Tag Archives: wolf pack wood craft

Building Your Pantry

May 31, 2023

A big part of prepping is your pantry and knowing what to stockpile. Years ago I wrote a post on building your stockpile. However, I have learned a lot since that initial post, here are a few more ways to build your pantry.

How are you supposed to know what to stockpile?

At our home, we call it The Menu, this book is where we store all our favorite and frequented meals. If you are just starting, use note cards or notebook paper. The important thing is to make sure you write down what you are making and eating. When you have done this for a month you can look through your notes and find common ingredients, this is your starting point. Ingredients and spices that you use often and are comfortable with, should be your baseline.

How to build your pantry

Now that you have your list of the most used ingredients, you need to purchase them to stockpile. This can be done in a few ways, and as fast or slow as your budget allows. Start by buying an extra box or two on regular grocery shopping trips. My four favorite ways are listed below:

Warehouse Clubs –

We love Sam’s club and that is our go-to for our bulk grocery items. Flour, rice, different sugars, and even meat are great to stock up on here. There are different tiers of memberships and you can usually find a discount for your first year (i.e. a free year to try it out.) We for sure go twice a year, with these closest store being a hour and a half from us, but you can adjust this to your family’s needs.

Subscribe and Save Shipments –

There are a lot of websites where you can sign up for specific items to be sent on a regular basis, this setting normally comes with a discount. For the most part we use Amazon for Subscribe and Save of spices, different sauces, cleaning supplies and even personal hygiene items. There is an option to adjust the frequency and Subscribe and Save can often save you 15% on a regular basis, with an initial discount on top of that when you set it up. Another retailer we use for this is PetSmart with our dog’s food.

Shopping Sales and Clearance –

This is one way to save money that never changes for us. Always hit up grocery clearance for damaged packaging or brand relabeling. Another tip on grocery clearance is to make sure and check it out for one to three days following a storm, this is when I find the deepest discounts on fresh food and stock up. When you regularly watch sales, you will learn the patterns and can keep your pantry in line with that.

Local Farmers –

An initially large investment up front, when ave4raged out, it is often half the price of the grocery store. There are also some farmers who will work out payment plans with you. Make sure to follow your favorite local farmers on social media, they will often advertise an specials, whether someone backed out of their beef or it’s a weather related.

It can be overwhelming to start a pantry from nothing and be unsure of where to start. However, if you can get your most common ingredients together you have your shopping list. From there it is just investing the time to find the best deals for your budget.

Let me know in the comment section below your favorite tips to start and maintain a pantry!

Homemade Garlic Powder

September 10, 2022

Earlier this year, I made a list of five items to DIY this year, you can check out that list here. On that list, I wrote that I was excited to make my own garlic powder at home, and now that I have tried it, there’s no going back.

First of all, this homemade garlic powder is WAY more flavorful, so you can use less while cooking. Second, it’s a super easy project to complete. You will need three tools:

A chef’s knife. This knife is made by Victorinox, super shape, and holds a great edge.
A dehydrator. Any dehydrator will do, even the stackable tray ones. I prefer the dehydrators with fans in the back, they dry more evenly, and no need to rotate the trays. My dehydrator is no longer available, but this one is similar and has great reviews.
A blender. Any blender works, I happen to have this Nutribullet.

Now it’s time to get started! I used 2lbs of garlic bulbs for this project, which made about a pint of powder. The most time-consuming part is peeling and slicing the garlic. To save some time, you could use a container of pre-minced garlic. Now you can lay the garlic slices on your tray and get dehydrating, if using pre-minced place parchment paper down on the tray first. Now that you have your trays prepped, set the dehydrator to 125 F and check at 8 hours, every four after that. I use this Dehydrator Cookbook to find temperatures and times for dehydrating.

Make sure that your garlic is completely dry, you do not want it to mold on you. Once the garlic is completely dry, you can pulse it in the blender until it is a fine powder. Store in a mason jar and use as needed.

Best Camping Stove for Cooking in the Woods

November 1, 2018

I am an avid foodie and that does not stop when I am spending time in the woods, so I often question: What is the best camping stove for cooking in the woods? Food is something that brings us all together and creates memories with each other, so it’s important to be able to cook the food you want and enjoy the best taste. There are four main stove types when cooking in the woods Alcohol, Wood, Canister and an old-fashioned Fire Grate.

Alcohol Stove

These are a good, light-weight option to take with you on your trek through the woods. There are many different styles of stoves for this fuel type, you can even easily make one yourself out of a pop can! Esbit makes one that has a great snuffer ring, however, this version does not come with a pot stand, you need to buy this separately. Pathfinder school, on the other hand, has a snuffer ring that doesn’t seal tight so you can potentially burn yourself. The Pathfinder is my favorite for this fuel option, it has larger fuel storage and comes with a pot stand that fits snuggly around the base. Both the Esbit and the Pathfinder School have a secure cap to ensure your fuel doesn’t spill out all over your gear, while you need to carry fuel in a separate container with a DIY version.

Pros: Fast for boiling water, good for burn bans
Cons: Not the safest, Might not come with pot stand, Easily Spilled, Cannot adjust the flame

Wood Stove

Wood Stoves are awesome for bringing in the woods because they run on kindling, and in the woods, you are surrounded by kindling! These come in three parts that slide into each other for a compact stove. You slide the pot stand out of the ash box and then set into the air intake base. This is a great system, but not recommended for beginners. You do not want to rely on creating a fire with wood if you are inexperienced and should at least bring another fuel type as a backup. Nulipam is the brand we use when using a wood burner for our primary fuel type. This stove set up is nice because the pot stand fits a pan, as well as a small pot, making your cooking options endless.

Pros: Won’t spill, Fits pans, Compact
Cons: Can be hard to get a fire going or to keep it going, Cannot adjust the flame

Canister Stoves

Canister stoves are by far my favorite when it comes to portable fuel stoves! These are light-weight, safe from spilling and you are able to use them when there is a burn ban out in the woods. There are two main types I use – both are the burner type, however one is Piezo Ignition (you will not need a lighter) and the other is manual (you will need a lighter.) The downside is that you will have to carry the fuel canister separate, however, they have a good, sturdy build with feet that fold out, making them ideal for pots and pans without the worry of them falling over. The other thing I love about these stoves is that you can adjust the heat, so you don’t burn your eggs! When there is a fire ban the canister stove is the best camping stove for me!

Pros: Adjustable flame, Sturdy feet holds pots and pans, Lightweight, Safe from spills, OK during burn bans
Cons: Need to carry a fuel canister separate

Fire Grate

The by far BEST camping stove for cooking when you are out in nature is right over your fire. There are many types of grates you can buy for this such as the UCO Grilliput, which I found flimsy and hard to use, and Coghlan’s Camp Grill, which is sturdy and reliable. The material you need to start the fire is around you, so you do not have to pack in any sort of fuel. Although it can be tricky for beginners to get a fire, this is the best way to cook while camping, especially if you have fresh food. Nothing beats a steak that gets the nice caramelized fat and smoky flavor. It is also dual purpose because once it cools down at night you can heat yourself around the fire that fed you!

Pros: Yummy steak, Safe from fuel spills, Holds pots and pans, Fire building material found in nature
Cons: Flame is not adjustable, Need to be a bit more skilled, Grate can be bulky, Cannot use this option in a fire ban

Best Camping Stove for Me

Overall my top two picks are the Fuel Canister Stoves and Fire Grates for best camping stove! Let me know what your favorite stove for cooking is below and what you make on your trips!