raw foods to stock for hurricane season

[JEN]

After going through Hurricane Katrina last summer and not heading the warnings to leave I found myself along with family and friends in a very bad position. We had plenty of canned food, MREs (military rations....yuck) and lots of water, but it would be weeks before I would see a lucious green salad or fresh fruit
. Restaraunts were gone, grocery stores closed and what was open had no trucks to bring in supplies to restock. We found ourselves with only the clothes on our backs and what supplies had survived that didnt float away or get ruined by the water. I was not eating raw at the time but salads were a daily food for me and having to eat what we had available was not pleasant for my body. Now that I am 100% raw and hurricane season is upon us I am trying to decide how to prepare foods for myself should this happen again. I have a dehydrator so I thought of dehydrating things and then sealing them with my foodsaver. Im not real sure about how long things keep so I was wondering if anyone out there could help me with this......Jeannie

[Lunar*Fey]

I would suggest making a ton of things and then freezing them. You could probably also freeze salad greens and then make green smoothies with them when the time comes. But then, if there are hurricanes I am not sure you will be able to make green smoothies lol. So I would definately just suggest making a bunch of things you like and then freezing them...like burgers, pates, cookies, whatever. You can probably keep some bananas and other fruits frozen too. I don't know if you CAN freeze things for a hurricane season...so sorry if this was no help at all.

good luck!

[sport]

If you hace access the water then you can sprout enough greens to get you by. I suggest that you store some seeds for sprouting such as alfalfa and brocolli.
You should also soak some sunflower and pumpkin seeds and they dry them in the dehydrator and bag them.
Nuts will be ok to keep.
You can make some fruit leathers

[Oceana]

dehy foods, nuts, keep plenty of avos, bananas on hand when you see a storm coming. Things that don't need a frig.

[DavidZaneMason]

Apples & Oranges will keep for weeks in a cool environment (like in a garbage bag in a cooler of cool water)....and most veggies will keep for up to a week in similar conditions. You should have no problems.

-David Mason

[denisedeland]

Jen this is a great topic.. Hurricane season is here.. I grew up in Florida and I know how you feel. They have some machines out on the market that seals bags and takes all the air out. I saw them at Target. After dehydrating if you seal them I hear they have a very long shelf life and they would be water tight as well. I am also thinking of doing this because my family still live in Florida and I like to spend alot time with them and hurricane season runs till November 30th.. Only reason I know this is because that's my birthday..lol.. When I find out the name I'll let you know and see if I can find out what the shelf life will be.

Denise

[rawfigure]

fermented veggies ?

[Dimond]

Raw protein bars like Think Organic & Organic Greens Bars, protein powders you can just mix with water, pre-made crackers, Wholefood Farmacy foods, coconut oil.

[rachelmh]

I live in South Florida and we were just discussing this the other day. I am thinking apples, pears, dried fruits and veggies, nuts, and you can sprout grains. I guess we will all have to brainstorm again, if, a storm approaches. (I have to say if, and not when.) Two years of storms down here was enough!!!!

[JEN]

Thanks for all the great suggestions! Although after being in water up to my neck in Katrina, I'm thinking maybe I'll just run for the hills. :D

[denisedeland]

I'm with you Jen.. I would run for the Hills... But I know that sometimes you can't get away. When Andrew hit I-75 was like a parking lot. We tried to get away from the storm. We were in Fort Myers on the beach and was told we had to leave. We made it as far as Sarasota. It was just a mess. I grew up in a small town called Englewood FL that is right on the Gulf. They were hit by Charley and it really did some damage. So when I go to visit my parents I plan to make sure I'm good to go..

Denise

[24 Carrots]

Greens would be important to me. I get the animal manna which is the Ancient Sun bluegreen algae that has a tiny bit more bacteria in testing but still very safe for humans because it is so much cheaper than getting the Crystal Manna.

I love the way Kale gets so crispy from dehydration. Would be wonderful to dehydrate lots and lots of kale and then find a way to vacuum seal it so that it will stay dry. Or if not vacuum sealed, I would put in airtight containers.

When I travel I love to have lots of figs, dates, sunflower seeds (and other seeds and nuts though I try not to eat too many seeds and nuts).

Try making a paste with avocado and banana, spread thin and dehydrate. It would be high in protein, vitamin E, healthy fats, etc.

[denisedeland]

That is really some great ideas Michele.. I would have never thought of Kale..

Denise

[greeninlosangeles]

You probably should stock on green powders like Vitamineral Green by HealthForce Nutritionals(same as Nature's First Food, except that later one doesn't have carob powder in it.)
And learn about edible wild greens in your area(lambsquarters, chickweed, plantain and malva grow everywhere!)

I love this thread, because it gives me ideas what to pack for trips this summer!

[RowanC]

I'm not sure freezing things is a good idea for hurricane season.
Many times, electricity goes out for days....

Dehydrating seems like a better idea...
You could even start some lettuce, onions, and tomatoes in hanging planters that you could bring inside if the storm hits?

[RawNut]

Thanks for posting this. It hadn't even occurred to me to stockpile RAW foods! I should have, especially since getting sideswiped by Charley in '04.

You are from Biloxi? My parents used to vacation there every year but, after Katrina, there was nothing much left. They go to Tunica now but say they loved Biloxi much more.

Craig

[rawpriestess]

JEN, I just got a food saver, and I would strongly suggest that you make up some emergency kits with it.

We always have an emergency preparedness bag near our front door, and in each of our cars, and our boat etc.

We have, toothbrushes, bandaids, extra set of clothes, lots of sox, comb, crank radio, crank flashlight, water proof shakey flashlights (none of these items need batteries, or anything else), good sturdy shoes, emergency silver reflective thermal blanket, metal mirror, safety pins, tea tree oil, dog leash and harness, cat leash and harness, lots of plastic baggies, of various sizes, and trash bags, large enough to wear over our clothes in case of rain, my special pillow (it's a small buckwheat thingy) Swiss army knife, and several other knives of various sizes and uses, a deck of cards, any small book (I like James Herriot) and all of these things we have in zip lock baggies, so we have extra bags.

I have always carried these things in my car, and surprisingly I have needed many of them at different times.

I'm sure we have lots of other things in there, I used to keep a couple of pops, and a bunch of hard candies, for an instant sugar high, but not any more, I can wild forage for food if necessary.

Oh, yes, and the number one most important thing to have on hand, is a Nikken water bottle, it has a filter in it, that will clean water.

There are probably a dozen more things you would need, but this is all I can think of off the top of my head.