gelatin does not contain a significant amount of any other nutrients, such as calcium, vitamin A, vitamin C, or iron, when prepared as directed on the package.
So it turns out that gelatin IS something you need in your short/long term food storage. You can make a lot of things with flavored gelatin besides standard Jell O. (who knew?)
You can make:
Jams & Jellies,
all kinds of Salads,
Popsicles,
Candy,
Cookies,
and even
Bread.
Storage:Unprepared gelatin has an
indefinite shelf-life as long as it is wrapped airtight and stored in a cool, dry place. #10 cans of gelatin work perfectly for this. To make it easier to rotate through your opened #10 cans, because no one makes that much Jello at one time, just use clear jars with labels on display like the ones below. They’ll look cute till you’re ready to use it up.
Tips: (found on
About.com)
- To avoid clumping, dry unflavored gelatin should be mixed with a little cold water first for 3 to 5 minutes to moisten and separate before adding hot water.
- To suspend fruits, meats, or vegetables in gelatin, chill until it is the consistency of cold egg whites. Then mix in the additions and chill until completely set.
- Two hours of chilling should be enough for standard clear molds, while it may take up to 4 hours for those with additions. Layered gelatins will take longer, since each layer must be individually chilled and firmed before adding the next layer.
- Do not bring gelatin mixtures to a full boil or you risk losing its thickening properties.
