Martin Fisher

Ordered any seeds recently? I think I'll probably only be ordering from Pinetree and Fedco this year.

The middlemen benefit the most.

I don't think anyone wants to limit SNAP folks access to the THOUSANDS of foods (many convenient) that aren't considered pure junk. You're not the only one who's passionate about the subject. I've given away thousands of pounds of food over the years — surplus produce, etc. None of it 'junk food.'

I don't think it's necessarily obsession, it's what's realistically doable — be it restrictions, education or whatever.

One of my favorite things in the whole-wide-world! I 'chicken fry' as much of the deer as possible!

I'd like to see fewer folks suffer. Defining junk food isn't difficult. "those commercial products, including candy, bakery goods, ice cream, salty snacks, and soft drinks, which have little or no nutritional value but do have plenty of calories, salt, and fats." Source: Smith, Andrew F. (5 September 2000). Encyclopedia of Junk Food and Fast Food. Greenwood Press. p. x. ISBN 978-0313335273

That would be nice. How? Realistically?

No, not at all. I ran across it while doing some research today. I didn't think it warranted the start of a new topic that would probably be combined anyway.

I understand this. There are things that CAN be done though.

I'm saying that those who need nutritional assistance would be better served if they made better decisions, and/or, if the goal of the program truly is nutritional assistance (same as WIC — which has limits) perhaps junk food should be removed from the list of eligible 'foods.'

What a shame....more money that doesn't make it to those who really need it..... “We found that 3,394 authorized SNAP retailers (retailers) used Social Security Numbers (SSN) that matched SSNs of deceased people,” the inspector general said. “Additionally, 193 retailers listed owners who were not at least 18 years of age. While FNS did have some controls to edit or verify SNAP retail owner information, these controls were not adequate to ensure owner information accuracy.” “These 3,394 retailers redeemed about $2.6 billion in SNAP benefits,” the inspector general said. The 193 businesses that reported child owners redeemed $41 million in food stamps." 01/12/2017 - Detecting Potential SNAP Trafficking Using Data Analysis (PDF), (Report No. 27901-0002-13, Issued January 2017

I know this very well — I'm poor. The goal of the program is supplemental nutrition assistance. Perhaps a nutrition class should be a requirement for SNAP eligibility. Every dollar lost to waste or fraud is a dollar that doesn't go to those who actually need it.

If they do indeed require nutritional assistance perhaps the list of eligible foods should be limited to foods that are generally considered nutritious — and not junk. There are arguments against limits — none of them very strong. There's been no problem limiting eligible WIC* foods. *The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children List of WIC eligible foods.

Yes, but the stated purpose of, SNAP, the Supplemental NUTRITION Assistance Program is just as it's titled. Money (from a limited fund) is being spent on items that are junk.

"...the No. 1 purchases by SNAP households are soft drinks..." Lots of money wasted on fizzy sugar water.

For relatively short cooks I use gallon or quart Zip-Loc freezer bags inflated to about 2 inches thick ― covered with plastic wrap. For longer cooks I often use 3/4" (20mm) polypropylene floating spheres — also covered with plastic wrap.

I, also, absolutely HATE long stringy meat! I chop fine for sandwich spread (the way my grandparents did it) or cubed for salad served on lettuce or the like.

Not exactly a 'gadget' nor new — but extremely handy! Stainless steel badge clips from Craft, Inc. in MA. I use them for numerous purposes around the kitchen as well as clothespins, etc. They're stainless steel — so they don't rust. I've bought dozens of them. FWIW, they're listed as "Badge Clips -2211-SS - Stainless Steel - (10 pcs.) "FREE SHIPPING"" on eBay — price $5.50

Square 6-quart Cambro or Rubbermaid. I found Rubbermaid's at Sam's Club.

The Spice House, mentioned above, is owned by Patty Erd (and her husband) Bill Penzey's sister. The Spice House carries powdered bay leaf. I no longer order from Penzey's. Patty says she welcomes the business from those of us who got tired of Bill's extremely annoying rants.

Unfortunately, it goes stale quickly when refrigerated. "The reason a refrigerator is bad for bread: When bread is stored in a cold (but above freezing) environment, this recrystallization, and therefore staling, happens much faster than at warmer temperatures. Freezing, however, dramatically slows the process down."

Here's the file.... Freezer Inventory Tracker for Excel 2003 ver2.xls

It's either on sale or clearance. The price is lower than it used to be.

Yeah, stackable bins work well in that type of freezer. FWIW — bonus simple freezer inventory tracker spreadsheet here — see post #26 for the updated version.

FWIW, I have a 2 quart Calphalon saucier with a disk bottom — similar to the Vollrath — and a Sur La Table tri-ply saucier. I recommend the Sur La Table or the like.