Shambo- If you like, and normally use, Condensed Canned Soup, you should include them in your food storage rather than trying to replicate it. Condensed soups are common food storage items and used in lots of food storage recipes. However, if you are trying to avoid the high-sodium content and "odd-ball" ingredients found in most commercial canned soup, or want a reasonable substitute from storage ingredients, then there are recipes you may want to try - just don't expect the same thing (taste-wise) as Campbell's Soup. There is a number of Cream of _______ Soup base mixes to choose from if you are trying to avoid canned soups (see the link below). Augason Farms even has a #10 can of soup base, which is probably similar to what we make in our mixes. Creamed soups are really nothing more than white sauce plus added ingredients like chicken and bouillon, cheese, mushrooms, tomatoes, celery, etc. - just like we learned to make in Home Economics all those years ago. We've just gotten out of the habit of making it from scratch and reach for a can of soup instead. I like to use "Magic Mix" (a mix developed by the Utah State Extension Service), and I use the gluten-free version that uses cornstarch instead of all-purpose flour. I use cornstarch because I don't store all-purpose flour, but I DO store cornstarch - which has a long shelf-life. I also use coconut oil instead of butter called for in the recipe so it's shelf-stable and doesn't require any refrigeration. MAGIC MIX 2-1/3 c. dry NON-instant powdererd milk* (I use Morning Moo's Whey-based Milk Substitute) 1 c. all-purpose flour, OR 1/2 c. cornstarch 1 c. butter, at room temperature (I use LouAna Coconut Oil) Combine dry milk, flour or cornstarch, and butter into a large bowl. Mix with electric hand mixer until it looks like cornmeal. Keep mix tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 8-months. Yield: 5-cups. *If all you have available to you is INSTANT non-fat dry milk, you can blend the dry milk powder until it's a fine powder, and then it will measure the same as NON-instant dry milk powder. To make Condensed Cream of Tomato Soup: 1 c. Magic Mix 1 15-oz. can diced tomatoes 1 t. dried parsley flakes (optional) salt and pepper to taste Combine Magic Mix and diced tomatoes. Stir constantly over medium-high heat until mixture thickens. Add parsley, salt and pepper. Blend in blender until smooth. Serve immediately, or use in any recipe calling for canned cream of tomato soup. Cream of Mushroom Soup - using Magic Mix 1 c. Magic Mix 1 can (4-5 oz.) can mushroom pieces and stems, undrained (you can also use rehydrated freeze-dried or dehydrated mushrooms + the water used to rehydrate them 1/4 c. water 2 drops Kitchen Bouquet (optional, for color only) dash onion salt dash pepper Combine Magic Mix, mushrooms and liquid, and water. Stir constantly over medium-high heat until mixture thickens. Add Kitchen Bouquet, onion salt, and pepper. Use in any recipe calling for canned cream of mushroom soup. Other recipes using Magic Mix found in the book - "I Can't Believe It's Food Storage" by Crystal Godfrey... -Pesto Alfredo Sauce -Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup -Condensed Cream of Broccoli Soup -Condensed Cream of Celery Soup -Magic Mix Gravy -Magic Mix Fudgsicles -Magic Mix Pudding -Magic Mix White Sauce Recipe found on\-line. Tomato Soup Mix \- Single Serving by: Budget101 4 T. Non\-fat dry milk 2 T. Powdered dry tomatoes (you may want to start with 1 T. and add more if needed) 1/8 t. Basil Salt , Dash Pepper, Dash Measure all into jar or ziploc bag, shake to combine. Add mix to 1 Mug of Hot water, stir, let set 2 minutes, enjoy. TOMATO BASIL SOUP (source: Jan's Fabulous Food Storage Recipes - Converting Stored Foods into Useable Meals - by Jan LeBaron) 3 T. dehydrated chopped onions 1 t. dried garlic granules 1 t. dried basil 1 c. tomato powder 4 c. water 1 c. diced freeze-dried tomatoes (optional) In a large pan add 4 c. water, bring water to boil, lower heat and then add garlic granules, basil, whisk in tomato powder until smooth, if you are adding tomatoes dices add last 5-6 minutes. LOW\-FAT CREAM SOUP MIX (source: "Use It or Lose It" (food storage cooking school) \- by Rebecca Low and Deloy Hendricks \- Utah State University Extension) http://extension.usu.edu/files/publications/publication/FN_503.pdf 2 c. INSTANT dry milk (or 1\-1/4 c. NON\-instant) 3/4 c. cornstarch 1/4 c. chicken bouillon granules 2 T. onion flakes (dried) 1 t. basil (dried) 1 t. thyme (dried) 1/2 t. pepper Combine all ingredients and mix. Store in air tight container until ready to use. Equivalent to 9 cans of cream soup. To substitute for 1 can condensed soup: Combine 1/3 c. dry mix (use 1/4 c. if made with NON\-instant dry milk) and 1\-1/4 c. cool water or liquid from vegetables. Cook over medium heat, stirring until thickened. Add thickened mixture to casseroles as you would a can of soup. Do a search and you will find many more recipes on\-line for creamed soup substitute mixes to try. Powered butter can be reconstituted to make a spread, and I add a little coconut oil to it to add back some fat. When used in baking it is not necessary to reconstitute. Simply add it to your dry ingredients and increase the liquid the amount it would take to reconstitute. For home food storage I prefer coconut oil for cooking and baking to powdered butter, and that's the main source of fat I store. I store some powdered butter, but I only occasionally rotate it into the pantry and use it mostly for homemade mixes and baking. I also store grass-fed organic ghee (mostly for it's nutrition) and commercially canned butter (Red Feather Pure Canned Butter). --------------------------------------------------- Sweet Dairy Whey- I worked with Sweet Dairy Whey years ago as a substitute for some of the sugar in recipes. I've never used it since..... I do, however, store and use whey protein powder (and as you suspected, they are not the same thing). I often increase the protein profile of baked goods and snacks by adding protein powder - especially when we have a vegetarian day. I also use a whey-based milk substitute (Morning Moo's) which has a shortening-like effect on baked goods, so you can often use less fat in a recipe. I've made low-carb cream cheese frosting using Morning Moo's powder instead of powdered sugar and sweetened it with a little agave nectar or stevia. -Grainlady Here is a link that might be useful: Making Magic Mixes

shambo- I think you are well on your way to adding legumes back into your diet by sprouting them first, and Sprout People web site is THE place for information. The videos are great. Sprouting does help reduce the digestive issues. Do you have problems digesting nuts? If so, sprouting and dehydrating them may help you out. I soak and dehydrate all our pecans, walnuts and almonds before consuming them. We call them "Crispy Nuts" and got the information from the book,"Nourishing Traditions". I just did 8-cups of walnuts yesterday and have them safely stashed in the freezer. "Crispy Nuts" last longer in storage than untreated nuts. You need to store walnuts, even when they've been sprouted and dehydrated, in the refrigerator or freezer due to the type of oil in them. I've been sprouting for decades and have purchased all kinds of sprouters over the years, but my favorite is the Easy Sprout, and I have 3 of them (so far). I sill use 1/2-gallon canning jars with sprouting lids occasionally when sprouting large amounts. Easy Sprout sprouters are constantly in use, especially in the cooler months when I sprout wheat and other grains to grow into grass for juicing as well as sprouts, and sprouts for growing micro-greens. These are our winter source for "fresh" food. Since you will be holding your sprouts in the refrigerator instead of dehydrating them, I'd also suggest ordering a box of "Peak Fresh" reusable storage bags from Amazon.com for storing them. Sprouts really do keep longer in these bags. After you wash the bags in hot soapy water, be sure to rinse well and air dry. I like to sanitize the bags with a bleach water solution (1 t. unscented bleach to 1-quart of water - in a spritz bottle) and air dry. FYI - Lentils keep growing after they are refrigerated, so you may want to stop sprouting lentils when the tail is very short, knowing it continues to grow. Sprouted lentils and garbanzo beans will also cook faster since they are fully hydrated, so keep that in mind. I use a salad spinner (be gentle) to remove the extra water from the final rinse. Too much water remaining and the sprouts will spoil faster. I do love sprouted and dehydrated lentils, and I dehydrate what I can't use fresh within a few days of sprouting. I can quickly rehydrate them just soaking in hot water if I want to add them to a salad or stir-fry, or use them to make lentil tacos, or add to ground meat mixtures as a meat extender if I don't have any fresh sprouts on hand. I use a cooked mixture of sprouted rice and sprouted lentils as a substitute for ground beef occasionally. I sprout a bean/seed mixture (adzuki beans, lentils, mung beans, radish seeds, fenugreek and clover) and make it into fried patties to use as a meatless "burgers". (I used a mixture from SproutPeople - "Beanie's Awesome Mix" along with some NOW Zesty Sprouting Mix.) You're right, I am very cautious about the potential for bacteria growth in sprouts. I use acidified water for soaking and rinsing. I use food-grade citric acid (I buy it in bulk amounts on-line when I find a bargain). Fruit Fresh (which is a mixture of citric and ascorbic acid) will also work if you happen to have some on hand. I mix 1 t. of citric acid powder per 1-quart of water. I generally make up a gallon of water at a time in a glass gallon jug. The acidified water will also help reduce spoilage of sprouts during storage in the refrigerator. I fill my Easy Sprouter with acidified water to cover the sprouts and swish them around in the water for soaking as well as rinsing. After rinsing I hand-spin the water out like the guy does in his videos at Sprout People. Hope that helps you out. Happy sprouting and happy tummy! -Grainlady

Jim, the money supply can go up but if velocity is down, it doesn't drive inflation. I've linked below to an article on this. And how much is the money supply going up, really? The Fed is trying to drive up money supply, but the private sector is pulling it down. You can find charts of money supply, here is one: http://www.shadowstats.com/alternate_data/money-supply-charts Money supply has declined quite significantly in the past couple years. dcarch, no question the rapid growth of China and India is adding to demand. However, that growth is coming from a very low level. The consumption of goods and services by the average person in China or India is far, far less than the consumption of the average person in the US, Europe and Japan. Use GDP per capita as a rough proxy for consumption. India is about $3,500, China about $7,000 vs US about $46,000, Western Europe and Japan about $35,000. China's population is 1.3bn, India's 1.2bn, US 311mm, Western Europe 500mm (use the EU), Japan 127mm. So we can get the GDP of each region. Suppose China and India's GDP grows 60% in the next 5 years, which is 10% per year (about the current rate) while the US, Western Europe and Japan's GDP only grows 10% over the period or 2% per year (unfortunately, also about the current rate if not better). The result would be the combined GDP grows 24% over the period or 4% per year. (approximate, I don't have a spreadsheet here, just an iPhone and a pencil). (We could use other proxies for consumption, like energy consumption per capita. Which is why I did the above as a per capita calculation, instead of simply starting with country GDP.) Can the world supply 4% more ''stuff'' per year without driving inflation to very high levels? Overall, sure. There is plenty of production capacity in electronics and plastic molding and LCD screens to supply (far more than) 4% growth in iPhones and similar. There is plenty of assembly and component manufacturing capacity to supply (more than) 4% growth in automobiles. Similar for concrete to make housing, fiberboard to make furniture, etc. 4% will not stress global capacity, especially after a deep recession as we've just had. We'll see periods of volatility in some prices, as supply and demand adjust. Pork, rice, cotton, etc. This volatility will be upwards and downwards, but the price rises will get more media attention. Remember a couple of years ago, when rice was skyrocketing in price, countries were hoarding, everyone was talking about rice shortages? Rice soared to $22. Then it fell to $12, that didn't get much news. Rose to $16. Fell to $10. Rose to $14. Yet during the period 2008 to present, as rice price were cut in half, China and India have continued to grow and consume more of everything - and they eat a lot of rice. The commodities that are soaring today will collapse the same way. Commodities are more volatile today, their prices moving more than fundamental demand-supply would suggest, because more investors are playing those markets, and financial money flows are huge compared to the relatively small commodities markets. In the end, fundamentals still control. Here is a link that might be useful: Article

I'll dry any kind of tomato I happen to be growing, but I generally only grow small varieties of tomatoes. The more "meaty" varieties of tomatoes are preferred for drying. You can dry both ripe or green tomatoes. Rehydrate those green tomato slices in boiling water, dredge them and fry in melted butter in skillet. Fried Green Tomatoes for New Year's Day along with those Black-eyed Peas. ;-) It's amazing how many dried tomatoes you can stuff into a quart jar. You can also remove the skin and seeds and blend the tomatoes in a blender, add a little Fruit Fresh, and dry it on the Fruit Leather Sheets. Cut the sheets into squares and you'll find they add a lot of flavor to soups and stews as they incorporate into the liquid. You can also make tomato paste or tomato sauce by adding the tomato leather to hot water. Make a quick pasta sauce. How to: Peel tomatoes by dipping in boiling water for 1-minute, then in cold water for 1 minute. Slip off skins and cut out cores, or just the stem end - your choice. Cut into 1/8-inch slices, the seeds will generally fall out during drying. I also cut them into 1/4-inch cubes to dry. Drain them well before drying. It will help cut drying time down. I'll give the tomato cubes a gentle spin in my salad spinner to extract both moisture and seeds. I dry tomatoes in a dehydrator. It gets too humid here for good drying outdoors. Make sure your "old window screen" ISN'T galvanized, which is coated with cadmium or zinc. These metals can oxidize and leave harmful residue on the food. Also avoid copper and aluminum screening. Copper destroys vitamin C and increases oxidation. Aluminum tends to discolor and corrode. Use stainless steel, teflon-coated fiberglass and plastic screening. Sun drying isn't recommended for vegetables (other than vine-dried beans). Vegetables are low in sugar and acid, which increases the risks for food spoilage. Favorable conditions for drying outdoors - minimum temperature of 85-degrees F (with higher temperatures being better) and humidity below 60%. Be sure to bring them in overnight. The cooler night temperatures can cause condensation and add moisture back into the food and slow the drying process. This can contribute to bacteria growth (Salmonella and E. Coli). Raise the screens off the ground (saw horses) and place them over concrete when possible (or over a sheet of aluminum - the reflection of the sun on the metal increases the drying temperature). Screens placed close to the ground can actually cause the food to absorb moisture from the grass and ground. Add a fan if possible. This will help keep insects off the food, and air circulation is as important as the temperature. Food dried outdoors also has an increased chance for insects. All food dried outdoors needs to be pasteurized and cooled to room temperature before placing it into storage. To pasteurize the food, place it in a preheated 160-degree F oven for 30-minutes. An alternative is to freeze the food for 48-hours to kill any eggs from possible insect contamination. TWO screens are suggested for drying food outdoors. One screen holds the food and the other one to protect the food from "critters". Home dehydrated foods are not considered "long-storage" foods. You can extend the storage time by placing it in canning jars and vacuum-sealing the jars with a FoodSaver, or adding an oxygen absorber. You can also freeze the dehydrated food for longer storage. Recommended storage times for home dehydrated foods range from 4-months to 1-year. The food quality is affected by heat, light and storage temperature. Most dried fruits can be stored for one year at 60-degrees F, six months at 80-degrees F. Vegetables have about half the shelf-life of fruits. Vacuum-seal fruits or vegetables and keep it in the dark in a cool storage temperature and you can double the shelf-life. Remember to package your dehydrated food in small containers. Each time you open a container of food, it will draw moisture in from the air and that can cause the food to rehydrate and even mold. I package slices of dried apples in small snack-size storage bags, then place them in a 1/2-gallon jar and vacuum-seal it for storage. When it's moved from storage to the pantry, I replace the canning lid with a Universal Lid (which is easy to open and re-close). Now when I want sliced apples for a snack or for adding to muffins, I can quickly get one or two packets without the moisture getting to the entire contents of the jar. Not all foods dry properly at one temperature, that's why an electric dehydrator with a thermostat and a fan is a better choice for home dehydrating. You'll have a safer product than using the sun. The link below has a LOT of great information. -Grainlady Here is a link that might be useful: New Home Drying Recommendations