In case of a long-term survival situation, the following bread and biscuit recipes don't require eggs or yeast and can be prepared with foodstuffs which will keep on a pantry shelf without refrigeration (except whole wheat flour which you should grind as needed): South Boston Brown Bread 1 cup rye flour 1 cup yellow cornmeal 1 cup whole wheat flour 2 tbsp. plain white flour 2 tsp. baking soda 3/4 tsp. salt 3/4 cup raisins 2 cups buttermilk or sour milk (to sour milk, put 2 tbsp. lemon juice or vinegar in a pint container, add milk to make 2 cups, stir and let sit a few minutes until clabbered) 3/4 cup molasses Sift dry ingredients together. Add raisins. Stir. Mix buttermilk with molasses and pour into dry mixture. Blend well and pour into greased 9x5-inch loaf pan (do not use 8x4-inch pan unless you enjoy cleaning your oven). Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. (Note: This bread is named after South Boston in Halifax County, Virginia, CSA.) Old-Fashioned Brown Bread 2 cups graham or whole wheat flour 1 cup all-purpose flour 1 tsp. baking soda 1/2 tsp. salt 1 cup dark molasses 1 cup buttermilk 1/2 cup low-fat milk Mix graham flour, all-purpose flour, baking soda and salt in a medium size bowl. In a large bowl, combine molasses, buttermilk and low-fat milk; stir until blended. Add flour mixture to milk mixture; stir until well blended. Pour batter into a greased 9x5-inch loaf pan. Bake at 325 degrees until bread begins to pull away from sides of pan and a skewer inserted in center comes out clean (1 to 1-1/4 hours). Let cool in pan on a rack for 10 minutes, then turn out onto rack and let cool completely. Master Biscuit Mix 4 cups whole wheat flour 4 cups unbleached or all-purpose flour 1/3 cup baking powder 1 tbsp. salt Mix all ingredients (store in refrigerator or freezer for later use, if desired). To prepare, take 1-1/2 cups of master biscuit mix and add 3/4 cup milk and 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Mix. With a large spoon, drop mounds of batter on baking sheet or cast iron skillet. Bake at 425 degrees for about 15 minutes or until the tops are brown. Cabin Buttermilk Biscuits 2 cups flour 2 tsp. baking powder 1/4 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp. salt 1 cup buttermilk (about) 2 tbsp. lard or shortening Sift dry ingredients together and blend with lard or shortening. Add buttermilk, about one cup to make soft dough. Roll on a floured board until 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick and cut with drinking glass or biscuit cutter. Place on baking sheet and bake in 350 degrees oven about 10 minutes or until brown. Mammy's Baking Powder Biscuits 2 cups flour 4 tsp. baking powder 1/4 tsp. salt 2 tbsp. shortening 1/2 cup milk Sift dry ingredients together. Work in shortening with fingertips. Add milk slowly, stirring the batter until smooth. Roll on a floured board until 1/2-inch thick and cut. Place on a baking sheet and bake in a hot (450 degrees) oven for 15 minutes. Rebel Yell Whole Wheat Biscuits 2 cups whole wheat flour 2 cups unbleached or plain white flour 1-1/2 tsp. salt 8 tsp. baking powder 1/2 cup vegetable oil 1-1/2 cups milk (or more) Mix dry ingredients. Combine oil and milk. Stir the liquid into the dry mixture quickly. On greased baking sheets, make mounds of dough using a large spoon, leaving enough space to allow for expansion. Bake at 425 degrees for about 12 minutes. Casseroles, Soups, Stews and Dumplings. Much colonial cooking consisted of meals that simmered for hours in cast iron kettles over the fireplace. One-pot meals in a dutch oven or iron kettle over a fire are still a practical method for preparing a lot of food with minimum effort. For casseroles the ingredients are mixed together in the cooking vessel and then baked. For soups and stews on the stove top or over the fire, the meat goes in first and vegetables are added towards the end of the cooking time. If unexpected guests show up, an extra potato can be quartered and dropped in the stew pot. If meat is in short supply for your stew, you can substitute bouillon cubes and a little butter or vegetable oil and add potatoes or dumplings. Dumplings can be quickly p repared to stretch a meal by adding biscuit dough in small lumps or strips and steaming in the covered pot for 10 to 15 minutes (either use a biscuit recipe from the previous section or try one of the dumpling recipes below). Whole Wheat Biscuit Mix for Dumplings 1 cup white flour 1 cup whole wheat flour 2 tsp. baking powder 1 tsp. salt 2 tbsp. shortening or oil 1/4 cup powdered milk Combine at home and store in a zip-lock bag or Nalgene bottle. In camp, add 3 tablespoons water per 1/2 cup biscuit mix and mix well. Spoon into boiling stew or soup. Simmer 10 minutes uncovered and 10 minutes covered. Cornmeal Dumplings 1 cup cornmeal 1/4 tsp. black pepper ham stock Mix cornmeal and pepper. While ham stock is boiling, pour some over meal mixture and stir into dough. Make stiff enough to form balls the size of an egg and drop in briskly boiling stock. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes. Dumplings 4 cups flour 1/3 cup lard or other shortening 1-1/2 to 2 cups water Mix together flour and lard. Add water and mix thoroughly. Toss dough on a floured surface until coated with flour. Divide into 4 balls and roll dough out 1 ball at a time to about 1/4-inch or thinner. Cut in strips and cut strips into 2-inch pieces. Add a few pieces at a time to boiling broth. Cook uncovered, making sure that each dumpling is under the liquid part of the time. cook about 5 to 10 minutes. Makes 4 to 5 large servings. (Note: If using self rising flour, make sure to use hot water so dough will rise before cooking.) Beef Stew with Dumplings 1-1/2 pounds rump roast 1/4 cup flour 1-1/2 tsp. salt 1/4 tsp. pepper 1 small onion 1/3 cup cubed carrots 1/3 cup cubed turnips 4 cups potatoes, quartered Wipe meat off, remove from the bone, cut in 1-1/2 inch cubes. Mix flour with salt and pepper and cover meat with mixture. Heat some fat from meat in a frying pan. Add meat and brown. Put meat with browned fat in stew kettle, add boiling water to cover. Simmer until tender, about 3 hours. Add carrots and turnips for last hour of cooking. Add potatoes 20 minutes and dumplings 15 minutes before serving. Use one of the dumpling recipes above. Chicken and Dumplings 1 stewing hen 3 cups flour 1 egg 1 heaping tablespoon shortening 1 tsp. salt 1/2 cup cold water Cut chicken for stewing. Barely cover with water and cook until tender for about 2 to 3 hours. Remove chicken from stock and remove bones. Put flour in mixing bowl. In center of flour put egg, shortening and salt. Gradually add cold water. Work plenty of flour into dough. Roll thin and cut in 2x3-inch strips. When dumplings are added to broth, lower heat and simmer about 12 to 15 minutes. Place the chicken back in the stew. A little butter may be added if chicken is lacking in fat. Chicken Pot Pie 3 to 4 cups cooked chopped chicken 1 16-ounce can mixed vegetables, drained 1 can cream of chicken soup 1 cup chicken broth 1 cup self-rising flour (if using ordinary flour, add 1 tsp. baking powder and 1/2 tsp. salt) 1 tsp. baking powder 1 cup milk 1/2 stick (1/4 cup) margarine, melted Place chicken in a large casserole dish and add vegetables, soup and broth. Mix together, in a separate bowl, the next 4 ingredients for the topping. Pour the topping mixture over the chicken. Bake at 425 degrees for about 45 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. -