In addition to hoarding toilet paper, flour, baker's yeast, and canned goods, Americans apparently have been hoarding fresh eggs, pushing prices on eggs higher. Egg prices came close to $5 per dozen in one store in California late last week. Fresh eggs are no where near that price in my area. However, the news also reported that in order to meet the current demand in stores, the inventory that was being held back for the upcoming Easter holiday week were released for consumer purchase in the past couple of weeks. This means that those super deals on eggs may or may not happen in the second week of April, as many of us have become accustomed to over the years.
In addition, as I'm not going out to stores right now, I have limited access to buying more fresh items, such as eggs. So, I've been experimenting with baking without eggs or with half the amount of eggs. This past week, I cooked/baked two items using a half an egg in each recipe, bean burger patties and a batch of oatmeal cookies.
I simply broke the egg into a custard cup and beat it before spooning out about half the beaten egg for the first recipe, then covered and kept the remaining half egg in the fridge until I baked the other recipe. The end products for both recipes turned out well. With the bean burger patties, I didn't alter the recipe in any other way. And with the cookie dough, I added about 1 1/2 tablespoons of milk to make up for the lacking moisture from using only half an egg.
I still have a few dozen fresh eggs in the fridge. I intend to stretch out their use over the course of a couple of months, if possible. In the next week or two, I'll be freezing some of the eggs to further their safe-to-eat life and provide us with eggs for cooking into the weeks of May.
In addition the using half the usual amount of eggs in cooking and baking, I've also been using egg substitutes, such as ground flax seed and a pinch extra of baking powder. Here's a post from a few years ago that outlines which substitute to use based on the function of egg in different recipes.
I hope you're all doing well.
Good Morning, Lili, and all,
ReplyDeleteStill staying home as much as possible. Just a little running to mom's house to let her pay bills, get pills, etc. and one visit to rehab. place to exchange dad's dirty clothes for clean clothes. Other than that, home is where we stay.
I'm watching and listening to a little bit of what's going on out in the world and it is making me a bit nervous. I ask myself if food will become difficult to get in the future. We have a lot but not for months and months. We listened to sermons yesterday where we should not worry because God is in control. I need to remind myself of that every single day.
Alice
Good morning, Lili and Alice --
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping that God continues to bless and protect you both in your current situations.
Talking to family around the country, it's clear that eggs are the new TP. DH said the other day that he thinks people who usually rush off to work/school are now eating breakfast and baking cookies to comfort themselves, which is probably true. The spike in buying (and DS said in his prices!) are shocking.
My experiment this week was combining some odd and assorted cereals and grains together for a multi-grain mush. I had planned to rotate, but realized I wasn't that interested in some of the options singly. The mush was good, and I plan to combine a big batch of the dry cereals together, so I can just scoop 1/3 cup at a time for a single serving, rather than measure by tablespoons and teaspoons of everything. DS is doing the math for how much I can make, based on the ingredient I have the least of. :)
One thing I'm thankful for is that I rechecked my stores, and a butcher package I thought was sausage is actually a small roast. This will be more useful with the other ingredients I have on-hand. Hooray! I think it's a little freezer-burned, but ought to cook up okay with lots of seasonings.
Hang in there, everybody! Sara
Look how are you and your family doing? We are in lockdown except for essential workers. Seems everyone thinks they are essential and I wonder if we could all stay home for two weeks would it help. My daughter works in a small bakery and I'm not thrilled she is still working. She told me they are as busy as Christmas time. Our liquor stores are closed but beer distributors are open, crazy.
ReplyDeleteI am relieved that the President reversed his optimistic timeline to reopen the economy and allow social engagement by Easter. To me, that message delivered last week already did damage by dampening our resolve to hunker down. It will take all our resolve to make it through.
ReplyDeleteOver the weekend, I've been studying mask designs, and sewed a prototype that we hope to use, in place of N95. I think we need to wear masks whenever we're out of the house, despite guidance that we should not. I decided on pleated surgical style, ties not elastic, metal nose insert, 5 layers of fabric/liner, and a removable nonwoven barrier. The masks will be washable, so I prefer to be able to remove the metal strip and nonwoven barrier. For the metal, I chose something as simple as a jumbo paperclip (pipe cleaners or art wires too), and the barrier is any nonwoven mesh that is water impermeable. I am still tweaking the dimensions and style. There are so many patterns and tutorials on the internet, I'm trying to take away what I like best in each design..
Our local cases are ramping up too. A case that is making the news is a young healthy man in his 30s who his mother says went to the gym and watched his diet. No underlying conditions, yet he is intubated and seriously ill. He had been a bartender at a hotel that served many foreign tourists. I think the length of exposure and viral load is critical to determining who succumbs. That is why I think wearing masks is better than no mask, even if it is not 100% safe. Still have to practice 6 ft social distancing with homemade masks.
Have a safe day,
YHF
Hey Lili! Hope you all are well. Is it possible to use your homemade yogurt as an egg replacement? I use sour cream in my baking items to make them moist. I know that yogurt can be substituted for sour cream. Just a thought. I know that mayonnaise can be substituted in some items for eggs as well. Have a blessed day.
ReplyDeleteI was also thinking about eggs this weekend! I was Googling ways to best use 2 egg yolks--I'm thinking that doing what you did, Lili, just using 1/2 an egg in a recipe is the best use of my eggs. I was also on the same train of thought that eggs would be a hot commodity, with Easter coming up. With that in mind, I went to Meijer this morning (taking advantage of their "essential health care worker" time frame) and there were plenty of eggs there, still for 49 cents/dozen, so at least in my neck of the woods, they can still be obtained for a reasonable price. I wanted our kids to be able to dye hard boiled eggs this week--I'm trying to keep some normalcy for them. I bought 2 dozen.
ReplyDeleteMeijer had yeast packets (not jars) as well as plastic gloves available today. I didn't go down the toilet paper aisle as we are still well-stocked, but I saw someone with toilet paper (name brand). I haven't seen hand sanitizer in eons.
Alice, when is your dad getting out of rehab?
Hi Alice,
ReplyDeleteI think it's vital that as believers, we continue to trust that God will take care of us. The news out there is horribly scary. It is easy to become overwhelmed with worry. But God really is in control and will take care of us tomorrow, just as he has taken care of us for our lives so far.
As far as food shortages -- I think most of these shortages are due to people hoarding. Once people's pantries are stuffed, they'll stop hoarding and the shortages will end. In the meantime, we just have to get creative when our own pantries seem to lack some ingredients.
I hope you have a good day, today, Alice.
Hi Sara,
ReplyDeleteThank you. I pray you will find blessings and protection in this crisis, as well.
Good work on finding a mush mixture that you enjoy! That makes sense to just mix up the ingredients in a batch, too. I've been thinking about doing that with some oat flour and all-purpose flour, just to ensure I use some oat flour in most baking. I'm still waiting on my order of AP flour to arrive and won't count on it until it is in my hands.
Oh a roast! That will be tasty and will provide delicious drippings to use for flavor in other meals. Enjoy!
Have a wonderful day, Sara!
Hi Cheryl,
ReplyDeleteI agree. If all truly non-essential workers would just stay home, and really stay in their homes or yards, for 2 to 3 weeks, I think the new cases would flatten significantly. The problem in my area is people are still getting together and meeting up. Our governor had to close trails and state parks, because people were going out en masse when the weather was nice. It's frustrating. I do think that people are being a little better this week compared to a week ago. I don't see quite the parade of folks walking in the neighborhood each day that I was seeing.
Stay safe, Cheryl. I hope you have a good day today!
Hi YHF,
ReplyDeleteI was looking at patterns for masks, as well. I also read an article on best fabrics to use and what was tested for particle transmission. I'll see if I can find that article again, because it had some good insight. I do think we'll see more mask-wearing in public in the next few months or so. For those of us who feel our immune systems may not be as good as they should be, wearing a mask in public (plus gloves even) may be a sensible thing. I also think that even when the new cases diminish, I won't run as many errands or even spend time in public as much. I'll be looking for ways to reduce contact in public, like using technology to pay for items instead of using cash or touchpads. And I really can't imagine eating in a restaurant any time soon, I hate to say.
There does seem to be something about extended exposure and severity of disease. I wish there was something scientific written about this, because I've been thinking this for a couple of months, watching news coming out of China.
I hope you have a good day, YHF.
Hi Lona,
ReplyDeleteI'll try yogurt in baking when I make a batch next. Thank you for the suggestion. I've read that about mayo. We're out of that, too, now. But that's a very good suggestion for egg replacement in baking.
Have a wonderful day, Lona! And thank you again for the suggestion.
Hi Kris,
ReplyDeleteAw, that's so thoughtful of you to make sure your kids got to dye Easter eggs. Maybe I'll redirect a few eggs for dyeing in my house.
The hand sanitizer and disinfecting wipes may be going to healthcare facilities for the time being, is my thought. And that's a good thing. Most of us can just use soap and water when we're at home, which is where we're supposed to be if we're non-essential, in most states. The other supplies that are unavailable is just hoarding, which I think will end when people realize they have too much to use. After all, most of us don't want a living room full of toilet paper. And hopefully the price-gougers will see that they can't sell ordinary items like yeast at such inflated prices. Again, how much yeast will people want to buy, even if they decide that they enjoy baking bread. Meanwhile, I'm getting my sourdough starter fired up again to stretch my yeast supply until I can buy more again at a reasonable price.
I hope you have a wonderful day, Kris. Enjoy your time with your kids.
Kris,
ReplyDeleteDad called this morning and they told him he wouldn't be released for 10 more days--a week from this coming Thursday. We just don't understand why. The staff comes around with ipads that are so filthy and do not do a good job cleaning that I just don't understand why he is better there than home. I know they want to take out his staples before he goes home so he doesn't have to go back somewhere to have them removed but 10 more days seems a bit much. Today he is 8 days post surgery. We're all frustrated because he has no clothes so we had to drive out there to exchange dirty clothes for clean clothes but it wasn't enough for 10 more days.
Alice
Alice, what a frustrating situation. Have the told you that if he leaves before then it would constitute leaving AMA (against medical advice)? If so, then he wouldn't be eligible for insurance to cover his rehab stay (and you probably don't want to go down that road).
ReplyDeleteI'm assuming they aren't letting you visit him in person--however, they should be holding weekly care conferences about him (and with him present) and should find a way for a family spokesperson to participate virtually. If you don't mind me sticking my nose in this .... I'd (nicely but firmly) request to be a part of that meeting, and when they DO meet, I would ask what goals he needs to meet prior to discharge, where he is in meeting these goals, and determine if you and your dad agree with these goals. As therapists, we are supposed to be paying attention to our patient's goals. That being said, realistically you want him to be safe with his walker for household distances, (is he non-weight bearing?), able to get up and down any stairs, able to get in and out of bed with little or no help, and able to get on and off the toilet using a raised toilet seat if needed. I think it's also fair to ask, in this era of covid, about what precautions they are taking to ensure patients will be safe. If you truly are concerned about the facility, you can contact the state ombudsman (hopefully things aren't that bad). There are a bunch of hoops that Medicare makes facilities jump through so that could be some of the delay.
I'm sorry if I'm overstepping my bounds! I hope he continues to get better.